69 words starting with E

• earnest adjective

  serious and sincere about what you do or say

  He made an earnest promise to study harder next term.

  Like sincere, serious, wholehearted

• eccentric adjective

  behaving or dressing in an unusual, slightly strange way

  The eccentric professor wore one red sock and one blue sock every day.

  Like odd, peculiar, quirky

• eclectic adjective

  made up of things chosen from many different sources or styles

  Her eclectic music collection includes folk songs, jazz, and classical pieces.

  Like varied, diverse, wide-ranging

• eclipse verb

  to make someone or something seem less important by being much better

  Her second novel eclipsed her first in popularity.

  Like outshine, overshadow, surpass

• efficacy noun

  the ability to produce the intended result

  Scientists tested the efficacy of the new vaccine on thousands of volunteers.

  Like effectiveness, potency

• egalitarian adjective

  believing that all people are equal and should have the same rights

  The club has an egalitarian rule: everyone gets one vote.

  Like democratic, classless

• elated adjective

  extremely happy and excited

  She was elated when she heard she had won the science quiz.

  Like overjoyed, thrilled, jubilant

• elicit verb

  to draw out a response, answer, or reaction from someone

  The teacher’s question elicited many interesting answers.

  Like draw out, evoke, prompt

• eloquent adjective

  able to speak or write clearly, beautifully, and persuasively

  The eloquent speaker kept the whole hall listening.

  Like articulate, expressive, persuasive

• elucidate verb

  to make something clear by explaining it

  The diagram helped elucidate how the heart pumps blood.

  Like clarify, explain, illuminate

• elude verb

  to escape or avoid someone, often by being clever or quick; to be hard to remember or understand

  The snow leopard eluded the photographers for weeks.

  Like evade, escape, dodge

• elusive adjective

  hard to find, catch, or remember

  The red panda is an elusive animal that hides high in the trees.

  Like slippery, hard to find, hard to catch

• emancipate verb

  to set someone free from legal, social, or political control

  Many countries emancipated enslaved people in the nineteenth century.

  Like free, liberate, release

• embellish verb

  to make something more beautiful by adding decoration; to add made-up details to a story

  They embellished the cake with flowers made of icing.

  Like decorate, adorn, exaggerate

• embezzle verb

  to secretly take money that you were trusted to look after

  The treasurer was caught trying to embezzle money from the club’s funds.

  Like misappropriate, steal

• emblem noun

  a design or object that stands for a group or idea

  The rhododendron is the national flower and an emblem of Nepal.

  Like symbol, badge, sign

• embody verb

  to show or represent an idea or quality clearly

  The old temple embodies the skill of Newar craftsmen.

  Like represent, personify, exemplify

• embolden verb

  to give someone the courage or confidence to do something

  Their teacher’s praise emboldened the shy students to speak up.

  Like encourage, hearten, inspire

• eminent adjective

  famous and highly respected in a particular field

  An eminent astronomer visited our school to talk about black holes.

  Like distinguished, renowned, prominent

• empathy noun

  the ability to understand and share another person’s feelings

  Her empathy made her a great friend to the new student.

  Like understanding, sensitivity, fellow feeling

• emulate verb

  to try to match or copy someone you admire

  Young climbers hope to emulate Tenzing Norgay.

  Like imitate, copy, follow

• encompass verb

  to include a wide range of things; to surround

  The national park encompasses forests, rivers, and snowy peaks.

  Like include, cover, contain

• encroach verb

  to gradually go beyond the proper limits into someone else’s area or rights

  New houses are encroaching on the farmland around the city.

  Like intrude, trespass, invade

• endeavor noun

  a serious attempt to do something difficult

  Building a robot was a long endeavor for the school club.

  Like effort, attempt, undertaking

• endorse verb

  to say publicly that you support or approve of something

  The doctors endorsed the plan to give free checkups to children.

  Like support, approve, back

• endure verb

  to put up with something painful or hard for a long time; to last

  The climbers endured freezing winds on their way to the summit.

  Like bear, withstand, tolerate

• engender verb

  to cause a feeling or situation to come into being

  The coach’s kindness engendered trust among the players.

  Like cause, produce, generate

• enigma noun

  a person or thing that is mysterious and hard to understand

  How the ancient builders moved such huge stones is still an enigma.

  Like mystery, puzzle, riddle

• enigmatic adjective

  mysterious and difficult to understand

  The painting is famous for the woman’s enigmatic smile.

  Like mysterious, puzzling, cryptic

• enormity noun

  the great seriousness or wickedness of something; very great size

  Only later did they understand the enormity of the task ahead.

  Like seriousness, immensity, magnitude

• entail verb

  to involve something as a necessary part or result

  Becoming a doctor entails many years of study.

  Like involve, require, necessitate

• entice verb

  to attract someone by offering something pleasant

  The smell of fresh momos enticed us into the small restaurant.

  Like lure, tempt, attract

• entrench verb

  to fix an idea or habit firmly so it is hard to change

  Bad habits become entrenched if you don’t change them early.

  Like establish, root, embed

• envision verb

  to picture something in your mind as a future possibility

  The architect envisioned a library full of sunlight.

