From Verbal Tests Flashcards
PERSONABLE
pleasant in appearance and manner
MALIGN
evil
MUNIFICENT
Generous
MENDACIOUS
Lying
CLANDESTINE
Hidden; she deserved better than these clandestine meetings; Surreptitious
NUGATORY
a nugatory and pointless observation: no value
ERSATZ
fake, artificial
SOLIPSISTIC
Solipsism is literally the theory that only the self exists or can be known to exist (“solipsistic” is sometimes used a bit figuratively to mean really selfish)
RAN THE GAMUT
much like the expression “from A to Z”
RAN THE GAUNTLET
withstood an attack from all sides
HELD THE LINE
imposed a limit
PONDEROUS
awkward or dull
a swarthy, ponderous giant of a man
HOI - POLLOI
common people
CABAL
secret political faction
LITERATI
well-educated
PAROCHIAL
Narrow-minded, low-class, unsophisticated
DULCET
sweet. soothing
FAWNING
displaying exaggerated flattery or affection; obsequious
PATRONIZING - CONDESCENDING
arrogant, unwanted help
AMBIVALENT - EQUIVOCAL
match the idea of mixed feelings
SUPERSEDE
it’s actually a figurative word meaning replace (e.g., I was superseded by younger workers at my job).
POULTICES
are soft, moist masses of material applied to the body to heal or relieve pain
DRAMATURGY
the theory and practice of dramatic composition.
“studies of Shakespeare’s dramaturgy”
OPPORTUNISM
exploitation
CONTRIVANCE
Strategy
HISTRIONICS
Theatrics
DILETTANTE
Amateur, non-professional
COVEY
a small group of people or things.
“coveys of actors rushed through the rooms”`
MOTE
a tiny piece of a substance; a speck.
“the tiniest mote of dust”
TROVE
a store of valuable or delightful things.
“the cellar contained a trove of rare wines”
Treasure Trove of Stories
SALVO
a simultaneous discharge of artillery or other guns in a battle.
“a deafening salvo of shots rang out”
SANGUINE
Optimistic
SANGUINARY
involving or causing much bloodshed.
“they lost heavily in the sanguinary campaigns that followed”
BLITHE
happy or carefree.
“a blithe seaside comedy”
RECANT
abjure, renounce
FORFEIT
Penalty
Unpropitious - Inimical
adverse or harmful
CORROBORATE, ADVANCING `
Supporting a theory
EXACTING
Demanding
STINGY, MISERLY, PARSIMONIOUS, PENURIOUS,
To be stingy means to reduce your spending, even at the expense of reducing your quality of life.
FRUGAL, THRIFT
Spending economically
|NVOLVED
complicated, intricate, complex
VERISMILITUDE
Authenticity means the stories are genuine or real. Verisimilitude is a close synonym of authenticity emphasizing the truthfulness of reliability of the stories.
BRIO
The word “brio” refers to having vigor or vivacity during a performance. For all the orchestra’s brio, ………..
CUMBROUSLY, PONDEROUSLY
The word “cumbrously” refers to an action that is done clumsily and with difficulty, especially with difficulty due to weight.
The word “ponderously” means to do something slowly or in a labored way, because of great weight.
PROTRACTED
Lengthy
HARRIED
harassed
MOLLIFIED
soothed
BESEIGED
harass, as with questions or requests; cause to feel distressed or worried
After discovering a priceless artifact in her backyard, Jane was besieged by phone calls, emails, and reporters all trying to buy, hold or see the rare piece of history.
DISBARRED
EXCLUDED
MYOPIC
lacking foresight or imagination
The company ultimately went out of business because the myopic managers couldn’t predict the changes in their industry.
PERFUNCTORY
done routinely and with little interest or care
The short film examines modern perfunctory cleaning rituals such as washing dishes, doing laundry and tooth-brushing.
CELERITOUS
swift, speedy, fast
punctilious
marked by precise accordance with details
The colonel was so punctilious about enforcing regulations that men feel compelled to polish even the soles of their shoes.
inveterate
habitual
He is an inveterate smoker and has told his family and friends that there is no way he will ever quit.
DERELICT
(of a person) not doing one’s duties
The teacher was derelict in her duties because she hadn’t graded a single student paper in three weeks.
CLEMENCY
clemency means mercy and forgiveness
leniency and compassion shown toward offenders by a person or agency charged with administering justice
In the final moments of the trial, during his closing speech, Phillips was nearly begging the judge for clemency.
