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GRE Vocabulary
| Term | Definition |
|---|---|
| abate | (v.) to decrease; reduce |
| abdicate | (v.) to give up a position, right, or power |
| de facto | in fact, whether by right or not; in reality or actually; resulting from economic or social factors rather than from laws or actions of the state |
| aberrant* | (adj.) deviating from what is normal noun form = aberration |
| deviant | a person whose behavior differs from the accepted standards of society |
| abeyance* | (n.) temporary suppression or suspension; follows "in" (ex: a plan that is in abeyance) |
| abject | (adj.) miserable or pitiful; very bad or severe; servile or spiritless; showing hopelessness or resignation |
| abjure | (v.) to reject or abandon formally |
| abscission | (n.) the act of cutting; the natural separation of a leaf or other part of a plant |
| abscise | (v.) to cut off or away |
| abscond | (v.) to depart secretly |
| abstemious* | (adj.) moderate in appetite |
| abstinence | (n.) the giving up of certain pleasures |
| abysmal | (adj.) very bad |
| free market | an economic market in which supply and demand of goods/services is either not regulated or only slightly regulated |
| planned economy | AKA command economy; an economic system in which the production, allocation, and consumption of goods/services is planned in advance |
| capitalism | an economic and political system in which a country's industry and trade are controlled by private owners rather than the govt. |
| accretion | (n.) growth in size or increase in amount |
| accrue | (v.) to accumulate; grow by additions |
| adamant | (adj.) uncompromising; unyielding |
| adjunct | (n.) something added, attached, or joined |
| admonish | (v.) to caution or reprimand |
| adulterate | (v.) to corrupt or make impure |
| aesthetic* | (adj.) relating to beauty or art (n.) a conception of what is artistically beautiful |
| affected (adj.) | (adj.) pretentious; phony |
| affinity | (n.) fondness; liking; similarity |
| aggrandize | (v.) to make larger or greater |
| aggregate | (adj.) amounting to a whole; total (v.) to collect into a mass (n.) collective mass or sum |
| alacrity* | (n.) cheerful willingness; eagerness; speed |
| alchemy | (n.) medieval chemical philosophy based on changing metal into gold; a seemingly magical power or process of transmutation |
| allay | (v.) to lessen, ease, or soothe |
| alleviate* | (v.) to relieve; improve partially |
| bourgeoisie | spelling* |
| alloy | (n.) a combination; a mixture of two or more metals |
| allure | (n.) the power to entice by charm |
| amalgamate* | (v.) to combine into a unified whole |
| ambiguous* | (adj.) unclear or doubtful in meaning |
| Mahayana Buddhist | one of the three major traditions of Buddhism; regards the historical Buddha as a manifestation of the celestial Buddha |
| ambivalence* | (n.) the state of having conflicting emotional attitudes |
| ambrosia | (n.) something delicious; the food of the gods |
| philistinism | guided by materialism and disdainful of intellectual or artistic values |
| ameliorate* | (v.) to improve |
| amenable | (adj.) agreeable; cooperative; suited |
| amenity | (n.) something that increases comfort |
| amulet | (n.) ornament worn as a charm against evil spirits |
| anachronism* | (n.) something out of the proper time |
| analgesic | (n.) medication that reduces or eliminates pain |
| analogous* | (adj.) comparable |
| analog | (n.) something that is comparable to something else |
| Protestant work ethic | a view of life that encourages hard work and a rational view of the world as a way to achieve material success |
| Confucian | a system or ethics based on the teachings of the ancient Chinese sage Confucius; places a high value on family relationships |
| anarchy* | (n.) absence of government; state of disorder |
| anodyne | (n.) something that calms or soothes pain; analgesic (adj.) not likely to provoke dissent or offense; inoffensive, often deliberately so |
| anomalous* | (adj.) irregular; deviating from the norm |
| antecedent | (n.) something that comes before |
| Reformation | a 16th-century movement aimed at reforming abuses in the Roman Catholic Church; led to the establishment of new churches |
| antediluvian | (adj.) prehistoric |
| antipathy* | (n.) dislike; hostility |
| protagonist | the main character in a work of literature |
| apathy* | (n.) indifference |
| welfare state | the provision of welfare services by the state (that is, the government) |
| apex | (n.) the highest point |
| classicism | an aesthetic tradition that values simplicity, elegance, restraint, and order |
| Augustans | a period of English literature from around 1700 to 1789. Satire was a feature of the writing of many authors of this period (ex: Alexander Pope and Jonathan Swift) |
| apogee | (n.) the point in an orbit most distant from the body being orbited; the highest point |
| Ottoman Empire | an empire that arose in Anatolia (modern Turkey) in the 14th-century, destroying the Byzantine Empire |
| apothegm | (n.) a terse, witty saying |
| appease | (v.) to calm; pacify; placate |
| appellation | (n.) name |
| apposite | (adj.) strikingly appropriate and relevant |
| apprise* | (v.) to inform |
| approbation* | (n.) praise; approval |
| appropriate* | (v.) to take possession for one's own use; confiscate |
| apropos | (adj.) relevant |
| arabesque | (n.) ornate design featuring intertwined curves; a ballet position in which one leg is extended in back while the other supports the weight of the body |
| archeology | (n.) the study of material evidence of past human life |
| Carbon-14 dating | determining the actual or relative age of an object, of a natural phenomenon, or of a series of events through the use of the isotope carbon-14, which occurs naturally |
| ardor | (n.) great emotion or passion |
| arduous* | (adj.) extremely difficult; laborious |
| argot | (n.) a specialized vocabulary used by a group |
| arrest | (v.) to stop; to seize |
| artifact | (n.) item made by human craft |
| Marxist | a follower of Marxism, the political and economic philosophy of Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels |
| Marxism | Concept of class struggle plays a central role in understanding society's inevitable development from bourgeois oppression under capitalism to a socialist and ultimately classless society |
| artless* | (adj.) guileless; natural |
| ascetic* | (n.) on who practices self-denial (adj.) self-denying; austere |
| jihad | the religious duty of Muslims to defend their religion (Islam) by war or spiritual struggle against nonbelievers |
| asperity | (n.) severity; harshness; irritability |
| aspersion* | (n.) slander; false rumor |
| assiduous* | (adj.) diligent; hard-working |
| assuage | (v.) to make less severe |
| astringent | (adj.) harsh; severe |
| asylum | (n.) place of refuge or shelter |
| atavism | (n.) in biology, the reappearance of a characteristic in an organism after several generations of absence; individual or a part that exhibits atavism; |
| attenuate* | (v.) to weaken |
| audacious* | (adj.) bold; daring |
| austere* | (adj.) stern; unadorned |
| Deism | the belief in a God who created the universe and then abandoned it, assuming no control over life or natural phenomena, and giving no supernatural revelation |
| autonomous | (adj.) self-governing; independent |
| avarice | (n.) greed |
| aver | (v.) to affirm; declare to be true |
| yogi | a man who practices yoga; a woman who practices yoga is called a yogini |
| guru | a personal spiritual teacher; a trusted advisor or an authority |
| yoga | spiritual practices in the Hindu and Buddhist religions that are believed to help one to attain higher awareness and union with God |
| avocation | (n.) secondary occupation |
| avuncular | (adj.) like an uncle; benevolent and tolerant |
| axiomatic | (adj.) self-evident or unquestionable |
| bacchanalian | (adj.) pertaining to riotous or drunken festivity; pertaining to revelry |
| banal* | (adj.) commonplace; trite |
| banter | (n.) playful conversation |
| bard | (n.) poet |
| bawdy | (adj.) obscene |
| beatify | (v.) to sanctify; to bless; to ascribe a virtue to |
| bedizen | (v.) to dress in a vulgar, showy manner |
| behemoth | (n.) huge creature; anything very large and powerful |
| belie* | (v.) (of an appearance) fail to give a true notion or impression of (something); disguise or contradict; fail to fulfill or justify |
