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GRE Vocab
| Term | Definition |
|---|---|
| inveterate | habitual |
| fatuous | complacently foolish, silly, pointless |
| halcyon | prosperous, calm, peaceful |
| scotched | ended |
| gallantry | dashing courage, heroic bravery |
| asperity | severity, harshness |
| forestalled | hindered, prevented in advance |
| eschew | avoid |
| feckless | incompetent, lazy |
| nugatory | trifling, ineffective |
| exacting | demanding |
| truculent | aggressive, fierce, cruel, eager to fight |
| reticent | reserved, restrained |
| recalcitrant | resisting authority or control |
| begrduging | resentful, envious |
| conciliatory | attempts to appease or win over |
| bellicose | aggressively hostile |
| decorous | characterized by proper manners |
| boorish | unmannered, crude |
| esurient | hungry, greedy |
| penurious | miserly, penny-pinching, cheap, ungenerous; impoverished, destitute |
| abnegating | denying oneself |
| exegesis | lengthy analysis and interpretation |
| doleful | expressing sorrow, mournful |
| dirge | lament, mournful song |
| adumbrate | outline, indicate faintly |
| recondite | obscure, little known |
| clemency | mercy, pardon |
| countenance | (n) facial expression; support (v) admit, accept, allow, acknowledge |
| quixotic | exceedingly idealistic, unrealistic, impractical |
| sordid | sleazy, contemptible, abhorrent; dirty, squalid |
| perfunctory | cursory, carried out with minimum effort |
| luminary | celebrity |
| labryinthine | intricate, confusing |
| ecclesiastical | relating to the Christian church or clergy |
| spate | a group of events occurring one after another in a short amount of time |
| dearth | scarcity, lack of something |
| indelible | unforgettable, permanent |
| prosaic | common, uninspired, dull; lacking in spirit or imagination |
| germane | relevant to a subject under consideration |
| baleful | threatening, menacing |
| welter | move tumultuously, move in a turbulent fashion |
| luthier | a maker of stringed instruments such as violin or guitars |
| antithetical | contrasted, mutually incompatible |
| benign | gentle, kindly; not harmful |
| objurgation | harsh reprimand, criticism |
| flaccid | soft, loose, drooping; lacking force or effectiveness |
| supine | lying face upward; failing to act or protest, weak, spineless, yielding |
| indolence | laziness |
| prickly | (of a person) ready to take offense |
| solicitous | concerned, caring, considerate |
| phlegmatic | (of a person) unemotional, calm, composed |
| vitiate | spoil or impair the quality, efficiency, or legal validity of |
| pundit | an expert, authority |
| spectral | of or like a ghost, otherworldly, spooky |
| exorbitant | (of a price or amount charged) unreasonably high |
| lassitude | a state of physical or mental weariness, lack of energy, lethargy |
| surmount | overcome (a difficulty or obstacle) |
| substantiate | provide evidence, prove, support, corrborate |
| venal | corrupt |
| nettle | irritate, annoy |
| prescient | having or showing knowledge of events before they take place, prophetic, predictive, visionary |
| polemical | strongly critical, controversial, or disputatious writing or speech |
| portentous | ominous, inauspicious; done in a pompously or overly solemn manner so as to impress |
| boon | a thing that is helpful or beneficial, blessing, benefit, advantage |
| apologist | defender, supporter, advocate, proponent, |
| potable | drinkable |
| jaunty | cheery, lively, self-confident |
| disparage | belittle, denigrate, deprecate |
| salacious | lustful, lecherous, indecent, sensational |
| prostrate | lying face down |
| stultify | hamper, impede; cause (someone) to appear foolish or absurd |
| depredation | a plunder, attack, robbery |
| equine | of or related to horses |
| vulpine | of or related to foxes |
| pathos | provocation of sadness or pity |
| dubious | doubtful, suspect, suspicious |
| debase | reduce, degrade, lower the value of |
| supplant | supersede, replace |
| jettison | throw, drop |
| spurious | not genuine, false |
| flippant | disrespectful |
| conversant | familiar, knowledgeable |
| blasphemous | irreverent |
| imbibe | consume; absorb, assimilate |
| abscond | to depart clandestinely; to steal off and hide |
| clandestine | secretive, covert, furtive |
| aberrant | deviating from the norm |
| alacrity | eager, enthusiastic willingness |
| anomaly | deviation from the normal order, form, or rule; abnormality |
| approbation | an expression of approval or priase |
| arduous | strenuous, taxing, requiring significant effort |
| assuage | to ease or lessen; to appease or pacify |
