• ABRAC
n. E19 sl. – learning
• ABRACADABRA
int. 1819 – used by conjurors and magicians to impart supposed magical power, as when performing a trick; hence, used to accompany any seemingly remarkable feat or occurrence
n. 1. 1565 – a cabalistic word, formerly used as a charm; a pretended conjuring word
n. 2. 1829 sl. – any word charm, verbal jingle, gibberish, jargon nonsense, or extravagancy
• ABRACADABRA, PLEASE AND THANK YOU
phr. 1944 US sl. – a humorous embellishment of ‘please’
• ABRADANT
adj. 1875 – having the property of abrading something; abrasive
• ABRAHAM
adj. 1. c1000 obs. – auburn; formerly written ‘abern’ and ‘abron’
adj. 2. 17C sl. – naked
n. 1. M16 sl. – a wandering beggar adopting tattered clothing and posing as a madman
n. 2. Bk1909 sl. – a cheap clothier’s; a secondhand store
n. 3. 19C sl. – the penis
n. 4. 20C sl. – the female genitals
vb. 1990s Brit. rhyming sl. – to sham, esp. to avoid something by feigning illness
• ABRAHAM-COLOURED
adj. 1592 sl. – auburn
• ABRAHAM COVE
n. 1. c1550 sl. – a genuine lunatic allowed on certain days to leave Bethlehem Hospital to beg
n. 2. 1612 sl. obs. – a beggar of ragged and dishevelled appearance, esp. one who feigns insanity
• ABRAHAMER
n. 1823 sl. – a tramp; a vagrant
• ABRAHAM GRAINS
n. Bk1889 thieves’ sl. obs. – a publican brewing his own beer
• ABRAHAM LINCOLN
adj. 1988 UK rhyming sl. for ‘stinking’ – disgusting, contemptible
n. 1940s Amer. sl. – a five-dollar bill
• ABRAHAM MAN
n. 1567 – one of a set of vagabonds who wandered about the country soon after the dissolution of the religious houses; a beggar, especially feigning madness; a sturdy beggar
• ABRAHAM NEWLAND
n. 1. L18 sl. – a bank note
n. 2. Bk1903 sl. – £5
• ABRAHAMPSTEAD
n. 1970s sl. – Hampstead in North London with a large Jewish population
• ABRAHAM’S BALM
n. Bk1909 sl. – a hanging
• ABRAHAM’S BALSAM
n. 18C sl. – the gallows
• ABRAHAM’S BOSOM
adj. Bk1921 sl. – dead and gone to heaven
n. 1. c1300 – the Biblical ‘heaven’
n. 2. 19C sl. – the female pudendum; the vagina
• ABRAHAM SHAM
vb. Bk1909 sl. – of a beggar: to travel the country posing as a madman; to fake illness
• ABRAHAM SUIT
phr. 19C sl. – working as a writer of begging letters, the pursuit of many small-time confidence tricksters at the time
• ABRAHAM’S WILLING
n. 1. M19 rhyming sl. – 1 shilling
n. 2. Bk1903 rhyming sl. – 1 shilling and 1 1/2 pence
• ABRAHAM WORK
n. Bk1909 sl. – sweated labour, ill-paid work; any form of spurious occupation, esp. some form of confidence trick; shams of all kinds, false pretenses
• ABRAID
n. 1. a1439 obs. – upbraiding, censure
n. 2. 1570 obs. rare – a start, a jerk
vb. 1. c1000 obs. – to wrench or pull out; to snatch; to withdraw; to draw a sword
vb. 2. a1000 obs. – to raise the eyes
vb. 3. a1000 obs. – to start, usually out of sleep, a swoon, or fit; to awake; occasionally, to start or burst in motion; to spring or dart
vb. 4. c1330 rare – to reproach, to reprove; to upbraid
vb. 5. c1430 obs. – to break forth abruptly into speech; to burst into a cry; to shout out
vb. 6. a1500 obs. – to utter abruptly or loudly
vb. 7. 1530 obs. – to exert oneself
vb. 8. 1533 obs. – of food: to rise nauseously in the stomach
vb. 9. 1590 obs. – to arouse, to startle
• ABRAM
adj. 1. M16 sl. – mad, insane, crazy
adj. 2. 1599 obs. – a corruption of ‘auburn’
adj. 3. 1671 sl. – naked, nude
adj. 4. Bk1909 sl. – shamming sick
n. 1. 1610 UK criminals’ sl. – a wandering beggar, adopting tattered clothing and posing as a madman
n. 2. 1639 UK sl. – a gullible fool; a cuckold
n. 3. Bk1852 sl. – a naked or very poor man
vb. M19 sl. – to malinger, to fake illness
• ABRAM-COVE
n. 1. 1567 sl. – a wandering beggar adopting tattered clothing and posing as a madman; a sturdy beggar, a sturdy beggar, i.e. one who could but rarely does, work for a living
n. 2. Bk1699 sl. – a lusty strong rogue
n. 3. 1724 sl. – a naked or poor man
n. 4. L18 sl. – a thief specializing in pocketbooks
• ABRAMER
