English words starting with A

a battery

1. noun: the battery used to heat the filaments of a vacuum tube

a bit

1. adverb: to a small degree; somewhat; "it's a bit warm"; "felt a little better"; "a trifle smaller"

a capella

1. adjective: sung without instrumental accompaniment; "they sang an a cappella Mass"
2. adverb: without musical accompaniment; "they performed a cappella"

a capella singing

1. noun: singing without instrumental accompaniment

a cappella

1. adjective: sung without instrumental accompaniment; "they sang an a cappella Mass"
2. adverb: without musical accompaniment; "they performed a cappella"

a cappella singing

1. noun: singing without instrumental accompaniment

a couple of

1. adjective: more than one but indefinitely small in number; "a few roses"; "a couple of roses"

a few

1. adjective: more than one but indefinitely small in number; "a few roses"; "a couple of roses"

a fortiori

1. adverb: with greater reason; for a still stronger, more certain reason; "if you are wrong then, a fortiori, so am I"

a good deal

1. adverb: to a very great degree or extent; "I feel a lot better"; "we enjoyed ourselves very much"; "she was very much interested"; "this would help a great deal"

a great deal

1. adverb: to a very great degree or extent; "I feel a lot better"; "we enjoyed ourselves very much"; "she was very much interested"; "this would help a great deal"
2. adverb: frequently or in great quantities; "I don't drink much"; "I don't travel much"

a horizon

1. noun: the top layer of a soil profile; usually contains humus

a hundred times

1. adverb: by a factor of one hundred; "they money increased a hundredfold"

a kempis

1. noun: German ecclesiastic (1380-1471)

a la carte

1. noun: a menu having individual dishes listed with separate prices
2. adjective: (of a restaurant meal) having unlimited choices with a separate price for each item

a la mode

1. adjective: in the current fashion or style
2. adverb: with ice cream on top or on the side; "we served the apple pie a la mode"

a level

1. noun: the advanced level of a subject taken in school (usually two years after O level)

a little

1. adverb: to a small degree; somewhat; "it's a bit warm"; "felt a little better"; "a trifle smaller"

a lot

1. adverb: to a very great degree or extent; "I feel a lot better"; "we enjoyed ourselves very much"; "she was very much interested"; "this would help a great deal"

a million times

1. adverb: by a factor of a million; "it increased a millionfold"

a posteriori

1. adjective: involving reasoning from facts or particulars to general principles or from effects to causes; "a posteriori demonstration"
2. adjective: requiring evidence for validation or support

a priori

1. adjective: involving deductive reasoning from a general principle to a necessary effect; not supported by fact; "an a priori judgment"
2. adjective: based on hypothesis or theory rather than experiment

a trifle

1. adverb: to a small degree; somewhat; "it's a bit warm"; "felt a little better"; "a trifle smaller"

a-bomb

1. noun: a nuclear weapon in which enormous energy is released by nuclear fission (splitting the nuclei of a heavy element like uranium 235 or plutonium 239)

a-horizon

1. noun: the top layer of a soil profile; usually contains humus

a-line

1. noun: women's clothing that has a fitted top and a flared skirt that is widest at the hemline; "it is called the A-line because the effect resembles the capital letter A"

a-list

1. noun: a list of names of specially favored people; "the boss gave me his A-list of people we should try to recruit"

a-ok

1. adjective: in perfect condition or order

a-okay

1. adjective: in perfect condition or order

a-one

1. adjective: of the highest quality; "an ace reporter"; "a crack shot"; "a first-rate golfer"; "a super party"; "played top-notch tennis"; "an athlete in tiptop condition"; "she is absolutely tops"

a-scan ultrasonography

1. noun: the use of ultrasonography to measure the length of the eyeball

a-team

1. noun: a group of elite soldiers or a leadership group of advisors or workers in an organization

a'man

1. noun: the Israeli military intelligence which produces comprehensive national intelligence briefings for the prime minister and the cabinet

aa

1. noun: a dry form of lava resembling clinkers
2. noun: an international organization that provides a support group for persons trying to overcome alcoholism

aaa

1. noun: an aneurysm of the abdominal aorta associated with old age and hypertension

aachen

1. noun: a city in western Germany near the Dutch and Belgian borders; formerly it was Charlemagne's northern capital

