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GRE > Vocabulary 1-72 > Flashcards

Vocabulary 1-72 Flashcards

0
Q

Abdicate (v)

A

To give up a position, right, or power

-with the angry mob clamoring outside the palace, the king abdicated his throne and fled.

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1
Q

Abase (v)

Uh bays

A

To humble; to disgrace

-my intention was not to base the comedian

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2
Q

Abate(v)

A

To reduce in amount, degree, or severity

-As the hurricanes force abated, the winds dropped and the sea became calm

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3
Q

Aberrant(adj)

A

Deviating from what is normal or expected
-since he had been a steady, cheerful worker for many years, his fellow postal workers did not expect his aberrant burst of rage.

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4
Q

Abeyance(n)

A

Temporary suppression or suspension

-the baseball game was held in abeyance while it continued to rain

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5
Q

Abjure(verb)

A

To reject; to abandon formally

-the spy abjured his allegiance to the us

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6
Q

Abstain(verb)

A

To choose not to do something

-before the medical procedure, you must abstain from eating

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7
Q

Abscond(verb)

A

To leave secretly

-the patron absconded from the restaurant without a word

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8
Q

Abstemious(adj)

A

Moderate in appetite

-because Alice is a vegetarian, she was able to eat only an abstemious meal at the restaurant

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9
Q

Abyss(noun)

A

An extremely deep hole

-he dove into the abyss to chart unseen depths

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10
Q

Accretion(n)

A

A gradual growth in size; an increase in amount

-the committees strong funding efforts resulted in an accretion of money

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11
Q

Acidulous(adj)

A

Sour in taste or manner

-the acidulous taste of the spoiled milk made the young boy’s lips pucker

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12
Q

Acme(n)

A

Highest point ; the summit; the highest level or degree

-he reached the acme of his power

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13
Q

Adulterate(v)

A

To make impure

-The restaurant made his ketchup last longer by adulterating it with water

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14
Q

Advocate(v)

A

To speak in favor of

-the vegetarian advocated a diet with no meat

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15
Q

Aerie(n)

A

A neat built high in the air; an elevated, often secluded, dwelling
-perched high among the trees, the eagle’s aerie was filled with eggs

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16
Q

Aesthetic(adj)

A

Concerning the appreciation of beauty

-the aesthetic movement regarded the pursuit of beauty the only true purpose of art

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17
Q

Affected(adj)

A

Phony; artificial

-the affected hairdresser spouted French phrases, though she had never been in France

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18
Q

Aggrandize(v)

A

To increase in power, influence, and reputation

-the supervisor sought to aggrandize himself by claiming others achievements

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19
Q

Alacrity(n)

A

Speed or quickness

-the restaurant won a reputation for fine service since the wait staff responded to their clients with alacrity.

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20
Q

Alleviate(v)

A

To make more bearable

-taking aspiring helps to alleviate pain

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21
Q

Amalgamate(v)

A

To combine; to mix together

-McDonalds amalgamated with DD to form Starbucks

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22
Q

Ambiguous(adj)

A

Doubtful or uncertain; can be interpreted several ways

-the directions he have we’re ambiguous that we disagreed on which way to turn

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23
Q

Ameliorate(v)

A

To make better; to improve

-the doctor was able to ameliorate the patients suffering

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24
Q

Amortize(v)

A

To diminish by installment payments

-while college students are notorious for debt, they are not know for amortizing it.

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25
Q

Amulet(n)

A

Ornament worn against evil spirits

-Vivian wore an amulet against her neck

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26
Q

Anachronism(n)

A

something out if place or time

-the play was set in the 19th century, but was ruined by anachronisms, like the actors digital watch

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27
Q

Analgesia(n)

A

A lessening of pain without loss of consciousness

-after the crash, she welcomed the analgesia that the painkillers provided

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28
Q

Analogous(adj)

A

Similar or alike in some way; equivalent

-his mother argued that not going to college was analogous to throwing his life away

29
Q

Anodyne(n)

A

Something that calms or soothes pain

-the massages as an anodyne that helped remove knots from the lawyers back

30
Q

Anomaly(n)

A

Deviating from what is normal

-animals display great an a anomaly in their coloring when they have sex

31
Q

Antagonize(v)

A

To annoy or provoke to anger

-he could antagonize the cat by pulling his tail

32
Q

Antipathy(n)

A

Extreme dislike

-the antipathy between fans made the game more electrifying

33
Q

Apathy(n)

A

Lack of interest or emotion

-the apathy of voters is so great that less than half vote

34
Q

Apocryphal(adj)

