Word List
Year 12 Vocabulary List
Year 12 students need vocabulary that can carry subtle interpretation, confident analysis, and polished written expression under pressure. This list provides a strong public starting point for that final-year language load.
Good for
Year 12 students and educators preparing for senior English examinations and high-stakes written assessment.
Focus
Sophisticated analytical language, interpretation, argument refinement, and exam-ready precision.
Print this list to keep a compact copy for offline study.
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001
Word
abandon
verb
Meaning
To give up or relinquish control of, to surrender or to give oneself over, or to yield to one's emotions.
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002
Word
accommodation
noun
Meaning
(usually a mass noun) Lodging in a dwelling or similar living quarters afforded to travellers in hotels or on cruise ships, or prisoners, etc.
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003
Word
accompany
verb
Meaning
To go with or attend as a companion or associate; to keep company with; to go along with.
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004
Word
accumulation
noun
Meaning
The act of amassing or gathering, as into a pile.
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005
Word
adaptation
noun
Meaning
The process of adapting something or becoming adapted to a situation; adjustment, modification.
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006
Word
adjacent
noun
Meaning
Something that lies next to something else, especially the side of a right triangle that is neither the hypotenuse nor the opposite.
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007
Word
adults
noun
Meaning
A fully grown human or animal.
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008
Word
advocate
noun
Meaning
Someone whose job is to speak for someone's case in a court of law; a counsel.
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009
Word
aid
noun
Meaning
Help; assistance; succor, relief.
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010
Word
albeit
conjunction
Meaning
Although, despite (it) being.
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011
Word
ambiguous
adjective
Meaning
Open to multiple interpretations.
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012
Word
analogous
adjective
Meaning
Having analogy; corresponding to something else; bearing some resemblance or proportion (often followed by "to".)
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013
Word
anticipated
verb
Meaning
To act before (someone), especially to prevent an action.
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014
Word
appendix
noun
Meaning
Something attached to something else; an attachment or accompaniment.
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015
Word
appreciation
noun
Meaning
A fair valuation or estimate of merit, worth, weight, etc.; recognition of excellence.
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016
Word
arbitrary
noun
Meaning
Anything arbitrary, such as an arithmetical value or a fee.
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017
Word
assembly
noun
Meaning
A set of pieces that work together in unison as a mechanism or device.
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018
Word
assurance
noun
Meaning
The act of assuring; a declaration tending to inspire full confidence; that which is designed to give confidence.
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019
Word
attained
verb
Meaning
To gain (an object or desired result).
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020
Word
automatically
adverb
Meaning
In an automatic manner.
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021
Word
behalf
noun
Meaning
an academic term used in formal writing and discussion
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022
Word
bias
noun
Meaning
Inclination towards something; predisposition, partiality, prejudice, preference, predilection.
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023
Word
bulk
noun
Meaning
Size, specifically, volume.
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024
Word
ceases
verb
Meaning
To stop.
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025
Word
chart
noun
Meaning
A map.
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026
Word
clarity
noun
Meaning
The state or measure of being clear, either in appearance, thought or style; lucidity.
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027
Word
coherence
noun
Meaning
The quality of cohering, or being coherent; internal consistency.
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028
Word
coincide
verb
Meaning
To occupy exactly the same space.
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029
Word
collapse
noun
Meaning
The act of collapsing.
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030
Word
colleagues
noun
Meaning
A fellow member of a profession, staff, academic faculty or other organization; an associate.
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031
Word
commenced
verb
Meaning
To begin, start.
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032
Word
commodity
noun
Meaning
Anything movable (a good) that is bought and sold.
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033
Word
compiled
verb
Meaning
To put together; to assemble; to make by gathering things from various sources.
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034
Word
complement
noun
Meaning
A protective substance that exists in the serum or other bodily fluid and is capable of killing microorganisms; complement.
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035
Word
comprehensive
noun
Meaning
A comprehensive school.
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036
Word
comprise
verb
Meaning
To be made up of; to consist of (especially a comprehensive list of parts).