aah

1. verb: express admiration and pleasure by uttering `ooh' or `aah'; "They oohed and aahed when they unwrapped the presents"

aaland islands

1. noun: an archipelago of some 6,000 islands in the Gulf of Bothnia under Finnish control

aalborg

1. noun: a city and port in northern Jutland

aalii

1. noun: a small Hawaiian tree with hard dark wood

aalst

1. noun: a town in central Belgium

aalto

1. noun: Finnish architect and designer of furniture (1898-1976)

aar

1. noun: a river in north central Switzerland that runs northeast into the Rhine

aardvark

1. noun: nocturnal burrowing mammal of the grasslands of Africa that feeds on termites; sole extant representative of the order Tubulidentata

aardvarks

Spelling-list entry. A WordNet 3.1 definition is not available for this form.

aardwolf

1. noun: striped hyena of southeast Africa that feeds chiefly on insects

aare

1. noun: a river in north central Switzerland that runs northeast into the Rhine

aare river

1. noun: a river in north central Switzerland that runs northeast into the Rhine

aarhus

1. noun: port city of Denmark in eastern Jutland

aaron

1. noun: United States professional baseball player who hit more home runs than Babe Ruth (born in 1934)
2. noun: (Old Testament) elder brother of Moses and first high priest of the Israelites; created the golden calf

aaron burr

1. noun: United States politician who served as vice president under Jefferson; he mortally wounded his political rival Alexander Hamilton in a duel and fled south (1756-1836)

aaron copland

1. noun: United States composer who developed a distinctly American music (1900-1990)

aaron montgomery ward

1. noun: United States businessman who in 1872 established a successful mail-order business (1843-1913)

aaron's rod

1. noun: tall-stalked very woolly mullein with densely packed yellow flowers; ancient Greeks and Romans dipped the stalks in tallow for funeral torches

aarp

1. noun: an association of people to promote the welfare of senior citizens

aas

1. noun: an associate degree in applied science

aave

1. noun: a nonstandard form of American English characteristically spoken by African Americans in the United States

ab

1. noun: a bachelor's degree in arts and sciences
2. noun: the eleventh month of the civil year; the fifth month of the ecclesiastical year in the Jewish calendar (in July and August)

ab initio

1. adverb: at the beginning; "at first he didn't notice anything strange"

aba

1. noun: a loose sleeveless outer garment made from aba cloth; worn by Arabs
2. noun: a fabric woven from goat hair and camel hair

aba transit number

1. noun: an identification number consisting of a two-part code assigned to banks and savings associations; the first part shows the location and the second identifies the bank itself

abaca

1. noun: a kind of hemp obtained from the abaca plant in the Philippines
2. noun: Philippine banana tree having leafstalks that yield Manila hemp used for rope and paper etc

abacinate

1. verb: blind by holding a red-hot metal plate before someone's eyes; "The prisoners were abacinated by their captors"

aback

1. adverb: having the wind against the forward side of the sails; "the ship came up into the wind with all yards aback"
2. adverb: by surprise; "taken aback by the caustic remarks"

abactinal

1. adjective: (of radiate animals) located on the surface or end opposite to that on which the mouth is situated

abacus

1. noun: a tablet placed horizontally on top of the capital of a column as an aid in supporting the architrave
2. noun: a calculator that performs arithmetic functions by manually sliding counters on rods or in grooves

abacuses

Spelling-list entry. A WordNet 3.1 definition is not available for this form.

abadan

1. noun: a port city in southwestern Iran

abaft

1. adverb: at or near or toward the stern of a ship or tail of an airplane; "stow the luggage aft"; "ships with square sails sail fairly efficiently with the wind abaft"; "the captain looked astern to see what the fuss was about"

abalone

1. noun: any of various large edible marine gastropods of the genus Haliotis having an ear-shaped shell with pearly interior

abalones

Spelling-list entry. A WordNet 3.1 definition is not available for this form.