A

Of questionable authority or authenticity

-there is no evidence to support the apocryphal tales that link the Roswell, New Mexico, incident to a downed UFO

35
Q

Apostate(n)

A

One who renounces a religious faith

-so that he could divorce, the king scoffed at the church doctrines and declared himself an apostate

36
Q

Approbation(n)

A

Approval or praise

-the approbation that he received in France included a medal from the governor

37
Q

Arbitrary(adj)

A

Determined by chance or impulse

-when you lack information you will be forced to make an arbitrary decision

38
Q

Arbitrate(v)

A

To judge a dispute between two opposing parties

-a judge was forced to arbitrate their divorce proceedings

39
Q

Archaic(adj)

A

Ancient; old-fashioned

-her archaic computer could not run the latest software

40
Q

Ardor(n)

A

Intense and passionate feeling

-her ardor for landscape was evident when she described the beauty of the scenery

41
Q

Arrogate(v)

A

To claim without justification; to claim oneself without right
-she watched as her boss arrogated the credit for the sale

42
Q

Articulate(adj)

A

Able to speak clearly and expressively

-she is articulate when it comes to her pro-labor views

43
Q

Assail(v)

A

To attack; to assault

-the army will try to assail our bases but they will not succeed in the attack

44
Q

Attenuate(v)

A

To reduce in force or degree; to weaken

-the bill of rights attenuated the traditional power of government to change laws at will

45
Q

Assuage(v)

A

To make something unpleasant less severe

-Philip uses alcohol to assuage his sense of meaninglessness

46
Q

Audacious(adj)

A

Fearless and daring

-the audacious peasant dared to insult the king

47
Q

Augury(n)

A

A prophecy; a prediction of events

-he hoped the rainbow was an augury of good things to come

48
Q

August(adj)

A

Dignified; grandiose

-the August view if the summit took my breath away

49
Q

Austere(adj)

A

Severe or stern in appearance; un decorated

-the lack of decoration of the temple made it seem austere to the untrained eye

50
Q

Axiom(n)

A

Premise; postulate; self-evident truth

-she lived her life based on the axioms her mother passed to her

51
Q

Banal(adj)

A

Predictable; cliched; boring

-his discovery consisted of banal phrases have a nice day

52
Q

Belfry(n)

A

A bell tower; the room in which a bell is hung

-it was found in the belfry if the church

53
Q

Bevy(n)

A

A group

-as predicted, a bevy of teenaged ruined the movie

54
Q

Bifurcate(v)

A

To divide into parts

-mcdonalds announced it’s plans to bifurcate

55
Q

Bilk(v)

A

To cheat; to defraud

-he bilked the tourist out of $5

56
Q

Blight(v)

A

To afflict ; to destroy

-the farmer feared the frost would Blight the crops

57
Q

Blithe(adj)

A

Joyful, cheerful, or without appropriate thought

-the blithe students spent their days that the beach

58
Q

Bolster(v)

A

To support; to prop up

- the presence of footprints bolstered the argument that Bigfoot was in the area

59
Q

Bombastic(adj)

A

Pompous in speech and manner

-mussolinis speeches were mostly bombastic; his boasting and outrages claims had no basis in fact

60
Q

Bonhomie(n)

A

Good-natured geniality; an atmosphere of good cheer

-she loved the pleasant bonhomie in the office

61
Q

Boor(n)

A

A crude person; one lacking manners or taste

-the boor ruined my recital with his constant cursing

62
Q

Burgeon(v)

A

To grow and flourish

-he allowed rumor to burgeon without any word

63
Q

Burnish(v)

A

To polish

-he burnished the pot until it shone brightly

64
Q

Cabal(n)

A

A secret group seeking to overturn something

-the boys on the street formed a cabal to keep girls out

65
Q

Cacophony(n)

A

A harsh; jarring noise

-they created a cacophony as they tried to tune the mic

66
Q

Calumny(n)

A

A false and malicious accusations; misrepresentation

- the politician used calumny to bring down his opponent

67
Q

Canard(n)

A

A lie

-the story about a pig laying an egg was a canard

68
Q

Candid(adj)

A

Impartial and honest in speech

-observations by a child can be charming since they are candid and unpretentious

69
Q

Capricious(adj)

A

Changing ones mind quickly and often

-she was so capricious; her boyfriends could never be sure which one would catch her fancy

70
Q

Cartography(n)

A

The science or art of making maps

-her interest in cartography stems from the traveling she did as a child

71
Q

Castigate(v)

A

To punish or criticize harshly

-she castigated her boyfriend for not remember her name

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