Academic Word of the Day Set 6

Previous Academic Word of the Day Sets

This page contains words from Set 6

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.

dominant AWL NAWL AKL OPAL: ADJECTIVE having power over; being higher, more important or greater than
Today, women are typically the dominant group within medical schools and yet remain under-represented in formal leadership positions and particular speciality areas. (Dickinson and Bismark 2016)
Brains, tools, language and big social groups make us the planet’s dominant species. There are 8 billion Homo sapiens on seven continents. By weight, there are more humans than all wild animals. (Longrich 2022)
English remains the dominant working language of the United Nations, although Arabic, Mandarin Chinese, French, Russian, and Spanish are also used as official languages of the organisation. It has become the dominant working language of the European Union too. (Mufwene 2016)
In our latest study, we found that women who wear makeup appear more dominant when they are judged by other women, but appear to be more prestigious when judged by men. (Jones and Mileva 2016)
For centuries empires were the dominant form of political organisation. (Giannakopoulos 2022)
Particular meaning - NOUN
The tonic, the first note on the scale, is the reference note around which all the other notes are organized. The third (the mediant), the fourth (the subdominant), and the fifth (the dominant) notes of the scale follow the tonic in the hierarchy. (Atalay and Yöre 2020)
Common collocates for this word:

dominant

position
class
role
culture
ideology
force
feature
male
influence
figure
theme
discourses
groups
values
firms

Word Family: dominant (adjective), dominion (noun), dominate (verb)
Synonyms: ruling, superior, notional, commanding, principal
Morphology: domin + ant more...
Lexical phrases: play a dominant role in ...
[be] the dominant [form, source, feature, mode, ...] of...
09/05/25 - Set 6
validity AWL NAWL AKL OPAL: NOUN UNCOUNTABLE a measure or the worth or value of something, especially of an argument or affirmation
ACADEMIC/SCIENTIFIC VALIDITY:
Strong consensus across experts and multiple scientific studies supports the validity of health information. (Wang 2023)
The outcomes of good science stem from both the validity and reliability of our stimuli, which is why it’s important to think critically about the reasons why we’re laughing. (Borgella 2016)
The validity of the data largely determines the validity of the analysis. If the data obtained are reliable, the analysis can be trusted. (Sasongko 2020)
This must be reviewed by their scientific peers – only they are qualified to assess the validity of the methods and the accuracy of the conclusions the researcher has drawn from the results. (Saunders 2013)
LEGAL VALIDITY:
The case collapsed, partly because the defence lawyers cast doubt on the validity of the evidence thanks to the inappropriate way the samples were handled. (Curtis and Hereward 2017)
Common collocates for this word:

validity

predictive
legal
scientific
equal
doubtful
constitutional
external
concurrent
continuing
social
universal
internal
objective
content
statistical

Word Family: validity (noun), valid (adjective), validate (verb)
Synonyms: truthfulness, accuracy, substance, value
Morphology: validity more...
Lexical phrases: [affect, verify, question, check, determine, guarantee, confirm, ...] the validity of
08/05/25 - Set 6
estimation AWL NAWL OPAL: NOUN COUNTABLE An informed guess about the amount, size, value etc. of something; an opinion about someone or something
INFORMED GUESSES
The students in our project expressed anxiety and sometimes guilt that they had spent too much time on their apps. By their own estimation, they were using apps for about eight hours a day. (Conroy, Knox, and Davis 2025)
Consequently, an accurate estimation of costs in the early design phase is an important instrument to support strategic decisions in the product engineering process. (Bodendorf and Franke 2021)
AI-Mind will create intelligent digital tools for screening of brain connectivity and dementia risk estimation in people affected by mild cognitive impairment. (Science X Network :: Phys.Org, Medical Xpress, Tech Xplore 2021)
Cost estimation models can be divided into qualitative and quantitative approaches. (Bodendorf and Franke 2021)
OPINION:
In her estimation, “learning to write and writing to learn are two distinct things.” (Hartse and Morphett 2024)
Common collocates for this word:

estimation

parameter
likelihood
cost
motion
public
density
quantitative
state
accurate
error
statistical
time
average
interval
risk

