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GRE Vocabulary > Word List 46 > Flashcards

Word List 46 Flashcards

1
Q

pesky

A

troublesome, vexatious

e.g. the pesky problem of what to do with all the leftovers

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2
Q

petulant

A

insolent or rude in speech or behavior
characterized by temporary or capricious ill humor; peevish

e.g. a petulant and fussy man who is always blaming everyone else for his problems

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3
Q

pharisaic

A

marked by hypocritical censorious self-righteousness

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4
Q

phial

A

vial

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5
Q

philology

A

the study of literature and of disciplines relevant to literature or to language as used in literature
linguistics

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6
Q

phony

A

not genuine or real

e.g. phony publicity stories
a phony poetic elegance

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7
Q

piazza

A

(pl. piazze) an open square especially in an Italian town

an arcaded and roofed gallery

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8
Q

piebald

A

composed of incongruous parts
of different colors; especially, spotted or blotched with black and white

e.g. a model who owes his striking good looks to his markedly piebald ethnic background

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9
Q

piecemeal

A

one piece at a time; gradually
in pieces or fragment; apart
also

e.g. remodeled their house piecemeal because of budgetary constraints
One well-aimed blow ripped the pinata piecemeal.
piecemeal repairs major reconstruction

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10
Q

pilfer

A

steal; especially, to steal stealthily in small amounts and often again and again

e.g. She pilfered stamps and paper from work.

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11
Q

piscatorial

A

of, relating to, or dependent on fish or fishing

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12
Q

plank

A

a heavy thick board
an article in the platform of a political party
a principal item of a policy or program

e.g. Before the convention, there was debate over the foreign policy and economic planks.

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13
Q

plebeian

A

one of the common people
crude or coarse in manner or style; common

e.g. wondered what the people at the country club would think of his plebeian origins

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14
Q

plenary

A

complete in every aspects; absolute, unqualified
fulled attended or constituted by all entitled to be present

e.g. plenary power
a plenary meeting of all 500 members

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15
Q

pleonasm

A

redundancy

e.g. Ignorance of the true meaning of a word often leads to pleonasm.

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16
Q

poach

A

to encroach upon especially for the purpose of taking something
to trespass on

e.g. a field poached too frequently by the amateur
a staff poached from other companies

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17
Q

poltroon

A

a spiritless coward; craven
also

e.g. a military commander who was so poltroon that he surrendered without having fired so much as a single shot

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18
Q

polyandry

A

the state or practice of having more than one husband or male mate at one time

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19
Q

polyglot

A

a polyglot person
speaking or writing several language; multilingual
widely diverse

e.g. a polyglot population/sign/cuisine
a polyglot community made up of many cultures

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20
Q

polymath

A

a person of encyclopedic learning

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21
Q

portend

A

to give an omen or anticipatory sign of
indicate, signify

e.g. The distant thunder portended a storm.

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22
Q

potboiler

A

a usually inferior work (as of art or literature) produced chiefly for profit

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23
Q

prefigure

A

to show, suggest, or announce by an antecedent type, image, or likeness
to picture or imagine beforehand

e.g. His style of painting prefigured the development of modern art.
The first crocus traditionally prefigures the arrival of spring.

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24
Q

prehensile

A

adapted for seizing or grasping especially by wrapping around
gifted with mental grasp or moral or aesthetic perception

e.g. a prehensile tail

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25
Q

preponderant

A

having superior weight, force, or influence
having greater prevalence

e.g. In spite of the preponderant odds against him, the charge was almost a success.

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26
Q

prepossessing

A

tending to create a favorable impression; attractive

e.g. a confident and prepossessing young man

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27
Q

presentiment

A

a feeling that something will or is about to happen; premonition

e.g. a nagging presentiment of danger

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28
Q

prevision

A

foresight, prescience
forecast, prognostication
foresee

e.g. He claimed to have previsioned the crash of the stock market.

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29
Q

prickle

A

a fine sharp process or projection
a prickling or tingling sensation

e.g. a prickle of fear
He felt the familiar prickle of excitement as the game began.

