Oxford Thesaurus - An A-Z Dictionary Of Synonyms

know v. 1 understand, comprehend, be familiar with, grasp, be acquainted with, be versed or skilled in: Do you know anything about nuclear physics? I know Italian fairly well. She knows how to dance the tango. 2 recognize, identify, recall, remember, recollect: I know him from somewhere. 3 be sure or certain or positive: I knew I was right! I just know I'm going to win the first prize. 4 distinguish, separate, discern, differentiate, recognize, identify: Charles doesn't know right from wrong. 5 be aware or conscious or cognizant of, be informed or advised of, have knowledge of: He knows that he cannot fire her because she knows too much.

knowing adj. 1 conspiratorial or conspiratory, secret, private; significant, meaningful, eloquent, expressive; shrewd, canny, artful, sly, wily, crafty: She gave him a knowing wink. 2 wise, clever, shrewd, (well-)informed, knowledgeable or knowledgable, aware, expert, qualified, astute, perceptive, intelligent, sagacious: Harold is quite knowing about horses, why not ask him?

knowledge n. 1 knowing, awareness, apprehension, cognition, grasp, understanding, discernment, consciousness, conception, insight: Miles's knowledge of history is extensive. 2 facts,

information, data, intelligence: They had no knowledge of any defections to the enemy. 3 acquaintance, acquaintanceship, familiarity, appreciation, conversance, expertise, experience,

adeptness, proficiency: Has he any knowledge of their work on the DNA molecule? 4 schooling, education, scholarship, instruction, learning, erudition: A little knowledge is a dangerous thing.

knowledgeable

adj. 1 knowledgable, aware, au fait, au courant, up to date, (well-)informed, (well-)acquainted, cognizant, familiar, enlightened, expert, knowing, Colloq in the know: She is knowledgeable about events in eastern Europe. 2 well-educated, erudite, learned, cultured, well-read, intelligent,

sophisticated, worldly, wise, sage, sagacious: Professor Evans is one of the most knowledgeable people I have ever met.

11.4 kowtow =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-

kowtow v. Often, kowtow to. genuflect (before), salaam (to), prostrate oneself (before), bow (down) (to or before), pay court to,

scrape before, cringe before, fawn (before), grovel (before), toady ((up) to), pander to, truckle ((up) to), dance attendance on, Colloq butter up, Slang suck up to, play up to, shine up to,

Taboo slang US brown-nose: He kowtows to anyone who he thinks may be of use to him.

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kudos n. praise, acclaim, glory, fame, renown, honour, plaudits, applause, laudation, acclamation, accolade: They got a lot of kudos out of funding a new opera-house.

12.0 L =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-

12.1 label...

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label n. 1 identification, identifier, ID, mark, marker, earmark, tag, ticket, sticker, stamp, imprint, hallmark, brand, Brit docket: The label shows the weight, composition, and price of the contents. A proper shipping label should show both source

and destination. 2 name, denomination, designation, appellation, nickname, epithet, sobriquet, classification, characterization, description: It is difficult to give a label to the kind of

novels she writes. 3 trade mark, trade name, brand, logo, mark: Many supermarket chains market products under their own label.

--v. 4 identify (as), mark, tag, earmark, ticket, stamp, hallmark, imprint, brand, Brit docket: In those days, every

liberal was labelled a communist. Prepared food packages must be labelled with their ingredients. 5 name, denominate, designate, call, term, dub, classify, categorize, pigeon-hole, class, characterize, describe, portray, identify, Colloq US peg: We cannot label Voltaire either spiritualist or materialist.

