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Barron's GRE Verbal Workbook > R > Flashcards

R Flashcards

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1
Q

raconteur

A

n. witty, skillful storyteller

Th raconteur was surrounded by people listening to his story.

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2
Q

radial

A

adj. radiating from or converging to a common center

Many flowers and plants exhibit radial symmetry.

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3
Q

radical

A

adj. extreme; favoring great change in society

The radical plan calls for abolishing taxes.

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4
Q

rail

A

v. to scold with bitter or abusive language

The speaker railed against social injustice.

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5
Q

raiment

A

n. clothing

The waiters in the restaurant are all clad in clue raiment.

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6
Q

raison d’être

A

n. justification for existing

The writer defines philosophy as the search for humanity’s raison d’être.

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7
Q

ramification

A

n. implication

The law student’s paper deals with the ramifications of the Supreme Court’s decision.

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8
Q

rampant

A

adj. unrestrained; occurring widely

Cheating is rampant in the college.

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9
Q

rancid

A

adj. spoiled, rotten

The smell of rancid meat is very unpleasant.

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10
Q

rancor

A

n. bitter hatred

There was rancor on both sides of the dispute.

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11
Q

rapacious

A

adj. taking by force; greedy

The rapacious landlord doubled our rent.

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12
Q

rapport

A

n. relationship of trust and respect

There is great rapport between Tom and Beth.

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13
Q

rapprochement

A

n. establishment of harmonious relations

After the war ended there was a rapprochement between the two countries.

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14
Q

rapt

A

adj. deeply absorbed

The children listened to the story with rapt attention.

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15
Q

rarefied

A

adj. refined

It was difficult to understand the professor’s rarefied discussion.

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16
Q

ratify

A

v. to approve formally, confirm

The treaty was ratified by the Senate.

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17
Q

ratiocination

A

n. methodical, logical reasoning

Some scientists believe that human beings are the only species capable of ratiocination.

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18
Q

rational

A

adj. logical, reasonable

Scientists are searching for a rational explanation of the strange phenomenon.

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19
Q

rationale

A

n. fundamental reasons

What is the rationale for changing our plans?

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20
Q

rationalization

A

n. act or practice of providing self-satisfying but incorrect reasons for something

The excuse you gave is nothing but a rationalization.

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21
Q

raucous

A

adj. harsh-sounding; boisterous

The crow’s raucous calls make it hard to concentrate.

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22
Q

ravage

A

v. to destroy, devastate

The disease ravaged the population of Europe.

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23
Q

ravenous

A

adj. extremely hungry

After fasting all day, Rick is ravenous.

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24
Q

ravine

A

n. deep, narrow gorge

The town plans to build a footbridge over the ravine.

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25
Q

raze

A

v. to tear down, demolish

The area was razed so it could be redeveloped. reactionary

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26
Q

reactionary

A

adj. marked by extreme conservatism

The reactionary group opposes any form of change.

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27
Q

rebuff

A

v. to snub; beat back

Holly rebuffed Luke’s offer of marriage.

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28
Q

rebuke

A

v. to reprimand, scold

The teacher rebuked the student for her poor behavior.

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29
Q

rebuttal

A

n. refutation; response with contrary evidence

The debater’s rebuttal of her opponent’s argument was persuasive.

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30
Q

recalcitrant

A

adj. resisting authority or control

The UN Security Council plans to take action against the recalcitrant country.

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31
Q

recant

A

v. to retract a statement, opinion, etc.

The medical board ordered the doctor to recant his statement.

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32
Q

recapitulate

A

v. to review by a brief summary in biology: to appear to repeat the evolution of the species during the embryonic development of the individual

The English teacher recapitulated the events of the novel for her class.

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33
Q

recidivism

A

n. tendency to relapse into previous behavior

The rate of recidivism is increasing.

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34
Q

reclusive

A

adj. seeking seclusion or isolation

The reclusive writer hates to give interviews.

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35
Q

reconciliation

A

n. a settlement or resolution; act of making compatible or consistent

Negotiations brought reconciliation between the two opposing sides.

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36
Q

recondite

A

adj. abstruse; profound

The course is an introduction to Kant’s recondite philosophy.

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37
Q

reconnaissance

A

v. survey of enemy by soldiers; reconnoitering

The scout conducted a reconnaissance of the enemy position.

