Academic Word of the Day Set 39

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)

Occasionally a word not in one of these lists may be used, but only if it belongs to the same word family as a word in at least one of the lists. In this case it will be indicated. For example: AVOIDANCE AKL NGSL OPAL (avoid). "AVOIDANCE" does not appear in these lists but "avoid" does.

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. You can access each set from the previous sets pagerevious sets page.

2025-08-14

panel AWL NGSL: NOUN COUNTABLE a group of people chosen for a specific task such as gathering information or dispensing advice; a flat surface
After an interim report in July, the review panel is due to finalise its work in December. (Norton 2023) So the Universities Accord review panel has an unenviable task. It wants to see a radical new phase of “growth for skills.” (Norton 2023) The panels would get constant sunlight as they can rotate and not be blocked by the planet at all. (Whittaker 2021) But the guideline panels defining diseases have usually provided little evidence to justify changing the definitions of diseases and rarely consider the harm the changes may cause. (Glasziou 2013) France has approved legislation that will require all car parks with more than 80 spaces to be covered over by solar panels. (Ryan 2022) Common collocates for this word:

panel

central
advisory
solar
upper
full
independent
parliamentary
flat
disciplinary
front
wooden
left
top
small

Word Family: panel (noun)
Synonyms: committee, board, group
14/08/2026 - Set 39

2025-08-13

encounter AWL AKL OPAL NGSL: NOUN COUNTABLE a meeting (often brief or unexpected)
It only takes one encounter with Superman to create a new schema and change your thinking forever. (Anderson-Sieg, 2021) But people inexperienced with monkey behavior will often misinterpret a threatening facial expression for a friendly one. This can lead to dangerous encounters. (McKinney 2024) Good physical evidence might be capturing the creature, or a clear photograph, or an encounter where a biologist has an opportunity to examine the creature. (Little, 2023) But one thing I have consistently found in my research as a psychologist is that surviving an encounter with death – or even just seriously contemplating death – can have a powerful positive effect. (Taylor, 2020) Fatal encounters are rising rapidly, are geographically clustered in the north and western districts, and are driven primarily by two species: crocodiles and elephants (not lions, as people might expect). (Kavhu, 2026) Common collocates for this word:

encounter

brief
close
sexual
personal
recent
classic
direct
unpleasant
casual
interesting
thrilling
terrifying
fatal
unexpected
historic

Word Family: encounter (noun), encounter (verb)
Synonyms: meet, face
Lexical phrases: [an, the] encounter with
13/08/2026 - Set 39

2025-08-12

sphere AWL NAWL OPAL: NOUN COUNTABLE an area of knowledge interest or influence; a form in the shape of a ball
In 2011, scientists discovered there were differences in cow and mice blastocysts, the tiny hollow spheres of cells which precede the development of the embryo. (Lozano 2015) Moreover, research has shown that building cultures where girls and women are encouraged to participate, lead and make decisions in both public and private spheres is central to achieving lasting peace. (Gordon and Lee-Koo 2021) Ever since the ancient Greeks first made observations of the circular Moon and the skies, scientists have known that the Earth is a sphere. (MacGregor, 2024) At every stage and in every sphere of life, people need someone who can champion their values and fight for their needs. (Harrison, 2023) Since there are few examples of persuasion in our public sphere these days, it is difficult to know the difference between persuasion and propaganda. (Mercieca, 2021) Common collocates for this word:

sphere

political
economic
private
domestic
military
social
particular
aesthetic
cultural
religious
educational
proper
international
main
different

Word Family: sphere (noun), spherical (adjective)
Synonyms: globe, domain, scope, range, area
12/08/2026 - Set 39

2025-08-11

portion AWL NGSL: NOUN COUNTABLE a part or something
The yellowy, liquid portion of blood is called plasma. (Sekeres, 2022) AI-generated content is produced by the AI itself. This could mean that the AI tool generates significant portions of text, or even entire sections, based on detailed instructions (prompts) provided by the author. (Laher 2025) Vaccines activate our adaptive immune response, without the risk of making us sick because they only expose us to a portion of the invader or an inactive part of it. (Maltby and Maltby 2014) This is where a portion of the government’s funding could be of great benefit. (Cox, 2023) Most of it – over 90% of it – is water, but the remaining portion contains molecules that help our blood clot and stop bleeding. (Sekeres, 2022) Common collocates for this word:

portion

small
large
substantial
significant
central
major
considerable
abdominal
upper
remaining
tiny
double
shaded
sizeable
certain

Word Family: portion (noun), apportion (verb)
Synonyms: part, sector, section, fraction, share, allocation
Lexical phrases: portion of
11/08/2026 - Set 39

2025-08-10

norms AWL: NOUN COUNTABLE standards, rules, guidelines, customs or laws; the singular is 'norm' but is less often used than the plural
Lots of the norms of everyday life perform precisely the same function as the rules of games – telling us what “moves” we can, and can’t make. (Chater, 2020) These are also countries where following the rules is part of the social norm. (Clendenin, 2020) New parties need to understand the culture of the collaboration and fit in with its values, norms and behaviours. (Charles & Keast, 2016) These people, whose bones look just like ours, have distinctive muscles and ranges of movement well beyond the human norm. (Winder & Shaw, 2019) When schools include children’s identity, cultural norms and traditions in the classroom, students feel a sense of belonging and inclusion. (Negussie, 2022) Common collocates for this word:

norms

social
cultural
legal
linguistic
shared
certain
professional
accepted
ethical
relative
moral
different
prevailing
established
legislative

