O

• obey - v. to act as one is ordered to act
• object - v. to show that one does not like or approve; to protest; n. something not alive that can be seen or touched
• observe - v. to watch; to look at carefully; to celebrate or honor something ("They will observe the anniversary of the day she was born.")
• occupy - v. to take and hold or to control by force
• ocean - n. the area of salt water that covers almost seventy-five percent of the earth's surface; any of the five main divisions of this water
• of - prep. made from; belonging to; about; connected to; included among
• off - ad. away; at a distance; condition when something is no longer operating or continuing; not on; not connected
• offensive - n. a military campaign of attack; ad. having to do with attacking
• offer - v. to present or propose; n. the act of presenting or proposing; that which is presented or proposed
• office - n. a room or building where business or work is done; a public position to which one is elected or appointed
• officer - n. a person in the military who commands others; any person who is a member of a police force
• official - n. a person with power in an organization; a representative of an organization or government; ad. of or about an office; approved by the government or someone in power
• often - ad. many times
• oil - n. a thick liquid that does not mix with water and that burns easily; a black liquid taken from the ground and used as fuel
• old - ad. not young or new; having lived or existed for many years
• on - prep. above and held up by; touching the upper surface of ("The book is on the table."); supported by ("He is on his feet."); about ("The report on the meeting is ready."); at the time of ("He left on Wednesday.")
• once - ad. one time only
• only - ad. being the single one or ones; no more than ("We have only two dollars.")
• open - v. to start ("They opened talks."); ad. not closed; not secret
• operate - v. to do work or a job; to cut into the body for medical reasons
• opinion - n. a belief based on one's own ideas and thinking
• oppose - v. to be against; to fight against
• opposite - ad. different as possible; completely different from; exactly the other way ("North is the opposite direction from south.")
• oppress - v. to make others suffer; to control by the use of unjust and cruel force or power
• or - conj. giving another of two choices; giving the last of several choices
• orbit - v. to travel in space around a planet or other object; n. the path or way an object travels in space around another object or planet
• order - v. to give a command; to tell someone what to do; n. a command; the correct or normal way things are organized; a peaceful situation in which people obey laws
• organize - v. to put in order; to put together into a system
• other - ad. different; of another kind; the remaining one or ones of two or more ("That man is short; the other is tall.")
• our - ad. of or belonging to us
• oust - v. to force to leave; to remove by force
• out - ad. away from the inside; opposite of in
• over - conj. above; covering; across, in or on every part of ("all over the world")
• overthrow - v. to remove from power; to defeat or end by force
• owe - v. to pay or have to repay (usually money) in return for something received
• own - v. to have or possess for oneself

