Beyond Measure!: English Vocabulary List

large or significant enough to be noticed or measured

"There is an appreciable amount."

"The team made an appreciable improvement in their performance after the new training program."

organized according to the order that the events occurred in

"Put the events in chronological order."

"Put the events in chronological order from the earliest to the most recent so it makes sense."

suitable in comparison to something else, like quality, extent, size, etc.

"Salary is commensurate with experience."

"Her salary was commensurate with the extensive responsibilities of her new leadership role."

very great in number or amount

"She took copious notes."

"She took copious notes during the lecture and filled three entire notebooks with information."

much smaller than what is normal

"The singer is diminutive."

"The diminutive actress was only four feet tall but her powerful voice filled the entire theater without a microphone at all."

lasting or existing for a small amount of time

"The beauty is ephemeral."

"The ephemeral beauty of the cherry blossoms lasts only a week so tourists flock to see them."

continuing or existing for a very short amount of time

"The happiness was fleeting."

"The beautiful sunset offered a fleeting moment of peace before the storm arrived."

spreading widely or throughout a particular area or group

"The smell is pervasive."

"The pervasive smell of smoke made it clear that a fire had recently occurred in the building."

impressively great in amount or degree

"He has a prodigious appetite."

"The young musician had a prodigious talent for playing the piano and he could perform complex pieces without looking at the sheet music."

showing the intensity or greatness of something

"The silence is profound."

"The profound sadness she felt after losing her grandmother stayed with her for many months."

existing or occurring in large amounts

"He showed profuse gratitude."

"The artist's studio was filled with profuse amounts of paint and canvases."

containing an abundance of something

"The book is replete with facts."

"The old library is replete with rare books and ancient manuscripts from around the world."

barely or not satisfactory in amount

"The evidence is scant."

"The scant evidence was not enough to convince the jury of his guilt."

the quality of being fast and swift in movement

"The runner showed great celerity."

"The emergency response team arrived at the scene with remarkable celerity."

the quality of lacking in amount

"The exiguity of the food was disappointing."

"Despite the exiguity of his resources, he managed to complete the ambitious project."

a relatively small degree of a good and desirable thing

"Modicum of truth."

"There was only a modicum of truth in the story he told us yesterday."

a lacking amount or number of something

"The paucity of evidence led to an acquittal."

"There is a paucity of clean drinking water in many remote villages during the dry season."

something in large amounts or numbers

"A slew of problems arose."

"There was a whole slew of problems that appeared after the new system was installed."

an overabundance of anything

"There was a surfeit of food."

"The festival offered a surfeit of entertainment options for visitors of all ages."

consisting of several numbers, things, or amounts added together

"The aggregate sum is large."

"The aggregate sales figures for all the stores showed a significant increase in revenue this quarter."

very great in number or amount

"She took copious notes."

"She took copious notes during the lecture and filled three entire notebooks with information for the final exam."

equal in meaning, importance, extent, etc.

"The boundaries are coterminous."

"The administrative district is coterminous with the geographical region, simplifying governance and resource allocation."

much smaller than what is normal

"The doll was diminutive."

"The diminutive teacup was perfect for her small hands and delicate fingers."

possessing a great amount of riches

"He is flush with money."

"After selling his company, he was flush with cash and could afford anything."

relatively moderate, limited, or small in scope, size, or amount

"Her house is modest."

"The modest house was small but comfortable and the family was happy with their simple life in the countryside."

(of air) containing a lower-than-average amount of oxygen

"The mountain air is rarefied."

"The air at the top of the mountain is rarefied and climbers must carry oxygen tanks to breathe properly above eight thousand meters."

containing an abundance of something

"The book is replete with facts."

"The book is replete with facts and figures that support the author argument about climate change."

containing a large amount of something that is usually unpleasant

"The city is rife with rumors."

"During the economic crisis, the country was rife with unemployment and social unrest."

not a lot in amount or extent

"There is a slight problem."

"There was a slight delay in the flight schedule because of some technical issues before takeoff."

a series of gradual changes or stages, usually indicating a progression or sequence of steps

"See the gradation of color."

"The artist skillfully depicted the subtle gradation of light and shadow across the landscape."

people or things in high numbers or amounts

"A raft of problems appeared."

"A raft of new regulations was introduced, causing considerable confusion among small business owners."

to mention things individually

"Please enumerate the steps."

"The speaker asked the audience to enumerate their personal goals for the upcoming year."

to use a special equipment to measure the depth of something, particularly a body of water

"They will sound the water."

"The naval engineers will sound the harbor to determine the maximum draft for incoming vessels."