Academic Word of the Day Set 31
Previous Academic Word of the Day Sets
This page examines particular academic words and their usage in academic writing.
For each word, it examines the meaning or meanings of that word and its collocationsThe tendency of a particular word or phrase to be found in the proximity of another., connotationsThe additional or incidental meanings, associations or references which a word, phrase or sentence might have in addition to its obvious core meaning., other words in the same word familiesA group of words which share the same root and similar basic meaning but have different syntactic uses because of their different inflected forms or derived forms made with different affixes., possible synonymsA word which has the same meaning and use as another., antonymsA word which has the opposite meaning to another word., and lexical phrasesMulti-word chunks of language which may be of varying length and which have various functions., and provides examples of its use in authentic textsA text written by someone writing about matters in their own specialist area for other specialists or for the general public, but not for English teaching purposes. which are cited and listed in the bibliography. Occasionally, where an example is taken from a text which is particularly rich in examples of the headword, the citation is also a link to the source article. There is also an indication of whether the word appears in an academic word list. These are:
- AWLPresent in the Academic Word List: The Academic Word List
- NAWLPresent in the New Academic Word List: The New Academic Word List
- AKLPresent in the Academic Keyword List: The Academic Keyword List
- OPALPresent in the Oxford Phrasal Academic Lexicon: The Oxford Phrasal Academic Lexicon
- NGSLPresent in the New General Service List: The New General Service List (a basic word list rather than an academic one)
Where the example sentences contain 'academic' words, these are highlighted in bold, as in this paragraph. Only words from the Academic Word List (AWLPresent in the Academic Word List), the New Academic Word List (NAWLPresent in the New Academic Word List) or some from the Academic Keyword List (AKLPresent in the Academic Keyword List) are highlighted. This gives you an idea of how common and important these words are in these types of academic or technical texts.
If you need to find or highlight academic words in a text you can use the Academic Word Highlighter. This gives you a choice about which word list to use for highlighting.
The words of the day appear in order by date. You can access each set from here: 1 2
- ignoreAWL NGSL
- VERB TRANSITIVE to pay no attention to; disregard
However, our findings do suggest that the presence of mobile phones in schools should not be ignored. (Beland and Murphy 2015)While we are finally paying attention to the importance of sleep, the need for dark is still mostly ignored. (Stevens 2015)During sleep, our body can decide to ignore sounds, movements and smells happening around us which might otherwise wake us. (Zajamsek and Micic 2020)So, when you’ve got to choose between a three buses, our advice is to target the second, consider the first and ignore the third. (Bamford and Mayers n.d.)Many AI technologies are focused on a stereotypical image of an older adult in poor health — a narrow segment of the population that ignores healthy aging. (Chu et al. 2022)
Common collocates for this word:ignore
people
differences
questions
others
women
each other
parliament
numbers
depreciation
literature
behaviour
government
warnings
rumours
men
Word Family: ignore (verb), ignorance (noun), ignorant (adjective)
SynonymsTrue synonyms are rare: all of these have related meanings but are used in different contexts with different collocates: disregard
24/04/2026 - Set 31 - diversificationAWL
- NOUN UNCOUNTABLE the process of including or making new or different things
In a meta-analysis of 5,156 experiments from across the globe, researchers in France and the Netherlands showed that crop diversification typically enhanced net productivity, soil function and ecosystem services. (Christensen-Dalsgaard 2025)Crop diversification has long been used to minimize the impacts of climate insecurities in developing countries with less access to artificial irrigation and soil amendments. (Christensen-Dalsgaard 2025)We found that farmers can achieve more environmental and social benefits if they use several diversification strategies together rather than just one at a time. (Nyantakyi-Frimpong et al. 2024)Starting to diversify might be costly at first and need labour. Results may take time. These barriers might prevent farmers from trying diversification strategies unless they get financial support. (Nyantakyi-Frimpong et al. 2024)In fact, diversification can take many forms – diversifying into different supply chains and global markets, or even diversifying products, processes and business models. (Finnin 2014)
Common collocates for this word:diversification
economic
portfolio
product
crop
international
agricultural
farm
export
industrial
market
geographical
income
corporate
business
investment
Word Family: diversification (noun), diversify (verb), diversitythe inclusion of people or things with different characteristics in one group (noun), diverse (adjective)
