Learn through Prefixes 5

withhold

to refuse to give someone something

Please don't interrupt me. If you have something to say, I would appreciate it if you would withhold your comment until I have finished speaking.

withstand (v.)

to be strong enough to remain unharmed by something such as great heat, cold, pressure etc, resist, stand up to

The walls of a dam must be strong enough to withstand tremendous water pressure.

abdicate (u.)

to give up the position of being king or queen

The aging monarch abdicated the throne and went into retirement.

abduct (v .)

to take someone away by force, kidnap

The Greeks attacked Troy to recover Helen, who had been abducted by the Trojan prince Paris.

abhor (v.)

to hate a kind of behaviour or way of thinking, especially because you think it is morally wrong

Janet is doing her best to pass the course because she abhors the thought of having to repeat it in summer school.

abnormal (adj.)

very different from usual in a way that seems strange, worrying, wrong, or dangerous

We had three absences today, which is abnormal. Usually, everyone is present.

abrasion (n.)

an area on the surface of your skin that has been injured by being rubbed against something hard

The automobile was a total wreck, but the driver, luckily, escaped with minor cuts and abrasions.

abrupt (adj.)

sudden and unexpected

Today’s art lesson came to an abrupt end when the gongs sounded for a fire drill.

abscond (v.)

to escape from a place where you are being kept

A wide search is under way for the manager who absconded with $10,000 of the company’s funds.