英语中很多词可以同时具有两个或两个以上的词性，各词性之间的意思有的有些关联也有的毫无关联。例如cement作名词用是“水泥”的意思，而在It’s difficult to cement a good working relationship between employers and employees.这个句子中，cement作动词用是“连接，巩固”的意思。再如，content这个词有三个词性，分别是名词，形容词和动词，作不同词性时意思也不尽相同。所以在复习单词时要注意单词词性的变化及其相应的词义。
“Waiter, do you serve lobster here?”
“We serve anyone; take a seat, please.”
这个笑话发生在饭店，显然服务员与客人之间发生了误会，而误会的根源就在serve这个词上。客人所用的serve的意思是“供应，有没有…菜”，而服务员所用的serve的意思是“为…提供服务”。
无论是英文单词还是汉语词语大部分词都不会一个词只有一个意思，绝大部分的词都至少有两个或是更多的意思。所以在复习单词时不能只记住一个单词大致的一到两个词义而把其它的忽略不记，造成了只知其一，不知其二的局面。这样导致无法准确理解该词在句子中的意思，做起题来自然要出错。
记忆单词的多个词义也不是一味的死记硬背，而是要注意一个词各词义之间的关联，因为一个词的多个词义往往有千丝万缕的联系，而且多个词义是不断衍生出来的，所以发现关联，加强联系，是记忆单词各种意思的好办法。
abnormal
adj. 1.反常的
Abnormal human behavior may be caused by eating substances that upset the delicate chemical balance in the brain. 食用能打破大脑微妙化学平衡的东西可能会引起人类的异常行为。(考研真题)
2.不规则的，无规律的abnormal bleeding 异常出血
【点睛】与此义相近的还有irregular意思是“不规则的，无规律的”，由regular加上表否定义的前缀ir派生而来。
【扩展】abnormality n.反常
It is not known whether the cancer and chromosomal abnormality(染色体异常)are independent events or whether one is the result of the other.(考研模拟)
abroad
【点睛】注意与aboard区别，两个词拼写很相似，aboard的意思是“在车、船、飞机上”。
adv. 【常见词义】到国外, 在国外
China’s nouveau riche(暴发户)are spending their holidays abroad in ever increasing numbers.越来越多中国的有钱人到国外度假。
They give their owners automatic credit in stores, restaurants, and hotels, at home, across the country, and even abroad, and they make many banking services available as well.(考研真题)无论是在本地，全国亦或国外，只要在商店、饭店使用就自动给卡的主人增加信用分，同时还提供很多银行服务。
Her parents often take trips abroad, leaving her all alone in their big house. 她父母经常去国外旅游，把她一个人留在大房子里。
Economic crises in financial capitals abroad will inevitably follow the recent troubles on Wall Street.。国外的经济危机必然会随着华尔街近期的金融问题而至。
【较难词义】[正式](谣言、消息等)四下流传中
The king wanted me to keep the secret that his wife was disloyal(不忠)to him, so I would never let it be spread abroad.
abrupt
【点睛】这个词的第一个意思很熟悉，但是第二、三个意思却是考研的难点。如果一个人言谈行为比较唐突，别人可能觉得他很粗鲁。一个很突兀的山坡自然是陡坡了。
adj.【常见词义】突然的 (unexpected)
Transitions should connect one paragraph to the next so that there are no abrupt or confusing shifts.(考研真题)过渡部分应该承上启下，这样才不会使文章有突兀的或令人费解的变化。
【较难词义】1.粗鲁的 (rude)
He is a very fine man even though he’s sometimes abrupt in manner. (考研真题)
2.陡峭的 (steep) an abrupt descent陡坡
【扩展】abruption n.突然的断裂 total abruption of all relations彻底断绝所有关系
absorb
v.吸引 (fascinate, captivate)
The students are absorbed in their studies for the big math exam.
People are absorbed into “a culture of consumption” launched by the 19th-century department stores that offered “vast arrays of goods in an elegant atmosphere.”(考研真题)人们被19世纪的商店发起的“消费文化”所吸引。这些商店环境优雅，商品琳琅满目。
【较难词义】占去(时间等)(take up)
His new girlfriend absorbs most of his time and we rarely see him anymore these days.
3.忍受 (bear)
The young couple, Tom and his wife, couldn’t absorb the additional financial hardships (困难)of living alone and had to move back home with Tom’s parents.
