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GRE Vocab - 4 > P-2 > Flashcards

P-2 Flashcards

1
Q

polarize

A

split into opposite extremes or camps (Eg: The abortion issue has polarized the country into pro-choice and anti-abortion camps. )

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2
Q

polemic

A

controversy; argument in support of point of view (Eg: Her essays were- for the main part- polemics for the party’s policy. )

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3
Q

politic

A

expedient; prudent; well devised (Eg: Even though he was disappointed- he did not think it politic to refuse the offer. )

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4
Q

polity

A

form of government of nation or state (Eg: Our polity should be devoted to the concept that the government should strive for the good of all citizens. )

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5
Q

polygamist

A

one who has more than one spouse at a time (Eg: He was arrested as a polygamist when his two wives filed complaints about him. )

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6
Q

polyglot

A

speaking several languages (Eg: New York City is a polyglot community because of the thousands of immigrants who settle there. )

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7
Q

pomposity

A

self-important behavior; acting like a stuffed shirt (Eg: Although the commencement speaker had some good things to say- we had to laugh at his pomposity and )

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8
Q

ponderous

A

weighty; unwieldy (Eg: His humor lacked the light touch; his jokes were always ponderous. )

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9
Q

pontifical

A

pertaining to a bishop or pope; pompous or pretentious (Eg: From the very beginning of his ministry it was clear from his pontifical pronouncements that John was )

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10
Q

pore

A

study industriously; ponder; scrutinize (Eg: Determined to become a physician- Beth spends hours poring over her anatomy text. )

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11
Q

porous

A

full of pores; like a sieve (Eg: )

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12
Q

portend

A

foretell; presage (Eg: The king did not know what these omens might portend and asked his soothsayers to interpret them. )

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13
Q

portent

A

sign; omen; forewarning (Eg: He regarded the black cloud as a portent of evil. )

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14
Q

portly

A

stout; corpulent (Eg: The salesclerk tactfully referred to the overweight customer as portly rather than fat. )

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15
Q

poseur

A

person who pretends to be sophisticated- elegant- etc.- to impress others (Eg: Some thought Dali was a brillant painter; others dismissed him as a poseur. )

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16
Q

posterity

A

descendants; future generations (Eg: We hope to leave a better world to posterity. )

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17
Q

posthumous

A

after death (as of child born after father’s death or book published after author’s death) (Eg: The critics ignored his works during his lifetime; it was only after the posthumous publication of his last )

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18
Q

postulate

A

self-evident truth (Eg: We must accept these statements as postulates before pursuing our discussions any further. )

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19
Q

posture

A

assume an affected pose; act artificially (Eg: No matter how much Arnold boasted or postured- I could not believe he was as important as he pretended )

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20
Q

potable

A

suitable for drinking (Eg: The recent drought in the Middle Atlantic States has emphasized the need for extensive research in ways of )

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21
Q

potent

A

powerful; persuasive; greatly influential (Eg: The jury was swayed by the highly potent testimony of the crime’s sole eyewitness. )

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22
Q

potentate

A

monarch; sovereign (Eg: The potentate spent more time at Monte Carlo than he did at home on his throne. )

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23
Q

potential

A

expressing possibility; latent (Eg: The juvenile delinquent is a potential murderer. )

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24
Q

potion

A

dose (of liquid) (Eg: Tristan and Lsolde drink a love potion in the first act of the opera. )

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25
Q

potpourri

A

heterogeneous mixture; medley (Eg: He offered a potpourri of folk songs from many lands. )

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26
Q

poultice

A

soothing application applied to sore and inflamed portions of the body (Eg: He was advised to apply a flaxseed poultice to the inflammation. )

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27
Q

practicable

A

feasible (Eg: The board of directors decided that the plan was practicable and agreed to undertake the project. )

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28
Q

practical

A

based on experience; useful (Eg: He was a practical man- opposed to theory )

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29
Q

pragmatic

A

practical (as opposed to idealistic); concerned with the practical worth or impact of (Eg: something )

