Skip to main content

Academic word list 5 & 6

Read or download the sublists 5 & 6 from the academic word list. If you are unsure of the meaning of any of the words, look them up in a dictionary and find examples of how they can be used in academic writing.

Different activities focus on:

  • word meaning
  • grammatical word form
  • collocation (words that typically pair with the target word)
  • spelling

Most common form Other words in the family
academic academy, academia, academically, academics, academies
adjustment adjust, adjusted, adjusting, adjustments, adjusts, readjust, readjusted, readjusting, readjustment, readjustments, readjusts
alter alterable, alteration, alterations, altered, altering, alternate, alternating, alters, unalterable, unaltered
amendment amend, amended, amending, amendments, amends
aware awareness, unaware
capacity capacities, incapacitate, incapacitated
challenge challenged, challenger, challengers, challenges, challenging
clause clauses
compounds compound, compounded, compounding
conflict conflicted, conflicting, conflicts
consultation consult, consultancy, consultant, consultants, consultations, consultative, consulted, consults, consulting
contact contactable, contacted, contacting, contacts
decline declined, declines, declining
discretion discrete, discretely, discretionary, indiscrete, indiscretion
draft drafted, drafting, drafts, redraft, redrafted, redrafting, redrafts
enable enabled, enables, enabling
energy energetic, energetically, energies
enforcement enforce, enforced, enforces, enforcing
entities entity
equivalent equivalence
evolution evolve, evolved, evolving, evolves, evolutionary, evolutionist, evolutionists
expansion expand, expanded, expanding, expands, expansionism, expansive
exposure expose, exposed, exposes, exposing, exposures
external externalisation, externalise, externalised, externalises, externalising, externality
facilitate facilitated, facilitates, facilities, facilitating, facilitation, facilitator, facilitators, facility
fundamental fundamentally
generated generate, generates, generating
generation generations
image imagery, images
liberal liberaliseliberalism, liberalisation, liberalised, liberalises, liberalising, liberalization, liberate, liberated, liberates, liberation, liberations, liberating, liberator, liberators, liberally, liberals
licence licences, license, licensed, licensing, licenses, unlicensed
logic illogical, illogically, logical, logically, logician, logicians
marginal margin, marginally, margins
medical medically
mental mentality, mentally
modified modify, modification, modifications, modifies, modifying, unmodified
monitoring monitor, monitored, monitors, unmonitored
network networked, networking, networks
notion notions
objective objectively, objectivity
orientation orient, orientateorientatedorientates, orientating, oriented, orienting, orients, reorient, reorientation
perspective perspectives
precise imprecise, precisely, precision
prime primacy
psychology psychological, psychologically, psychologist, psychologists
pursue pursued, pursues, pursuing, pursuit, pursuits
ratio ratios
rejected reject, rejecting, rejection, rejects, rejections
revenue revenues
stability stable, instability, stabilisation, stabilise, stabilised, stabilises, stabilising, unstable
styles style, styled, styling, stylish, stylise, stylised, stylises, stylising
substitution substitute, substituted, substitutes, substituting
sustainable sustain, sustainability, sustained, sustaining, sustains, sustenance, unsustainable
symbolic symbol, symbolically, symbolise, symbolises, symbolised, symbolising, symbolism, symbols
target targeted, targeting, targets
transition transit, transited, transiting, transitional, transitions, transitory, transits
trend trends
version versions
welfare -
whereas -

Most common form Other words in the family
abstract abstraction, abstractions, abstractly, abstracts
accurate accuracy, accurately, inaccuracy, inaccuracies, inaccurate
acknowledged acknowledge, acknowledges, acknowledging, acknowledgement, acknowledgements
aggregate aggregated, aggregates, aggregating, aggregation
allocation allocate, allocated, allocates, allocating, allocations
assigned assign, assigning, assignment, assignments, assigns reassign, reassigned, reassigning, reassigns, unassigned
attached attach, attaches, attaching, attachment, attachments, unattached
author authored, authoring, authors, authorship
bond bonded, bonding, bonds
brief brevity, briefed, briefing, briefly, briefs
capable capabilities, capability, incapable
cited cite, citation, citations, citing, cites
cooperative cooperate, cooperated, cooperates, cooperating, cooperation, cooperatively