n. a1790 UK sl. – a tramp
• ABRAMIDE
n. Bk1881 – a descendant of Abraham; a Jew
• ABRAMITE
n. Bk1881 – a descendant of Abraham; a Jew
• ABRAM-MAN
n. 1. 1561 – one of a set of vagabonds who wandered about the country soon after the dissolution of the religious houses; a wandering beggar adopting tattered clothing and posing as a madman; a sturdy beggar
n. 2. L17 sl. – a sturdy beggar, i.e. one who could but rarely does, work for a living
n. 3. a1790 sl. – a thief specializing in pocketbooks
• ABRAM-MORT
n. 1. 17C sl. – a wandering beggar adopting tattered clothing and posing as a madman
n. 2. L17 sl. – a sturdy beggar, i.e. one who could but rarely does, work for a living
n. 3. 1741 sl. – a madwoman
n. 4. L18 sl. – a thief specializing in pocketbooks
• ABRAM-SHAM
n. L19 sl. – the practice of travelling the country posing as a mad man
vb. E19 sl. – of a beggar: to travel the country posing as a madman; to fake illness
• ABRAM SUIT
phr. 19C sl. – working as a writer of begging letters, the pursuit of many small-time confidence tricksters at the time
• ABRAM WORK
n. L19 sl. – any form of spurious occupation, esp. some form of confidence trick
• ABRASABLE
adj. 1896 rare – that may be abraded or worn down
• ABRASE
adj. 1600 obs. rare – rubbed smooth; rubbed clear from all markings; unoccupied, clean, blank
vb. a1475 – to rub off or away; to wear down by friction; to abrade
• ARASIVE
adj. 1. 1861 – of sound: harsh, grating, strident
adj. 2. 1944 – aggressively direct; acting without concern for the feelings of others; brash, tactless, ungentle
• ABRAZO
n. a1626 – in Spain, Latin America, and North America: an embrace used as a salutation or meeting or parting
• ABREAK
vb. 1. a1000 obs. – to break in pieces; to shatter
vb. 2. a1000 obs. – to violate a commandment, agreement, promise, etc. to fail to observe or keep
vb. 3. 1205 obs. – to break forth; to burst out
• ABREATHE
vb. 1. c1450 obs. – to give time to recover breath
vb. 2. a1500 obs. – to cause to become out of breath; to wind
• ABREDE
vb. 1. a1000 obs. – to spread out; to extend; also, to lay flat
vb. 2. a1000 obs. – of the mouth or eyes: to open wide
• ABREED
adv. 1892 Sc. & Eng. dial. – abroad; spread about, cast to the winds
• ABREID
adv. c1400 obs. exc. Eng. dial. – apart, widely
• ABRENOUNCE
vb. 1537 rare – to renounce, to repudiate; to contradict
• ABRENOUNCING
n. c1550 obs. – repudiation; rejection
• ABRENUNCIATE
vb. 1618 obs. rare – to renounce; to repudiate; to contradict
• ABRENUNCIATION
n. 1641 – renunciation; retraction, repudiation
• ABREPTION
n. 1550 rare – a snatching away; complete separation or removal
• ABREVY
vb. a1325 obs. – to abbreviate, to abridge
• ABRI
n. 1761 – a shelter, a refuge
• ABRICOTINE
adj. 1930 – apricot-coloured
n. 1908 – apricot brandy
• ABRIDGE
n. 1. 1611 obs. rare – abridgement, shortening
n. 2. 1634 obs. rare – an abridged version; an epitome
vb. 1435 obs. rare – to prevent harm, etc.; to frustrate or thwart a purpose
• ABRIDGEDLY
adv. 1704 rare – in an abridged form; concisely, briefly
• ABRIDGEMENTS
n. M19 sl. – knee-breeches
• ABRIPE
vb. 1623 obs. rare – to ravish, to rape a woman
• ABRIPED
adj. 1623 obs. rare – ravished, raped
• ABROACH
vb. c1400 obs. – to pierce or broach a container, esp. a cask of liquor, so as to let the contents flow out; to release liquor from a container in this way
• ABROAD
adj. 1. L18 sl. – of convicts: transported to a penal colony
adj. 2. 1770 colloq. rare – confused, bewildered, perplexed, at a loss, in error, wide of the mark or truth
adj. 3. M19 sl. – drunk
adv. 1. c1300 – in public, so as to be widely known, believed, etc.; openly, publicly; at large
adv. 2. c1335 – out of one’s house or abode; outdoors; in the open
adv. 3. 1654 rare – apart, in pieces
adv. 4. 1893 Ireland & Eng. dial. – near at hand
• ABROAD CLERK
n. 1781 rare – a brewery employee who visits publicans’ premises to collect payments, oversee the way beer is kept, etc.
