73 words starting with E

• ebullient adjective

  cheerful and full of energy and excitement

  The ebullient children ran around the courtyard after hearing about the trip.

  Like exuberant, buoyant, enthusiastic

• edify verb

  to teach someone in a way that improves their mind or character

  The museum’s exhibits are meant to edify as well as entertain visitors.

  Like enlighten, educate, instruct

• efface verb

  to rub out or erase; to make yourself seem unimportant

  Years of rain had effaced the carvings on the old stone.

  Like erase, obliterate, wipe out

• effervescent adjective

  bubbly and fizzy; lively and cheerful

  The effervescent tablet fizzed as it dissolved in the glass of water.

  Like bubbly, fizzy, vivacious

• effete adjective

  weak and lacking energy, often from too much comfort or refinement

  The old club had become effete and no longer organized any treks.

  Like feeble, weak, decadent

• efficacious adjective

  producing the result that was wanted

  The herbal remedy proved efficacious in soothing her cough.

  Like effective, potent, successful

• effigy noun

  a model or sculpture of a person, sometimes made to be burned in protest

  Students made a large paper effigy of a famous scientist for the parade.

  Like statue, figure, likeness

• effrontery noun

  shameless boldness or rudeness

  He had the effrontery to ask for a prize after arriving late to the race.

  Like audacity, impudence, nerve

• effulgent adjective

  shining brightly and giving off a glow of light

  The effulgent morning sun lit up the snowy peaks of the Himalaya.

  Like radiant, brilliant, resplendent

• effusive adjective

  showing feelings, especially thanks or praise, in an overflowing, unrestrained way

  Our guests were effusive in their thanks, praising the meal again and again.

  Like gushing, unrestrained, demonstrative

• egregious adjective

  shockingly bad and very obvious

  Writing the capital of Nepal as Pokhara was an egregious mistake on a geography test.

  Like flagrant, glaring, outrageous

• elegiac adjective

  sadly remembering something lost or gone, like a mourning poem

  The old farmer spoke in an elegiac tone about the rice fields of his youth.

  Like mournful, wistful, plaintive

• elegy noun

  a serious poem or song mourning someone or something lost

  The poet wrote an elegy for the forest that once covered the hillside.

  Like lament, dirge

• emanate verb

  to flow out or come from a source

  A sweet smell emanated from the kitchen where Grandmother was frying sel roti.

  Like issue, emerge, radiate

• embroil verb

  to drag someone deeply into a conflict or difficult situation

  The two friends became embroiled in a long argument about whose turn it was to bat.

  Like entangle, involve, ensnare

• emend verb

  to correct and improve a piece of writing

  The editor emended the draft, fixing several errors in the dates.

  Like correct, revise, amend

• emollient adjective

  soothing and softening, to the skin or to angry feelings

  Her emollient words calmed the players after the referee’s surprising decision.

  Like soothing, calming, mollifying

• emulous adjective

  eager to equal or do better than someone admired

  Emulous of his older sister, Ramesh practiced the violin every evening.

  Like competitive, rivalrous

• encomium noun

  a formal speech or piece of writing full of high praise

  The principal delivered an encomium to the retiring science teacher at the assembly.

  Like tribute, eulogy, panegyric

• encumber verb

  to weigh down or hinder with a burden

  Encumbered by heavy backpacks, the trekkers climbed slowly toward the pass.

  Like burden, hamper, hinder

• endemic adjective

  native to and found only in a particular place

  The spiny babbler is a bird endemic to Nepal, found nowhere else in the world.

  Like native, indigenous

• enervate verb

  to drain someone of energy or strength

  The long, humid afternoon enervated the students, who could barely keep their eyes open.

  Like weaken, exhaust, sap

• enfranchise verb

  to give someone a right, especially the right to vote

  The new rules enfranchised all club members, letting them vote for the captain.

  Like empower

• enjoin verb

  to order or strongly urge someone to do something

  The guide enjoined us to stay on the path and not to feed the monkeys.

