The Oxford Thesaurus - An A-Z Dictionary Of Synonyms

rebellious, immovable, intractable, refractory, wilful, ungovernable, unmanageable, unruly, uncompliant, uncooperative: We have run up against a highly resistant group of activists. 3 Often, resistant to. impervious (to), impenetrable (to),

repellent (to); proof (against); shedding: You need a more resistant material. This fabric is resistant to rain and snow.

resolute adj. resolved, determined, purposeful, steadfast, firm, stubborn, adamant, set, decided, staunch, bold, dogged, undaunted, dauntless, persevering, persisting, persistent, perseverant, pertinacious, tenacious, single-minded, dedicated, devoted, bulldog, purposive, deliberate, inflexible, unwavering, unshakeable or unshakable, unshaken, unflagging, untiring, indefatigable, tireless, unfaltering, unhesitating, unhesitant, unswerving, irreversible, undeviating, unchanging, changeless, unchangeable, immutable, unalterable: We remain resolute in our determination to end injustice.

resolution

n. 1 resolve, resoluteness, determination, purpose, purposefulness, steadfastness, firmness, decidedness, decision, staunchness, boldness, doggedness, dauntlessness, stubbornness, obstinacy, perseverance, persistence, relentlessness,

pertinacity, tenacity, single-mindedness, dedication, devotion, constancy, devotedness, deliberation, deliberateness, inflexibility, inflexibleness, unshakeability or unshakability, fixedness, indefatigability, indefatigableness, irreversibility, changelessness, unchangeability, immutability, immutableness, unalterability, Colloq US stick-to-it-iveness: The boys showed extraordinary resolution in deciding to continue despite the hardships. 2 promise, commitment, pledge, word (of honour), oath, vow, undertaking, obligation; intention: I find that my New Year's resolutions last till about January 5th. 3 motion, resolve, proposal, proposition, plan, suggestion, idea, notion; determination, verdict, decision, judgement: The committee votes today on the resolution to increase membership fees. 4 answer, answering, solution, solving, unravelling, disentanglement, sorting out, explication; outcome, issue, result, end (result): The resolution of a family problem is seldom easy. Can there be a final resolution of the question of a free market economy? 5 acutance, sharpness, precision, accuracy, exactness, exactitude, fineness, discrimination, detailing, distinguishability: The new optical system provides

for a much better resolution.

resolve v. 1 determine, decide, make up one's mind, agree, undertake, settle, fix, conclude: When did you resolve to move to Australia? Let us resolve never to let this happen again. 2 work out, figure out, solve, clear up, answer: How have you resolved the problem of looking after the cats while you are away? 3 adopt, pass, approve, decide: It was resolved that membership fees should be raised. 4 resolve into. change into, convert

into, alter into, transform into, transmute into, metamorphose into, be convert(ed) into, become, dissolve into, break down into, liquefy into, disintegrate into, reduce to or into: O,

that this too too solid flesh would melt, Thaw, and resolve itself into a dew!

--n. 5 See resolution, 1, above. 6 See resolution, 2, above: She kept her resolve never to marry again.

resonant adj. vibrating, vibrant, resounding, (re-)echoing, reverberating, reverberant, pulsating, ringing, booming, thundering, thunderous, loud: The resonant pealing of the bells almost drove me mad.

resort n. 1 spa, retreat, Chiefly Brit watering-place: We go to a lovely resort in the Alps every summer. 2 resource, backup, reserve, refuge, place to turn, alternative, remedy: He will see a doctor only as a last resort.

--v. 3 resort to. have recourse to, turn to, look to, fall back on, repair to, take to, frequent, patronize, attend; visit, haunt, hang out in: I have to resort to father for a small loan. She was said to be resorting to the lowest dens in the Casbah.

resound v. boom, resonate, ring (out), boom (out), (re-)echo, reverberate, pulsate, thunder: The laughter resounded around the entire office.

resource n. 1 Often, resources. initiative, ingenuity, talent, inventiveness, imagination, imaginativeness, cleverness, quick-wittedness, capability, resourcefulness, aptitude, qualifications, strength, quality, forte, Colloq Brit gumption, Slang guts: Has he the inner resources for the job that lies

ahead? 2 Often, resources. capital, assets, money, possessions, wealth, property, cash, funds: She has sufficient resources to retire at fifty if she wants to.

resourceful

adj. ingenious, inventive, imaginative, clever, Daedalian, creative, skilful, smart, slick: Sylvia is resourceful enough to get out of any situation.

