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Top GRE
| Term | Definition |
|---|---|
| Abate | to reduce in amount, degree, or severity |
| Abscond | to leave secretly |
| Abstain | to choose not to do something |
| Abyss | an extremely deep hole |
| Adulterate | to make impure |
| Advocate | to speak in favor of |
| Aesthetic | concerning the appreciation of beauty |
| Aggrandize | to increase in power, influence, and reputation |
| Alleviate | to make more bearable |
| Amalgamate | to combine; to mix together |
| Ambiguous | doubtful or uncertain; able to be interpreted several ways |
| Ameliorate | to make better; to improve |
| Anachronism | something out of place in time |
| Analogous | similar or alike in some way; equivalent to |
| Anomaly | deviation from what is normal |
| Antagonize | to annoy or provoke to anger |
| Antipathy | extreme alike |
| Apathy | lack of interest or emotion |
| Arbitrate | to judge a dispute between two opposing parties |
| Archaic | ancient, old-fashioned |
| Ardor | intense and passionate feeling |
| Articulate | able to speak clearly and expressively |
| Assuage | to make something unpleasant less severe |
| Attenuate | to reduce in force or degree; to weaken |
| Audacious | fearless and daring |
| Austere | severe or stern in appearance; undecorated |
| Banal | predictable, cliched, boring |
| Bolster | to support; to prop up |
| Bombastic | pompous in speech and manner |
| Cacophony | harsh, jarring noise |
| Candid | impartial and honest in speech |
| Capricious | changing one's mind quickly and often |
| Castigate | to punish or criticize harshly |
| Catalyst | something that brings about a change in something else |
| Caustic | biting in wit |
| Chaos | great disorder or confusion |
| Chauvinist | someone prejudiced in favor of a group to which he or she belongs |
| Chicanery | deception by means of craft or guile |
| Cogent | convincing and well reasoned |
| Condone | to overlook, pardon, or disregard |
| Convolated | intricate and complicated |
| Corroborate | to provide supporting evidence |
| Crescendo | steadily increasing volume or force |
| Decorum | appropriateness of behavior or conduct; propriety |
| Deference | respect, courtesy |
| Deride | to speak of or treat with contempt; to mock |
| Desiccate | to dry out thoroughly |
| Desultory | jumping from one thing to another; disconnected |
| Diatribe | an abusive, condemnatory speech |
| Diffident | lacking self-confidence |
| Dilate | to make larger; to expand |
| Dilatory | intended to delay |
| Dilettante | someone with an amateurish and superficial interest in a topic |
| Dirge | a funeral hymn or mournful speech |
| Disabuse | to set right; to free from error |
| Discern | to perceive; to recognize |
| Disparate | fundamentally different; entirely unlike |
| Dissemble | to present a false appearance; to disguise one's real intentions or character |
| Dissonance | a harsh and disagreeable combination, often of sounds |
| Dogma | a firmly held opinion, often a religious belief |
| Dogmatic | dictatorial in one's opinions |
| Dupe | to deceive; a person who is easily deceived |
| Eclectic | selecting from or made up from a variety of sources |
| Efficacy | effectiveness |
| Elegy | a sorrowful poem or speech |
| Eloquent | persuasive and moving, especially in speech |
| Emulate | to copy; to try to equal or excel |
| Enervate | to reduce in strength |
| Engender | to produce, cause, or bring about |
| Enigma | a puzzle; a mystery |
| Enumerate | to count, list, or itemize |
| Ephemeral | lasting a short time |
| Equivocate | to use expressions of double meaning in order to mislead |
| Erratic | wandering and unpredictable |
| Erudite | learned, scholarly, bookish |
| Esoteric | known or understood by only a few |
| Estimable | admirable |
| Eulogy | speech in praise of someone |
| Euphemism | use of an inoffensive word or phrase in place of a more distasteful one |
| Exacerbate | to make worse |
| Exculpate | to clear from blame; prove innocent |
| Exigent | urgent; requiring immediate action |
| Exonerate | to clear of blame |
| Explicit | to clearly stated or shown; forthright in expression |
| Fanatical | acting excessively enthusiastic; filled with extreme, unquestioned devotion |
