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GRE > Vocabulary 73-146 > Flashcards

Vocabulary 73-146 Flashcards

0
Q

Catholic(adj)

A

Universal; broad and comprehensive

-his catholic musical tastes included everything from opera to rap

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1
Q

Catalyst(n)

A

Something that brings about a change in something else

-the imposition of harsh taxes was the catalyst that finally bought on the revolution

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2
Q

Caustic(adj)

A

Biting in wit

-She gained her caustic reputation from her cutting, yet witty, insults

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3
Q

Chaos(n)

A

Great disorder; a confused situation

-in most religious traditions, god created an ordered universe from chaos

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4
Q

Chauvinist(n)

A

Someone prejudiced in favor of a group to which he or she belongs
-the attitude that men must be obeyed since they are inherently superior to women is common among male chauvinists

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5
Q

Chicanery(n)

A

Deception by means of craft or guile

-dishonest used-car salesmen often use chicanery to sell their beat-up old cars

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6
Q

Circumspect(adj)

A

Cautious; aware of potential consequences

-she was very circumspect in her language and behavior when first introduced to her fiances parents

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7
Q

Cloying(adj)

A

Sickly sweet; excessive

-when Enid and Jay first started dating, their cloying affection toward one another often made their friends ill

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8
Q

Coalesce(v)

A

To grow together to form a single whole

-the sun and planets eventually coalesced out of vast cloud gas and dust

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9
Q

Coffer(n)

A

A strongbox; a large chest for money

-the bulletproof glass of the coffee is what keeps the Crown Jewels secure

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10
Q

Cogent(adj)

A

Convincing and well-reasoned

-swayed by the cogent argument of the defense, the jury had no choice but to acquit the defendant

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11
Q

Collusion(n)

A

A collaboration; complicity; conspiracy

-it came to light that the police chief and the mafia had a collusion in running the numbers racket

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12
Q

Condone(v)

A

To overlook, pardon, or disregard

-some theorists believe that failing prosecute minor crimes is the same as condoning and air of lawlessness

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13
Q

Connoisseur(n)

A

A person with expert knowledge or discriminating tastes

-dr. Crane was a connoisseur of fine food and wine, drinking and eating only the best

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14
Q

Contrite(adj)

A

Deeply sorrowful and repentant for a wrong

-after three residents were mugged in the lobby while the watchman was away from his post, he felt very contrite

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15
Q

Contumacious(adj)

A

Rebellious

-the contumacious teenager ran away from home when her parents told her she was grounded

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16
Q

Convoluted(adj)

A

Intricate and complicate

-although many people bought the proffesors book, few people could follow it’s convoluted ideas and theories

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17
Q

Corroborate(v)

A

To support with evidence
-all the DA needed were fingerprints to corroborate the witness’s testimony that he saw the defendant in the victim’s apartment

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18
Q

Cosset(v)

A

To pamper; to treat with great care

-Marta just loves cosset her first and only grandchild

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19
Q

Coterie(n)

A

An intimate group of persons with a similar purpose

-angel invited a coterie of fellow stamp enthusiasts to a stamp-trading party

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20
Q

Craven(adj)

A

Lacking courage

-the craven lion cringed in the corner if his cage, terrified of the mouse

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21
Q

Credulous(adj)

A

Too trusting; gullible

-although some four-year-olds believe in the tooth fairy, only the most credulous 9 year old believe in her

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22
Q

Crescendo(n)

A

Steady increase in volume or force

-the crescendo of the tension became unbearable as she prepared to jump his motorcycle over the school buses

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23
Q

Cupidity(n)

A

Greed; strong desire

-the thief stared at the shining jewels with cupidity in his gleaming eyes

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24
Q

Curmudgeon(n)

A

A cranky person, usually an old one

-Ernesto was a notorious curmudgeon who snapped at anyone who disturbed him for any reason

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25
Q

Debutant(n)

A

A young woman making debut in high society

-the debutante spent hours dressing from her very first ball, hoping to catch the eye of an eligible bachelor

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26
Q

Declivity(n)

A

A downward slope

-because the village was situated on the deck ivory of a hill, it never flooded

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27
Q

Decorous(adj)

A

Proper; tasteful; socially correct
-the countess trained her daughters in the finer points of decorous behavior, hoping they would make a good impression when she presented them at court

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28
Q

Decorum(n)

A

Appropriateness of behavior or conduct; propriety

-the countess complained that the vulgar peasants lacked the decorum appropriate for a visit to the palace

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29
Q

Deface(v)

A

To mar the appearance of; to vandalize

-after the wall was torn down, the students began to deface the statues of communist leaders of the former eastern bloc

30
Q

Deference(n)

A

Respect; courtesy

- the respectful young law clerk treated the Supreme Court justice with the utmost deference

31
Q

Deleterious(adj)

A

Subtly or unexpected harmful
-if only we had known the clocks were defective before putting them on the market, it wouldn’t have been quite so deleterious to our reputation

32
Q

Demagogue(n)

A

A leader or rabble-rouser, usually one appealing to emotion or prejudice
-he began his career as a demagogue, giving fiery speeches at political rallies

33
Q

Demur(v)

A

To express doubts or objections
-when scientific authorities claimed that all the planets revolved around the Earth, Galileo, with his superior understanding of the situation, was forces to demur.

