Go over Advanced 5/6

Question 1

phlegmatic

Answer 1

phlegmatic
adjective: showing little emotion

Arnold is truly noble, remaining reserved until an issue of significance arises, but Walter is simply phlegmatic: he doesn’t have the energy or inclination to care about anything.

Question 2

inanity

Answer 2

inanity
noun: total lack of meaning or ideas

Bill’s poem was nothing more than a list of impressive sounding words, so there was no point in trying to take meaning from the inanity.

Question 3

recrudesce

Answer 3

recrudesce
verb: to break out or happen again

After years of gamblers anonymous, Tony thought he’d broken his compulsive slot machine playing, but it took only one trip to the Atlantic City for a full recrudescence–he lost $5k on the one armed bandit.

Question 4

objurgate

Answer 4

objurgate
verb: express strong disapproval of

The manager spent an hour objurgating the employee in the hopes that he would not make these mistakes again.

Question 5

appurtenant

Answer 5

appurtenant
adjective: supplying added support

In hiking Mt. Everest, sherpas are appurtenant, helping climbers both carry gear and navigate treacherous paths.

Question 6

solicitude

Answer 6

solicitude
noun: a feeling of excessive concern

I walked to his house in the rain to make sure he had enough to eat while he was sick, but he seemed not to appreciate my solicitude.

Question 7

brook

Answer 7

brook
verb: put up with something or somebody unpleasant

While she was at the chalkboard, the teacher did not brook any form of talking–even a tiny peep resulted in afternoon detention.

This word has other definitions but this is the most important one to study

Question 8

untrammelled

Answer 8

untrammeled
adjective: not confined or limited

The whole notion of living untrammeled inspired the American Revolution and was enshrined in the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution.

Question 9

arrogate

Answer 9

arrogate
verb: seize and control without authority

Arriving at the small town, the outlaw arrogated the privileges of a lord, asking the frightened citizens to provide food, drink, and entertainment.

Question 10

philistine

Answer 10

philistine
adjective: smug and ignorant towards artistic and cultural values

Jane considered Al completely philistine, because he talked almost exclusively about video games; she was entirely unaware of how well read he really was.

Question 11

reprisal

Answer 11

reprisal
noun: a retaliatory action against an enemy in wartime

The Old Testament doctrine of “an eye for an eye” would seem to justify an immediate physical reprisal for any injury, but that interpretation neglects the many passages that value mercy and loving-kindness over revenge.

Question 12

turgid

Answer 12

turgid
adjective: (of language) pompous and tedious

The amount of GRE vocabulary he used increased with his years–by the time he was 60, his novels were so turgid that even his diehard fans refused to read them.

Question 13

stultify

Answer 13

stultify
verb: cause one, through routine, to lose energy and enthusiasm

As an undergraduate Mark felt stultified by classes outside his area of study; only in grad school, in which he could focus solely on literary analysis, did he regain his scholarly edge.

Question 14

inequity

Answer 14

inequity
noun: injustice by virtue of not conforming with rules or standards

After decades of racial inequity, the “separate but equal” doctrine was successfully overturned.

Question 15

panegyric

Answer 15

panegyric
noun: a formal expression of praise

Dave asked Andrew to do just a simple toast, but Andrew launched into a full panegyric, enumerating a complete list of Dave’s achievements and admirable qualities.

Question 16

impugn

Answer 16

impugn
verb: attack as false or wrong

Though many initially tried to impugn Darwin’s theory, in scientific circles today, the idea is taken as truth.

Question 17

assiduously

Answer 17

assiduously
adverb: with care and persistence

The top college football program recruits new talent assiduously, only choosing those who were the top in their county.

Question 18

coterminous

Answer 18

coterminous
adjective: being of equal extent or scope or duration

The border of the state is coterminous with geographic limits on travel; the east and north are surrounded by a nearly uncrossable river and the south by a desert.

Question 19

mendicant

Answer 19

mendicant
noun: a pauper who lives by begging

Tolstoy was an aristocrat, but he strove to understand the Christianity of the Russian peasants by wandering among them as a mendicant.

