GRE Cards Deck R

Question 1

ranks

noun

Answer 1

Definition: Personnel; a group of people considered all together
Usage: Among the ranks of our alumni are two Senators and many famous authors.
More Info: Many people know the word rank as “a level or grade,” as in A general has a higher rank than a sergeant. The other use of ranks is also originally related to the military: the ranks or sometimes the rank and file means all the regular soldiers (not the officers). Ranks also refers to soldiers standing in a particular formation, so the expression to break rank means to rebel, disagree, or disrupt a situation in which everyone is doing the same thing, as in The author broke rank with her colleagues in the field of personal development by suggesting that “positive thinking” may be doing more damage than good.

Question 2

reap

verb

Answer 2

Definition: Harvest, such as by cutting; gather; get as a result of one’s effort
Usage: He worked night and day in the strange new country, never stopping to rest, for he knew he would reap his reward when his family greeted him as a hero for all the money he had sent back home.
Related Words: Reap and sow are used together or separately as metaphors related to farming, and specifically the idea that the seeds that you plant (or sow) determine what you will later harvest (or reap). A common expression is You reap what you sow.
More Info: The “Grim Reaper” is a fictional figure who uses a scythe (curved blade on a handle) to “cut down” lives as one would cut down grain.

Question 3

recluse

noun

Answer 3

Definition: Person who lives in seclusion
Usage: That show about “hoarders” featured a recluse who hadn’t left her house in six years.
Related Words: Hermit or Anchorite (person who lives away from society, esp. for religious reasons)
More Info: Recluse is generally more negative than hermit—it often refers to a person thought by others to be a bit crazy. Recluse shares a root (“claudere,” meaning “to close or shut”) with secluded and exclusive.

Question 4

refute

verb

Answer 4

Definition: Prove to be false
Usage: She’s not a very valuable member of the debate team, actually—she loves making speeches, but she’s not very good at refuting opponents’ arguments.
Related Words: Gainsay (deny, refute, oppose), Negate (deny or refute; make void or cause to be ineffective)
More Info: An opposite of refute is corroborate (confirm).

Question 5

relegate

verb

Answer 5

Definition: Send or commit to an inferior place, rank, condition, etc.; exile, banish; assign (a task) to someone else
Usage: After the legal associate offended one of the partners, he found himself relegated to working on minor—even unwinnable—cases. / This protest is occurring because we refuse to be relegated to the fringes of society—we demand full inclusion!
More Info: Relegate shares a root (“send”) with legate, a deputy or emissary.

Question 6

remedial
(adj)
Also remediate (verb)

Answer 6

Definition: Providing a remedy, curative; correcting a deficient skill
Usage: After harassment occurs in the workplace, it is important that the company take remedial action right away, warning or firing the offender as appropriate, and making sure the complainant’s concerns are addressed. / For those who need remedial reading help, we offer a summer school program that aims to help students read at grade level.
Related Words: Redress (setting something right after a misdeed)
More Info: Something irremediable cannot be remediated.

Question 7

render

verb

Answer 7

Definition: Give, submit, surrender; translate; declare formally; cause to become
Usage: When you render your past due payments, we will turn your phone back on. / Only in her second year of Japanese, she was unable to render the classic poem into English. / The judge rendered a verdict that rendered us speechless.
More Info: From an Old French word for “give back.” This word has so many definitions because it is so general. You can even render fat (by melting it); many definitions of render have to do with changing the state of something.

Question 8

replete

adj

Answer 8

Definition: Supplied in abundance, filled, gorged (used with with)
Usage: This essay is replete with errors—I don’t think you even bothered to use spellcheck, much less carefully edit your work.
Related Words: Surfeit, surplus, plethora (excess, overabundance)
More Info: Replete shares a root (“plenus” for “full”) with plenty and plenary (entire, complete).

Question 9

reproach

noun, verb

Answer 9

Definition: Blame, disgrace (noun); criticize, express disappointment in (verb)
Usage: I’m not really enjoying my foreign study program. My host mom reproached me in Spanish—it sounded really harsh, but I couldn’t really understand her and I have no idea what I did wrong!
Related Words: Admonish means scold or mildly criticize. Reprove, upbraid, reprimand, rebuke, excoriate, and castigate are all words for criticizing or scolding more harshly.
More Info: The expression beyond reproach means “not able to be reproached”—due to being good or perfect.

