Academic Word of the Day Set 15

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 collocations, connotations, other words in the same word families, possible synonyms, antonyms, and lexical phrases, and provides examples of its use in authentic texts 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:

AWL: The Academic Word List
NAWL: The New Academic Word List
AKL: The Academic Keyword List
OPAL: The Oxford Phrasal Academic Lexicon
NGSL: The New General Service List (a basic word list rather than an academic one)

In the example sentences the words of the day are highlighted in red. Other 'academic words' are highlighted in bold.
Where the example sentences contain 'academic' words, these are highlighted in bold, as in this paragraph. Only words from the Academic Word List (AWL), the New Academic Word List (NAWL) or some from the Academic Keyword List (AKL) 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.

invest AWL NGSL: VERB TRANSITIVE or INTRANSITIVE to use money or other resources in order to gain some profit or other benefit
Parents are more likely to invest in the education of their latest-born offspring. (Sabolova 2020)
Governments must invest in water infrastructure, protecting basins and ecosystems, treating wastewater and reducing pollution. (Ardakanian 2016)
Parents and other carers may invest in young people for many years, sometimes for all their life. (Bogin 2022)
It was a small study to determine if it’s worthwhile to invest in a larger more expensive randomised controlled trial. (Nyman 2020)
From the evolutionary perspective, parents favour and invest (shelter and food) in their firstborn to increase their chances of survival and reproduction. (Sabolova 2020)

Word Family: invest (verb)
Synonyms: spend, commit
Lexical phrases: [...] invest[money, time, capital, savings, effort, profits, funds, resources, ...}

12/09/2025 - Set 15
item AWL OPAL NGSL: NOUN COUNTABLE a single thing in group, list or category
Some items, like plastic bags and straws, can be hard to recycle. (O’Neill 2023)
These could include items that are in the news media, shopping catalogues, television commercials etc. (Attard 2017)
The best-performing chimpanzees remembered at least four items; one young chimpanzee remembered more than seven. (Völter 2019)
Prices are recorded in a variety of ways, and the frequency and geography of price collection depends on the item. (Li 2022)
If you want to reduce waste in your life, choose reusable mugs, cutlery or grocery bags instead of single-use plastic items. (O’Neill 2023)
Sometimes used as a shell noun, as in this example.
Retailers donate products that are typically packaged, palatable and safe for consumption, yet unsuitable for sale due to quality concerns, such as minor blemishes. Since these items can go a long way to feeding hungry people, donations represent one of the best uses of leftover or surplus food. (Lowrey 2024)
Common collocates for this word:

item

single
particular
lexical
important
main
major
specific
expensive
separate
essential
final
small
extraordinary
individual
requested

Word Family: item (noun), itemise (verb)
Synonyms: object, article, thing11/09/2025 - Set 15
normalise AWL: VERB TRANSITIVE make something normal or seem normal
Such a rapid rate of warming means we have come to normalise extreme heat, while relatively cold or even average conditions feel unusual and thus newsworthy. (Patterson 2024)
When we normalise ambition in women, we break the association between ambition and masculinity. It is time to decouple leadership qualities from gendered stereotypes, not just for current female politicians but for the girls who are our future politicians. (Russell-Bennett 2025)
Public campaigns to increase mental health literacy and normalise discussions about suicide have likely been helpful in facilitating disclosures. (Hallford 2023)
First, the emotional support and acceptance you show by simply asking and listening is immensely important to helping people feel understood and cared for. This can help normalise and de-stigmatise their experience. (Hallford 2023)
But not challenging the objectionable behaviour of others, whether in our workplaces or our families or wider society, implicitly permits it to happen. Ultimately, this perceived acceptability could serve to excuse workplace harassment and bullying. In time, it could even normalise toxic behaviour. (Crowley 2023)

Word Family: normalise (verb), normal (adjective), normality (noun), normally (adverb)
Synonyms: standardise, regularise
Lexical phrases: normalise relations (between)

10/09/2025 - Set 15
perceive AWL AKL OPAL NGSL: VERB TRANSITIVE 1. to understand something through our senses; 2. to become aware of
The findings of our new study highlight the potential unintended cost of constant monitoring: a subtle but pervasive shift in how our brains perceive and interact with the world. (Seymour and Koenig 2025)
The reason the sky can appear to be so many different things is because what we perceive as the sky is actually just the different behaviours of a massive layer of gas above our heads. (Rogerson 2021)
We perceive the sounds that we experience in our daily lives in many ways, from quiet to loud. (Walker 2022)
In fact many profoundly blind people, who cannot perceive light, must cope with this de-synchronization in their daily lives. (Stevens 2015)
It’s important to note that time behaves “normally” as perceived by each twin (exactly as you are experiencing time now), even if their measurements disagree. (Lam 2023)
Common collocates for this word:

perceive

themselves
things
others
pain
change
time
objects
reality
colour
smells
meanings
opportunities
benefits
people
dissension

Word Family: perceive (verb), perception (noun), perceptive (adjective)
Synonyms: see, hear, notice, recognize
09/09/2025 - Set 15
purchase AWL NGSL: VERB TRANSITIVE 1. (verb) to buy; 2. (noun) an item which is bought, or the act of buying
Nowadays, of course, many people pay for things without cash or coins. Instead, they use credit cards or make online purchases. (Mehkari 2022)
Early numbers suggest noteworthy increases in the purchase of plant-based foods during the pandemic. (Coulter 2020)
We are more likely to notice price changes for items we purchase frequently, and we tend to notice price increases more than decreases. (Li 2022)
Companies should be compelled to purchase emissions rights – the profits from which can be used to aid climate vulnerable communities. (Byskov 2019)
One type of government policy proven to help protect and improve health is public procurement – how governments purchase goods and services. (Erzse 2023)
Common collocates for this word:

purchase

shares
goods
land
services
arms
equipment
works
property
tax
food
tickets
materials
stock
software
securities

