GRE Major Tests Chapter 5

Question 1

Alacrity

Answer 1

eagerness, enthusiasm

ex) Having studied really hard last night, the student took the exam with alacrity.

Question 2

Burgeon

Answer 2

grow, flourish

ex) As car prices go down, car dealers are expecting sales to burgeon.

Question 3

Deleterious

Answer 3

harmful

ex) Pollution has a deleterious effect on the environment.

Question 4

Euphemism

Answer 4

a polite phrase to cover something unpleasant

ex) Being treated “like a girl” is a common euphemism for not being taken seriously.

Question 5

Hypocritical

Answer 5

insincere, pretends to have certain beliefs or feelings when they really do not.

ex) He is a hypocrite for saying he acres about the environment, because he constantly litters.

Question 6

Lethargic

Answer 6

tired, without energy

ex) During the hottest days of summer I feel so lethargic.

Question 7

Ogle

Answer 7

stare at, observe in an obvious manner

ex) He was ogling her breasts.

Question 8

Postulate

Answer 8

hypothesize, propose, assert something as truth

ex) He postulated his opinion that appearance is just as important as personality.

Question 9

Robust

Answer 9

strong, healthy

ex) My grandfather is over 90 years old, and is still in robust health.

Question 10

Tractable

Answer 10

obedient, dutiful, polite

ex) The dog is very tractable.

Question 11

Alchemy

Answer 11

medieval chemistry, attempt to change bas metal into gold

ex) My grandfather has the knowledge of alchemy.

Question 12

Burnish

Answer 12

polish

ex) The old woman burnished the pot until it gleamed.

Question 13

Deliberate

Answer 13

to think over deeply

ex) Sure she was thin, but it wasn’t a deliberate condition.

Question 14

Euphony

Answer 14

pleasant sounds

ex) When I read the poets works, I was moved by the melodious euphony of her words.

Question 15

Iconoclast

Answer 15

person who opposes orthodoxy

ex) The successful entrepreneur is an iconoclast who is not afraid to introduce something new to the market.

Question 16

Levity

Answer 16

flippancy, joking about serious matters

ex) Maybe a little levity would help.

Question 17

Olfactory

Answer 17

concerned with the sense of smell

ex) Then hound dog used his olfactory sense to locate the missing girl.

Question 18

Potable

Answer 18

suitable for drinking

ex) Drinking water must be potable, that is, it must be clean, or drinkable.

Question 19

Rotund

Answer 19

round

ex) A rotund little man who, predictably, was asked to play Santa every year.

Question 20

Tranquil

Answer 20

peaceful

ex) I’am going to bed with a happy tranquil mind.

Question 21

Alibi

Answer 21

an excuse that shows someone was not at a crime scene

ex) The police are suspicious of my alibi.

Question 22

Buttress

Answer 22

strengthen, support

ex) My professor told him he needed to do some more research to find data to be a buttress for his theory.

Question 23

Delineation

Answer 23

demarcation, explanation

ex) If you want your children to properly complete their chores, you have to clearly delineate the tasks so you kids will know what to do.

Question 24

Evacuate

Answer 24

vacate, empty

ex) I’ll evacuate you as soon as it’s safe.

Question 25

Idiosyncrasy

Answer 25

a personal peculiarity, something unique to an individual ex) One of his little idiosyncrasies was always preferring to be in the car first.

Question 26

Libertarian

Answer 26

someone who opposes tyranny ex) It is more than a little ironic, a libertarian complaining of not enough government intervention.

Question 27

Ominous

Answer 27

threatening ex) Spain had received many ominous warnings.

Question 28

Potent

Answer 28

powerful, compelling ex) The potent poison killed him within seconds.

Question 29

Ruminate

Answer 29

think over something, ponder ex) His sudden death made us all ruminate on the true value of time.

Question 30

Transcribe

Answer 30

copy ex) The senator's speech was transcribed.

Question 31

Allay

Answer 31

to lessen ex) A good teacher will work hard to allay the concerns of a new student.

Question 32

Byline

Answer 32

the line that tells you who wrote an article ex) Bod Woodward has the byline on the Post file delay story.

Question 33

Demur

Answer 33

hesitate, refuse ex) Normally she would accept the challenge, but she demurred.

Question 34

Exacerbate

Answer 34

make worse ex) If you do not take your medicine, your condition will exacerbate, and you will feel worse.

Question 35

Ignominious

Answer 35

shameful ex) It was an ignominious defeat for him.

Question 36

Liniment

Answer 36

soothing lotion ex) The trainer applied liniment to the football player's aching back.

Question 37

Omnipotent

Answer 37

all-powerful ex) My teenage daughter likes to believe she is omnipotent in our household.

Question 38

Pragmatic

Answer 38

practical ex) There was not pragmatic solution to the problem.

Question 39

Ruse

Answer 39

trick ex) The security guard knew the girls were going to try and use a distractive ruse in order to shoplift.

Question 40

Transgress

Answer 40

go astray disobey ex) The judge will decide the penalty for my transgression.

Question 41

Alleviate

Answer 41

make less severe ex) He put on his sunglasses, which did little to alleviate the headache sunlight gave him.

Question 42

Cacophony

Answer 42

discordant loud noises ex) The road was filled with a cacophony of horns and yelling.

Question 43

Denounce

Answer 43

condemn, speak out against ex) It was tempting to denounce him in front of everyone, but that would be childish.

Question 44

Exasperated

Answer 44

frustrated, annoyed ex) We were exasperated by the delays.

Question 45

Ignominy

Answer 45

shame ex) Our team has to face the ignominy of a long losing streak.

Question 46

Lithe

Answer 46

flexible ex) She has the lithe, agile body that would be perfect for gymnastics.

Question 47

Omniscient

Answer 47

all-knowing ex) He thinks he knows what is best for everybody, but as far as I know he is not omniscient.

Question 48

Pragmatist

Answer 48

practical person, one who is concerned with usefulness ex) There was no pragmatic solution to the problem.

Question 49

Saccharine

Answer 49

falsely sweet ex) The foolish man at the bar thought he could pick me up with a saccharine line.

Question 50

Transient

Answer 50

short-lived, ephemeral ex) The snow is transient and will melt as soon as the sun appears.