| Fawn | to grovel |
| Fervid | intensely emotional; feverish |
| Florid | excessively decorated or embellished |
| Foment | to arouse or incite |
| Frugality | a tendency to be thrifty or cheap |
| Garrulous | tending to talk a lot |
| Gregarious | outgoing, sociable |
| Guile | deceit or trickery |
| Gullible | easily deceived |
| Homogenous | of a similar kind |
| Iconoclast | one who opposes established beliefs, customs and institutions |
| Imperturbable | not capable of being disturbed |
| Impervious | impossible to penetrate; incapable of being affected |
| Impetuous | quick to act without thinking |
| Implacable | unable to be calmed down or made peaceful |
| Inchoate | not fully formed; disorganized |
| Ingenuous | showing innocence or childlike simplicity |
| Inimical | hostile, unfriendly |
| Innocuous | harmless |
| Insipid | lacking interest or flavor |
| Intransigent | uncompromising; refusing to be reconciled |
| Inundate | to overwhelm; to cover with water |
| Irascible | easily made angry |
| Laconic | using few words |
| Lament | to express sorrow; to grieve |
| Laud | to give praise; to glorify |
| Lavish | to give unsparingly (v); extremely generous or extravagant (adj) |
| Lethargic | acting in an indifferent or slow, sluggish manner |
| Loquacious | talkative |
| Lucid | clear and easily understood |
| Luminous | bright, brilliant, glowing |
| Malinger | to evade responsibility to pretend to be ill |
| Metaphor | a figure of speech comparing two different things; a symbol |
| Meticulous | extremely careful about details |
| Misanthrope | a person who dislikes others |
| Mitigate | to soften; to lessen |
| Molify | to calm or make less severe |
| Monotony | lack of variation |
| Naive | lacking sophistication or experience |
| Obdurate | hardened in feeling; resistant to persuasion |
| Obsequious | overly submissive and eager to please |
| Obstinate | stubborn, unyielding |
| Obviate | to prevent; to make unnecessary |
| Occlude | to stop up; to prevent the passage of |
| Onerous | troublesome and oppressive; burdensome |
| Opaque | impossible to see through; preventing the passage of light |
| Opprobrium | public disgrace |
| Ostentation | excessive showiness |
| Paradox | a contradiction or dilemma |
| Paragon | model of excellence or perfection |
| Pedant | someone who shows off learning |
| Perfidious | willing to betray one's trust |
| Perfunctory | done in a routine way; indifferent |
| Permeate | to penetrate |
| Philanthropy | charity; a desire or effort to promote goodness |
| Placate | to soothe or pacify |
| Plastic | able to be molded. altered, or bent |
| Plethora | excess |
| Pragmatic | practical as opposed to idealistic |
| Precipitate | to throw violently or bring about abruptly; lacking deliberation |
| Prevaricate | to lie or deviate from the truth |
| Prestine | fresh and clean; uncorrupted |
| Prodigal | lavish; wasteful |
| Proliferate | to increase in number quickly |
| Propitiate | to conciliate; to appease |
| Propriety | correct behaviors; obedience to rules and customs |
| Prudence | wisdom, caution, or restraint |
| Pungent | sharp and irritating to the senses |
| Quiescent | motionless |
| Rarefy | to make thinner or sparser |
| Repudiate | to reject the validity of |
| Reticent | silent, reserved |
| Rheutoric | effective writing or speaking |
| Satiate | to satisfy fully or overindulge |
| Soporific | causing sleep or lethargy |
| Specious | deceptively attractive; seemingly plausible but fallacious |
| Stigma | a mark of shame or discredit |
| Stolid | unemotional; lacking sensitivity |
| Sublime | lofty or grand |
| Tacit | done without using words |
| Taciturn | silent, not talkative |
| Tirade | long, harsh speech or verbal attack |
| Torpor | extreme mental and physical sluggishness |
| Transitory | temporary, lasting a brief time |
| Vacillate | to sway physically; to be indecisive |
| Venerate | to respect deeply |
| Veracity | filled with truth and accuracy |
| Verbose | wordy |
| Vex | to annoy |
| Volatile | easily aroused or changeable; lively or explosive |
| Waver | to fluctuate between choices |
| Whimsical | acting in a fanciful or capricious manner; unpredictable |
| Zeal | passion; excitement |