| audacious | daring, fearless; recklessly bold |
| austere | without adornment, bare, severely simple, ascetic |
| axiomatic | taken as a given, posessing self-evident truth |
| canonical | following or in agreement with accepted, traditional standards |
| capricious | inclined to change one's mind impulsively, erratic, unpredictable |
| censure | to criticize severely, to officially rebuke |
| chicanery | trickery or subterfuge |
| subterfuge | deceit used in order to achieve one's goals |
| connoisseur | expert, an informed and astute judge in matters of taste |
| convoluted | complex, complicated |
| disabuse | to set right, to undeceive |
| discordant | conflicting; dissonant or harsh in sound |
| disparate | fundamentally distinct or dissimilar |
| effrontery | extreme boldness, presumptuousness |
| eloquent | well-spoken, expressive, articulate |
| enervate | to weaken, to reduce in vitality |
| ennui | dissatisfaction, restlessness resulting from boredom or apathy |
| equivocate | to use ambiguous language with a deceptive intent |
| erudite | very learned, scholarly |
| exculpate | exonerate, to clear of blame |
| exonerate | acquit, absolve, release, free someone from blame for a fault or wrongdoing |
| exigent | urgent, pressing, requiring immediate action or attention |
| extemporaneous | improvised, done without preparation |
| filibuster | intentional obstruction, esp. using prolonged speechmaking to delay legislative action |
| fulminate | to loudly attack or denounce, to express vehement protest |
| denounce | publicly declare wrong or evil |
| ingenuous | artless; frank and candid; lacking in sophistication; innocent and unsuspecting |
| disingenuous | dishonest, not candid or sincere |
| inured | conditioned, accustomed to accepting something undesirable |
| irascible | easily angered, prone to temperamental outbursts |
| laud | to praise highly |
| lucid | clear, easily understood |
| magnanimity | the quality of being generously noble in mind and heart, esp. in forgiving; generosity |
| martial | associated with war and the armed forces |
| mundane | of the world; typical of or concerned with the ordinary |
| nascent | coming into being, in early developmental stages |
| nebulous | vague, cloudy, lacking clearly defined form |
| neologism | a new word, expression or usage; the creation or use of new words or senses |
| noxious | harmful, injurious |
| obtuse | lacking sharpness of intellect; not clear or precise in thought or expression |
| obviate | to anticipate and make unnecessary, preclude, prevent, avoid |
| onerous | troubling, burdensome |
| paean | a song or hymn of praise and thanksgiving |
| parody | a humorous imitation intended for ridicule or comic effect, esp. in literature and art |
| perennial | recurrent through the year or many years; happening repeatedly |
| perfidy | intentional breach of faith; treachery, untrustworthiness, duplicity |
| perspicacious | acutely perceptive, having keen discernment, shrewd |
| prattle | to babble meaninglessly, to talk in an empty and idle manner |
| precipitate | (adj.) acting with excessive haste or impulse, hasty, rash (v.) to cause or happen before anticipated or required, trigger, expedite |
| predilection | a disposition in favor of something, preference |
| prevaricate | to deliberately avoid the truth (by not directly answering a question), to mislead |
| qualms | misgivings, reservations, causes for hesitancy, uneasy feeling or doubt, a concern or worry |
| recant | to retract, esp. a previously held belief |
| refute | to disprove, to successfully argue against |
| relegate | to forcibly assign, esp. to a lower place or position |
| sporadic | occurring only occaisionally, or in scattered instances |
| squander | to waste by spending or using irresponsibly |
| static | not moving, not active, not in motion, at rest |
| stupefy | to stun, baffle, amaze |
| stymie | to block, to thwart |
| synthesis | the combination of parts to make a whole |
| torque | a force that causes rotation |
| tortuous | winding, twisting, excessively complicated |
| veracity | truthfulness, honesty |
| virulent | extremely harmful or poisonous, bitterly hostile or antagonistic |
| voracious | having an insatiable appetite for an activity or pursuit, ravenous |
| waver | to move to and fro; to be unsettled in opinion |
| quiescent | dormant, in a state of inactivity |
| assiduous | hardworking, diligent, showing great care and perseverance |
| sedulous | diligent, careful, showing dedication |
| scrupulous | diligent, thorough, extremely attentive to details; very concerned with avoiding doing wrong, honest, upright |