respect n. 1 regard, consideration, admiration, esteem, (high) opinion, appreciation: We have great respect for Samuel Simpson, our president. 2 regard, consideration, courtesy, politeness,

civility, attentiveness, thoughtfulness, etiquette, deference, reverence, veneration: Few treat Alastair with the respect he deserves. 3 reference, relation, connection, comparison, regard, bearing: What are they planning to do with respect to the flooding? 4 detail, point, element, aspect, characteristic, feature, quality, trait, particular, matter, attribute,

property: Describe the respects in which the War of American Independence and the French Revolution were similar. 5 respects. regards, good or best wishes, greetings, compliments, Formal salutations, Formal or archaic devoirs: I went to pay my

respects to my aunt on her 90th birthday.

--v. 6 consider, admire, esteem, honour, appreciate, value, defer to, pay homage to, think highly or well of, look up to, revere, reverence, venerate: I am not sure that I like Mrs Horne, but I certainly respect her for what she has done for the poor. 7 heed, obey, show consideration or regard for, pay attention to, attend to, be considerate or polite or courteous

to, defer to: Children are no longer taught to respect their elders.

respectable

adj. 1 proper, demure, decorous, seemly, estimable, worthy, dignified, decent, upright, honest, respected, genteel, refined, reputable, above-board, unimpeachable, law-abiding: Patricia Smythe is a very respectable member of the community. I'll have you know that I run a respectable boarding house! 2 moderate, appreciable, goodly, reasonable, fair, not inconsiderable, considerable, tolerable, satisfactory, sizeable, good-sized, substantial, not insignificant, significant, Colloq tidy: She

earns a respectable living. A respectable number of people

showed up. Climbing Annapurna, though it is not Everest, is a respectable feat. 3 presentable, moral, decent, proper, modest, chaste, innocent, pure, clean: The board decided that the film is not respectable enough to be shown to schoolchildren.

respectful

adj. courteous, polite, well-mannered, well-behaved, mannerly, civil, cordial, gentlemanly, ladylike, gracious, obliging, accommodating, considerate, thoughtful: On entering, Captain Gregory made a respectful bow to the ladies.

respective

adj. separate, individual, particular, pertinent, specific, special, personal, own, relevant, corresponding, several: Each retired to his respective room for the night. All of you know your respective duties.

respectively

adv. separately, individually, singly, severally, mutatis mutandis, each to each: Ron and Daniel are, respectively, president and secretary of the association.

respite n. 1 interval, intermission, break, interruption, recess, breather, rest; holiday, Chiefly US and Canadian vacation: I haven't had a moment's respite since six o'clock this morning. We are planning a brief respite from work in August. 2 pause, delay, hiatus, stay, extension, reprieve, postponement: After a ten-minute respite, the infernal noise began again.

respond v. 1 answer, reply, come back, return, react, reciprocate, counter; rejoin, retort: When Sean insulted her, Una responded with a slap to his face. I said, 'Good morning!' and Adrian responded, 'What's good about it?' 2 Often, respond to. be responsive (to), react (to), empathize (with), sympathize (with), commiserate (with), feel for, pity, be affected or moved or touched (by): Many respond to those charity appeals for the crippled and disabled.

response n. answer, reply, retort, rejoinder; reaction, effect,

feedback, return, Colloq comeback: Whatever you say to Ronnie Farrago, he always has a snappy response. The response to our advertising has been quite good.

responsibility

n. 1 accountability, liability, chargeability, answerability, obligation: Responsibility is one of the burdens a parent must undertake. 2 charge, duty, onus, burden, trust, job, role,

task: Has Ted taken on more responsibilities than he can handle? It is your responsibility to see that the children are awakened in time for school. 3 blame, guilt, fault, culpability: Professor Davies assumed full responsibility for the failure of the experiment. 4 dependability, reliability, trustworthiness, stability, accountability, creditability: Before accommodating you with a loan, Mr Stokes, we must confirm your financial responsibility.

responsible

adj. 1 accountable, answerable, liable, chargeable: The court determined that she was not responsible for her actions. 2 reliable, trustworthy, dependable, stable, creditable, accountable, ethical, honest: If teenagers can show that they are sufficiently responsible, the bank will lend them money for their enterprise. 3 executive, leading, authoritative, administrative, important, decision-making, managerial, directorial, principal, chief, top, US front-office: Oliver played a responsible role in the running of the company. 4 guilty, to blame, at fault, culpable: We never found out who was responsible for putting the frog in the teacher's desk.