| beneficent* | (adj.) kindly; doing good |
| bifurcate | (v.) to divide into two parts |
| blandishment | (n.) flattery |
| blasé | (adj.) bored because of frequent indulgence; unconcerned |
| bolster | (v.) to give a boost to; prop up; support |
| bombastic* | (adj.) pompous; using inflated language; high-sounding but with little meaning |
| boorish* | (adj.) rude; insensitive |
| bovine | (adj.) cow-like; relating to cows |
| brazen | (adj.) bold; shameless |
| broach | (v.) to mention for the first time |
| bucolic | (adj.) characteristic of the countryside; rustic; pastoral |
| burgeon* | (v.) to flourish |
| burnish* | (v.) to polish |
| buttress* | (v.) to reinforce; support |
| cacophonous* | (adj.) unpleasant or harsh-sounding |
| aficionados | People who are enthusiastic admirers or followers |
| cadge | (v.) to beg; sponge |
| callous | (adj.) thick-skinned; insensitive |
| calumny | (n.) false and malicious accusation; slander |
| canard | (n.) false, deliberately misleading story |
| canon | (n.) established principle; a basis or standard for judgment; a group of literary works |
| Rococo | (adj.) excessively ornate; highly decorated; refers to a style of architecture in 18th-century Europe that made use of elaborate curved forms |
| cant | (n.) hypocritical and sanctimonious talk, typically of a moral, political, or religious nature; language peculiar to a specified group or profession and regarded with disparagement |
| cantankerous | (adj.) irritable; ill-humored |
| capricious* | (adj.) given to sudden and unaccountable changes of mood or behavior |
| captious | (adj.) faultfinding; intended to entrap, as in an argument |
| cardinal | (adj.) of foremost importance |
| carnal | (adj.) of the flesh or body; relating to physical needs and activities (esp. those of a sexual nature) |
| nirvana | ideal condition of rest, harmony, or joy; according to Buddhism and Hinduism, in order to reach nirvana one must extinguish the fire fueled by the ego, which causes suffering, ignorance, delusion, and greed |
| carping | (v.) to find fault; complain |
| utilitarian | the greatest good for the greatest number |
| cartography | (n.) science of making maps |
| caste | (n.) any of the hereditary social classes of Hindu society; social stratification |
| castigation* | (n.) punishment; chastisement; criticism |
| cataclysm | (n.) a violent upheaval that causes great destruction and change |
| catalyst* | (n.) something causing change |
| Romantic movement | late 18th and 19th-century movement; revolt against classicism and reason; emphasized the individual and the emotional; stressed inherent goodness of man and nature; valued freedom highly |
| libertarian | place great importance on individual freedom |
| categorical | (adj.) absolute; without exception |
| caucus | (n.) smaller group within an organization |
| causal | (adj.) involving a cause |
| caustic | (adj.) sarcastically biting; burning |
| celestial | (adj.) concerning the sky or heavens; sublime |
| centrifugal | (adj.) moving away from a center |
| centripetal | (adj.) moving or directed toward a center |
| champion | (v.) to defend or support |
| chasten | (v.) to correct by punishment or reproof; to restrain or subdue |
| chicanery* | (n.) trickery; fraud |
| chivalry | (n.) the qualities idealized by knighthood such as bravery and gallantry toward women |
| Crusades | military expeditions by Christians in the Middle Ages to win the Holy Land from the Muslims |
| churlish | (adj.) rude; boorish |
| circuitous | (adj.) roundabout |
| clairvoyant | (n.) one who can predict the future; psychic |
| clamor | (n.) noisy outcry (v.) to cry out noisily |
| clique | (n.) a small, exclusive group |
| cloister | (v.) to confine; seclude |
| coagulate* | (v.) thicken; congeal |
| coalesce | (v.) to cause to become one |
| coda | (n.) concluding part of a literary or musical composition; something that summarizes or concludes |
| codify | (v.) to systematize |
| civil law | a system of law developed from Roman law that is used in continental Europe, the U.S. state of Louisiana, and several other places; basis of civil law is statute rather than custom and precedent |
| Napoleonic Code | French legal code enacted by Napoleon in 1804; made uniform the private law of France |
| common law | body of law that includes many non-statutory laws based on many years of precedent derived from rulings by judges |
| cognizant | (adj.) informed; conscious; aware |
| collage | (n.) artistic composition of materials pasted over a surface; an assemblage of diverse elements |
| commensurate* | (adj.) proportional |
| compendium* | (n.) a brief, comprehensive summary |
| complacent | (adj.) smug or uncritical satisfaction with oneself |
| complaisant* | (adj.) overly polite; willing to please; obliging |
| complement | (n.) something that completes or makes up a whole |
| compliant | (adj.) yielding |
| compunction | (n.) uneasiness caused by guilt |
| concave | (adj.) curving inward |
| conciliatory* | (adj.) tending to win over from a state of distrust or hostility |
| concoct | (v.) to invent |
| concomitant* | (n.) existing concurrently |
| hominids | any member of the biological family Hominidae (the "great apes"), which include chimpanzees, gorillas, orangutans, and humans |
| condone | (v.) accept and allow (behavior that is considered morally wrong or offensive) to continue |
| ahimsa | a belief in Hinduism, Jainism, and Buddhism that advocates noninjury to all living beings |
| confound* | (v.) to baffle; perplex; mix up |
| congenial | (adj.) similar in tastes and habits; friendly; suited to |
| conjugal | (adj.) pertaining to marriage agreement |
| connoisseur | (n.) a person possessing expert knowledge or training; a person of informed and discriminating taste |
| conscript | (n.) person compulsorily enrolled for military service (v.) to enroll a person for military service |
| War of 1812 | a war fought between the British Empire and the U.S. from 1812 to 1815; ended in a stalemate |
| consecrate | (v.) to declare sacred |
| contend | (v.) assert something as a position in an argument; struggle to surmount |
| ethical relativism | the view that there is no objective truth in issues of what is right and wrong |
| Friedrich Nietzsche | 19th-century German philosopher; best known for his doctrine of "the Superman" which held that superior people should reject the "slave morality" of traditional Christianity in favor of a new morality centered on the individual |
| contentious* | (adj.) quarrelsome; causing quarrels |
| contiguous | (adj.) touching; neighboring; connecting without a break |
| continence | (n.) self-control; abstention from sexual activity |
| contrite | (adj.) very sorrowful for a wrong |
| contumacious | (adj.) disobedient; rebellious |
| conundrum* | (n.) riddle; puzzle with no solution |
| convention | (n.) practice widely observed in a group; custom; accepted technique or device |
| converge | (v.) to approach; come together; tend to meet |
| convex | (adj.) curved outward |
| convivial | (adj.) sociable |
| convoluted* | (adj.) twisted; complicated |
| copious | (adj.) abundant; plentiful |
| coquette | (n.) a woman who flirts |
| cornucopia | (n.) horn overflowing with fruit and grain; state of abundance |
| cosmology* | (n.) study of the universe as a totality; theory of the origin and structure of the universe |
| covert | (adj.) secret; hidden |
| covetous | (adj.) desiring something owned by another |
| cozen | (v.) to mislead by trick or fraud; deceive |
| craven* | (adj.) cowardly |
| credence* | (n.) acceptance of something as true |
| credo | (n.) statement of belief or principle; creed |
| daunt | (v.) to discourage; intimidate; dishearten |
| dearth | (n.) scarcity |
| debauchery | (n.) corruption |
| decorum* | (n.) proper behavior |
| defame | (v.) to malign; harm someone's reputation |
| default | (v.) to fail to fulfill an obligation |
| deference* | (n.) respect; regard for another's wish |
| defunct | (adj.) no longer existing or functioning |
| delineate* | (v.) to represent or depict |
| demographic | (adj.) related to population balance |
| demotic* | (adj.) pertaining to people |
| demur* | (v.) to express doubt |
| denigrate* | (v.) to slur someone's reputation |
| denizen | (n.) an inhabitant; a regular visitor |
| denouement* | (n.) outcome; unraveling of the plot of a play or work of literature |
| deride | (v.) to mock |
| derivative* | (n.) something derived; unoriginal |
