Childrens Illustrated Thesaurus

163

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n

o

f

polite

plot^2

noun the story of a novel

or play » The film has a

ludicrously complicated plot.

narrative, scenario, story,

story line

plot^3

verb to plan something secretly

with others » The students

plotted to leave school early

so they didn’t have to play

hockey in the rain.

conspire, hatch, plan,

scheme, cabal, collude,

machinate

plug^1

noun a small, round object

for blocking a hole

» She pulled the plug out

and the water flowed away.

bung, cork, stopper

plug^2

verb to block a hole with

something » The plumber

worked all night to plug

the leak.

block, fill, seal

plump

adjective rather fat » That cat

is starting to look plump.

beefy (informal), burly,

chubby, fat, stout, tubby

point^1

noun the purpose or meaning

something has » The point

of wearing a coat is to be warm.

aim, goal, intention, object,

purpose

point^2

noun a quality or feature

» Tact was never her

strong point.

attribute, characteristic,

feature, quality, side, trait

point^3

noun the thin sharp end

of something » He pricked his

finger on the point of a needle.

nib, prong, tip

poison

noun a substance that can

harm or kill people or animals

» Mercury is a known poison.

toxin, venom

related word: adjective toxic

poisonous

adjective containing something

that causes death or illness

» A few plants are poisonous.

noxious, toxic, venomous

poke^1

verb to jab or prod someone

or something » She poked

a knife into the cake to see

if it was cooked.

dig, elbow, jab, nudge,

prod, stab

poke^2

noun a jab or prod » She gave

Richard a playful poke.

dig, jab, nudge, prod

polish^1

verb to improve a skill or

technique » I need to polish

my writing skills.

brush up, improve,

perfect, refine

polish^2

verb to make smooth and shiny

by rubbing » Every morning,

he polished his shoes until

they shone.

buff, shine, wax

polish^3

noun elegance or refinement

» The lyrics lack the polish

of his later songs.

class (informal), elegance,

finesse, grace, refinement,

style, politesse, suavity,

urbanity

polite^1

adjective having good manners

She pulled the plug out and the ▲ SEE ABOVE^

water flowed away.

Every morning, he polished

his shoes until they shone.

polite

(^1) adjective having good manners
» He is always polite
and always remembers
to say thank you.
civil
He is civil to his parents
except when he’s tired
and hungry.
courteous
He is courteous and gives
up his seat on the bus.
respectful
He is respectful of his
grandparents’ views.
well behaved
He is well behaved in
front of the teachers.
well mannered
He is well mannered and
thinks of other people.
antonym:
rude
She is rude and
always interrupts.
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