| A | B |
|---|
| abdicate | v. to give up or renounce an office or power |
| abeyance | n. a temporary suspension of an activity; a state of being put aside for future action |
| abscond | v. to run away; to leave suddenly and secretly and hide, especially to escape the law |
| accede | v. to agree to; to consent; to come into an office (e.g., an elected office) |
| accessory | n. something extra or added on; a person who helps a lawbreaker commit a crime; adj. having a secondary purpose |
| accost | v. to approach someone and speak first |
| acquisition | n. the act of obtaining something, especially as an addition to a larger collection; something obtained |
| acrimonious | adj. sharp or bitter in language or manner; filled with long-lasting resentment |
| adjudge | v. to decree or decide by law; to regard or consider |
| adjure | v. to command or charge someone, often under oath or penalty, to do something; to ask earnestly |
| aegis | n. sponsorship; protection |
| aesthetic | adj. artistic; having to do with art or beauty; sensitive to art or beauty |
| allay | v. to put to rest (fears); to relieve; to lessen |
| amorphous | adj. shapeless; of no particular form or type; not organized |
| antipathy | n. a strong dislike |
| antipodes | n. any two places on directly opposite sides of the earth; two opposite things |
| apostasy | n. a complete forsaking of what one has believed in |
| apposite | adj appropriate; suitable; apt |
| archives | n. a place where public records or historical documents are kept; the public records kept in such a place |
| ascertain | v. to find out; to make certain |
| ascetic | n. a person who practices unusual self-denial or discipline, often for religious reasons; adj. self-denying |
| ascribe | v. to assign to some cause; to attribute; to think of as belonging to someone |
| asperity | n. harshness or roughness, such as of weather, surface, sound, etc.; harshness of temper |
| auspices | n. approval and support; patronage |
| austerity | n. severity in habit, manner, or practice; tightened economy due to a lack of consumer goods |
| autonomy | n. the condition of having self-government; independence |
| biennial | adj. occurring evey two years; living or lasting for two years n. something which lasts for two years |
| bucolic | adj. pertaining to shepherds or country life; rustic; rural |
| cabal | n. a small group of people working together in secret; the secret scheme or plot of such a group |
| calumny | n. a malicious statement made to injure someone's reputation; slander |
