UNIVERSITY INTERSCHOLASTIC LEAGUE Making a World …

1 UNIVERSITY INTERSCHOLASTIC LEAGUEM aking a World of DifferenceWord PowerWord PowerUniversity INTERSCHOLASTIC LEAGUE PO BOx 8028 Austin, tx 78713-8028 512-471-5883 2016-2017 High School Spelling & Vocabulary Contest Word ListCAPITALIZATIONIf a word can begin with either a lowercase letter or a capital, both versions are given. It is the respon-sibility of the contestant to know in what circumstances to use lowercase or capital letters. Both the unnecessary use of a capital or its omission are considered English language includes words taken directly from foreign languages without chang-es in spelling. Marks assumed to be accent marks for syllables are really guides to the proper pronunciation of vowels; therefore, in order to spell the words correctly, it is necessary to use these marks ac-curately. For example, the French word d gag is pro-nounced DAY gah ZHAY.

2 The acute accent ( ) is usually pronounced as the a in late or date. The grave (`) and the circumflex e (^) are pronounced as the e in peck or deck. The grave and circumflex a give the a sound of ah as in paw. Other commonly used pronunciation guides are the German umlaut ( ) and the Spanish tilde (~). Because the selection of a mark, such as a pronun-ciation mark, and its proper placement are necessary for the correct spelling and pronunciation of foreign words used by educated Americans, improper usage of accent marks or marks such as umlaut or tilde is considered a spelling 350 words have been selected for vocabulary study and are designated by the symbol . For example: 778. kookaburra Contestants will be responsible for the spelling, meaning, and derivation of these words. Question formats may vary from one test to another in order to provide the best method of testing the questions regarding the correct spell-ing of words should be directed to the LEAGUE office.

3 Corrections to Word Power are post-ed on the Spelling and Vocabulary webpage at: ABOUT WORD POWERWord Power was compiled using The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language, third (1992) and fourth (2000) editions. Each word was checked for possible variant spelling, capitalization, and parts of speech. Word Power reflects several decisions made for consistency and & PRONUNCIATIONIf a word has more than one correct spell-ing, all spellings are listed, separated by a comma (frenetic, phrenetic). Students are required to spell only one variant. Although every attempt has been made to list all alternate spellings, some others will undoubtedly be discovered. The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language, Third, Fourth or Fifth Edition is the final authority, not Word Power or the test order to make it easier for contes-tants to determine the correct pronuncia-tion of words with variable suffixes, the following guidelines are used.

4 If the addition of a letter does not change the pronunciation of a word, the additional letter(s) may be placed in parentheses at the end of a word, or the second spelling is given on the same line. For example dialogue may also be spelled dialog; therefore, the listing in Word Power is dialogue, dialog. An entry such as pedagog(ue), paedagogue would indicate three ac-ceptable spellings. On the other hand, holographic and holographical are forms of the same word in the same part of speech, but they are pronounced differently. These words will be separate definitions will be given for each word pronounced in Parts II and III. During competition, students must spell the form of the word given. For instance, the list word mecca can be written as either a capitalized or lower-case word, depending on the definition given. In order to get credit for such a word, students must spell the form of the word which corresponds to the pronounced definition.

5 If a word is spelled correctly but is the incorrect form, it will be considered misspelled. Words with same parts of speech and meanings but different pronunciations will appear as separate entries in Word OF THE CONTESTThe UIL Spelling and Vocabulary Contest promotes vocabulary development and precise and effective use of words. The three part contest consists of multiple-choice questions and words that are written from diction. Eighty percent of the test will come from the UIL Word Power list that changes each year. Twenty percent will come from outside sources, such as commonly used words, proper names/words in the news, and words that are representative of important elements in the English language. Part I: Contestants are given 15 minutes to complete 30 questions that consist of 15 Proofreading questions and 15 Vo-cabulary questions. The Proofreading questions are comprised of list words, forms of list words and non-list ( outside ) words.

