4000 Essential English Words 1 Unit 8: How the Sun and the Moon Were Made

Word List

• accept [əkˈsɛpt] v. 

To accept something that is offered is to take it.

→ I accepted the girl’s very nice gift.

• arrange [əˈreɪn(d)ʒ] v. 

To arrange things is to put them in the right place.

→ Please arrange the bowling pins in order so we can play.

• attend [əˈtɛnd] v. 

To attend something is to go to it.

→ My sister and I attend the same school.

• balance [ˈbal(ə)ns] v. 

To balance something is to keep it from falling.

→ We saw an elephant balance itself on a ball.

• contrast [kənˈtrɑːst] n 

A contrast is the sharp difference between two things.

→ The contrast between my parents is very noticeable.

• encourage [ɪnˈkʌrɪdʒ] v. 

To encourage someone is to make them want to do something.

→ My football coach will encourage us when we are losing.

• familiar [fəˈmɪlɪə] adj. 

If someone or something is familiar to you, you know them well.

→ The two friends were very familiar with each other.

• grab [ɡrab] v. 

To grab is to take a hold of someone or something suddenly.

→ I grabbed a pear from the tree.

• hang [haŋ] v. 

To hang something is to keep it above the ground.

→ I drew a picture of my family, and my mother hung it on the wall.

• huge [hjuːdʒ] adj. 

If something is huge, it is very big.

→ At work, my father drives a huge truck.

• necessary [ˈnɛsəs(ə)ri] adj. 

If something is necessary, you must do it.

→ It is necessary to have a passport when you travel to a foreign country.

• pattern [ˈpat(ə)n] n. 

A pattern is a way in which something is done or organized.

→ My pattern of brushing my teeth is the same as most people’s.

• propose [prəˈpəʊz] v. 

To propose something is to say that it should be done.

→ Santa Claus proposed that I try to be a good boy all year.

• purpose [ˈpəːpəs] n. 

A purpose is the reason that you do something.

→ The purpose of exercising is to get into shape.

• release [rɪˈliːs] v. 

To release something is to stop holding it.

→ She released the bird from her hands.

• require [rɪˈkwʌɪə] v. 

To require something is to say that it is necessary.

→ We require teachers to have a university degree.

• single [ˈsɪŋɡ(ə)l] adj. 

If something is single, then there is only one.

→ I have a single key in my hand.

• success [səkˈsɛs] n. 

Success is doing something well that you choose to do.

→ My daughter was a big success at school.

• tear [tɪə] v. 

To tear something means to pull it apart.

→ It is easy to tear paper.

• theory [ˈθɪəri] n. 

A theory is an idea about how something works.

→ We talked about Einstein’s theory of relativity in class.