• ABROAD COOPER
n. 1807 rare – a brewery employee who visits publicans’ premises to collect payments, oversee the way beer is kept, etc.
• ABROADED
adj. 1. M19 UK society usage – living in exile somewhere other than the UK
adj. 2. M19 sl. – transported to a penal colony
adj. 3. L19 sl. – imprisoned
• ABRODIETICAL
adj. 1625 obs. rare – over-refined or self-indulgent, esp. in regard to diet; feeding or eating daintily; delicate, fastidious, finicky
n. 1623 obs. rare – a person of over-refined or self-indulgent tastes; a delicate person, a dainty eater
• ABROGABLE
adj. 1550 – capable of being abrogated
• ABROGANS
n. Bk1850 Amer. – a corruption of ‘aborigines’ said to be common in the West among the illiterate, and which is used jocularly for Indians
• ABROGATE
adj. 1460 rare – repealed, annulled, cancelled, abolished by authority
vb. 1. 1526 – to repeal a law; to annul, to abolish authoritatively or formally; to cancel
vb. 2. a1529 – to do away with; to put an end to; to reject or deny
vb. 3. 1904 – to evade, neglect, or renounce an obligation or duty; to shirk a responsibility
• ABROGATION
n. 1. 1535 – repeal or abolition by authority
n. 2. 1692 obs. – the removal a person from an office by formal means
• ABROGATIVE
adj. 1613 rare – having the quality of abrogating; that repeals, abolishes, or cancels a law, practice, etc.
• ABROGATOR
n. 1599 – one who abrogates or repeals by authority; one who abolishes
• ABROGE
vb. 1427 obs. rare – to abrogate
• ABROOD
adv. 1656 rare – hatching or brooding upon mischief, evil, etc.
• ABROOK
vb. 1592 obs. rare – to brook, to endure, to tolerate, to bear
• ABRUPT
adj. 1. 1565 obs. – broken off, truncated, cut short; terminating in a break
adj. 2. 1583 obs. rare – that has broken away from restraint; abandoned, dissolute
n. 1624 obs. – an abrupt or steep place; a precipice; a chasm, an abyss
vb. 1634 – to break off, to sever; to interrupt suddenly; to curtail
• ABRUPTED
adj. 1597 – suddenly broken off; cut short, curtailed; cut off
• ABRUPTION
n. 1585 rare – a breaking off; an interruption; a sudden break, as in a narrative etc.
• ABRUPTLY
adv. 1. 1579 obs. – in short, in brief; by way of abbreviation
adv. 2. 1607 obs. – intermittently, sporadically
• ABRUTALIZE
vb. 1795 rare – to brutalize
• ABRUZZESE
n. 1816 – a native or inhabitant of the Abruzzo region of central Italy
• ABRUZZIAN
n. 1570 – a native or inhabitant of the Abruzzo region of central Italy
• ABS
n. 1956 Amer. sl. – the abdominal muscles
• ABSALOM
n. Bk1922 – an undutiful son
• ABSCEDE
vb. 1650 obs. rare – to move away, to lose contact; to separate
• ABSCESSION
n. 1. 1583 obs. rare – departure, removal; cessation of a disease, pain, etc.
n. 2. 1583 obs. rare – an abscess
• ABSCESSIONAL
n. 1647 obs. rare – a permission or command to depart
• ABSCESS OF THE BOWELS
n. c1960 Amer. dial. – an older name for appendicitis
• ABSCHIZE
vb. c1833 sl. – to decamp
• ABSCIND
vb. 1610 rare – to cut off, to separate, to detach
• ABSCINDED
adj. 1674 rare – cut off, detached, separated
• ABSCISE
vb. a1500 rare, chiefly surgical usage – to cut off or away
• ABSCISION
n. 1594 – a cutting off or away
• ABSCISSION
n. 1. 1555 – a cutting off or violent separation
n. 2. 1625 obs. – a cutting a person off from God or the from the Church
n. 3. 1633 obs. – the state of being cut off; separation and removal
• ABSCISSOR
n. 1647 obs. rare – one that tears or rends asunder
• ABSCONCE
n. 1872 obs. rare – a dark lantern used in monasteries, etc. for reading prayers, etc. during services
vb. 1. 1570 obs. rare – to hide, to conceal
vb. 2. 1823 obs. rare, humorous usage – to depart quickly, to flee
• ABSCOND
adj. 1653 obs. rare – hidden from view
vb. c1586 rare – to hide away; to conceal anything
• ABSCONDED
adj. 1652 obs. – concealed, hidden away, secluded, secret
• ABSCONDENCE
n. 1694 – concealment, seclusion; removal to a place of concealment or hiding; flight from creditors, arrest, etc.