| menial | (of work) not requiring much skill and lacking prestige; unskilled, lowly, degrading |
| insolent | rude, arrogant, showing lack of respect, impertinent, impudent |
| obdurate | stubborn, obstinate, unyielding |
| execrate | feel or express great loathing for |
| amalgamate | combine, unit to form one organizaiton or structure, come together |
| propitious | giving or indicating good chance of success, favorable, auspicious, promising |
| parlous | fraught with danger, precarious, risky |
| factious | relating or inclined to a state of faction, split, schismatic, discordant |
| contemptious | showing contempt, scornful, disdainful |
| facetious | treating serious issues with deliberately inappropriate humor, flippant |
| illustrious | well known, respected, admired for past achievements, eminent |
| illustrative | serving as an example or explanation, explanatory |
| fallacious | based on a mistaken belief, erroneous |
| usury | the illegal action or practice of lending money at unreasonably high rates of interest |
| illusory | based on illusion, not real, delusory, delusive |
| ameliorate | make better or more tolerable; improve |
| tawdry | gaudy, showy but cheap |
| repudiate | refuse to accept or be associated with, to reject |
| munificent | very generous |
| laconic | using very few words, brief, terse, pithy |
| pertinacious | determined, tenacious, persistent, holding firmly to an opinion or course of action |
| belie | disguise, contradict, debunk |
| credulity | naiveté, tendency to be too ready to believe that something is real or true |
| doctrinaire | dogmatic, rigid, strict |
| indefatigable | persistent, tireless |
| torpid | slow-moving, lethargic, sluggish, dormant |
| bucolic | rustic and pastoral, characteric of rural areas and their inhabitants |
| ambrosial | worthy of the gods, divine, succulently sweet and fragrant |
| timorous | nervous, showing fear or lack of confidence |
| pluck | (n) spirited and determined courage |
| odious | extremely unpleasant, repulsive |
| intransigence | stubborn refusal to change one's mind |
| vacillate | alternate or waver between different opinions or actions, to be indecisive |
| tenuous | very weak or slight; flimsy |
| renege | to go back on a promise, contract; to revoke |
| solvent | having assets in excess of liabilities, debt-free, solid, secure |
| specious | superficially plausible but actually wrong, misleading in appearance |
| implacable | unappeasable, relentless; stubborn in the sense of not being satisfied with anything being offered |
| mollify | appease the anger or anxiety of (someone) |
| extirpate | to tear up by the roots, to destroy completely |
| abate | to lessen intensity or degree |
| accolade | an expression of praise |
| adulation | excessive praise, intense adoration |
| aesthetic | appreciative of art or the beauitful |
| ascetic | (n.) one who practices rigid self-denial, esp. as act of religious devotion |
| avarice | greed, esp. for wealth |
| burgeon | to grow rapidly, to flourish |
| cacophony | harsh sound, dissonance |
| castigation | severe criticism or punishment |
| catalyst | a person or thing that causes change |
| caustic | burning, stinging, causing corrosion |
| chary | cautiously or suspiciously reluctant to do something, wary, sparing |
| cogent | clear, logical, convincing, appealing forcibly to the mind or reason |
| complaisance | the willingness to comply with the wishes of others |
| contentious | argumentative, causing controversy or disagreement |
| contrite | regretful, penitent, seeking forgiveness |
| culpable | deserving blame |
| demur | to question or oppose |
| didactic | intended to teach or instruct |
| discretion | cautious reserve in speech; ability to make responsible decisions |
| disinterested | free of bias or self-interest, impartial |
| artless | naive, simple, without guile |
| dogmatic | expressing a rigid opinion based on unproved or improvable principles, opinionated |
| ebullience | lively enthusiasm, exuberance |
| eclectic | composed of elements drawn from various sources |
| elegy | a mournful poem, esp. one lamenting the dead |
| emollient | soothing, esp. to the skin |
| empirical | based on observation or experiment |
| enigmatic | mysterious, obscure, difficult to understand |
| ephemeral | brief, fleeting |
| esoteric | obscure, intended for or understood by a small, specific group |
| eulogy | a speech honoring the dead |
| furtive | marked by stealth, covert, surreptitious |
| gregarious | sociable, outgoing |
| harangue | (v) to deliver a pompous speech or tirade (n) a long, pompous speech |
