IELTS Academic Word List 6

fabric: cloth; stuff; artifact made by weaving or synthetic fibers; structure; framework

fabricate: build; put together out of components or parts

face: confront; encounter; be opposite

facilitate: help bring about; make less difficult

facility: service, space, and equipment provided for a particular purpose

faction: a party of persons having a common end in view

factor: anything that contributes causally to a result; element; variable

fade: disappear; die out; lose color; lose freshness

faint: lacking strength or vigor ; weak

fairly: in fair manner; clearly; openly; plainly; fully; distinctly; frankly

fairy: enchantment; illusion; imaginary supernatural being or spirit

faith: loyalty or allegiance to a cause or a person; complete confidence

faithful: believer; follower

fake: imitation; counterfeit; having a false or misleading appearance

fall: drop; sink; lose an upright position suddenly; decrease in size, extent, or range

fame: favorable public reputation; great renown

familiar: well known or easily recognized

familiarity: state of being familiar; intimate and frequent converse, or association; unconstrained intercourse; freedom from ceremony and constraint; intimacy

famine: shortage of food; starvation

fanatic: person who is zealously enthusiastic for some cause; showing evidence of possession by a god or demon

fancy: capricious notion; something many people believe that is false

fantastic: excellent; extraordinary; strange in form, conception, or appearance

fare: food and drink; diet; transportation charge; a paying passenger

farewell: acknowledgment at parting; goodbye; act of departing or taking leave

fascinate: cause to be interested or curious; captivate

fascination: capacity to attract intense interest

fashion: style, shape, appearance, or mode of structure; pattern, model

fashionable: conforming to the current style; being or in accordance with current fashion

fasten: attach; affix

fatal: causing death

fathom: measure the depth; come to understand

fatigue: physical or mental weariness; exhaustion

fault: crack; a crack in the earth; defect; flaw; a wrong action

favorable: approving or pleasing; granting what has been desired or requested

feasible: capable of being accomplished or brought about

feast: a festival or holiday; festive or joyous meal; something highly agreeable; entertainment

feat: achievement; accomplishment

feature: prominent aspect of something

federal: of or relating to central government; national

federation: uniting in a league; confederation; league

fee: give a tip beyond the agreed-on compensation

feeble: lacking vigor, force, or effectiveness; faint; frail

feed: give food to; supply with nourishment

feedback: response to an inquiry or experiment

fell: capable of destroying; lethal

fellowship: state or relation of being or associate; companionship of persons on equal and friendly terms; state of being together

female: for or composed of women or girls

ferocious: fierce; savage; wild; indicating cruelty

ferry: shuttle; transport by boat or aircraft

fertile: rich; fruitful; inventive; creative; intellectually productive

fertilizer: any substance used to make soil more fertile

fervent: extremely hot; sincerely or intensely felt

festival: a day or period of time for feasting and celebration

fetch: take away or remove; reduce; go or come after and bring or take back

feud: bitter quarrel between two parties

fiber: slender, elongated, threadlike object or structure; material to make paper or cloth

fiction: story; imaginative creation; literary work whose content is produced by imagination

fictional: imaginary; invented, as opposed to real

fierce: ferocious; savage; extremely severe or violent; terrible

fig: small fruit tree with large leaves, known from the remotest antiquity

figurative: not literal, but metaphorical; using figure of speech

figure: model of a bodily form; impression produced by a person; written or printed symbol representing a number

file: line; proceed in line

filter: strain; pass liquid or gas through device that blocks some matter by particular criterion

filth: foul matter; anything that soils or defiles; dirt; corruption; pollution

filthy: nasty; dirty; polluted; foul; impure

final: forming or occurring at the end; terminating; ultimate; conclusive

finance: management of money and credit and banking and investments; subsidizing; fund

financial: monetary; pertaining or relating to money matters

financing: subsidy; transaction that provides funds for a business

finite: having a limit; limited in quantity, degree, or capacity; bounded

fir: any of various evergreen trees of the genus Abies

firm: hard; solid; resolute; determined

fishery: business or practice of catching fish; fishing; a place for catching fish; the right to take fish at a certain place

