No two words in the English language have exactly the same significance, but to express the precise meaning that one intends to convey, and to avoid repetition, it is often desirable to have at hand a Dictionary of Synonyms. Take President Cleveland's famous phrase, "innocuous desuetude." If he had said simply, "harmless disuse," it would have sounded clumsy, whereas the words he used expressed the exact shade of meaning, besides giving the world a new phrase and the newspapers something to talk about.

The following list of Synonyms, while not exhaustive, is quite comprehensive, and by cross-reference will answer most requirements. The appended Antonyms, or words of opposite meaning, enclosed in parentheses, will also be found extremely valuable, for one of the strongest figures of speech is antithesis, or contrast:

Abandon, leave, forsake, desert, renounce, relinquish, quit, forego, let go, waive. (Keep, cherish.) Abandoned, deserted, forsaken, wicked, reprobate, dissolute, profligate, flagitious, corrupt, depraved, vicious. (Cared for, virtuous.) Abandonment, leaving, desertion, dereliction, renunciation, defection. Abasement, degradation, fall, degeneracy, humiliation, abjection, debasement, servility. (Honor.) Abash, bewilder, disconcert, discompose, confound, confuse, shame. (Embolden.) Abbreviate, shorten, abridge, condense, contract, curtail, reduce. (Extend.) Abdicate, give up, resign, renounce, abandon, forsake, relinquish, quit, forego. Abet, help, encourage, instigate, incite, stimulate, aid, assist. (Resist.) Abettor, assistant, accessory, accomplice, promoter, instigator, particeps criminis, coadjutor, associate, companion, co operator. (Opponent.) Abhor, dislike intensely, view with horror, hate, detest, abominate, loathe, nauseate. (Love.) Ability, capability, talent, faculty, capacity, qualification, aptitude, aptness, expertness, skill, efficiency, accomplishment, attainment. (Incompetency.) Abject, grovelling, low, mean, base, ignoble, worthless, despicable, vile, servile, contemptible. (Noble.) Abjure, recant, forswear, disclaim, recall, revoke, retract, renounce. (Maintain.) Able, strong, powerful, muscular, stalwart, vigorous, athletic, robust, brawny, skillful, adroit, competent, efficient, capable, clever, self-qualified, telling, fitted. (Weak.)

Abode, residence, habitation, dwelling, domicile, home, quarters, lodgings. Abolish, quash, destroy, revoke, abrogate, annul, cancel, annihilate, extinguish, vitiate, invalidate, nullify. (Establish, enforce.) Abominable, hateful, detestable, odious, vile, execrable. (Lovable.) Abortive, fruitless, ineffectual, idle, inoperative, vain, futile. (Effectual.) About, concerning, regarding, relative to, with regard to, as to, respecting, with respect to, referring to, around, nearly, approximately. Abscond, run off, steal away, decamp, bolt. Absent, a., inattentive, abstracted, not attending to, listless, dreamy. (Present.) Absolute, entire, complete, unconditional, unqualified, unrestricted, despotic, arbitrary, tyrannous, imperative, authoritative, imperious. (Limited.) Absorb, engross, swallow up, engulf, imbibe, consume, merge, fuse. Absurd, silly, foolish, preposterous, ridiculous, irrational, unreasonable, nonsensical, inconsistent. (Wise, solemn.) Abuse, z'., asperse, revile, vilify, reproach, calumniate, defame, slander, scandalize, malign, traduce, disparage, depreciate, ill-use. (Praise, protect.) Abuse, n., scurrility, ribaldry, contumely, obloquy, opprobrium, foul, invective, vituperation, ill-usage. (Praise, protection.) Accede, assent to, consent, acquiesce, comply with, agree, coincide, concur, approve. (Protest.) Accelerate, hasten, hurry, expedite, forward, quicken, despatch. (Retard.) Accept, receive, take, admit. (Refuse.) Acceptable, agreeable, pleasing, pleasurable, gratifying, welcome. (Displeasing.) Accident, casualty, incident, contingency, adventure, chance.

Accommodate, serve, oblige, adapt, adjust, fit, suit. (Disoblige, impede.) Accomplice, confederate, accessory, abettor, coadjutor, assistant, ally, associate, particeps criminis. (Adversary.) Accomplish, do, effect, finish, execute, achieve, complete, perfect, consummate. (Fail.) Accomplishment, attainment, qualification, acquirement. (Defect.) Accord, grant, allow, admit, concede. (Deny.) Accost, salute, address, speak to, stop, greet. Account, narrative, description, narration, relation, detail, recital, moneys, reckoning, bill, charge. Accountable, punishable, answerable, amenable, responsible, liable. Accumulate, bring together, amass, collect, gather. (Scatter, dissipate.) Accumulation, collection, store, mass, congeries, concentration. Accurate, correct, exact, precise, nice, truthful. (Erroneous, careless.) Achieve, do, accomplish, effect, fulfill, execute, gain, win. Achievement, feat, exploit, accomplishment, attainment, performance, acquirement, gain. (Failure.) Ackowledge, admit, confess, own, avow, grant, recognize, allow, concede. (Deny.) Acquaint, inform, enlighten, apprise, make aware, make known, notify, communicate. (Deceive.) Acquaintance, familiarity, intimacy, cognizance, fellowship, companionship, knowledge. (Unfamiliarity.) Acquiesce, agree, accede, assent, comply, consent, give way, coincide with. (Protest.) Acquit, pardon, forgive, discharge, set free, clear, absolve. (Condemn, convict.) Act, do, operate, make, perform, play, enact.

Action, deed, achievement, feat, exploit, accomplishment, battle, engagement, agency, instrumentality. Active, lively, sprightly, alert, agile, nimble, brisk, quick, supple, prompt, vigilant, laborious, industrious. (Lazy, passive.) Actual, real, positive, genuine, certain. (Fictitious.) Acute, shrewd, intelligent, penetrating, piercing, keen. (Dull.) Adapt, accommodate, suit, fit, conform. Addicted, devoted, wedded, attached, given up to, dedicated. Addition, increase, accession, augmentation, reinforcement. (Subtraction, separation.) Address, speech, discourse, appeal, oration, tact, skill, ability, dexterity, deportment, demeanor. Adhesion, adherence, attachment, fidelity, devotion. (Aloofness.) Adjacent, near to, adjoining, contiguous, conterminous, bordering, neighboring. (Distant.) Adjourn, defer, prorogue, postpone, delay. Adjunct, appendage, appurtenance, appen-dency, dependency. Adjust, set right, fit, accomodate, adapt, arrange, settle, regulate, organize. (Confuse.) Admirable, striking, surprising, wonderful, astonishing. (Detestable.) Admit, allow, permit, suffer, tolerate. (Deny.) Advantageous, beneficial. (Hurtful.) Affection, love. (Aversion.) Affectionate, fond, kind. (Harsh.) Agreeable, pleasant, pleasing, charming. (Disagreeable.) Alternating, halting, intermittent. (Continual.) Ambassador, envoy, plenipotentiary, minister.