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037
Word
conceived
verb
Meaning
To develop an idea; to form in the mind; to plan; to devise; to originate.
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038
Word
concurrent
noun
Meaning
One who, or that which, concurs; a joint or contributory cause.
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039
Word
confined
verb
Meaning
To restrict; to keep within bounds; to shut or keep in a limited space or area.
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040
Word
conformity
noun
Meaning
The state of things being similar or identical.
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041
Word
contemporary
noun
Meaning
Someone or something living at the same time, or of roughly the same age as another.
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042
Word
contradiction
noun
Meaning
The act of contradicting.
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043
Word
contrary
noun
Meaning
The opposite.
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044
Word
controversy
noun
Meaning
A debate or discussion of opposing opinions; (generally) strife.
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045
Word
conversely
adverb
Meaning
With a reversed relationship.
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046
Word
converted
verb
Meaning
To transform or change (something) into another form, substance, state, or product.
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047
Word
convinced
verb
Meaning
To make someone believe, or feel sure about something, especially by using logic, argument or evidence.
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048
Word
couple
noun
Meaning
Two partners in a romantic or sexual relationship.
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049
Word
crucial
adjective
Meaning
Essential or decisive for determining the outcome or future of something; extremely important.
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050
Word
currency
noun
Meaning
Money or other items used to facilitate transactions.
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051
Word
decades
noun
Meaning
A group, set, or series of ten , particularly:
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052
Word
denote
verb
Meaning
To indicate; to mark.
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053
Word
depression
noun
Meaning
In psychotherapy and psychiatry, a state of mind producing serious, long-term lowering of enjoyment of life or inability to visualize a happy future.
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054
Word
detected
verb
Meaning
To discover or find by careful search, examination, or probing
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055
Word
deviation
noun
Meaning
The act of deviating; wandering off the correct or true path or road
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056
Word
device
noun
Meaning
Any piece of equipment made for a particular purpose, especially a mechanical or electrical one.
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057
Word
devoted
verb
Meaning
To give one's time, focus one's efforts, commit oneself, etc. entirely for, on, or to a certain matter
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058
Word
differentiation
noun
Meaning
The act of differentiating.
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059
Word
diminished
verb
Meaning
To make smaller.
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060
Word
displacement
noun
Meaning
The act of displacing, or the state of being displaced; a putting out of place.
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061
Word
distorted
verb
Meaning
To bring something out of shape, to misshape.
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062
Word
dramatic
adjective
Meaning
Of or relating to the drama.
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063
Word
duration
noun
Meaning
An amount of time or a particular time interval.
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064
Word
dynamic
noun
Meaning
A characteristic or manner of an interaction; a behavior.
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065
Word
eliminate
verb
Meaning
To completely remove, get rid of, put an end to.
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066
Word
empirical
adjective
Meaning
Pertaining to or based on experience.
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067
Word
encountered
verb
Meaning
To meet (someone) or find (something), especially unexpectedly.
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068
Word
enormous
adjective
Meaning
Deviating from the norm; unusual, extraordinary.
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069
Word
equivocation
noun
Meaning
A logical fallacy resulting from the use of multiple meanings of a single expression.
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070
Word
erosion
noun
Meaning
The result of having been worn away or eroded, as by a glacier on rock or the sea on a cliff face.
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071
Word
ethical
noun
Meaning
An ethical drug, one only dispensed on the prescription of a physician.
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072
Word
eventually
adverb
Meaning
In the end; at some later time, especially after a long time, a series of problems, struggles, delays or setbacks.
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073
Word
exhibit
noun
Meaning
An instance of exhibiting.
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074
Word
exploitation
noun
Meaning
The act of utilizing something; industry.
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075
Word
extract
noun
Meaning
Something that is extracted or drawn out.
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076
Word
fluctuations
noun
Meaning
A motion like that of waves; a moving in this and that direction.
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077
Word
format
noun
Meaning
The layout of a publication or document.
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078
Word
forthcoming
noun
Meaning
An act of coming forth.