  Like imagine, picture, foresee

• ephemeral adjective

  lasting only a very short time

  The rainbow was ephemeral, gone before I could take a photo.

  Like fleeting, short-lived, transient

• epitome noun

  a perfect example of a quality or type

  The tidy, well-labeled lab was the epitome of good organization.

  Like embodiment, model, essence

• epitomize verb

  to be a perfect example of something

  The long-distance runner epitomizes patience and hard work.

  Like embody, typify, exemplify

• equitable adjective

  fair and reasonable, giving everyone what they deserve

  The teacher made an equitable plan so that every group got the same equipment.

  Like fair, just, even-handed

• eradicate verb

  to destroy something completely so it is gone for good

  Vaccination helped eradicate smallpox from the world.

  Like eliminate, wipe out, root out

• erode verb

  to wear away slowly, especially by wind, water, or ice

  Over thousands of years, the river eroded a deep valley.

  Like wear away, wear down, eat away

• erratic adjective

  changing often and unpredictably, without a regular pattern

  The bus schedule was erratic during the festival week.

  Like unpredictable, irregular, inconsistent

• erroneous adjective

  incorrect; based on a mistake

  The map gave an erroneous height for the mountain.

  Like wrong, incorrect, mistaken

• escalate verb

  to become greater, more serious, or more intense

  The small argument escalated into a loud quarrel.

  Like intensify, increase, worsen

• esteem noun

  respect and admiration for someone

  The villagers hold their old teacher in high esteem.

  Like respect, regard, admiration

• estrange verb

  to make people who were close become unfriendly or distant

  A silly argument estranged the two cousins for years.

  Like alienate, distance, separate

• ethic noun

  a set of moral principles that guides behavior

  Her strong work ethic helped her finish every project on time.

  Like principle, value, morality

• euphemism noun

  a mild or polite word used in place of one that seems harsh or rude

  The seller called the rusty old bicycle “well loved,” a euphemism for “worn out.”

  Like softer term, polite term

• euphoria noun

  a feeling of intense happiness and excitement

  The team was full of euphoria after winning the national championship.

  Like elation, joy, ecstasy

• evade verb

  to avoid something or someone, often by cleverness or dishonesty

  The player evaded two defenders and scored.

  Like avoid, dodge, elude

• evasive adjective

  avoiding a direct answer or commitment

  When asked about the broken vase, my brother gave an evasive reply.

  Like indirect, equivocal, noncommittal

• evoke verb

  to bring a feeling, memory, or image into the mind

  The smell of marigolds evokes memories of Tihar.

  Like summon, call up, arouse

• exacerbate verb

  to make a problem or bad situation worse

  Dust from the road exacerbated his cough.

  Like worsen, aggravate, intensify

• exacting adjective

  demanding great care, effort, or accuracy

  Making watches is exacting work that needs steady hands.

  Like demanding, rigorous, strict

• exasperate verb

  to annoy someone greatly, especially by repeating something

  The constant beeping of the alarm exasperated everyone in the house.

  Like infuriate, irritate, annoy

• excerpt noun

  a short piece taken from a longer book, speech, or film

  We read an excerpt from the explorer’s diary in class.

  Like extract, passage, quotation

• exemplary adjective

  so good that it should be copied by others

  The student’s exemplary behavior earned her a prize.

  Like model, ideal, outstanding

• exemplify verb

  to be a typical example of something

  The terraced fields exemplify how farmers adapt to steep hills.

  Like illustrate, typify, represent

• exempt adjective

  freed from a duty or rule that others must follow

  Students with a doctor’s note are exempt from the sports test.

  Like excused, free, immune

• exhaustive adjective

  complete and thorough, covering every detail

  The librarian made an exhaustive list of every book in the school.

  Like thorough, comprehensive, complete

• exhilarate verb

  to make someone feel very happy and full of energy

  The paragliding flight over Pokhara exhilarated the whole group.

  Like thrill, excite, elate

• exonerate verb

  to officially show that someone is not to blame

  The video exonerated the goalkeeper of any foul.

  Like clear, absolve, acquit

• exorbitant adjective

  far too high in price or amount

  The shop charged exorbitant prices for bottled water near the summit.

  Like excessive, outrageous, overpriced

• expedient adjective

  useful for a quick result, though not always right or fair

  Copying the answers was expedient, but it was not honest.

  Like convenient, practical, advantageous

• expedite verb

  to make a process happen faster

  Online forms helped expedite the passport process.

  Like speed up, hasten, accelerate

• exquisite adjective

  extremely beautiful and delicate

  The temple door has exquisite wood carvings.

  Like beautiful, delicate, elegant

• extol verb

  to praise someone or something with great enthusiasm

  The guide extolled the beauty of the sunrise at Nagarkot.

  Like praise, acclaim, glorify

• extraneous adjective

  not related to the subject or not needed

  Remove extraneous details so your essay stays clear.

  Like irrelevant, unnecessary, unrelated

• extravagant adjective

  spending or using much more than is reasonable

  The extravagant party had fireworks, a live band, and five cakes.

  Like lavish, wasteful, excessive

• exuberant adjective

  full of lively energy and cheerful excitement

  The exuberant children ran around the playground shouting with joy.

  Like lively, enthusiastic, high-spirited