co-operate, co-operated, co-operates, co-operation, co-operative, co-operatively

discrimination discriminate, discriminated, discriminates, discriminating
display displayed, displaying, displays
diversity diverse, diversely, diversification, diversified, diversifies, diversify, diversifying
domain domains
edition edit, edited, editing, editions, editor, editorial, editorials, editors, edits
enhanced enhance, enhancement, enhances, enhancing
estate estates
exceed exceeded, exceeding, exceeds
expert expertise, expertly, experts
explicit explicitly
federal federation, federations
fees fee
flexibility flexible, inflexible, inflexibility
furthermore -
gender genders
ignored ignorant, ignorance, ignore, ignores, ignoring
incentive incentives
incidence incidentincidentally, incidents
incorporated incorporate, incorporates, incorporating, incorporation
index indexed, indexes, indexing
inhibition inhibit, inhibited, inhibiting, inhibitions, inhibits
initiatives initiate, initiated, initiates, initiating, initiation, initiations, initiative, initiator, initiators
input inputs
instructions instruct, instruction, instructed, instructing, instructive, instructor, instructors, instructs
intelligence intelligent, intelligently, unintelligent
interval intervals
lecture lectured, lecturer, lecturers, lectures, lecturing
migration migrate, migrant, migrants, migrated, migrates, migrating, migrations, migratory
minimum -
ministry ministered, ministering, ministerial, ministries
motivation motive, motivate, motivated, motivates, motivating, motivations, motives, unmotivated
neutral neutralisation, neutralise, neutralised, neutralises, neutralising, neutralize, neutralized, neutralizes, neutralizing neutrality
nevertheless -
overseas -
preceding precede, preceded, precedence, precedent, precedes, unprecedented
presumption presume, presumably, presumed, presumes, presuming, presumptions, presumptuous
rational irrational, rationalisation, rationalisations, rationalise, rationalised, rationalises, rationalising, rationalism, rationality, rationally
recovery recover, recoverable, recovered, recovering, recovers
revealed reveal, revealing, reveals, revelation, revelations
scope -
subsidiary subsidy, subsidies, subsidise, subsidised, subsidises, subsidising, subsidize, subsidized, subsidizes, subsidizing
tapes taped, taping
trace traceable, traced, traces, tracing
transformation transform, transformations, transformed, transforming, transforms
transport transportation, transported, transporter, transporters, transporting, transports
underlying underlie, underlay, underlies
utility utilise, utilisation, utilised, utilises, utilising, utiliser, utilisers, utilize, utilization, utilized, utilizes, utilizing, utilizer, utilizers, utilities

Activities

Now try the activities which will help you become familiar with the words and expand your vocabulary.


Questions

  1. an informative talk on a specific topic
  2. a section of a legal document which states a particular condition or agreement
  3. a writer
  4. relating to the mind
  5. relating to medicine or health
  6. relating to a system of government which makes central decisions for a union of states
  7. a general pattern of occurrence of events
  8. strong disagreement; war
  9. a person who has a high level of knowledge and experience about a specific topic
  10. to lessen in power, value or amount
  11. to be more or greater than a particular amount
  12. to give someone or something an ability to do something
  13. money paid for a service
  14. the amount of money made by a business
  15. official authorisation to do a controlled activity eg drive a car, sell alcohol
  16. created, produced or resulted in
  17. not agreed or allowed
  18. taken from one place to another
  19. many small parts added together to make a whole
  20. a period of time between two events
  21. the range and limits of a project, essay, research or lecture
  22. an ability to change, bend or move
  23. using one person or thing in place of another person or thing
  24. the amount that a container can hold, or the amount of work a person, machine or organisation can produce
  25. correct
  26. obvious, clearly shown
  27. able to do a particular thing
  28. exact
  29. the most important
  30. different but equal

Answers

  1. lecture
  2. clause
  3. author
  4. mental
  5. medical
  6. federal
  7. trend
  8. conflict
  9. expert
  10. decline
  11. exceed
  12. enable
  13. fees
  14. revenue
  15. licence
  16. generated
  17. rejected
  18. transported
  19. aggregate
  20. interval
  21. scope
  22. flexibility
  23. substitution
  24. capacity
  25. accurate
  26. explicit
  27. capable
  28. precise
  29. fundamental
  30. equivalent


Identify the correct word forms. Choose the correct noun, verb or adjective from the options inside the square brackets.

