Oxford Thesaurus - An A-Z Dictionary Of Synonyms

lethargic adj. 1 lethargical, sluggish, slow, dull, heavy, lazy, indolent, phlegmatic, slothful, idle, languid, languorous, listless, fain‚ant, inactive, torpid, stuporous, comatose; indifferent, apathetic: They were so lethargic that they did absolutely nothing about it. 2 weary, tired, fagged out,

fatigued, enervated, weak, exhausted, drowsy, sleepy, somnolent: I have a bad cold and feel very lethargic.

lethargy n. 1 sluggishness, sloth, dullness, heaviness, laziness, indolence, phlegm, idleness, languidness, languor, listlessness, dolce far niente, inactivity, inertia, torpor, stupor; indifference, apathy: After taking the medicine, a feeling of lethargy overtook me. 2 weariness, tiredness, fatigue,

weakness, exhaustion, drowsiness, sleepiness, somnolence: The strident persistence of my alarm clock dragged me out of my lethargy.

letter n. 1 character, symbol, sign: Epsilon is a letter in the Greek alphabet. 2 missive, epistle, communication, note, line, message, dispatch or despatch; correspondence: Write me a letter when you get there. 3 letters. literature, the

humanities, belles-lettres, the classics; erudition, culture, the world of letters, learning, scholarship: He is a widely known man of letters. 4 to the letter. precisely, literally, exactly, accurately, strictly, sic, thus, letter for letter, literatim, word for word, verbatim: The document has been copied to the letter.

--v. 5 inscribe, write, spell (out): She carefully lettered the caption under the picture.

lettered adj. literate, literary, (well-)educated, erudite, scholarly, learned, well-informed, enlightened, knowledgeable, (well-)versed, well-read, cultured, cultivated: He was greatly influenced by the lettered men of his time.

let-up n. cease, stop, stopping, ceasing, cessation, surcease, break, interruption, pause, intermission, suspension, time out or off; moderation, lessening, abatement, diminution, relief, hesitation, respite, relaxation: I was nagged without let-up about getting the work done by the end of the month.

level adj. 1 even, smooth, plane, uniform, plain, flat, flush, straight, true: The plaster is not level enough to apply the wallpaper. 2 horizontal; prone, supine: Make sure the playing field is level. Try to keep the body level when doing this exercise. 3 uniform, constant, steady, consistent, invariable, unvarying, unalterable, unchanging, unfluctuating; very: I did my level best to warn him, but he wouldn't listen. 4 parallel, even, equal, equivalent, consistent: The top floor of my house is level with the roof of the one across the street. The problem arises because wages are not level with inflation. 5 up (on), informed (about or on), up to date (on or with), au fait (with), au courant (with): He does his best to keep level with what is going on in the world. 6 even, tied, equal, neck and neck: The scores are level. So at half-time, it's level pegging between Arsenal and Liverpool. 7 See level-headed, below.

--v. 8 level off, even, smooth (out), flatten (out): The concrete is levelled by dragging a straight-edge over it. 9 destroy, demolish, raze, lay waste, devastate, knock down, tear

down, pull down, wreck, bulldoze: The building was levelled in a matter of minutes. 10 aim, point, draw a bead, direct, train, focus: He levelled his gun at her and she screamed. 11 level with. be or play fair with, be honest or straight with, be open

or frank or straightforward with, Colloq be upfront with: I am going to level with you - I find you very difficult to work with.

--n. 12 plane, horizontal, elevation, height; altitude: The windows are at the same level. 13 floor, storey: On which level is Mr Stone's office? 14 plane, position, status, standing, rank, stage: She functions at a higher level, both administratively and intellectually. 15 on the level. straight, straightforward, honest, direct, sincere, square, open, above-board, Colloq upfront, on the up and up, US

straight-shooting: You haven't been on the level with me about your plans for the company.

level-headed

adj. (well-)balanced, sensible, sane, reasonable, commonsensical, level, unruffled, undisturbed, unperturbed, imperturbable, even-tempered, composed, calm, cool, collected, tranquil, serene, unflappable, poised, relaxed, self-possessed: Even when she was a teenager, Fran was quite level-headed.