Question 20

discursive

Answer 20

discursive
adjective: (of e.g. speech and writing) tending to depart from the main point

Many readers find it tough to read Moby Dick since the author is discursive, often cutting the action short to spend 20 pages on the history of a whale.

Question 21

inviolable

Answer 21

inviolable

never to be broken infringed or dishonoured

Question 22

internecine

Answer 22

internecine
destructive to both sides (of conflict) within a group or organization

“the region’s history of savage internecine warfare”

Question 23

solicitous

Answer 23

solicitous

showing hovering atttentitivness

Question 24

pontificate

Answer 24

pontificate

talk in a dogmatic and pompest manner

Question 25

demonstrative

Answer 25

demonstrative
adjective: given to or marked by the open expression of emotion

When Sally told James that she wanted to break up with him, she expected he would react demonstratively, but he quietly nodded his head and left without saying a word.

Question 26

dissemble

Answer 26

dissemble
verb: conceal one’s true motives, usually through deceit

To get close to the senator, the assassin dissembled his intentions, convincing many people that he was a reporter for a well-known newspaper.

Question 27

canard

Answer 27

canard
noun: a deliberately misleading fabrication

The public will always be fooled by the media’s canards.

Question 28

palaver

Answer 28

palaver
verb: speak (about unimportant matters) rapidly and incessantly

During the rain delay, many who had come to see the game palavered, probably hoping that idle chatter would make the time go by faster.

This word has other definitions but this is the most important one to study

Question 29

oblique

Answer 29

oblique
adjective: not straightforward; indirect

Herbert never explicitly revealed anything negative about Tom’s past, but at times he would obliquely suggest that Tom was not as innocent as he seemed.

This word has other definitions but this is the most important one to study

Question 30

bereft

Answer 30

bereft
adjective: unhappy in love; suffering from unrequited love

After 64 years of marriage, William was bereft after the death of his wife.

adjective: sorrowful through loss or deprivation

“You are not bereft if you haven’t played on your Xbox in the past week,” his mother said.

Question 31

surfiet

Answer 31

surfeit
noun: an excessive amount of something

There was no such thing as a surfeit of shopping for Nancy–she could stay at the outlet stores from opening to closing time.

Question 32

graft

Answer 32

graft
noun: corruption, usually through bribery

In countries with rampant graft, getting a driver’s license can require no more than paying an official.

This word has other definitions but this is the most important one to study

Question 33

pillory

Answer 33

pillory
verb: ridicule or expose to public scorn

After the candidate confessed, the press of the opposing party took the opportunity to pillory him, printing editorials with the most blatantly exaggerated accusations.

This word has other definitions but this is the most important one to study

Question 34

obtain

Answer 34

obtain
verb: be valid, applicable, or true

The custom of waiting your turn in line does not obtain in some countries, in which many people try to rush to front of the line at the same time.

Question 35

promulgate

Answer 35

promulgate
verb: state or announce

The President wanted to promulgate the success of the treaty negotiations, but he had to wait until Congress formally approved the agreement.

Question 36

exiguity

Answer 36

exiguity
noun: the quality of being meager

After two months at sea, the exiguity of the ship’s supplies forced them to search for fresh water and food.

Question 37

Abrogate

Answer 37

Abrogate

revoke formally

Question 38

Adjudicate

Answer 38

Adjudicate

to serve as a judge in a competition, to arrive at a judgment or conclusion

Question 39

Trenchant

Answer 39

Trenchant

characterized by full force or vigour

Question 40

Splenetic

Answer 40

Splenetic

very irritable

Question 41

Ineluctable

Answer 41

Ineluctable

impossible to avoid or evade

Question 42

Officious

Answer 42

Officious

intrusive in a meddling or offensive manner

Question 43

infelicitous

Answer 43

infelicitous

inappropriate

Question 44

dissolution

Answer 44

dissolution

living a life of debauchary and indulgence in sensual pleasures