| lingua franca | a language used as a medium of communication between peoples of different languages |
| desiccate* | (v.) to dry completely |
| desuetude | (n.) state of disuse |
| desultory* | (adj.) random; disconnected; rambling |
| deterrent | (n.) something that discourages or hinders |
| detraction | (n.) the act of taking away; derogatory comment on a person's character |
| diaphonous | (adj.) transparent; fine-textured; insubstantial; vague |
| diatribe* | (n.) bitter verbal attack |
| dichotomy* | (n.) division into two usually contradictory parts |
| dualist | one who believes in dualism, the theory that two basic entities constitute reality (such as mind and matter or good and evil) |
| lascivious | (adj.) lustful; feeling or revealing an overt and often offensive sexual desire |
| prescient | (adj.) having or showing knowledge of events before they take place |
| preternatural | (adj.) beyond what is normal or natural; supernatural |
| preordained | (adj.) (of a course of action or outcome) decided or determined beforehand; predestined |
| pithy | (adj.) concise and forcefully expressive |
| lionize | (v.) to give a lot of public attention and approval to (someone); treat as a celebrity |
| indemnify | (v.) compensate (someone) for harm or loss |
| actuary | (n.) someone who compiles and analyzes statistics and uses them to calculate insurance risks and premiums |
| quotidian | (adj.) daily; ordinary or everyday, especially when mundane |
| acerbic | (adj.) sharply or bitingly critical, sarcastic, or ironic in temper, mood, or tone |
| doyenne | (n.) a woman who is the most respected or prominent person in a particular field |
| abreast of | alongside/even with |
| lackey | (n.) a servant; someone who is willing to obey someone else |
| inimical | (adj.) tending to obstruct or harm; unfriendly; hostile |
| impecunious | (adj.) having little or no money |
| quixotic | (adj.) exceedingly idealistic; unrealistic and impractical; starry-eyed |
| grandiloquent* | (adj.) pompous or extravagant in language, style, or manner, especially in a way that is intended to impress |
| mendacious* | (adj.) dishonest; not telling the truth; lying |
| pan | (v.) criticize (someone or something) severely |
| insouciance | (n.) casual lack of concern; indifference |
| profundity | (n.) deep insight; great depth of knowledge or thought |
| homily* | (n.) a tedious moralizing discourse; a sermon |
| simpatico | (adj.) likable and easy to get along with; having or characterized by shared attributes or interests; compatible |
| effusive | (adj.) expressing feelings of gratitude, pleasure, or approval in an unrestrained or heartfelt manner |
| maudlin | (adj.) self-pityingly or tearfully sentimental, often through drunkenness |
| syncopated | (adj.) (of music or a rhythm) characterized by displaced beats or accents so that the strong beats are weak and vice versa |
| amortize | (v.) reduce or pay off (a debt) with regular payments |
| inveigle | (v.) persuade (someone) to do something by means of deception or flattery ; to win over by flattery or coaxing |
| hector | (v.) talk to someone in a bullying way |
| inform | (v.) give an essential or formative principle or quality to |
| consanguineous | (adj.) relating to or denoting people descended from the same ancestor |
| coltish | (adj.) energetic but awkward in one's movements or behaviors |
| chary | (adj.) cautiously or suspiciously reluctant to do something |
| sycophant | (n.) a person who acts obsequiously toward someone important in order to gain advantage |
| imperious | (adj.) assuming power or authority without justification; arrogant and domineering |
| obsequious* | (adj.) obedient or attentive to an excessive or servile degree; overly submissive |
| sanguine | (adj.) optimistic or positive, especially in an apparently bad or difficult situation |
| evanescent | (adj.) soon passing out of sight, memory, or existence; quickly fading or disappearing |
| peccadillo | (n.) a small, relatively unimportant offense or sin |
| verdant | (adj.) (of countryside) green with grass or other rich vegetation; of the bright green color of lush grass |
| depose | (v.) remove from office suddenly and forcefully |
| convoluted | (adj.) (especially of an argument, story, or sentence) extremely complex and difficult to follow; intricately folded, twisted, or coiled |
| dulcet | (adj.) (especially of sound) sweet and soothing (often used ironically) |
| facile | (adj.) (especially of a theory or argument) appearing neat and comprehensive only by ignoring the true complexities of an issue; superficial; (of a person) having a superficial or simplistic knowledge/approach |
| garrulous* | (adj.) excessively talkative, especially on trivial matters |
| facetious | (adj.) treating serious issues with deliberately inappropriate humor; flippant |
| disingenuous* | (adj.) not candid or sincere, typically by pretending that one knows less about something than one really does; playing dumb |
| polemic | (n.) a strong verbal or written attack on someone or something |
| excoriate | (v.) censure or criticize severely |
| garland | (n.) prize or distinction |
| obloquy | (n.) strong public criticism or verbal abuse; disgrace, especially that brought about by public abuse |
| artifice | (n.) clever or cunning devices or expedients, especially as used to trick or deceive others |
| pedantry | (n.) excessive concern with minor details and rules |
| parsimony | (n.) extreme unwillingness to spend money or use resources |
| pulchritude | (n.) beauty |
| minutiae | (n.) the small, precise, or trivial details of something; petty details |
| indolent | (adj.) wanting to avoid activity or exertion; lazy |
| probity* | (n.) the quality of having strong moral principles; honesty and decency |
| profligate | (adj.) recklessly extravagant or wasteful in the use of resources |
| Byzantine | (adj.) (of a system or situation) excessively complicated, and typically involving a great deal of administrative detail; characterized by deviousness or underhanded procedure |
| inexorable | (adj.) impossible to stop or prevent; (of a person) impossible to persuade by request or entreaty |
| parlous | (adj.) full of danger or uncertainty; precarious |
| semiotic | (adj.) relating to signs and symbols |
| providential | (adj.) occurring at a favorable time; opportune |
| sangfroid | (n.) composure or coolness, sometimes excessive, as shown in danger or under trying circumstances |
| vainglory | (n.) inordinate pride in oneself or one's achievements; excessive vanity |
| brook | (v.) tolerate or allow (something, typically dissent or opposition) |
| modicum | (n.) a small quantity of a particular thing, especially something considered desirable or valuable; limited quantity |
| paragon | (n.) a person or thing regarded as a perfect example of a particular quality |
| nadir | (n.) the lowest point in the fortunes of a person or organization |
| expatiate | (v.) speak or write at length or in detail |
| tendentious | (adj.) expressing or intending to promote a particular cause or point of view, especially a controversial one |
| protean | (adj.) tending or able to change frequently or easily |
| parochial | (adj.) relating to a church parish; narrow-minded |
| arcadian | (adj.) relating to an ideal rustic paradise |
| tony | (adj.) fashionable among wealthy or stylish people |
| licentious | (adj.) promiscuous and unprincipled in sexual matters |
| dissolute | (adj.) lax in morals |
| perspicacious | (adj.) having a ready insight into and understanding of things |
| insipid* | (adj.) lacking flavor; lacking vigor or interest; dull |
| effete* | (adj.) (of a person) affected, over-refined, and ineffectual; no longer capable of effective action |
| abstruse | (adj.) difficult to understand; obscure |
| diffident* | (adj.) modest or shy because of a lack of self-confidence |
| decamp | (v.) depart suddenly or secretly, especially to relocate one's business or household in another location |
| bedlam | (n.) a scene of uproar and confusion; an institution for the care of mentally ill people |
| vitreous | (adj.) like glass in appearance or physical properties; derived from or containing glass |
| grizzled | (adj.) having or streaked with gray hair |
| discerning | (adj.) having or showing good judgment |
| rancorous | (adj.) characterized by bitterness or resentment |
| inchoate* | (adj.) just begun and so not fully formed or developed; rudimentary; confused or incoherent |