Question 10

repudiate

verb

Answer 10

Definition: Reject, cast off, deny that something has authority
Usage: If you receive an erroneous notice from a collections agency, you have 30 days to repudiate the debt by mail. / As part of becoming an American citizen, Mr. Lee repudiated his former citizenship.
Related Words: Recant (withdraw, retract, or disavow something one has previously said, esp. formally)

Question 11

requite

verb

Answer 11

Definition: Reciprocate, repay, or revenge, to give or do something in return for something given to you or done for you

Usage: Requited love is not enough to sustain a long-term relationship.

Related Words: Redress (setting something right after a misdeed; compensation or relief for injury or wrongdoing), Recompense (repay, reward, compensate)
More Info: Most people only know this word in the phrase unrequited love. But anything you can “get someone back for,” you can requite—kindness, murder, etc.

Question 12

rescind

verb

Answer 12

Definition: Annul, repeal, make void

Usage: The policy of charging air travelers for vegetarian meals proved unpopular and has already been rescinded.

Related Words: Negate (deny or refute; make void or cause to be ineffective), Nullify (make void or invalid)

Question 13

resolution

noun

Answer 13

Definition: The quality of being firmly determined; resolving to do something; a formal judgment, esp. decided by a vote
Usage: The city government passed a resolution to support the new monorail. / A few setbacks did not dampen her resolution to complete her Ph.D.—equipped with her new prosthetic leg, she made her way back into the lab and continued her research.
Related Words: Resolve shares the meaning “the quality of being firmly determined” and would also work in the second sentence above.
More Info: Of course, a New Year’s resolution is a decision to do something or make a change. Most people aren’t resolved enough to keep their resolutions past January.

Question 14

resolve

verb, noun

Answer 14

Definition: Find a solution to; firmly decide to do something; decide by formal vote (verb); firmness of purpose (noun)
Usage: She was resolved to find a marrow donor for her son, and led a stunningly successful drive to get people to sign up for a national donor registry. Even when no match was found for her son in the first year, her resolve was undampened.
Related Words: Resolute (firmly determined), Unequivocal (clear or decided), Resolution (the quality of being firmly determined; resolving to do something; a formal judgment, esp. decided by a vote)
More Info: To lose your resolve means to become unsure or to lose your nerve.

Question 15

respectively

adverb

Answer 15

Definition: In the order given
Usage: His poems “An Ode to the Blossoms of Sheffield” and “An Entreaty to Ladies All Too Prim” were written in 1756 and 1758, respectively.
More Info: Respectively is important in making the meaning clear in some sentences. Lisa and John have a cat and a dog sounds as though the couple jointly owns the pets, whereas Lisa and John have a cat and a dog, respectively makes it clear that the cat is Lisa’s and the dog is John’s.

Question 16

restive

adj

Answer 16

Definition: Impatient or uneasy under the control of another; resisting being controlled
Usage: The company was purchased by a larger competitor, and the employees grew restive as the new bosses curtailed their freedoms and put a hold on their projects.
More Info: Don’t confuse with restless, meaning “lacking rest” or “constantly moving.” You grow restive while waiting for a boss to approve your project; when you can’t sleep, you have a restless night.

Question 17

reticent

adj

Answer 17

Definition: Not talking much; private (of a person), restrained, reserved
Usage: She figured that, to rise to the top, it was best to be reticent about her personal life; thus, even her closest colleagues were left speculating at the water cooler about whether her growing belly actually indicated a pregnancy she simply declined to mention to anyone.
Related Words: Laconic (using few words, concise)
More Info: Taciturn also means not talking much. The Latin root “tacere” (to be silent) appears in both words.

Question 18

retrospective

adj, noun

Answer 18

Definition: Looking to the past or backward; applying to the past, retroactive (adj); an art exhibit of an artist’s work over a long period of time (noun)
Usage: The proposed law is retrospective: anyone who violated the law before the law even existed can be prosecuted.
More Info: The expression in retrospect is often used to express what the speaker would have done or thought in the past if he knew what he knows now. In retrospect, I should have realized that a Nigerian widow wouldn’t want to leave me a million dollars for no reason, but at the time, I was very excited.

Question 19

reverent

adj

Answer 19

Definition: Feeling or expressing very deep respect and awe
Usage: Ayn Rand is a controversial figure, but critical views are not welcome at the local Objectivist Club meeting, where everyone expresses a reverent view of the author.
Related Words: Pious (devout; religiously reverent and dutiful)
More Info: This word comes from the same place as reverend (a minister, as in a church).