responsive

adj. alert, alive, (wide-)awake, reactive, communicative, sharp, keen, receptive, sensitive, open, sympathetic: I was delighted to find students who were so responsive to the ideas put forth in my lectures.

rest° n. 1 repose, sleep, nap, doze, siesta, slumber, Chiefly Brit lie-down, Colloq forty winks, zizz, snooze; shut-eye: I think I'll have a bit of a rest before dinner. 2 relaxation, intermission, interval, interlude, entr'acte, rest period, cessation, (tea or coffee) break, recess, breather, breathing-spell, respite, time off, holiday, Chiefly US and Canadian vacation: Why don't you take a rest for a while? 3 ease, relaxation, leisure, indolence, idleness, inactivity, loafing, dozing: His well-deserved rest was disturbed by an urgent request from Interpol to investigate a smuggling operation. 4 prop, support, holder, brace, trestle, shelf,

bracket: Those old guns were too heavy to hold and fire without using a rest. 5 come to rest. stop, end up, turn up, arrive:

The ball rolled down the slope and came to rest in a puddle.

--v. 6 (go to) sleep, doze, relax, take a rest, (take one's) repose, lie down, recline, go or take to one's bed, take one's ease, unwind, loll, languish, laze about, be idle, idle about, lounge, (take a) nap, put one's feet up, Colloq take it easy, snooze, count sheep, have a zizz, catch or grab some shut-eye, get or take forty winks, US catch or log a few zees (Z's), Slang Brit kip, doss down, hit the sack, hit the hay, US sack out: Rest now - you'll feel better tomorrow. 7 reside, be situated, be lodged, lie, be placed, hinge, be found, remain, stay: The responsibility for passenger safety rests with the captain and the crew. The blame for this fiasco rests on you. 8 place, position, put, lay, set, lean, prop: Rest your head on my shoulder. 9 lie, remain, stay: Can't you let the matter rest?

10 allay, calm, quiet, still, stay: Rest your fears - I shall let nothing happen to you.

restý n. 1 remainder, balance; remains, remnants, leftovers, residue, residuum, excess, surplus, overage: If you carry these bags,

I'll take the rest. Martin bought up all the best books and left the rest for us.

--v. 2 (continue to) be, remain, keep on being: Rest assured, the situation is bound to get easier as we go along.

restful adj. 1 relaxing, soothing, comforting, tranquillizing, sedative, calming, sleep-inducing, hypnotic, soporific, somnolent: Don't you find the sound of the waves restful? 2 tranquil, calm, peaceful, quiet, still, serene, pacific, comfortable, relaxed, reposeful: After a hectic day in the city, I was happy to return to the restful atmosphere of the country.

restitution

n. 1 amends, compensation, redress, recompense, remuneration, reparation, requital, indemnification, indemnity: It was agreed that victims of the raids were entitled to restitution for what

had been taken from them. 2 restoration, return, re-establishment, reinstatement, recovery: A commission is to investigate the restitution of plundered property.

restive adj. See restless, below.

restless adj. restive, uneasy, edgy, on edge, on tenterhooks, fidgety, nervous, skittish, excitable, highly-strung, high-strung, worked up, agitated, fretful, jumpy, apprehensive, itchy, Colloq jittery, Slang uptight, US antsy, hyper: The crowd in the

square were becoming restless as they waited for the speeches to start.

restoration

n. 1 See restitution, 2, above. 2 renovation, refurbishment, rehabilitation, renewal, repair, rejuvenation, reconstruction, resurrection, reconversion, revival: The programme for the restoration of ancient buildings suffers from lack of funding.

restore v. 1 give or hand back, return, make restitution, bring back: We must restore to the people the land that is rightfully

theirs. 2 revive, rejuvenate, re-establish, renew, bring back, give (someone) back, resuscitate, resurrect, rekindle, reinvigorate, refresh, stimulate, revitalize, strengthen: Your kindness has restored my faith in mankind. 3 renovate, refurbish, renew, repair, rejuvenate, resurrect, revive, reconstruct, rehabilitate, rebuild; mend, fix, retouch, touch up; Colloq US fix up: They live in a 17th-century cottage that has been lovingly restored. Antiques often lose their value entirely if they are restored. 4 replace, reinstate, put back; return, bring back: They said that they would not rest until they had restored the rightful king on the throne. The doctor said she would soon be restored to good health. 5 replace,

reimburse, repay, return, pay or put or give back: Even though he has restored all the money he took, she refuses to forgive him.

