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GRE Words C-Z
| Question | Answer |
|---|---|
| Decorous | proper; tasteful; socially correct |
| Decorum | appropriateness of behavior or conduct; propriety |
| Deface | to mar the appearance of; to vandalize |
| Deference | respect; courtesy |
| Deleterious | subtly or unexpectedly harmful |
| Demagogue | a leader or rabble-rouser, usually one appealing to emotion or prejudice |
| Demur | to express doubts or objections |
| Deride | to speak of or treat with contempt; to mock |
| Desiccate | to dry out thoroughly |
| Desultory | jumping from one thing to another; disconnected |
| Diaphanous | allowing light to show through; delicate |
| Diatribe | an abusive, condemnatory speech |
| Dictum | authoritative statement |
| Diffident | lacking self-confidence |
| Dilate | to make larger; expand |
| Dilatory | intended to delay |
| Dilettante | someone with an amateurish and superficial interest in a topic |
| Dirge | a funeral hymn or mournful speech |
| Disabuse | to set right; free from error |
| Discern | to perceive or recognize |
| Disparate | fundamentally different; entirely unlike |
| Dissemble | to present a false appearance; to disguise one's real intentions or character |
| Dissonance | a harsh and disagreeable combination, especially of sounds |
| Distaff | the female branch of a family |
| Distend | to swell, inflate, or bloat |
| Dither | to act confusedly or without clear purpose |
| Diurnal | existing during the day |
| Divine | to foretell or know by inspiration |
| Doctrinaire | rigidly devoted to theories without regard for practicality; dogmatic |
| Dogma | a firmly held opinion, especially a religious belief |
| Dogmatic | dictatorial in one's opinions |
| Droll | amusing in a wry, subtle way |
| Dupe | to deceive; a person who is easily deceived |
| Dyspeptic | suffering from indigestion; gloomy and irritable |
| Ebullient | exhilarated; full of enthusiam and high spirits |
| Eclectic | selecting from or made up from a variety of soures |
| Edify | to instruct morally and spiritually |
| Efficacy | effectiveness |
| Effigy | stuffed doll; likeness of a person |
| Effrontery | impudent boldness; audacity |
| Elegy | a sorrowful poem or speech |
| Eloquent | persuassive and moving, espcially in speech |
| Embellish | to add ornamental or fictitious details |
| Emulate | to copy; to try to equal or excel |
| Encomium | warm praise |
| Endemic | belonging to a particular area; inherent |
| Enervate | to reduce in strength |
| Engender | to produce, cause, or bring about |
| Enigma | a puzzle; a mystery |
| Enumerate | to count, list, or itemize |
| Ephemeral | lasting a short time |
| Epicure | person with refined taste in food and wine |
| Equivocate | to use expressions of double meaning in order to mislead |
| Erratic | wandering and unpredictable |
| Ersatz | fake |
| Erudite | learned; scholarly; bookish |
| Eschew | to shun; to avoid (as something wrong or distasteful) |
| Esoteric | known or understood only by a few |
| Estimable | admirable |
| Ethos | beliefs or character of a group |
| Eulogy | speech in praise of someone |
| Euphemism | use of an inoffensive word or phrase in place of a more distasteful one |
| Euphony | pleasant, harmonious sound |
| Exacerbate | to make worse |
| Exculpate | to clear from blame; prove innocent |
| Exigent | urgent; requiring immediate action |
| Exonerate | to clear of blame |
| Explicit | clearly stated or shown; forthright in expression |
| Exponent | one who champions or advocates |
| Exprugate | to censor |
| Fallow | dormant; unused |
| Fanatical | acting excessively enthusiastic; filled with extreme, unquestioned devotion |
| Fatuous | stupid; foolishly self-satisfied |
| Fawn | to grovel |
| Fecund | fertile; fruitful; productive |
| Fervid | intensely emotional; feverish |
