Oxford Thesaurus - An A-Z Dictionary Of Synonyms

zealous, heartfelt, excited, fervent, fervid: She reacted in a very emotional way to the suggestions. 2 tense, nervous, excitable, highly-strung, high-strung, temperamental, volatile, hotheaded, demonstrative: He is a very emotional person, who should not be driving a bus. 3 sensitive, warm, sentimental, tender, moving, poignant, stirring, emotive, affective,

touching: Their meeting after 50 years was certainly emotional. 4 frantic, agitated, irrational, hysterical, wild, ranting: She became very emotional when the police took away her son.

emphasis n. importance, stress, significance, prominence, attention, weight, gravity, force, moment, pre-eminence, priority, underscoring, underlining, Technical paralipsis: They place too much emphasis on the social aspects of school.

emphasize v. stress, accentuate, accent, underscore, point up, underline, call or draw attention to, mark, highlight, play up, spotlight, feature: The new procedures emphasize safety.

emphatic adj. firm, uncompromising, determined, decided, resolute, dogged; earnest, definite, unequivocal, unambiguous, distinct, dogmatic, categorical, peremptory, explicit, incisive,

insistent, affirmative, positive, sure, certain, unmistakable or unmistakeable, specific, definitive, direct; forceful, vigorous, energetic, assertive, intense; express, pronounced, strong: She was emphatic about leaving then and there.

empirical adj. empiric, experiential, practical, observed, pragmatic, experimental: He has been there and has empirical knowledge of the system.

employ v. 1 hire, engage, enlist, recruit, enrol, sign (up), take on, retain, commission: I have employed a solicitor to look after

my affairs while I am away. The company employed 120 engineers. 2 use, make use of, utilize, apply: We plan to employ the most modern equipment. 3 occupy, take (up), engage, involve: He is employed with his stamp collection.

employee n. worker, staff member, wage-earner; hand: The employees are on strike.

employer n. 1 proprietor, owner, patron, manager, director, chief, head, Colloq boss, Brit gaffer, governor, Eye dialect guv'nor, guv:

My employer comes in late every day. 2 company, firm, corporation, business, establishment, organization, Colloq outfit: She took her employer to court for unfair dismissal.

employment

n. 1 occupation, job, trade, work, business, profession, vocation, calling, livelihood, pursuit, m‚tier, skill, craft, Colloq line, Slang racket: My employment for many years has been restoring antique furniture. 2 hire, hiring, engagement, engaging, employing, taking on, retaining, enlistment, enlisting: The employment of 50 people by the new firm will help the town. 3 use, utilization, application, operation,

implementation: The job involves the employment of specialized techniques.

emptiness n. 1 voidness, hollowness, vacantness, vacancy, vacuity, blankness, bareness, barrenness, desolation, desertedness, vacuum, void: He was again alone in the vast emptiness of space. After she left, I felt a terrible emptiness. 2 senselessness, meaninglessness, pointlessness, aimlessness, purposelessness, futility, uselessness, worthlessness,

hollowness: The emptiness of the candidate's words was apparent to all. 3 vacuity, vacuousness, vacantness, blankness, expressionlessness, emotionlessness: The emptiness of her

facial expression told me that she hadn't understood a word.

empty adj. 1 void, unfilled, hollow, bare, barren, vacant, unfurnished, unadorned, undecorated; emptied, drained, spent, exhausted: That empty space on the wall needs a painting. 2 vacant, unoccupied, uninhabited, untenanted: He finally found an empty flat with two bedrooms. 3 deserted, desolate, uninhabited, wild, waste, bare, barren; forsaken: He wandered for days on the empty moor. 4 trivial, insincere, hypocritical, hollow, cheap, worthless, valueless, meaningless, insignificant, insubstantial, unsatisfying, idle: His promises were merely words, empty words. 5 vacant, blank, deadpan, expressionless, poker-faced; vacuous, fatuous, stupid, foolish, inane: He looked at me with that empty expression of his. 6 blank, clean, new, unused, clear: On an empty page write your name and the date. 7 empty of. devoid of, lacking (in), wanting, in want of, deficient in, destitute of, without, sans: Their hearts are

empty of compassion.

--v. 8 clear, remove, take out or away, put out, cast or throw out, eject; vacate, evacuate; dump, drain, exhaust, pour out, void, discharge, unload: Thieves emptied everything from the house. The police are emptying the building because of a bomb scare. Empty these bottles outside.