laborious adj. 1 arduous, burdensome, onerous, strenuous, gruelling, back-breaking, Herculean, exhausting, taxing, tiring, fatiguing, wearying, wearisome, toilsome, difficult, tough, hard, uphill, stiff: Few realize how laborious farm work can be. 2 painstaking, detailed, careful, thorough, diligent, scrupulous, exhaustive, steady, steadfast, relentless, unrelenting, dogged, assiduous, sedulous, persevering, persistent, untiring,

tireless, indefatigable, unremitting: After laborious research the virus was finally identified. 3 industrious, hard-working,

dogged, determined, unwavering, obstinate, stubborn, unflagging, obdurate: He made a laborious effort to get ahead. 4 laboured, strained, forced, ponderous, overworked: The book contains some of the most laborious prose ever written.

labour n. 1 toil, (hard) work, travail, exertion, effort, laboriousness, strain, drudgery, pains, industry, slavery,

donkey-work, Colloq sweat, grind, elbow-grease, Brit swot: They know the labour involved in building a road. 2 employees, workers, wage-earners, labourers: A meeting between labour and management is scheduled for today. 3 effort, task, job, chore, undertaking: Raising funds for the museum was a labour of love. 4 travail, childbirth, parturition, labour pains, contractions, delivery: She went into labour at midnight, and the twins were born just after four.

--v. 5 work, toil, travail, drudge, strain, strive, struggle, slave, Colloq sweat, grind, Brit peg away (at), swot: We laboured hard to get where we are today. 6 dwell on, overdo, overemphasize, harp on, overstress, strain, Colloq belabour: I heard you the first time, so don't labour the point. 7 labour under. be burdened or troubled or distressed by, be deluded or deceived by, be disadvantaged by, suffer, endure: He is labouring under a misapprehension. She labours under the

impression that she will not be affected by a lack of education.

laboured adj. 1 strained, forced, difficult, hard, laborious, heavy: His breathing became laboured. 2 overdone, excessive, overwrought, ornate, elaborate, overworked, over-embellished, contrived, affected, artificial, unnatural: Her writing style

is very laboured and much too stiff.

labourer n. worker, workman, hand, blue-collar worker, working man, manual worker, drudge, Colloq Brit navvy: Get some labourers to clear away that rubble.

labyrinthine

adj. labyrinthian, maze-like, mazy, tortuous, sinuous, winding, convoluted, complicated, confusing, perplexing, puzzling, enigmatic, baffling, confounding, complex, Daedalian or Daedalean or Daedalic, daedal, intricate, Byzantine, twisted, gnarled, snarled, tangled, knotted, knotty, Gordian: The plot was so labyrinthine that the audience was unable to follow it.

lacerate v. gash, cut, slash, tear, rip, claw, mangle; wound, rend, hurt: My feet were lacerated by the sharp stones. She suffered a lacerating attack from him for forgetting to pass on the message.

lackadaisical

adj. 1 lethargic, languorous, languid, listless, lazy, sluggish, spiritless, idle, indolent, inactive, slothful,

fain‚ant: She's much too lackadaisical to go out and get a job. 2 unenthusiastic, dull, apathetic, insouciant, uncaring, unconcerned, indifferent, blas‚, cold, cool, lukewarm, tepid, unexcited, phlegmatic, unemotional, unexcitable, uninterested, unimpressed, uninspired, unmoved, pococurante: How can you explain the government's lackadaisical attitude towards the greenhouse effect?

lacklustre

adj. drab, dull, lustreless, flat, dingy, colourless, dismal, dreary, unexciting, boring, prosaic, tiresome, tedious, wearisome, uninteresting, two-dimensional, insipid, vapid, bland, unimaginative, thick, slow, dense, Colloq wishy-washy,

blah: He gave a very lacklustre performance as Shylock. She has been leading a lacklustre life since John left.

ladylike adj. well-bred, well-born, aristocratic, noble; refined, respectable, cultured, polished, elegant, mannerly, gracious, genteel, courteous, polite, courtly, dignified, proper, correct, decorous: I cannot believe that Mrs Gibson did not behave in a

laissez-faire

n. laisser-faire, laissez-faireism, free enterprise, non-intervention, non-interference, freedom, free trade, individualism, laissez-aller or laisser-aller, deregulation, decontrol, laxness: The government's policy of laissez-faire has spurred business on.

