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Hit Parade 2010 # 3
Princeton Review GRE Vocab Set #3
Question | Answer |
---|---|
acumen | (noun) keen, accurate judgement or insight |
adulterate | (verb) to reduce purity by combining with inferior ingredients |
amalgamate | (verb) to combine several elements into a whole (noun form: amalgamation) |
archaic | (adjective) outdated; associated with an earlier, perhaps more primitive, time |
aver | (verb) to state as a fact; to declare or assert |
bolster | (verb) to provide support or reinforcement |
bombastic | (adjective) pompous; grandiloquent (noun form: bombast) |
diatribe | (noun) a harsh denunciation |
dissemble | (verb) to disguise or conceal; to mislead |
eccentric | (adjective) departing from norms or conventions |
endemic | (adjective) characteristic of or often found in a particular locality, region, or people |
evanescent | (adjective) tending to disappear like vapor; vanishing |
exacerbate | (verb) to make worse or even more severe |
fervent | (adjective) greatly emotional or zealous (noun form: fervor) |
fortuitous | (adjective) happening by accident or chance |
germane | (adjective) relevant to the subject at hand; appropriate in subject matter |
grandiloquence | (noun) pompous speech or expression (adj. form: grandiloquent) |
hackneyed | (adjective) rendered trite or commonplace by frequent usage |
halcyon | (adjective) calm and peaceful |
hedonism | (noun) devotion to pleasurable pursuits, esp. to the pleasures of the senses (a hedonist is someone who pursues pleasure) |
hegemony | (noun) the consistent dominance of one state or ideology over others |
iconoclast | (noun) one who attacks or undermines traditional conventions or institutions |
idolatrous | (adjective) given to intense or excessive devotion to something (noun form: idolatry) |
impassive | (adjective) revealing no emotion |
imperturbable | (adjective) marked by extreme calm, impassivity and steadiness |
implacable | (adjective) not capable of being appeased or significantly changed |
impunity | (noun) immunity from punishment or penalty |
inchoate | (adjective) in an initial stage; not fully formed |
infelicitous | (adjective) unfortunate; inappropriate |
insipid | (adjective) without taste or flavor; lacking in spirit; bland |
loquacious | (adjective) extremely talkative (noun form: loquacity) |
luminous | (adjective) characterized by brightness and the emission of light |
malevolent | (adjective) having or showing often vicious ill will, spite, or hatred (noun form: malevolence) |
malleable | (adjective) capable of being shaped or formed; tractable; pliable |
mendacity | (noun) the condition of being untruthful; dishonesty (adj form: mendacious) |
meticulous | (adjective) characterized by extreme care and precision; attentive to detail |
misanthrope | (noun) one who hates all other humans (adj. form:misanthropic) |
mitigate | (verb) to make or become less severe or intense; to moderate |
obdurate | (adjective) unyeilding; hardhearted; intractable |
obsequious | (adjective) exhibiting a fawning attentiveness |
occlude | (verb) to obstruct or block |
opprobrium | (noun) disgrace; contempt; scorn |
pedagogy | (noun) the profession or principles of teaching, or instructing |
pedantic | (adjective) overly concerned with the trivial details of learning or education; show-offish about one's knowledge |
penury | (noun) poverty; destitution |
pervasive | (adjective) having the tendency to permeate or spread throughout |
pine | (verb) to yearn intensely; to languish; to lose vigor |
pirate | (verb) to illegally use or reproduce |
pith | (noun) the essential or central part |
pithy | (adjective) precise or brief |
placate | (verb) to appease; to calm by making concessions |
platitude | (noun) a superficial remark, esp. one offered as meaningful |
plummet | (verb) to plunge or drop straight down |
polemical | (adjective) controversial; argumentative |
prodigal | (adjective) recklessly wasteful; extravagant; profuse; lavish |
profuse | (adjective) given or coming forth abundantly; extravagant |
proliferate | (verb) to grow or increase swiftly and abundantly |
queries | (noun) questions;inquiries;doubts in the mind; reservations |
querulous | (adjective) prone to complaining or grumbling; peevish |
rancorous | (adjective) characterized by bitter, long-lasting resentment (noun form: rancor) |
recalcitrant | (adjective) obstinately defiant of authority; difficult to manage |
repudiate | (verb) to refuse to have anything to do with; disown |
rescind | (verb) to invalidate; to repeal; to to retract |
reverent | (adjective) marked by, feeling, or expressing a feeling of profound awe and respect (noun form: reverence) |
rhetoric | (noun) the art or study of effective use of language for communication and persuasion |
salubrious | (adjective) promoting health or well-being |
solvent | (adjective) able to meet financial obligations; able to dissolve another substance |
specious | (adjective) seeming true, but actually being fallacious; misleadingly attractive; plausible but false |
spurious | (adjective) lacking authenticity or validity; false; counterfeit |
subpoena | (noun) a court order requiring appearance and/or testimony |
succinct | (adjective) brief; concise |
superfluous | (adjective) exceeding what is sufficient or necessary |
surfeit | (noun/verb) an overabundant supply; excess; to feed or supply to excess |
tenacity | (noun) the quality of adherence or persistence to something valued; persistent determination (adj. form: tenacious) |
tenuous | (adjective) having little substance or strength; flimsy; weak |
tirade | (noun) a long and extremely critical speech; a harsh denunciation |
transient | (adjective) fleeting; passing quickly; brief |
zealous | (adjective) fervent; ardent; impassioned, devoted to a cause ( a zealot is a zealous person) |