FOSTER
to help the growth of something
A good teacher not only teaches students how to do well on tests; a good teacher fosters curiosity and excitement to learn in her students.
antediluvian
prehistoric primeval primordial primal earliest ancient early primigenial
subterfuge
something intended to misrepresent the true nature of an activity
Finally deciding to abandon all subterfuge, Arthur revealed to Cindy everything about his secret affair over the past two years.
SANTIONED
“Sanctioned” is a very interesting word because it does in fact have two meanings that are almost the opposite of one another:
1) Give official permission or approval for (an action).
2) Impose a penalty on.
EBB
A flowing backward or away; decline; decay; a gradual falling off or diminution: as, the ebb of prosperity; crime is on the ebb.
INDEFENSIBLE
that cannot be defended, maintained, or justified, by either force or speech: as, an indefensible frontier; conduct that is indefensible.
Not defensible; not capable of being defended, maintained, vindicated, or justified; unjustifiable; untenable
UNTENABLE
With the combination of Kepler’s brilliant theories and Galileo’s telescopic observations, the old geocentric theory became untenable to most of the educated people in Europe.
UNIMPEACHABLE
free of guilt; not subject to blame; beyond doubt or reproach
After his long and unimpeachable service to the company, Sharat felt that a gold watch was a slap in the face rather than an honor.
abnegation
the action of renouncing or rejecting something.
“abnegation of political power”
PURITAN
a puritanical person
adjective – : acting or behaving according to the Puritan morals (e.g. propagating modesty), especially with regard to pleasure, nudity and sex
SYBARITE
a person who indulges in luxury
Despite the fact that he’d maxed out fifteen credit cards, Max was still a sybarite at heart: when the police found him, he was at a $1,000 an hour spa in Manhattan, getting a facial treatment.
BRUSQUELY
in a blunt, direct manner
Not one for social pleasantries, the Chief of Staff would brusquely ask his subordinates for anything he wanted, even coffee.
PLUCKY
means not easily daunted…. courageous, not giving up easily
RILE
cause annoyance in; disturb, especially by minor irritations
Dan is usually calm and balanced, but it takes only one intense glare from Sabrina to rile him.
CORRALS
gather together and confine (a group of people or things).
“the organizers were corralling the crowd into marching formation”
ROUND UP
To collect or gather (something) together.
verb – To round (a number) to the smallest integer that is not less than it, or to some other greater value, especially a whole number of hundreds, thousands, etc.
SOPORIFIC
tending or induce drowsiness or sleep
EXACTING
The word “exacting” means “requiring close attention,” and “making excessive demands.”
ATTENUATE
to weaken (in terms of intensity); to taper off/become thinner. Her animosity towards Bob attenuated over the years, and she even went so far as to invite him to her party.
SCHMOOZE
To talk casually, especially in order to gain an advantage or make a social connection
MACHINATING, PLOTTING
engage in plotting or enter into a conspiracy, swear together
The rebels met at night in an abandoned barn to machinate.
HOBNOB
mix socially, especially with those of perceived higher social status.
“he was hobnobbing with the great and good”
MUCKRAKE
search out and publicize scandal about famous people.
“independent media are not afraid to muckrake and set their own agenda”
RECONDITE (RE-CONDUCT)
difficult to penetrate; incomprehensible to one of ordinary understanding or knowledge
REPRISAL
a retaliatory action against an enemy in wartime
reprisal means to seek revenge, or to look for some way to have an eye-for-an-eye moment.
GERMANE
relevant and appropriate
The professor wanted to tell the jury in detail about his new book, but the lawyer said it wasn’t germane to the charges in the cases.
EFFECT
as a verb: to pull something off, to realize something.
APOCRYPHAL
being of questionable authenticity
The web is notorious for sandwiching apocryphal stories between actual news.
AUGURY
a sign of what will happen in the future; an omen.
“they heard the sound as an augury of death”
EPIPHANY
a moment of sudden and great revelation or realization.
TROPES
tropes are conventional ideas—themes that have been repeated many times
FOR ALL……
Contrast word….
DYSPHORIC
very unhappy, uneasy, or dissatisfied : marked or characterized by dysphoria a dysphoric mood a dysphoric person — see also premenstrual dysphoric disorder
EBULLIENT
joyously unrestrained
Can you blame him for his ebullient mood? He just graduated from medical school.
DESPONDENT
extremely sad, without hope
Fariha was a very strong woman, and she never became despondent no matter how many misfortunes she went through.
TACITURN
habitually reserved and uncommunicative
While the CEO enthusiastically shares his plans and agenda with all who will listen, the CFO is far more taciturn, rarely revealing his perspective.
ASSIDUITY
constant, sustained, careful work – in other words, the tortoise, with its slow, steady approach to a race, is being assiduous in finishing the race.
