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GRE Vocab > Set 2 > Flashcards

Set 2 Flashcards

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0
Q

Banal
adj
(buh naal)

A

Predictable; cliched; boring

His conversation consisted of BANAL phrases like “have a nice day” or “another day, another dollar.”

Synonyms: bland; bromidic; cliched; commonplace; trite; vapid

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1
Q

Repose
noun
(rih pohz)

A

Relaxation; leisure

After working hard every day in the busy city, Mike finds his REPOSE on weekends playing golf with friends.

Synonyms: calmness; tranquility

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2
Q

Plucky
adj
(pluh kee)

A

Courageous; spunky

The PLUCKY young nurse dove into the foxhole, determined to help the wounded soldier.

Synonyms: brave; bold; gutsy

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3
Q

Sinecure
noun
(sien ih kyoor)

A

A well-paying job or office that requires little or no work

The corrupt mayor made sure to set up all his relatives in SINECURES within the administration.

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4
Q

Vestige
noun
(veh stihj)

A

A trace; a remnant

VESTIGES of the former tenant still remained in the apartment, though he hadn’t lived there for years.

Synonyms: relic; remains; sign

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5
Q

Forestall
verb
(fohr stahl)

A

To prevent or delay; to anticipate

The landlord FORESTALLED T.J’s attempt to avoid paying rent by waiting for him outside his door.

Synonyms: avert; deter; hinder; obviate; preclude

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6
Q

Capricious
adj
(kuh prih shuhs)

A

Changing one’s mind quickly and often

Queen Elizabeth I was quite CAPRICIOUS; her courtiers could never be sure which one would catch her fancy.

Synonyms: arbitrary; chance; changeable; erratic; fickle; inconstant

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7
Q

Plethora
noun
(pleh thor uh)

A

Excess

Assuming that more was better, the defendant offered the judge a PLETHORA of excuses.

Synonyms: glut; overabundance; superfluity; surfeit

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8
Q

Lampoon
verb
(laam poon)

A

To ridicule with satire

The mayor hated being LAMPOONED by the press for his efforts to improve people’s politeness.

Synonym: tease

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9
Q

Impervious
adj
(ihm puhr vee uhs)

A

Impossible to penetrate; incapable of being affected

A good raincoat will be IMPERVIOUS to moisture.

Synonyms: impregnable, resistant

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10
Q

Zephyr
noun
(zeh fuhr)

A

A gentle breeze; something airy or unsubstantial

The ZEPHYR from the ocean made the intense heat on the beach bearable for the sunbathers.

Synonyms: breath; draft

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11
Q

Edify
verb
(eh duh fie)

A

To instruct morally and spiritually

The guru was paid to EDIFY the actress in the ways of Buddhism.

Synonyms: educate; enlighten; guide; teach

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12
Q

Anomaly
noun
(uh nahm uh lee)

A

Deviation from what is normal

Albino animals may display too great an ANOMALY in their coloring to attract normally colored mates.

Synonyms: aberrancy; aberration; abnormality; deviance; deviation

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13
Q

Collusion
noun
(kuh loo zhuhn)

A

A collaboration; complicity; conspiracy

It came to light that the police chief and the mafia had a COLLUSION in running the numbers racket.

Synonyms: connivance; intrigue; machination

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14
Q

Multifarious
adj
(muhl tuh faar ee uhs)

A

Diverse

Ken opened the hotel room window, letting in the MULTIFARIOUS noises of the great city.

Synonyms: assorted; heterogeneous; indiscriminate; legion; motley

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15
Q

Permeate
verb
(puhr mee ayt)

A

To penetrate

This miraculous new cleaning fluid is able to PERMEATE stains and dissolve them in minutes!

Synonyms: imbue; infuse; pervade; suffuse

16
Q

Zenith
noun
(zee nihth)

A

The point of culmination; peak

The diva considered her appearance at the metropolitan Opera to be the ZENTIH of her career.

Synonyms: acme; pinnacle

17
Q

Naive
adj
(nah eev)

A

Lacking sophistication or experience

Inexperienced writers often are NAIVE and assume that big words make them sound smarter.

Synonyms: artless; credulous; guileless; ingenuous; simple; unaffected

18
Q

Cloying
adj
(kloy ing)

A

Sickly sweet; excessive

When Enid and Jay first started dating, their CLOYING affection toward one another often made their friends ill.

Synonyms: excessive; fulsome

19
Q

Abdicate
verb
(aab duh kayt)

A

To give up a position, right, or power

With the angry mob clamor ing outside the palace, the king ABDICATED his throne and fled.

Synonyms: cede; quit; relinquish; resign; yield

20
Q

Précis
noun
(pray see)

A

Short summary of facts

Farah wrote a précis of her thesis on the epic poem to share with the class.

Synonym: summary

21
Q

Gestation
noun
(jeh stay shuhn)

A

The growth process from conception to birth

The longer the GESTATION period of an organism, the more developed the baby is at birth.

Synonyms: development; gravidity; pregnancy

22
Q

Lapidary
adj
(laa puh der ee)

A

Relating to precious stones or the art of cutting them

Most LAPIDARY work today is done with the use of motorized equipment.

23
Q

Furtive
adj
(fuhr tihv)

A

Secret; stealthy

Glenn was FURTIVE when he peered out of the corner of his eye at the stunningly beautiful model.

Synonyms: clandestine; covert; shifty; surreptitious; underhand

24
Q

Winsome
adj
(wihn suhm)

A

Charming; happily engaging

Lenore gave the doorman a WINSOME smile, and he let her pass to the front of the line.

Synonyms: attractive; delightful

25
Q

Innocuous
adj
(ih nahk yoo uhs)

A

Harmless

Some snakes are poisonous, but most species are INNOCUOUS and pose no danger to humans.

Synonyms: benign, harmless, inoffensive, insipid

26
Q

Quiescent
adj
(kwie eh sihnt)

A

Motionless

Many animals are QUIESCENT over the winter months, minimizing activity in order to conserve energy.

Synonyms: dormant; latent

27
Q

Curmudgeon
noun
(kuhr muh juhn)

A

A cranky person, usually an old one

Ernesto was a notorious CURMUDGEON who snapped at anyone who disturbed him for any reason.

Synonyms: coot, crab; grouch

28
Q

Dissemble
verb
(dihs sehm buhl)

A

To present a false appearance; to disguise one’s real intentions or character.

The villain could DISSEMBLE to the police no longer - he admitted the deed and tore up the floor to reveal the stash of stolen money.

Synonyms: act; affect; assume; camouflage; cloak; disguise; fake; mask; pretend

29
Q

Probity
noun
(proh bih tee)

A

Complete honesty and integrity

George Washington’s reputation for PROBITY is illustrated in the legend about his inability to lie after he chopped down the cherry tree.

Synonyms: integrity; morality; rectitude; uprightness; virtue

GRE Vocab (17 decks)

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