Childrens Illustrated Thesaurus

20

A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z

attack^2

verb to criticize someone

strongly » She attacked the

minister’s views on education.

blast, censure, criticize,

have a go at (Britain;

informal), put down

(informal), vilify (formal),

berate, dress down,

lambaste, revile

attack^3

noun violent physical action

against someone or something

» It was an unprovoked attack

on the surprised man.

assault, charge, invasion,

offensive, onslaught, raid

attempt^1

verb to try to do something

» They attempted to escape.

endeavour, seek, strive,

try, try your hand at

attempt^2

noun an act of trying

to do something

» It was Ryan’s third

attempt at the pole vault.

bid, crack (informal),

go (informal), shot (informal),

stab (informal), try

attitude

noun someone’s way

of thinking and behaving

» Having a positive attitude

helps you achieve your dreams.

outlook, perspective, point

of view, position, stance

attract

verb to appeal to or interest

» The trial races have

attracted many leading riders.

appeal to, draw, entice,

lure, pull (informal), tempt

antonym: repel

It was Ryan’s third attempt

at the pole vault.

attractive

adjective pleasant, especially

to look at » The leading star

is very attractive.

appealing, charming,

fetching, handsome,

lovely, pretty, comely,

prepossessing, winsome

antonym: unattractive

attribute

noun a quality or feature

» Anna’s main attribute

is her unfailing generosity.

characteristic, feature,

property, quality, trait,

idiosyncrasy, peculiarity

augment

verb to add something

to something else

» Sally augmented her pocket

money by dogsitting for the

neighbours when they went

out for the day.

add to, boost, complement,

increase, reinforce,

supplement, top up

authentic

adjective real and genuine

» The cake was made

to an authentic French recipe.

bona fide, dinkum (Australia

and New Zealand; informal),

genuine, real, true

antonym: fake

automatic^1

adjective operating

mechanically by itself

» Modern trains have

automatic doors.

automated, mechanical,

robot, self-propelled

automatic^2

adjective without conscious

thought » Breathing is an

automatic physical function.

instinctive, involuntary,

natural, reflex

automobile

noun (US) a vehicle for

carrying a few people

» After thinking about

it, Ali decided to buy

an expensive automobile.

car, motor, vehicle

available

adjective ready for use

» There are three small

boats available for hire.

accessible, at hand,

at someone’s disposal,

free, handy, to hand

antonym: unavailable

average^1

adjective standard or normal

» I get up at 7am on an

average weekday, but

tomorrow is a holiday

so I'll sleep longer.

normal, regular, standard,

typical, usual

average^2 :

on average

adverb for the most part

» Men are, on average,

taller than women.

as a rule, generally,

normally, typically,

usually

avoid^1

verb to keep away from

someone or something

» She thought he was

trying to avoid her.

dodge, elude, eschew

(formal), evade, shun,

sidestep, steer clear of

avoid^2

verb to make an effort

not to do something

» Liam avoided going out

by pretending to be ill.

dodge, duck out of

(informal), fight shy of,

refrain from, shirk,

circumvent,

give a wide berth to

aware^1 : aware of

adjective conscious of

something » Ava was acutely

aware of the noise of the city.

acquainted with,

conscious of,

familiar with, mindful of

antonym: unaware

aware^2

adjective knowing about

something » Keep me

aware of any developments.

informed, in the picture,

knowledgeable, in the loop

awful

adjective very unpleasant

or very bad » The weather

this morning is awful.

appalling, dreadful,

frightful, ghastly,

horrendous, terrible,

abysmal, deplorable

The weather this morning is awful.

After thinking about it, Ali decided

to buy an expensive automobile.

The leading star is very attractive.

attack

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