Question 20

rhetoric
(noun)
Also rhetorical (adj)

Answer 20

Definition: The art or study of persuasion through speaking or writing; language that is elaborate or pretentious but actually empty, meaning little
Usage: The ancient Greeks used to study rhetoric as a major academic subject. Today, if you want to improve your rhetorical skills, you will probably have to hunt down a public speaking class or join Toastmasters. / The politician’s blather is all rhetoric and no substance.
Related Words: Oratorical is a synonym. While a lawyer needs good rhetorical skills, sometimes rhetorical and oratorical mean only related to style and effect, and lacking substance.
More Info: A rhetorical question is one intended for effect, and not intended to be answered, as in “Are you stupid?”

Question 21

rife

adj

Answer 21

Definition: Happening frequently, abundant, currently being reported
Usage: Reports of financial corruption are rife.
Related Words: Replete (supplied in abundance, filled, gorged), Ridden (dominated or burdened by), Teeming (swarming, as in teeming with people)
More Info: From an Old Norse word for “river”—thus the idea of “flowing freely.”

Question 22

rudimentary

adj

Answer 22

Definition: Elementary, relating to the basics; undeveloped, primitive
Usage: My knowledge of Chinese is quite rudimentary—I get the idea of characters and I can order food, but I really can’t read this document you’ve just given me.
Related Words: Inchoate (just begun, undeveloped, unorganized), Nascent and Incipient (just beginning to exist, or in a very early stage of development)
More Info: Rudimentary shares a root with rude. Rude originally meant crude or unlearned—that is, lacking rudiments (first principles or early training).

Question 23

rustic

adj, noun

Answer 23

Definition: Relating to country life, unsophisticated; primitive; made of rough wood (adj); a rural or uncultured person (noun)
Usage: For their honeymoon, they eschewed fancy hotels and instead chose a rustic cabin in the woods. / Grandpa was a true rustic—I was happy to have him visit, but not so happy to find him urinating outside in a bucket when we have several perfectly nice bathrooms.
Related Words: Bumpkin and yokel are also words for an awkward, uncultured, simple person, generally from the country.

Question 24

raconteur

noun

Answer 24

Definition: Witty storyteller

Usage: Miguel was quite the raconteur—the laughing party guests naturally congregated in a cluster around him as he held court.

Related Words: A bard is a poet/storyteller—Shakespeare is often called “The Bard.” Bard also evokes images of a medieval poet traveling from town to town, accompanying himself on an instrument. A raconteur is more of a person who is fun at parties.

More Info: From the French verb for “recount,” or “tell.”

Question 25

rarefied | adj

Answer 25

Definition: Lofty, very high up or elevated (in a metaphorical way); exclusive, select; thin, pure, or less dense (as air at the top of a mountain) Usage: Among the rarefied ranks of conference attendees, she counted two Nobel Prize Winners, a MacArthur Genius Grant winner, and Bill Gates—and that was just at one lunch table! Related Words: Elevate (raise, lift up; lift the spirits of; move up to a higher rank or status or raise up to a higher spiritual or intellectual plane), Lofty (in a high position, esp. in character, spirit, or rank), Edify (uplift, enlighten, instruct or improve in a spiritual or moral way), Winnow (separate the good from the bad, or narrow down to just the best)

Question 26

reactant | noun

Answer 26

Definition: Something that reacts; a substance that undergoes a change in a chemical reaction Usage: The two men had been rivals since high school; when both were elected to the city council, they became reactants in the worsening deadlock of an already-polarized city government. Related Words: Catalyst (causer of change—or, in chemistry, a substance that causes or accelerates a reaction but is not itself changed)

Question 27

recalcitrant | adj

Answer 27

Definition: Not obedient, resisting authority, hard to manage Usage: As an aspiring kindergarten teacher, she had imagined days filled with giggles and singing songs about friendship—she was not prepared for a roomful of twenty recalcitrant children who wouldn’t even sit down, much less learn the words to “Holding Hands Around the World.” Related Words: Intractable, Intransigent, Refractory, and Obstreperous are also used to describe people who are stubborn and hard to control. More Info: Recalcitrant comes from Latin roots meaning “to strike with the heels”—that is, to kick or kick back.

Question 28

recant | verb

Answer 28

Definition: Withdraw, retract, or disavow something one has previously said, esp. formally Usage: For saying that the Sun and not the Earth was the center of the universe, Galileo was brought on trial for heresy, forced to recant, and spent the rest of his life under house arrest. Of course, a forced recantation doesn’t say much about whether the person really abjures his former views. Related Words: Repudiate (reject, cast off, deny that something has authority) More Info: The root “cant” (“sing”) is also found in chant, cantor, incantation, and chanteuse (female singer).

