gre 3500-3759 Flashcards
trough
container for feeding farm animals; lowest point (of a wave, business cycle, etc.) (Eg: The hungry pigs struggled to get at the fresh swill in the trough. The surfer rode her board, coasting along )
truculence
agressiveness; ferocity (Eg: Tynan’s reviews were noted for their caustic attacks and general tone of truculence. )
truism
self-evident truth (Eg: Many a truism is well expressed in a proverb. )
truncate
cut the top off (Eg: )
tryst
meeting (Eg: The lovers kept their tryst even though they realized their danger. )
tumid
swollen; pompous; bombastic (Eg: I especially dislike his tumid style; I prefer writing which is less swollen and bombastic. )
tumult
commotion; riot; noise (Eg: She could not make herself heard over the tumult of the mob. )
tundra
rolling, treeless plain in Siberia and arctic North America (Eg: Despite the cold, many geologists are trying to discover valuable mineral deposits in the tundra. )
turbid
muddy; having the sediment disturbed (Eg: The water was turbid after the children had waded through it. )
turbulence
state of violent agitation (Eg: We were frightened by the turbulence of the ocean during the storm. )
tureen
deep dish for serving soup (Eg: The waiters brought the soup to the tables in silver tureens. )
turgid
swollen; distended (Eg: The turgid river threatened to overflow the levees and flood the contryside. )
turmoil
confusion; strife (Eg: Conscious he had sinned, he was in a state of spiritual turmoil. )
turncoat
traitor (Eg: The British considered Benedict Arnold a loyalist; the Americans considered him a turncoat. )
turpitude
depravity (Eg: A visitor may be denied admittance to this country if she has been guilty of moral turpitude. )
tutelage
guardianship; training (Eg: Under the tutelage of such masters of the instrument, she made rapid progress as a virtuoso. )
tutelary
protective; pertaining to a guardianship (Eg: I am acting in my tutelary capacity when I refuse to grant you permission to leave the campus. )
tycoon
wealthy leader (Eg: John D. Rockefeller was a prominent tycoon. )
tyranny
oppression; cruel government (Eg: Frederick Douglass fought against the tyranny of slavery throughout his entire life. )
tyro
beginner; novice (Eg: For a mere tyro, you have produced some marvelous results. )
timid
easily frightened; apprehensive (Eg: He was timid and cowardish; always backing up at daunting situations. )
tonic
invigorating medicine (Eg: The tonic water invigorated her, contrary to the enervating effect of the alcohol. )
toil
work laboriously; make slow painful progress (Eg: You must toil through 3500 words list in order to achieve a high score on GRE. )
ubiquitous
being everywhere; omnipresent (Eg: That Christmas “The Little Drummer Boy” seemed ubiquitous: Justin heard the tune everywhere he went. )
ulterior
situated beyond; unstated and often questionable (Eg: You must have an ulterior motive for your behavior, since there is no obvious reason for it. )
ultimate
final; not susceptible to further analysis (Eg: Scientists are searching for the ultimate truths. )
ultimatum
last demand; warning (Eg: Since they have ignored our ultimatum, our only recourse is to declare war. )
umbrage
resentment; anger; sense of injury or insult (Eg: She took umbrage at his remarks and stormed away in a huff. )
unanimity
complete agreement (Eg: We were surprised by the unanimity with which our proposals were accepted by the different groups. )
unassuaged
unsatisfied; not soothed (Eg: Her anger is unassuaged by your apology. )
unassuming
modest (Eg: He is so unassuming that some people fail to realize how great a man he really is. )
unbridled
violent (Eg: She had a sudden fit of unbridled rage. )
uncanny
strange; mysterious (Eg: You have the uncanny knack of reading my innermost thoughts. )
unconscionable
unscrupulous; excessive (Eg: She found the load shark’s demands unconscionable and impossible to meet. )
uncouth
outlandish; clumsy; boorish (Eg: )
unction
the act of anointing with oil (Eg: The anointing with oil of a person near death is called extreme unction. )
unctous
oily; bland; insincerely suave (Eg: Uriah Heep disguised his nefarious actions by unctuous protestations of his “‘umility.” )
