GRE Major Tests Chapter 22

Question 1

Accretion

Answer 1

accumulation of matter, growth produced by adding from the outside

ex) The accretion of traffic accidents and drunk driving was attributed to the opening of the new downtown mall.

Question 2

Anachronistic

Answer 2

occurring in the wrong time period [anachronism (n)]

ex) These days the habit of introducing yourself to a new neighbor with a welcome gift has become an anachronism.

Question 3

Chronic

Answer 3

long lasting (often used for diseases in which case the opposite is acute)

ex) My anxiety disorder causes me to be a chronic worrier.

Question 4

Churlishness

Answer 4

rudeness, ill-mannered behavior

ex) Linda decided never to call that babysitter again because the nanny-cam showed that she acted churlish with the children.

Question 5

Demagogue

Answer 5

mob leader (who appeals to base instincts) [demagogy/demagoguery (n)]

ex) Todd wrote an excellent paper describing Hitler as a demagogue.

Question 6

Effrontery

Answer 6

daring, audacity (has a negative connotation)

ex) I was shocked by the mugger’s effrontery to kiss me after grabbing my bag.

Question 7

Idyll

Answer 7

story or incident in peaceful or ideal setting [idyllic (a)]

ex) She seduces him, and they enjoy a rapturous summer idyll.

Question 8

Interregnum

Answer 8

interval between reigns or governments

ex) It was nearly two hundred years since the Republic had suffered from an interregnum, and the precedents of 1382 were obsolete.

Question 9

Nugatory

Answer 9

having no worth or value, useless, of minor significance, futile

ex) Jim’s nugatory comments contributed nothing to the class discussion.

Question 10

Sinecure

Answer 10

job which pays salary but requiring little effort

ex) Even thought we all thought of the job as a sinecure, Jane took her position very seriously and always worked late into the evening.

Question 11

Anodized

Answer 11

electroplated, coated with thin layer of metal

ex) Traditionally, either annealed copper wire or brown anodized aluminum wire is used.

Question 12

Aphoristic

Answer 12

expressed tersely [aphorism (n) = short statement; maxim]

ex) His sermons were richly aphoristic.

Question 13

Canonical

Answer 13

following or according to the rules, orthodox [canon (n) = set of accepted works]

ex) The canonical composer always made sure that his hymns fit in with the church’s regulations.

Question 14

Commensurate

Answer 14

equal in significance

ex) You will get a salary increase commensurate with your additional responsibilities and work.

Question 15

Dexterity

Answer 15

skill, esp. with hands [dexterous (a)]

ex) Since I do not often use my left hand, I am not dexterous when I use it for writing.

Question 16

Extant

Answer 16

still in existence (opposite of extinct)

ex) Because the jazz singer did not record many of her songs, a number of her best tunes are not extant today.

Question 17

Impugned

Answer 17

challenged, called into question

ex) Even though I hate my ex-husband’s girlfriend, I never try to impugn her character in front of my children.

Question 18

Probity

Answer 18

uprightness, honesty

ex) The person who returned the stolen necklace to the police showed a great deal of probity.

Question 19

Raconteur

Answer 19

person who relates a story, one recognized as being a talented teller of stories

ex) A screenwriter is a raconteur who simply puts his stories on paper.

Question 20

Solicitous

Answer 20

full of anxiety and concern

ex) I am going to keep a solicitous eye out for criminals in this hard-hit neighborhood.

Question 21

Amalgamate

Answer 21

join, consolidate [amalgamation (n)]

ex) The two companies will amalgamate in a mutually beneficial merger next week.

Question 22

Baleful

Answer 22

evil

ex) With a baleful stare, the gang member pointed his gun at the unarmed police officer.

Question 23

Coerce

Answer 23

force [coercion (n); coercing (a)]

ex) The bully tried to coerce the small kids into giving him their lunch money.

Question 24

Inchoate

Answer 24

undeveloped, nascent

ex) While I have started writing my autobiography, it is still inchoate because I have several more chapters to add.