restrain v. 1 (keep under or in) control, (keep or hold in) check, hold (back or in), curb, govern: A poor rider, he was unable to restrain his horse. Something must be done to restrain the general's power. 2 limit, restrict, inhibit, regulate, suppress, repress, bar, debar, curtail, stifle, hinder, interfere with, hamper, handicap: Trade between the two countries was restrained because of tariff disputes. 3 (place under) arrest, confine, imprison, incarcerate, detain, hold, lock up, jail or Brit also gaol, shut in or up: For his most recent offence, he

was restrained for two months.

restraint n. 1 control, check, curb, rein, bridle, restriction, constraint, limit, limitation, curtailment, taboo, ban, interdict or interdiction, proscription, delimitation, bound(s),

embargo: The law places restraints on executives' buying and selling shares in their own companies. In 1863, a bill for the restraint of the press was brought before the House of Commons. 2 control, restriction, constraint, confinement; bondage, bonds, fetters, shackles, handcuffs, gyves, bilboes, pinions, manacles, ball and chain, strait-jacket, Colloq cuffs, bracelets: Despite

the restraints to his liberty, he felt a free man. He became violent and had to be put under restraint. 3 control, reserve, self-control, self-possession, poise, equanimity, self-discipline, self-restraint: Heather Gorse exhibited admirable restraint in remaining silent when teased her about her name.

restrict v. limit, confine, bound, circumscribe, delimit, mark off, demarcate, regulate; qualify, restrain, impede: Smoking is allowed only in restricted areas. The opposition party said that they would restrict the movement of heavy goods by road.

restriction

n. 1 condition, provision, proviso, qualification, stipulation: One restriction is that purchasers of shares in the utility must be resident in the UK. 2 See restraint, 1, above.

result n. 1 outcome, consequence, effect, end (result), fruit; conclusion, upshot, issue, development, sequel, follow-up, consequence, denouement or d‚nouement: It will take years to evaluate the results of the new educational curriculum. As a result of his speeding ticket, his driving licence was suspended.

--v. 2 Often, result from. develop, emerge, follow, happen, occur, come (about), come to pass, arise, evolve, be produced: Severe burns can result from allowing children to play with matches. The mixture that results may be highly volatile. 3 result in. end, conclude, culminate, terminate: The explosion resulted in a heavy loss of life. The experience gained often results in better safety devices.

resume v. continue, carry on, take up again, pick up (where one left off): After prison, it is not easy to resume one's life where

it left off. When the audience quieted, the speaker resumed.

r‚sum‚ n. 1 summary, digest, abstract, synopsis, pr‚cis, outline, review, recapitulation, epitome, Colloq run-down, recap: Give me a r‚sum‚ of what went on at the board meeting. 2 curriculum vitae, CV, summary, biography, work or job history, career description, Formal prosopography, Colloq bio, US vita: Suitably qualified candidates are invited to send their r‚sum‚s

to the address below.

resurgence

n. renaissance, renascence, rebirth, revival, reawakening, restoration, renewal, resumption, return, resurrection, regeneration, rejuvenation, new dawn, new birth: Simone is banking her entire future on a resurgence of interest in seventies' fashion.

resurrect v. revive, bring back, return, reawaken, restore (to life), reintroduce, renew, regenerate, rejuvenate, raise (from the dead), resuscitate, breathe new life into, reanimate, reincarnate: Some antiquated law was resurrected in order to prevent their using the land for grazing.

retain v. 1 keep (possession of), hold (on to), save, preserve, Colloq hang on to: Retain the receipt in case you wish to exchange the merchandise. 2 engage, hire, employ, commission, take on: We have retained a caretaker to look after the estate. 3 hold, absorb, contain, soak up, preserve: This type of soil retains little water. 4 remember, keep or bear or have in mind, recall,

remain aware of, memorize, impress on the memory, recollect: As he aged, he found it increasingly difficult to retain even the simplest information such as names and dates.

retaliate v. repay, pay back (in kind), counter, strike back (at), take revenge (on), wreak vengeance (on), revenge oneself (on), avenge, reciprocate, settle a score (with); give a Roland for an Oliver, give tit for tat, take an eye for an eye (and a tooth

for a tooth), give as good as one gets, give (someone) a taste of his or her or their own medicine, pay (someone) back in his or her own coin; Colloq get even (with), get back (at): After government forces bombed their mountain headquarters, the