undermine
weaken; sap (Eg: The recent corruption scandals have undermined many people’s faith in the city government. )
underscore
emphasize (Eg: Adressing the jogging class, Kim underscored the importance to runners of good nutrition. )
undulate
move with a wavelike motion (Eg: The flag undulated in the breeze. )
unearth
dig up (Eg: When they unearthed the city, the archeologists found many relics of an ancient civilization. )
unearthly
not earthly; weird (Eg: There is an unearthly atmosphere in her work that amazes the casual observer. )
unequivocal
plain; obvious (Eg: My answer to your proposal is an unequivocal and absolute “No.” )
unerringly
infallibly (Eg: My teacher unerringly pounced on the one typographical error in my essay. )
unfaltering
steadfast (Eg: She approached the guillotine with unfaltering steps. )
unfeigned
genuine; real (Eg: She turned so pale that I am sure her surprise was unfeigned. )
unfettered
liberated; freed from chains (Eg: Chained to the wall for months on end, the hostage despaired that he would ever be unfettered. )
unfledged
immature (Eg: It is hard for an unfledged writer to find a sympathetic publisher. )
unfrock
to strip a priest or minister of church authority (Eg: To disbar a lawyer, to unfrock a priest, to suspend a doctor’s license to practice–these are extreme steps )
ungainly
awkward (Eg: He is an ungainly young man; he trips over everything. )
unguent
ointment (Eg: )
uniformity
sameness; consistency; monotony (Eg: After a while, the uniformity of TV situation comedies becomes boring. )
unilateral
one-sided (Eg: This legislation is unilateral since it binds only one party in the controversy. )
unimpeachable
blameless and exemplary (Eg: Her conduct in office was unimpeachable and her record is spotless. )
uninhibited
unrepressed (Eg: The congregation was shocked by her uninhibited laughter during the sermon. )
unintimidating
unfrightening (Eg: Though Phil had expected to feel overawed when he met Joe Montana, he found the experience )
unique
without an equal; single in kind (Eg: You have the unique distinction of being the first student whom I have had to fail in this course. )
unison
unity of pitch; complete accord (Eg: The choir sang in unison. )
universal
characterizing or affecting all; present everywhere (Eg: At first, no one shared Christopher’s opinions; his theory that the world was round was met with universal )
unkempt
disheveled; with uncared-for appearance (Eg: The beggar was dirty and unkempt. )
unobtrusive
inconspicuous; not blatant (Eg: The secret service agents in charge of protecting the President tried to be as unobtrusive as possible. )
unprecedented
novel; unparalleled (Eg: Margaret Mitchell’s book Gone with the Wind was an unprecedented success. )
unprepossessing
unattractive (Eg: During adolescence many attractive young people somehow acquire the false notion that their appearance )
unravel
disentangle; solve (Eg: With equal ease Miss Marple unraveled tangled balls of yarn and baffling murder mysteries. )
unrequited
not reciprocated (Eg: Suffering the pangs of unrequited love, Olivia rebukes Cesario for his hard-heartedness. )
unruly
disobedient; lawless (Eg: The only way to curb this unruly mob is to use tear gas. )
unsavory
distasteful; morally offensive (Eg: People with unsavory reputations should not be allowed to work with young children. )
unscathed
unharmed (Eg: They prayed he would come back from the war unscathed. )
unseemly
unbecoming; indecent (Eg: Your levity is unseemly at this time of mourning. )
unsightly
ugly (Eg: Although James was an experienced emergency room nurse, he occasionally became queasy when faced )
unsullied
untarnished (Eg: I am happy that my reputation is unsullied. )
untenable
unsupportable (Eg: I find your theory untenable and must reject it. )
untoward
unfortunate; annoying (Eg: Untoward circumstances prevent me from being with you on this festive occasion. )
unwarranted
unjustified; groundless; undeserved (Eg: We could not understand Martin’s unwarranted rudeness to his mother’s guests. )
unwieldy
awkward; cumbersome; unmanageable (Eg: The large carton was so unwieldy that the movers had trouble getting it up the stairs. )