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30
Q

pragmatist

A

practical person (Eg: No pragmatist enjoys becoming involved in a game that he can never win )

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31
Q

prate

A

speak foolishly; boast idly (Eg: Let us not prate about our qualities; rather- let our virtues speak for themselves. )

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32
Q

prattle

A

babble (Eg: The children prattle endlessly about their new toys. )

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33
Q

preamble

A

introductory statement (Eg: In the preamble to the Constitution- the purpose of the document is set forth. )

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34
Q

precarious

A

uncertain; risky (Eg: I think this stock is a precarious investment and advise against its purchase. )

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35
Q

precedent

A

something preceding in time that may be used as an authority or guide for future action (Eg: This decision sets a precedent for future cases of a similar nature. )

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36
Q

precedent

A

preceding in time- rank- etc. (Eg: Our discussions- precedent to this event- certainly did not give you any reason to believe that we would )

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37
Q

precept

A

practical rule guiding conduct (Eg: ‘‘Love thy neighbor as thyself’’ is a worthwhile precept. )

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38
Q

precipice

A

cliff; dangerous position (Eg: Suddenly Indiana Jones found himself dangling from the edge of a precipice. )

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39
Q

precipitate

A

headlong; rash (Eg: Do not be precipitate in this matter; investigate further. )

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40
Q

precipitate

A

throw headlong; hasten (Eg: The removal of American political support appeared to have precipitated the downfall of the Marcos )

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41
Q

precipitous

A

steep; overhasty (Eg: This hill is difficult to climb because it is so precipitous; one slip- and our descent will be precipitous as )

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42
Q

precise

A

exact (Eg: If you don’t give me precise directions and a map- I’ll never find your place. )

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43
Q

preclude

A

make impossible; eliminate (Eg: This contract does not preclude my being employed by others at the same time that I am working for you. )

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44
Q

precocious

A

advanced in development (Eg: By her rather adult manner of discussing serious topics- the child demonstrated that she was precocious. )

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45
Q

precursor

A

forerunner (Eg: Though Gray and Burns share many traits with the Romantic poets who followed them- most critics )

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46
Q

predatory

A

plundering (Eg: The hawk is a predatory bird. )

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47
Q

predecessor

A

former occupant of a post (Eg: I hope I can live up to the fine example set by my late predecessor in this office. )

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48
Q

predilection

A

partiality; preference (Eg: Although the artist used various media from time to time- she had a predilection for watercolors. )

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49
Q

preeminent

A

outstanding; superior (Eg: The king traveled to Boston because he wanted the preeminent surgeon in the field to perform the )

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50
Q

preempt

A

head off; forestall by acting first; appropriate for oneself; supplant (Eg: Hoping to preempt any attempts by the opposition to make educational reform a hot political issue- the )

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51
Q

preen

A

make oneself tidy in appearance; feel self-satisfaction (Eg: As Kitty preened before the mirror- carefully smoothing her shining hair- she couldn’t help preening herself )

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52
Q

prefactory

A

introductory (Eg: The chairman made a few prefactory remarks before he called on the first speaker. )

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53
Q

prehensile

A

capable of grasping or holding (Eg: Monkeys use not only their arms and legs but also their prehensile tails in traveling through the trees. )

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54
Q

prelate

A

church dignitary (Eg: The archbishop of Moscow and other high-ranking prelates visited the Russian Orthodox seminary. )

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55
Q

prelude

A

introduction; forerunner (Eg: I am afraid that this border raid is the prelude to more serious attacks. )

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56
Q

premeditate

A

plan in advance (Eg: )

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57
Q

premise

A

assumption; postulate (Eg: Because Jack had based his argument upon a faulty premise- his opponent cheerfully pointed out the holes )

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58
Q

premonition

A

forewarning (Eg: We ignored these premonitions of disaster because they appeared to be based on childish fears. )

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59
Q

premonitory

A

serving to warn (Eg: You should have visited a doctor as soon as you felt these premonitory chest pains. )

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60
Q

preponderance

A

superiority of power- quantity- etc. (Eg: The rebels sought to overcome the preponderance of strength of the government forces by engaging in )

