The Oxford Thesaurus - An A-Z Dictionary Of Synonyms
.pdfhardly adv. scarcely, barely, only, just, only just; not quite, by no means; seldom, rarely: I hardly knew her. There was hardly enough to eat. He hardly ever visits his old mum any more.
hardship n. want, privation, deprivation, suffering, misery, distress, affliction, adversity, austerity, misfortune, unhappiness, ill fortune, bad luck, difficulty, trouble: The hardship of
frontier life has never been fully described.
hardware n. 1 tools, metal goods, Brit ironmongery: Go down to the hardware shop for some nails. 2 (computer) equipment, components, devices, machinery; arms, munitions, armament(s), mat‚riel: We need the personnel to operate the hardware.
hardy adj. 1 robust, sturdy, strong, rugged, tough, durable, sound, stalwart, stout, vigorous, able-bodied, red-blooded, fit, hale, healthy, Colloq husky: The pioneers were hardy souls. 2 bold, courageous, daring, valorous, valiant, brave, manly, intrepid, fearless, heroic, plucky: He was among the hardy sailors who went with Magellan.
hare-brained
adj. 1 rash, foolhardy, wild, madcap, reckless, heedless, improvident, visionary, fanciful, airy, Colloq crackpot: Don't put money into any of Zenobia's hare-brained schemes. 2 foolish, silly, inane, asinine, flighty, witless, brainless, mindless, giddy, frivolous, scatterbrained: Such hare-brained behaviour is not expected in two sober adults.
harm n. 1 injury, damage, mischief, hurt, abuse, misfortune: A bodyguard was hired to see that no harm would come to her. 2 evil, wrongdoing, wickedness, iniquity, wrong, badness: I meant no harm when I told Phoebe that her husband was having dinner with Kathy.
--v. 3 hurt, damage, injure, abuse, maltreat, wound: She insists that her pet viper would never harm her.
harmful adj. dangerous, pernicious, deleterious, destructive, damaging, bad, detrimental, injurious; unhealthy, noxious, baleful, toxic, poisonous, venomous, Archaic baneful: Do you really think that Barbara has had a harmful influence on him? That substance can be harmful if swallowed.
harmless adj. benign, innocuous, inoffensive, gentle, mild, innocent, safe; non-toxic, non-poisonous, non-venomous: Pay no attention to such harmless gossip. It is impossible to identify harmless snakes by sight.
harmonious
adj. agreeable, compatible, congruous, consonant, in accord, congenial, complementary, sympathetic, concordant, Colloq simpatico: Our careers have always been harmonious.
harmony n. 1 agreement, accord, concord, compatibility, rapport, unanimity, unity: The purpose is to promote harmony among the warring factions. 2 consonance, congruity, balance,
orderliness, closeness, togetherness, consistency, fitness, parallelism: A sense of harmony can be felt among the European nations. 3 melodiousness, euphony, tunefulness: Their voices are in perfect harmony.
harrowing adj. distressing, vexing, alarming, unnerving, frightening, terrifying, horrifying, horrible, torturous, chilling, heart-rending, nerve-racking or nerve-wracking, traumatic, agonizing, painful; disturbing, upsetting, worrying, worrisome, disconcerting, daunting, dismaying, disquieting: Waiting for the rescue team to release me was a harrowing experience.
harsh adj. 1 rough, coarse, bristly, scratchy, hairy, crude; hoarse, grating, raucous, rasping, husky, guttural; clashing, inharmonious or unharmonious, discordant, atonal, dissonant, cacophonous, strident, shrill, grinding, sour; bitter, sour, acrid: He found harsh the sights, sounds, tastes, and smells of the Casbah. 2 stern, austere, bleak, dour, unkind, unfeeling,
comfortless, uncompassionate, unfriendly, grim, hard, Spartan, stringent, over-exacting, Draconian, tyrannical, stark, severe, cruel, abusive, punishing, punitive, brutal, brutish, inhuman, merciless, ruthless, pitiless: Simon is a very harsh
taskmaster. 3 unpleasant, disagreeable, impolite, discourteous, uncivil, rude, nasty, curt, abrupt, brusque, bluff, gruff, curmudgeonly, choleric, splenetic, surly, sullen, irascible, short-tempered, petulant, peevish, waspish, grouchy, bilious, cross, acrimonious, sarcastic, acerbic: Why is Maria so harsh to Alan?
harvest n. 1 crop, yield, produce, output, fruit; vintage: If we get enough rain, the harvest should be good this year.
