Top GRE Words in Context Flashcards
Abate
to reduce in amount, degree, or severity
“As the hurricane’s force ABATED, the winds dropped and the sea became calm”
Abscond
to leave secretly
“The patron ABSCONDED from the restaurant by sneaking out the back door without paying his bill”
Abstain
to choose not to do something
“She ABSTAINED from choosing mouthwatering dessert from the tray”
Abyss
an extremely deep hole
“The submarine dove into the ABYSS to chart the previously unseen depths”
ADULTERATE
to make impure
“The chef made his ketchup last longer by ADULTERATING it with water”
ADVOCATE
to speak in favor of
“The vegetarian ADVOCATED a diet containing no meat”
AESTHETIC
concerning the appreciation of beauty
“Followers of the AESTHETIC Movement regarded the pursuit of beauty as the only true purpose of art”
AGGRANDIZE
to increase in power, influence and reputation
“The supervisor sought to AGGRANDIZE herself by claiming that the achievements of her staff were actually her own”
Alleviate
to make more bearable
“Taking asprin helps to ALLEVIATE a headache”
Amalgamate
to combine, to mix together
“Giant Industries AMALGAMATED with Mega Products to form Giant-Mega Products incorporated”
Ambiguous
doubtful or uncertain; able to be interpreted several ways
“The directions she gave were so AMBIGUOUS that we disagreed on which way to turn”
AMELIORATE
to make better; to improve
“The doctor was able to AMELIORATE the patient’s suffering using painkillers”
Anachronism
something out of place in time
“The aged hippie used ANACHRONISTIC phrases like groovy and far out that had not been popular for years”
Analogous
similar to or alike in some way; equivalent to
“IN the Newtonian construct for explaining the existence of God, the universe is ANALOGOUS to a mechanical timepiece, the creation of a divinely intelligent “clockmaker”
Anomaly
deviation from what is normal
“Albino animals may display too great an ANOMALY in the coloring to attract normally colored mates”
Antagonize
to annoy or provoke to anger
“The child discovered that he could ANTAGONIZE the cat by pulling its tail”
Antipathy
extreme dislike
“The ANTIPATHY between the French and the English regularly erupted into open warfare
Apathy
lack of interest or emotion
“The APATHY of voters is so great that less than half the people who are eligible to vote actually bother to do so”
Arbitrate
to judge a dispute between two opposing parties
“Since the couple could not come to an agreement, a judge was forced to ARBITRATE their divorce proceedings”
Archaic
ancient; old fashioned
“Her ARCHAIC Commodore computer could not run the latest software”
Ardor
intense and passionate feeling
“Bishop’s ARDOR for the landscape was evident when he passionately described the beauty of the scenic Hudson Valley”
Articulate
able to speak clearly and expressively
“She is such an ARTICULATE defender of labor that unions are among her strongest supporters”
Assuage
to make something unpleasant less severe
“Serena used aspirin to ASSUAGE her pounding headache”
Attenuate
to reduce in force or degree; to weaken
“The Bill of Rights ATTENUATED the traditional power of governments to change laws at will”