abamp

1. noun: a unit of current equal to 10 amperes

abampere

1. noun: a unit of current equal to 10 amperes

abandon

1. noun: the trait of lacking restraint or control; reckless freedom from inhibition or worry; "she danced with abandon"
2. noun: a feeling of extreme emotional intensity; "the wildness of his anger"

abandoned

1. adjective: forsaken by owner or inhabitants; "weed-grown yard of an abandoned farmhouse"
2. adjective: unrestrained and uninhibited; "an abandoned sadness born of grief"- Liam O'Flaherty

abandoned infant

1. noun: a child who has been abandoned and whose parents are unknown

abandoned person

1. noun: someone for whom hope has been abandoned

abandoned ship

1. noun: a ship abandoned on the high seas

abandoning

Spelling-list entry. A WordNet 3.1 definition is not available for this form.

abandonment

1. noun: the act of giving something up
2. noun: withdrawing support or help despite allegiance or responsibility; "his abandonment of his wife and children left them penniless"

abandons

Spelling-list entry. A WordNet 3.1 definition is not available for this form.

abarticulation

1. noun: dislocation of a joint

abase

1. verb: cause to feel shame; hurt the pride of; "He humiliated his colleague by criticising him in front of the boss"

abased

Spelling-list entry. A WordNet 3.1 definition is not available for this form.

abasement

1. noun: a low or downcast state; "each confession brought her into an attitude of abasement"- H.L.Menchken
2. noun: depriving one of self-esteem

abases

Spelling-list entry. A WordNet 3.1 definition is not available for this form.

abash

1. verb: cause to be embarrassed; cause to feel self-conscious

abashed

1. adjective: feeling or caused to feel ill at ease or self-conscious or ashamed; "felt abashed at the extravagant praise"; "chagrined at the poor sales of his book"; "was embarrassed by her child's tantrums"

abashedly

Spelling-list entry. A WordNet 3.1 definition is not available for this form.

abashes

Spelling-list entry. A WordNet 3.1 definition is not available for this form.

abashing

Spelling-list entry. A WordNet 3.1 definition is not available for this form.

abashment

1. noun: feeling embarrassed due to modesty

abasia

1. noun: inability to walk

abasia trepidans

1. noun: abasia due to trembling of the legs

abasic

1. adjective: of or relating to abasia (inability to walk)

abasing

Spelling-list entry. A WordNet 3.1 definition is not available for this form.

abatable

1. adjective: capable of being abated

abatable nuisance

1. noun: a nuisance that can remedied (suppressed or extinguished or rendered harmless); "the continued existence of an abatable nuisance is not authorized under the law"

abate

1. verb: make less active or intense
2. verb: become less in amount or intensity; "The storm abated"; "The rain let up after a few hours"

abated

Spelling-list entry. A WordNet 3.1 definition is not available for this form.

abatement

1. noun: an interruption in the intensity or amount of something
2. noun: the act of abating; "laws enforcing noise abatement"

abatement of a nuisance

1. noun: (law) the removal or termination or destruction of something that has been found to be a nuisance

abates

Spelling-list entry. A WordNet 3.1 definition is not available for this form.

abatic

1. adjective: of or relating to abasia (inability to walk)

abating

Spelling-list entry. A WordNet 3.1 definition is not available for this form.

abatis

1. noun: a line of defense consisting of a barrier of felled or live trees with branches (sharpened or with barbed wire entwined) pointed toward the enemy

abator

1. noun: a person who abates a nuisance

abattis

1. noun: a line of defense consisting of a barrier of felled or live trees with branches (sharpened or with barbed wire entwined) pointed toward the enemy

abattoir

1. noun: a building where animals are butchered

abattoirs

Spelling-list entry. A WordNet 3.1 definition is not available for this form.

abaxial

1. adjective: facing away from the axis of an organ or organism; "the abaxial surface of a leaf is the underside or side facing away from the stem"

abaxially

1. adverb: in an abaxial manner

abaya

1. noun: (Arabic) a loose black robe from head to toe; traditionally worn by Muslim women

abb

1. noun: an urban hit squad and guerrilla group of the Communist Party in the Philippines; formed in the 1980s

abbacy

1. noun: the jurisdiction or office of an abbot

abbatial

1. adjective: of or having to do with or belonging to an abbey or abbot, or abbess

abbe

1. noun: a French abbot

abbe condenser

1. noun: a condenser having 2 or 3 lenses with wide aperture for use in microscopes

abbes

Spelling-list entry. A WordNet 3.1 definition is not available for this form.

abbess

1. noun: the superior of a group of nuns