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079
Word
foundation
noun
Meaning
The act of founding, fixing, establishing, or beginning to erect.
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080
Word
founded
verb
Meaning
To start (an institution or organization).
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081
Word
global
noun
Meaning
A globally scoped identifier.
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082
Word
guarantee
noun
Meaning
Anything that assures a certain outcome.
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083
Word
guidelines
noun
Meaning
A non-specific rule or principle that provides direction to action or behaviour.
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084
Word
hegemony
noun
Meaning
Domination, influence, or authority over another, especially by one political group over a society or by one nation over others.
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085
Word
hermeneutic
adjective
Meaning
That explains, interprets, illustrates or elucidates.
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086
Word
hierarchical
adjective
Meaning
Pertaining to a hierarchy.
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087
Word
highlighted
verb
Meaning
To make prominent; emphasize.
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088
Word
ideology
noun
Meaning
Doctrine, philosophy, body of beliefs or principles belonging to an individual or group.
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089
Word
implicit
adjective
Meaning
Implied indirectly, without being directly expressed
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090
Word
inclination
noun
Meaning
A physical tilt or bend.
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091
Word
incompatible
noun
Meaning
(chiefly in the plural) An incompatible substance; one of a group of things that cannot be placed or used together because of a change of chemical composition or opposing medicinal qualities.
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092
Word
induced
verb
Meaning
To lead by persuasion or influence; incite or prevail upon.
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093
Word
inevitably
adverb
Meaning
In a manner that is impossible to avoid or prevent.
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094
Word
inferred
verb
Meaning
To introduce (something) as a reasoned conclusion; to conclude by reasoning or deduction, as from premises or evidence.
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095
Word
infrastructure
noun
Meaning
(systems theory) An underlying base or foundation especially for an organization or system.
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096
Word
inherent
adjective
Meaning
Naturally as part or consequence of something.
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097
Word
innovation
noun
Meaning
The act of innovating; the introduction of something new, in customs, rites, etc.
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098
Word
insert
noun
Meaning
An image inserted into text.
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099
Word
insights
noun
Meaning
A sight or view of the interior of anything; a deep inspection or view; introspection; frequently used with into.
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100
Word
inspection
noun
Meaning
The act of examining something, often closely.
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101
Word
integral
noun
Meaning
A number, the limit of the sums computed in a process in which the domain of a function is divided into small subsets and a possibly nominal value of the function on each subset is multiplied by the measure of that subset, all these products then being summed.
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102
Word
integrity
noun
Meaning
Steadfast adherence to a strict moral or ethical code.
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103
Word
intensity
noun
Meaning
The quality of being intense.
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104
Word
intermediate
noun
Meaning
Anything in an intermediate position.
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105
Word
intertextuality
noun
Meaning
The idea that a given text is a response to what has already been written, be it explicit or implicit.
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106
Word
intrinsic
noun
Meaning
A built-in function that is implemented directly by the compiler, without any intermediate call to a library.
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107
Word
invoked
verb
Meaning
To call upon (a person, a god) for help, assistance or guidance.
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108
Word
isolated
verb
Meaning
To set apart or cut off from others.
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109
Word
levy
noun
Meaning
The act of levying.
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110
Word
likewise
adverb
Meaning
(manner) In a similar manner.
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111
Word
manipulation
noun
Meaning
The practice of manipulating or the state of being manipulated.
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112
Word
manual
noun
Meaning
A handbook.
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113
Word
mature
adjective
Meaning
Fully developed; grown up in terms of physical appearance, behaviour or thinking; ripe.
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114
Word
media
noun
Meaning
The middle layer of the wall of a blood vessel or lymph vessel which is composed of connective and muscular tissue.
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115
Word
mediation
noun
Meaning
Negotiation to resolve differences conducted by some impartial party.
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116
Word
medium
noun
Meaning
(plural media or mediums) The chemistry of the surrounding environment, e.g. solid, liquid, gas, vacuum, or a specific substance such as a solvent.
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117
Word
metacognition
noun
Meaning
The act of thinking about thinking; sentience
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118
Word
military
noun
Meaning
Armed forces.