5.11 enable...

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enable v. 1 qualify, authorize, entitle, permit, allow, sanction, approve, empower, license,commission, entrust, depute, delegate, assign, charter, franchise: An act was passed to enable them to build the railway. 2 capacitate, facilitate, expedite, help,

aid, assist: The grant enabled me to continue my studies. 3 permit, allow, approve, assent to, go along with, agree to, give the go-ahead or green light, Colloq OK or okay: Her press pass enables her to get through police lines.

enact v. 1 pass, legislate, ratify; ordain, decree, rule, command, order, authorize: The law was enacted to protect consumers. 2 act (out), represent, play, portray, depict, perform, appear as: She enacted the role of a modern Lady Macbeth.

enchant v. 1 bewitch, cast a spell on, ensorcell or ensorcel, spellbind, hypnotize, mesmerize, voodoo, Brit magic, US hex, Colloq hoodoo: Circe enchanted Ulysses' men and turned them into swine. 2 charm, fascinate, beguile, captivate, enthral, enrapture, attract, allure, delight, entrance: With her sultry looks she has enchanted the most cynical of men.

enchanted adj. pleased, delighted, happy, thrilled, French enchant‚(e): I am enchanted to meet you at last, Mrs Thompson.

enchanting

adj. beguiling, bewitching, entrancing, spellbinding, charming, fascinating, captivating, intriguing, enthralling, alluring, delightful, hypnotic, attractive, appealing, winsome, ravishing, seductive: Caesar found Cleopatra utterly enchanting.

enchantment

n. 1 witchcraft, sorcery, magic, wizardry, thaumaturgy, conjuration or conjury; spell, charm, jinx, US hex: Stories of

enchantment and magic fail to interest today's sceptical five-year-old. When she worked her enchantment on me, I succumbed completely. 2 charm, beguilement, allure, fascination, rapture, mesmerism, bliss: She was completely carried away by the enchantment of the moment.

encircle v. surround, gird, circle, enclose, ring, encompass, compass, confine, hem or hold in; wreathe: When the horde encircled the castle we thought we were doomed.

enclose v. 1 inclose, confine, shut in, close or hem in, surround, pen, encircle, encompass, bound, envelop, hedge in, wall in, immure, fence in or off, US and Canadian corral: A high wall encloses the garden. 2 insert, include, contain; wrap: The cheque was enclosed in the same envelope.

enclosure n. 1 fold, pen, cote, run, sty, yard, farmyard, barnyard, courtyard, quadrangle or quad, square, compound, Brit close, US and Canadian corral: We had trouble keeping the dogs in the enclosure. 2 fence, wall, rail, railing, barrier, hedge,

barricade, boundary: The buildings serve as an enclosure.

encounter v. 1 meet, come upon, run into or across, happen upon, chance upon, hit upon, light upon, stumble upon, Colloq bump into: She encountered him again in the supermarket. 2 face, experience, meet with, contend with, be faced with, come into contact with, wrestle with: She encounters such problems every day. 3 come into conflict with, contend with, assail, cross swords (with), grapple with, engage, joust with, do battle with, confront,

clash with, join, meet: The ballad tells how he encountered the black knight in single combat.

--n. 4 meeting: It was a chance encounter that brought us together. 5 confrontation, brush, quarrel, disagreement, dispute, altercation, engagement, action, battle, fight, clash, conflict, skirmish, contest, competition, duel, contention, struggle, war, Colloq dust-up, scrap, run-in, set-to: My uncle took part in the bloody encounter in the Ardennes.

encourage v. 1 hearten, embolden, reassure, buoy (up), stimulate, animate, support, inspirit, inspire, cheer (up), urge or spur on

or onward(s), incite, Colloq egg on, pep up: She encouraged him in his study of medicine. 2 promote, advance, aid, support,

help, assist, abet, foster, forward, boost, Colloq give a shot in the arm: The continued success of the team encouraged attendance at the games.

encouragement

n. 1 heartening, reassuring, reassurance, buoying up, stimulating, stimulation, stimulus, animating, animation, supporting, support, promoting, promotion, inspiring, inspiration, cheering, urging, spur, spurring, exhorting, exhortation, prodding, urging, innervation, inciting,

incitement: Without her encouragement, I could never have won. 2 boost, stimulus, help, aid, support, Colloq pep talk: The

team gets a lot of encouragement from local merchants.