Synonyms: variation, variety
23/04/2026 - Set 31 - traceableAWL
- ADJECTIVE possible to trace (find the source of something)
The Epic of Gilgamesh was wildly famous in antiquity, with its impact traceable to the later literary worlds of the Homeric epics and the Hebrew Bible. (Pryke 2017)Once a wallet ID has been linked to an individual bitcoin, transactions become highly traceable, as all transactions involving that ID are viewable on the public ledger. (Shillito 2015)The story of human evolution usually starts at the point our distant ancestors began to separate from the apes, whose own ancestors are traceable from at least 35 million years ago and are well attested as fossils. (Gowlett 2024)Systematic measurements started in the mid-1900s and have shown a steady increase in carbon dioxide, with the majority of it directly traceable to the combustion of fossil fuels. (Weatherhead 2021)A well-run system could also keep clear, traceable records for each donation and request, making it easier to show where blood goes and to coordinate fast, accountable responses when an emergency hits. (Shen, Brede, and Head 2026)
Common collocates for this word:traceable
directly
clearly
easily
distinctly
fully
ultimately
readily
scarcely
plainly
partly
barely
historically
indirectly
immediately
Word Family: traceable (adjective), trace (verb), trace1. a small sign, indication; 2. a very small amount of a substance (often used in the plural - traces) (noun)
Synonyms: deducible, derivable, inferable
22/04/2026 - Set 31 - migratoryAWL
- ADJECTIVE relating to migration (the movement of animals, birds or people)
Because geese learn migratory routes, they can flexibly adjust where they go as conditions change. (Langen 2020)Biologists have learned remarkable things about migratory birds' navigational skills and how they can malfunction because of weather or illness. (Craciun 2023)The latter were known as “birds of passage,” the original term for migratory birds. (Craciun 2023)The arrival and departure of migratory birds, the life cycle of insects and amphibians, and the mating rituals of large mammals can completely change the soundscapes with the seasons. (Carrasco and Tonkin 2025)On land, roads and fences carve up migratory routes for animals like wildebeest. (Dunn, Bentley, and Fuller 2024This text has many examples of the use of the word 'migratory.)
Common collocates for this word:migratory
birds
species
phase
route
habits
pressures
fish
tendencies
instinct
flights
creatures
routes
passage
flight
behaviour
Word Family: migratory (adjective), migrate (verb), migration (noun)
Synonyms: itinerant, nomadic
21/04/2026 - Set 31 - capableAWL OPAL NGSL
- ADJECTIVE able; having the power, skill, or means of achieving a satisfactory result
That is to say, if we want the machine to be intelligent then it had better be capable of making mistakes. (Fedrizzi and Malik 2022)Homo erectus was wide-ranging and capable, as its tools confirm, having been found all over Africa and most of Asia. (Gowlett 2024)The doctrine holds that if a child is between the ages of ten and 14, they are presumed not to be capable of forming criminal intent and the prosecution are required to rebut that presumption. (Cunneen 2020)As biologist E O Wilson summarized, “All animals, while capable of some degree of specialized learning, are instinct driven, guided by simple cues from the environment that trigger complex behavior patterns.”(Craciun 2023)When technology was available, people relied on it, but when it was not available, people were still perfectly capable of remembering. As such it would be hasty to conclude that technology impairs our ability to remember. (Cecutti and Lee 2021)
Common collocates for this word:capable
hands
woman
hand
people
performer
fingers
women
man
administrator
editors
researcher
officers
boy
manager
staff
Word Family: capable (adjective), capacity (noun)
Synonyms: able, competent
20/04/2026 - Set 31 - flexibleAWL OPAL NGSL
- ADJECTIVE being able to change easily according to necessity; able to change shape
Generally, routine exercise throughout adulthood encourages the heart to remain strong and flexible even in old age. (Cornwell 2024)We’ve replaced the 20th century idea of stable, permanent careers spanning decades with flexible employment and gig work. (Patulny 2020)The WTO can remain a forum for building consensus, but its future lies in fostering flexible partnerships rather than pursuing grand, all-encompassing trade deals. (Steinbach 2025)Some philosophers of science claim such a definition is too imprecise. In my own research, I’ve argued that this kind of generality is a strength: it helps keep our theories flexible, and applicable to new contexts. (Rider 2025)Our research also indicates that people can practice flexible thinking every day when they experience negative emotions. (Zhu 2023)
Common collocates for this word:flexible
approach
working
response
way
system
manufacturing
exchange
labour
use
arrangements
friend
hours
packaging
learning
plastic
Word Family: flexible (adjective), flexibility (noun)
Synonyms: adaptable, responsivebeing attentive to, engaged with, or reacting to some event or behaviour
17/04/2026 - Set 31 - initiateAWL NAWL AKL OPAL
- VERB TRANSITIVE to start a process