Word Family: estimation (noun), estimate (noun and verb)
Synonyms: estimate, guess, judgement, opinion
07/05/25 - Set 6
bond AWL NGSL: NOUN COUNTABLE a strong connection between people or objects; a financial obligation; a written agreement or contract
Just like with human relationships, people form attachment bonds with pets. (Chin 2025)
Pets have become an integral part of people’s lives, with some having stronger bonds with their pets than with their siblings and other family members. (Dadgardoust and Roma 2025)
But humans and all other mammals share one kind of love, the bond between a mother and her offspring. (Longrich 2020)
In a few species, including beavers, wolves, some bats, some voles and Homo sapiens, pairs form long-term bonds to cooperatively raise children. (Longrich 2020)
FINANCIAL OBLIGATION:
A bond is essentially a tradeable IOU. It’s a loan that investors make to issuers such as companies or governments (UK government bonds are often called gilts). (McMillan 2022)
CHEMISTRY:
To facilitate the breakdown of the sulfur-sulfur bond and enhance the effect of the drug, we replaced one of the sulfur-sulfur bonds with a longer sulfur-selenium bond. (Science X Network :: Phys.Org, Medical Xpress, Tech Xplore 2020)
Common collocates for this word:

bond

common
strong
close
special
corporate
feudal
domestic
social
two-year
maternal
chemical
mutual
emotional
long-term
legal

Word Family: bond (noun), bond (verb)
Synonyms: connection, tie, allegiance, link, guarantee,
06/05/25 - Set 6
hypothesis AWL AKL OPAL NGSL: NOUN COUNTABLE An idea which is open to testing and which can be refuted through demonstration or experiment.
In a new study published today in Proceedings of the Royal Society B, we directly tested this hypothesis of brain evolution for the first time. (Hirsch 2024)
So far, our testing of the “social bonding” hypothesis of dance has focused on one particular aspect: synchronisation with other people. (Tarr 2015)
Our study could also lend support to the hypothesis that brain size increased to handle the complexities of living in a social group. (Hirsch 2024)
In physical or biological sciences, we would test a hypothesis of this nature by repeating an experiment many times. (Brody 2024)
Overall, the patterns seemed to support the continuity hypothesis of dreaming - that our dreams are influenced by events and concerns that are happening in our waking lives. (Bloxham 2024)
Extraordinary claims attract extraordinary attention, and this means such claims require reanalysis—and possibly refutation or corroboration. In scientific research, the data must fit the hypothesis, and if it does not, then the hypothesis is rejected. (Caldwell and Simoes 2021)
Common collocates for this word:

hypothesis

null
working
specific
alternative
original
correct
interesting
reasonable
simple
testable
explicit
mere
basic
central
tentative

Word Family: hypothesis (plural: hypotheses) (noun), hypothesize (verb), hypothetical (adjective), hypothetically (adverb)
Synonyms: theory, thesis, conjecture, proposal, presumption, proposition
05/06/25 - Set 6
gravity NAWL: NOUN UNCOUNTABLE the force of attraction between two bodies; seriousness, importance
FORCE OF ATTRACTION:
Gravity is the reason things with mass or energy are attracted to each other. It is why apples fall toward the ground and planets orbit stars. (Borunda 2021)
The force of gravity doesn’t just keep us anchored to the ground; it influences how our bodies work on the smallest of scales. (Tay 2017)
By comparing astronauts’ blood samples before and after their space missions, researchers discovered that the lack of gravity weakens the functions of T-cells. (Tay 2017)
SERIOUSNESS IMPORTANCE:
The pandemic has fuelled public interest in the health-care system, but will it be enough for leaders to see the gravity of the situation and act?(Grady 2021)
Despite the gravity of this royal duty, Gilgamesh seems to do everything wrong. He kills the divinely-protected environmental guardian, Humbaba, and ransacks his precious Cedar Forest. (Pryke 2017)
We clarify the gravity of the human predicament and provide a/ timely snapshot of the crises that must be addressed now. (Bradshaw, Blumstein, and Ehrlich 2021)
Common collocates for this word:

gravity

specific
quantum
zero
great
surface
low
utmost
artificial
reduced
high
extreme
normal
Newtonian
internal
extra

Word Family: gravity (noun)
02/05/25 - Set 6
lack AKL OPAL NGSL: UNCOUNTABLE NOUN or TRANSITIVE VERB total or partial absence of something
NOUNS:
There is a dire lack of evidence about how to address Indigenous school exclusion. (Shay and Poed 2024)
Unfortunately, recent research shows that the lack of clarity in defining misinformation and disinformation is a problem. (Osman 2024)
This interactive body map brings together scientific evidence on the links between lack of physical activity and disease. (Maher and Olds 2016)
VERBS:
But, if we lack political trust, then we lack the foundation on which to negotiate collectively any sustainable solutions to the world’s most urgent problems. (Duncan 2018)
A recent study reported that although children are considered fluent new media users, they lack digital literacy in the area of safety and privacy. (Howell and Kamar 2023)
Studies suggest that people with autism lack this social instinct because their underlying brain circuitry – which processes social information – may be different. (Rinehart and May 2012)
Common collocates for this word:

lack

apparent
complete
total
general
certain
marked
distinct
serious
perceived
consequent
sheer
comparative
relative
alleged
surprising

of

Word Family: lack (noun), lack (verb)
Synonyms: absence (noun), miss (verb)
Lexical phrases: [the, a] lack of
01/05/25 - Set 6
occurrence AWL NAWL AKL OPAL: NOUN COUNTABLE an action, event; something which happens
Infections with bird flu viruses are difficult to eradicate and so efforts should be made to prevent their occurrence. (Oluwayelu 2024)
Research has also found a correlation between glacial-load changes on the Earth’s crust and the occurrence of volcanic activity. (Blackett 2023)
Increased occurrence of flooding can also be associated with poor planning decisions that locate settlements on floodplains. (Pitman, Ukkola, and Westra 2021)
By analysing sediments, we can start to predict how climate change will influence the occurrence of natural disasters such as floods, volcanic eruptions and tsunamis. (Egan 2024)
These observations are analysed and modelled, and we use our understanding of the physics of earthquake occurrence to determine the chances of future seismic activity. (Ninis and Gerstenberger 2023)
The researchers use big data methods to piece together observations to reveal complex patterns of bird occurrence and to guide international bird conservation efforts. (Science X Network :: Phys.Org, Medical Xpress, Tech Xplore 2018)
Common collocates for this word:

occurrence

frequent
common
rare
daily
natural
unusual
actual
everyday
regular
uncommon
infrequent
widespread
simultaneous
variable
recent

Word Family: occurrence (noun), occur (verb)
Synonyms: event, phenomenon
Morphology: occur(r)ence more...
30/04/25 - Set 6
beneficial AWL OPAL: ADJECTIVE causing useful effects or results
Research suggests that becoming more self-aware can be beneficial in a variety of ways. (Thatcher 2021)
So far, some studies have shown that social prescribing programmes that ask patients to take up hobbies such as gardening or art are beneficial for mental health and wellbeing. (McCabe 2021)
While one study found it’s most beneficial for your mood to go for a 75-minute walk in secluded woodlands, the research still showed that even walking in somewhat green areas – such as a tree-lined road – can confer mood benefits. (Todorova 2025)
Our prejudice against wasps is culturally engrained. It stems from our ignorance about what wasps do in ecosystems and how that is beneficial to us. (Sumner 2021)
A growing body of research suggests that physical activity in early childhood may have beneficial health outcomes in both the short and long term. (Hnatiuk and Hesketh 2016)
These findings imply that swimming for even short periods of time is highly beneficial to young, developing brains. (Mathew 2021)
Common collocates for this word:

beneficial

effect
use
insects
bacteria
results
consequences
impact
changes
projects
side
role
way
properties
aspect
influence

beneficial

mutually
extremely
particularly
highly
reasonably
socially
entirely
equally
wholly
educationally
enormously
necessrily
obviously
clearly
medically

Word Family: beneficial (adjective), benefit (noun), benefit (verb), beneficially (adverb)
Synonyms: useful, advantageous, helpful, profitable
Morphology: benefic + ial more...
Lexical phrases: [have] a beneficial effect on ...
29/04/25 - Set 6
treaty NAWL: NOUN COUNTABLE A written agreement between two or more countries which establishes obligations under international law.
A treaty is a political agreement reached by a fair process of negotiation between equals. (Hobbs, Norman, and Walsh 2023)
The Treaty of Waitangi is New Zealand’s foundation document. On February 6, 1840, the treaty was signed by representatives of the British Crown and Māori chiefs who acted on behalf of their hapū (sub-tribes). (Huygens and Morrison 2019)
Activities in space are governed by the 1967 Outer Space Treaty, which is currently ratified by 111 nations. (Autry and Hanlon 2021)
Whales and dolphins have been officially recognised as “legal persons” in a new treaty formed by Pacific Indigenous leaders from the Cook Islands, French Polynesia, Aotearoa (New Zealand) and Tonga. (Doornbos and Whitehead 2024)
The treaty allows “prophylactic, protective or other peaceful” research and development – including medical research. (Samore 2021)
At the moment there is a ban on searching beneath the Antarctic for oil and gas under the international Antarctic Treaty. (Science X Network :: Phys.Org, Medical Xpress, Tech Xplore 2012)
Common collocates for this word:

treaty

private
international
bilateral
multilateral
original
entire
subsequent
formal
conflicting
revised
global
proposed
commercial
separate
political

Word Family: treaty (noun)
Synonyms: agreement, contract, pact, accord, deal
28/04/25 - Set 6

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