2012 Premier’s Spelling Bee: Junior Wordlist Annotated      General Words Junior General Level 1 bear (say bair) noun a large heavy animal with short rough hair and a very short tail: A bear can be very dangerous. black (say blak) adjective completely dark, or without colour and brightness: I have a new pair of black shoes. brolga (say brol-guh) noun a large silvery-grey bird with long legs, which is known for its dancing: The brolga is a native Australian bird. chess (say chess) noun a game played by two people, each with sixteen pieces, on a board marked with squares: Liam likes playing chess. cloud (say klowd) noun a white or grey mass of water vapour, ice, smoke or dust that floats in the air: There was a big dark cloud in the sky, so we knew there was a storm coming. creek (say kreek) noun a small river: We like to catch tadpoles in the creek. doctor (say dok-tuh) noun someone who has learned about diseases and treats sick people: I went to the doctor because my stomach was sore. enjoy (say en-joy) verb If you enjoy something, you get pleasure from it: I enjoy science fiction films. farmer (say fah-muh) noun A farmer is someone who works on a farm, growing plants and keeping animals for food: My father wants to leave the city and become a farmer. flood (say flud) noun a big overflowing of water, especially over land that is usually dry: Weeks of heavy rain had caused a flood, and the main street was now under water. forest (say fo-ruhst) noun land thickly covered with trees: The firefighters stopped the blaze reaching the pine forest. 2012 Premier’s Spelling Bee: Junior Wordlist Annotated      garden (say gah-duhn) noun an area, usually with trees and plants, used for pleasure and as a place to relax: They were sent outside to play in the garden. label (say lay-buhl) noun a piece of paper or material put on something to show what it is, who owns it, or where it is going: I lost my bag because it didn't have a label. letter (say let-uh) noun a message in writing or printing, addressed to a person or group: She received a letter from her friend in Vietnam. lion (say luy-uhn) noun a large, honey-coloured member of the cat family, living in Africa and southern Asia: The lion was sunning itself on a rock. loud (say lowd) adjective noisy and able to be heard very clearly: The TV's too loud -- please turn it down. meat (say meet) noun the flesh of animals when used for food: Some people do not like meat and only eat vegetables. milk (say milk) noun the white liquid produced by female mammals to feed their young. The milk of the cow and some other animals is used as food for humans: All our new baby sister drinks is milk. monster (say mon-stuh) noun someone or something that is frighteningly cruel: The monster in the film was extremely scary. moss (say moss) noun a plant with very small leaves that grows in patches on rather wet ground, tree trunks or rocks: We slipped on the moss growing on the rocks. night (say nuyt) noun Night is the time of darkness after the sun sets and before it rises again: Some animals sleep through the day and go looking for food at night. pain (say payn) noun a feeling of suffering or hurt: The pain in his leg made walking difficult. 2012 Premier’s Spelling Bee: Junior Wordlist Annotated      party (say pah-tee) noun a social gathering, often to celebrate something: I'm having a birthday party next week. pray (say pray) verb If you pray, you talk to the god that you believe in, often to ask for help or to be forgiven for something that you have done wrong: I pray every night before I go to bed. price (say pruys) noun the amount of money for which something is bought or sold: Everything in the shop had its price written on it. rash (say rash) noun red, itchy spots or patches on the skin: He wasn't supposed to scratch his rash even though it was really itchy. river (say riv-uh) noun a natural body of water that flows over the land in a long winding path: We paddled our canoes along the river. rock (say rok) noun a large mass of stone: Kim and Sally sat on a flat rock and ate lunch. royal (say roy-uhl) adjective having to do with a king or queen: People were excited by the royal wedding. sale (say sayl) noun the act of selling: This house is not for sale. shake (say shayk) verb If you shake something, you move it sharply backwards and forwards or up and down: Shake the bottle before taking the medicine. sheep (say sheep) noun an animal which is kept for its meat and thick wool: The dog managed to get the flock into the pen except for one stubborn sheep. shine (say shuyn) verb If you shine a light somewhere, you point or direct it there in order to see something: If you shine the torch in here we might be able to find the key. 2012 Premier’s Spelling Bee: Junior Wordlist Annotated      shoe (say shooh) noun a covering, usually made of leather, for your foot: My shoe has a hole in it and now my foot is wet. silver (say sil-vuh) noun a shiny grey metal used for making things like jewellery: My new ring is made of silver. skill (say skil) noun the ability to do something well: She has many talents, but her great skill is singing. sleep (say sleep) verb To sleep is to rest