Word 1

  • Noun: evolution
  • Verb: [evolutionist, evolve, evolutionary]
  • Adjective: [evolves, evolutionist, evolutionary]

Answer:

  • Noun: evolution
  • Verb: [evolve]
  • Adjective: [evolutionary]

Word 2

  • Noun: [style, stylish, stylises]
  • Verb: stylise
  • Adjective: [stylised, stylises, styles]

Answer:

  • Noun: [style]
  • Verb: stylise
  • Adjective: [stylised]

Word 3

  • Noun: liberalisation
  • Verb: [liberator, liberal, liberalise]
  • Adjective: [liberal, liberalism, liberally]

Answer:

  • Noun: liberalisation
  • Verb: [liberalise]
  • Adjective: [liberal]

Word 4

  • Noun: consultation
  • Verb: [consult, consultant, consultancy]
  • Adjective: [consultancy, consultative]

Answer:

  • Noun: consultation
  • Verb: [consult]
  • Adjective: [consultative]

Word 5

  • Noun: externalisation
  • Verb: [external, externality, externalise]
  • Adjective: [external, externality, externalise]

Answer:

  • Noun: externalisation
  • Verb: [externalise]
  • Adjective: [external]

Word 6

  • Noun: [expansion, expansive, expands]
  • Verb: expands
  • Adjective: [expansion, expanded, expands]

Answer:

  • Noun: [expansion]
  • Verb: expand
  • Adjective: [expanded]

Word 7

  • Noun: [symbolically, symbol, symbolise]
  • Verb: [symbols, symbolise, symbolism]
  • Adjective: symbolic

Answer:

  • Noun: [symbol]
  • Verb: [symbolise]
  • Adjective: symbolic


Choose the best word in each sentence from the options inside the square brackets.

1. [Whereas, hence] in the past computers were too expensive for many families, today's production techniques enable most households to afford a basic PC.

Answer: whereas

2. Simply being [aware, discriminated] of an issue is not enough to motivate a person to attempt to solve it; rather they must feel that the issue directly affects them.

Answer: aware

3. Tutors will use their [enforcement, discretion] in granting extensions for assignments.

Answer: discretion

4. Employers are increasingly seeking graduates with a global [orientation, monitoring].

Answer: orientation

5. Scientists have proven the importance of genetics in this area, and [furthermore, despite], shown that lifestyle is not a major factor, as once thought.

Answer: furthermore

6. One difficulty of learning a language is understanding [index, abstract] concepts, which may have no direct translation in the learner's native tongue.

Answer: abstract

7. Experts have warned of the effects of global warming for years; [nevertheless, preceding], most governments have not implemented any real change in policy.

Answer: nevertheless

8. Following a spike in the [incidence, welfare] of the disease in the 1980s, funding was increased for scientists engaged in investigating the causes.

Answer: incidence

9. The [input, ratio] of major stakeholders such as community groups, legal representatives and educators was sought when designing the framework.

Answer: input

10. Once the information has entered the public [generation, domain], particularly through social networking media, it can be very hard to erase.

Answer: domain

11. Students must display a thorough understanding of the [exceeding, underlying] principles and demonstrate that they can apply them in a variety of scenarios.

Answer: underlying


Guess the word that matches the list of synonyms. The number of letters is given as a clue.

1. Synonyms: position, angle, placement

Hint: 11 letters

Answer: orientation

2. Synonyms: occurrence, prevalence

Hint: 9 letters

Answer: incidence

3. Synonyms: subordinate, secondary, minor

Hint: 10 letters

Answer: subsidiary


Choose the best word in each sentence from the options inside the square brackets.

1. In a bid to find more [underlying, sustainable] types of engine fuel, the aviation industry is experimenting with the use of eucalypt trees in biofuel.

Answer: sustainable

2. These measurements are [capable, accurate] to within one one-hundredth of a millimetre.

Answer: accurate

3. This paper sets out to [challenge, draft] the current accepted approach by proposing a new design framework.

Answer: challenge

4. The third [edit, edition, editor] of the book contains a revised section on the use of technology to support research in the area.

Answer: edition

5.Candidates will possess an [orientate, orientation, orientating ] to lifelong learning, demonstrated in their commitment to professional development.

Answer: orientation

6. Industry placements are an integral part of the course, and [nevertheless, furthermore] often provide the most valuable outcomes for students.

Answer: furthermore

7. There is often [conflicting, conflict, conflicted] between the desire to be environmentally friendly and the financial cost of ‘green’ products such as organic food.

Answer: conflict

8. There is usually an [conflict, expansion] of around seven to eight years between the discovery of a vaccine and it being commercially available to the public.

Answer: conflict

9. In [liberal, liberalise, liberalism] democratic societies, the role of the media in reporting on, criticising and to some extent shaping government policy is complex.

Answer: liberal

10.This paper aims to make an [expert, explicit] link between governmental policies of the last twenty years and the current rise in homelessness.

Answer: explicit

11. The 50+ age group reported that they used the Internet for 30 minutes a day, [whereas, nevertheless] those aged 18-30 spent almost five times as long surfing the Web.

Answer: whereas

12. The award is presented to the student with the best [federal, aggregate] performance in the final year of the program.

Answer: aggregate

13. The [stability, perspective] of the compound at various temperatures was tested.

Answer: stability