• ABSCONDENT
n. 1685 obs. rare – a person who absconds
• ABSCONDER
n. 1702 – one who absconds or leaves quickly; a runaway from justice; a fugitive; an escapee
• ABSCONDMENT
n. 1694 rare – an absconding, esp. from creditors, arrest, or custody
• ABSCONSION
n. 1. 1648 obs. rare – hiding, concealment
n. 2. 1827 – flight, disappearance, or escape, esp. from custody
• ABSCOTCHALATER
n. Bk1921 US sl. – one in hiding from the police; one who runs away
• ABSENCE
n. 1866 obs. rare – a person or thing which is absent
• ABSENCY
n. 1599 obs. rare – absence
• ABSENT
adj. Bk1898 Eng. dial. – intoxicated
n. c1425 obs. – one who is absent; an absentee
vb. 1. c1400 obs. – to be or stay away; to withdraw
vb. 2. 1488 rare – to depart from, to quit, to leave
vb. 3. 1530 obs. – to keep away; to detain or withhold from being present
• ABSENTANEOUS
adj. 1656 rare – done in absence; pert; to absence
• ABSENTATION
n. 1800 rare – the act of absenting oneself; absence
• ABSENTED
adj. a1586 – withdrawn, retired; absent
• ABSENTEE
n. 1. 1777 US – a person loyal to the British who fled his or her residence during the American Revolution
n. 2. 1803 Aust. rare – an escaped convict
• ABSENTMENT
n. 1600 rare – the act of absenting oneself; a withdrawal or staying away
• ABSENT-MINDED BEGGAR
n. 1899 Eng. sl. – a soldier
• ABSENT-MINDED PROFESSOR
n. 1859 – an habitually inattentive or forgetful person; one who is distracted or preoccupied to the extent of being unaware of their immediate surroundings
• ABSENTNESS
n. 1790 rare – a being absent in mind; distractedness, absent-mindedness
• ABSENT PARENTS
n. 1994 euphemism – fathers who do not live with their infant children
• ABSENTY
n. 1520 obs. – absence
• ABSIMILATION
n. 1638 obs. rare – the act or process of making or becoming unlike or dissimilar to something
• ABSIST
vb. 1614 obs. rare – to withdraw; to desist
• ABSISTENCE
n. 1881 – a standing off; an abstaining or refraining from something; abstinence
• ABSITIVELY
adv. 1926 US sl. – certainly
• ABSIT OMEN
phr. 1594 – ‘may the omen be absent’; used as an imprecation when referring to a possible undesirable event in the hope that it will not come to pass
• ABSKIZE
vb. c1833 sl. – to decamp
• ABS-LAGGY
phr. M19 UK criminals’ sl. – transported
• ABS-LUSHERY
phr. M19 UK criminals’ sl. – at a drinking house
• ABS-NABBEMS
phr. M19 UK criminals’ sl. – safe, secure from capture
• ABS-NUNKS
adj. M19 UK criminals’ sl. – visiting the pawnbroker
• ABSO
n. 1900s sl. – a definite winner, usually used in a sporting context
• ABSOBALLYLUTELY
adv. 1914 sl. – absolutely, very much indeed, utterly
• ABSO-BLESSED-LUTELY
adv. 1912 sl. – absolutely, very much indeed
• ABSOBLOODYLUTELY
adv. 1935 sl. – absolutely, very much indeed, utterly
• ABSOBLOOMINGLUTELY
adv. 1909 sl. – absolutely, very much indeed
• ABSOFUCKINGLUTELY
adv. 1985 sl. – absolutely, very much indeed; without the slightest doubt
int. 1910s sl. – exclamation of affirmation
• ABSOGODDAMLUTELY
adv. 1962 US sl. – absolutely
• ABSOGODDAMNTIVELY
adv. 1986 Amer. sl. – absolutely and positively
• ABSOIL
vb. c1450 obs. – to absolve, esp. from sin
• ABSOLENT
adj. c1560 obs. rare – perfect, consummate
• ABSOLETE
adj. a1613 obs. – obsolete
• ABSOLUTELY!
int. 1825 colloq. – used for registering complete agreement; yes! indeed!
• ABSOLUTELY MR. GALLAGHER. POSTIVELY MR. SHEAN
phr. 1922 US sl. – used for a humorous assent
• ABSOLUTELY NOT!
phr. 20C sl. – not a hope! not a chance!
