lower; degrade; humiliate.

Anna expected to have to curtsy to the king of Siam; when told to cast herself down on the ground before him, however, she refused to abase herself.

embarass.

He was not at all abashed by her open admiration.

subside or moderate. 

Rather than leaving immediately, they waited for the storm to abate.

shorten.

Because we were running out of time, the lecturer had to abbreviate her speech.

renounce; give up.

When Edward VIII abdicated the British throne, he surprised the entire world.

abnormal or deviant.

Given the aberrant nature of the data, we came to doubt the validity of the entire experiment.

abnormality; departure from the norm; mental irregularity or disorder.

It remains the consensus among investors on Wall Street that current high oil prices are a temporary aberration and that we shall soon return to cheap oil.

assist, usually in doing something wrong; encourage.

She was unwilling to abet him in the swindle he had planned.

suspended action.

The deal was held in abeyance until her arrival.

wretched; lacking pride. 

On the streets of New York the homeless live in abject poverty, huddling in doorways to find shelter from the wind.

renounce upon oath; disavow. 

Pressure from the university authorities caused the young scholar to abjure his heretical opinions. 

washing.

His daily ablutions were accompanied by loud noises that he humorously labeled "Opera in the Bath". 

renunciation; self-sacrifice.

Though Rudolph and Duchess Flavia loved one another, their love was doomed, for she had to wed the king; their act of abnegation was necessary to preserve the kingdom.

cancel; put an end to.

The president of the college refused to abolish the physical education requirement.

detestable; extremely unpleasant; very bad.

Mary liked John until he learned he was also dating Susan; then she called him an abominable young man.

being the first of its kind in a region; primitive; native. 

Her studies of the primitive art forms of the aboriginal Indians were widely reported in the scientific journals.

unsuccessful; fruitless. 

Attacked by armed troops, the Chinese students had to abandon their abortive attempt to democratize Beijing peacefully.

rubbing away; tending to grind down.

Just as abrasive cleaning powders can wear away a shiny finish, abrasive remarks can wear away a listener's patience.

condense or shorten.

Because the publishers felt the public wanted a shorter version of War and Peace, they preceded to abridge the novel.

abolish.

The king intended to abrogate the decree issued by his predecessor.

removal by cutting off, as in surgery; separation.

Gas gangrene spreads so swiftly and is so potentially deadly that doctors advise abscission of the gangrenous tissue.

depart secretly and hide.

The teller who absconded with the bonds went uncaptured until someone recognized him.

complete; totally unlimited; certain.

Although the King of Siam was an absolute monarch, he did not want to behead his unfaithful wife.

pardon (an offense).

The father confessor absolved him of his sins.

refrain; withhold from participation.

After considering the effect of alcohol on his athletic performance, he decided to abstain from drinking.

sparing in eating and drinking; temperate.

Concerned whether her vegetarian son's abstemious diet provided him with sufficient protein, the worried mother pressured food on him.

restraint from eating or drinking.

The doctor recommended total abstinence from salted foods.

theoretial; not concrete; nonrepresentational. 

To him, hunger was an abstract concept; he had never missed a meal.

obscure; profound; difficult to understand.

Baffled by the abstruse philosophical texts assigned in class, Dave asked Lexy to explain.

coarsely insulting; physically harmful.

An abusive parent damages a child both mentally and physically. 

border upon; adjoin.

Where our estates abut, we must build a fence.

bottomless.

His arrogance is exceeded only by his abysmal ignorance.

enormous chasm; vast, bottomless pit.

Darth Vader seized the evil emperor and hurled him into the abyss.

related to school; not practical or directly useful.

The dean's talk about reforming academic policy was only academic discussion.

agree.

If I accede to this demand for blackmail, I am afraid that I will be a victim of future demands.

move faster.

In our science class, we learn how falling bodies accelerate.

easy to approach; obtainable.

We asked our guide whether the ruins were accessible on foot.

additional object; useful but not essential thing.

She bought an attractive handbag as an accessory for her dress.

applaud; announce with great approval.