| heretical | violating accepted dogma or convention |
| hyperbole | an exaggerated statement, often used as a figure of speech |
| impecunious | lacking funds, without money |
| incipient | beginning to come into being or to become apparent |
| inert | unmoving, lethargic, sluggish |
| inveigle | to obtain by deception or flattery |
| morose | sad, sullen, melancholy |
| opaque | impenetrable by light, not reflecting light |
| pernicious | extremely harmful, potentially causing death |
| peruse | to examine with great care |
| pious | extremely reverent or devout, showing strong religious devotion |
| precursor | one that precedes and indicates or announces another |
| preen | to dress up, to primp, to groom oneself with elaborate care |
| prodigious | extraordinary, abundant in size, force, or extent |
| prodigal | wasteful, wastefully extravagant |
| prolific | productive, producing large volumes or amounts |
| putrefy | to rot, to decay and give off a foul odor |
| quaff | to drink deeply |
| redoubtable | awe-inspiring, worthy of honor |
| sanction | (n) authoritative permission or approval; penalty intended to enforce compliance (v) to give permission or authority to |
| satire | literary work that ridicules or criticizes a human vice through humor or derision |
| stoic | steadfast, indifferent to or unaffected by pleasure or pain |
| urbane | sophisticated, refined, elegant |
| vilify | to defame, to characterize harshly |
| viscous | thick, sticky |
| paucity | scarcity of something |
| surfeit | abundance of something |
| underwrite | to support financially |
| indemnify | to secure against loss |
| liquidate | to pay off a debt |
| pillory | to criticize or ridicule publicly |
| gull | to fool, deceive (someone) |
| apprise | to inform, tell (someone) |
| arrant | without moderation, complete, utter |
| tenable | able to be maintained or defended, justifiable |
| ancillary | subordinate, supplemental |
| gentrify | renovate, improve |
| apprehend | understand, perceive, discern |
| upend | overturn |
| ilk | a type, class, group (of people or things) |
| vigilant | watchful for danger |
| impetuous | impulsive, rash |
| aphoristic | pithy, like a brief slogan or statement |
| obsequious | having a servile attitude, exhibiting a fawning attentiveness |
| grandiloquent | talking in a grandiose manner |
| meretricious | misleading, false |
| probity | honesty, fairness |
| dispatch | speed (in the sense of traveling) |
| virtuosity | high level of artistry, accomplishment |
| disconsolate | hopelessly unhappy |
| posterity | the future, generations to come |
| ephemeron | items means to be useful for only a short period of time |
| epistle | a letter |
| lambast(e) | to criticize, reprimand, berate harshly; to verbally attack |
| calumny | false and malicious statements |
| lionize | to treat as a celebrity |
| acumen | keen and accurate judgement or insight |
| adulterate | to reduce purity by combining with inferior ingredients |
| archaic | outdated; associated with an earlier, perhaps more primitive, time |
| aver | to state as a fact, to declare or assert |
| bolster | to provide support or reinforcement |
| bombastic | pompous, grandiloquent |
| diatribe | a harsh denunciation |
| dissemble | to disguise or conceal, to mislead |
| endemic | characteristic of or often found in a particular locality, region, or people |
| evanescent | tending to disappear like vapor, vanishing |
| fervent | greatly emotional or zealous |
| fortuitous | happening by accident or chance |
| grandiloquence | pompous speech or expression |
| hackneyed | rendered trite or commonplace by frequent usage |
| iconoclast | one who attacks or undermines traditional conventions or institutions |
| hedonism | devotion to pleasurable pursuits |
| hegemony | the consistent dominance of one state or ideology over others |
| idolatrous | given to intense or excessive devotion to something |
| impassive | revealing no emotion |
| imperturable | marked by extreme calm, impassivity, and steadiness |
| impunity | immunity from punishment or penalty |
| inchoate | in an initial stage, not fully formed, rudimentary |
| infelicitous | unfortunate; inappropriate |
| insipid | without taste or flavor, lacking in spirit, bland |
| loquacious | extremely talkative |
| luminous | characterized by brightness and the emission of light |
| malevolent | having or showing often vicious ill will, spite, or hatred |
| malleable | capable of shaped or formed; tractable; pliable |
| mendacity | dishonesty; the condition of being untruthful |
| misanthrope | one who hates all other humans |
| occlude | to obstruct, to block |
