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essential 1 Flashcards

1
Q

abate

A

(v) reduce, diminish

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2
Q

abdicate

A

(v) formally give up the throne (or some other power or responsibility)

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3
Q

aberrant

A

(adj) abnormal, deviant

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4
Q

abhor

A

(v) detest, regard with disgust

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5
Q

abjure

A

(v) give up, renounce; repudiate, recant, or shun (especially formally or under oath)

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6
Q

abrasive

A

(adj) rough, suitable for grinding or polishing (such as sandpaper); causing irritation or annoyance

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7
Q

abridge

A

(v) reduce or lessen; shorten by omitting parts throughout while retaining the main idea

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8
Q

abstain

A

(v) hold back, refrain (especially from something bad or unhealthy); decline to vote

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9
Q

acme

A

(n) summit, peak, highest point

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10
Q

activism

A

(n) the practice of pursuing political or other goals through vigorous action, often including protests and demonstrations

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11
Q

adhere

A

(v) stick (to), such as with glue, or to a plan or belief

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12
Q

admonish

A

(v) mildly scold; caution, advise, or remind to do something

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13
Q

adverse

A

(adj) opposing, harmful

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14
Q

advocate

A

(v, n) speak or argue in favor of (verb); a person who pleads for a cause or on behalf of another person (noun)

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15
Q

aesthetic

A

(adj, n) concerning the appreciation of beauty or good taste, pertaining to the science of what is beautiful (adj); a sense of beauty and taste of a particular time and place (noun)

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16
Q

affable

A

(adj) warm and friendly, pleasant, approachable

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17
Q

affectation

A

(n) fake behavior (such as in speech or dress) adopted to give a certain impression

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18
Q

aggrandize

A

(v) make greater; exaggerate

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19
Q

aggregate

A

(v, adj) gather together, amount to (verb); constituting a whole made up of constituent parts (adj)

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20
Q

alacrity

A

(n) cheerful or speedy willingness

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21
Q

alienate

A

(v) cause to become unfriendly, hostile, or distant

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22
Q

alleviate

A

(v) lessen, make easier to endure

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23
Q

ambiguous

A

(adj) not clear, hard to understand, open to having several meanings or interpretations

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24
Q

ambivalent

A

(adj) uncertain; unable to decide, or wanting to do two contradictory things at once