The sportscasters acclaimed every American victory in the Olympics.

adjust to climate or environment; adapt.

One of the difficulties of our present air age is the need of travelers to acclimate themselves to their new and often strange environments.

sharp upslope of a hill.

The car could not go up the acclivity in high gear.

award of merit.

In Hollywood, an "Oscar" is the highest accolade.

oblige or help someone; adjust or bring into harmony; adapt.

Mitch always did everything possible to accommodate his elderly relatives.

partner in crime.

Because he provided the criminal with the lethal weapon, he was arrested as an accomplice to murder.

agreement.

She was in complete accord with the agreement.

approach and speak first to a person.

When the two young men accosted me, I was frightened because I thought they were going to attack me.

equip.

The fisherman was accoutred with the best that the sporting goods store could supply. 

growth; increase.

Over the years Bob put on weight; because of this accretion of flesh, he want from a size M to XL.

to come about by addition.

You must pay the interest that accrued on your debt as well as the principle sum.

bitter or sour in nature; sharp and cutting.

She was noted for her acerbic wit and gossiping.

bitterness of speech and temper.

The meeting of the UN was marked with such acerbity that observers held little hope of settling the problem.

vinegary.

The salad had an exceedingly acetic flavor.

slightly sour; sharp; caustic.

James was unpopular because of his sarcastic and acidulous remarks.

recognize; admit. 

Although I acknowledge that the Beatles' tunes sound pretty dated, I still prefer them to rap songs.

peak; pinnacle; highest point.

Welles's success in Citizen Kane marked the acme of his career.

science of sound; quality that makes a room easy or hard to hear in.

Carnegie Hall is liked by music lovers because of its fine acoustics.

assent; agree passively.

Although she appeared to acquiesce to her employer's suggestions, she had reservations about the changes.

deliverance from a charge.

His acquittal by the jury surprised those who had thought him guilty.

sharp; bitterly pungent.

The acrid odor of burnt gunpowder filled the room after the pistol had been fired.

bitter in words or manner.

The candidate attacked his opponent in highly acrimonious terms.

fear of heights.

A born salesman, he could convince someone with a bad case of acrophobia to sign up for a life membership in a sky-diving club.

calculating; pertaining to insurance statistics. 

According to recent actuarial tables, life expectancy is greater today than it was a century ago.

motivate.

I fail to understand what actuated you to reply to this letter so nastily. 

sharpness.

In time his youthful acuity of vision failed him, and he needed glasses.

mental keenness.

Her business acumen helped her to succeed where others had failed.

quickly perceptive; brief and severe. 

The acute young doctor realized immediately that the acute hearing loss was due to a chronic illness.

wise saying; proverb. 

There is much truth in the old adage about fools and their money.

hard; inflexible. 

In this movie, Bronson plays a man adamant in his determination to punish criminals.

alter; modify.

Some species have to adapt to a changing environment. 

addition; appendix to book.

The book would be better with an addendum of recent critics.

compulsive, habitual need.

His addiction to drugs caused his friends much grief. 

muddle; drive crazy; become rotten.

This idiotic plan is confusing enough to addle anyone.

direct a speech to; deal with or discuss.

Brown planned to address the issue at the next board meeting.

expert at. 

She was adept at the fine art of irritating people.

stick fast.

I will adhere to this opinion until proof that I am wrong is presented.

supporter; follower.

In the wake of the scandal, the senator's one-time adherents quickly deserted him.

adjoining; neighboring; close by.

Our houses are not adjacent, though he lives down the street.

something (generally nonessential or inferior) added on or attached. 

My new computer will serve as an adjunct to my desktop.

solemn urging.

Her adjuration to tell the truth did not change the witnesses' testimony.

staff officer assisting the commander; assistant. 

He gave many responsibilities to his adjutant, but he was definitely in charge.

warn; reprove.

Mary Stuart admonished  them, declaring she would worship as she pleased.

decorate.

Wall paintings and carved statues adorned the temple.

skillful.

Her adroit handling of the delicate situation pleased her employers.