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38
Q

recount

A

v. to narrate or tell

The novel recounts the story of three generations of the Galbraith family.

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39
Q

rectify

A

v. correct

Once the problem with the engine is rectified, we will be on our way again.

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40
Q

rectitude

A

n. moral uprightness

The country expects its leaders to be people of rectitude.

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41
Q

redolent

A

adj. odorous; fragrant; suggestive of an odor

This white wine is redolent of lemon.

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42
Q

redoubtable

A

adj. formidable; arousing fear; worthy of respect

Glenda is redoubtable debater.

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43
Q

redress

A

n. relief from wrong or injury

The court ordered payment as redress for the injury he suffered.

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44
Q

reductionism

A

n. attempt to explain complex phenomena by simple principles

The statement “A person is nothing but a combination of chemicals” is an example of reductionism.

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45
Q

reductionistic

A

adj. attempting to explain complex phenomena by simple principles

The idea that the brain is nothing but a bunch of chemicals can be regarded as reductionistic.

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46
Q

redundant

A

adj. exceeding what is necessary; unnecessarily repetitive

The engineers built several redundant systems into the spacecraft.

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47
Q

refectory

A

n. room where meals are served

The family had breakfast in the refectory.

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48
Q

refined

A

adj. cultivated; elegant

professor Hunter is a woman of refined taste in literature.

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49
Q

refract

A

v. to deflect sound or light

Water refracts light more than air does.

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50
Q

refractory

A

adj. stubborn; unmanageable; resisting ordinary methods of treatment

Only the stable’s most experienced trainer could deal with the refractory horse.

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51
Q

refulgent

A

adj. brightly shining; resplendent

The mystic had a vision of a refulgent being.

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52
Q

refurbish

A

v. to renovate

We are planning to refurbish our home next year.

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53
Q

refutation

A

n. disproof of opponent’s argument

Thw lawyer’s refutation of the argument was clear and effective.

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54
Q

refute

A

v. to contradict; disprove

The man’s lawyer refuted the charges against his client.

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55
Q

regale

A

v. to entertain

The bride’s family hired a jazz band to regale the guests.

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56
Q

regimen

A

n. government rule; systematic plan

Susie is sticking to her regimen of learning ten advanced wards a day.

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57
Q

regimented

A

adj. systematized; made uniform

The study shows that students who take a regimented approach do best.

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58
Q

regression

A

n. a movement backward; reversion to an earlier form or state

Bill was disappointed by the regression in his GRE scores.

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59
Q

reification

A

n. treatment of an abstraction as if it had material existence

The psychologist believes that the human mind has a natural tendency toward reification.

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60
Q

reiterate

A

v. to say or do again, repeat

The teacher reiterated her statement for emphasis.

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61
Q

rejoinder

A

n. response

The comedian is always ready with a rejoinder to comments from the audience.

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62
Q

rejuvenate

A

v. to make young again; renew

Our vacation rejuvenated us.

63
Q

relegate

A

v. to consign to an inferior position

The veteran baseball player was relegated to a backup role.

64
Q

relevance

A

n. pertinence; connection with a matter under consideration

That case has little relevance to this one.

65
Q

relic

A

n. surviving remnant; memento

Toom keeps his old tennis racquet as a relic of his playing days.

66
Q

relinquish

A

v. to renounce or surrender something

The boxer was forced to relinquish his title because he failed to defend it.

67
Q

relish

A

v. to enjoy greatly

Everyone in the family relished their Thanksgiving dinner.

68
Q

remediable

A

adj. capable of being corrected

Luckily, your errors are remediable.

69
Q

reminisce

A

v. to remember past events

The couple reminisced about their first date.

70
Q

remission

A

n. lessening, relaxation

The disease went into remission.

71
Q

remonstrate

A

v. to object or protest

The columnist regularly remonstrated about social injustice.

72
Q

remorseless

A

adj. having no pity; merciless

We watched the remorseless advance of the invading force.

73
Q

remuneration

A

n. pay or reward for work, trouble, etc.

The job doesn’t offer adequate remuneration.

74
Q

renaissance

A

n. rebirth or revival

In recent years poetry has enjoyed a renaissance in America.

75
Q

renascent

A

adj. reborn, coming into being again

After many years of dictatorship in the country, democracy is now renascent there.