34
Q

Deride(v)

A

To speak of or treat with contempt; to mock

-the awkward child was often deride by his cooler peers

35
Q

Desiccate(v)

A

To dry out thoroughly

-after a few week lying on the deserts baking sands, the cows carcass became come rely desiccated

36
Q

Desultory(adj)

A

Jumping from one thing to another; disconnected

-she had a desultory academic record; she had changed majors 12 times

37
Q

Diaphanous(adj)

A

Allowing light to show through; delicate

-the diaphanous curtains do nothing to block out the sunlight

38
Q

Diatribe(n)

A

An abusive, condemnatory speech

-the trucker bellowed a diatribe at the driver who had cut him off

39
Q

Dictum(n)

A

An authoritative statement

-“you have time to lean, you have time to clean” was the dictum our boss made us follow

40
Q

Diffident(adj)

A

Lacking self-confidence

-Steve was diffident during the job interview

41
Q

Dilate(v)

A

To make larger; to expand

-when you enter a darkened room, the pupils of your eyes dilate

42
Q

Dilatory(adj)

A

Intended to delay

-the congressman used dilatory measures to delay the passage of the bill

43
Q

Dilettante(n)

A

Someone with an amateurish and superficial interest in a topic
-his friends were such dilettantes they seemed to hobbies every week

44
Q

Dirge(n)

A

A funeral hymn or mournful speech

-he write a dirge for the funeral

45
Q

Disabuse(v)

A

To set right; to free from error

-his observations disabused scholars of the notion that the sun revolved around the earth

46
Q

Discern(v)

A

To perceive or recognize

-it is easy to discern the difference between butter and butter-flavored topping

47
Q

Disparate(adj)

A

Fundamentally different; entirely unlike

-although the twins are physically identical, their personalities are disparate

48
Q

Dissemble(v)

A

To present a false appearance; to disguise one’a real intentions or character
-the villain could dissemble to the police no longer—he admitted to his crime

49
Q

Dissonance(n)

A

A harsh and disagreeable combination; especially of sounds

-cognitive dissonance is the inner conflict produced when beliefs are contradictory

50
Q

Distaff(n)

A

The female branch of a family

-The lazy husband refused to cook, joking that the duty belongs to the distaff’s side

51
Q

Distend (v)

A

To swell, inflate, or bloat

- her stomach was distended after she gorged on that meal

52
Q

Dither(v)

A

To act confusedly or without clear purpose

-Ellen dithered around the room, uncertain how to clean it up

53
Q

Diurnal(adj)

A

Active or occurring during the day

-diurnal creatures tend to become inactive during the night

54
Q

Divine(v)

A

To foretell or know by inspiration

-the teller divined from the pattern of the leaves that she would marry 5 times

55
Q

Doctrinaire(adj)

A

Rigidly devoted to theories without regard for practicality; dogmatic
-his manner if teaching was considered doctrinaire for such a liberal school

56
Q

Dogma(n)

A

A firmly held opinion, especially a religious belief

-his central dogma was that children who believed in the Santa would be rewarded

57
Q

Dogmatic(adj)

A

Dictatorial in ones opinion

-the dictation was dogmatic, claiming he, and only he, was right

58
Q

Droll(adj)

A

Amusing in a wry, subtle way

59
Q

Dupe(v)

A

To deceive

-bugs bunny was able to dupe Elmer Fudd

60
Q

Dyspeptic(adj)

A

Suffering from indigestion; gloomy and irritable

-the dyspeptic young man cast a gloom over the party the minute he walked in

61
Q

Ebullient(adj)

A

Exhilarated; full if enthusiasm and high spirits

-the ebullient child exhausted the babysitter

62
Q

Eclectic(adj)

A

Selecting from or made up from a
variety of sources
-the architecture is an eclectic mix of Easter and western styles

63
Q

Edify(v)

A

To instruct morally and spiritual

-the guru was paid to edifying the actress in the ways of Buddhism

64
Q

Efficacy(n)

A

Effectiveness

-the efficacy of penicillin was unsurpassed when it was first introduced

65
Q

Effigy(n)

A

A stuffed doll; a likeness if a person

-protestors binned effigies of the unpopular leader

66
Q

Effrontery (n)

A

Impudent boldness; audacity

-the receptionist had the effrontery to laugh when the CEO tripped

67
Q

Elegy(n)

A

A sorrowful poem or speech

-the elegy is about death and loss

68
Q

Eloquent(adj)

A

Persuasive and moving; especially in speech

-the speech is moving not only because of its lofty sentiments but because of its eloquent words

69
Q

Embellish(v)

A

To add ornamental or fictitious details

-Britt embellished her resume, hoping to make herself more important

70
Q

Emulate(v)

A

To copy; to try to equal or excel

-the grad student sought to emulate his professor

71
Q

Encomium(n)

A

Warm praise

-she wrote an encomium in praise of the outgoing president

72
Q

Endemic(adj)

A

Belonging to a particular area; inherent

-the health department determined that the outbreak was endemic to the small village

73
Q

Enervate(v)

A

To reduce in strength

-the guerrillas hoped that a series of surprise attacks would enervate the regular army

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