  Like instruct, direct, command

• enmity noun

  a deep, lasting feeling of hostility between people or groups

  The enmity between the two neighbors ended when they built a shared wall together.

  Like hostility, animosity, antagonism

• ennoble verb

  to give dignity or nobility to someone or something

  Hard, honest work can ennoble even the simplest job.

  Like dignify, elevate, exalt

• ennui noun

  weary boredom from having nothing interesting to do

  During the long monsoon holiday, a feeling of ennui settled over the children.

  Like boredom, tedium, listlessness

• ensconce verb

  to settle oneself firmly in a safe, comfortable place

  The cat ensconced itself on the warm cushion by the window.

  Like settle, nestle

• entreat verb

  to ask someone earnestly and anxiously for something

  The children entreated their father to let them stay up to watch the meteor shower.

  Like beg, implore, beseech

• epicure noun

  a person who takes particular pleasure in fine food and drink

  An epicure, my uncle can tell which valley the tea leaves came from.

  Like gourmet, connoisseur, gastronome

• epicurean adjective

  devoted to the enjoyment of fine food and comfort

  The hotel offered an epicurean feast of dishes from every part of Nepal.

  Like gourmet, sybaritic

• epigram noun

  a short, clever, witty saying or poem

  Benjamin Franklin is known for epigrams such as “Well done is better than well said.”

  Like witticism, quip, aphorism

• epithet noun

  a descriptive word or phrase added to a person’s name

  Alexander earned the epithet “the Great” for his many victories.

  Like nickname, title, sobriquet

• equable adjective

  calm and even-tempered; (of climate) steady, without extremes

  Pokhara’s equable climate makes it pleasant to visit in almost any month.

  Like even-tempered, steady, moderate

• equanimity noun

  calm composure, especially under stress or difficulty

  She accepted the surprise quiz with equanimity and simply began to write.

  Like composure, calmness, poise

• equipoise noun

  a state of perfect balance between forces

  The tightrope walker held her pole in equipoise, perfectly still above the crowd.

  Like balance, equilibrium

• equivocal adjective

  open to more than one meaning, often to avoid being clear

  His equivocal answer left us unsure whether he would join the trip or not.

  Like ambiguous, noncommittal, evasive

• equivocate verb

  to use unclear language on purpose to avoid giving a direct answer

  When asked who broke the vase, my brother equivocated instead of admitting it.

  Like hedge, prevaricate, dodge

• ersatz adjective

  being an artificial and usually poorer substitute for the real thing

  The shop sold ersatz honey made mostly of sugar syrup.

  Like artificial, imitation, fake

• erudite adjective

  having or showing great learning from much reading

  The erudite professor could quote ancient texts in Sanskrit, Greek and Latin.

  Like learned, scholarly, knowledgeable

• erudition noun

  deep knowledge gained from long study

  Her erudition about Himalayan plants impressed even the visiting botanists.

  Like learning, scholarship

• eschew verb

  to deliberately avoid using or doing something

  The athlete eschews sugary drinks and drinks only water during training.

  Like avoid, shun, abstain from

• esoteric adjective

  understood only by a small group with special knowledge

  The physicists’ conversation was full of esoteric terms that the rest of us could not follow.

  Like obscure, arcane, abstruse

• espouse verb

  to adopt and support a cause, belief or way of life

  The school espoused recycling and placed sorting bins in every classroom.

  Like adopt, embrace, champion

• espy verb

  to catch sight of something, especially something distant or hidden

  From the ridge, we espied a red panda resting high in a tree.

  Like glimpse, spot, notice

• estimable adjective

  deserving respect and admiration

  Our estimable librarian has helped three generations of students find good books.

  Like admirable, worthy, respectable

• ethereal adjective

  extremely light and delicate, seeming too perfect for this world

  The morning mist gave the temple an ethereal beauty.

  Like delicate, airy, otherworldly

• ethos noun

  the typical spirit, values and attitudes of a group or community

  The club’s ethos values teamwork above winning.