| serendipitous | (adj.) occurring or discovered by chance in a happy or beneficial way |
| dispensation | (n.) exemption from a rule or usual requirement; a system of order, government, or organization of a nation, community, etc. especially as existing at a particular time |
| pique | (n.) a feeling of irritation or resentment resulting from a slight, especially to one's pride; fleeting feeling of hurt pride (v.) to provoke or arouse |
| interlocutor | (n.) a person who takes part in a dialogue or conversation |
| obtuse | (adj.) annoyingly insensitive or slow to understand |
| genteel | (adj.) polite, refined, or respectable, often in an affected or ostentatious way |
| eclectic* | (adj.) deriving ideas, style, or taste from a broad and diverse range of sources |
| interpolate | (v.) insert something of a different nature into something else; insert words into a book or other text, especially in order to give a false impression as to its date; alter a book or text by insertion of new material; interject a remark in conversation |
| extrapolate | (v.) extend the application of a method or conclusion to an unknown situation by assuming that existing trends will continue or similar methods will be applicable |
| explicate | (v.) analyze and develop an idea or principle in detail; analyze a literary work in order to reveal its meaning |
| crank | (n.) an eccentric person, especially one who is obsessed by a particular subject or theory |
| heuristic | (adj.) enabling someone to discover or learn something for themselves; proceeding to a solution by trial and error or by rules that are only loosely defined |
| allegory | (n.) a story, poem, or picture that can be interpreted to reveal a hidden meaning, typically a moral or political one |
| avant-garde | (n.) new and unusual or experimental ideas, especially in the arts, or the people introducing them (adj.) favoring or introducing experimental or unusual ideas |
| gainsay* | (v.) deny or contradict; speak against or oppose |
| ebullient* | (adj.) cheerful and full of energy; exhilarated; enthusiastic |
| solvent | (adj.) having assets in excess of liabilities; able to pay one's debts; able to meet financial obligations |
| imbue | (v.) inspire or permeate with (a feeling or quality) |
| supplant | (v.) to supersede and replace |
| nonplussed | (adj.) (of a person) surprised and confused so much that they are unsure how to react; bewildered |
| patent | (adj.) easily recognizable; obvious; open and unobstructed/failing to close |
| spurious | (adj.) not being what it purports to be; false or fake; apparently but not actually valid |
| tacit* | (adj.) understood or implied without being stated |
| moot | (adj.) subject to debate, dispute, or uncertainty; having little or no practical relevance, typically because the subject is too uncertain to allow a decision |
| albatross | (n.) a source of frustration or guilt; an encumbrance; (n.) a very large oceanic bird |
| assent | (n.) the expression of approval or agreement; official agreement or sanction |
| titillate | (v.) stimulate or excite, especially in a sexual way |
| simulacrum | (n.) an image or representation of someone or something; an unsatisfactory imitation or substitute |
| abettor | (n.) a person who encourages or assists someone to do something wrong, in particular to commit a crime |
| mollify* | (v.) appease the anger or anxiety of (someone); to soothe |
| dilettante | (n.) a person who cultivates an area of interest, such as the arts, without real commitment or knowledge |
| acumen | (n.) the ability to make good judgments and quick decisions, typically in a particular domain |
| hackneyed | (adj.) lacking significance through having been overused; unoriginal and trite |
| vacuity | (n.) lack of thought or intelligence; empty-headedness |
| eminence | (n.) fame or recognized superiority, especially within a particular sphere or profession |
| conversance | (n.) personal knowledge or information about someone or something; familiarity |
| modish | (adj.) conforming to or following what is currently popular and fashionable |
| besmirch | (v.) damage the reputation of someone or something in the opinion of others |
| balkanized | (adj.) divided into smaller, mutually hostile states or groups |
| aquiline | (adj.) like an eagle |
| patrician | (n.) an aristocrat or nobleman |
| dissemble* | (v.) conceal one's true motives, feelings, or beliefs |
| defeasible | (adj.) open in principle to revision, valid objection, forfeiture, or annulment |
| sinecure | (n.) a position requiring little or no work but giving the holder status or financial benefit; well-paying job or office that requires little or no work |
| volubility | (n.) the quality of talking fluently, readily, or incessantly; talkativeness |
| urbanity | (n.) suavity, courteousness, and refinement of manner |
| asperity | (n.) harshness of tone, manner, or conditions |
| impudent | (adj.) not showing due respect for another person |
| comestible | (adj.) edible (n.) an item of food |
| equanimity | (n.) mental calmness, composure, and evenness of temper, especially in a difficult situation |
| diffuse* | (v.) to spread out (adj.) wordy; rambling; spread out |
| digression | (n.) the act of straying from the main point |
| Platonic | refers to the philosophy of Plato (Greek) who held that both actual things and ideas such as beauty and truth are copies of transcendent ideas |
| dirge | (n.) funeral hymn |
| disabuse* | (v.) to persuade someone that an idea or belief is mistaken |
| discerning | (adj.) perceptive; exhibiting keen insight and good judgment |
| expressionism | an artistic style in which the artist expresses emotional experience as opposed to his or her view of the external world |
| discomfit | (v.) to make uneasy; disconcert |
| discordant* | (adj.) not in tune |
| discredit | (v.) to dishonor; disgrace; cause to be doubted |
| discrepancy* | (n.) difference between |
| discrete* | (adj.) constituting a separate thing; distinct |
| discreet | (adj.) careful and circumspect in one's speech or actions, especially in order to avoid causing offense or to gain an advantage |
| discretion | (n.) quality of showing self-restraint in speech or action; circumspection; freedom to act on one's own |
| disinterested* | (adj.) unprejudiced; objective |
| disjointed | (adj.) lacking order or coherence; dislocated |
| dismiss* | (v.) put away from consideration; reject |
| disparage* | (v.) to belittle |
| disparate* | (adj.) essentially different in kind; not allowing comparison |
| disseminate* | (v.) to spread; scatter; disperse |
| dissident | (n.) a person who disagrees about beliefs, etc. |
| Gulag | forced-labor prison camps in the Soviet Union; established in the 1920s, the Gulag system had 476 camps throughout the country used to imprison people considered a threat to the state |
| dissolution* | (n.) disintegration/decomposition; debauchery |
| dissonance* | (n.) discord; lack of harmony |
| distend | (v.) to expand; swell out |
| distill | (v.) extract the essential elements |
| distrait | (adj.) inattentive; preoccupied |
| diverge | (v.) to vary; go in different directions from the same point |
| divest | (v.) to strip; deprive; rid |
| divulge | (v.) to make known something that is secret |
| doctrinaire | (adj.) relating to a person who cannot compromise about points of theory or doctrine; dogmatic; unyielding |
| document | (v.) to provide with written evidence to support |
| doggerel | (n.) verse or words that are poorly written or expressed |
| dogmatic* | (adj.) stating opinions without proof; inclined to lay down principles as incontrovertibly true |
| dormant | (adj.) inactive |
| dross | (n.) waste; worthless matter; trivial matter |
| dupe | (v.) to deceive; trick |
| effervescence | (n.) state of high spirits or liveliness; the process of bubbling as gas escapes |
| efficacy* | (n.) efficiency; effectiveness |
| effrontery* | (n.) shameless boldness; presumptuousness |
| egoism | (n.) the tendency to see things in relation to oneself; self-centeredness |
| egotistical | (adj.) excessively self-centered; conceited |
| elegy* | (n.) poem or song expressing lamentation |
| elicit* | (v.) to provoke; draw out |
| Socratic method | a method of seeking the truth about a subject through systematic questioning |
| elixir | (n.) a substance believed to have the power to cure ills |
| Elysian | (adj.) blissful; delightful |