12.3 liability...

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liability n. 1 answerability, responsibility, burden, onus, accountability: Who bears the liability for the company's losses? 2 obligation, debt, indebtedness, arrear(s), debit: Outstanding shares are treated as a liability of the

corporation. 3 disadvantage, drawback, hindrance, impediment, encumbrance, snag, hitch, barrier, obstacle, obstruction, burden, onus: Her biggest liability is her inability to read.

4 exposure, susceptibility, vulnerability: The insurer's liability is spread amongst many underwriters.

liable adj. 1 likely, apt, prone, inclined, disposed: She is liable to want payment for her contribution. 2 answerable,

responsible, accountable, obligated, blameable, blameworthy, Law actionable: An owner is liable for damage done by his dog. 3 exposed, susceptible, vulnerable, open, subject: Certain kinds

of plants are more liable to disease.

liaison n. 1 connection, communication, contact, linkage, affiliation, relationship, relations: Liaison between the ministries is improving. 2 contact, intermediary, link, tie, medium, go-between, agent: She acts as liaison between the heads of research and manufacturing. 3 (love) affair, amour, relationship, affaire d'amour, affaire de coeur, intrigue, romance, entanglement, flirtation: David's wife soon found out about his liaison with the girl in the typing pool.

liberal adj. 1 generous, bountiful, free, open-hearted, open, open-handed, bounteous, charitable, philanthropic, munificent, magnanimous, big, big-hearted, unstinting, unselfish, unsparing; lavish, abundant, ample, large, handsome, plentiful, copious: Lady Browning is a liberal benefactor of our cause. Thank you for your liberal contributions. 2 progressive, libertarian, reformist, humanistic, left (of centre), latitudinarian, non-partisan, unaligned or non-aligned, individualistic, South African verligte: The liberal voters found little to attract

them in the latest election. 3 free, not literal, flexible, lenient, loose, broad, open, disinterested, impartial,

dispassionate, fair, broad-minded, open-minded, unprejudiced, unbigoted, unjaundiced, unopinionated, tolerant: Judge Reid is known for his liberal interpretation of the law.

--n. 4 progressive, libertarian, reformer, progressivist, latitudinarian, independent, freethinker, leftist, left-winger, South African verligte: They think of themselves as liberals,

not as conservatives.

liberalize

v. 1 broaden, widen, extend, expand, stretch, enlarge: The purpose of the law is to liberalize the functions of solicitors. 2 loosen, ease, slacken, relax, modify, change, moderate, soften: The police really ought to liberalize the parking regulations in this area.

liberate v. 1 (set) free, release, set at liberty, disenthral, emancipate, manumit, deliver, enfranchise, (let) loose, let go, let out, let off: When the enemy retreated, the army liberated the prisoners of war. After her divorce, she felt like a liberated woman. 2 steal, pilfer, purloin, take, appropriate: She was caught liberating some books from the library.

liberation

n. freeing, liberating, deliverance, emancipation, enfranchisement, enfranchising, delivery, rescue, rescuing, release, releasing, loosing, unfettering, unshackling, unchaining: The liberation of the prisoners occurred on May Day, 1945.

libertine n. 1 lecher, reprobate, profligate, rake, rakehell, rou‚, debaucher, womanizer, seducer, fornicator, adulterer, debauchee, whoremonger, philanderer, Don Juan, Lothario, Casanova, Colloq wolf, lady-killer, (old) goat, dirty old man: He fancied

himself a libertine, but women shunned him like the plague.