• ABSOLUTENESS
n. 1. 1551 obs. – a being complete or finished; completeness; perfection
n. 2. 1574 – unlimited or unrestrained authority; arbitrary rule
n. 3. 1603 – absence of conditions or reservations; unconditional quality; certainty, unreservedness
n. 4. 1605 – independence, autonomy
• ABSOLUTIST
n. 1. 1799 – in politics: one who is in favour of an absolute government; also, a person who rules or governs absolutely
n. 2. 1917 – during World War I: a conscientious objector who refused to carry out non-combatant compulsory service
• ABSOLUTORY
adj. 1611 – that grants absolution; relating to absolution
• ABSOLVANT
n. 1506 obs. rare – he who absolves
• ABSOLVATORY
adj. 1611 rare – pardoning, forgiving; belonging to a discharge or acquittal
• ABSOLVITORY
adj. 1609 Sc. – pert. to absolution; absolving
• ABSOLVITURE
n. 1586 Sc. obs. – the act of absolving; absolution
• ABSONANT
adj. 1564 – harsh, inharmonious; fig. discordant or abhorrent to reason, nature, etc.; unreasonable, unnatural
• ABSONATE
vb. Bk1775 obs. – to avoid, to detest (a law term)
• ABSONISM
n. 1593 obs. rare – something discordant in the use of language
• ABSONOUS
adj. 1. 1622 rare – out of tune, inharmonious
adj. 2. 1642 rare – absurd, incongruous; unreasonable
• ABSO-ONE-HUNDRED-PERCENT-LUTELY
adv. 20C Brit. sl. – absolutely; most definite
• ABSORB
vb. 1. 1490 obs. – to swallow up, to engulf, esp. in a body of water
vb. 2. 1686 – to consume or use up resources, esp. money; to occupy or take up time
vb. 3. 1821 colloq. – to eat or drink, esp. voraciously or with relish
• ABSORBEATE
vb. 1623 obs. rare – to swallow up
• ABSORBITION
n. c1680 rare – absorption
• ABSORPT
adj. c1450 obs. – absorbed; swallowed up; fig. engrossed
• ABSORPTED
adj. a1631 obs. – absorbed
• ABSORPTIVE
adj. 1664 – having the quality of absorbing, swallowing, or imbibing; fig. engrossing
• ABSOTIVE
adj. 1924 Amer. sl. – absolute
• ABSOTIVELY
adv. 1914 sl. – absolutely; decidedly; without a doubt, irrefutably; certainly
• ABSOTOOTLY
adv. 1955 Amer. dial. – absolutely
• ABSOYLE
vb. c1450 obs. – to absolve
• ABS-PAD-LUCK
phr. M19 UK criminals’ sl. – ‘gone upon the highway’
• ABSQUAT
vb. 1868 sl. – of people or animals: to leave, to run away, to abscond
• ABSQUATIATE
vb. 1839 Amer. sl. – to abscond, to depart
• ABSQUATILATE
vb. 1830 Amer. sl. – to depart or abscond; to flee, to run away
• ABSQUATTLE
vb. 1842 sl. – of a person or animal: to leave; to run away; to abscond
• ABSQUATULATE
vb. 1. 1830 Amer. dial. – to die
vb. 2. 1830 US – to leave, to depart, especially hastily, or furtively; to run away; to abscond
vb. 3. 1842 sl., orig. US – of an object: to separate, to break away from
vb. 4. 1844 rare – to send away, to dismiss
vb. 5. 1976 Amer. dial. – to squabble
• ABSQUATULATION
n. 1839 – a sudden disappearance or absconding
• ABSQUATULATOR
n. 1842 Amer. sl. – an absconder
• ABSQUATULIZE
vb. 1. 1829 Amer. sl. – to abscond, to depart
vb. 2. 1839 Amer. sl. – to drive away, to expel
• ABSQUINCHIATED
adj. 1967 Amer. dial. – used up, finished
• ABSQUOTILATE
vb. 1837-40 – to make off, to decamp
• ABSQUOTULATE
vb. 1. 1830 sl., orig. US – of people or animals: to leave, to run away, to abscond
vb. 2. 1842 sl., orig. US – of an object: to separate, to break away from
• ABS-SMASH-RIG
n. M19 UK criminals’ sl. – the act of passing counterfeit coin
• ABS-SPOUTEMS
adj. M19 UK criminals’ sl. – gone to the pawnbrokers
• ABSTAIN
vb. a1425 obs. – to fast
• ABSTAINER
n. 1. c1475 – a person who abstains from eating particular foods
n. 2. 1852 – a person who abstains from voting
n. 3. 1854 – a person who abstains from drinking alcohol; a teetotaller
• ABSTAIN FROM BEANS
vb. 1920s sl. – to desist from politics
• ABSTAINMENT
n. 1819 rare – the act of keeping from or refraining
• ABSTEMIOUS
adj. 1. 1603 – temperate or sparing in food; characterized by such temperance; sparing
adj. 2. 1604 – of food, a meal, etc.: spare, plain, modest
adj. 2. 1610 rare – abstinent, refraining, sparing (with regard to other things than food)
• ABSTEMIOUSLY
adv. 1625 – of eating and drinking: sparingly, temperately
• ABSTEMIOUSNESS
n. 1604 – the quality of being sparing in the use of strong drink and delicacies