6 The Vocabulary questions are based on the words indicated for vocabulary study in the current Word Power. Part II & III: This portion of the contest will consist of words pronounced for the contestants. Part II is the hand-written spelling of 70 words pronounced aloud to contestants. Part III is a tiebreaker section of 20 additional pronounced spelling Director lindA Berrey aardwolf2. ab extra 3. abb 4. Abbevillian5. abiological 6. abscission 7. absolve8. acanthoid9. acatalectic 10. accessory11. accreditation12. accumulation13. Achilles tendon14. acoustician15. acrimony16. acromegaly17. actinouranium18. actuaries19. Addison s disease20. adenocarcinoma 21. adjacency22. admixture23. adsorbent24. adulterate25. aeroembolism26. aerosol27. affirmation28.

7 Aftereffect29. aggiornamento30. aggrandize31. agilely32. agrostology33. aioli34. alastor, Alastor35. albedo36. alcalde37. alderman 38. aleatory 39. alembic40. algor mortis41. All Fools Day42. alliaceous 43. alpestrine44. altiplano 45. amandine 46. ambergris47. ambient48. amendatory49. amniocentesis50. amniotic 51. amoretto52. amphibiotic53. amphora 54. ampicillin55. anabatic56. anadromous57. anaglyph 58. analphabetic 59. Anatolian60. ancien r gime61. andouille62. angelology 63. Anglophobia64. animadversion65. animato66. anneal 67. annelid68. annus mirabilis69. ansate cross70. antebellum 71. antediluvian72. anthelion73. anthropocentric 74. antiballistic missile75. antifungal76. antiphlogistic 77.

8 Antipodean78. antipruritic79. aphagia80. aphonia 81. apocalypticism 82. aposematic coloration83. apotropaic 84. appanage, apanage85. appellant 86. appendectomy 87. appendices 88. apprenticeship89. aqueduct90. arbitrary91. arbutus, Arbutus92. archaeology, archeology93. archetype94. architrave95. archivist96. arenicolous 97. Armenia (country)98. aromatherapy99. arraign 100. arrogate101. arthrotomy 102. Arthurian103. artiodactyl104. ascendancy, ascendency105. asphyxiant106. asquint 107. assayer108. assuasive 109. assumpsit110. astasia111. astrogate 112. asyndeton 113. atonic114. atrocity115. atrophy 116. attelet117. audiophile118. aurora australis 119. Australasia120. autecology121. avarice122. axiomatic123. axolotl124. azalea125.

9 Azerbaijan126. Babinski reflex127. babushka128. baccate129. backpedal130. Baconian131. badinage132. bain-marie133. Balkanize, balkanize134. ballade135. balsamic 136. banana republic137. barbarism138. bargello139. Barmecidal140. barograph141. barramunda142. basenji143. basilica144. bassoon145. bastille146. bathysphere147. bauxite148. bayou 149. b chamel sauce150. beefalo 2151. behoove152. Belgrade153. belle poque 154. bellicose 155. bemusement156. beneficence157. Beowulf158. besom159. bestiary160. bezoar161. biathlon 162. Biblicist163. bibliopole164. bidarka165. bifurcate166. bioenvironmental167. blancmange168. blandisher169. bleary-eyed170. blithesome171. bobolink172. bolero173.

10 Bookmobile174. Boolean175. botcher176. bouldering177. boulevardier178. boustrophedon179. bovine180. brachial181. brachycephalic182. bravissimo 183. breeches buoy 184. bric-a-brac185. broad-spectrum186. brogue187. bromide188. broncobuster 189. brougham190. brummagem191. bruxism192. burgher193. burnt sienna194. bush leaguer195. byssus196. cachet197. cachexia 198. cacomistle199. cadaverous 200. caitiff 201. cajolery202. calcinosis203. caliche204. calliope (instrument)205. calorimeter206. calpac, calpack, kalpac207. camcorder208. Camelopardalis209. camera-ready210. campestral211. canap 212. candelilla213. cannoli214. canoeing215. capitulate 216. capriole 217. captivity218. caracal219. Carboniferous, carboniferous220.