| Elysian fields or Elysium | in Greek and Roman mythology this refers to an otherworld where the spirits of the virtuous and heroic dwell after being transported there without experiencing death |
| emaciated | (adj.) thin and wasted |
| embellish* | (v.) to adorn; decorate; enhance; make more attractive by adding details |
| emollient | (adj.) soothing; mollifying |
| empirical | (adj.) derived from observation or experiment |
| emulate* | (v.) to imitate; copy |
| encomium | (n.) a formal expression of praise |
| endemic* | (adj.) inherent; belonging to an area |
| enervate* | (v.) to weaken |
| engender | (v.) to cause or give rise to; produce |
| entomology | (n.) the scientific study of insects |
| enunciate | (v.) to pronounce clearly |
| ephemeral* | (adj.) short-lived; fleeting |
| epistemology | (n.) branch of philosophy that examines the nature of knowledge |
| equable | (adj.) (of a person) not easily disturbed or angered; calm and even-tempered; not varying or fluctuating greatly |
| equivocate* | (v.) to intentionally use vague language so as to conceal the truth or avoid committing oneself |
| errant | (adj.) mistaken; straying from the proper course |
| erudite* | (adj.) learned; scholarly |
| esoteric* | (adj.) hard to understand; known only to a few |
| essay | (v.) to make an attempt; subject to a test |
| estimable | (adj.) admirable; possible to estimate |
| ethnocentric | (adj.) based on the attitude that one's group is superior |
| etiology | (n.) causes or origins |
| etymology | (n.) origin and history of a word |
| eugenics | (n.) study of factors that influence the hereditary qualities of the human race and ways to improve these qualities |
| eulogy | (n.) high praise, especially of a person who has recently died |
| euphemism* | (n.) use of agreeable or inoffensive language in place of unpleasant or offensive language |
| euphoria | (n.) a feeling of extreme happiness |
| euthanasia | (n.) mercy killing |
| evince | (v.) to show plainly; be an indication of |
| evocative | (adj.) tending to call to mind or produce a reaction |
| exacerbate* | (v.) to aggravate; make worse |
| exact | (v.) to force the payment of; demand and obtain by authority |
| exacting | (adj.) extremely demanding |
| exculpate* | (v.) to clear of blame; vindicate |
| execrable* | (adj.) detestable; abhorrent |
| exhort | (v.) to urge by strong appeals |
| exigency* | (n.) crisis; urgent requirements |
| existential* | (adj.) having to do with existence; based on experience; having to do with the philosophy of existentialism |
| exorcise | (v.) to expel evil spirits; free from bad influences |
| expatiate | (v.) to speak or write at length |
| expatriate | (v.) to send into exile (n.) a person living outside his/her own land |
| expiate | (v.) to atone for |
| explicate | (v.) to explain; interpret; clarify |
| expository | (adj.) explanatory |
| extant* | (adj.) in existence; not lost |
| extemporaneous | (adj.) spoken or done without preparation; unrehearsed |
| extirpate | (v.) to root up; to destroy |
| extraneous* | (adj.) irrelevant or unrelated to the subject being dealt with; of external origin |
| extrapolation* | (n.) the act of estimation by projecting known information |
| extrinsic | (adj.) not inherent or essential |
| facetious* | (adj.) treating serious issues with deliberately inappropriate humor |
| facilitate | (v.) to make less difficult |
| factotum | (n.) a person who does all sorts of work; a handyman |
| fallacious* | (adj.) based on a false idea or fact; misleading |
| fallow | (adj.) plowed but not sowed; uncultivated |
| fatuous* | (adj.) foolishly self-satisfied |
| fauna | (n.) animals of a period or region |
| fawning | (adj.) seeking favor by flattering |
| felicitous* | (adj.) suitably expressed; appropriate; well-chosen or suited to the circumstances |
| feral | (adj.) existing in a wild or untamed state |
| fervor | (adj.) warmth and intensity of emotion |
| fetid | (adj.) having a bad smell |
| fetter | (v.) to bind; confine |
| fiat | (n.) arbitrary order; authorization |
| fidelity | (n.) loyalty; exact correspondence |
| filibuster | (n.) use of obstructive tactics in a legislature to block passage of a law |
| finesse | (v.) to handle with a deceptive or evasive strategy; to use finesse, that is, refinement in performance |
| fissure | (n.) crevice |
| flag | (v.) to become tired, weaker, or less enthusiastic |
| fledgling* | (n.) beginner, novice |
| flora | (n.) plants of a region or era |
| florid | (adj.) ruddy; reddish; flowery |
| flourish | (v.) to grow vigorously, or to thrive (n.) an embellishment or ornamentation |
| flout | (v.) to treat scornfully |
| flux | (n.) flowing; a continuous moving |
| foment* | (v.) to incite; arouse |
| forbearance | (n.) patience |
| forestall* | (v.) to prevent; delay |
| formidable | (adj.) menacing; threatening |
| forswear | (v.) renounce; repudiate |
| founder | (v.) to sink; fail; collapse |
| fracas | (n.) a loud quarrel; brawl |
| fractious* | (adj.) quarrelsome; unruly; rebellious |
| fresco | (n.) a painting done on plaster |
| frieze | (n.) ornamental band on a wall |
| froward | (adj.) stubbornly contrary; obstinately disobedient |
| frugality* | (n.) the quality of being economical with money or food; thriftiness |
| fulminate* | (v.) to attack loudly; denounce |
| fulsome | (adj.) so excessive as to be disgusting |
| fusion | (adj.) union; synthesis |
| futile | (adj.) ineffective; useless; fruitless |
| gambol | (v.) to frolic; leap playfully |
| gauche | (adj.) lacking ease or grace; unsophisticated and socially awkward |
| geniality | (n.) cheerfulness; kindliness; sociability |
| gerrymander | (v.) to divide an area into voting districts in a way that favors a political party |
| glib | (adj.) (of words or the person speaking them) fluent and voluble but insincere and shallow |
| goad | (v.) to prod; urge on |
| gossamer | (adj.) sheer; light and delicate; like cobwebs |
| gouge | (v.) to tear out; scoop out; overcharge |
| gregarious* | (adj.) sociable |
| grouse | (v.) to complain |
| guileless* | (adj.) free of cunning or deceit; artless |
| guise | (n.) outward appearance; false appearance; pretense |
| gullible* | (adj.) easily deceived |
| gustatory | (adj.) affecting the sense of taste |
| halcyon | (adj.) calm and peaceful; happy; golden; prosperous; denoting a period of time in the past that was idyllically happy and peaceful |
| hallowed | (adj.) holy; sacred |
| harangue* | (n.) a lengthy and aggressive speech (v.) to lecture someone at length in an aggressive and critical manner |
| harrowing | (adj.) extremely distressing; terrifying |
| herbivorous | (adj.) relating to an herbivore, an animal that feeds mainly on plants |
| hermetic | (adj.) tightly sealed; magical |
| heterodox* | (adj.) unorthodox; not widely accepted |
| hieroglyphics | (n.) a system of writing in which pictorial symbols represent meaning or sounds; writing or symbols that are difficult to decipher; the symbols used in advanced mathematics |
| hirsute | (adj.) covered with hair |
| histrionic* | (adj.) relating to exaggerated emotional behavior calculated for effect; theatrical arts or performances |
| homeostasis | (n.) automatic maintenance by an organism of normal temperature, chemical balance, etc. within itself |
| homogeneous* | (adj.) composed of identical parts; uniform in composition |
| hyperbole* | (n.) purposeful exaggeration for effect |
| iconoclastic* | (adj.) attacking cherished traditions (n.) the action of attacking or assertively rejecting cherished beliefs and institutions or established values and practices |
| ideological* | (adj.) relating to ideology, the set of ideas that form the basis of a political or economic system |
| idolatry* | (n.) idol worship; blind or excessive devotion |
| igneous* | (adj.) produced by fire; volcanic |
| imbroglio | (n.) complicated situation; an entanglement |
| immutable* | (adj.) unchangeable |
| tabula rasa | something that is new and not marked by external influence |
| impassive* | (adj.) showing no emotion |
| impede | (v.) to hinder; block |
| impermeable* | (adj.) impossible to penetrate |
| imperturbable* | (adj.) not easily disturbed |
| impervious* | (adj.) impossible to penetrate; incapable of being affected |
| impinge | (v.) have an effect or impact, especially a negative one; advance over an area belonging to someone/something else |
| implacable* | (adj.) inflexible; incapable of being pleased |