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30
Q

prig

A

a person who displays or demands of others pointlessly precise conformity, fussiness about trivialities, or exaggerated propriety, especially in a self-righteous or irritating manner

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31
Q

prissy

A

overly prim and precise; finicky

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32
Q

procrustean

A

marked by arbitrary often ruthless disregard of individual differences or special circumstances

e.g. He had no right to tyrannize over others, and tie them down to his own procrustean bed.

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33
Q

progenitor

A

an ancestor in the direct line; forefather
precursor, originator

e.g. the progenitors of modern art

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34
Q

prognosticate

A

to foretell from signs or symptoms; predict
presage

e.g. using current trends to prognosticate what the future will be like

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35
Q

prorogue

A

defer, postpone
to suspend or end a legislative session

e.g. The sovereign had never dared to prorogue the parliament against their will.

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36
Q

proverbial

A

relating to a proverb
commonly spoken of; widely known

e.g. proverbial brevity/wisdom/sayings
his proverbial inability to get anywhere on time

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37
Q

puffery

A

exaggerated commendation especially for promotional purposes; hype

e.g. The newspaper’s local stories are often thinly disguised puffery for area business.

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38
Q

pullulate

A

germinate, sprout
to breed or produce freely
swarm, teem

e.g. the country’s pullulating population
a tough city neighborhood that has a reputation for pullulating with prostitutes and petty criminals
an island pullulated with tourists

39
Q

pummel

A

pound, beat

40
Q

purblind

A

partly blind

lacking in vision, insight, or understanding; obtuse

41
Q

purport

A

meaning conveyed, professed, or implied; import; also, substance, gist

e.g. The letter was not read aloud, but all present were informed of its purport.

42
Q

purportedly

A

allegedly

43
Q

purse

A

to pucker

contract

44
Q

putative

A

commonly accepted or supposed
assumed to exist or to have existed

e.g. The putative reason for her dismissal was poor job performance.

45
Q

putrid

A

being in a state of putrefaction; rotten
foul
morally corrupt; totally objectionable

e.g. a putrid shade of green

46
Q

pygmy

A

an unusually small person
an insignificant or unimpressive person

e.g. Regrettably, most of the candidates for the party’s nomination that year were political pygmies.

47
Q

quagmire

A

soft miry land that shakes or yields under the foot
a difficult, precarious, or entrapping position; predicament

e.g. a protracted custody dispute that became a judicial quagmire

48
Q

quintessence

A

the essence of a thing in its purest and most concentrated form
the most typical example or representative

e.g. The Parthenon in Greece was considered the quintessence of the perfectly proportioned building.

49
Q

quip

A

a clever usually taunting remark; gibe
quibble, equivocation
something strange, droll, curious, or eccentric; oddity
also

e.g. trade quips over a beer

50
Q

racketeer

A

one who obtains money by an illegal enterprise usually involving intimidation

e.g. The racketeer threatened to have his thugs vandalize the shop if the shopkeeper didn’t pay him a monthly bribe.

51
Q

raillery

A

good-natured ridicule; banter
jest

e.g. Luke had to put up with a lot of raillery from his sister the first time he asked a girl for a date.

52
Q

rapscallion

A

rascal, ne’er-do-well

e.g. The city’s run-down waterfront was occupied mostly by disreputable places frequented by drunkards and rapscallions.

53
Q

rasp

A

to abrade with a rasp
to grate upon; irritate
to utter in a raspy tone
also

e.g. The metal box rasped as they dragged it across.
the rasp of the engine

54
Q

ratify

A

to approve and sanction formally; confirm

e.g. ratify the treaty

55
Q

ravish

A

to seize and take away by violence
to overcome with emotion (as by joy or delight)
rape; also, plunder

e.g. travelers long ravished with wonder and awe by the immensity of the pyramid
pirates who abduct fair maidens and ravish them without mercy

56
Q

rebarbative

A

repellent, irritating

57
Q

recline

A

to cause or permit to incline backwards
to lean or incline backwards
repose, lie

e.g. reclining on the sofa, watching TV
reclining seats

58
Q

reconnoiter

A

to make a reconnaissance (of)

e.g. An expedition reconnoitered the coast to find out the exact location of enemy forces.