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61
Q

preposterous

A

absurd; ridiculous (Eg: When the candidate tried to downplay his youthful experiments with marijuana by saying he hadn’t inhaled- )

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62
Q

prerogative

A

privilege; unquestionable right (Eg: The President cannot levy taxes; that is the prerogative of the legislative branch of government. )

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63
Q

presage

A

foretell (Eg: The vultures flying overhead presaged the discovery of the corpse in the desert. )

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64
Q

prescience

A

ability to foretell the future (Eg: Given the current wave of Japan-bashing- it does not take prescience for me to foresee problems in our )

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65
Q

presentiment

A

premonition; foreboding (Eg: Hamlet felt a presentiment about his meeting with Laertes. )

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66
Q

prestige

A

impression produced by achievements or reputation (Eg: The wealthy man sought to obtain social prestige by contributing to popular charities. )

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67
Q

presumptous

A

arrogant; taking liberties (Eg: It seems presumptous for one so relatively new to the field to challenge the conclusions of its leading )

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68
Q

pretentious

A

ostentatious; ambitious (Eg: I do not feel that your limited resources will permit you to carry out such a pretentious program. )

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69
Q

preternatural

A

beyond that which is normal in nature (Eg: John’s mother’s total ability to tell when he was lying struck him as almost preternatural. )

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70
Q

pretext

A

excuse (Eg: He looked for a good pretext to get out of paying a visit to his aunt. )

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71
Q

prevail

A

induce; triumph over (Eg: He tried to prevail on her to type his essays for him. )

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72
Q

prevalent

A

widespread; generally accepted (Eg: A radical committed to social change- Reed had no patience with the conservative views prevalent in the )

73
Q

prevaricate

A

lie (Eg: Some people believe that to prevaricate in a good cause is justifiable and regard the statement as a ‘‘white )

74
Q

prey

A

target of a hunt; victim (Eg: In Stalking the Wild Asparagus- Euell Gibbons has as his prey not wild beasts but wild plants. )

75
Q

prim

A

very precise and formal; exceedingly proper (Eg: Many people commented on the contrast between the prim attire of the young lady and the inappropriate )

76
Q

primogeniture

A

seniority by birth (Eg: By virtue of primogeniture- in some cultures the first-born child has many privileges denied his brothers )

77
Q

primordial

A

existing at the beginning (of time); rudimentary (Eg: The Neanderthal Man is one of our primordial ancestors. )

78
Q

primp

A

dress or groom oneself with care (Eg: She primps for hours before a dance. )

79
Q

pristine

A

characteristic of earlier times; primitive- unspoiled (Eg: This area has been preserved in all its pristine wildness. )

80
Q

privation

A

hardship; want (Eg: In his youth- he knew hunger and privation. )

81
Q

privy

A

secret; hidden; not public (Eg: We do not care for privy chamber of government. )

82
Q

probe

A

explore with tools (Eg: The surgeon probed the wound for foreign matter before suturing it. )

83
Q

probity

A

uprightness; incorruptibility (Eg: Everyone took his probity for granted; his defalcations- therefore- shocked us all. )

84
Q

problematic

A

perplexing; unsettled: questionable (Eg: Given the many areas of conflict still awaiting resolution- the outcome of the peace talks remains )

85
Q

proclivity

A

inclination; natural tendency (Eg: )

86
Q

procrastinate

A

postpone; delay (Eg: It is wise not to procrastinate; otherwise- we find ourselves bogged down in a mass of work that should )

87
Q

procurement

A

obtaining (Eg: The personnel department handles the procurement of new employees. )

88
Q

prod

A

poke; stir up; urge (Eg: If you prod him hard enough- he’ll eventually clean his room. )

89
Q

prodigal

A

wasteful; reckless with money (Eg: The prodigal son squandered his inheritance. )

90
Q

prodigious

A

enormous; marvelous (Eg: He marveled at her prodigious appetite when he saw all the food she ate. )