unwitting
unintentional; not knowing (Eg: She was the unwitting tool of the swindlers )
unwonted
unaccustomed (Eg: He hesitated to assume the unwonted role of master of ceremonies at the dinner. )
upbraid
scold; reproach (Eg: I must upbraid him for his unruly behavior. )
uproarious
marked by commotion; extremely funny; very noisy (Eg: The uproarious comedy hit Home Alone featured Macaulay Culkin, whose mugging and comic antics )
upshot
outcome (Eg: The upshot of the rematch was that the former champion proved that he still possessed all the skills of his )
urbane
suave; refined; elegant (Eg: The courtier was urbane and sophisticated )
urchin
mischievous child (usually a boy) (Eg: Get out! This store is no place for grubby urchins! )
ursine
bearlike; pertaining to a bear (Eg: Because of its ursine appearance, the great panda has been identified with the bears; actually, it is closely )
usurp
seize power; supplant (Eg: The revolution ended when the victorious rebel leader usurped the throne. )
usury
lending money at illegal rates of interest (Eg: The loan shark was found guilty of usury. )
utopia
imaginary land with perfect social and political system (Eg: Shangri-la was the name of James Hilton’s Tibetan utopia. )
uxorious
excessively devoted to one’s wife (Eg: His friends laughed at him because he was so uxorious and submissive to his wife’s desires. )
undergird
strengthen the base of (Eg: Whereas relativity theory undermined the Newtonian mechanics, cosmology was undergirded by it. )
vacillate
waver; fluctuate (Eg: Uncertain which suitor she ought to marry, the princess vacillated, saying now one, now the other. )
vacuous
empty; lacking in ideas; stupid (Eg: The candidate’s vacuous remarks annoyed the audience, who had hoped to hear more than empty )
vagabond
wanderer; tramp (Eg: In summer, college students wander the roads of Europe like carefree vagabonds. )
vagary
caprice; whim (Eg: She followed every vagary of fashion. )
vagrant
stray; random (Eg: He tried to study, but could not collect his vagrant thoughts. )
vagrant
homeless wanderer (Eg: Because he was a stranger in town with no visible means of support, Martin feared he would be jailed as a )
vainglorious
boastful; excessively conceited (Eg: )
valedictory
pertaining to farewell (Eg: I found the valedictory address too long; leave-taking should be brief. )
valid
logically convincing; sound; legally acceptable (Eg: You’re going to have to come up with a better argument if you want to convince me that your reasoning is )
validate
confirm; ratify (Eg: I will not publish my findings until I validate my results. )
valor
bravery (Eg: He received the Medal of Honor for his valor in battle. )
vampire
ghostly being that sucks the blood of the living (Eg: Children were afraid to go to sleep at night because of the many legends of vampires. )
vanguard
forerunners; advance forces (Eg: We are the vanguard of a tremendous army that is following us. )
vantage
position giving an advantage (Eg: They fired upon the enemy from behind trees, walls and any other point of vantage they could find. )
vapid
insipid; inane (Eg: She delivered an uninspired and vapid address. )
variegated
many-colored (Eg: Without her glasses, Gretchen saw the fields of tulips as a variegated blur. )
vassal
in feudalism, one who held land of a superior lord (Eg: The lord demanded that his vassals contribute more to his military campaign. )
vaunted
boasted; bragged; highly publicized (Eg: This much vaunted project proved a disappointment when it collapsed. )
veer
change in direction (Eg: After what seemed an eternity, the wind veered to the east and the storm abated. )
vegetate
live in a monotonous way (Eg: I do not understand how you can vegetate in this quiet village after the adventurous life you have led. )
vehement
impetuous; with marked vigor (Eg: He spoke with vehement eloquence in defense of his client. )
velocity
speed (Eg: The train went by at considerable velocity. )
venal
capable of being bribed (Eg: )
vendetta
blood feud (Eg: The rival mobs engaged in a bitter vendetta. )
vendor
seller (Eg: The fruit vendor sold her wares from a stall on the sidewalk. )
veneer