| opprobrium | disgrace, contempt, scorn |
| pedagogy | the progression or principles of teaching or instructing |
| pedantic | overly concerned with the trivial details or learning or education; show-offish about one's knowledge |
| penury | poverty, destitution |
| pervasive [pervade = v.] | tending to permeate or spread throughout; prevalent |
| pine | to yearn intensely; to languish, to lose vigor |
| pirate | to illegally use or reproduce |
| pith | the essential or central part |
| pithy | precise, brief |
| placate | to appear, to calm by making concessions |
| platitude | a superficial remark, esp. one offered as meaningful |
| plummet | to plunge or drop straight down |
| profuse | given or coming forth abundantly; extravagant |
| proliferate | to grow or increase swiftly and abundantly |
| queries | questions, inquirires, doubts, reservations |
| querulous | prone to complaining or grumbling; peevish |
| rancorous | characterized by bitter, long-lasting resentment |
| rescind | to invalidate, to repeal, to retract |
| reverent | marked by, feeling, or expressing profound awe and respect |
| rhetoric | the art or study of effective use of language for communication and persuasion |
| salubrious | promoting health or well-being |
| subpoena | a court order requiring appearance and/or testimony |
| tenacity | persistent determination; the quality of adherence to something valued |
| tirade | a harsh denunciation; a long and extremely critical speech |
| transient | fleeting; passing quickly; brief |
| zealous | fervent; ardent; impassioned, devoted to a cause |
| beseech | implore; beg; entreat |
| prerogative | a right or privilege exclusive to a particular individual or class |
| plight | a dangerous, difficult, or otherwise unfortunate situation |
| ineluctable | unable to be resisted or avoided; inescapable |
| invidious | (of an action or situation) likely to arouse resentment or anger in others (of a comparison or distinction) unfairly discriminating; unjust |
| plangent | (of a sound) loud, reverberating and often melancholy |
| denouement | finale, epilogue, outcome, result, end |
| antediluvian | ridiculously old-fashioned, out of date |
| pusillanimous | showing a lack of courage or determination; timid, timorous |
| jejune | naive, simplistic, and superficial (of ideas or writings) dry and uninteresting |
| insurgency | rebellion |
| apocryphal | (of a story or statement) of doubtful authenticity, although widely circulated as being true; fictitious, spurious |
| superannuation | regular payment made into a fund by an employee toward a future pension |
| senescence | the condition or process of deterioration with age |
| acrimonious | using sharp language |
| cow (v.) | intimidate, frighten (someone) |
| turgid | complex |
| repatriate | send (someone) back to their own country |
| commandeer | seize, take possession or control of (something) |
| extradite | hand over (a criminal) to the jurisdiction or the foreign state in which the crime was committed |
| interdict | prohibit, forbid, ban |
| expurgate | remove matter thought to be objectionable or unsuitable from (a book or account); censor |
| indigence [indigent = adj.] | a state of extreme poverty |
| deleterious | causing harm or damage |
| probity | good behavior |
| antipathy | a deep-seated feeling of dislike; aversion; hostility |
| humor | a mood or state of mind; temperament |
| florid | ornate, fancy, elaborate |
| maladroit | ineffective, clumsy, inept |
| acerbic | having a sour or bitter taste or character; sharp, biting |
| aggrandize | to increase in intensity, power, influence, or prestige |
| alchemy | a medieval science aimed at the transmutation of metals, esp. base metals into gold |
| amenable | agreeable; responsive to suggestion |
| anachronism | something or someone out of place in terms of historical or chronological context |
| astringent | having a tightening effect on living tissue; harsh; severe |
| contiguous | sharing a border; touching; adjacent |
| convention | a generally agreed-upon practice or attitude |
| credulous | tending to believe too readily; gullible |
| cynicism | an attitude or quality of believe that all people are motivated by selfishness |
| decorum [decorous = adj.] | polite or appropriate conduct or behavior |
| derision | scorn, ridiculous, contemptuous treatment |
| desiccate | to dry out or dehydrate; to make dry or dull; lacking interest, passion, or energy |
| dilettante | one with an amateurish or superficial interest in the arts or a branch of knowledge |
| divulge | to disclose something secret |
| fawn | to flatter or praise excessively |