91
Q

prodigy

A

highly gifted child; marvel (Eg: Menuhin was a prodigy- performing wonders on his violin when he was barely eight years old. )

92
Q

profane

A

violate; desecrate (Eg: Tourists are urged not to profane the sanctity of holy places by wearing improper garb. )

93
Q

profilgate

A

dissipated; wasteful; licentious (Eg: In this profilgate company- she lost all sense of decency. )

94
Q

profound

A

deep; not superficial; complete (Eg: Freud’s remarkable insights into human behavior caused his fellow scientists to honor him as a profound )

95
Q

profusion

A

lavish expenditure; overabundant condition (Eg: Seldom have I seen food and drink served in such profusion as at the wedding feast. )

96
Q

progenitor

A

ancestor (Eg: The Roth family- whose progenitors emigrated from Germany early in the nineteenth century- settled in )

97
Q

progeny

A

children; offspring (Eg: He was proud of his progeny but regarded George as the most promising of all his children. )

98
Q

prognosis

A

forecasted course of a disease; prediction (Eg: If the doctor’s prognosis is correct- the patient will be in a coma for at least twenty-four hours. )

99
Q

prognosticate

A

predict (Eg: I prognosticate disaster unless we change our wasteful ways. )

100
Q

projectile

A

missile (Eg: Man has always hurled projectiles at his enemy whether in the form of stones or of highly explosive shells. )

101
Q

proletarian

A

member of the working class (Eg: The aristocrats feared mob rule and gave the right to vote only to the wealthy- thus depending the )

102
Q

proliferate

A

grow rapidly; spread; multiply (Eg: Times of economic hardship inevitably encourage countless get-rich-quick schemes to proliferate )

103
Q

prolific

A

abundantly fruitful (Eg: She was a prolific writer who produced as many as three books a year. )

104
Q

prolix

A

verbose; drawn out (Eg: Her prolix arguments irritated and bored the jury. )

105
Q

prolong

A

extend; draw out; lengthen (Eg: In their determination to discover ways to prolong human life- doctors fail to take into account that longer )

106
Q

prominent

A

conspicuous; notable; protruding (Eg: Have you ever noticed that Prince Charles’s prominent ears make him resemble the big-eared character in )

107
Q

promiscuous

A

mixed indiscriminately; haphazard; irregular- particularly sexually (Eg: In the opera La Boheme- we get a picture of the promiscuous life led by the young artists of Paris. )

108
Q

promontory

A

headland (Eg: They erected a lighthouse on the promontory to warn approaching ships of their nearness to the shore. )

109
Q

prompt

A

cause; provoke; provide a cue for an actor (Eg: Whatever prompted you to ask for such a big piece of cake when you’re on a diet? )

110
Q

promulgate

A

make known by official proclamation or publication (Eg: As soon as the Civil Service Commission promulgates the names of the successful candidates- we shall )

111
Q

prone

A

inclined to; prostrate (Eg: She was prone to sudden fits of anger. )

112
Q

propagate

A

multiply; spread (Eg: Since bacteria propagate more quickly in unsanitary environments- it is important to keep hospital rooms )

113
Q

propellant

A

substance that propels or drives forward (Eg: The development of our missile program has forced our scientists to seek more powerful propellants. )

114
Q

propensity

A

natural inclination (Eg: Convinced of his own talent- Sol has an unfortunate propensity to belittle the talents of others. )

115
Q

prophetic

A

having to do with predicting the future (Eg: )

116
Q

prophylactic

A

used to prevent disease (Eg: Despite all prophylactic measures introduced by the authorities- the epidemic raged until cool weather set )

117
Q

propinquity

A

nearness; kinship (Eg: Their relationship could not be explained as being based on mere propinquity: they were more than )

118
Q

propitiate

A

appease (Eg: The natives offered sacrifices to propitiate the gods. )

119
Q

propitious

A

favorable; kindly (Eg: I think it is advisable that we wait for a more propitious occasion to announce our plans; this is not a good )