| implausible | (adj.) unlikely; unbelievable |
| implicit* | (adj.) implied; understood but not stated |
| implode | (v.) collapse inward violently |
| imprecation | (n.) curse |
| impute | (v.) to relate to a particular cause or source; attribute the fault to; assign as a characteristic |
| inadvertently* | (adv.) carelessly; unintentionally |
| incarnate | (adj.) having bodily form |
| incongruous* | (n.) not in harmony or keeping with the surroundings or other aspects of something |
| inconsequential | (adj.) insignificant; unimportant |
| incorporate | (v.) introduce something into another thing already in existence; combine |
| incursion | (n.) sudden invasion or attack |
| indeterminate* | (adj.) uncertain; indefinite |
| indigence* | (n.) poverty |
| indolent* | (adj.) habitually lazy; idle |
| ineluctable* | (adj.) not to be avoided or escaped; inevitable |
| inert* | (adj.) unable to move; sluggish |
| ingenuous* | (adj.) naïve and trusting; lacking sophistication |
| inherent* | (adj.) existing in something as a permanent, essential, or characteristic attribute |
| innocuous* | (adj.) harmless |
| insensible* | (adj.) without one's mental faculties, typically a result of violence or intoxication; unconscious; unaware of or indifferent to; too small or gradual to be perceived |
| insinuate* | (v.) to suggest; say indirectly; imply |
| insularity* | (n.) ignorance or lack of interest in cultures, ideas, or peoples outside one's own experience; narrow-mindedness; isolation |
| insuperable | (adj.) insurmountable; unconquerable |
| intangible | (adj.) not material; unable to be touched or grasped; not having physical presence; difficult to define or understand; vague and abstract |
| interdict | (v.) to forbid; prohibit; to confront and halt the activities, advance, or entry of |
| internecine | (adj.) deadly to both sides |
| interregnum | (n.) interval between reigns; gap in continuity |
| intimate | (adj.) marked by close acquaintance; involving very close connection; private and personal |
| intractable* | (adj.) not easily managed; hard to control or deal with; (of a person) difficult or stubborn |
| psychosomatic disorder | a disease with physical symptoms believed to be caused by emotional or psychological factors |
| intransigence* | (n.) stubbornness; refusal to compromise |
| introspective | (adj.) contemplating one's own thoughts and feelings |
| inundate* | (v.) to cover with water; overwhelm (someone) with things or people to be dealt with |
| inured* | (v.) hardened; accustomed; used to |
| invective* | (n.) insulting, abusive, or highly critical language; verbal abuse |
| inveigh | (v.) to disapprove; protest vehemently |
| inveterate | (adj.) having a particular habit, activity, or interest that is long-established and unlikely to change; confirmed; long-standing; deeply rooted |
| invidious | (adj.) likely to provoke ill will; offensive |
| irascible* | (adj.) easily angered |
| irresolute* | (adj.) feeling or showing hesitancy; uncertain; unsure of how to act; weak |
| itinerant | (adj.) wandering from place to place; unsettled |
| itinerary | (n.) route of a traveler's journey |
| jaundiced | (adj.) having a yellowish discoloration of the skin; affected by envy, resentment, or hostility |
| jibe | (v.) to be in agreement |
| jocose | (adj.) fond of joking; jocular; playful |
| juggernaut | (n.) huge force destroying everything in its path |
| junta | (n.) a military or political group that rules a country after taking power by force; group of people united in political intrigue |
| juxtapose* | (v.) to place side by side |
| kudos | (n.) fame; glory; honor |
| labile | (adj.) likely to change; easily altered |
| laconic* | (adj.) using few words |
| lambaste | (v.) to thrash verbally or physically |
| lassitude* | (n.) lethargy; sluggishness |
| latent | (adj.) present but hidden; potential |
| laud* | (v.) to praise |
| lethargic* | (adj.) inactive |
| levee | (n.) an embankment that prevents a river from overflowing |
| levity* | (n.) light manner or attitude |
| liberal | (adj.) tolerant; broad-minded; generous; lavish |
| libertine | (n.) one without moral restraint; a person, especially a man, who behaves without moral principles or a sense of responsibility, especially in sexual matters; a person who rejects accepted opinions in matters of religion; a freethinker |
| libido | (n.) sexual desire |
| Lilliputian | (adj.) extremely small |
| limn | (v.) to draw; describe |
| limpid* | (adj.) clear; transparent |
| linguistic | (adj.) pertaining to language |
| litany | (n.) lengthy recitation; repetitive chant |
| literati | (n.) scholarly or learned persons |
| litigation | (n.) legal proceedings |
| log | (n.) record of a voyage; record of daily activities |
| philistines | people considered to be ignorant of the value of cultures and smug/conventional in their thinking |
| loquacious* | (adj.) talkative |
| lucid* | (adj.) expressed clearly; easy to understand; showing ability to think clearly, especially in the intervals between periods of confusion or insanity |
| lucre | (n.) money or profits |
| luminous | (adj.) bright, brilliant, or glowing |
| lustrous | (adj.) shining |
| Machiavellian | (adj.) cunning, scheming, and unscrupulous, especially in politics; crafty; double-dealing |
| machinations | (n.) plots or schemes |
| maelstrom | (n.) whirlpool; turmoil |
| magnanimity* | (n.) generosity; nobility |
| malign | (v.) to speak evil of |
| malinger* | (v.) to feign illness to escape duty |
| malleable* | (adj.) capable of being shaped by pounding; impressionable |
| maverick* | (n.) an unorthodox or independent-minded person |
| megalomania | (n.) delusions of power or importance |
| menagerie | (n.) a variety of animals kept together |
| mendicant | (n.) beggar |
| meretricious* | (adj.) gaudy; plausible but false; specious |
| mesmerize | (v.) to hypnotize |
| metamorphosis | (n.) change; transformation |
| metaphysics | (n.) branch of philosophy that investigates the ultimate nature of reality |
| meteorological | (adj.) concerned with the weather |
| meticulous* | (adj.) very careful; fastidious; showing great attention to detail |
| mettle | (n.) courage; endurance |
| mettlesome | (adj.) full of courage and fortitude; spirited *NOT to be confused with meddlesome* |
| microcosm | (n.) a small system having analogies to a larger system; small world |
| militate | (v.) (of a fact or circumstance) be a powerful or conclusive factor in preventing; to work against |
| minatory | (adj.) expressing or conveying a threat; threatening; menacing |
| minusucle | (adj.) very small |
| misanthrope* | (n.) one who hates humanity |
| miscellany | (n.) mixture of writings on various subjects |
| miscreant | (n.) villain; criminal |
| misogynist* | (n.) one who hates women |
| mitigate* | (v.) to cause to become less harsh, severe, or painful; alleviate |
| mnemonic | (adj.) related to memory; assisting memory |
| monolithic | (adj.) solid and uniform; constituting a single, unified whole |
| morose* | (adj.) ill-humored; sullen |
| motley | (adj.) many colored; made up of many parts |
| multifarious | (adj.) diverse |
| mundane* | (adj.) worldly as opposed to spiritual; concerned with the ordinary |
| necromancy | (n.) black magic; the practice of communicating with the dead |
| negate | (v.) to cancel out; nullify |
| neologism | (n.) new word or expression |
| neophyte* | (n.) novice; beginner |
| nexus | (n.) a means of connection; a connected group or series; a center |
| nostalgia | (n.) sentimental longing for a past time |
| nostrum | (n.) medicine or remedy of doubtful effectiveness; supposed cure |
| nugatory | (adj.) of no value or importance; useless or futile; trifling; invalid |
| obdurate* | (adj.) stubbornly refusing to change one's opinion or course of action; stubborn |
| obsequy | (n.) funeral ceremony (often used in the plural, obsequies) |
| obviate* | (v.) to make unnecessary; to anticipate and prevent |
| occlude* | (v.) to shut or block |
| occult | (adj.) relating to practices connected with supernatural phenomena |
| odyssey | (n.) a long, adventurous voyage; a quest |
| officious* | (adj.) too helpful; meddlesome; assertive of authority in an annoyingly dominant way, especially with regard to petty or trivial matters; intrusively enthusiastic in offering help or advice |
| olfactory | (adj.) concerning the sense of smell |
| oligarchy | (n.) form of government in which power belongs to only a few leaders |