with your eyes closed and your mind unconscious: She always felt better if she could sleep through the whole night without waking. slug (say slug) noun a creature like a snail but without a shell: I squealed when I stepped on a slug -- the slug didn't like it much, either. space (say spayce) noun the continuous openness which exists outside the earth's atmosphere: A rocket was used to launch a satellite into space. spine (say spuyn) noun the column of bones in the back: Mum has hurt her spine and has to rest until it is better. stone (say stohn) noun the hard substance which rocks are made of: The cold stone was good to lean against in the heat. storm (say stawm) noun a violent change in the weather bringing wind, rain, thunder and lightning: The storm suddenly hit and we all raced for cover. surf (say serf) noun the waves which break along the shore: Let's go down to the surf and catch some waves. tact (say takt) noun a sense of the right time to do or say something: He had the tact to leave her alone when she heard the news. target (say tah-guht) noun A target is something that you aim at and try to hit or reach: She hit the target with the ball and won a prize. 2012 Premier’s Spelling Bee: Junior Wordlist Annotated      thorn (say thawn) noun a sharp-pointed prickle on the stem of a plant: She ripped her dress on the rose thorn. timber (say tim-buh) noun Timber is wood which has been cut into pieces so that it can be used to build things: The builder said the timber would be delivered the next day. trail (say trayl) noun a path or track, usually through the bush: If you stay on the trail, you won't get lost. twig (say twig) noun a small, thin branch of a tree: When we were camping, we used a twig to stir our tea. wild (say wuyld) adjective If an animal or plant is wild, it is living or growing in a natural state without humans taking care of it: There are wild mushrooms growing in the paddock. 2012 Premier’s Spelling Bee: Junior Wordlist Annotated      Junior General Level 2 abet (say uh-bet) verb to help or encourage in committing something, usually something bad: The children were wrong to aid and abet each other in the deception. abide (say uh-buyd) verb If you abide by something, you accept it: If you enter the contest, you have to abide by the rules. absent (say ab-suhnt) adjective not in a certain place at a given time: Dimitri is absent from school today because he's sick. account (say uh-kownt) noun a story telling the important things that have happened: The police wanted us to give an account of everything we had seen. acorn (say ay-kawn) noun a nut with a cup-shaped bottom part, which grows on an oak tree: The squirrel was munching on an acorn. actual (say ak-chooh-uhl) adjective real or true: The character in the film was based on an actual person. adorn (say uh-dawn) verb to increase the beauty of something by decorating it: We used tinsel instead of lights to adorn our Christmas tree. advise (say uhd-vuyz) verb If you advise someone to do something, you tell them what you think they should do: Can you advise me on what to buy him as a present? afraid (say uh-frayd) adjective If you are afraid, you feel frightened: Ellie was afraid when she heard the strange noises outside. against (say uh-genst or uh-gaynst) preposition in contact or leaning upon: He leant the piece of wood against the wall. alien (say ay-lee-uhn) noun in science fiction, a being from outer space: In the book I am reading an alien flies to Earth in a spaceship. 2012 Premier’s Spelling Bee: Junior Wordlist Annotated      amaze (say uh-mayz) verb to surprise someone a lot: It would amaze my friends if I changed the colour of my hair to green. ambush (say am-boosh) verb to hide and wait for someone so as to attack them by surprise: The bushrangers were waiting in the hills to ambush the coach. ankle (say ang-kuhl) noun the part of your body where your foot joins your leg: I tripped over a branch and sprained my ankle. anthem (say an-thuhm) noun An anthem is a song that you sing at important times or events: Australia's national anthem is `Advance Australia Fair'. apricot (say ay-pree-kot or ay-pruh-kot) noun a small, round, juicy fruit: I always find it hard to tell the difference between an apricot and a peach. argue (say ah-gyooh) verb If you argue with someone about something, you say things, often in an angry way, which show that you disagree with them: The two brothers would argue for hours over who had first go on the trampoline. astound (say uh-stownd) verb to overwhelm with amazement: The actors hoped to astound their audiences with their new interpretation of the play. attic (say at-ik) noun a room or a space directly under the roof of a building: We stored our old furniture in the attic. awful (say aw-fuhl) adjective very bad or unpleasant: It took weeks to clean up the awful mess left by the flood. bamboo (say bam-booh) noun a woody plant whose stem is sometimes used for making furniture: We have a chair on our balcony made from bamboo. bashful (say bash-fuhl) adjective very modest or shy: Don't be bashful -- tell them about your award. beetroot (say beet-rooht) noun the dark red root of the beet plant which is eaten as a vegetable: I hate it when they put beetroot in my hamburger. 