4000 CPE Vocabulary List

n. manual computing device consisting of a frame holding parallel rods strung with movable counters
That would be awesome - a typical abacus can count up to something like 11 million.

v. humiliate; lower or depress in rank or esteem
Defeated, Queen Zenobia was forced to abase herself before the conquering Romans, who made her march in chains before the emperor in the procession celebrating his triumph.

v. embarrass; make ashamed or uneasy; disconcert
Her open admiration should not abash him at all.

v. subside; decrease; become less in amount or intensity
Rather than leaving immediately, they waited for the storm to abate.

v. make shorter; reduce to shorter form intended to represent full form, as for word or phrase
Because we were running out of time, the lecturer had to abbreviate her speech.

n. shortening something by omitting parts of it
For example, the word abbreviation can itself be represented by the 'abbrev.'

v. give up, renounce, abandon, lay down, or withdraw from, as a right or claim
When Edward VIII did abdicate the British throne to marry the woman he loved, he surprised the entire world.

n. abnormal;  markedly different from an accepted norm
Given the aberrant nature of the data, we doubted the validity of the entire experiment.

v. aid, usually in doing something wrong; encourage
She was unwilling to abet him in the swindle he had planned.

n. suspended action; temporary cessation or suspension
The deal was held in abeyance until her arrival.

v. fill with horror and loathing; horrify; hate
One of the things I abhor is the threat to withhold aid.

v. renounce upon oath; abandon forever
He will abjure his allegiance to the king.

a. burning; radiant; bright; keenly excited; resembling flame in brilliance or color
But when he saw this small new-comer, his soul was all ablaze with bliss in a moment.

n. washing or cleansing of the body, especially as part of religious rite
His ablution was accompanied by loud noises that he humorously labeled 'Opera in the Bath.'

v. give up or surrender; deny something to oneself
After his retirement, the former police commissioner found it difficult to abnegate authority.

n. repudiation; self-sacrifice; renouncing your own interests in favor of interests of others
No act of abnegation was more pronounced than his refusal of any rewards for his discovery.

n. act of waiting; delay; stay or continuance in a place
I shall take up my abode in a religious house near Lisle - a nunnery you would call it; there, I shall be quiet and unmolested.

v. cancel; put an end to; destroy completely
In a letter to the British government, the EU has demanded that Britain abolish laws protecting religious freedom rights regarding sexual orientation.

n. a reformer who favors abolishing slavery
Born to free blacks in Maryland, Frances Watkins Harper was a poet and a teacher who became active in the abolitionist struggle in the 1850s.

a. detestable; extremely unpleasant; very bad
Mary liked John until she learned he was dating Susan; then she called him an abominable young man.