GRE Barron's 17-18 Flashcards
encumber
burden. Some people encumber themselves with too much luggage when they take short trips.
endearment
fond word or act. Your gifts and endearments cannot make me forget your earlier insolence.
endue
provide with some quality; endow. He was endued with a lion’s courage.
enfranchise
admit to the rights of citizenship (especially the right to vote). Although blacks were enfranchised shortly after the Civil War, women did not receive the right to vote until 1920.
engross
occupy fully. John was so engrossed in his studies that he did not hear his mother call.
enigma
puzzle; mystery. “What do women want?” asked Dr. Sigmund Freud. Their behavior was an enigma to him.
enjoin
command; order; forbid. The owners of the company asked the court to enjoin the union from picketing the plant.
enmity
ill will; hatred. At Camp David President Carter labored to bring an end to the enmity that prevented Egypt and Israel from living in peace.
ennui
boredom. The monotonous routine of hospital life induced a feeling of ennui that made her moody and irritable.
enormity
hugeness (in a bad sense). He did not realize the enormity of his crime until he saw what suffering he had caused.
enrapture
please intensely. The audience was enraptured by the freshness of the voices and the excellent orchestration.
ensconce
settle comfortably. Now that their children were ensconced safely in the private school, the jet-setting parents decided to leave for Europe.
ensue
follow as a consequence; result. What a holler would ensue if people had to pay the minister as much to marry them as they have to pay a lawyer to get them a divorce.
enterprising
full of initiative. By coming up with fresh ways to market the company’s products, Mike proved himself to be an enterprising businessman.
enthrall
capture; enslave. From the moment he saw her picture, he was enthralled by her beauty.
entrance
put under a spell; carry away with emotion; を夢中にさせる. Shafts of sunlight on a wall could entrance her and leave her spellbound.
entreat
plead; ask earnestly. She entreated her father to let her stay out till midnight.
entree
entrance; a way in. Because of his wealth and social position, he had entree into the most exclusive circles.
enumerate
list; mention one by one. Huck hung his head in shame as Miss Watson enumerated his many flaws.
enunciate
utter or speak, especially distinctly. Stop mumbling! How will people understand you if you do not enunciate clearly?
environ
enclose; surround. In medieval days, Paris was environed by a wall.
eon
long period of time; an age. It has taken eons for our civilization to develop.
epigram
witty thought or saying, usually short. Poor Richard’s epigrams made Benjamin Franklin famous.
episodic
loosely connected. Though he tried to follow the plot of Gravity’s Rainbow, John found the novel too episodic.
epithet
word or phrase characteristically used to describe a person or thing. So many kings of France were named Charles that modern students need epithets to tell them apart: Charles the Wise, for example, was someone far different from Charles the Fat.
epitome
perfect example or embodiment. Singing “I am the very model of a modern Major-General” in The Pirates of Penzance, Major-General Stanley proclaimed himself the epitome of an officer and a gentleman.
equipoise
balance; balancing force; equilibrium. The high-wire acrobat used his pole as an equipoise to overcome the swaying caused by the wind.
equity
fairness; justice. Our courts guarantee equity to all.
erratic
odd; unpredictable. Investors become anxious when the stock market appears erratic.
erroneous
mistaken; wrong. I thought my answer was correct, but it was erroneous.
escapade
prank; flighty conduct; 向こう見ずな（突飛な）行い. The headmaster could not regard this latest escapade as a boyish joke and expelled the young man.
eschew
avoid Hoping to present himself to his girlfriend as a totally reformed character, he tried to eschew all the vices, especially chewing tobacco and drinking bathtub gin.
espouse
adopt; support. She was always ready to espouse a worthy cause.
estranged
separated; alienated. The estranged wife sought a divorce.
ethereal
light; heavenly; unusually refined. In Shakespeare’s The Tempest, the spirit Ariel is an ethereal creature, too airy and unearthly for our mortal world.
ethos
underlying character of a culture, group, etc. Seeing how tenderly Spaniards treated her small daughter made author Barbara Kingsolver aware of how greatly children were valued in the Spanish ethos.
eulogistic
praising. To everyone’s surprise, the speech was eulogistic rather than critical in tone.
euphony
sweet sound. Noted for its euphony even when it is spoken, the Italian language is particularly pleasing to the ear when sung.
evanescent
fleeting; vanishing; 消えていく、あまり長く続かない. For a brief moment, the entire skyline was bathed in an orange-red hue in the evanescent rays of the sunset.
evasive
not frank; eluding; 責任逃れの、言い逃れの. Your evasive answers convinced the judge that you were withholding important evidence.
evenhanded
impartial; fair. Do men and women receive evenhanded treatment from their teachers, or, as recent studies suggest, do teachers pay more attention to male students than to females?