| Fetid | foul-smelling; putrid |
| Flag | to decline in vigor; strength; or interest |
| Florid | excessively decorated or embellished |
| Foment | to arouse or incite |
| Ford | to cross a body of water by wading |
| Forestall | to prevent or delay; anticipate |
| Fortuitous | happening by chance; fortunate |
| Fractious | unruly; rebellious |
| Frenetic | frantic; frenzied |
| Frugality | tending to be thrifty or cheap |
| Furtive | secret; stealthy |
| Gambol | to dance or skip around playfully |
| Garner | to gather and store |
| Garrulous | tending to talk a lot |
| Gestation | growth process from conception to birth |
| Glib | fluent in an insincere manner; offhand; casual |
| Glower | to glare or stare angrily and intensely |
| Gradation | process occurring by regular degrees or stages; variation in color |
| Gregarious | outgoing; sociable |
| Grievous | causing grief or sorrow; serious and distressing |
| Grovel | to humble oneself in a demeaning way |
| Guile | deceit; trickery |
| Gullible | easily deceived |
| Hapless | unfortunate; having bad luck |
| Hegemony | the domination of one state or group over its allies |
| Hermetic | tightly sealed |
| Heterogeneous | composed of unlike parts; different; diverse |
| Hoary | very old; whitish or gray from age |
| Homogeneous | of a similar kind |
| Husband | to manage economically; to use sparingly |
| Hyperbole | purposeful exaggeration for effect |
| Iconoclast | one who opposes established beliefs, customs, and institutions |
| Idiosyncrasy | peculiarity of temperament; eccentricity |
| Ignoble | having low moral standards; not noble in character; mean |
| Imbue | to infuse, dye, wet, or moisten |
| Impasse | blocked path; dilemma with no solution |
| Impecunious | poor; having no money |
| Imperturbable | not capable of being disturbed |
| Impervious | impossible to penetrate; incapable of being affected |
| Impetuous | quick to act without thinking |
| Impious | not devout in religion |
| Implacable | unable to be calmed down or made peaceful |
| Imprecation | a curse |
| Impugn | to call into question; to attack verbally |
| Incarnadine | blood-red in color |
| Inchoate | no fully formed; disorganized |
| Inculcate | to teach; impress in the mind |
| Indolent | habitually lazy or idle |
| Inexorable | inflexible; unyielding |
| Ingenuous | showing innocence or childlike simplicity |
| Ingrate | ungrateful person |
| Ingratiate | to gain favor with another by deliberate effort; to seek to please somebody so as to gain an advantage |
| Inimical | hostile; unfriendly |
| Iniquity | sin; evil act |
| Innocuous | harmless |
| Inquest | an investigatin; an inquiry |
| Insipid | lacking interest or flavor |
| Insurrection | rebellion |
| Inter | to bury |
| Interregnum | period between reigns |
| Intractable | not easily managed or manipulated |
| Intransigent | uncompromising; refusing to be reconciled |
| Intrepid | fearless; resolutely courageous |
| Inundate | to overwhelm; to cover with water |
| Inure | to harden; accustom; become used to |
| Invective | abusive language |
| Investiture | ceremony conferring authority |
| Invidious | envious, obnoxious, or offensive, likely to promote ill-will |
| Irascible | easily made angry |
| Itinerant | wandering from place to place; unsettled |
| Jargon | nonsensical talk; specialized language |
| Jettison | to discard; to get rid of as unnecessary or encumbering |
| Jingoism | belligerent support of one's country |
| Jocular | playful; humorous |
| Judicious | sensible; showing good judgement |
| Juncture | point of time, especially where two things are joined |
| Keen | having a sharp edge; intellectually sharp; perceptive |
| Kindle | to set fire to or ignite; excite or inspire |
| Kinetic | relating to motion; characterized by movement |