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119
Word
minimal
adjective
Meaning
The smallest possible amount, quantity, or degree.
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120
Word
minimises
verb
Meaning
To make (something) as small or as insignificant as possible.
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121
Word
mode
noun
Meaning
One of several ancient Greek scales.
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122
Word
mutual
noun
Meaning
A mutual fund.
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123
Word
nonetheless
adverb
Meaning
Nevertheless.
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124
Word
norms
noun
Meaning
That which is normal or typical.
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125
Word
notwithstanding
noun
Meaning
An instance of the word "notwithstanding", often characteristic of legalese.
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126
Word
nuclear
noun
Meaning
Nuclear power
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127
Word
odd
noun
Meaning
(diminutive) An odd number.
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128
Word
offset
noun
Meaning
Anything that acts as counterbalance; a compensating equivalent.
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129
Word
ongoing
verb
Meaning
To be ongoing (occurring, happening); to last, proceed or continue.
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130
Word
ontology
noun
Meaning
The branch of metaphysics that addresses the nature or essential characteristics of being and of things that exist; the study of being qua being.
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131
Word
overlap
noun
Meaning
Something that overlaps or is overlapped
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132
Word
panel
noun
Meaning
A (usually) rectangular section of a surface, or of a covering or of a wall, fence etc.
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133
Word
paradigm
noun
Meaning
A pattern, a way of doing something, especially a pattern of thought, a system of beliefs, a conceptual framework.
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134
Word
paragraph
noun
Meaning
A passage in text that is about a different subject from the preceding text, marked by commencing on a new line, the first line sometimes being indented.
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135
Word
passive
noun
Meaning
(grammar) The passive voice of verbs.
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136
Word
persistent
adjective
Meaning
Obstinately refusing to give up or let go.
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137
Word
phenomenon
noun
Meaning
A thing or being, event or process, perceptible through senses; or a fact or occurrence thereof.
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138
Word
plus
noun
Meaning
A positive quantity.
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139
Word
polemic
noun
Meaning
A person who writes in support of one opinion, doctrine, or system, in opposition to another; one skilled in polemics; a controversialist; a disputant.
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140
Word
portion
noun
Meaning
An allocated amount.
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141
Word
posed
verb
Meaning
To place in an attitude or fixed position, for the sake of effect.
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142
Word
practitioners
noun
Meaning
A person who practices a profession or art, especially law or medicine.
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143
Word
predominantly
adverb
Meaning
In a predominant manner. Most commonly or frequently by a large margin.
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144
Word
preliminary
noun
Meaning
A preparation for a main matter; an introduction.
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145
Word
priority
noun
Meaning
An item's relative importance.
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146
Word
prohibited
verb
Meaning
To forbid, disallow, or proscribe officially; to make illegal or illicit.
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147
Word
prospect
noun
Meaning
The region which the eye overlooks at one time; view; scene; outlook.
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148
Word
protocol
noun
Meaning
The minutes, or official record, of a negotiation or transaction; especially a document drawn up officially which forms the legal basis for subsequent agreements based on it.
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149
Word
qualitative
noun
Meaning
Something qualitative.
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150
Word
quotation
noun
Meaning
A fragment of a human expression that is repeated by somebody else. Most often a quotation is taken from literature or speech, but also scenes from a movie, elements of a painting, a passage of music, etc., may be quoted.
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151
Word
radical
noun
Meaning
(historical: 19th-century Britain) A member of the most progressive wing of the Liberal Party; someone favouring social reform (but generally stopping short of socialism).
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152
Word
random
noun
Meaning
A roving motion; course without definite direction; lack of rule or method; chance.
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153
Word
refine
verb
Meaning
To purify; reduce to a fine, unmixed, or pure state; to free from impurities.
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154
Word
reinforced
verb
Meaning
To strengthen, especially by addition or augmentation.
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155
Word
relaxed
verb
Meaning
To calm down.
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156
Word
reluctant
adjective
Meaning
Opposing; offering resistance (to).