76
Q

render

A

v. to provide; give what is due; represent in drawing or painting

The artist rendered his subject as a young woman.

77
Q

rendition

A

n. artistic interpretation of a song, etc.; translation

The singers gave an interesting rendition of the well-known song.

78
Q

renegade

A

n. traitor, person abandoning a cause

Government troops captured the renegades and brought them to trial.

79
Q

renege

A

v. to go back on one’s word

When our partner reneged on the agreement, he was sued by the other parties.

80
Q

renounce

A

v. to give up or reject a right, title, person, etc.

One member of the family renounced her right to the property.

81
Q

renown

A

n. fame, widespread acclaim

The novelist enjoys international renown.

82
Q

reparation

A

n. amends; compensation

The peace treaty stipulates that the vanquished country will pay reparations to the victorious country.

83
Q

repast

A

n. meal or mealtime

On Sundays my family enjoys a big repast.

84
Q

repentant

A

adj. apologetic, guilty, remorseful

The priest asked the sinner if he was repentant.

85
Q

repertoire

A

n. pieces that an artist or artists are prepared to perform; a person’s range of skills

The pianist’s repertoire includes pieces by Chopin.

86
Q

repine

A

v. to fret; complain

She is no longer invited to their parties but she doesn’t greatly repine.

87
Q

replete

A

adj. abundantly supplied

My new car is replete with every gadget imaginable.

88
Q

replica

A

n. duplication copy of something

Herb built a miniature replica of a Boeing 747.

89
Q

repose

A

n. relaxation, leisure

One Sundays we enjoy a day of repose.

90
Q

repository

A

n. place things are put for safekeeping

Libraries are repositories of human knowledge.

91
Q

reprehensible

A

adj. blameworthy, disreputable

The invasion was condemned around the world as a reprehensible act.

92
Q

repressive

A

adj. causing or inclined to case repression

The repressive government was overthrown.

93
Q

reprimand

A

v. to scold

The teacher reprimanded the class or talking.

94
Q

reprise

A

n. repetition, esp. of a piece of music

We enjoyed the reprise of the last movement of the symphony.

95
Q

reproach

A

v. to find fault with; blame

The platoon leader reproached the soldier for disobeying orders.

96
Q

reprobate

A

n. morally unprincipled person

Most people shun the man as a reprobate.

97
Q

reprove

A

v. to criticize or correct

The teacher reproved the student for not paying attention.

98
Q

repudiate

A

v. to reject as having no authority

The court repudiated the decision reached by the citizen’s committee.

99
Q

repugnant

A

adj. distasteful; offensive

The views expressed in this book are repugnant to most people.

100
Q

requiem

A

n. hymns or religious service for the dead

A requiem was held for the dead soldier.

101
Q

rescind

A

v. to cancel

The bank has rescinded Ton’s credit card.

102
Q

reserve

A

n. self-control; formal but distant manner

Ms. Smith’s reserve makes her difficult to get to know.

103
Q

residual

A

adj. remaining, leftover

The organization decided to donate the residual funds to charity.

104
Q

resigned

A

adj. unresisting; patiently submissive

Bob is resigned to failing math again this year.

105
Q

resilient

A

adj. able to recover quickly after illness or misfortune

The resilient boxer was back on his feet again right away after being knocked down by his opponent.

106
Q

resolute

A

adj. determined; with a clear purpose

Laura is resolute in her determination to become a scientist.

107
Q

resolve

A

v. to determine to do something

Sue resolved to obtain a Ph.D.

108
Q

resonate

A

v. to echo

The speaker’s words resonated through the hall.

109
Q

respire

A

v. to breathe

The accident victim was not respiring.

110
Q

respite

A

n. interval of relief

The teacher gave the class a five-minute respite.

111
Q

resplendent

A

adj. splendid, brilliant

The royal couple looked resplendent in their golden robes.

112
Q

restitution

A

n. act of compensating for loss or damage

As restitution for his crime, Steve performed community service.

113
Q

restive

A

adj. impatient, uneasy, restless

The audience grew restive when the speaker hadn’t appeared.

114
Q

restorative

A

adj. having the power to renew or revitalize

The herbalist believes in the restorative power of ginseng.

115
Q

restrained

A

v. controlled, repressed, restricted

Security guards restrained the angry customer.

