Collins Dictionaries - Collins Primary Thesaurus

elude

By going out of the back door, the celebrity eluded the photographers.

evade

The criminal managed to evade the police for several days, but was eventually caught.

shun

The shy film star shunned publicity, preferring a quiet family life.

steer clear of INFORMAL

“If I were you I’d steer clear of that quarry,” my dad said sternly.

avoid (2) VERB

If you avoid doing something, you make an effort not to do it.

dodge INFORMAL

My lazy brother tried to dodge cleaning the car, but Dad made him do it.

duck out of INFORMAL

I tried to duck out of unpacking the dishwasher, with no success.

escape

The prisoner tried to escape, but the police officer stopped him.

get out of

“It’s no use trying to get out of it. You’ll have to mow the lawn,” said Dad.

shirk

The farmer tried to shirk responsibility for the pollution in the river.

away ADVERB

If you are away from somewhere, you are not in that place.

absent

With such a high temperature, Edward was forced to be absent from school.

elsewhere

I searched the house for my gran, but she was obviously elsewhere.

on holiday

Our family is going on holiday to Florida this summer.

To be away from school when you should be there is to play truant.

awful ADJECTIVE

Something awful is very unpleasant or very bad.

appalling

The karaoke singer’s voice was appalling – he sounded like a dog howling!

dreadful

We had a dreadful time in Venice. All the streets were flooded.

fearful INFORMAL

Mr Bellamy had a fearful cold and sneezed all the way to London.

frightful

The house was in a frightful state after it had been burgled.

ghastly INFORMAL

Mum made a ghastly mistake, and put salt in the cake mixture instead of sugar.

gruesome

The room where the murder had taken place was a gruesome sight.

harrowing

The film was harrowing to watch.

hideous

The monster’s head was truly hideous: bloated, scarred and covered in scales.

horrendous

It was a horrendous meal, with half of the food burnt and the other half undercooked.

horrible

For one horrible moment, I thought my wallet had been stolen.

horrid

“William, that was a perfectly horrid thing to say,” said Mrs Brown.

horrific

“Unless this fog goes, I’m afraid there’ll be a horrific accident,” the police officer said.

shocking

“I think it’s shocking,” put in Dad, “that those refugees should be left without shelter.”

terrible

The sun rose on the scene of the earthquake, a terrible sight to behold.

unpleasant

Shingles is a very unpleasant disease to have.

ANTONYM: lovely

awkward (1) ADJECTIVE

If a situation is awkward, it is difficult to deal with.

delicate

It was a delicate situation: to ask Julie about her exams or not to mention the subject.

embarrassing

It was very embarrassing to be stuck outside in my pyjamas in the pouring rain!

tricky

“Now this bit could be tricky,” muttered Bond coolly. “Which wire should I cut?”

uncomfortable

The spy had an uncomfortable moment when the guards stared in through the car window.

awkward (2) ADJECTIVE

If a person or animal is awkward, they are difficult to deal with.

hard to handle

Donkeys have a reputation for being hard to handle.

stubborn

My brother can be very stubborn when it comes to helping me wash up.

troublesome

On the journey to Scotland, the car proved troublesome, but eventually we got there.

uncooperative

The lady at the enquiries desk was uncooperative and didn’t help at all.

Bb

baby NOUN

A baby is a child in the first year or two of its life.

infant

The shepherds found the infant in a stable, lying in a manger.

newborn child

The mother proudly gazed at her tiny newborn child.

toddler

Waddling on bandy legs, the toddler was off round the corner in a flash.

tot INFORMAL

“Don’t tease your brother,” said Mum. “He’s only a tot.”

The babies of animals and humans are their offspring. Together, the babies of an animal are sometimes called a litter.

back NOUN

The back of something is the part behind the front.

end

At the end of the queue, people were setting up tents for the night.

rear

I could see smoke coming from the rear of the vehicle in front.

reverse

Genevieve wrote her answers on the reverse of the worksheet.

ANTONYM: front

The back part of an animal is its rear, rump or hindquarters. The back end of a ship is the stern.

bad (1) ADJECTIVE

Bad things are harmful or upsetting.

WORD POWER: This word tends to be used a lot. To make your writing more varied, try to use some of the alternative words suggested here instead.

appalling

The weather for our sports day was appalling.

damaging

The fumes emitted by jet aircraft can be highly damaging to the environment.

dangerous

Building sites are dangerous places which should be avoided.

distressing

Melinda found it distressing to see pictures of starving children.

dreadful

It was a dreadful shame: all Barak’s hard work disappeared as the blaze took hold.

grave

A spokesperson announced the grave news that the king was dying.

serious

The artist’s illness was too serious for him to continue painting.

terrible

Our goalkeeper was terrible today. She let in four easy shots!

ANTONYM: good

bad (2) ADJECTIVE

A bad person is naughty or unkind.

WORD POWER: This word tends to be used a lot. To make your writing more varied, try to use some of the alternative words suggested here instead.

corrupt

The corrupt politician had taken money from all sorts of people.

cruel

I can’t stand people being cruel to children or animals.

disobedient

The disobedient boy ignored the warning notice and fell into the quarry.

evil

The evil villain plotted how to ensnare the handsome knight.

mischievous

Tying Kerry’s shoelaces together was a mischievous prank.

naughty

“You’re a naughty girl, Cassandra,” said her mother angrily.

wicked

The wicked witch lived alone.

ANTONYM: good

Names for bad people include rogue, villain and scoundrel.

bad (3) ADJECTIVE

Bad can also mean of poor quality.

WORD POWER: This word tends to be used a lot. To make your writing more varied, try to use some of the alternative words suggested here instead.

abysmal

“Such abysmal work will have to be redone,” said Mr Malone severely.

atrocious

The reporter admitted that his spelling was atrocious.

faulty

Engineers soon fixed the faulty telephone line.

inferior

The paint Dad bought was of inferior quality – it was hard to use and didn’t last long.

shoddy

Owing to shoddy workmanship, the house had to be redecorated.

unsatisfactory

The head teacher wrote that my school report was unsatisfactory.

ANTONYM: excellent

badly (1) ADVERB