lambaste v. 1 beat, whip, scourge, flog, lash, maul, horsewhip, cane, birch, thrash, bludgeon, trounce, drub, pummel, batter, belabour, cudgel: Terry threatened to lambaste anyone who interfered. 2 censure, rebuke, scold, reprimand, chide, admonish, reprove, upbraid, berate, scold, revile, attack, castigate, flay, Colloq dress down, get on (someone's) back, rake or haul over the coals, US call down, Slang chew or bawl

out: The press lambasted the company for its unfair employment policies.

like a pretty lame excuse to me.

lament v. 1 mourn, bemoan, bewail, wail, weep (over), grieve (for or over), keen (over), sorrow (for or over): A year later, and she

is still lamenting the death of her hamster?!

--n. 2 lamentation, moaning, mourning; keen, dirge, elegy, knell, Requiem, monody, threnody, thanatopsis, epicedium, Scots and Irish coronach: Laments for Kitty's late husband were heard throughout the village.

lamentable

adj. deplorable, wretched, miserable, terrible, distressing, awful, regrettable, pitiful, despicable, intolerable, unfortunate: The hall was left in a lamentable state after the

party. His death was presaged by a lamentable series of events.

lamentation

n. mourning, grieving, moaning, weeping, wailing, crying, sobbing, lamenting: The lamentation went on far into the night.

lampoon n. 1 burlesque, caricature, satire, parody, pasquinade or pasquil, squib, Colloq take-off, Brit send-up: The students published a hilarious lampoon of the teaching staff.

--v. 2 burlesque, caricature, satirize, parody, pasquinade or pasquil, mock, ridicule, squib, US skewer, Colloq take off, put or run down, Brit send up: The cows we hold most sacred are often lampooned by irreverent cartoonists.

lance n. 1 spear, pike, javelin, assegai; lancet: He transfixed the knight with his lance, and claimed victory in the joust.

homeland, native land: The land of our fathers flowed with milk and honey.

--v. 5 arrive, alight, light, touch or come or go down, splash down, settle on or upon, come to rest, berth, dock, disembark, debark, go ashore, deplane, dismount: The plane was forced to land on the water. We land at dawn. 6 catch, capture, take captive, Colloq bag: He was unable to land the shark unaided. 7 Colloq get, secure, obtain, win, acquire: He finally landed a job with his father-in-law. Sadie finally landed a millionaire!

landing n. 1 touchdown, alighting, splashdown, docking: The fog made landing quite dangerous. 2 disembarkation, deplaning, arrival: After landing, passengers proceed through passport control. 3 landing-place, dock, pier, jetty, wharf, quay: We walked onto

the landing to watch the ship come in.

landlady n. 1 proprietor or proprietress, lady of the house, mistress, manager or Brit manageress, hostess: My landlady owns three bed and breakfasts. 2 See landlord, 2, below.

landlord n. 1 host, publican, proprietor, innkeeper, hotelier, manager, restaurateur, Boniface: Landlord! Two pints of your best bitter! 2 landlady, landowner, householder, (property) owner, lessor, Brit freeholder: My landlord has raised my rent claiming that his expenses have increased.

landmark n. 1 feature, guide, guidepost; identification: The tower serves as a landmark for those seeking the castle. 2 turning-point, watershed, milestone, monument: His essay remains a landmark in philosophical thought.

--attributive 3 critical, crucial, pivotal, important, historic, significant, precedent-setting, momentous, notable, noteworthy, major: This stands out as a landmark decision in the annals of criminal law.

landscape n. prospect, view, scene, aspect, vista, countryside: Here and there the landscape is dotted with spinneys.

language n. 1 speech, tongue, idiom, parlance, dialect, idiolect, patois, jargon, cant, argot, vernacular, Colloq lingo: How many languages do you speak? 2 communication, intercourse,