| Knell | sound of a funeral bell; omen of death or failure |
| Kudos | fame, glory, or honor |
| Lachrymose | tearful |
| Laconic | using few words |
| Lament | to express sorrow; to grieve |
| Lampoon | to ridicule with satire |
| Languid | lacking energy; indifferent |
| Lapidary | relating to precious stones or the art of cutting them |
| Larceny | theft of property |
| Largess | generous giving (as of money) to others who may seem inferior |
| Lassitude | a state of diminished energy |
| Latent | potential that is not readily apparent |
| Laud | to giv praise; to glorify |
| Lavish | extremely generous or extravagant; giving unsparingly |
| Leery | suspicious |
| Legerdemain | trickery |
| Lethargic | acting in an indifferent or slow, sluggish manner |
| Levity | an inappropriate lack of seriousness; overly casual |
| Liberal | tolerant or broad-minded; generous or lavish |
| Libertine | a free thinker, usually used disparagingly; one without moral restraint |
| Licentious | immoral; unrestrained by society |
| Limpid | clear; transparent |
| Lionize | to treat as a celebrity |
| Lissome | easily flexed; limber; agile |
| Listless | lacking energy and enthusiasm |
| Livid | discolored from a bruise; pale; reddened with anger |
| Loquacious | talkative |
| Lucid | clear and esily understood |
| Lugubrious | sorrowful; mournful; dismal |
| Lumber | to move slowly and awkwardly |
| Luminous | btight; brilliant; glowing |
| Machination | plot or scheme |
| Maelstrom | whirlpool; turmoil; agitated state of mind |
| Magnate | powerful or influential person |
| Malediction | a curse; a wish of evil upon another |
| Malinger | to evade responibilty by pretending to be ill |
| Malleable | capable of being shaped |
| Mannered | artifical or stilted in character |
| Mar | to damage or deface; spoil |
| Martinet | strict discipliarian; one who rigidly follows rules |
| Maudlin | overly sentimental |
| Mendacious | dishonest |
| Mendicant | beggar |
| Mercurial | quick, shrewd, and unpredictable |
| Meretricious | gaudy; falsely attractive |
| Metaphor | figure of speech comparing two different things |
| Meticulous | extremely careful; fastidious; painstaking |
| Militate | to operate against; work against |
| Mirth | frivolity; gaiety; laughter |
| Misanthrope | a person who dislikes others |
| Missive | a written note or letter |
| Mitigate | to soften; to lessen |
| Mollify | to calm or make less severe |
| Molt | to shed hair, skin, or an outer layer periodically |
| Monastic | extremly plain or secluded, as in a monastery |
| Monotony | no variaion; tedioulsly the same |
| Mores | fixed customs or manners; moral attitudes |
| Multifarious | diverse |
| Myopic | lacking foresight; having a narrow view or long-range perspective |
| Nadir | lowest point |
| Naive | lacking sophistication or experience |
| Nascent | starting to develop; coming into existence |
| Neologism | new word or expression |
| Neophyte | novice; beginner |
| Nettle | to irritate |
| Noisome | stinking; putrid |
| Nominal | existing in name only; negligble |
| Nuance | a subltle expression of meaning or quality |
| Numismatics | coin collecting |
| Obdurate | hardening in feeling; resistant to persuasion |
| Oblique | indirect or evasive; misleading or devious |
| Obsequious | overly submissive and eager to please |
| Obstinate | stubborn; unyielding |
| Obviate | to prevent; to make unnecessary |
| Occlude | to stop up; prevent the passage of |
| Officious | too helpful; meddlesome |
| Onerous | troublesome and oppresive; burdensome |
| Opaque | impossible to see through; preventing the passage of light |
| Opine | to express an opinion |
| Opprobrium | public disgrace |
| Orotund | pompous |
| Ossify | to change in to bone; to become hardened or set in a rigidly conventional pattern |
| Ostensible | apparent |
| Ostentation | excessive showiness |