Word Family: norms (noun), normal (adjective), normality (noun), normalise (verb)
Synonyms: standard, model, guideline, criterion, rule
10/08/2026 - Set 39

2025-08-07

converse AWL: NOUN opposite
For Aristotle, good habits lead to ethical self-development. The converse is also true. (Reed, 2025) Hanson also claimed that students with disabilities were better served in separate classrooms or schools. Evidence shows the converse is true. (Bruin & Graham, 2017) It matters if they are kind, thoughtful and empathetic. The converse is also true. It is the kiss of death to a project if an individual is arrogant or patronising or somehow offends their hosts. (Peake & Wallis, 2023) In his 1687 “Principia Mathematica,” Newton proved the converse and claimed priority. (Griffing, 2020)
Word Family: converse (noun)
Synonyms: opposite, inverse
Lexical phrases: the converse is [true, false]
07/08/2026 - Set 39

2025-08-06

analogy AWL NAWL AKL: NOUN COUNTABLE a comparison used as a simple example
For example, if I find a fossilised skull of an extinct animal that has sharp teeth, I might wonder what it ate. I look for animals alive today that have sharp teeth and notice they are carnivores. Reasoning by analogy, I conclude that the animal was also a carnivore.(Ellerton 2016) If you have vague recollections of your high school physics teacher trying to explain the motion of particles by analogy with billiard balls or long metal slinkies, you get the general picture. (Fitzgerald, 2022) Essentially, viruses are snippets of genetic code that hijack the mechanics of living cells to replicate themselves, escape the cell and spread (the “computer virus” analogy is apt). (Cheng, 2014) Lorenz famously illustrated this effect with the analogy of a butterfly flapping its wings and thereby causing the formation of a hurricane half a world away. (Borwein (Jon) & Rose, 2012) When it comes to misinformation, “going viral” appears to be more than a simple catchphrase. Scientists have found a close analogy between the spread of misinformation and the spread of viruses. (Grimes & Linden, 2024) Common collocates for this word:

analogy

linguistic
useful
close
mechanical
appropriate
simple
biological
musical
historical
obvious
medical
military
illuminating
tortuous
apt

Word Family: analogy (noun), analogous (adjective)
Synonyms: comparison, resemblance, simile, metaphor
Lexical phrases: analogy [with, between]; by analogy
06/08/2026 - Set 39

2025-08-05

prospect AWL NGSL: NOUN COUNTABLE future possibility or expectations
For this scheme to work, there must be government investment over the immediate and longer-term to give people the best prospects of thriving. (McAdam 2025) Overall, what we have found is that universities do far more than just teach students in a specific discipline, or increase an individual’s job prospects. (Evans, 2017) Most worryingly there is the prospect of unchecked AI-generated disinformation undermining elections and democratic institutions. (Ameen, 2025) Rescue from deep space, possibly hundreds of thousands of miles away from Earth, is a different prospect – as the crew of Apollo 13 famously demonstrated in 1970. (Fong, 2023) Job prospects for recent college graduates depend on the industry. The 2026 survey shows that employers in health care, construction and finance plan to hire more graduates than other fields. (Gozu et al., 2026) Common collocates for this word:

prospect

daunting
exciting
reasonable
real
immediate
realistic
attractive
little
terrifying
distant
awful
unlikely
serious
frightening
bleak

Word Family: prospect (noun), prospective (adjective)
Synonyms: possibility, chance, likelihood
Lexical phrases: prospect of
05/08/2026 - Set 39

2025-08-04

commodity AWL NAWL: NOUN COUNTABLE an object or substance which has tradable value
Data, it is often said, is now a more valuable commodity than oil, and it’s used to manipulate our behavior through product ads and political messages. (Ashley, 2019) Courses became commodities, increasingly taught not by permanent academics, but by precariously placed teachers on short-term contracts. (During, 2022) Programs like media studies, legal studies, museum studies and international relations are attractive commodities because, supposedly, they produce graduates who are “job-ready”. (During, 2022) Our research found that forests are increasingly being managed as carbon sinks, and the carbon they store treated as a commodity that can be internationally traded. (McDermott et al., 2024) Eventually a suitable commodity – perhaps gold or silver – emerged as both an acceptable means of exchange for conducting trade and a convenient unit of account for expressing value. (Hail, 2024) Common collocates for this word:

commodity

valuable
rare
particular
scarce
precious
capitalist
saleable
expensive
simple
important
international
taxed
perishable
marketable
useful

Word Family: commodity (noun), commodify (verb)
Synonyms: goods, product, merchandise
04/08/2026 - Set 39

2025-08-03

priority AWL OPAL NGSL: NOUN COUNTABLE a value indicating level of importance or precedence
Very improbable events, such as an asteroid collision, should not take priority over more probable ones, such as the effects of pollution. (Cristianini, 2023) Understanding emerging, infectious diseases needs to be a priority. (Roossinck, 2020) Our new research shows that city size and population distribution matter when the priorities are access to amenities and equality of opportunities and outcomes – and not just economic growth. (Sarkar 2018) In 2010, the U S Department of Agriculture classified cybersecurity as a low priority. (Doctor & Grispos, 2022) Beyond school Improving young people’s access to physical activity that will help them stay active in adult life should be a priority beyond schools. (Cox, 2023) Common collocates for this word:

priority

high
low
top
main
major
national
absolute
immediate
temporal
overriding
important
urgent
educational
urban
proper

Word Family: priority (noun), prioritize (verb)
Synonyms: precedence, urgency
03/08/2026 - Set 39

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