thin layer; cover (Eg: Casual acquaintances were deceived by his veneer of sophistication and failed to recognize his fundamental )
venerable
deserving high respect (Eg: We do not mean to be disrespectful when we refuse to follow the advice of our venerable leader. )
venerate
revere (Eg: In China, the people venerate their ancestors. )
venial
forgivable; trivial (Eg: We may regard a hugry man’s stealing as a venial crime. )
venison
the meat of a deer (Eg: The hunters dined on venison. )
vent
small opening; outlet (Eg: The wine did not flow because the air vent in the barrel was clogged. )
vent
express; utter (Eg: He vented his wrath on his class. )
ventral
abdominal (Eg: We shall now examine the ventral plates of this serpent, not the dorsal side. )
ventriloquist
someone who can make his or her voice seem to come from another person or thing (Eg: This ventriloquist does an act in which she has a conversation with a wooden dummy. )
venturesome
bold (Eg: A group of venturesome women were the first to scale Mt.Annapurna. )
venue
location (Eg: The attorney asked for a change of venue; he thought his client would do better if the trial were held in a )
veracious
truthful (Eg: I can recommend him for this position because I have always found him veracious and reliable. )
veracity
truthfulness (Eg: Trying to prove Hill a liar, Senator Spector repeatedly questioned her veracity. )
verbalize
put into words (Eg: I know you don’t like to talk about these things, but please try to verbalize your feelings. )
verbatim
word for word (Eg: He repeated the message verbatim. )
verbiage
pompous array of words (Eg: After we had waded through all the verbiage, we discovered that the writer had said very little. )
verbose
wordy (Eg: This article is too verbose; we must edit it. )
verdant
green; lush in vegetation (Eg: Monet’s paintings of the verdant meadows were symphonies in green. )
verdigris
green coating on copper which has been exposed to the weather (Eg: Despite all attempts to protect the statue from the elements, it became coated with verdigris. )
verge
border; edge (Eg: Madame Curie knew she was on the verge of discovering the secrets of radioactive elements. )
verisimilitude
appearance of truth; likelihood (Eg: Critics praised her for the verisimilitude of her performance as Lady Macbeth. She was completely )
verity
truth; reality (Eg: The four verities were revealed to Buddha during his long meditation. )
vernacular
living language; natural style (Eg: Cut out those old-fashioned “thee’s” and “thou’s” and write in the vernacular. )
vernal
pertaining to spring (Eg: We may expect vernal showers all during the month of April. )
versatile
having many talents; capable of working in many fields (Eg: He was a versatile athlete; at college he had earned varsity letters in baseball, football, and track. )
vertex
summit (Eg: Let us drop a perpendicular line from the vertex of the triangle to the base. )
vertigo
dizziness (Eg: We test potential plane pilots for susceptibility to spells of vertigo. )
verve
enthusiasm; liveliness (Eg: She approached her studies with such verve that it was impossible for her to do poorly. )
vestige
trace; remains (Eg: We discovered vestiges of early Indian life in the cave. )
vex
annoy; distress (Eg: Please try not to vex your mother; she is doing the best she can. )
viable
capable of maintaining life; practicable; workable (Eg: The infant, though prematurely born, is viable and has a good chance to survive. )
viand
food (Eg: There was a variety of viands at the feast. )
vicarious
acting as a substitute; done by a deputy (Eg: Many people get a vicarious thrill at the movies by imagining they are the characters on the screen. )
vicissitude
change of fortune (Eg: Humbled by life’s vicissitudes, the last emperor of China worked as a lowly gardener in the palace over )
victuals
food (Eg: I am very happy to be able to provide you with these victuals; I know you are hungry. )
vie
contend; compete (Eg: Politicians vie with one another, competing for donations and votes. )
vigilance
watchfulness (Eg: Eternal vigilance is the price of liberty. )
vigor
active strength (Eg: Although he was over seventy years old, Jack had the vigor of a man in his prime. )
