split by default, splits on whitespace - so you could simply do something like this:

my @words;

while (<DATA>) {
    chomp;
    push @words, split;
}

__DATA__
aboveboard aboveground abovementioned abrade Abraham Abram Abramson
abrasion abrasive abreact abreast abridge abridgment abroad
abrogate abrupt abscess abscissa abscissae absence absent
etc....
[download]

Cheers,
Darren :)