Childrens Illustrated Thesaurus

62

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

desire

desire^1

verb to want something

» We can stay longer at

the fair if you desire.

crave, fancy, long for,

want, wish, yearn,

ache for, covet

desire^2

noun a feeling of wanting

something » I have a strong

desire to help people.

appetite, craving,

hankering, longing, wish,

yearning, yen (informal)

despair^1

noun a loss of hope

» Emma felt despair at the

thought of yet another long

car journey.

dejection, despondency,

gloom, hopelessness

despair^2

verb to lose hope » I despair

at this rain – will it ever stop?

feel dejected,

feel despondent,

lose heart, lose hope

despite

preposition in spite of

» He gave a great talk despite

his fear of public speaking.

in spite of, notwithstanding

(formal), regardless of

destroy

verb to ruin something

completely » The fire

destroyed the building.

annihilate, demolish,

devastate, obliterate,

raze, ruin, wreck

destruction

noun the act of destroying

something » The destruction

of the rainforest left many

animals homeless.

annihilation, demolition,

devastation, obliteration

detail

noun an individual feature of

something » We discussed

every detail of the play.

aspect, element, particular,

point, respect, fine point,

nicety

determination

noun a firm decision to do

something » Adam showed

determination in his training

for the Olympics.

perseverance, persistence,

resolution, resolve (formal),

tenacity, doggedness,

single-mindedness,

steadfastness, willpower

determine^1

verb to cause or control a

situation or result » The size

of the chicken determines the

cooking time.

control, decide, dictate,

govern, shape

determine^2

verb to decide or settle

something firmly

» The date of the match had

not yet been determined.

arrange, choose, decide,

fix, resolve, settle

determine^3

verb to find out the facts about

something » The X-ray will

determine if there are any

broken bones.

ascertain (formal), confirm,

discover, establish,

find out, verify

determined

adjective firmly decided » Mia

was determined to finish the

race, however long it took her.

bent on, dogged, intent on,

persistent, purposeful,

resolute (formal),

single-minded, tenacious,

steadfast, unflinching,

unwavering

develop^1

verb to grow or become more

advanced » The seedling

developed new leaves.

advance, evolve, grow,

mature, progress, result,

spring

develop^2

verb to become affected by

an illness or fault » He

developed pneumonia.

catch, contract (formal),

fall ill, get, go down with,

pick up, succumb

devious

adjective achieving your goal by

sly methods » He got another

turn by being devious, claiming

he'd missed out last time.

calculating, scheming,

underhand, wily

devoted

adjective very loving and loyal

» He was a devoted father.

constant, dedicated,

doting, faithful, loving,

loyal, true

die^1

verb to stop living » The

flowers had drooped and died.

cark it (Australia and

New Zealand; informal),

expire (formal), pass away,

pass on, perish (formal)

die^2

verb to fade away » Liam

reassured her that the worry

she felt would soon die.

fade away, fade out,

peter out

die out

verb to cease to exist » Many

ancient customs have died out.

disappear, fade, vanish

difference^1

noun a lack of similarity

between things » There is

a huge difference between the

size of a Yorkshire Terrier and

a Great Dane.

contrast, discrepancy,

disparity, distinction,

divergence, variation

antonym: similarity

difference^2

noun the amount by which

two quantities differ

» The difference between

17 and 19 is two.

balance, remainder

The fire destroyed the building.

There is a huge difference between

the size of a Yorkshire Terrier and

a Great Dane.

The seedling developed

new leaves.

The destruction of the rainforest

left many animals homeless.

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