• ABSTENT
adj. 1898 Sc. – absent
• ABSTENTION
n. 1. 1521 obs. – the act of keeping back or restraining
n. 2. 1624-47 – the act of keeping oneself back, abstaining, or refraining
n. 3. 1849 – an act of refraining from exercising one’s vote
• ABSTENTIONIST
n. 1. 1857 – one who refrains from exercising his or her vote
n. 2. 1880 – one who practices or approves abstention
• ABSTENTIOUS
adj. 1839 – characterized by abstinence; self-restraining or refraining
• ABSTER
vb. 1542 obs. rare – to deter, to hinder, to frighten off
• ABSTERGE
vb. 1526 rare – to wipe away; to wipe clean; to cleanse
• ABSTERGENT
adj. 1617 rare – having a cleansing quality; cleansing, abrading
• ABSTERGIFY
vb. 1612 obs. rare – to cleanse
• ABSTERSE
vb. a1425 rare – to wipe away; to wipe clean; to cleanse
• ABSTERSION
n. a1425 rare – the act or process of wiping clean; cleansing, scouring
• ABSTERSORY
adj. 1609 obs. – cleansing, purgative
• ABSTINENCE
n. 1386 obs. – a truce, cessation of hostilities
• ABSTINENCE OF WAR
n. 1386 obs. – a truce, cessation of hostilities
• ABSTINENCY
n. 1. 1529 – an abstaining from food, pleasure, etc.; also, fasting
n. 2. 1594 rare – a fast
• ABSTINENT
n. c1440 – one who abstains; an abstainer; also, a person who is fasting
• ABSTINENTIAL
adj. 1655 rare – pert. to abstinence
• ABSTORQUED
adj. 1623 obs. rare – forced away, wrung from another by violence
• ABSTORTED
adj. 1658 obs. rare – forced away, wrung from another by violence
• ABSTRACT
adj. 1721 Sc. obs. – apart, withdrawn from
• ABSTRACTER
n. 1857 hist. rare – in the British civil service: a clerk who prepared abstracts of the numbers of births, deaths, and marriages
• ABSTRACTIONIST
n. 1. 1832 – a person who prefers to view, analyse, and discuss the world in abstract rather than practical terms; a thinker who gives precedence to abstract ideas and concepts over concrete and particular ones
n. 2. 1841 sl. – a pickpocket
n. 3. 1844 US depreciative – an impractical dreamer; an idealist
n. 4. 1917 – an advocate or practitioner of abstraction in the arts, esp. a painter in the abstract style
• ABSTRACTION-MONGER
n. 1860 – one who deals with visionary ideas
• ABSTRACTOR
n. 1859 hist. – in the British civil service: a clerk who prepared abstracts of the numbers of births, deaths, and marriages
• ABSTRAKLOUS
adj. Bk1905 Sc. – cross-grained; bad-tempered
• ABSTREPOLOUS; ABSTREPULOUS
adj. c1725 – obstreperous; noisy and difficult to control
• ABSTRICTED
adj. 1727 obs. rare – loosened, freed, unbound
• ABSTRICTION
n. 1650 rare – a loosening or unbinding
• ABSTRINGE
vb. 1623 obs. rare – to unbind or loosen
• ABSTROCITY
n. Bk1942 Amer. sl. – an abstract monstrosity
• ABSTROPELOUS
adj. E18 sl. – aggressively resistant to control or restraint
• ABSTRUDE
vb. 1627 obs. – to thrust away
• ABSTRUSE
adj. 1. 1549 – difficult to understand; obscure, recondite
adj. 2. 1576 obs. – concealed, hidden, secret
• ABSTRUSED
adj. 1607 obs. rare – concealed, hidden, remote
• ABSTRUSELY
adv. 1. 1611 obs. rare – secretly, in a concealed manner
adv. 2. 1734 – in a manner that is complicated or difficult to understand
• ABSTRUSENESS
n. 1628 – a being difficult to understand
• ABSTRUSION
n. 1805 rare – the act of thrusting away
• ABSTRUSITY
n. 1. 1632 – obscurity; anything abstruse; an obscure or recondite matter or point
n. 2. 1649 – a being difficult to understand; abstruseness
• ABSTRUSIVE
adj. 1848 – of abstruse quality; abstruse, recondite
• ABSUME
vb. 1596 obs. – to consume gradually; to waste away; to carry off
• ABSUMPTION
n. 1617 rare – the process of wasting away, gradual destruction
• ABSURD
adj. 1617 obs. rare – in music: inharmonious, jarring, out-of-tune
n. 1. 1610 obs. – an unreasonable thing, act, or statement; an absurdity
n. 2. Bk1827 rare – a person who is absurd; an unreasonable person
• ABSURDISM
n. 1815 – an illogical or ridiculous thing
• ABSURDIST
adj. 1951 – relating to the perceived futility and senselessness of human life
n. 1. 1894 rare – a person who behaves in an illogical or absurd manner