--adj. 2 licentious, lecherous, reprobate, profligate, rakish, rakehell, philandering, dissolute, immoral, degenerate, depraved, debauched, decadent, dirty, filthy, amoral, wanton, lewd, lascivious, prurient, lubricious or lubricous, salacious, Paphian, libidinous, ruttish, goatish, hircine, satyric(al), carnal, bestial, Colloq randy, Slang horny: A paragon of prudery to his family, Viscount Guarnier secretly led a life of wild, libertine abandon.

liberty n. 1 freedom, independence, self-determination, autonomy, self-rule, self-government, self-direction, sovereignty: People have always been willing to die for their liberty. 2 right, freedom, franchise, carte blanche, privilege, prerogative, licence, leave, permission, authorization: I was given the

liberty to go where I pleased. 3 freedom, licence, initiative, exemption, exception, privilege: On a strict diet, she allowed herself no liberties whatever. 4 at liberty. free, uninhibited, unfettered, unconstrained, unrestricted, unrestrained, liberated: I was at liberty to do as I pleased. 5 take a

liberty or the liberty or often liberties. be unrestrained or presumptuous or bold or uninhibited or overfamiliar or forward or aggressive or impudent or impertinent or audacious or improper; display or exercise boldness or impropriety or

presumption or presumptuousness or indecorum or unseemliness or boldness or arrogance: She thought he was taking liberties in asking her to dance. I took the liberty of asking her to

accompany me.

licence n. 1 leave, permission, liberty, authorization, authority, entitlement, dispensation, right, carte blanche, freedom, latitude, free choice, privilege, charter: Merely being eighteen does not give you licence to do exactly as you please. 2 permit, certificate, credential(s), paper(s): Bring along

your driving licence. 3 disregard, deviation, departure, nonconformity, non-compliance, divergence: Such grammatical abnormalities are an exercise of poetic licence.

license v. 1 authorize, allow, permit, certify, sanction, approve, commission: The government once had the power to license books

lifeless adj. 1 dead: I stared at the lifeless body of the man. 2 unconscious, inanimate, insensate, inert, unmoving, dead, insensible: At the news of the accident, she sank, lifeless, to the floor. 3 dull, boring, tiresome, heavy, lacklustre, torpid, tedious, flat, stale, uninteresting, colourless, uninspiring,

vapid, wooden: The production was a success apart from Ellen's lifeless performance as Portia. 4 barren, desert, desolate,

bare, sterile, bleak, empty, uninhabited, unoccupied, dreary, waste: We gazed at the lifeless landscape of the moon.

lifelike adj. authentic, realistic, natural, true to life, real, faithful, graphic, vivid: She painted a very lifelike picture

light° n. 1 illumination, brightness, daylight, lamplight, candlelight, firelight, gaslight, torchlight, starlight, moonlight, sunlight; gegenschein, counterglow: There is just enough light for me to read the label. 2 lamp, light-bulb, torch, beacon, lantern, candle, flare, headlight or headlamp, street-light or street lamp, US and Canadian flashlight: I saw a light in the distance. Someone turned off the lights. 3 radiance, radiation, luminescence, glare, gleam, glow, reflection, luminosity, shine, sparkle, scintillation,

incandescence, phosphorescence, fluorescence: The light of the full moon shone through the window. 4 daybreak, dawn, sunrise, US sun-up: We leave at first light. 5 clarification, enlightenment, insight, understanding, elucidation, simplification, explanation: After an hour's talk with his

lawyer, he finally saw the light and confessed. Can you shed a little light on this problem, Robyn? 6 window, window-pane: The west wall has three windows of six lights each. 7 match,

lighter, spill, taper, fire, flame, ignition: Can you give me a light for my cigarette? 8 highlight: Note the chiaroscuro effect from the lights and shadows in the drawing. 9 bring to light. reveal, unearth, find, uncover, unveil, discover, expose,

disclose, make known: A vital fact has recently been brought to light. 10 come to light. be revealed, be unearthed, be uncovered, be unveiled, be discovered, be exposed, be disclosed, appear, come out, turn up, transpire, develop, evolve, emerge: The truth about her parents has finally come to light. 11 Brit

in the light of or US in light of. considering, in view of, in consideration of, taking into account, keeping or bearing in mind: In the light of his condition, he has decided to pull out of the competition. 12 shed or throw (some, a little) light on. explain, elucidate, simplify, clarify: Perhaps you could throw some light on the reason why she refuses to leave the house.