vignette
picture; short literary sketch (Eg: The New Yorker published her latest vignette. )
vilify
slander (Eg: She is a liar and is always trying to vilify my reputation. )
vindicate
clear of charges (Eg: I hope to vindicate my client and return him to society as a free man. )
vindictive
revengeful (Eg: She was very vindictive and never forgave an injury. )
vintner
winemaker; seller of wine (Eg: The poet wondered what the vintners could buy that would be half as precious as the wine they sold. )
viper
poisonous snake (Eg: The habitat of the horned viper, a particularly venomous snake, is in sandy regions like the Sahara or the )
virile
manly (Eg: I do not accept the premise that a man is virile only when he is belligerent. )
virtual
in essence; for practical purposes (Eg: She is a virtual financial wizard when it comes to money matters. )
virtue
goodness; moral excellence; good quality (Eg: A virtue carried to extremes can turn into something resembling vice; humility, for example, can )
virtuoso
highly skilled artist (Eg: The child prodigy Yehudi Menuhin grew into a virtuoso whose virtuosity on the violin thrilled millions. )
virulent
extremely poisonous (Eg: The virus is highly virulent and has made many of us ill for days. )
virus
disease communicator (Eg: The doctors are looking for a specific medicine to control this virus. )
visage
face; appearance (Eg: The stern visage of the judge indicated that she had decided to impose a severe penalty. )
visceral
felt in one’s inner organs (Eg: She disliked the visceral sensations she had whenever she rode the roller coaster. )
viscid
adhesive; gluey (Eg: The trunk of the maple tree was viscid with sap. )
viscous
sticky, gluey (Eg: Melted tar is a viscous substance. )
vise
tool for holding work in place (Eg: Before filling its edges, the keysmith took the blank key and fixed it firmly between the jaws of a vise. )
visionary
produced by imagination; fanciful; mystical (Eg: She was given to visionary schemes that never materialized. )
vital
vibrant and lively; critical; living, breathing (Eg: The vital, highly energetic first aid instructor stressed that it was vital in examining accident victims to note )
vitiate
spoil the effect of; make inoperative (Eg: Fraud will vitiate the contract. )
vitreous
pertaining to or resembling glass (Eg: Although this plastic has many vitreous qualties such as transparency, it is unbreakable. )
vitriolic
corrosive; sarcastic (Eg: Such vitriolic criticism is uncalled for. )
vituperative
abusive; scolding (Eg: )
vivacious
lively or animated; sprightly (Eg: She had always been vivacious and sparkling. )
vivisection
act of dissecting living animals (Eg: The Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals opposed vivisection and deplored the practice of )
vixen
female fox; ill-tempered woman (Eg: Aware that she was right once again, he lost his temper and called her a shrew and a vixen. )
vociferous
clamorous; noisy (Eg: The crowd grew vociferous in its anger and threatened to take the law into its own hands. )
vogue
popular fashion (Eg: Jeans became the vogue on many college campuses. )
volatile
changeable; explosive; evaporating rapidly (Eg: The political climate today is extremely volatile: no one can predict what the electorate will do next. )
volition
act of making a conscious choice (Eg: She selected this dress of her own volition. )
voluble
fluent; glib (Eg: She was a voluble speaker, always ready to talk. )
voluminous
bulky; large (Eg: Despite her family burdens, she kept up a voluminous correspondence with her friends. )
voluptuous
gratifying the senses (Eg: The nobility during the Renaissance led voluptuous lives. )
voracious
ravenous (Eg: The wolf is a voracious animal, its hunger never satisfied. )
vortex
whirlwind; whirlpool; center of turbulence; predicament into which one is inexorably plunged (Eg: Sucked into the vortex of the tornado, Dorothy and Toto were carried from Kansas to Oz. )
vouchsafe
grant condescendingly; guarantee (Eg: I can safely vouchsafe you fair return on your investment. )
voyeur
Peeping (Eg: Jill called Jack a voyeur when she caught him aiming his binoculars at a bedroom window of the house )