n. 2. 1929 – a writer, performer, etc., whose work presents an audience or readership with absurdities, typically in portraying the futility of human struggle in a senseless and inexplicable world; esp. a writer or proponent of absurdist drama
• ABSURDITY
n. c1429 obs. – in music: lack of harmony, untunefulness
• ABSURDUM
n. 1606 – an absurd or illogical conclusion; also, an absurd state or condition
• ABTHANE
n. a1525 – in Scottish hist.: a senior thane (a person holding lands of the king; the chief of a clan, who became one of the king’s barons)
• ABUBBLE
adj. 1766 – of a person or place: bubbling over with excitement, etc.; full of activity
• ABUCCINATE
vb. 1569 obs. rare – to proclaim as with a trumpet
• A-BUCK
phr. 1980s US homosexual sl. – a lying on one’s back with one’s legs over one’s head to enable both anal intercourse and kissing
• ABUDE
vb. 1073 obs. – to ‘abey’; to bend, to bow, to make obedient
• ABUELA
n. 1836 – in Spanish-speaking contexts: a grandmother; generally, an elderly woman; also, a familiar title or form of address
• ABUELITA
n. 1937 – in Spanish-speaking contexts: a grandmother; generally, an elderly woman; also, a familiar title or form of address
• ABUELO
n. 1876 – in Spanish-speaking contexts: a grandfather; generally, an elderly man; also, a familiar title or form of address
• ABUILYIEMENTS
n. 1816 Sc. – accoutrements, arms
• ABUJI
n. 1972 Hawaii – father
• ABULIEMENT
n. 1787 Sc. obs. – dress, clothing; generally plural
• ABULZIEMENTS
n. 1719 Sc. – garments
• ABUNDANCE
n. 1782 Sc. – enough
• ABUNDANCY
n. 1526 obs. – the quality of being abundant; abundantness, plentifulness
• ABUNDARY
n. 1622 obs. rare – an overflowing source; a fountain-head
• ABUNDATION
n. 19C Eng. dial. – abundance, plenty, a large quantity
• ABURDEN
vb. 1620 obs. rare – to burden, to oppress
• ABURST
adj. 1. 1205 obs. rare – enraged, furious
adj. 2. 1865 – bursting; in a bursting condition
• ABUSABLE
adj. 1660 obs. – of abusing or deceiving character; deceptive
• ABUSAGE
n. 1548 obs. – abuse, misuse, perversion; defilement
• ABUSAK
n. 20C teen & high school sl. – elevator music
• ABUSCHE
vb. c1300 obs. – to ambush
• ABUSE
n. 1. 1551 obs. – imposture, deceit; delusion
n. 2. L16 sl. – masturbation
vb. 1. a1439 obs. – to misrepresent a person or thing; to adulterate; to falsify; to show oneself in false colours, to make false pretensions
vb. 2. a1475 obs. rare – to behave improperly
vb. 3. L15 sl. – to cheat, to make a cuckold of
vb. 4. 1548 obs. rare – to use something in error, to mistake for another thing
vb. 5. L16 sl. – to masturbate
• ABUSED
adj. 1. a1500 obs. – misguided, mistaken; deceived
adj. 2. a1513 obs. – worn out, consumed by use; disused, obsolete
• ABUSEE
n. 1836 – a person who is or who has been abused
• ABUSEFUL
adj. 1612 – abounding in abuse; using or practicing abuse; abusive, harmful, reproachful
• ABUSEFULLY
adv. 1656 – in an abusive manner; abusively; improperly
• AB-USEFULNESS
n. 1862 rare – capacity to be used improperly
• ABUSEFULNESS
n. 1893 Eng. dial. – abuse
• ABUSEMENT
n. 1535 obs. – an abusing or misleading; abuse, deception
• ABUSE ONESELF
vb. 20C euphemism – to masturbate
• ABUSER
n. 1. 1579 obs. – a person who perverts truth or abuses confidence; a deceiver or impostor
n. 2. 1584 – one who uses badly or injures; an ill-user, a violator; one who seduces, a ravisher, one who rapes
n. 3. 1611 – one who masturbates
n. 4. 1847 – a person who abuses drugs or alcohol
• ABUSH • ABUSHE
vb. c1300 obs. – to ambush
• ABUSHMENT
n. 1380 obs. – ambush, ambushment
• ABUSHMENTLY
adv. 1552 obs. – in ambush, by way of ambuscade
• ABUSION
n. 1. c1350 obs. – contemptuous or reproachful language; reviling, insult
n. 2. c1374 obs. – violation of law or right, outrage, wrong; anything opposed to propriety; bad or improper usage; corrupt or shameful fact or practice
n. 3. c1386 obs. – perversion of the truth; deceit, deception, imposture; also, an instance of such perversion or deception
n. 4. 1387 obs. – misuse, misapplication, perversion
• ABUSIOUS
adj. 1594 obs. rare – given to abuse; abusive
• ABUSIVE
adj. 1595 obs. – deceitful, fraudulent; deluding
• ABUSSE
vb. c1300 obs. – to ambush
• ABUSTLE
adj. 1887 – busy, bustling with people, activity, etc.