P

• pain - n. a hurt or suffering somewhere in the body
• paint - v. to cover with a liquid color; to make a picture with liquid colors; n. a colored liquid used to cover or protect a surface
• pan - n. a metal container used for cooking
• paper - n. a thin, flat material made from plants or cloth often used for writing
• parachute - n. a device that permits a person or thing to fall slowly from an airplane or helicopter to the ground
• parade - n. a group of people and vehicles moving together to celebrate a special event or anniversary
• pardon - v. to forgive for a crime and release from punishment
• parent - n. a father or mother
• parliament - n. a government lawmaking group
• part - n. something less than the whole; not all of something
• party - n. a group of people working together for a political purpose; a group of people or friends gathered together for enjoyment
• pass - v. to go by or move around something; to move along; to cause or permit to go
• passenger - n. a person travelling by airplane, train, boat or car who is not the pilot or driver
• passport - n. a document permitting a person to travel to another country
• past - n. the time gone by; the time before; ad. recent; immediately before; former
• path - n. a narrow way for walking; a way along which something moves
• patient - n. a person being treated by a doctor for a health problem
• pay - v. to give money for work done or for something bought
• peace - n. the condition of freedom from war, fighting or noise; rest; quiet
• people - n. any group of persons; all the persons of a group, race, religion or nation ("the American people")
• percent - n. a part of every hundred ("Ten is ten percent of one hundred.")
• perfect - ad. complete or correct in every way; completely right or good; without mistakes
• perform - v. to speak, dance or sing in front of others
• period - n. an amount of time within events, restrictions or conditions
• permanent - ad. never changing; lasting for a very long time or for all time
• permit - v. to let; to make possible
• person - n. a man, woman or child
• physical - ad. of the body
• physics - n. the study of motion, matter and energy
• picture - n. something that shows what another thing looks like; an idea or representation of something as seen by the eye; a painting; what is made with a camera
• piece - n. a part of something larger
• pig - n. a farm animal used for its meat
• pilot - n. one who guides or flies an airplane or helicopter
• pipe - n. a long, round piece of material used to move liquid or gas
• place - v. to put something somewhere; n. an area or a part of an area; space where a person or thing is; any room, building, town or country
• plan - v. to organize or develop an idea or method of acting or doing something ">("They plan to have a party."); n. an organized or developed idea or method ("The plan will not work.")
• planet - n. a large object in space that orbits the sun ("Earth is a planet.")
• plant - v. to put into the ground to grow; n. a living growth from the ground which gets its food from air, water and earth
• plastic - n. a material made from chemicals that can be formed and made into things
• play - v. to have fun; to not work; to take part in a sport; to make music on an instrument; n. a story acted in a theater
• please - v. to make one happy; to give enjoyment
• plenty - n. all that is needed; a large enough amount
• plot - v. to make secret plans; n. a secret plan to do something wrong or illegal
• poem - n. words and their sounds organized in a special way to express emotions
• point - v. to aim one's finger toward; to aim; n. the sharp end of something
• poison - n. a substance that can destroy life or damage health
• police - n. a government agency responsible for guarding the public, keeping order, and making sure people obey the law; members of that agency
• policy - n. an established set of plans or goals used to develop and make decisions in politics, economics or business
• politics - n. the activities of government and of those who are in public office
• pollute - v. to release dangerous or unpleasant substances into the air, soil or water
• poor - n. people with little or no money; ad. lacking money or goods; of bad quality
• popular - ad. liked by many people; generally approved by the public
• population - n. all the people in a place, city or country
• port - n. a city where ships load or unload goods; a place on a coast where ships can be safe from a storm
• position - n. a place; the way of holding the body; the way a thing is set or placed; a job (or level of a job) in an organization
• possess - v. to have; to own; to control or be controlled by
• possible - ad. able to be done; can happen or is expected to happen
• postpone - v. to delay action until a later time
• pour - v. to flow; to cause to flow
• power - n. the ability to control or direct others; control; strength; ruling force; force or energy used to do work ("Water power turns the wheel.")
• praise - v. to say good things about; to approve
• pray - v. to make a request to a god or spirit; to praise a god or spirit
• pregnant - ad. carrying a child within the body before it is born; expecting to give birth to a baby
• present - v. to offer for consideration ("We will present our idea to the committee."); n. a gift ("I gave them a present for their anniversary."); now ("The present time is a good time."); ad. to be at a place ("I was present at school yesterday.")
• president - n. the chief official of a country that is a republic; the leader of an organization
• press - v. to urge strongly; n. newspapers, magazines and other publications
• pressure - n. the force produced when something is pushed down or against something else
• prevent - v. to keep or stop from going or happening
• price - n. the amount of money for which anything is bought, sold or offered for sale
• prison - n. a place where a person is kept as punishment for a crime
• private - ad. of or about a person or group that is secret; opposite public
• prize - n. something offered or won in a competition; something of value that one must work hard for to get
• probably - ad. a good chance of taking place; a little more than possible
• problem - n. a difficult question or situation with an unknown or unclear answer
• process - n. an operation or series of changes leading to a desired result
• produce - v. to make; to create; to cause something to be; to manufacture
• profession - n. a job that requires special training
• professor - n. a teacher at a college or university
• profit - n. money gained from a business activity after paying all costs of that activity
• program - n. a plan of action; the different events or parts of a meeting or show
• progress - n. movement forward or toward improvement or a goal
• project - n. a planned effort to do something
• propaganda - n. ideas or information used to influence opinions
• property - n. anything owned by someone such as land, buildings or goods
• propose - v. to present or offer for consideration
• protect - v. to guard; to defend; to prevent from being harmed or damaged
• protest - v. to speak against; to object
• prove - v. to show to be true
• provide - v. to give something needed or wanted
• public - ad. of or about all the people in a community or country; opposite private
• publication - n. something that is published such as a book, newspaper or magazine
• publish - v. to make public something that is written; to include something in a book, newspaper or magazine
• pull - v. to use force to move something toward the person or thing using the force; opposite push
• pump - v. to force a gas or liquid up, into or through
• punish - v. to cause pain, suffering or loss for doing something bad or illegal
• purchase - v. to buy with money or with something of equal value; n. that which is bought
• pure - ad. free from anything that is different or that reduces value; clean
• purpose - n. the reason or desired effect for doing something; goal
• push - v. to use force to move something away from the person or thing using the force; opposite pull
• put - v. to place; to set in position

Q

• quality - n. that which something is known to have or be ("An important quality of steel is its strength."); amount of value or excellence ("Their goods are of the highest quality.")
• question - v. to ask; to express wonder or disbelief; n. a sentence or word used in asking for information; a problem; an issue to be discussed
• quick - ad. fast
• quiet - ad. with little or no noise; having little or no movement; calm