fist: hand with the fingers doubled into the palm; closed hand

fit: be the right size or shape; conform to some shape or size

fitness: health; vigor; state or condition of being fit; suitability or appropriateness

fitting: small accessory to a larger system; small detachable part for a machine or apparatus; act of trying on clothes

fixed: firmly in position; stationary

fixture: commonplace object; object firmly fixed in place

flag: become less intense; sink, or settle from pressure

flake: flat thin piece or layer; chip; small piece; small crystalline bit of snow

flame: stream of burning vapor or gas, emitting light and heat; passion of love

flap: flat, usually thin piece attached at only one side; act of waving or fluttering; blow given with something flat; slap

flare: sudden outburst of emotion; glare; shine; shine with sudden light

flash: emit a brief burst of light; appear briefly; sudden intense burst of radiant energy

flask: a small bottle-shaped vessel for holding fluids; narrow-necked vessel of metal or glass

flatter: compliment someone, often insincerely and sometimes to win favor; enhance someone's vanity by praising them

flavor: distinctive taste; quality produced by the sensation of taste

flaw: crack or breach; gap or fissure; defect; fault; sudden burst of noise and disorder

flee: run away, as from danger or evil; avoid in alarmed or cowardly manner

fleece: rob; strip of money or other property unjustly, especially by trickery or fraud; ask unreasonable price

fleet: a group of steamships under the same ownership; a group of vessels or vehicles

flesh: soft tissue of body, mainly muscle and fat; substance; reality; surface or skin of human body; meat of animals

flexibility: quality of being adaptable or variable

flexible: pliant; elastic; capable of being bent or flexed; pliable

flicker: flutter; flap the wings without flying; waver unsteadily, like a flame in a current of air

fling: throw with force or recklessness; throw or cast away; move in an abrupt

float: drift along; make the surface of level or smooth; move lightly

flock: group; herd; crowd; gather; crowd; throng

flour: fine powdery foodstuff; soft, fine powder

flourish: grow well; decorate with ornaments; be in a period of productivity

fluctuate: rise and fall in or as if in waves; shift; vary irregularly

fluctuation: a wave motion

fluency: quality of smoothness of flow; quality of being fluent in language

fluent: easy and graceful in shape; graceful; smooth and unconstrained in movement

flush: turn red, as from fever, embarrassment, or strong emotion; glow, especially with a reddish color; flow suddenly

flutter: vibrate or move quickly; drive in disorder; throw into confusion

flux: flowing; series of changes; state of being liquid through heat

foam: white substance, consisting of an aggregation of bubbles, which is formed on the surface of liquids

focus: most important thing; a fixed reference point; center of interest or activity

fodder: coarse food for cattle or horses

foe: enemy; one who entertains hatred, grudge; adversary

fog: droplets of water vapor suspended in air near ground ; haze

foggy: obscured by fog; indistinct or hazy in outline

fold: make something double; bend or lay so that one part covers the other

foliage: masses of leaves; a cluster of leaves, flowers, and branches

foolish: marked with, or exhibiting, folly; void of understanding; weak in intellect; without judgment

forbid: not allow; prohibit; prevent

forecast: prediction about how something will develop, as for weather

forefather: ancestor; forebear

foremost: leading; main; primary; first in time or place

foresee: anticipate; predict

foretell: tell of or indicate beforehand; predict

forge: workplace where metal is worked by heating and hammering

forgery: act of forging, especially the illegal production of something counterfeit

forgive: give wholly; cease to feel resentment against; excuse for a fault or an offense; give up; resign

formal: official; executed, carried out, or done in proper or regular form

formality: quality or condition of being formal; something done just for form's sake