  Like spirit, character, culture

• evanescent adjective

  quickly fading or disappearing from sight or memory

  The rainbow was evanescent, gone before we could take a photograph.

  Like fleeting, transient, ephemeral

• evince verb

  to show a feeling or quality clearly

  The young chess player evinced remarkable patience during the long match.

  Like show, reveal, display

• excoriate verb

  to criticize someone or something very severely

  The film critic excoriated the movie for its weak plot and poor acting.

  Like denounce, castigate, lambaste

• exculpate verb

  to show or declare that someone is not guilty

  The security video exculpated the student who had been blamed for the broken window.

  Like exonerate, vindicate, clear

• exculpatory adjective

  tending to show that someone is not guilty

  The lawyer presented exculpatory evidence proving her client was abroad that day.

  Like exonerating, vindicating

• execrable adjective

  extremely bad or unpleasant

  The roadside cafe served execrable tea that tasted like dishwater.

  Like atrocious, dreadful, abysmal

• exegesis noun

  a detailed explanation and interpretation of a text, especially a sacred one

  The scholar wrote an exegesis of the ancient hymn, explaining each line.

  Like interpretation, explanation, commentary

• exhort verb

  to strongly urge or encourage someone to do something

  The coach exhorted the team to give their best in the final ten minutes.

  Like urge, encourage, spur

• exhume verb

  to dig up something buried, or bring back something forgotten

  The historian exhumed old letters from the archive that changed our view of the town’s past.

  Like unearth, disinter, excavate

• exigent adjective

  pressing and demanding urgent action

  The exigent need for clean water after the flood sent volunteers rushing to the village.

  Like urgent, pressing, critical

• exiguous adjective

  very small in amount; barely enough

  The climbers survived on an exiguous supply of food until the weather cleared.

  Like meager, scanty, sparse

• expatiate verb

  to speak or write about a subject at great length

  Grandfather expatiated on the history of every temple we passed in Bhaktapur.

  Like elaborate, enlarge, hold forth

• expatriate noun

  a person living outside their own country

  Many expatriates in Kathmandu join the local hiking club on weekends.

  Like emigrant

• expiate verb

  to make up for a wrong by doing something to set it right

  He expiated his rudeness by baking a cake for his neighbor.

  Like atone for, redeem, make amends for

• explicate verb

  to explain an idea or text in careful detail

  The teacher explicated the poem line by line until everyone understood it.

  Like explain, clarify, interpret

• exponent noun

  a person who supports or promotes an idea; a person skilled in an art

  She is a leading exponent of solar power for mountain villages.

  Like advocate, champion, proponent

• expostulate verb

  to argue or protest in order to change someone’s mind

  The players expostulated with the umpire, but he would not change his decision.

  Like protest, remonstrate, object

• expound verb

  to explain or present an idea in detail

  The scientist expounded her theory about how the glacier was formed.

  Like explain, set forth, elaborate

• expunge verb

  to erase or remove something completely

  The wrong score was expunged from the record book.

  Like erase, delete, obliterate

• expurgate verb

  to remove parts of a book or film thought unsuitable

  The publisher released an expurgated edition of the novel for younger readers.

  Like censor, bowdlerize, cut

• extant adjective

  still in existence, especially of something very old

  Only a few copies of the ancient manuscript are extant today.

  Like surviving, existing, remaining

• extemporaneous adjective

  spoken or done without preparation or notes

  Her extemporaneous speech at the science fair impressed the judges.

  Like impromptu, improvised, unrehearsed

• extenuate verb

  to make a fault seem less serious by giving reasons

  His illness was an extenuating circumstance that explained his late homework.

  Like mitigate, excuse, lessen

• extirpate verb

  to destroy something completely, down to the roots

  Farmers worked for years to extirpate the invasive weed from their fields.

  Like eradicate, eliminate, root out

• extricate verb

  to free someone or something from a difficult situation or tight place

  It took us an hour to extricate the bus from the muddy road.

  Like free, release, disentangle