| onerous* | (adj.) burdensome |
| onomatopoeia | (n.) formation or use of words that imitate sounds of the actions they refer to |
| opprobrium* | (n.) disgrace; contempt |
| ornithologist | (n.) scientist who studies birds |
| oscillate* | (v.) to move back and forth |
| ostentatious* | (adj.) showy; trying to attract attention; pretentious |
| overweening | (adj.) presumptuous; arrogant; overbearing |
| paean | (n.) song of joy or triumph; a fervent expression of joy |
| paleontology | (n.) study of past geological eras through fossil remains |
| pallid | (adj.) lacking color or liveliness |
| panegyric | (n.) elaborate praise; formal hymn of praise; a public speech or published text in praise of someone or something |
| paragon* | (n.) model of excellence or perfection |
| partisan* | (adj.) one-sided; committed to a party, group, or cause; prejudiced |
| pathological* | (adj.) involving, caused by, or of the nature of a physical or mental disease |
| patois | (n.) regional dialect; nonstandard speech; jargon |
| paucity* | (n.) scarcity |
| pedantic* | (adj.) showing off learning (n.) pedant -- person who is excessively concerned with minor details and rules or with displaying academic learning |
| pellucid* | (adj.) transparent; translucent; easily understood |
| penchant* | (n.) inclination |
| penury* | (n.) extreme poverty |
| peregrination | (n.) a journey, especially a long or meandering one; a wandering from place to place |
| peremptory | (adj.) (especially of a person's manner or actions) insisting on immediate action or obedience, especially in a brusquely imperious way |
| perennial | (adj.) present throughout the years; persistent |
| perfidious* | (adj.) faithless; disloyal; untrustworthy |
| perfunctory* | (adj.) superficial; not thorough; performed really as a duty |
| perigee | (n.) point in an orbit that is closest to the Earth |
| permeable* | (adj.) penetrable |
| perturb | (v.) to disturb greatly; make uneasy or anxious; cause a body to deviate from its regular orbit |
| pervasive* | (adj.) spread throughout every part |
| petulant | (adj.) (of a person or their manner) childishly sulky or bad-tempered |
| phlegmatic* | (adj.) calm in temperament; sluggish |
| phoenix | (n.) mythical, immortal bird that lives for 500 years, burns itself to death, and rises from its ashes; anything that is restored after suffering great destruction |
| physiognomy | (n.) facial features |
| piety* | (n.) devoutness |
| piquant | (adj.) appealingly stimulating; pleasantly pungent; attractive |
| placate* | (v.) to lessen another's anger; to pacify |
| placid | (adj.) calm |
| plaintive | (adj.) melancholy; mournful |
| plasticity* | (n.) condition of being able to be shaped or formed; pliability |
| platitude* | (n.) stale, overused expression |
| platonic | (adj.) spiritual; without sensual desire; theoretical |
| plethora* | (n.) excess; overabundance |
| plumb | (v.) to determine the depth; to examine deeply |
| plummet | (v.) to fall; plunge |
| plutocracy | (n.) society ruled by the wealthy |
| porous | (adj.) full of holes; permeable to liquids |
| poseur | (n.) person who affects an attitude or identity to impress others; a poser |
| pragmatic* | (adj.) practical |
| prate | (v.) to talk idly; chatter |
| prattle | (n.) meaningless, foolish talk |
| preamble | (n.) preliminary statement |
| precarious* | (adj.) uncertain; not securely held or in position; dangerously likely to fall or collapse |
| precept (n.) | (n.) principle; law |
| precipitate* | (v.) to cause to happen (adj.) rash; hasty; sudden |
| precursor* | (n.) forerunner; predecessor |
| preempt | (v.) to take action in order to prevent (an anticipated event) from happening; forestall |
| prehensile | (adj.) (chiefly of an animal's limb or tail) capable of grasping |
| premonition | (n.) forewarning; presentiment |
| presage | (v.) to foretell; indicate in advance |
| presumptuous* | (adj.) rude; improperly bold; readiness to presume |
| prevaricate* | (v.) to quibble; evade the truth; speak or act in an evasive way |
| primordial | (adj.) original; existing from the beginning |
| pristine* | (adj.) untouched; uncorrupted |
| problematic* | (adj.) posing a problem; doubtful; unsettled |
| prodigal* | (adj.) wasteful; extravagant; lavish |
| profound* | (adj.) deep; not superficial |
| prohibitive | (adj.) so high as to prevent the purchase or use of; preventing; forbidding |
| proliferate* | (v.) to increase rapidly |
| propensity* | (n.) inclination; tendency |
| propitiate* | (v.) to win over; appease |
| propriety* | (n.) correct conduct; fitness |
| proscribe* | (v.) to condemn; forbid; outlaw |
| provident | (adj.) providing for future needs; frugal |
| puissant | (adj.) powerful |
| punctilious | (adj.) careful in observing rules of behavior or ceremony |
| pungent | (adj.) strong or sharp in smell or taste; penetrating; caustic; to the point |
| purport | (v.) to profess, suppose, or claim |
| pusillanimous | (adj.) cowardly |
| quagmire | (n.) marsh; difficult situation |
| quail | (v.) to cower; lose heart |
| qualified* | (adj.) limited; restricted |
| qualm | (n.) sudden feeling of faintness or nausea; uneasy feeling about the rightness of actions |
| query | (v.) to question |
| quibble | (v.) to argue over insignificant and irrelevant details |
| quiescent* | (adj.) inactive; still |
| quorum | (n.) number of members necessary to conduct a meeting |
| raconteur | (n.) witty, skillful storyteller |
| rail | (v.) to scold with bitter or abusive language |
| raiment | (n.) clothing |
| ramification | (n.) an implication or consequence |
| rarefied* | (adj.) distant from the lives and concerns of ordinary people |
| rationale | (n.) fundamental reason |
| rebus | (n.) puzzle in which pictures or symbols represent words |
| recalcitrant* | (adj.) resisting authority or control |
| recant* | (v.) to retract a statement or opinion |
| recluse | (n.) person who lives in seclusion and often in solitude |
| recondite* | (adj.) little known; abstruse |
| redoubtable | (adj.) formidable; arousing fear; worthy of respect |
| refractory* | (adj.) stubborn; unmanageable; resisting ordinary methods of treatment |
| refulgent | (adj.) brightly shining; resplendent |
| refute* | (v.) to contradict; disprove |
| regale | (v.) to entertain or amuse (someone) with talk |
| relegate* | (v.) to consign or dismiss to an inferior rank or position |
| remonstrate | (v.) to object or protest |
| renege | (v.) to go back on one's word |
| reparation | (n.) amends; compensation |
| repine | (v.) to fret or complain |
| reprise | (n.) repetition, especially of a piece of music; a repeated passage in music |
| reproach | (v.) to address someone in such a way as to express disapproval; to find fault with; to blame |
| reprobate* | (n.) a morally unprincipled person (often used humorously or affectionately) |
| repudiate* | (v.) to refuse to accept or be associated with; to deny the truth or validity of (something); to reject (someone/something) as having no authority |
| rescind* | (v.) to revoke, cancel, or repeal (a law, order, or agreement) |
| resolution* | (n.) a firm decision to do or not to do something |
| resolve* | (n.) determination; firmness of purpose |
| reticent* | (adj.) not speaking freely; reserved; reluctant |
| sacred cow | something that is so greatly respected that it is beyond question |
| reverent | (adj.) expressing deep respect; worshipful |
| riposte | (n.) a quick, clever reply to an insult or criticism; a retaliatory action or retort |
| rubric | (n.) title or heading; category; established mode of procedure or conduct; protocol |
| rue | (v.) to regret |
| ruse | (n.) trick; crafty stratagem; subterfuge |
| sage* | (adj.) wise |
| salacious | (adj.) lascivious; lustful |
| salubrious* | (adj.) healthful |
| salutary* | (adj.) producing good effects; beneficial; expected to produce an improvement; favorable to health |
| sanction* | (v.) official permission or approval for an action (n.) a threatened penalty for disobeying a law or rule |
| sardonic | (adj.) cynical; scornfully mocking |
| sartorial* | (adj.) pertaining to tailoring, clothes, or style of dress |
| satiate* | (adj.) to satisfy |
| saturate | (v.) to soak thoroughly; imbue throughout |
| saturnine | (adj.) (of a person or their manner) slow and gloomy; (of a person or their features) dark in coloring and moody or mysterious |
| satyr | (n.) a creature that is half-man, half beast with the horns and legs of a goat; it is a follower of Dionysus; a lecher |