format: pattern; design; set into a specific pattern

formation: configuration; pattern

former: preceding in order of time; antecedent; previous; prior; earlier

formerly: previously;at an earlier time; once

formidable: arousing fear; threatening; difficult to undertake or defeat

formula: plan; directions for making something; a group of symbols that make a mathematical statement

formulate: decide upon and express in words

forsake: leave someone who needs or counts on you

fort: a fortified defensive structure; permanent army post

forthcoming: ready or about to appear; making appearance

fortitude: bravery; force; power to attack or to resist attack

fortnight: a period of fourteen consecutive days

fortress: fort; castle; fortified place, especially a large military stronghold, often includes a town

fortunate: lucky; bringing something good and unforeseen

fortune: arrival of something in a sudden or unexpected manner; chance; accident; luck

forum: place to discuss public concerns; meeting or medium for open discussion

forward: at or to or toward the front; toward the future

fossil: remnant; remains of a plant or animal that existed in a past geological age

foster: rear; promote the growth of; help develop

foul: act that violates of the rules of a sport

found: establish or set up, especially with provision for continuing existence; melt metal and pour into a mold

foundation: basis on which something is grounded

founder: person who establishes an organization, business

fountain: spring of water issuing from the earth; artificially produced jet or stream of water

fraction: segment; fragment; a small proportion of

fracture: break into pieces; crack; destroy; violate or abuse

fragile: easy to destroy, delicate, not strong

fragment: small part broken off or detached; fraction

fragrance: scent; aroma; distinctive odor that is pleasant

fragrant: pleasant-smelling; odorous

frail: physically weak; easily broken

frame: structure that gives shape or support; closed, often rectangular border of drawn or printed lines

framework: fundamental structure, as for a written work; skeleton

franchise: right granted by authority; right to vote; business licensed to sell a product in particular area

frank: honest; sincere; open and sincere in expression; straightforward

freight: transport commercially as cargo; load with goods; goods carried by a large vehicle

fret: cause to be uneasy; wear away

friction: clash in opinion; rubbing against; conflict

frightening: inspiring with fear; causing fear; of capable of causing fear; scary

fringe: margin; periphery; decorative border of hanging threads, cords, or strips, often attached to a separate band

frontier: part of a country which fronts or faces another country or an unsettled region; border, confine, or extreme part of a country

frost: ice crystal; weather cold enough to cause freezing; provide with a rough surface or appearance

frown: look angry; wrinkle one's forehead; regard something with disapproval or distaste

frugal: sparing; economical; costing little; inexpensive

fruitful: productive; fertile; producing results; profitable

frustrate: make null; bring to nothing; prevent from taking effect or attaining fulfillment

frustration: disappointment; failure; act of frustrating

fuel: substance that can be consumed to produce energy

fulfil: fill full; fill to the utmost capacity, as a vessel, a room

full: filled to satisfaction with food or drink; containing as much or as many as is possible or normal

fumble: feel or grope about; make awkward attempts to do or find something; play childishly; \turn over and over

function: act of executing or performing any duty; assigned duty or activity

functional: useful; in good working order

fund: money; capital; a reserve of money set aside for some purpose; finance; subsidize

fundamental: relating to foundation or base; elementary; primary; essential

funeral: ceremony held in connection with burial; burial procession accompanying body to grave; end of existence

furious: extreme anger; raging; full of activity; energetic or rapid

furnace: enclosed place in which heat is produced; place or time of punishment or great trial

furnish: provide; supply; equip with what is needed, especially to provide furniture for

furniture: movable articles in a room or an establishment that make it fit for living or working

furrow: trench in the earth made by a plow; any trench, channel, or groove, as in wood or metal; wrinkle on the face

further: get greater distance; make more in advance

furthermore: in addition; moreover

fury: violent anger; rage; uncontrolled action; turbulence

fuse: combine; blend; become plastic or fluid or liquefied from heat

fuss: angry disturbance; excited state of agitation; needlessly nervous or useless activity; protest; quarrel

fussy: easily upset; given to bouts of ill temper; full of superfluous details