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--v. 2 reap, gather, pick, glean, collect: The oranges are |
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harvested while they are still greenish. 3 earn, make, take in, |
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collect, garner, get, receive, obtain, procure, net: They |
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harvest huge profits from slot machines. |
hash |
n. 1 mixture, confusion, hotchpotch or US and Canadian |
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hodgepodge, pot-pourri, gallimaufry, farrago, mishmash, jumble, |
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mess, shambles, olla podrida, m‚lange, medley: The building is |
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a hash of a dozen architectural styles. 2 fiasco, disaster, |
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botch, mess, Slang Brit balls-up, US snafu: The council really |
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made a hash of its housing policy. |
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--v. 3 Often, hash up. mangle, mess or mix up, make a hash or |
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mess or jumble of, muddle, bungle, botch, mishandle, mismanage, |
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ruin, spoil, butcher, Colloq foul or louse up, screw up, muff, |
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Brit bugger up: Our plans for a holiday have been all hashed |
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up. |
haste |
n. 1 swiftness, rapidity, quickness, speed, velocity, |
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expedition, urgency, dispatch or despatch, alacrity, celerity, |
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briskness: We must return to Baker Street with all haste, |
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Watson. 2 hurry, rush, rashness, hastiness, hustle, bustle, |
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impetuousness or impetuosity, recklessness, precipitancy: Haste |
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makes waste. |
hasten v. 1 hurry, rush, make haste, fly, run, sprint, race, bolt, dash, scurry, scamper, scuttle, speed: He hastened forward to greet her. 2 hurry (up), speed (up), dispatch or despatch, send, move, quicken, accelerate, expedite, rush, impel, urge: Is there any way to hasten delivery of the mail?
hastily adv. 1 quickly, speedily, swiftly, rapidly, at once, immediately, instantaneously, promptly, without delay, right away, straight away, post-haste, hurriedly, directly, suddenly, in haste, precipitately, on the spur of the moment, in a flash
or wink, before you can say 'Jack Robinson', Colloq pronto, like a shot, like greased lightning, US lickety-split, Slang p.d.q.
(= 'pretty damned quick'): She left hastily when I asked for the return of the loan. 2 impetuously, impulsively, rashly, recklessly, unthinkingly, thoughtlessly, heedlessly,
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incautiously: This is a trick question, so don't answer |
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hastily. |
hasty |
adj. 1 quick, speedy, swift, rapid, fast, brisk, prompt, |
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immediate, instantaneous: He made a hasty departure so as not |
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to be late. 2 careless, rash, precipitate, impetuous, |
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impulsive, reckless, thoughtless, unthinking, incautious, |
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heedless, ill-considered, inconsiderate: His was a hasty |
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decision. 3 quick, speedy, cursory, superficial, fleeting, |
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passing, slapdash, perfunctory, momentary, brief: I had a hasty |
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look at the contract, which seemed all right. 4 irritable, |
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quick-tempered, irascible, testy, passionate, impatient, |
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hot-tempered, petulant, waspish, volatile, contentious, |
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choleric, splenetic, bearish, short-tempered, US and Canadian |
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and Irish cranky: Grandfather needn't have been so hasty with |
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the poor child. |
hatch |
v. 1 breed, brood, incubate, bring forth: The normal clutch of |
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three eggs is hatched in a fortnight. 2 devise, contrive, |
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concoct, design, formulate, originate, invent, dream up, Colloq |
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cook up: Two of them hatched a scheme to discredit me. |
hate |
v. 1 loathe, abhor, detest, have an aversion to, be averse to, |
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abominate, dislike, execrate, despise, scorn: I hate the smell |
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of petrol, it really turns my stomach. 2 be loath, be reluctant |
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or unwilling or disinclined; resist, shrink or flinch from, |
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dislike, shrink from: I hate to tell you what I really think. |
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She hated revealing Bill's affair to his wife. |
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--n. 3 hatred, abhorrence, loathing, odium, animosity, animus, |
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antipathy, aversion, hostility, antagonism, malice, enmity, |
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detestation: He didn't believe he could feel so much hate for |
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one person. |
hateful adj. 1 loathsome, detestable, abhorrent, horrid, horrible, abominable, odious, execrable, despicable, scurvy, obnoxious, heinous, foul, contemptible, repugnant, repulsive, repellent, revolting, vile: No vice is universally so hateful as ingratitude. 2 malignant, malefic, malevolent, malicious, evil, mean, spiteful, contemptuous: She gave me a hateful glance.