--adj. 13 (well-)illuminated, bright, alight, (well-)lit, (well-)lighted, shining, luminous, effulgent, brilliant, beaming, incandescent, phosphorescent, fluorescent: The lightest room in the house is the kitchen. 14 pale, light-hued: Put the light blue chair over here.

--v. 15 ignite, set alight, set or put a match to, kindle; burn, touch off, set fire to, fire: It's getting chilly, so

you'd better light the fire. When the bomb was in place, they lit the fuse. 16 illuminate, light up, lighten, brighten: Take this candle to light your way to the bedroom. 17 turn on, switch on, put on: Light the lamps. 18 light up. lighten, brighten, cheer up, liven up: The moment she walked in, the whole room lit up. Her face lit up when she saw him.

lightý adj. 1 lightweight, portable: I bought some light garden furniture. 2 underweight, skinny, slight: Isn't Ted a bit light for his height? 3 faint, dim, obscure, indistinct, unclear, faded, imperceptible: There is a very light pencil mark on the paper. 4 faint, gentle, mild, slight, delicate, insignificant: A light breeze rippled the surface of the pool. 5 dainty, graceful, delicate, gentle, slight: He felt the light brush of her lips on his. 6 not weighty, frivolous, unimportant, insignificant, inconsequential, inconsiderable, trivial, trifling, evanescent, unsubstantial, slight, superficial: The party was a very light affair. 7 nimble, agile, active, swift, spry, lithe, sprightly, lightsome,

light-footed, limber, lissom or lissome: When dancing, he may be light on his feet, but he's not very light on mine. 8 simple-minded, light-headed, scatterbrained, rattle-brained, bird-brained, feather-brained, hare-brained, flighty, giddy, dizzy, silly, inane, foolish, frivolous, empty-headed, vacant, vacuous, shallow, superficial: Featherstone is a bit too light

in the head to be a good manager. 9 cheerful, happy, gay, sunny, merry, light-hearted, happy-go-lucky, easygoing, joyful, jovial, jolly: No‰l has written another light drawing-room comedy. 10 easy, not burdensome, endurable, bearable, tolerable, supportable, undemanding, effortless, untaxing, moderate: After my surgery, I was able to resume light duties at the office. The tax on such a small income is very light. You should take some light exercise every day. 11 amusing, entertaining, witty, diverting: The book hasn't much substance, but it makes good light reading. 12 make light of. dismiss, write off, shrug off; trivialize; ridicule: The teacher made

light of my attempts to play the concerto.

--v. 13 alight, land, come or go down, descend, settle; deplane, disembark or debark, detrain, dismount: The bird was so tame it lighted on my finger. 14 light into. attack, assail, lambaste, assault, pounce or fall on or upon, beat, belabour; abuse, tongue-lash, harangue, upbraid, scold, berate, Colloq lace into; Slang clobber: He really lit into the challenger in the third round. Her mother lit into her for not doing her

homework. 15 light on or upon. chance or happen or stumble or hit on or upon, come across, encounter, find, meet up with: She claimed she lit upon the formula when reading some ancient hieroglyphics.

lighten° v. 1 illuminate, brighten, light up: Opening the curtains would lighten up the room. 2 cheer (up), brighten, gladden, shine; smile: Her face lightened when he said he would be home for the holidays.

lightený v. disencumber, disburden, relieve, alleviate, reduce, lessen, mitigate: To lighten my load, I had left my suitcase at the hotel.

like° adj., adv. 1 similar (to), akin (to), allied (to), parallel (to or with), comparable (to or with), equivalent (to), equal (to), identical (to), cognate (with), analogous (to), corresponding