116
Q

resurrection

A

n. rising from the dead; revival

The book begins the resurrection of long-forgotten ideas.

117
Q

resuscitate

A

v. to revive, bring back to life

Paramedics resuscitated the woman who had collapsed at the mall.

118
Q

resurgent

A

adj. rising again

The political scientist analyzed the effects of a resurgent Russia on international relations.

119
Q

reticence

A

n. reserve; reluctance

The star’s reticence annoyed the journalist who interviewed him.

120
Q

retinue

A

n. group of attendants with an important person

The queen arrived with a retinue of servants.

121
Q

retiring

A

adj. shy, modest, reserved

Few successful politicians are the retiring type.

122
Q

retort

A

n. cutting response

The comedian is a master of the quick retort to comments from the audience.

123
Q

retrench

A

v. to regroup, reorganize

The company is making plans to retrench.

124
Q

retribution

A

n. something demanded in repayment; punishment

As retribution for setting fire to the granary, the villagers demanded his house and possessions.

125
Q

retrograde

A

adj. having a backward motion or direction

Planets sometimes appear to have a retrograde motion due to the fact that planets travel at different speeds around the sun.

126
Q

retrospect

A

n. review or contemplation of the past

In retrospect, I wish I had studied more in high school.

127
Q

reveille

A

n. the sounding of a bugle early in the morning to awaken and summon people

Reveille was sounded at 6:00 A.M.

128
Q

revelation

A

n. something revealed

The woman was stunned by the revelation that he was now married.

129
Q

revelry

A

n. boisterous festivity

The revelry continued past midnight.

130
Q

reverie

A

n. daydream

The student’s reverie was broken by the teacher’s question.

131
Q

reversion

A

n. return to an earlier state; regression

To avoid reversion to his past behavior, special steps have been taken.

132
Q

revile

A

v. to criticize with harsh language, verbally abuse

The candidates reviled each other in their debate.

133
Q

revivify

A

v. give new life or energy

The vacation revivified the students.

134
Q

revulsion

A

n. strong feeling of repugnance or dislike

Tom feels revulsion for biolence.

135
Q

rhapsodize

A

v. to speak or write in an exaggeratedly enthusiastic manner

The speaker rhapsodized about the beauty of nature.

136
Q

rhapsody

A

n. emotional literary or musical work

The poem is a rhapsody on the beauty of nature.

137
Q

rhetoric

A

n. persuasive use of language; pretentious language

The politician’s speech was full of empty rhetoric.

138
Q

rhetorical

A

adj. related to effective communication; insincere in language

All the rhetorical devices in the world won’t make you a good writer unless you have something to say.

139
Q

ribald

A

adj. humorous in a vulgar way

The ribald jokes are not suitable for a young audience.

140
Q

rife

A

adj. widespread, prevalent; abundant

Reports of cheating are rife.

141
Q

riposte

A

n. a retaliatory action or retort

The enemy’s attack brought a quick riposte from our side.

142
Q

risqué

A

adj. bordering on being inappropriate or indecent

The principal thought the show was too risqué for a young audience.

143
Q

robust

A

adj. strong and healthy; hardy

The man was eighty years old and still enjoyed robust health.

144
Q

rococo

A

adj. very highly ornamented

The writer’s rococo style has fallen out of fashion.

145
Q

romanticize

A

v. to interpret romantically

People seem to have a tendency to romanticize the past.

146
Q

rotund

A

adj. round in shape; fat

The rotund man has trouble climbing stairs.

147
Q

rubric

A

n. title or heading; category; established mode of procedure

The new policy falls under the rubric of law and order.

148
Q

rudimentary

A

adj. related to the basic principles of something; elementary; in early stages of development

Ivan’s essay is still at a rudimentary stage of development.

149
Q

rue

A

v. to regret

The old man rues the day he dropped out of college.

150
Q

rueful

A

adj. full of regret

The old man reminisced about his lost opportunities with a rueful smile.

151
Q

ruminate

A

v. to contemplate, reflect upon

The philosopher ruminated all day about the idea.

152
Q

ruse

A

n. trick; crafty stratagem; subterfuge

The ruse allowed the prisoners to escape.

153
Q

rustic

A

adj. rural

Phil and Sue love to have picnics in rustic settings.

Barron's GRE Verbal Workbook (26 decks)

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