Question 29

recapitulate | verb

Answer 29

Definition: Summarize, repeat in a concise way Usage: I’m sorry I had to leave your presentation to take a call—I only have a minute, but can you recapitulate what you’re proposing? Related Words: Précis (concise summary, abstract), Digest (a periodical containing shortened versions of works published elsewhere), Compendium (concise but complete summary; a list or collection) More Info: Ever wonder where “recap” came from? Here you are! Don’t confuse recapitulate with capitulate, which means “surrender, give in.”

Question 30

recondite | adj

Answer 30

Definition: Not easily understood, hidden, dealing with an obscure topic Usage: We had to work from material that was both complex and recondite. Related Words: Arcane and Esoteric are synonyms.

Question 31

recrudescent (adj) Also recrudescence (noun), recrudesce (verb)

Answer 31

Definition: Revival, breaking out into renewed activity, a sudden new appearance and growth, especially of something dangerous and unpleasant Usage: There has been an unwelcome recrudescence of racist attacks. Related Words: Renascent (reviving, becoming active again), Resurgent (having a revival, renewing, rising or surging again) More Info: Recrudescent shares a root (meaning “raw”) with crudité, vegetables served raw. It seems “raw” here is meant in the sense of “harsh, bloody,” and recrudesce is generally used for the reappearance of disease. (For something positive, renaissance might be a more appropriate word).

Question 32

redound | verb

Answer 32

Definition: To have a good or bad effect, esp. as a result of a person’s efforts or actions (usually used with to, on, or upon) Usage: “Cramming” vocabulary words probably won’t be very effective, but studying a little every day will redound to your success. Related Words: Reap (harvest, get as a result of one’s effort) More Info: Don’t confuse with rebound, to bounce back (as a basketball) or recover from illness.

Question 33

redress | noun, verb

Answer 33

Definition: Setting something right after a misdeed, compensation or relief for injury or wrongdoing (noun); correct, set right, remedy (verb) Usage: My client was an innocent victim of medical malpractice. As would anyone who had the wrong leg amputated in surgery, he is seeking financial redress. Related Words: Recompense (repay, reward, compensate), Requite (reciprocate, repay, or revenge) More Info: The expression “make amends” means to ask for forgiveness or redress one’s wrongs.

Question 34

refractory | adj

Answer 34

Definition: Stubbornly disobedient, hard to manage Usage: No matter how much job training the city gives them, refractory ex-criminals are simply unemployable. Related Words: Intractable, Intransigent, Recalcitrant, and Obstreperous are also used to describe people who are stubborn and hard to control.

Question 35

refulgent | adj

Answer 35

Definition: Shining, radiant Usage: Her new engagement ring was refulgent—she was so happy with it. I’ll bet she polished it every night. Related Words: Burnish (polish, make smooth and lustrous), Gilded (covered with a thin layer of gold; superficially good) More Info: Effulgent is a synonym. The rare word subfulgent means “only slightly shiny.”

Question 36

rejoinder | noun

Answer 36

Definition: Response or reply, esp. a witty comeback, a quick and often angry or humorous answer Usage: She always has a witty rejoinder to/for any question. Related Words: Riposte is a fencing term that has made it into common use. When an opponent thrusts (with a sword), your retaliation is a riposte. Outside of fencing, a riposte is a witty comeback or swift reply.

Question 37

rend | verb

Answer 37

Definition: Tear violently, esp. to tear one’s clothing or hair out of grief; pull apart, split, or tear away Usage: With one stroke of his sword, he rent his enemy's helmet in two. Firemen had to rend him free (= pull him out) of the burning car. More Info: As you can see, rend is an irregular verb; its past tense is rent.

Question 38

repast | noun, verb

Answer 38

Definition: A meal (noun); to eat or feast (verb) Usage: After a light repast in a country inn, the men got back on their horses and rode away. Related Words: Comestibles (food), Gustatory (pertaining to taste) More Info: From a Latin root for feeding, also found in pasture (where farm animals eat).

Question 39

repertorial | adj

Answer 39

Definition: Pertaining to a repertory or repertoire, a stock of available things or a number of theatrical performances presented regularly or in sequence Usage: If a play is in repertory, it is one of several different plays being performed on particular days by the same company of actors. More Info: Don’t confuse repertorial with reportorial, “characteristic of news reporters.”

Question 40

repose | noun

Answer 40

Definition: The act or state of resting; peacefulness, tranquility; lying dead in a grave Usage: Thousands of people lined up to see the prime minister’s body lying in repose in the capital building. / After working the last two weekends, Myrna was perfectly happy spending her day off in repose in her living room armchair with a cup of tea and a good book. Related Words: Recumbent (lying down, reclining, resting) More Info: Lying in repose is when a deceased person is available for public viewing.