exalt
raise in rank or dignity; praise. The actor Sean Connery was exalted to the rank of knighthood by the Queen; he now is known as Sir Sean Connery.
exasperate
vex; を憤慨させる、をイライラさせる. Johnny often exasperates his mother with his pranks.
exceptionable
objectionable. Do you find the punk rock band Green Day a highly exceptionable, thoroughly distasteful group, or do you think they are exceptionally talented performers?
excise
cut away; cut out. When you excise the dead and dying limbs of a tree, you not only improve its appearance but also enhance its chances off bearing fruit.
exclaim
cry out suddenly. “Watson! Behind you!” Holmes exclaimed, seeing the assassin hurl himself on his friend.
excoriate
scold with biting harshness; strip the skin off. Seeing the rips in Bill’s new pants, his mother furiously excoriated him for ruining his good clothes.
execrate
curse; express abhorrence for. The world execrates the memory of Hitler and hopes that genocide will never again be the policy of any nation.
exegesis
explanation, especially of biblical passages. The minister based her sermon on her exegesis of a difficult passage from the book of Job.
exemplary
serving as a model; outstanding. At commencement the dean praised Ellen for her exemplary behavior as class president.
exemplify
show by example; furnish an example. Three-time winner of the Super Bowl, Joe Montana exemplifies the ideal quarterback.
exertion
effort; expenditure of much physical work. The exertion involved in unscrewing the rusty bolt left her exhausted.
exhilarating
invigorating and refreshing; cheering. Though some of the hikers found tramping through the snow tiring, Jeffrey found the walk on the cold, crisp day exhilarating.
exhume
dig out of the ground; remove from the grave. Could evidence that might identify the serial killer have been buried with his victim? To answer this question, the police asked the authorities for permission to exhume the victim’s body.
exiguous
small; minute. Grass grew here and there, an exiguous outcropping among the rocks.
exodus
departure. The exodus from the hot and stuffy city was particularly noticeable on Friday evenings.
exonerate
acquit; exculpate; の容疑を晴らす、（責任などから人を）解放する. The defense team feverishly sought fresh evidence that might exonerate their client.
exorbitant
excessive. The people grumbled at his exorbitant prices but paid them because he had a monopoly.
expansive
outgoing and sociable; broad and extensive; able to increase in size. Mr. Fezzwig was in an expansive humor, cheerfully urging his guests to join in the Christmas feast.
expedient
suitable; practical; politic. A pragmatic politician, she was guided by what was expedient rather than by what was ethical.
expedite
hasten. Because we are on a tight schedule, we hope you will be able to expedite the delivery of our order.
expletive
interjection; profane oath; 罵り言葉. The sergeant’s remarks were filled with expletives that offended the new recruits.
exploit
deed or action, particularly a brave deed; 手柄、功績、快挙. Raoul Wallenberg was noted for his exploits in rescuing Jews from Hitler’s forces.
expostulation
protest; remonstrance. Despite the teacher’s scoldings and expostulations, the class remained unruly.
expropriate
take possession of. He questioned the government’s right to expropriate his land to create a wildlife preserve.
expunge
cancel; remove. If you behave, I will expunge this notation from your record.
expurgate
clean; remove offensive parts of a book. The editors felt that certain passages in the book had to be expurgated before it could be used in the classroom.
extenuate
weaken; mitigate. It is easier for us to extenuate our own shortcomings than those of others.
extol
praise; glorify. The president extolled the astronauts, calling them the pioneers of the Space Age.
extort
wring from; get money by threats, etc. The blackmailer extorted money from his victim.
extricate
free; disentangle. Icebreakers were needed to extricate the trapped whales from the icy floes that closed them in.
extrovert
person interested mostly in external objects and actions. A good salesperson is usually an extrovert who likes to mingle with people.
extrude
force or push out. Much pressure is required to extrude these plastics.
exuberance
overflowing abundance; joyful enthusiasm; flamboyance; lavishness. I was bowled over by the exuberance of Amy’s welcome.
exude
discharge; give forth; にじみ出る、発散する. We get maple syrup from the sap that the trees exude in early spring.
exult
rejoice; 歓喜する、勝ち誇る. We exulted when our team won the victory.
fabricate
build; lie. If we fabricate the buildings in this project out of standardized sections, we can reduce construction costs considerably.
facade
front (of building); superficial or false appearance. The ornate facade of the church was often photographed by tourists, who never bothered to walk around the building to view its other sides.
facile
easily accomplished; ready or fluent; superficial. Words came easily to Jonathan: he was a facile speaker and prided himself on being ready to make a speech at a moment’s notice.
factitious
artificial; sham. Hollywood actresses often create factitious tears by using glycerine.