encroach v. Often, encroach on or upon. intrude, trespass, infringe, invade, make inroads: When you mention arctophily, you're encroaching on my territory.

encumber v. 1 burden, weigh down, load (up or down), overload, overburden, strain, oppress, saddle, tax, overtax: Encumbered with intolerable taxes, the people revolted. She almost drowned because she was encumbered with her numerous petticoats. 2 hamper, impede, hinder, handicap, inconvenience, trammel,

retard, slow down: Though encumbered by an invalid husband, she managed to qualify as a barrister.

encumbrance

n. weight, burden, onus, cross (to bear), albatross, millstone, handicap, impediment, hindrance, obstacle, obstruction, liability, disadvantage, drag: The children were regarded merely as an encumbrance.

encyclopedic

adj. encyclopaedic, comprehensive, inclusive, broad, extensive, universal, thorough, exhaustive, wide-ranging, complete: She has an encyclopedic knowledge of Chinese art.

struggle, exert oneself, undertake; aim, aspire; Colloq take a stab at, have a go or crack or whack or shot at: For years he's endeavoured to see her.

--n. 2 effort, pains, attempt, try, striving, struggle, venture, enterprise, Colloq stab, crack, whack, shot: Her endeavours to be published have come to naught.

endless adj. 1 limitless, unlimited, boundless, unbounded, infinite, immeasurable, eternal, unending: They found themselves in the endless reaches of outer space. 2 ceaseless, uninterrupted, incessant, unceasing, unending, constant, perpetual, interminable, unremitting, non-stop, continuous, continual, everlasting: I wish you two would stop your endless bickering.

endorse v. 1 indorse, approve, sanction, authorize, advocate, support, back, subscribe to, sustain, confirm, countenance, put one's stamp or seal (of approval) on, set one's seal (of approval) to,

give (something) one's imprimatur, Colloq OK, okay: The council endorsed our application for planning permission. 2 indorse, countersign: Endorse the cheque to cash it.

endorsement

n. 1 indorsement, approval, affirmation, sanction, authorization, confirmation, ratification, support, backing, approbation, seal or stamp of approval, imprimatur, Colloq OK, okay: He is acting with the full endorsement of his union. 2 counter-signature: His endorsement is on the back of the cheque.

endowment n. 1 grant, (financial) aid, subsidy, subvention, allowance, allotment, contribution, donation, gift, present, award;

bequest, inheritance, dowry: The endowment was enough to support me for a year. 2 gift, presentation, bestowal, award, awarding, settlement: The endowment of the grant was approved by the college. 3 endowments. qualities, talents, gifts,

abilities, aptitudes, capabilities, capacities, qualifications, strengths; attributes, properties, characteristics: She is a woman of considerable endowments.

endurance n. 1 stamina, staying power, perseverance, persistence, resolution, fortitude, tenacity, patience, tolerance, Colloq US stick-to-it-iveness: He showed remarkable endurance in the

pentathlon trials. 2 lasting quality, durability, longevity, lifetime, continuation: In this film, he uses the river as a symbol of endurance and timelessness.

endure v. 1 last, persist, stay, remain, abide, prevail, survive, continue, hold, live (on), Colloq go the distance: Her fame as a poet will endure. 2 stand, abide, tolerate, face, survive, withstand, bear, weather, take (it), suffer, stomach, undergo, hold out (against), Colloq hang in (there), stick or sweat (it or something) out: He endured the pressure of his job as long as he could. 3 suffer, undergo, bear, face, stand, put up with,

stomach, take: Consider the tyranny that Europe endured under Hitler.

enduring adj. lasting, long-lasting, durable, abiding, continuing, long-standing, persisting, persistent, remaining, steady, steadfast; eternal, immortal, permanent: Their enduring faith carried them through the ordeal.

enemy n. foe, antagonist, adversary, opponent, rival, competitor, contestant, contender; the opposition, the other side: His enemies were running a smear campaign against him.

energetic adj. lively, active, vigorous, invigorated, dynamic, animated, spirited, untiring, tireless, indefatigable, sprightly, spry,

vital, high-powered, brisk, vibrant, zesty, zestful, Colloq hot, peppy, full of pep, full of get-up-and-go, zippy, on one's toes, zingy, full of beans: I feel most energetic at the start of the day.

