Academic word list sublist 1: 60 headwords with meanings

Sep 16, 2026 · 10 min read

This page lists all 60 headwords of the Academic Word List sublist 1, in six sets of ten. Each entry gives the part of speech, a short definition and one example sentence, so the page can be worked through in order or used as a reference while you read a textbook.

Sublist 1 is the most frequent of the ten sublists in the list, which is the practical reason to start here. The words appear in lectures, textbooks, reports and exam papers across every subject, and each headword stands for a family of forms: analyse brings analysis, analyst and analytical with it, and the family is what you actually meet in a text.

Set 1: analysis and research (10 words)

For describing evidence, patterns and how a claim is built:

Set 2: argument and method (10 words)

For setting out a case and naming the parts of it:

Set 3: institutions, rules and text (10 words)

For reading about law, policy and how a document is organised:

Set 4: money, work and process (10 words)

For reports on costs, time and procedure:

Set 5: change, place and study (10 words)

For describing what happens, where, and how it is studied:

Quick check: cover the list, read each definition and produce the word. Four of the ten are verbs you can use in a lab report.

Set 6: shape, scale and similarity (10 words)

For comparing findings and describing how a study is put together:

How to work through sublist 1

One set of ten per study session, and do not mix sets on the same day. Learn each word inside its example sentence rather than as a definition to repeat: a word learnt as a definition stays a definition, while a word learnt inside a sentence arrives with its grammar attached. Then test in the producing direction, reading the meaning and saying the word aloud before you check.

Come back to a set after a day, after three days and after a week. The chunking technique is a useful way to hold a full set at once, and the word list method explains how to give each set a theme you can picture. When sublist 1 feels comfortable, continue with the B2 word list for words of the same level, or step up through the C2 word list if you are reading academic papers already.

Frequently asked questions

What is the Academic Word List sublist 1?

Sublist 1 is the first and most frequent of the ten sublists in the Academic Word List, a collection of word families drawn from academic writing across many subjects. It holds 60 headwords, from analyse and approach through to theory and vary, and each headword stands for a whole family of related forms such as analyse, analysis and analytical.

How long should it take to work through these 60 words?

Take one set of ten per session and leave the rest of the page alone until that set feels familiar. At one set a week, with a short review in the following session, the page spreads across about six weeks of ordinary study.

Should I learn the whole word family or just the headword?

Learn the family, because academic writing uses the members rather than the headword: analyse, analysis, analyst and analytical all appear in real texts. Write the noun and adjective forms beside the verb as you meet them, and note which form a sentence needs.

What is the difference between a general word list and the Academic Word List?

A general list covers the words used in everyday speech, while the Academic Word List covers words that appear often in textbooks, lectures, reports and exam papers across different subjects. The two overlap only partly, which is why a learner who reads fluently still meets unfamiliar words in an academic text.

Can these words be practised without reading the list again?

Yes. Set the list aside and work in the producing direction: read a definition, say the word aloud, then check. A timed recall round works the same way, and writing one sentence for each word in a set the day after you learn it shows you which entries have not settled yet.

Next: a B2 word list for the same level · C2 word list