vulnerable
susceptible to wounds (Eg: Achilles was vulnerable only in his heel. )
vulpine
like a fox; crafty (Eg: She disliked his sly ways, but granted him a certain vulpine intelligence. )
waffle
speak equivocally about an issue (Eg: When asked directly about the governor’s involvement in the savings and loan scandal, the press secretary )
waft
moved gently by wind or waves (Eg: Daydreaming, he gazed at the leaves that wafted past his window. )
waggish
mischievous; humorous; tricky (Eg: He was a prankster who, unfortunately, often overlooked the damage he could cause with his waggish )
waif
homeless child or animal (Eg: Although he already had eight cats, he could not resist adopting yet another feline waif. )
waive
give up temporarily; yield (Eg: I will waive my rights in this matter in order to expedite our reaching a proper decision. )
wallow
roll in; indulge in; become helpless (Eg: The hippopotamus loves to wallow in the mud. )
wan
having a pale or sickly color; pallid (Eg: Suckling asked, “Why so pale and wan, fond lover?” )
wane
grow gradually smaller (Eg: From now until December 21, the winter solstice, the hours of daylight will wane. )
wangle
wiggle out; fake (Eg: She tried to wangle an invitation to the party. )
wanton
unrestrained; willfully malicious; unchaste (Eg: Pointing to the stack of bills, Sheldon criticized Sarah for her wanton expenditures. In response, Sara )
warble
sing; babble (Eg: Every morning the birds warbled outside her window. )
warrant
justify; authorize (Eg: Before the judge issues the injunction, you must convince her this action is warranted. )
warranty
guarantee; assurance by seller (Eg: The purchaser of this automobile is protected by the manufacturer’s warranty that he will replace any )
warren
tunnels in which rabbits live; crowded conditions in which people live (Eg: The tenement was a veritable warren, packed with people too poor to live elsewhere. )
wary
very cautious (Eg: The spies grew wary as they approached the sentry. )
wastrel
profligate (Eg: He was denounced as a wastrel who had dissipated his inheritance. )
wax
increase; grow (Eg: With proper handling, his fortunes waxed and he became rich. )
waylay
ambush; lie in wait (Eg: They agreed to waylay their victim as he passed through the dark alley going home. )
wean
accustom a baby not to nurse; give up a cherished activity (Eg: He decided he would wean himself away from eating junk food and stick to fruits and vegetables. )
weather
endure the effects of weather or other forces (Eg: He weathered the changes in his personal life with difficulty, as he had no one in whom to confide. )
welt
mark from beating or whipping (Eg: The evidence of child abuse was very clear; Jennifer’s small body was covered with welts and bruises. )
welter
turmoil; bewildering jumble (Eg: The existing welter of overlapping federal and state proclaims cries out for immediate reform. )
welter
wallow (Eg: At the height of the battle, the casualties were so numerous that the victims weltered in their blood while )
wheedle
cajole; coax; deceive by flattery (Eg: She knows she can wheedle almost anything she wants from her father. )
whelp
young wolf, dog, tiger, etc. (Eg: This collie whelp won’t do for breeding, but he’d make a fine pet. )
whet
sharpen; stimulate (Eg: The odors from the kitchen are whetting my appetite; I will be ravenous by the time the meal is served. )
whiff
puff or gust (of air, scent, etc.); hint (Eg: The slightest whiff of Old Spice cologne brought memories of George to her mind. )
whimsical
capricious; fanciful (Eg: He dismissed his generous gift to his college as a sentimental fancy, an old man’s whimsical gesture. )
whinny
neigh like a horse (Eg: )
whit
smallest speck (Eg: There is not a whit of intelligence or understanding in your observations. )
whittle
pare; cut off bits (Eg: As a present for Aunt Polly, Tom whittled some clothespins out of a chunk of wood. )
whorl
ring of leaves around stem; ring (Eg: Identification by fingerprints is based on the difference in shape and number of whorls on the fingers. )
willful
intentional; headstrong (Eg: Donald had planned to kill his wife for months; clearly, her death was a case of deliberate, willful murder, )