• ABUTTAL
n. 1545 – an extremity or boundary of land which abuts upon neighbouring lands; a point of junction
vb. 1. 1545 obs. – of land: to border on or upon an adjacent piece of land; to abut
vb. 2. 1637 obs. – to define or describe a piece of land by specifying its boundaries and abuttals
• ABUTTER
n. 1673 – one whose land or building abuts upon a highway or upon another’s property; the owner of adjoining property
• A-BUZZ
adj. 1. 1859 – alive with activity, excitement, talk, etc.
adj. 2. Bk1942 Amer. sl. – drunk
• ABVERSION
n. 1638 obs. rare – aversion; an averted state of mind or feelings; a mental attitude of opposition or repugnance; a fixed habitual dislike
• ABVOLATE
vb. 1623 obs. rare – to fly away
• ABVOLATION
n. 1663 obs. rare – a flying away
• ABY
n. 1914 Amer. dial., usually derogatory – a Jew
vb. 1. c1175 obs. – to buy, to purchase, to pay for
vb. 2. c1175 arch. – to pay the penalty for an offense; to redeem; to atone for; to suffer for; to make amends for; to expiate
vb. 3. 1374 arch. – to pay, as a penalty; to suffer, to endure
• ABYDOCOMIST
n. 18C – a sycophant who boasts of his successes achieved by flattery and falsehood
• ABYE
adv. 1894 Sc. – ago, past
vb. 1. c1175 obs. – to buy, to purchase, to pay for
vb. 2. c1175 arch. – to pay the penalty for an offense; to redeem; to atone for; to suffer for; to make amends for; to expiate
vb. 3. 1374 arch. – to pay, as a penalty; to suffer, to endure
• ABYSM
n. 1. c1300 – the great deep, the bottomless gulf, believed in the old cosmogony to lie beneath the earth, and supposed to be, specifically: an imaginary subterraneous reservoir of waters; or, hell, or the infernal regions
n. 2. 1495 – any deep immeasurable space; a profound chasm or gulf; an abyss
vb. Bk1611 obs. rare – to sink into an abyss; to engulf
• ABYSMAL
adj. 1. 1656 – bottomless; profound; relating to Hell; hellish
adj. 2. 1904 – of an exceptionally poor standard or quality; extremely bad, appalling
• ABYSMALLY
adv. 1869 – unfathomably, profoundly; hence, appallingly
• ABYSMUS
n. Bk1611 rare – an abyss
• ABYSS
n. 1. c1460 – hell; the insides of the earth; also preceded with ‘the’
n. 2. 1548 – an extremity of some condition or quality (usually a negative one); a condition from which recovery is unlikely or impossible
n. 3. 1980s US homosexual sl. – a large anus that has been frequently used for anal intercourse
• ABYSSAL
adj. 1609 – of unsearchable depth, unfathomable; belonging to the lowest depths of ocean
• ABYSSIAN
n. E17 obs. – a native or inhabitant of Abyssinia, a country in NE Africa (now Ethiopia)
• ABYSSIN
n. 1584 obs. – a native or inhabitant of Abyssinia, a country in north-eastern Africa; now officially called Ethiopia
• ABYSSINIA
int. 1934 sl. – goodbye; I’ll be seeing you
• ABYSSINIAN
adj. 1697 – relating to Abyssinia
n. 1703 – a native or inhabitant of Abyssinia, a country in NE Africa (now Ethiopia)
• ABYSSINIAN POLO
n. 1920s sl. – a game of dice; the game of craps dice
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Updated: February 27, 2023
Lexicophilia 