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157
Word
restore
noun
Meaning
The act of recovering data or a system from a backup.
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158
Word
restraints
noun
Meaning
Something that restrains, ties, fastens or secures
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159
Word
reverse
noun
Meaning
The opposite of something.
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160
Word
revision
noun
Meaning
The process of revising:
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161
Word
revolution
noun
Meaning
A political upheaval in a government or nation state characterized by great change.
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162
Word
rigid
noun
Meaning
A bicycle with no suspension system.
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163
Word
route
noun
Meaning
A course or way which is traveled or passed.
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164
Word
scenario
noun
Meaning
An outline of the plot of a dramatic or literary work.
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165
Word
schedule
noun
Meaning
A slip of paper; a short note.
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166
Word
semantics
noun
Meaning
A branch of linguistics studying the meaning of words.
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167
Word
semiotics
noun
Meaning
The study of signs and symbols, especially as means of language or communication.
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168
Word
simulation
noun
Meaning
Something that simulates a system or environment in order to predict actual behaviour.
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169
Word
so-called
adjective
Meaning
So named; commonly called by such a name, often with a connotation that the item is not worthy of that name.
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170
Word
somewhat
noun
Meaning
More or less; a certain quantity or degree; a part, more or less; something.
#
171
Word
sphere
noun
Meaning
A regular three-dimensional object in which every cross-section is a circle; the figure described by the revolution of a circle about its diameter .
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172
Word
straightforward
adjective
Meaning
Proceeding in a straight course or manner; not deviating.
#
173
Word
subordinate
noun
Meaning
One who is subordinate.
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174
Word
successive
adjective
Meaning
Coming one after the other in a series.
#
175
Word
supplementary
noun
Meaning
Something additional; an extra.
#
176
Word
survive
verb
Meaning
Of a person, to continue to live; to remain alive.
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177
Word
suspended
verb
Meaning
To halt something temporarily.
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178
Word
team
noun
Meaning
A set of draught animals, such as two horses in front of a carriage.
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179
Word
teleology
noun
Meaning
The study of the purpose or design of natural occurrences.
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180
Word
temporary
noun
Meaning
One serving for a limited time; short-term employee.
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181
Word
tension
noun
Meaning
The condition of being held in a state between two or more forces, which are acting in opposition to each other.
#
182
Word
termination
noun
Meaning
The process of terminating or the state of being terminated.
#
183
Word
theme
noun
Meaning
A subject of a talk or an artistic piece; a topic.
#
184
Word
thereby
adverb
Meaning
By it; by that; by that means, or as a consequence of that.
#
185
Word
topic
noun
Meaning
Subject; theme; a category or general area of interest.
#
186
Word
transmission
noun
Meaning
The act of transmitting, e.g. data or electric power.
#
187
Word
trigger
noun
Meaning
A finger-operated lever used to fire a gun.
#
188
Word
ultimately
adverb
Meaning
Indicating the last item.
#
189
Word
undergo
verb
Meaning
To go or move under or beneath.
#
190
Word
unified
adjective
Meaning
United into a whole
#
191
Word
uniform
noun
Meaning
A distinctive outfit that serves to identify members of a group.
#
192
Word
unique
noun
Meaning
A thing without a like; something unequalled or unparallelled.
#
193
Word
vehicle
noun
Meaning
A conveyance; a device for carrying or transporting substances, objects or individuals.
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194
Word
via
noun
Meaning
A main road or highway, especially in ancient Rome. (Mainly used in set phrases, below.)
#
195
Word
violation
noun
Meaning
The act or an instance of violating or the condition of being violated.
#
196
Word
virtually
adverb
Meaning
Almost but not quite.
#
197
Word
vision
noun
Meaning
The sense or ability of sight.
#
198
Word
visual
noun
Meaning
Any element of something that depends on sight.
#
199
Word
whereby
adverb
Meaning
(interrogative) By what, in which direction; how.
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200
Word
widespread
adjective
Meaning
Affecting a large area (e.g. the entire land or body); broad in extent; widely diffused.
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