| flout | to show contempt for, as in a rule or convention; to break or disrespect a law |
| glib | marked by ease or informality; nonchalant; lacking in depth; superficial |
| hubris | overbearing presumption or pride; arrogance |
| imminent | about to happen; impending [do not confuse with eminent] |
| immutable | not capable of change |
| inimical | damaging; harmful; injurious |
| intractable | not easily managed or directed; stubborn; obstinate |
| intrepid | steadfast and courageous |
| maverick | an independent individual who does not go along with a group or party |
| mercurial | characterized by rapid and unpredictable change in mood |
| neophyte | a recent convert; a beginner; novice |
| obfuscate | to deliberately obscure; to make confusing |
| obstinate | stubborn; hard-headed; uncompromising |
| ostentatious | characterized by or given to pretentious display; showy |
| plethora | an overabundance; a surplus |
| pragmatic | practical rather than idealistic |
| averred | confirmed |
| reconciliation | the restoring of friendly feelings; the making of one view or belief compatible with another |
| inundate | flood; overrun, overwhelm |
| asbtemious | not self-indulgent, eps. when eating or drinking |
| homily | a religious discourse; a tedious moralizing discourse |
| distended | swollen due to pressure from inside; bloated |
| attenuated | unnaturally thin; weakened in force or effect |
| presumptuous | overstepping due bounds (as of propriety or courtesy); taking liberties |
| pristine | pure; uncorrupted; clean |
| probity | adherence to highest principles; complete and confirmed integrity; uprightness |
| proclivity | a natural predisposition or inclination |
| profligate | excessively wasteful; recklessly extravagant |
| propensity | a natural inclination or tendency; penchant |
| pungent | characterized by a strong, sharp smell or taste |
| quotidian | occurring or recurring daily; commonplace |
| rarefy | to make or become thin, less dense; to refine |
| refulgent | radiant; shiny; brilliant |
| shard | a piece of broken pottery or glass |
| spendthrift | one who spends money wasteful |
| terse | brief and concise in wording |
| tout | to publicly praise or promote |
| trenchant | sharply perceptive; keen; penetrating |
| unfeigned | genuine; not false or hypocritical |
| untenable | indefensible; not viable; uninhabitable |
| variegated | multicolored; characterized by a variety of patches of different color |
| vexation [vex = v.] | annoyance, irritation |
| vituperate | to use harsh condemnatory language; to abuse or censure severely or abusively; to berate |
| volatile | readily changing to vapor; changeable; fickle; explosive |
| chagrin | distress or embarrassment at having failed; annoyed and humiliated |
| disaffect | to estrange; to make unfriendly; to distance |
| enlightened | liberal, civilized, informed, spiritually aware |
| commiserate | to sympathize |
| placid | not easily upset or excited; even-tempered |
| dissipate | disperse or scatter; squander or fritter away |
| skein | a length of yarn or thread, loosely knotted or coiled |
| slovenly | (of a person and appearance) messy and dirty; (of a person or action) careless; excessively informal |
| basal | forming the base; fundamental; minimal |
| trite | overused; lacking originality or freshness |
| stilted | (of a manner of writing or talking) stiff, self-conscious, unnatural |
| gainsay | to contradict |
| taciturn | uncommunicative; disinclined to talk |
| sanctimonious | falsely displaying righteousness or piety |
| burlesque | an absurd or comically exaggerated imitation of something |
| prig | self-righteous fuss-budgets |
| dilatory | tardy; slow |
| intimate (v.) | imply or hint; state or make known |
| apostate | a person who renounces a religious or political belief or principles; dissenter |
| equanimity | mental calmness, composure, and evenness of temper, esp. in a difficult situation |
| propoud | put forward (an idea) for consideration by others; proffer, propose, pose, posit |
| candor | frankness; the quality of being open and honest in expression |
| discomfit | to make someone feel uneasy or embarassed |
| diffident | modest or shy because a lack of self confidence |
| modish | currently popular or fashionable |
| alloy (v.) | to commingle; to debase by mixing with something inferior |
| unalloyed | pure |
| appropriate (v.) | to take for one's own use; to confiscate |
| arrest [arresting = adj.] | to suspend; to engage; holding one's attention |
| august (adj.) | majestic, venerable |
| bent (n.) | leaning, inclination, proclivity, tendency |