haughty adj. arrogant, proud, superior, self-important, smug, self-satisfied, complacent, pretentious, conceited, egotistical,
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snobbish, overbearing, lofty, presumptuous, overweening, |
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patronizing, supercilious, vain, condescending, contemptuous, |
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belittling, derisive, disdainful, scornful, Colloq highfalutin |
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or hifalutin, hoity-toity, stuck-up, swell-headed or |
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swelled-headed or swollen-headed, high and mighty, on (his or |
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her) high horse, snooty, la-di-da or lah-di-dah or la-de-da, |
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Slang snotty, uppish, uppity: She's too haughty to have made |
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any friends here. |
haul |
v. 1 drag, pull, tug, tow, trail, lug, heave, draw: Are you |
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sure that one horse can haul that load? 2 cart, transport, |
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carry, convey, truck, move: The new vehicles are equipped to |
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haul bulk dry goods. |
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--n. 3 pull, tug, drag, draw; heave; attraction: The tides are |
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greater under the haul of both sun and moon. 4 catch, take, |
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yield, harvest, bag: We returned with quite a good haul of cod. |
haunt v. 1 visit, frequent, hang about or around, spend time at, US habituate: She haunts the yacht club, waiting for her ship to come in. 2 beset, obsess, plague, torment, trouble, possess, prey on: He is haunted by the fear that she told the police everything.
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--n. 3 gathering-place, meeting-place, stamping-ground, Colloq |
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hang-out: She returned to Abergavenny to visit the haunts of |
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her youth. |
have |
v. 1 possess, own, keep; maintain: Imelda had more shoes than |
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you could count. 2 receive, take, accept, get, obtain, acquire, |
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procure, secure, take: How many gifts did you say she had from |
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him? 3 entertain, be struck by: I have an idea! 4 possess, |
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bear, contain, include, comprise: The night has a thousand |
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eyes. 5 suffer with or from, be suffering with or from, be |
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experiencing, be undergoing, be enduring, be subjected to: My |
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daughter was really ill when she had measles. 6 arrange, |
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organize, set up, prepare; hold: If I have a party, will you |
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come? We shall have our next meeting on Saturday. 7 partake of, |
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participate in, experience, enjoy; eat; drink: I hope you have |
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a good time. 8 give birth to, bear, deliver, bring into the |
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world; beget, sire, father: She had three children in as many |
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years. How many children has he had? 9 make, demand; force, |
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oblige, cause, induce, press, require, compel: We'll have the |
caterers come at noon. 10 had better or best. ought to, must, should: I had better not drink as I'm driving. 11 had rather or sooner. prefer to, would rather or sooner: I'd rather be with you. 12 have on. a be wearing, be dressed or clothed or attired in: I'll have on the silk nightgown you like so much.
b be committed to, have planned, have in the offing, have on the agenda: I have something on next Tuesday evening. c trick, tease, deceive, pull (someone's) leg, play a joke on, fool: Do you really love me or are you having me on?
havoc n. 1 ruin, devastation, destruction, desolation, rack or wrack and ruin, despoliation, spoliation, damage: Gales of more than 80 m.p.h. wreaked havoc right across the British Isles. 2 confusion, chaos, upset, disorder, mayhem, shambles, disruption: The railway slow-down created havoc with commuter schedules.
hazard n. 1 peril, danger, risk, endangerment, threat, jeopardy: The greatest hazard in sailing single-handed round the world is the loneliness. 2 chance, gamble, uncertainty, luck, fortune: They banned all games that depended on hazard.
--v. 3 venture, dare; gamble, risk, jeopardize, endanger, threaten, imperil, stake: May I hazard a guess as to the origin of the word? He hazarded his entire fortune on the turn of a card.
hazardous adj. unsafe, risky, fraught with danger, questionable, shaky, dangerous, precarious, uncertain, unpredictable, parlous, ticklish, tricky, Colloq chiefly Brit dicey, dicky or dickey,
Slang hairy: It took three months to make the hazardous overland journey in those days.
hazy |
adj. 1 misty, foggy, smoggy, cloudy, overcast: It was so hazy |
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that we couldn't see the town a mile away. 2 indistinct, |
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blurred, blurry, dull, dim, faint, nebulous, vague, unclear, |
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fuzzy, indefinite, muddled: He has only a hazy idea of the |
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plot. |
8.2 head...