| Overwrought | agitated; overdone |
| Palatial | relating to a palace; magnificent |
| Palliate | to make less serious; ease |
| Pallid | lacking color or liveliness |
| Panache | flamboyance or dash in style and action; verve |
| Panegyric | elaborate praise; formal hymn of praise |
| Panoply | impressive array |
| Paradox | a contradiction or dilemma |
| Paragon | model of excellence or perfection |
| Pare | to trim off excess; reduce |
| Pariah | an outcast |
| Parley | discussion, usually between enemies |
| Parry | to ward off or deflect, especially by a quickwitted answer |
| Pastiche | piece of literature or music imitating other works |
| Pathogenic | causing disease |
| Peccadillo | minor sin or offense |
| Pedant | someone who shows off learning |
| Pejorative | having bad connotations; disparaging |
| Penury | an oppressive lack of resources (as money); severe poverty |
| Peregrinate | to wander fro place to place; to travel; especially on foot |
| Perfidious | willing to betray one's trust |
| Perfunctory | done in a routine way; indifferent |
| Peripatetic | wandering from place to place, especially on foot |
| Permeate | to penetrate |
| Perspicacious | shrewd, astute, or keen-witted |
| Pervade | to be present throughout; to permeate |
| Phalanx | a compact or close-knit body of people, animals, or things |
| Philanthropy | charity; a desire or effort to promote goodness |
| Philistine | a person who is guided by materialism and is disdainful of intellectual or artistic values |
| Phlegmatic | calm and unemotional in temperament |
| Pithy | profound or substantial yet concise, succinct and to the point |
| Placate | to soothe or pacify |
| Plastic | able to be molded, altered, or bent |
| Plebeian | crude or coarse; characteristic of commoners |
| Plethora | excess |
| Plucky | courageous; spunky |
| Polemic | controversy; argument; verbal attack |
| Politic | shrewd and practical in managing or dealing with things; diplomatic |
| Polyglot | a speaker of many languages |
| Posit | to assume as real or conceded; propose as an explanation |
| Potentate | a monarch or ruler with great power |
| Pragmatic | practical, as opposed to idealistic |
| Prattle | meaningless, foolish talk |
| Precipitate | to throw violently or bring about abruplty; lacking deliberation |
| Precis | short summary of facts |
| Prescient | having foresight |
| Prevaricate | to lie or deviate from the truth |
| Pristine | fresh and clean; uncorrupted |
| Probity | complete honesty and integrity |
| Proclivity | a natural inclination or predisposition |
| Prodigal | lavish; wasteful |
| Profligate | corrupt; degenerate |
| Proliferate | to increase in number quickly |
| Propitiate | to conciliate; to appease |
| Propriety | the quality of behaving in a proper manner; obeying rules and customs |
| Prudence | wisdom, caution, or restraint |
| Puerile | childish, immature, or silly |
| Pugilism | boxing |
| Pulchritude | beauty |
| Pungent | sharp and irritating to the senses |
| Pusillanimous | cowardly; without courage |
| Querulous | inclined to complain; irritable |
| Quiescent | motionless |
| Quixotic | overly idealistic; impractical |
| Quotidian | occurring daily; commonplace |
| Raconteur | witty, skillful storyteller |
| Rarefy | to make thinner or sparser |
| Redress | relief from wrong or injury |
| Rejoinder | response |
| Repast | meal or mealtime |
| Replete | abundantly supplied, complete |
| Repose | rexlation; leisure |
| Repudiate | to reject the validity of |
| Requite | to return or repay |
| Restive | impatient, uneasy, or restless |
| Reticent | silent; reserved |
| Rhetoric | effective writing or speaking |
| Ribald | humorous in a vulgar way |
| Rococo | very highly ornamented; relating to an 18th century artistic style of elaborate ornamentation |
| Rustic | rural |