2012 Premier’s Spelling Bee: Junior Wordlist Annotated      beneath (say buh-neeth) adverb below, or underneath: Martha hid beneath the table in a game of hide and seek. bilby (say bil-bee) noun a type of bandicoot. It is an animal currently rated as vulnerable rather than endangered: The bilby is quite different in appearance from other types of bandicoot. blanket (say blang-kuht) noun a large piece of soft woollen or cotton material, used as a bed covering: She wrapped herself in a blanket in front of the TV. bloated (say bloh-tuhd) adjective swollen: I always feel bloated after Christmas lunch because I eat too much. blossom (say bloss-uhm) noun the flower of a plant, especially of a fruit tree: The blossom of an orange tree smells really sweet. bounce (say bownce) verb If you bounce a ball, you throw it against a surface to make it spring back towards you: I'll bounce the ball against the wall, and you can catch it when it comes back. breakfast (say brek-fuhst) noun the first meal of the day: Shane has two bowls of cereal for breakfast. breathe (say breedh) verb to take in and give out air: While we were hiding we had to breathe very quietly. brought (say brawt) verb the past form of the word bring: It was a crazy day when we all brought our pets to school! burgle (say ber-guhl) verb to perform a burglary in: The bandits devised a plan to burgle the jewellery shop. burrow (say bu-roh) noun a hole in the ground dug by an animal, to live and shelter in: The wombat sleeps in a burrow during the day. cabin (say kab-uhn) noun a small house: The old man lived in a cabin in the bush. 2012 Premier’s Spelling Bee: Junior Wordlist Annotated      canal (say kuh-nal) noun an artificial river made for boats to travel along: The farmers used the canal to send their produce to market. canyon (say kan-yuhn) noun a deep valley with steep sides: Everything at the bottom of the canyon looks very small. captain (say kap-tuhn) noun someone who is in charge of a sporting team: Max was chosen as the captain of our cricket team. caption (say kap-shuhn) noun the words written underneath a picture to describe or explain it: The people in the photo are named in the caption. cardigan (say kah-dig-uhn) noun a knitted jacket with buttons down the front: It was starting to get cold so I put on my cardigan. career (say kuh-rear) noun the job or profession in which you earn your living: My sister wants a career in television. cashew (say kash-ooh) noun a small, kidney-shaped nut that you can eat: The cashew comes from a tree native to South America. chafe (say chayf) verb to wear down or make sore by rubbing: The bandage began to chafe against his wound so he took it off. charcoal (say chah-kohl) noun partly burnt wood, which can be used for drawing: We drew pictures with sticks of charcoal in our art class. cheep (say cheep) verb A chicken cheeps when it makes weak, high sounds: We could hear the baby bird cheep until its mother returned. civil (say siv-uhl) adjective polite or courteous, although perhaps not particularly friendly: She's not overly friendly, but she's always been perfectly civil to me. climate (say kluy-muht) noun the usual weather of a particular place: The climate in Australia is generally quite warm and sunny. 2012 Premier’s Spelling Bee: Junior Wordlist Annotated      cockroach (say kok-rohch) noun an insect, usually active at night, with a flattened body and long feelers, which is a common household pest: Marie was horrified to see a big, black cockroach crawling up her leg! cocoon (say kuh-koohn) noun the silky covering spun by the larvae of many insects: We found a cocoon hanging from some leaves. collar (say kol-uh) noun the part of a piece of clothing that is worn around your neck: Jack did up his collar and put his tie on. combat (say kom-bat) noun the fighting that takes place between opposing armies: The soldiers were locked in combat. compost (say kom-post) noun a mixture of things like vegetable scraps and leaves, left to rot and then used to fertilise the soil: We dug some compost into the ground before we planted our vegetable garden. convict (say kon-vikt) noun in the past, a person transported to the British colonies to serve out a prison sentence: The life of a convict in Port Arthur was very hard. cotton (say kot-uhn) noun a light material made from the soft, white hairs covering the seeds of the cotton plant: Clothes made of cotton are comfortable to wear when it is very hot. country (say kun-tree) noun a large area of land occupied by people organised under a single government: Australia is a country, and so is Fiji. courage (say ku-rij) noun the strength a person has inside them to do something they find frightening: She showed great courage when she saved the child from the fire. crooked (say krook-uhd) adjective If something is crooked, it is not straight: Vicky lent against the crooked fence. curd (say kerd) noun a jelly-like substance formed in milk which has been treated with an acid, eaten fresh or used for making cheese: We learned how to make cheese from curd produced from goats' milk.