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head |
n. 1 skull, pate, cranium, Colloq dome, Slang coco(nut), |
belfry, noggin, bean, nut, rocker, noodle, gourd, Brit conk, crumpet, noddle, loaf: She laid her head on the pillow and fell sound asleep. 2 chief, leader, administrator, chief executive officer, CEO, (managing) director, MD, president, chairman, chairwoman, chairlady, chairperson, chair, employer, principal, superintendent, supervisor, governor, prime minister, headmaster, headmistress, Colloq boss, headman, the man, Brit guv'nor, guv, US (chief) honcho; Slang big cheese, US Mr Big: The new head has called a meeting of the board of directors. 3 front, vanguard, forefront, van, fore-part: At the head of the column marched the general himself. 4 aptitude, intellect, intelligence, talent, perception, perceptiveness, mentality, faculty, flair, genius, brain, mind, wit, Colloq brains, grey matter: I have no head for figures. 5 crisis, apex, (critical
or turning) point, peak, crest, (fever) pitch, climax, culmination, conclusion, crescendo: Matters have been brought to a head because of the coming elections. 6 source, origin, fount, font, fountain-head, well-spring: We were trying to reach the head of the stream before nightfall. 7 top, first
place, leading position, leadership, forefront: Albert is at the head of his class in mathematics. 8 head over heels. completely, entirely, deeply, utterly, wholly, fully, Colloq madly, wildly: The two of them are head over heels in love.
--adj. 9 first, chief, main, principal, leading, premier, foremost, prime, pre-eminent, cardinal, paramount, supreme, superior, senior: Alphonse is our new head chef.
--v. 10 go, move, proceed, turn, steer, aim, point, head for, make a beeline for: I shall head home when I leave here. 11 head up, be in or take charge (of), direct, supervise, oversee, control, govern, run, (take the) lead, guide, manage, command, rule, administer, conduct: Who will head the organization if you resign? 12 lead, precede, top: Charlotte heads the list of candidates. 13 head off. a intercept, divert; cut off, stop, block: The cavalry will head them off at the pass. b stop, forestall, prevent, inhibit, avert, ward or fend off: What can we do to head off inflation?
headache n. 1 migraine, Technical cephalalgia: Hazel says she has a headache and cannot come to work today. 2 worry, bother, vexation, inconvenience, nuisance, annoyance, problem, difficulty, trouble, bane, Colloq pain (in the neck), Slang pain
in the Brit arse or US ass: The balance of payments deficit is a perpetual headache.
headway n. 1 progress, forward motion, improvement: Headway against |
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that current was almost impossible. Any headway to report? 2 |
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make headway. advance, progress, move forward, go, gain |
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(ground), get or go ahead, proceed, get going: I tried to |
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persuade her but haven't made much headway. |
heal |
v. 1 cure, repair, renew, revitalize, rejuvenate, restore; |
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mend, recuperate, recover, improve: The wounds have healed. The |
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ointment healed his wounds. I heal quickly. 2 reconcile, settle, |
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patch up, put or set straight or right, remedy, repair, mend: |
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His only wish was to heal the rift with his brother. |
health |
n. 1 condition, fitness, trim, fettle, form, constitution: My |
health has improved enough for me to return to work. 2 healthiness, haleness, healthfulness, robustness, vigour, vigorousness, salubrity, salubriousness, well-being, strength: The health of the economy is good.
healthy adj. 1 well, fit, trim, in good or fine fettle or shape, in good health, robust, hale (and hearty), sturdy, strong,
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vigorous, thriving, flourishing, Colloq in the pink: How come |
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he is so healthy if he smokes? 2 wholesome, healthful, |
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salubrious, salutary, beneficial, nourishing, nutritious, tonic, |
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bracing: The answer lies in eating healthy food and living in a |
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healthy climate. |
heap |
n. 1 collection, pile, mound, stack, accumulation, aggregation, |
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agglomeration, congeries, conglomeration, hoard, mass, store, |
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mountain, stockpile, supply, Colloq US and Canadian stash: |
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Donors contributed a huge heap of clothing for the sale. 2 |
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Often, heaps. abundance, plethora, superabundance, lot(s), |
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plenty, great deal, scores, peck, sea, Colloq lashings, load(s), |
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piles, ton(s), raft(s), pots, oodles, scad(s), US and Canadian |
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slew: It was served with heaps of chocolate sauce. Heaps of |
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people bought your record. You're in for a heap of trouble. |
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--v. 3 collect, gather, harvest, reap, glean, garner, pile |
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(up), accumulate, cumulate, aggregate, amass, stockpile, save |
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(up), bank, lay by or up or in, set aside, Colloq stash (away): |
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In autumn, squirrels heap up their supplies of nuts for the |
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winter. 4 shower, load, bestow, give, provide, burden: The |
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grateful prince heaped us with treasure beyond imagination. |
hear |
v. 1 perceive, understand, listen (to), attend (to), pay |
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attention (to), catch, heed, hark (to): Please hear what I have |
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to say first. 2 understand, learn, discover, find out, gather, |