| Sacrosanct | extremely sacred; beyond criticism |
| Sagacious | shrewd; wise |
| Salient | prominent; of notable significance |
| Salubrious | healthful |
| Sanguine | ruddy; cheerfully optimistic |
| Sardonic | cynical; scornfully mocking |
| Satiate | to satisfy fully or overindulge |
| Scintilla | trace amount |
| Sedition | behavior that promotes rebellion or civil disorder against the state |
| Sentient | aware; conscious; able to perceive |
| Seraphic | angelic; sweet |
| Sinecure | a well-paying job or office that requires little or no work |
| Slake to | calm down or moderate |
| Sobriquet | nickname |
| Solecism | grammatical mistake; blunder in speech |
| Soporific | causing sleep or lethargy |
| Spartan | highly self-disciplined; frugal; austere |
| Specious | deceptively attractive; seemingly plausible but fallacious |
| Sportive | frolicsome; playful |
| Stasis | a state of static balance or equilibrium; stagnation |
| Stentorian | extremely loud |
| Stigma | a mark of shame or discredit |
| Stolid | unemotional; lacking sensitivity |
| Stratagem | trick designed to deceive an enemy |
| Sublime | lofty or grand |
| Sully | to tarnish; taint |
| Supplant | to replace (another) by force; to take the place of |
| Surfeit | excessive amount |
| Surly | rude and bad-tempered |
| Sybarite | a person devoted to pleasure and luxury |
| Sycophant | a self-serving flatterer; yes-man |
| Symbiosis | cooperation; mutual helpfulness |
| Syncopation | temporary irregularity in musical rhythm |
| Tacit | done without using words |
| Taciturn | silent; not talkative |
| Talon | claw of an animal, especially a bird of prey |
| Tangential | digressing; diverting |
| Tawdry | gaudy, cheap,or showy |
| Terrestrial | earthly; down to earth; commonplace |
| Tirade | long, harsh speech or verbal attack |
| Toady | one who flatters in the hope of gaining favors |
| Tome | book, usually large and academic |
| Torpor | extreme mental and physical sluggishness |
| Transitory | temporary; lasting a brief time |
| Trenchant | acute, sharp, or incisive; forecful; effective |
| Turgid | swollen as from a fluid; bloated |
| Tyro | beginner; novice |
| Umbrage | offense; resentment |
| Unconscionable | unscrupulous; shockingly unfair or unjust |
| Unequivocal | absolute; certain |
| Upbraid | to scold sharply |
| Usury | the practice of lending money at exorbitant rates |
| Vacillate | to physically sway or to be indecisive |
| Variegated | varied; marked with different colors |
| Venerable | respected because of age |
| Venerate | to respect deeply |
| Veracity | filled with truth and accuracy |
| Verbose | wordy |
| Verdant | green with vegtation; inexperienced |
| Vernal | related to spring; fresh |
| Vestige | a trace; remnant |
| Vex | to annoy; irritate; puzzle; confuse |
| Vicissitude | a change or variation; ups and downs |
| Vim | vitality and energy |
| Viscous | thick and adhesive, like a slow-flowing fluid |
| Vituperate | to abuse verbally; berate |
| Volatile | easily aroused or changeable; lively or explosive |
| Voluble | talkative; speaking easily; glib |
| Wan | sickly pale |
| Wanton | undisciplined; unrestrained; reckless |
| Waver | to fluctuate between choices |
| Whimsical | lightly acting in a fanciful or capricious manner; unpredictable |
| Wily | clever; deceptive |
| Winsome | charming; happily engaging |
| Wizened | shriveled; withered; wrinkled |
| Wraith | a ghost or specter; a ghost of a living person seen just before his or her death |
| Xenophobia | a fear or hatred of foreigners or strangers |
| Yoke | to join together |
| Zeal | passion; excitement |
| Zealot | someone passionately devoted to a cause |
| Zenith | the point of culmination; peak |
| Zephyr | a gentle breeze; something airy or usubstantial |
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