| aerolite | n. | rocky meteorite (as opposed to one composed of iron and nickel) | ||
| afferent | adj. | leading inward or conducting towards, as of nerves or other physiological pathways to organs | biology | |
| afflatus | n. | divine inspiration, inner creative impulse | ||
| againward | adv. | once more; back again | ||
| agal | n. | cord around keffiyeh holding it in place | ||
| agita | n. | irritation, upset, anxiety; indigestion | ||
| agnomen | n. | fourth name given to some Roman citizens in addition to the praenomen, nomen, cognomen; nickname | ||
| agon | n. | a conflict, especially between a protagonist and an antagonist in a work of literature | ||
| agynary | adj. | not having female organs | botany | |
| aibohphobia | n. | fear of palindromes | ||
| aigrette | n. | egret crest feather or feathers used as headwear decoration, or similar decorations formed of jewels | ||
| ailurophile | n. | lover of cats, cat fancier | ||
| al fresco | adj. | outside, in dining | ||
| ale-bush | n. | tavern sign | ||
| aleatory | adj. | unpredictable, random, depending upon the throw of a die | ||
| aleconner | n. | inspector of ale | ||
| alethic | adj. | way a language speaks of truth | ||
| alexithymia | n. | inability or deficiency in experiencing or grasping emotions | ||
| algesia | n. | sensitivity to pain | ||
| algolagnia | n. | sadomasochism, sexual gratification from either inflicting or enduring pain | ||
| alicorn | n. | horn of a unicorn, esp. as medicinal ingredient | ||
| alidade | n. | sighting instrument used for measuring angles (both horizontal and vertical) from a fixed point | ||
| alinea | n. | another name for the pilcrow, a typographical mark used to designate a paragraph (“¶”) | ||
| aliquot | n. | exact proper divisor (that is, a number which can divide a larger number without leaving any remainder) | ||
| all my eye and Betty Martin | n. | balderdash, nonsense | idiom | |
| allelomimetic | adj. | of or related to actions likely to be copied by nearby members of a social animal group | ||
| allocution | n. | formal or hortatory speech; pontifical address to secret consistory | ||
| allodial | adj. | of property held absolutely without rights accruing to a feudal superior | ||
| allopathy | n. | treatment of disease by producing effects opposite to the disease’s symptoms; derogatory term for traditional medicine | ||
| allotropic | adj. | existing (of an element) in multiple physical forms | ||
| almoner | n. | distributor of alms; hospital social worker | ||
| alula | n. | small bunch of feathers on the forward wing of a bird, controlled similarly to a ‘thumb’, used at slow flight speeds or when landing | ||
| aluminium | n. | aluminum | British | |
| amain | adv. | at full force, violently; at full speed | ||
| amanuensis | n. | one who writes from dictation, copyist, secretary | ||
| amaurosis | n. | total or partial loss of sight, usu. without external changes to the optic orb | ||
| ambient | adj. | of the surrounding environment | ||
| ambigram | n. | representation of a word in calligraphy or type which, when rotated or inverted, displays either the same or a different coherent word | ||
| ambilevous | adj. | left-handed on both sides, clumsy, unhandy | ||
| ambit | n. | area of influence | ||
| amerce | v. | to punish | ||
| American cloth | n. | enameled oilcloth | ||
| amygdala | n. | almond-shaped mass of nuclei within the temporal lobe with role in memory and emotion; pl. the tonsils; almond | biology | |
| anabranch | n. | stream or channel branching off from the main course of a river and rejoining it downstream | ||
| anagogic | adj. | spiritual; of mystical interpretation | ||
| analeptic | adj. | strengthening, restoring, invigorating; awakening, esp. from drugged state | ||
| analogion | n. | lectern, esp. in Greek Orthodox Church | ||
| analphabetic | adj. | not alphabetic; illiterate | ||
| anamnesis | n. | remembrance of things past | ||
| anaphora | n. | repetition of initial word or phrase in successive clauses; [grammar] substitution of earlier word in sentence with a different word | rhetoric |