Question 25

Iniquitous

Answer 25

evil, unjust [iniquity (n)]

ex) A plan to steal from the church collection plate is an example of something that would be described as iniquitous.

Question 26

Libertine

Answer 26

someone who ignores moral values

ex) Because Warren is a drunken libertine, he often comes into work with a hangover.

Question 27

Millinery

Answer 27

hats and hat-making

ex) Her aunt’s modest millinery shop was great.

Question 28

Natty

Answer 28

neat, dapper, smart

ex) He was first spotted in the departure lounge and we wondered who the natty dresser was.

Question 29

Occluded

Answer 29

obscured, blocked

ex) The police officers have blocked off the road to occlude the bomb from the public.

Question 30

Sidereal

Answer 30

of or related to stars

ex) The scientist’s calculations were based on sidereal time, which was related to the earth’s rotation around fixed planets.

Question 31

Avaricious

Answer 31

greedy for money

ex) Even though the king had all the riches in his kingdom, this avaricious leader always wanted more.

Question 32

Extirpate

Answer 32

wipe out totally

ex) Hopefully the pesticides will extirpate the insects from my garden.

Question 33

Halcyon

Answer 33

peaceful and happy, calm (esp. of summer weather)

ex) I was very content during the halcyon days of my childhood.

Question 34

List (v)

Answer 34

1. to lean to one side; 2. to write in order

ex) I can list a few that might eliminate it and a few more that might delay it.

Question 35

Maudlin

Answer 35

sad, sentimental, inclined to weep

ex) When John drinks too many glasses of wine, he has a habit of telling maudlin stories that make him appear quite silly.

Question 36

Refulgent

Answer 36

glowing, radiant

ex) When the beauty queen accepted her crown, she had a refulgent smile on her face.

Question 37

Subliminal

Answer 37

working beneath the level of awareness, below the threshold of consciousness

ex) Since subliminal suggestions exist beneath our conscious levels of thought, we rarely realize their influence.

Question 38

Testiness

Answer 38

irritability, irascibility [testy (a)]

ex) What are the causes of your fights and testiness?

Question 39

Vituperate

Answer 39

attack bitterly

We cannot be friends if you continue to attack me with vituperative words.

Question 40

Whittle

Answer 40

1. carve with knife 2. reduce step by step

ex) Her patience began to whittle when the students would not stop talking.

Question 41

Colander

Answer 41

bowl with holes used to drain vegetables etc.

ex) Tip the contents of the pan into a colander over a bowl to catch the liquor.

Question 42

Cumbersome

Answer 42

bulky, difficult to carry [encumber = to burden]

ex) The cumbersome box was too big for the shopping cart.

Question 43

Diaphanous

Answer 43

transparent, thin and delicate

ex) Most dancers wear several layers of clothing because the stage lights often make their costumes appear diaphanous.

Question 44

Dispatch

Answer 44

1. send (v), 2. speed; celerity (n)

ex) According to the terms of the app, the computer will dispatch a vehicle to collect us within thirty seconds.

Question 45

Epistemology

Answer 45

theory of knowledge

ex) “What exactly is knowledge?” is a question you will ask when you study epistemology.

Question 46

Froward

Answer 46

stubborn, wayward, disobedient

ex) The froward child refused to listen to her parents and was disobedient most of the time.

Question 47

Supine

Answer 47

lying flat on one’s back

ex) During back massages, most clients recline face down instead of supine.

Question 48

Throwback

Answer 48

a prompting back to something or sometime in the past

ex) As a throwback to better days, the matriarch in the family decided to start having the family eat together on Sundays like they used to do ten years ago.

Question 49

Untoward

Answer 49

inappropriate

ex) Janice ignored the holiness of her environment and behaved in an untoward manner in church.

Question 50

Verisimilar

Answer 50

seemingly truthful or likely

ex) Skilled liars craft verisimilar stories that seem so real that people believe them.