Word Family: purchase (verb), purchase (noun)
Synonyms: buy, acquire
08/09/2025 - Set 15
region AWL OPAL NGSL: NOUN COUNTABLE 1. a geographical area; 2. a particular area under consideration
Pakistan has more than 7,000 glaciers in its northern mountainous regions. (Clarke, Otto, and Harrington 2022)
This dependable and continuous rainfall is the reason that region is a tropical rainforest. (Boomgard-Zagrodnik and McMurdie 2021)
Most geese that breed in a particular region will migrate along similar routes, called flyways. (Langen 2020)
Historically, neuroscience has tended to see brain regions as singletons, working alone. (Hodgetts 2017)
Nigeria’s northern rural regions suffer acute shortages of both female teachers and female pupils. (Dunne, Durrani, and Humphreys 2021)
Common collocates for this word:

region

northern
autonomous
whole
particular
small
surrounding
entire
oriental
coastal
administrative
mountainous
geographical
agricultural
industrial
ventral

Word Family: region (noun), regional (adjective)
Synonyms: area, territory, domain, zone
05/09/2025 - Set 15
regulation AWL OPAL NGSL: NOUN COUNTABLE a rule or law governing a particular activity
It might be that age-related shrinkage of brain regions involved in the regulation of sleep and wakefulness contribute to sleep problems in later life. (Sahakian et al. 2022)
I found that since 1992 parliament has enacted approximately 30 mining regulations. (Bansah 2022)
The study showed improved oxygen saturation, better heartbeat regulation, longer periods of sleep, increased weight gain, and, perhaps most importantly, reduced time spent in hospital. (Coombes 2019)
Planning restrictions, safety regulations and risk assessments can seem to accumulate endlessly and may extend their reach far beyond any initial intention. (Chater 2020)
Of all the ways one could approach AI regulation, it is worth noticing that this legislation is entirely framed around the notion of risk. (Cristianini 2023)
Common collocates for this word:

regulation

legal
statutory
professional
international
economic
effective
prudential
financial
social
moral
proposed
direct
increased
joint
environmental

Word Family: regulation (noun), regulatory (adjective), regulate (verb)
Synonyms: control, govern, manage, administer
04/09/2025 - Set 15
residential AWL: ADJECTIVE ATTRIBUTIVE concerning a place where people live
The 62-hectare park along the gently sloping banks of the stream serves a densely developed residential area. (Croeser 2023)
Today, light-frame wood construction dominates the U.S. residential market. (Fernández 2025)
With affordable housing in decline, there are loud calls to massively increase the number of homes being built. Unfortunately, conventional residential development destroys large amounts of green space. (Parker, Drescher, and Rooney 2022)
Although many Canadians consider a detached house to be their dream home, conventional residential development may worsen climate change. (Parker, Drescher, and Rooney 2022)
As engineers who study buildings, we wanted to know if these empty spaces could be converted to residential buildings, and what hurdles developers would face. (Baker and Mo 2023)
Common collocates for this word:

residential

care
homes
areas
area
accommodation
development
property
courses
staff
school
course
services
weekend
authority
streets

Word Family: residential (adjective), reside (verb), resident (noun)
03/09/2025 - Set 15
restriction AWL AKL OPAL NGSL: NOUN COUNTABLE a limit or reduction
Caloric restriction models still increased lifespans across all the types of mice, with the 40% restriction group having improved average and maximum lifespans compared with the 20% group. (Elliott 2024)
They place restrictions on where a new pharmacy can be established or where an existing pharmacy can be relocated. (Cutler 2023)
Planning restrictions, safety regulations and risk assessments can seem to accumulate endlessly and may extend their reach far beyond any initial intention. (Chater 2020)
One danger is that rules can develop their own momentum: people can become so fervent about arbitrary rules of dress, dietary restrictions or the proper treatment of the sacred that they may exact the most extreme punishments to maintain them. (Chater 2020)
Eating less, or dietary restriction, has been the gold standard for achieving a longer life ever since a study nearly a century ago in which laboratory rats that ate less surprised scientists by outliving their well-fed lab mates. (Sultanova 2025)
Common collocates for this word:

restriction

severe
major
quantitative
appropriate
relevant
legal
important
different
numerical
progressive
absolute
sudden
temporary
reasonable
usual

Word Family: restriction (noun), restrict (verb)
Synonyms: limitation, limit, restraint, control
02/09/2025 - Set 15
secure AWL NGSL: ADJECTIVE ATTRIBUTIVE safe, protected, reliable
Australia’s remaining mammals deserve far better, they deserve secure futures. (Ritchie 2022)
Truly secure messaging is based on cryptography, a mathematical method to scramble data and make it unreadable. (Scholl 2025)
The gold standard for secure messaging is end-to-end encryption. (Scholl 2025)
Further work must be carried out by service providers, developers and researchers to develop more accessible and secure authentication methods. (Jeong, Doss, and Shah 2021)
When children do develop secure attachment, we know it can help set the stage for a child’s physical growth, learning, social relations (such as empathy), well-being and even their brain’s responses to stress. (Deneault, Nivison, and Madigan 2023)
Common collocates for this word:

secure

accommodation
unit
future
base
environment
position
basis
home
jobs
employment
place
tenancy
storage
training
way

Word Family: secure (adjective), secure (verb), security (noun)
Synonyms: safe, protected
01/09/2025 - Set 15

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