Question 41

reprobate | noun, adj

Answer 41

Definition: Disreputable, unprincipled, or damned person (noun); shameless, depraved (adj) Usage: The police joked that they had so many mug shots of the old reprobate that they could assemble them into a photography book called, “Faces of Petty Crime, 1976–2011.” Related Words: Dissolution (sinking into extreme hedonism, vice, and degradation), Roué (a dissolute, lustful man, often a womanizer) More Info: In the original meaning, God would reprobate someone to hell. Today, a reprobate is a wrongdoer unlikely to change.

Question 42

resurgent | adj

Answer 42

Definition: Having a revival, renewing, rising or surging again Usage: One can see resurgence in the property prices in this quarter, after a fall in the last quarter. Related Words: Recrudescent (revival, breaking out into renewed activity), Renascent (reviving, becoming active again)

Question 43

revamp | verb, noun

Answer 43

Definition: Renovate, redo, revise (verb); a restructuring, upgrade, etc. (noun) Usage: I have my whole room decorated in Twilight: Eclipse paraphernalia. When Breaking Dawn comes out, I will surely have to revamp my decor. Related Words: Overhaul (repair, investigate for repairs) More Info: Vampire puns aside, a vamp is the upper front part of a shoe. To revamp was originally to get your shoes repaired.

Question 44

ribald | adj

Answer 44

Definition: Using or relating to obscene or vulgar humor Usage: Nearly all limericks are based on ribald humor—hence, the constant rhymes with “Nantucket.” / The movie’s humor was so ribald that a PG-13 rating was assigned, and Joey’s mother covered up his eyes nearly every time a woman was on the screen. Related Words: Bawdy (vulgar or lewd, esp. for humor), Lewd (obscene or excessively lustful, as in a lewd gesture)

Question 45

ridden | adj

Answer 45

Definition: Dominated or burdened by Usage: The neighborhood was ridden with crime. / In this corruption-ridden nation, you simply have to pay bribes if you want anything to get done. More Info: In the phrase disease-ridden slum, it’s pretty obvious that the meaning is bad, but actually, adding -ridden to anything makes the meaning bad. If someone said an equality-ridden society, it sounds as though that person is actually against equality!

Question 46

rift | noun

Answer 46

Definition: A gap or fissure (such as in rock), a break in friendly relations Usage: Olaf’s Swedish family was offended when he married a Norwegian girl—so offended that it caused a rift that lasted for decades. / The hikers considered the rift in their path, wondering if it would be possible to leap across. Related Words: Crevasse (deep fissure or crack), Feud (bitter quarrel generally lasting a long time), Estranged (alienated, as in She hasn’t spoken to her estranged father in years). More Info: Unsurprisingly, to rift as a verb is to split open, burst, etc.

Question 47

rococo | adj

Answer 47

Definition: Very elaborate and ornate (in decorating or metaphorically, as in speech and writing); relating to a highly ornate style of art and architecture in 18th century France Usage: Although Dot Von Derian was born in Ohio as Melissa Worshowski, she insisted on being called “Madame Von D,” and bought herself a mansion she furnished in the most rococo style imaginable—it was gilded cherubs and gold leafing as far as the eye could see. Related Words: Florid (reddish or rosy; flowery, showy, or excessively fancy), Byzantine (very complicated; relating to the Byzantine Empire, esp. its ornate decorating style, full of gold and religious imagery) More Info: Look up “rococo” on Google Image Search to get the picture (very gold, very fancy!)

Question 48

rue | noun, verb

Answer 48

Definition: Regret, remorse (noun); to feel regret or remorse (verb) Usage: Movie or cartoon villains sometimes say, “You’ll rue the day!” What they mean is,“I will make you regret that you did what you just did.” / The couple broke up in high school for a foolish reason, and each hastily married another person. Twenty years later, they were still full of endless rue over having lost each other. Related Words: Contrite means remorseful for one’s wrongs. Penitent means remorseful for one’s sins, or a person who is remorseful. More Info: Rue is also an acrid herb used in medicine. It is likely from this plant that the female name Rue derives (as in Rue McClanahan of The Golden Girls).

Question 49

ruminate | verb

Answer 49

Definition: Turn over in the mind, reflect on; chew cud (as a cow), to think carefully and for a long period about something Usage: She ruminated for weeks about whether to tell him or not. More Info: A cow is a ruminant—it has four stomachs and has to digest its food in stages (and thus, very slowly).