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25
analogous
(adj) comparable, corresponding in some particular way (making a good analogy)
26
anarchy
(n) absence of law or government; chaos, disorder
27
anoint
(v) rub or sprinkle oil on; make sacred, such as by ceremony that includes applying oil to someone
28
anomaly
(n) deviation from what is common; inconsistency
29
antagonize
(v) make hostile or unfriendly
30
antipathy (n.)
deep dislike, aversion, or repugnance, somtimes without reason
31
apathy
(n) not caring; absence of feeling; lack of interest or concern
32
apocryphal
(adj) of questionable authenticity; false
33
appease (v.)
pacify, satisfy, relieve; concede to be belligerent demands, sometimes at the expense of principles
34
appreciable (adj.)
enough to be perceived, considerable
35
arbitrary (adj.)
based entirely on one's discretion; capricious, unreasonable, or having no basis
36
arcane
(adj) known or understood by only a few; obscure, secret
37
archaic
(adj) characteristic of an earlier period, ancient, primitive
38
arduous
(adj) very difficult, strenuous; severe, hard to endure
39
articulate
(adj, verb) using language in a clear, fluent way (adj); speak distinctly or give clarity to an idea (verb)
40
artifact
(n) any object made by humans, especially those from an earlier time, such as those excavated by archaeologists
41
artless
(adj) free of deceit or craftiness, natural, genuine; lacking skill or knowledge, crude, uncultured
42
ascertain
(v) find out with certainty
43
ascetic
(adj, n) abstinent or austere in lifestyle (adj); a person who leads an austere and simple like without material pleasures, esp. someone who does this for religious reasons
44
assuage
(v) make milder, relieve; soothe, pacify, or calm
45
audacious
(adj) very bold or brave, often in a rude or reckless way; extremely original
46
augment
(v) make larger
47
austere
(adj) severe in manner or appearance; very self-disciplined, ascetic; without luxury or ease; sober or serious
48
autonomous
(adj) self-governing, independent
49
aver
(v) declare or affirm with confidence
50
avid
(adj) enthusiastic, dedicated, passionate; excessively desirous
51
balk
(v) refuse to proceed or to do something
52
base
(adj) morally low, mean, dishonorable; of little or no value; crude and unrefined; counterfeit
53
belie
(v) contradict or misrepresent
54
benign
(adj) harmless; favorable; kindly, gentle, or beneficial; not cancerous
55
bogus
(adj) fake, fraudulent
56
bolster
(v) strengthen or support
57
boor
(n) rude, ill-mannered, or insensitive person; a peasant or country bumpkin
58
buffer
(n) something that shields, protects, absorbs shock, or cushions
59
bureaucracy
(n) government characterized by many bureaus and petty administrators or by excessive, seemingly meaningless requirements
60
burgeon
(v) grow or flourish rapidly; put forth buds or shoots (of a plant)
61
buttress
(v, n) support or encourage (verb); a support or prop, esp. projecting from and supporting the wall of a building (noun)
62
bygone
(adj, n) past, former (adj); that which is in the past (usually plural noun)
63
cacophony
(n) harsh, discordant, or meaningless mixture of sounds
64
candid
(adj) open, sincere, honest
65
canonical
(adj) authorized, recognized; pertaining to the canon, or body of accepted rules, standards or artistic works
66
capricious
(adj) acting on impulse, erratic
67
cartography
(n) mapmaking
68
castigate
(v) criticize severely; punish in order to correct
69
catalyst
(n) causer of change
70
caustic
(adj) capable of corroding metal or burning the skin; very critical or sarcastic
71
censure
(n, v) strong disapproval or official reprimand (noun); to issue such disapproval or reprimand (verb)
72
chauvinism
(n) fanatical patriotism or blind enthusiasm for military glory; undue or biased devotion to any group, cause, etc.
73
chronological
(adj) arranged in or relating to time order
74
clamor
(v) noisy uproar or protest, as from a crowd; a loud, continuous noise
75
clinch
(v) make final or settle conclusively; to fasten or hold together
76
coalesce
(v) come together, unite; fuse together
77
cogent
(adj) very convincing, logical
78
commensurate
(adj) the same in size, extent, etc., equivalent; proportional
79
complacent
(adj) self-satisfied, smug; overly content (and therefore lazy, neglectful, or some other bad quality)
80
complementary
(adj) completing; fitting together well; filling mutual needs
81
compliant
(adj) obeying, submissive; following the requirements
82
concede
(v) give in, admit, yield; acknowledge reluctantly; grant or give up (such as giving up land after losing a war)
83
conciliatory
(adj) reconciling, appeasing, attempting to make the peace
84
concur
(v) approve, agree
85
condone
(v) overlook, tolerate, regard as harmless
86
confer
(v) consult, compare views; bestow or give
87
connoisseur
(n) expert, especially in the fine arts; person of educated, refined tastes
88
console
(v, n) lessen the suffering or grief of (verb); a control panel, or small table or cabinet (noun)
89
consolidate
(v) unite, combine, solidify, make coherent
90
constrict
(v) squeeze, compress; restrict the freedom of
91
construe
(v) interpret or translate
92
contentious
(adj) controversial; prone to causing arguments, especially gratuitous or petty ones
93
contextualize
(v) place in context, such as by giving the background or circumstances
94
conundrum
(n) riddle, the answer to which involves a play on words; any mystery
95
converge
(v) move towards one another or towards a point; unite
96
conversant
(adj) knowledgeable about or experienced with
97
conversely
(adv) in an opposite way; on the other hand
98
convoluted
(adj) twisted; very complicated
99
copious
(adj) plentiful, bountiful
100
corroborate
(v) support, add evidence to

GRE 500 essential words (10 decks)

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