120
Q

proponent

A

person who supports or proposes (an idea) (Eg: After the bill had been amended and re-amended in committee- even its original proponents didn’t want to )

121
Q

propound

A

put forth for analysis (Eg: In you discussion- you have propounded several questions; let us consider each one separately. )

122
Q

propriety

A

fitness; correct conduct (Eg: I want you to behave at this dinner with propriety; don’t embarass me. )

123
Q

propulsive

A

driving forward (Eg: The jet plane has a greater propulsive power than the engine-driven plane. )

124
Q

prosaic

A

dull and unimaginative; matter-of-fact; factual (Eg: Though the ad writers had come up with a highly creative campaign to publicize the company’s newest )

125
Q

proscenium

A

part of stage in front of curtain (Eg: In the theater-in-the-round there can be no proscenium or proscenium arch. )

126
Q

proscribe

A

ostracize; banish; outlaw (Eg: Antony- Octavius and Lepidus proscribed all those who had conspired against Julius Caesar. )

127
Q

proselytize

A

induce someone to convert to religion or belief (Eg: In these interfaith meetings- there must be no attempt to proselytize; we must respect all points of view. )

128
Q

prosody

A

the art of versification (Eg: This book on prosody contains a rhyming dictionary as well as samples of the various verse forms. )

129
Q

prosperity

A

good fortune; financial success; physical well-being (Eg: Promising to stay together ‘‘for richer- for poorer-‘’ the newlyweds vowed to be true to one another in )

130
Q

prostrate

A

stretch out full on ground (Eg: He prostrated himself before the idol. )

131
Q

protean

A

versatile; able to take on many forms (Eg: A remarkably protean actor- Alec Guinness could take on any role. )

132
Q

protocol

A

diplomatic etiquette (Eg: We must run this state dinner according to protocol if we are to avoid offending any of our guests. )

133
Q

prototype

A

original work used as a model by others (Eg: The crude typewriter on display in this museum is the prototype of the elaborate machines in use today. )

134
Q

protract

A

prolong (Eg: Seeking to delay the union members’ vote- the management team tried to protract the negotiations )

135
Q

protrude

A

stick out (Eg: His fingers protruded from the holes in his gloves. )

136
Q

protuberance

A

protrusion; bulge (Eg: A ganglionic cyst is a fluid-filled tumor (generally benign) that develops near a joint membrane or tendon )

137
Q

provenance

A

origin or source of something (Eg: I am not interested in its provenance; I am more concerned with its usefulness than with its source. )

138
Q

provender

A

dry food; fodder (Eg: I am afraid of a severe winter because I have stored a large quantity of provender for the cattle. )

139
Q

provident

A

displaying foresight; thrifty; preparing for emergencies (Eg: In his usual provident manner- he had insured himself against this type of loss. )

140
Q

provincial

A

pertaining to a province; limited in outlook; unsophisticated (Eg: As provincial governor- Sir Henry administered the Queen’s law in his remote corner of Canada. )

141
Q

provisional

A

tentative (Eg: The appointment is provisional; only on the approval of the board of directors will it be made permanent. )

142
Q

proviso

A

stipulation (Eg: I am ready to accept your proposal with the two proviso that you meet your obligations within the next )

143
Q

provoke

A

stir up anger; cause retaliation (Eg: In order to prevent a sudden outbreak of hostilities- we must not provoke our foe. )

144
Q

proximity

A

nearness (Eg: The deer sensed the hunter’s proximity and bounded away. )

145
Q

proxy

A

authorized agent (Eg: Please act as my proxy and vote for this slate of candidates in my absence. )

146
Q

prude

A

excessively modest or proper person (Eg: The X-rated film was definitely not for prudes. )

147
Q

prudent

A

cautious; careful (Eg: A miser hoards money not because he is prudent but because he is greedy. )

148
Q

prune

A

cut away; trim (Eg: With the help of her editor- she was able to prune her manuscript into publishable form. )

149
Q

pseudonym

A

pen name (Eg: Samuel Clemens’ pseudonym was Mark Twain. )