wily
cunning; artful (Eg: She is as wily as a fox in avoiding trouble. )
wince
shrink back; flinch (Eg: The screech of the chalk on the blackboard made her wince. )
windfall
fallen fruit; unexpected lucky event (Eg: This huge tax refund is quite a windfall. )
winnow
sift; separate good parts from bad (Eg: This test will winnow out the students who study from those who don’t bother. )
winsome
agreeable; gracious; engaging (Eg: By her winsome manner, she made herself liked by everyone who met her. )
wispy
thin; slight; barely discernible (Eg: Worried about preserving his few wispy tufts of hair, Walter carefully massaged his scalp and applied hair )
wistful
vaguely longing; sadly pensive (Eg: With a last wistful glance at the happy couples dancing in the hall, Sue headed back to her room to study )
withdrawn
introverted; remote (Eg: Rebuffed by his colleagues, the initially outgoing young researcher became increasingly withdrawn. )
wither
shrivel; decay (Eg: Cut flowers are beautiful for a day, but all too soon they wither. )
witless
foolish; idiotic (Eg: Such witless and fatuous statements will create the impression that you are an ignorant individual. )
witticism
witty saying; facetious remark (Eg: What you regard as witticisms are often offensive to sensitive people. )
wizardry
sorcery; magic (Eg: Merlin amazed the knights with his wizardry. )
wizened
withered; shriveled (Eg: The wizened old man in the home for the aged was still active and energetic. )
wont
custom; habitual procedure (Eg: As was his wont, he jogged two miles every morning before going to work. )
worldly
engrossed in matters of this earth; not spiritual (Eg: You must leave your worldly goods behind you when you go to meet your Maker. )
wrangle
quarrel; obtain through arguing; herd cattle (Eg: They wrangled over their inheritance. )
wrath
anger; fury (Eg: She turned to him, full of wrath, and said, “What makes you think I’ll accept lower pay for this job than )
wreak
inflict (Eg: I am afraid he will wreak his vengeance on the innocent as well as the guilty. )
wrench
pull; strain; twist (Eg: She wrenched free of her attacker and landed a powerful kick to his kneecap. )
wrest
pull away; take by violence (Eg: With only ten seconds left to play, our team wrested victory from their grasp. )
writ
written command issued by a court (Eg: The hero of Leonard’s novel is a process server who invents unorthodox ways of serving writs on reluctant )
writhe
squirm, twist (Eg: He was writhing in pain, desperate for the drug his body required. )
wry
twisted; with a humorous twist (Eg: We enjoy Dorothy Parker’s verse for its wry wit. )
xenophobia
fear or hatred of foreigners (Eg: When the refugee arrived in America, he was unprepared for the xenophobia he found there. )
yen
longing; urge (Eg: She had a yen to get away and live on her own for a while. )
yeoman
man owing small estate; middle-class farmer (Eg: It was not the aristocrat but the yeoman who determined the nation’s policies. )
yield
amount produced; crop; income on investment (Eg: An experienced farmer can estimate the annual yield of his acres with surprising accuracy. )
yield
give in; surrender (Eg: The wounded knight refused to yield to his foe. )
yoke
join together, unite (Eg: I don’t wish to be yoked to him in marriage, as if we were cattle pulling a plow. )
yokel
country bumpkin (Eg: At school, his classmates regarded him as a yokel and laughed at his rustic mannerisms. )
yore
time past (Eg: He dreamed of the elegant homes of yore, but gave no thought to their inelegant plumbing. )
zany
crazy; comic (Eg: I can watch the Marx brothers’ zany antics for hours. )
zeal
eager enthusiasm (Eg: Wang’s zeal was contagious; soon all his fellow students were busily making posters, inspired by his ardent )
zealot
fanatic; person who shows excessive zeal (Eg: It is good to have a few zealots in our group for their enthusiasm is contagious. )
zenith
point directly overhead in the sky; summit (Eg: When the sun was at its zenith, the glare was not as strong as at sunrise and sunset. )
zephyr
gentle breeze; west wind (Eg: When these zephyrs blow, it is good to be in an open boat under a full sail. )