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get wind of, pick up, ascertain, be told or advised or informed: |
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I hear you're thinking of resigning. 3 hear of. entertain, |
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consider; approve (of), sanction, condone, agree or consent or |
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assent to: I won't hear of your leaving. |
heart |
n. 1 Colloq ticker, pump: The doctor says I have a dicky |
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heart. 2 stomach, nerve, courage, bravery, mettle, will, |
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boldness, pluck, resolution, determination; callousness, |
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insensitivity, heartlessness; Colloq guts, spunk: I haven't the |
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heart to tell him that his hamster died. 3 (basic) nature, |
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core, centre, focus, hub, middle, marrow, pith, essence, |
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quintessence, nucleus, nub, crux, basics, fundamentals, Colloq |
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nitty-gritty: Let's get down to the heart of the matter. 4 |
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sincerity, sentiment(s), feeling(s), spirit, verve, enthusiasm: |
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She's going through the motions, but her heart isn't in her |
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work. 5 humanity, humanitarianism, sympathy, understanding, |
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kindness, kindliness, compassion, empathy, goodness, |
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consideration, concern, soul, tenderness, magnanimity, |
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generosity, sensitivity, sensibility, sentiment, pity, |
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(brotherly) love, affection: Mother Theresa is known for having |
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a lot of heart. Have you no heart, Genghis? |
heartbroken
adj. broken-hearted, downhearted, dispirited, unhappy, miserable, grief-stricken, upset, dejected, heartsick, crestfallen, despondent, depressed, disconsolate, distressed,
woebegone, doleful, sorrowful, mournful, morose, disheartened, disappointed, crushed: Lucy was heartbroken over the loss of her locket.
heartfelt adj. sincere, honest, genuine, unfeigned, earnest, serious, wholehearted, deep, profound, dedicated, devoted, ardent, committed, fervent, fervid, hearty, passionate: It is my heartfelt wish that you should succeed.
heartless adj. cruel, hard-hearted, callous, unconcerned, inhuman, inhumane, unkind, unfeeling, unsympathetic, brutal, cold,
merciless, pitiless, ruthless, cold-blooded: Taking away the child's toys was a heartless thing to do.
heart-rending
adj. agonizing, distressing, excruciating, bitter, painful, heartbreaking, harrowing, piteous, tragic, depressing, poignant: Her distress was heart-rending to behold.
heart-warming
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adj. 1 moving, touching, warming, affecting, uplifting, |
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inspiriting, cheering, encouraging: I heard the heart-warming |
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news about Alan's recovery. 2 satisfying, gratifying, pleasing, |
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comforting, pleasurable, rewarding: It was heart-warming to see |
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the family together at Christmas. |
hearty |
adj. 1 genial, warm, kind-hearted, affectionate, amiable, |
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amicable, friendly, affable, cordial, open, convivial: I was |
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greeted by a hearty welcome when I returned. 2 genuine, |
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unfeigned, authentic, sincere, heartfelt, warm, wholehearted, |
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honest, earnest, devout, stalwart, stout: Please give Desmond |
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my hearty congratulations. 3 enthusiastic, vigorous, energetic, |
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eager, zealous, exuberant, robust, active, animated, strong: |
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They are hearty supporters of our cause. 4 abundant, ample, |
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substantial, solid, sizeable, satisfying, square; nourishing, |
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invigorating, strengthening: On Sundays, we had a hearty meal |
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at midday when we could afford it. 5 healthy, hale, vigorous, |
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robust, strong, sound: Well, Eric, now that you're over your |
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malaria you appear to be quite hearty. |
heat |
n. 1 warmth, warmness, hotness, fever, fieriness, torridity or |
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torridness: The heat of the sun feels good after that cold |
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swim. 2 passion, ardour, fervour, fervidness, intensity, fury, |
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zeal, zealousness, earnestness, vehemence, eagerness, |
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enthusiasm, excitement, tenseness, tension, stress, agitation, |
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arousal, impetuosity, stimulation, exhilaration: If I shouted |
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at you in the heat of the moment, I apologize. |
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--v. 3 warm (up): It costs a lot to heat this house. 4 Often, |
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heat up. excite, intensify, impassion, inflame, kindle, ignite, |
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quicken, inspirit, rouse, awaken or waken, stir, animate, |
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stimulate, warm (up), activate, Colloq Brit hot up: It took a |
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while for the debate to heat up. |