energize v. enliven, liven up, stimulate, animate, invigorate, activate, actuate, move, motivate, galvanize, electrify, inspire,

inspirit, pep up, waken, rouse, stir, arouse, excite, egg on, urge: Max's enthusiasm energized the whole of the research team.

energy n. vitality, forcefulness, vivacity, liveliness, vigour, animation, spirit, force, dynamism, drive, verve, dash, ‚lan, intensity, power, determination, puissance, strength, might, Colloq pep, vim and vigour, US stick-to-it-iveness, get-up-and-go, zip, zing: At seventy, she just couldn't put as much energy into her performance as she once did.

enervate v. weaken, tire, strain, enfeeble, debilitate, fatigue, exhaust, drain, sap, wear out, devitalize, break, defeat: I have always found the tropics quite enervating.

enforce v. 1 insist upon or on, stress, require, impose, support, put into effect, apply, administer, carry out, inflict, bring to

bear, implement, prosecute, discharge; reinforce; Colloq crack or clamp down: The police will enforce the curfew tonight. 2 force, compel, pressure or Brit pressurize, press, coerce, lay stress upon or on, impose upon or on, impress upon or on, insist upon or on, demand, require; intimidate, browbeat, bully, railroad; Colloq lean on, twist (someone's) arm: They hired thugs to enforce their claim.

engage v. 1 employ, hire, enrol or US also enroll, enlist, retain, sign (up), contract with or for, indenture; rent, book, reserve, secure, bespeak: She was engaged on a part-time basis. We engaged rooms for the night. 2 occupy, engross, busy, absorb, involve, tie up, preoccupy, employ: This task will engage all available resources until the end of next month. 3 pledge, undertake, bargain, agree, covenant, promise, guarantee, contract: I engaged to complete the work by Tuesday. 4 attract, hold, capture, catch, draw: The museum has many exhibits that will engage the interest of children. 5 join (in) combat or battle with, meet, encounter, fight, combat, attack, battle, clash with, grapple with: The enemy was engaged at dawn. 6 engage in. participate (in), partake in, take part

(in), enter (into), undertake, embark on: She engages in many out-of-school activities.

engaged adj. 1 betrothed, affianced, plighted, pledged, promised; spoken for: They got engaged on St Valentine's Day. 2 busy, occupied, tied up, involved, employed, absorbed, preoccupied, wrapped up: He is otherwise engaged and cannot meet me today.

engagement

n. 1 appointment, meeting, date, rendezvous, arrangement, commitment: I'm sorry, I have a previous engagement. 2 betrothal: Their engagement was announced in all the papers. 3 agreement, bargain, obligation, promise, pledge, covenant, contract: The company undertook an engagement to provide the steel. 4 job, position, post, commission, booking; employment, work; Colloq spot, Slang (of a musician) gig: He has an

engagement with the newspaper. 5 fight, battle, conflict, encounter, combat: The naval engagement lasted three days and nights.

engaging adj. charming, pleasant, attractive, winsome, winning, appealing, agreeable, delightful, pleasing, likeable, friendly, open: With her engaging personality, it is no wonder she has so many friends.

planner, mastermind: The engineer of this scheme was one David Jones. 2 (engine-) driver, conductor, operator: He was the engineer on the afternoon train out of Washington. 3 mechanic, technician, repairman: The telephone engineers will be here on Monday to install a new phone system.

--v. 4 devise, plan, develop, originate, contrive, invent, mastermind, construct, build, make: It is said that Daedalus engineered the first man-made wings. 5 manipulate, scheme, plot, machinate, intrigue, connive, conspire, manoeuvre, rig, set up, organize, arrange, put over, Colloq finagle, wangle, swing: She tried to engineer the laundering of the money, but was caught.

engrave v. 1 cut, carve, chisel, inscribe; etch: The ring was a plain gold band, engraved with daisies. 2 impress, stamp, set, lodge, fix, embed, imprint, ingrain: The horror of that night was forever engraved in his mind.

engraving n. 1 intaglio, cameo, etching, dry-point, woodcut, linocut, wood or steel engraving, anaglyph, block or US also cut: She uses a burin to make these engravings. 2 print, impression, etching, dry-point: The exhibition of D•rer engravings closes tomorrow.

enhance v. improve, better, augment, boost, raise, elevate, lift, heighten, exalt, enlarge, swell, magnify, increase, add to, amplify, intensify, enrich, embellish, complement, reinforce, strengthen: His public image was greatly enhanced by his