Families have been asked to absorb much more risk in their retirement (退休)income.(考研真题)
【扩展】
absorption n.吸收
absorbent adj.能吸收的 be as absorbent as a sea sponge
absorbing adj.吸引人的 General introduction classes such as these will be of absorbing interest to a larger, more diverse audience; specialists on the topic, however, may be bored by these classes. 像这样的概论课程将吸引众多形形色色的听众，而研究该题目的专家可能会对这类课程感到厌烦。
【搭配】be absorbed in 专心于
He is often absorbed in business, although he is also periodically(偶尔的)distracted (分神)by his pretty young secretary.
academic
adj. 【常见词义】学术的
academic freedom 学术自由
the academic world 学术界
Mr. McWhorter’s academic speciality is language history and change, and he sees the gradual disappearance of “whom,” for example, to be natural and no more regrettable than the loss of the case-endings of Old English.(考研真题)麦克沃特先生的学术研究专业是语言的历史与变化。他认为，例如“whom”逐渐消失是自然而然的事情，并不比古英语中其他词语的消失更令人惋惜。
【较难词义】不实际的，不实用的
Well, I have no money so the question of what kind of car I want to buy is purely academic.
acceleration
n. 1. 加速，加快
From the middle-class family perspective, much of this, understandably, looks far less like an opportunity to exercise more financial responsibility, and a good deal more like a frightening acceleration of the wholesale shift of financial risk onto their already overburdened shoulders.(考研真题)从中产阶层家庭的角度来看，不难理解，这看上去不像一种承担更多经济责任的机会，而更像是大规模地把经济风险转移到他们早已负担沉重的肩膀上。这种情况实在令人恐惧。
2.(汽车等的)加速性能 I want to buy a car with excellent acceleration.
3.(物体运动的)加速度
accessory
n. 1.附件 (supplement)
【点睛】accessory指的是某主要物品的配件或配套设备，如电脑配件：extention cord, mouse, keyboard等;服装的配套品：scarf, glove等。
【搭配】accessory to 附属
Environmentalists believe that nature is not accessory to man and therefore plants and animals should be treated with the same dignity we afford each other. 环境主义者认为，自然界不是人类的附属品，所以我们应该像对待同伴那样对待动植物，给予它们同样的尊严。
2.从犯, 同谋者
The celebrity was charged with accessory to murder but was acquitted(宣判无罪) after a long and controversial (争议的)trial.
accommodate
【常见词义】v.1.使适应 (~to)
If you enter a dark room from the outside brightness, your eyes will have to take a while to accommodate to the darkness.
2.容纳
The small town banquet hall is not large enough to accommodate a large international gathering of the kind you are discussing. 小镇的宴会厅容纳不下你所说的这类大型国际聚会。
【较难词义】v.1.提供食宿，安排住宿
The small island accommodates the fishermen who get lost on the sea.
2.迁就，照顾…的意见、需要等
【点睛】此义是个难点，指设法满足或达到某人的要求，即to make an extra effort to do what sb. asks
Accommodating the special needs of migrant workers is an important duty of local governments.
照顾农民工的特殊需求是地方政府的重要职责。
【词汇扩展】
accommodation n.调整;住宿，膳宿
Students from other parts of China can find accommodations through the New Oriental School in Beijing. 外地学生可以在北京的新东方学校住宿。
accommodating adj.与人方便的，乐于助人的
accord
【常见词义】v.使符合，相符和
【点睛】经常与with搭配使用，即accord with
His lack of fluency(流利) in English does not accord with my expectations of one who has just returned from studies at Cambridge.
【较难词义】v.授予，赠与 (confer, award)
An honorary title should be accorded only to one who has a proven track record of accomplishment. 荣誉称号应只授予有成就证明记录的人。
【常用搭配】in accord with 与…相一致
I like my daughter’s new boyfriend; I am in accord with all the opinions he expressed at dinner.
【扩展】 accordance n. 1.一致
2.授予，赋予 the accordance of rights and privileges 权利和特权的赋予
acknowledge
【常见词义】v.承认 (admit) acknowledge one’s own fault 承认自己的过失
As a linguist, he acknowledges that all varieties of human language, including non-standard ones like Black English, can be powerfully expressive—there exists no language or dialect in the world that cannot convey complex ideas.(考研真题)作为语言学家，他承认，所有的人类语言，包括黑人英语等非标准语言，都能有效地表情达意，世界上没有一种语言或方言不能表达复杂的意思。
【较难词义】v.1.确认或承认…的权威、重要性等
All citizens acknowledge the importance of honoring those unknown (无名的)soldiers who died defending (保卫)the country.
2.就…表示感谢，答谢
The school will acknowledge the local government’s support at tomorrow’s press conference (记者招待会).
【扩展】acknowledged adj.公认的 the acknowledged leader
acknowledg(e)ment n.承认;鸣谢
acquaintance
n. 1.熟人
In Britain, at least among the middle-class downshifters of my acquaintance, we have different reasons for seeking to simplify our lives. (考研真题) 在英国，至少在我所熟知的追求事业和生活简单化的中产阶级人士中，追求简化生活是出于不同的原因的。
2.知道，了解
It does not take a lifelong acquaintance to pick up various software programs.(考研真题)不需要花毕生的时间去熟悉各种不同软件程序的使用。
acquire
v. 1.获得 (gain, obtain)
It is of vital importance to acquire needed (所需要的)information efficiently(有效地).(考研真题)
They should be quick to respond to letters to the editor, lest animal rights misinformation go unchallenged and acquire a deceptive appearance of truth.(考研真题)他们应该快速回复读者来信，以免动物权利的误导言论在不受质疑的情况下迅速扩散，从而获得一副真理的面容。
2.习得
Years of study helped her acquire a good knowledge of English.
【扩展】acquired adj. 后天养成的
【点睛】这个词的意思是“后天获得的，养成的”
