Barron's - 2 Flashcards
GRE words
Desultory
lacking a plan, purpose, or enthusiasm.
“a few people were left, dancing in a desultory fashion”
Similar:
casual
half-hearted
Deterrent
a thing that discourages or is intended to discourage someone from doing something.
“cameras are a majordeterrent tocrime”
Diatribe
a forceful and bitter verbal attack against someone or something.
“a diatribe against consumerism”
Similar:
tirade
harangu
Dichotomy
.
a division or contrast between two things that are or are represented as being opposed or entirely different.
“a rigiddichotomy betweenscience and mysticism”
Similar:
division
separation
Digression
a temporary departure from the main subject in speech or writing.
“let’s return to the main topic after that brief digression”
Similar:
deviation
detour
Dirge
a lament for the dead, especially one forming part of a funeral rite.
Similar:
elegy
lament
funeral song/chant
burial hymn
requiem
dead march
keen
coronach
threnody
threnode
monody
a mournful song, piece of music, or sound.
“singers chanted dirges”
Disabuse
persuade (someone) that an idea or belief is mistaken.
“he quicklydisabusedmeofmy fanciful notions”
Similar:
disillusion
undeceive
correct
Discredit
harm the good reputation of.
“his remarks were taken out of context in an effort to discredit him”
Similar:
disgrace
dishonour
disingenuous
not candid or sincere, typically by pretending that one knows less about something than one really does.
“this journalist was being somewhat disingenuous as well as cynical”
Similar:
dishonest
deceitful
underhand
underhanded
duplicitous
double-dealing
two-faced
dissembling
insincere
false
lying
untruthful
mendacious
not candid
not frank
not entirely truthful
artful
cunning
crafty
wily
sly
sneaky
tricky
scheming
calculating
designing
devious
unscrupulous
shifty
foxy
economical with the truth
terminologically inexact
subtle
hollow-hearted
false-hearted
double-faced
truthless
unveracious
Opposite:
ingenuous
frank
Disparage
regard or represent as being of little worth.
“he never missed an opportunity to disparage his competitors”
Similar:
belittle
denigrate
Dissemble
conceal or disguise one’s true feelings or beliefs.
“an honest, sincere person with no need to dissemble”
Similar:
dissimulate
pretend
Dissonance
Discord, opposite of harmony.
Distend
swell or cause to swell by pressure from inside.
“the abdomen distended rapidly”
Similar:
swell
bloat
bulge
Divest
deprive someone of (power, rights, or possessions).
“men are unlikely to be divested of power without a struggle”
Similar:
deprive
strip
dispossess
Ebullient
cheerful and full of energy.
“she sounded ebullient and happy”
Similar:
exuberant
buoyant
Effrontery
insolent or impertinent behaviour.
“one jurorhad the effrontery tochallenge the coroner’s decision”
Similar:
impudence
impertinence
Elegy
in modern literature) a poem of serious reflection, typically a lament for the dead.
Elicit
evoke or draw out (a reaction, answer, or fact) from someone.
“I tried toelicita smilefromJoanna”
Similar:
obtain
bring out
draw out
extract
evoke
bring about
bring forth
induce
excite
give rise to
call forth
prompt
generate
engender
spark off
trigger
kindle
extort
exact
wrest
derive
provoke
wring
screw
squeeze
worm out
Equanimity
calmness and composure, especially in a difficult situation.
“she accepted both the good and the badwith equanimity”
Similar:
composure
calmness
Equivocate
Lie, mislead, use ambiguous language so as to conceal the truth or avoid committing oneself.
“the government have equivocated too often in the past”
eulogy
a speech or piece of writing that praises someone or something highly, especially a tribute to someone who has just died.
“a eulogy to the Queen Mother”
Euphemism
substituted for one considered to be too harsh or blunt when referring to something unpleasant or embarrassing.
“the jargon has given us ‘downsizing’ asa euphemism forcuts”
Similar:
polite term
substitute
Exculpate
show or declare that (someone) is not guilty of wrongdoing.
“the article exculpated the mayor”
Exigency
an urgent need or demand.
“women worked long hours when the exigencies of the family economy demanded it”
Similar:
need
demand
