CEFR C1 · advanced
C1 words are what make English sound educated and precise. You find them in literature, serious journalism, and debates. They are rarely needed to survive, but they are what separates fluent from advanced.
Updated
Short answer
C1 vocabulary is advanced English: words like exacerbate, impeccable, perfunctory, and fiasco. In TeakReader’s word list they are roughly the 30,000th to 40,000th most common words. You need a good share of them to read classics like Pride and Prejudice or Jane Eyre comfortably.
Grouped by topic. The number after each word is its rank in our frequency list: lower means more common. Check any other word →
too pleased with yourself
He gave a smug smile after winning.
quick and light in movement or thought
The pianist’s nimble fingers flew over the keys.
too worried about small rules and details
Correcting every comma is a bit pedantic.
direct and honest in what you say
She was forthright about her concerns.
liking to talk a lot
My taxi driver was very talkative.
with moods that change quickly; or unreliable
The old printer is temperamental.
not paying attention to danger or advice
Heedless of the warning, they swam out.
very formal and easily shocked
She gave a prim little cough.
not loyal
The novel’s hero is betrayed by a faithless friend.
an expert on things like art, food, or wine
He is a connoisseur of good coffee.
make a bad situation worse
Shouting only exacerbated the argument.
make a bad situation better (formal)
New laws aim to ameliorate working conditions.
say something again, for emphasis
Let me reiterate: the deadline is Friday.
state clearly as a rule or condition
The contract stipulates two weeks’ notice.
spread through every part of something
The smell of bread permeated the house.
break a rule or limit someone’s rights
Copying the logo infringes their trademark.
go back the same way
I retraced my steps to find my keys.
surprise and slightly frighten
The phone startled me awake.
throw with great force
Protesters hurled stones at the police.
push forward; or drive to success
One hit song propelled her to fame.
perfect, with no mistakes
His English is impeccable.
made to impress people with money or style
They live in an ostentatious mansion.
unclear and not well defined
The plan is still nebulous.
done quickly, without care or interest
She gave a perfunctory nod and left.
very bad and deserving criticism
Lying to patients is reprehensible.
not important
They argued about inconsequential details.
having the opposite effect to the one you want
Punishing mistakes can be counterproductive.
extremely angry
Dad was livid when he saw the car.
shocked and horrified
We stared, aghast, at the damage.
loud and unpleasant; or forceful in opinion
Critics were strident in their attacks.
a complete, often embarrassing, failure
The launch party was a total fiasco.
a sudden, complete failure
The election was a debacle for the party.
the final result
The upshot was that we had to start again.
responsibility for doing something
The onus is on the seller to prove it.
a small accident or bad luck
The trip went without a single mishap.
a state of confusion and untidiness
After the move, the house was in disarray.
great enjoyment and energy
He sang with gusto.
in an unwilling way
She grudgingly admitted he was right.
with sad longing for something
He looked wistfully at old photos.
now and then, not regularly
It rained sporadically all week.
In real English
Classics such as Pride and Prejudice, Jane Eyre, and The Picture of Dorian Gray; long-form journalism; legal and academic English; and witty dramas.
Lists help, but words stick when you meet them again in a story. TeakReader shows the new words before each chapter, and lets you tap any word for its meaning and level while you read.
Not sure a book is right for you? See classic books by reading level or TV shows by English level.
Study tips
FAQ
There is no single official number. One widely cited study (Milton, 2010) links C1 with knowing roughly 3,750–4,500 of the most common base words. Our list ranks every word form separately (help, helps, helped, helpful) and includes names and variants, so its rank ranges are much larger than these counts.
No. The official reference is the Cambridge English Vocabulary Profile. Our levels come from how common each word is in large English frequency lists, which matches the CEFR closely for most words but not all. We use the same method for our book levels and the free word checker.
Meet them in context. Read books or watch shows slightly above your level, look up the words you keep seeing, and review them a few times over the next weeks. A list is a good start, but words stick when you see them again in real stories.
Use the free English word level checker. Type any word to see its estimated CEFR level and how common it is, or paste a paragraph to see which words are hard.
Ready to read
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