| broach (v.) | to bring up; to announce; to begin to talk about |
| brook (v.) [brookable = adj.] | to tolerate; to endure; to countenance |
| cardinal (adj.) | major, chief, principal, of prime importance |
| chauvinist | a blindly devoted patirot |
| color (v.) | to change as if by dyeing; to distort, gloss or affect |
| consequential | pompous; self- important [primary definitions: logically follows; important] |
| damp (v.) | to diminish the intensity or check the vibration of a sound |
| die (n.) | a tool used for shaping |
| essay (v.) | to test or try; to attempt; to experiment |
| fell (v.) | to cause to fall by striking |
| fell (adj.) | inhumanely cruel |
| flag (v.) | to sag or droop; to become spiritless; to decline |
| flip (adj.) | flippant, sarcastic, impertinent |
| ford | to wade across the shallow part of a river or stream |
| grouse | to grumble or complain |
| guy (n.) | a rope, cord, or cable attached to something as a brace or guide |
| list (v.) | to tilt or lean to one side |
| lumber | to move heavily and clumsily |
| meet (adj.) | fitting, proper |
| mince (v.) | to pronounce or speak affectedly; to euphemize to speak too carefully Also, to take tiny steps; to tiptoe |
| nice (adj.) | exacting, fastidious, extremely precise |
| obtain (adj.) | to be established, accepted, or customary |
| occult | hidden, concealed, beyond comprehension |
| pedestrian (adj.) | commonplace, trite, unremarkable, quotidian |
| pied | multicolored, usually in blotches |
| prize (v.) [also prise] | to pry, to press or force with a lever; to take by force |
| rail | to complain about bitterly |
| rent (v.) [past tense of rend] | torn |
| quail (v.) | to lose courage; to turn frightened |
| qualify | to limit |
| sap (v.) | to enervate or weaken the vitality of |
| sap (n.) | a fool or nitwit |
| scurvy (adj.) | contemptible, despicable |
| singular | exceptional, unusual, odd |
| stand (n.) | a group of trees |
| steep (v.) | to saturate or complete soak |
| strut (n.) | the supporting structural cross-part of a wing |
| table (v.) | to remove from consideration |
| tender (v.) | to proffer or offer |
| waffle (v.) | to equivocate; to change one's position |
| wag (n.) | wit, joker |
| congenital | existing since birth |
| paragon | a model of excellence; someone of exceptional merit |
| raucous | harsh, grating; rowdy, disorderly |
| mellifluous | sweetly or smoothly flowing; sweet-sounding |
| consummate | to bring to a state of perfection; to fulfill |
| cloying | sickly sweet |
| saccharine | cloyingly sweet or ingratiating; exaggeratedly sweet or sentimental |
| ingratiate | to establish oneself in the favor of good graces of someone [do not confuse with ingrate] |
| rapacious | inordinately greedy, predatory, extortionate |
| extortionate | grossly excessive; exorbitant |
| harbinger | a person who goes ahead and makes known the approach of another; herald |
| herald | a person or thing that precedes another; a person that proclaims or announces |
| autocratic | tyrannical, despotic, domineering |
| leach | to dissolve out by soluble constituents from (e.g., ashes, soil) by percolation |
| petulant [petulance = noun] | showing sudden, impatient irritation; disrespectful; tantrum throwing [do not confuse with impetuous] |
| craven | cowardly |
| moribund | at the point of death |
| ape | imitate |
| vitrolic | cruel, caustic |
| garish | obtrusively bright and showy; lurid |
| obtrusive | noticeable in an unwelcome or intrusive way [do not confuse with obtuse or abstruse] |
| abstruse | difficult to understand; obscure [do not confuse with obtuse or obtrusive] |
| suffuse | to spread throughout; to permeate |
| otiosity | laziness, indolence |
| puerile [puerility = n.] | childishly silly or trivial |
| ululate [ululation = n.] | to howl; to lament loudly and shrilly |
| preponderance | prevalence |
| abrogate | to formally revoke |
| espouse | to adopt or embrace |
| bonanza | something causing sudden wealth or profit |
| myopic | shortsighted, narrow-minded |
| regnant | ubiquitous, prevalent, widespread |
| fugacious | fleeting, transitory |
| engender | to produce, cause, or give rise to |
| palliation | apology, excuse |
| mawkish | overly sentimental |
| scintillating | lively or brilliantly clever |
| kismet | luck |
| imbroglio | confusion |
| stentorian | powerfully sonorous |
| vociferous | (of spoken word) loudly and vehemently expressive |
| garrulous | talkative; verbose |
| ocholocracy | mob rule |
| plutocracy | government by the wealthy |
| unhinged | demented |
| apogee | the highest point; climax |
Created by:
sjaewonlee
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