Childrens Illustrated Thesaurus

224

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

tact

talent

noun a natural ability

» Jess had a talent for ballet.

ability, aptitude, capacity,

flair, genius, gift, knack

talk^1

verb to say things

» My parents talked about the

holiday they were planning.

chat, converse, natter,

ramble, gossip, say,

state, mention

talk^2

noun a conversation

» The students had a long

talk about the new teacher.

chat, chatter, conversation

talk^3

noun an informal speech

» The visitor gave a talk

about volunteering for charity.

address, discourse, lecture,

sermon, speech,

disquisition, oration

talkative

adjective talking a lot

» The boy was so talkative;

he never stopped!

chatty, communicative,

long-winded

tall

adjective higher than average

▶▶ SEE RIGHT

tangle^1

noun a mass of long things

knotted together

» There was a tangle of wires

behind the television.

jumble, knot, mass, mat,

muddle, web

tangle^2

verb to twist together or

catch someone or something

» The kite became tangled

in the tree’s branches.

catch, jumble, knot, twist

task

noun a job that you have to do

» Emily had the task of

walking the dog.

assignment, chore, duty,

job, mission, undertaking

taste^1

noun the flavour of something

» I like the taste of fresh

strawberries.

flavour, tang

taste^2

noun a small amount of food

or drink » The chef had a

taste of the sauce before it

was served.

bite, mouthful, sip

taste^3

noun a liking for something

» My Aunt Flo has a real

taste for adventure.

appetite, fondness, liking,

penchant (formal), partiality,

predilection

tasteless^1

adjective having little flavour

» The vegetables were

overcooked and tasteless.

bland, insipid

antonym: tasty

tasteless^2

adjective vulgar and unattractive

» Decorating your bathroom

gold is rather tasteless.

flashy, garish, gaudy, tacky

(informal), tawdry, vulgar

antonym: tasteful

tact

noun the ability not to offend

people » The teacher corrected

Ed’s mistakes with great tact.

delicacy, diplomacy,

discretion, sensitivity

tactful

adjective careful not to offend

» Jon’s questions were always

tactfully worded.

diplomatic, discreet,

sensitive

antonym: tactless

take^1

verb to require something

» My sister takes three

hours to get ready.

demand, require, need

take^2

verb to carry something

» I’ll take your bag for you.

bear (formal), bring, carry,

convey (formal), ferry, fetch,

transport

take^3

verb to lead someone

somewhere » She took

John to the bus stop to

make sure he didn’t get lost.

bring, conduct (formal),

escort, guide, lead, usher

take care of^1

verb to look after someone

or something » Abigail was

asked to take care of the baby

for the day.

care for, look after, mind,

nurse, protect, tend, watch

antonym: neglect

take care of^2

verb to deal with a problem,

task, or situation » Darcy took

care of tidying the house.

attend to, cope with,

deal with, handle, manage,

see to

take in^1

verb to deceive someone

» I was taken in by the girl

at the market; the apples she

sold me were old and nasty.

con (informal), deceive,

dupe, fool, mislead, trick

take in^2

verb to understand something

» Tara took in everything

the coach said, and her

technique soon improved.

absorb, appreciate,

assimilate, comprehend,

digest, get, grasp,

understand

I’ll take your bag for you.

Abigail was asked to take care of

the baby for the day.

The chef had a taste of the sauce

before it was served.

There was a tangle of wires

behind the television.

224-234_T.indd 224 22/03/17 11:36 am