150
Q

psychiatrist

A

a doctor who treats mental diseases (Eg: A psychiatrist often needs long conferences with his patient before a diagnosis can be made. )

151
Q

psychopathic

A

pertaining to mental derangement (Eg: The psychopathic patient suffers more frequently from a disorder of the nervous system than from a )

152
Q

psychosis

A

mental disorder (Eg: We must endeavor to find an outlet for the patient’s repressed desires if we hope to combat this psychosis. )

153
Q

pterodactyl

A

extinct flying reptile (Eg: The remains of pterodactyls indicate that these flying reptiles had a wingspan of as much as twenty feet. )

154
Q

puerile

A

childish (Eg: His puerile pranks sometimes offended his more mature friends. )

155
Q

pugilist

A

boxer (Eg: The famous pugilist Cassius Clay changed his name to Muhammed Ali. )

156
Q

pugnacious

A

combative; disposed to fight (Eg: As a child he was pugnacious and fought with everyone. )

157
Q

puissant

A

powerful; strong; potent (Eg: We must keep his friendship for he will make a puissant ally. )

158
Q

pulchritude

A

beauty; comeliness (Eg: I do not envy the judges who have to select this year’s Miss America from this collection of female )

159
Q

pulmonary

A

pertaining to the lungs (Eg: In his researches on pulmonary diseases- he discovered many facts about the lungs of animals and human )

160
Q

pulsate

A

throb (Eg: We could see the blood vessels in his temple pulsate as he became more angry. )

161
Q

pulverize

A

crush or grind into very small particles (Eg: Before sprinkling the dried herbs into the stew- Michael first pulverized them into a fine powder. )

162
Q

pummel

A

beat (Eg: The severity with which he was pummeled was indicated by the bruises he displayed on his head and face. )

163
Q

punctilious

A

laying stress on niceties of conduct or form; precise (Eg: We must be punctilious in our planning of this affair- for any error may be regarded as a personal affront. )

164
Q

pundit

A

learned Hindu; any learned person; authority on a subject (Eg: Even though he discourses on the matter like a pundit- he is actually rather ignorant about this topic. )

165
Q

pungency

A

sharpness; stinging quality (Eg: The pungency of the cigarette smoke made me cough. )

166
Q

punitive

A

punishing (Eg: He asked for punitive measures against the offender. )

167
Q

puny

A

insignificant; tiny; weak (Eg: Our puny efforts to stop the flood were futile. )

168
Q

purchase

A

firm grasp or footing (Eg: The mountaineer struggled to get a proper purchase on the slippery rock. )

169
Q

purgatory

A

place of spiritual expiation (Eg: In this purgatory- he could expect no help from his comrades. )

170
Q

purge

A

clean by removing impurities; clear of changes (Eg: If you are to be purged of the charge of contempt of Congress- you must be willing to answer the )

171
Q

purport

A

intention; meaning (Eg: If the purport of your speech was to arouse the rabble- you succeeded admirably. )

172
Q

purveyor

A

furnisher of foodstuffs; caterer (Eg: As purveyor of rare wines and viands- he traveled through France and Italy every year in search of new )

173
Q

pusillanimous

A

cowardly; fainthearted (Eg: You should be ashamed of your pusillanimous conduct during this dispute. )

174
Q

putative

A

supposed; reputed (Eg: Although there are some doubts- the putative author of this work is Massinger. )

175
Q

putrid

A

foul; rotten; decayed (Eg: The gangrenous condition of the wound was indicated by the putrid smell when the bandages were )

176
Q

pyromaniac

A

person with an insane desire to set things on fire (Eg: The detectives searched the area for the pyromaniac who had set these costly fires. )

177
Q

pyre

A

heap of combustible material- esp. for burning a corpse. (Eg: The mortician put pyre on the corpse before burning a corpse. )

178
Q

pest

A

troublesome or annoying person (Eg: He was a pest; always bothering people. )

179
Q

prohibitive

A

extremely high (of prices etc.) (Eg: The super computer’s price was prohibitive. )

GRE Vocab - 4 (4 decks)

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