| savor | (v.) to enjoy; have a distinctive flavor or smell |
| schematic | (adj.) relating to or in the form of an outline or diagram |
| secrete | (v.) to produce and release substance into an organism |
| sedition | (n.) behavior prompting rebellion |
| sedulous | (adj.) diligent |
| seismic | (adj.) relating to earthquakes; earthshaking |
| sensual* | (adj.) relating to the senses; gratifying the physical senses, especially sexual appetites |
| sensuous* | (adj.) relating to the senses; operating through the senses |
| sentient* | (adj.) aware or conscious; able to perceive |
| servile | (adj.) submissive or obedient |
| sextant | (n.) navigation tool that determines latitude and longitude |
| shard | (n.) a piece of broken glass or pottery |
| sidereal | (adj.) relating to the stars |
| simian | (adj.) apelike; relating to apes |
| simile | (n.) comparison of two things using "like" or "as" |
| singular | (adj.) unique, extraordinary, or odd |
| sinuous | (adj.) winding, intricate, or complex |
| skeptic* | (n.) one who doubts |
| sobriety | (n.) seriousness |
| sodden | (adj.) thoroughly soaked; saturated |
| solicitous* | (adj.) concerned, attentive, or eager |
| soliloquy | (n.) literary or dramatic speech by one character, not addressed to others |
| somatic | (adj.) relating to or affecting the body; corporeal |
| soporific* | (adj.) inducing drowsiness or sleep; tediously boring or monotonous |
| sordid | (adj.) filthy; contemptible and corrupt |
| specious* | (adj.) seeming to be logical and sound, but not really so |
| spectrum | (n.) band of colors produced when sunlight passes through a prism; a broad range of related ideas or objects |
| spendthrift | (n.) a person who spends money recklessly |
| sporadic* | (adj.) irregular |
| squalor | (n.) filthy, wretched condition |
| staccato | (adj.) marked by abrupt, clear-cut sounds |
| stanch | (v.) to stop or check the flow of |
| stentorian | (adj.) extremely loud |
| stigma* | (n.) a mark of disgrace or inferiority |
| stint (v.) | (v.) to supply an ungenerous or inadequate amount of something, esp. money |
| stipulate* | (v.) to specify as an essential condition |
| stolid* | (adj.) having or showing little emotion |
| stratified | (adj.) arranged in layers |
| striated* | (adj.) marked with thin, narrow grooves or channels |
| stricture | (n.) something that restrains; negative criticism |
| strident | (adj.) loud; harsh; unpleasantly noisy |
| strut | (v.) to swagger; display to impress others |
| stultify | (v.) to impair or reduce to uselessness |
| stupefy | (v.) to dull the senses of; to stun or astonish |
| stygian | (adj.) dark and gloomy; hellish |
| subpoena | (n.) notice ordering someone to appear in court |
| subside | (v.) to settle down or grow quiet |
| substantiate* | (v.) to support with proof or evidence |
| substantive | (adj.) essential; pertaining to the substance |
| subsume* | (v.) to include or incorporate |
| subversive | (adj.) intended to undermine or overthrow, especially an established government |
| succor | (n.) relief or help in a time of distress or want |
| suffrage | (n.) the right to vote |
| sundry | (adj.) various |
| supersede* | (v.) to replace, especially to displace as inferior or antiquated |
| supine | (adj.) lying on the back; marked by lethargy |
| suppliant | (adj.) making or expressing a plea, especially to someone in power or authority |
| supplicant | (n.) one who asks humbly and earnestly |
| supposition* | (n.) the act of assuming to be true or real; an uncertain belief |
| syllogism | (n.) a form of deductive reasoning that has a major premise, a minor premise, and a conclusion (ex: X=Y and Y=Z, therefore X=Z) |
| sylvan | (adj.) related to the woods or forest |
| taciturn* | (adj.) habitually untalkative |
| talisman | (n.) charm to bring good luck and avert misfortune |
| tangential* | (adj.) diverging from a previous course or line; erratic; hardly touching a matter, or peripheral |
| tautology | (n.) unnecessary repetition |
| taxonomy | (n.) science of classification; in biology, the process of classifying organisms in categories |
| tenet | (n.) a belief or doctrine |
| tenuous* | (adj.) weak or insubstantial |
| theocracy | (n.) government by priests representing a god |
| thespian | (n.) an actor or actress |
| timbre | (n.) the characteristic quality of sound produced by a particular instrument or voice; tone color |
| tirade* | (n.) a long, violent speech; verbal assault |
| toady | (n.) a flatterer |
| tome | (n.) a book, usually large and academic |
| torpor* | (n.) lethargy, dormancy, or sluggishness |
| torque | (n.) a turning or twisting force; the moment of a force; the measure of a force's tendency to produce twisting or turning and rotation around an axis |
| tortuous* | (adj.) having many twists and turns; highly complex |
| tout | (v.) to attempt to sell something, typically by pestering people in a bold and aggressive manner; to attempt to persuade people of the merits of someone or something |
| tractable* | (adj.) obedient or yielding |
| transgression* | (n.) act of trespassing or violating a law or rule |
| transient | (adj.) temporary; short-lived; fleeting |
| translucent | (adj.) partially transparent |
| anomie | a social condition marked by a breakdown of social norms; lack of the usual social or ethical standards in an individual or group |
| travail | (n.) work, especially arduous work; tribulation; anguish (v.) to work strenuously |
| travesty | (n.) a false, absurd, or distorted representation of something |
| treatise | (n.) a written work dealing formally and systematically with a subject |
| tremulous | (adj.) trembling, timid, or quivering |
| trepidation | (n.) fear and anxiety |
| truculence* | (n.) aggressiveness or ferocity |
| tryst | (n.) an agreement between lovers to meet; rendezvous |
| tumid | (adj.) swollen or distended; turgid |
| turbid | (adj.) muddy; opaque; in a state of great confusion |
| turgid* | (adj.) swollen, bloated, or pompous |
| tutelary | (adj.) serving as a guardian or protector |
| uncanny | (adj.) mysterious; strange |
| undulating | (adj.) moving in waves |
| unfeigned | (adj.) not false; not made up; genuine |
| untenable* | (adj.) (especially of a position or view) not able to be maintained or defended against attack or objection |
| untoward | (adj.) unexpected and inappropriate or inconvenient |
| usury | (n.) practice of lending money at exorbitant rates |
| vacillate* | (v.) to waver or oscillate |
| vacuous | (adj.) empty; void; lacking intelligence; purposeless |
| valedictory | (adj.) pertaining to a farewell |
| vapid* | (adj.) tasteless or dull; offering nothing that is stimulating or challenging |
| variegated | (adj.) varied; marked with different colors |
| vaunt | (v.) to boast or brag |
| venal | (adj.) bribable or corruptible; mercenary |
| vendetta | (n.) prolonged feud marked by bitter hostility |
| venerate* | (v.) to adore, honor, or respect |
| veracious* | (adj.) truthful or accurate |
| verbose* | (adj.) wordy |
| vertigo | (n.) dizziness |
| vexation | (n.) irritation, annoyance, confusion, or puzzlement |
| viable* | (adj.) practicable; capable of developing |
| vindictive | (adj.) spiteful, vengeful, or unforgiving |
| virtuoso | (n.) someone with masterly skills; expert musician **virtuoso is also the adjective |
| visage | (n.) a person's face, with reference to the form or proportions of the features; a person's facial expression |
| viscous* | (adj.) thick, syrupy, and sticky |
| vitiate* | (v.) to impair the quality of; to corrupt morally; to make inoperative |
| vituperative* | (adj.) using or containing harsh, abusive censure; bitter and abusive |
| vivisection | (n.) dissection, surgery, or painful experiments performed on a living animal for the purpose of scientific research |
| vogue | (n.) prevailing fashion or practice |
| volatile* | (adj.) tending to vary frequently; fickle |
| vortex | (n.) whirlpool; whirlwind; center of turbulence |
| warranted | (adj.) justified |
| wary | (adj.) careful or cautious |
| welter | (v.) to wallow or roll; to toss about; to be in turmoil |
| whimsical* | (adj.) fanciful or unpredictable |
| wistful | (adj.) vaguely longing or sadly thoughtful |
| zealot* | (n.) one who is fanatically devoted to a cause |
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rachel_robinson1026
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