Although we’re aware of our thoughts and the resulting movements, an interesting dissociation has been observed between the time we think we initiate a movement and when that movement actually starts. (Welsh 2015)The global framework contains 23 targets, to be “initiated immediately and completed by 2030”. (Bell-James 2024)This consolidation of power makes it far simpler to initiate broad, sweeping mandates that are easier to enforce. (Clendenin 2020)A habit occurs when your impulse towards doing something is automatically initiated because you encounter a setting in which you’ve done the same thing in the past. (Cleo 2023)If the wire near the sinoatrial node doesn’t detect any electrical activity over a set time, the pacemaker’s battery will send an impulse to the ventricle to initiate an electrical signal. (Singla 2023)
Common collocates for this word:initiate
legislation
proceedings
action
changes
movement
prosecutions
investigations
discussions
courtship
transcription
infection
reform
discussion
policy
development
Word Family: initiate (verb), initial (adjective), initiation (noun)
Synonyms: start, begin, launch
16/04/2026 - Set 31 - instructiveAWL
- ADJECTIVE informative; providing useful information
This controversy started over whether butter is harder at room temperature than it used to be. Although that question has melted away, it’s instructive to trace this story from its start. (LeBlanc 2021)But as historians and educators who have explored the instructive value of monuments, we believe statue removal can also limit the important conversations underway about their expired agendas. (Marcus and Woodward 2020)To examine whether wood is sustainably sourced, rather than contributing to higher carbon emissions, it is instructive to consider the economics of forest management. (Sohngen 2024)The inadvertent selection that turned wolves into dogs turns out to be instructive in how AI might inadvertently shape the evolution of human brains and behaviour. (Brooks 2024)America’s history of religious freedom is filled with stories that are instructive for our current moment. One such instructive lesson comes from the early 19th century. (Walker 2024)
Common collocates for this word:instructive
example
day
parallel
comparisons
reading
figures
case
book
lesson
conversation
account
illustration
comparison
story
Word Family: instructive (adjective), instruct (verb), instruction (noun)
Synonyms: informative, helpful
15/04/2026 - Set 31 - subsidiseAWL
- VERB TRANSITIVE to support by paying part of the cost of something
Over the weekend, Labor promised to subsidise home batteries by 30%. This would save about A$4,000 per household up front for an average battery. (Best 2025)Many countries also continue to subsidise fossil fuels, which filters into plastics and petrochemicals production through reduced costs for fossil building blocks and energy. (Bauer and Nielsen 2021)African countries such as South Africa, Ethiopia and Morocco all subsidise fossil fuel companies. This can mean taking on debt, raising taxes, or cutting public spending to free up money for the subsidies. (Leonard 2025)Nearly all governments, including Australia’s, subsidise their fishing industries. Financial support comes in many forms, from taxpayer-funded fuel to reduced boat-building costs. (Zeller, Meeuwig, and Andreoli 2024)In deciding what activities to subsidise, governments are taking this decision away from children and their parents. Governments need to ensure the needs and wants of children are taken into account when providing subsidies. (O’Donnell and Redmond 2021)
Common collocates for this word:subsidise
exports
services
farmers
agriculture
research
travel
food
training
housing
education
production
transport
students
wages
investment
Word Family: subsidise (verb), subsidy (noun)
Synonyms: finance, fund, underwrite, sponsor
14/04/2026 - Set 31 - revealAWL AKL OPAL NGSL
- VERB TRANSITIVE to show (something which was previously hidden or unknown)
The experiment revealed that the participants recalled significantly more information from the second file if they had saved the previous file. (Noreen 2015)This is because monuments – whether statues, memorials or obelisks – reveal the values of the time in which they were created and advance the agendas of their creators. (Marcus and Woodward 2020)And our new study has revealed that 30 minutes of daily exercise is not enough to overcome the health risks of sitting too much. (Diaz and Chastin 2021)While such behavior is ordinarily benign, an attacker could use this to trick some apps into revealing your data. (Ruoti 2022)By revealing genetic differences that distinguish living humans from our extinct ancestors, Pääbo’s influential discoveries provide the basis for exploring what makes us uniquely human. (Götherström and Dalén n.d.)
Common collocates for this word:reveal
themselves
details
itself
information
himself
evidence
inadequacies
patterns
plans
truth
truths
aspects
ourselves
yourself
myself
Word Family: reveal (verb), revelationthe sudden appearance or understanding of something previously hidden or not understood (noun)
Synonyms: show, demonstrateto show with illustrations or practical examples, disclose
13/04/2026 - Set 31
2025-04-24
31
2025-04-23
31
2025-04-22
31
2025-04-21
31
2025-04-20
31
2025-04-17
31
2025-04-16
31
2025-04-15
31
2025-04-14
31
2025-04-13
31
⇦
No AI has been used in the creation of this page.