R

• race - v. to run; to take part in a competition to decide who or what can move fastest; to take part in a campaign for political office; n. one of the major groups that humans can be divided into because of a common physical similarity, such as skin color
• radar - n. a device that uses radio signals to learn the position or speed of objects that may be too far away to be seen
• radiation - n. waves of energy from something that produces heat or light; energy from a nuclear substance, which can be dangerous
• radio - n. the system of sending and receiving signals or sounds through the air without wires
• raid - v. to make a sudden attack; n. a sudden attack carried out as an act of war, or for the purpose of seizing or stealing something
• railroad - n. a road for trains; a company that operates such a road and its stations and equipment
• rain - n. water falling from the sky
• raise - v. to lift up; to move to a higher position; to cause to grow; to increase
• rare - ad. not common; not usual; not often
• rate - n. speed; a measure of how quickly or how often something happens; the price of any thing or service that is bought or sold
• reach - v. to put a hand toward; to arrive at; to come to
• react - v. to act as a result of or in answer to
• read - v. to look at and understand the meaning of written words or numbers
• ready - ad. prepared; completed; organized; willing
• real - ad. true; truly existing; not false
• realistic - ad. in agreement with the way things are
• reason - n. the cause for a belief or act; purpose; something that explains
• reasonable - ad. ready to listen to reasons or ideas; not extreme; ready or willing to compromise
• rebel - v. to act against a government or power, often with force; to refuse to obey; n. one who opposes or fights against the government of his or her country
• receive - v. to get or accept something given, offered or sent
• recent - ad. a short time ago
• recession - n. a temporary reduction in economic activity, when industries produce less and many workers lose their jobs
• recognize - v. to know or remember something or someone that was known, known about or seen before; to accept another nation as independent and establish diplomatic ties with its government
• record - v. to write something in order to have it for future use; to put sound or pictures in a form that can be kept and heard or seen again; n. a writing that shows proof or facts about something
• recover - v. to get again something that was lost, stolen or taken away ("The police recovered the stolen money."); to return to normal health or normal conditions She is expected to recover from the operation.")
• red - ad. having the color like that of blood
• reduce - v. to make less or smaller in number, size or amount; to cut
• reform - v. to make better by changing; to improve; n. a change to a better condition
• refugee - n. a person who has been forced to flee because of unjust treatment, danger or war
• refuse - v. to reject; to not accept, give or do something
• regret - n. a feeling of sadness or sorrow about something that is done or that happens
• reject - v. to refuse to accept, use or believe
• relations - n. understandings or ties between nations; members of the same family; people connected by marriage or family ties
• release - v. to free; to permit to go; to permit to be known or made public
• religion - n. a belief in, or the honoring of, a god or gods
• remain - v. to stay in a place after others leave; to stay the same
• remains - n. a dead body
• remember - v. to think about the past; opposite forget
• remove - v. to take away or take off; to put an end to; to take out of a position or office
• repair - n. work done to fix something
• repeat - v. to say or do again
• report - v. to tell about; to give the results of a study or investigation; n. the story about an event; the results of a study or investigation; a statement in which the facts may not be confirmed
• represent - v. to act in the place of someone else; to substitute for; to serve as an example
• repress - v. to control or to restrict freedoms by force
• request - v. to ask for; n. the act of asking for
• require - v. to need or demand as necessary
• rescue - v. to free from danger or evil
• research - n. a careful study to discover correct information
• resign - v. to leave a position, job or office
• resist - v. to oppose; to fight to prevent
• resolution - n. an official statement of agreement by a group of people, usually reached by voting
• resource - n. anything of value that can be used or sold
• responsible - ad. having a duty or job to do ("He is responsible for preparing the report."); being the cause of ("They were responsible for the accident.")
• rest - v. to sit, lie down or sleep to regain strength; n. that which remains; the others
• restrain - v. to keep controlled; to limit action by a person or group
• restrict - v. to limit; to prevent from increasing or becoming larger
• result - v. to happen from a cause; n. that which follows or is produced by a cause; effect
• retire - v. to leave a job or position because one is old or in poor health
• return - v. to go or come back; to bring, give, take or send back
• revolt - v. to protest violently; to fight for a change, especially of government
• rice - n. a food grain
• rich - ad. having much money or goods; having plenty of something
• ride - v. to sit on or in and be carried along; to travel by animal, wheeled vehicle, airplane or boat
• right - n. what a person legally and morally should be able to do or have ("It is their right to vote."); ad. agreeing with the facts; good; correct; opposite wrong; on the side that is toward the east when one is facing north; opposite left
• riot - v. to act with many others in a violent way in a public place; n. a violent action by a large group of people
• rise - v. to go up; to go higher; to increase; to go from a position of sitting or lying to a position of standing
• risk - n. the chance of loss, damage or injury
• river - n. a large amount of water that flows across land into another river, a lake or an ocean
• road - n. a long piece of hard ground built between two places so people can walk, drive or ride easily from one place to the other
• rob - v. to take money or property secretly or by force; to steal
• rock - n. a hard piece of mineral matter
• rocket - n. a device shaped like a tube that moves through air or space by burning gases and letting them escape from the back or bottom, sometimes used as a weapon
• roll - v. to turn over and over; to move like a ball
• room - n. a separate area within a building with its own walls
• root - n. the part of a plant that is under the ground and takes nutrients from the soil
• rope - n. a long, thick piece of material made from thinner pieces of material, used for tying
• rough - ad. not flat or smooth; having an uneven surface; violent; not made well
• round - ad. having the shape of a ball or circle
• rub - v. to move something over the surface of another thing
• rubber - n. a substance made from the liquid of trees with the same name, or a similar substance made from chemicals
• ruin - v. to damage severely; to destroy
• rule - v. to govern or control; to decide; n. a statement or an order that says how something must be done
• run - v. to move quickly by steps faster than those used for walking