59
Q

reedy

A

abounding in or covered with reeds
slender, frail
having the tone quality of a reed instrument

60
Q

regent

A

a person who governs a kingdom in the minority, absence, or disability of the sovereignty
a person who rules or reigns; governor

61
Q

regiment

A

a military unit consisting usually of a number of battalions
to form into or assign to a regiment
to organize rigidly especially for the sake of regulation
to subject to order or conformity

e.g. regiment their diet
She criticized the way the school regiments its students by having strict rules.

62
Q

rejoin

A

to join again

to say often sharply or critically in response especially as a reply to a reply

63
Q

rejoinder

A

reply; specifically, an answer to a reply

e.g. The article was a stinging rejoinder to her critics.

64
Q

remission

A
  • remit

e.g. a temporary remission of symptoms
He was given remission for good behavior.

65
Q

remit

A 
to desist from (an activity)
to let (as attention or diligence) slacken; relax 
to release from the guilt or penalty of 
to cancel or refrain from inflicting 
to send (money) to a person or place
abate

e.g. The governor remitted the remainder of her life sentence.
remit a tax

66
Q

remittance

A

a sum of money sent, especially by mail, in payment for goods or services or as a gift; payment
the action of sending money in payment

e.g. She always mails in her remittance on time so she won’t ever be charged a late fee.

67
Q

remittent

A

(of a disease) marked by alternating periods of abatement and increase of symptoms

e.g. remittent fever

68
Q

remonstrate

A

to present and urge reasons in opposition; expostulate
to say or plead in protest, reproof, or opposition

e.g. I politely remonstrated with him about littering.

69
Q

remunerate

A

to pay an equivalent for
to pay an equivalent for a service, loss, or expense; recompense

e.g. promptly remunerated the repair company for fixing the dryer
The negligent landlord must remunerate those made homeless by the fire by finding new housing for them at his own expense.

70
Q

renascent

A

rising again into being or vigor

71
Q

renunciate

A

to give up; abandon

72
Q

repository

A

a place where a large amount of something is stored; depository
a person to whom something is confided or entrusted

e.g. a repository for nuclear waste
He is the repository of many secrets.

73
Q

rescript

A

an official or authoritative order, decree, edict, or announcement
an act or instance of rewriting

e.g. Even though there was never an official rescript ordering mass genocide, that was indeed the intent and effect of the government’s policy.

74
Q

retentive

A

having the power, property, or capacity of retaining; especially, retaining knowledge easily

e.g. soils retentive of moisture
a retentive memory

75
Q

reticulation

A

network

e.g. The reticulation of alleys will always prove to be a trouble to the police and a security for the pickpockets.

76
Q

retrench

A

cut down, reduce
to pare away; remove
economize

e.g. When the economy slowed, the company was forced to retrench.

77
Q

revulsion

A

a strong pulling or drawing away; withdrawal
a sense of utter distaste or repugnance

e.g. She was struck with revulsion at the sight of the dead animal.
a growing revulsion to war

78
Q

rhapsody

A

effusively rapturous or extravagant discourse
rapture, ecstasy
a musical composition of irregular form having an improvisatory character

e.g. The mayor launched into a long rhapsody about his plans for the city.
Listening to Mozart always left him in a rhapsody that lingered for the remainder of the evening.

79
Q

riffle

A

to ruffle slightly; ripple
to flip cursorily; thumb
also

e.g. Web research is convenient but doesn’t offer the tactile pleasures of riffling through heavy old books.

80
Q

riffraff

A

disreputable persons
the lowest class; rabble
refuse; rubbish

e.g. Here all the riffraff that had been unable to establish itself in better quarters had found some sort of a haven.
The sight of piles and piles of riffraff at the town dump was a sobering reminder that we are indeed a society of consumers.

81
Q

rigmarole

A

confused or meaningless talk
a complex and sometimes ritualistic procedure

e.g. We had to go through the rigmarole of installing, registering, and activating the software before we found out it wouldn’t work.

82
Q

roister

A

to engage in noisy revelry; carouse

e.g. dressed and ready for a roistering night in town

83
Q

rollicking

A

boisterously carefree, joyful, or high-spirited

e.g. a rollicking adventure film

84
Q

rote

A

mechanical or unthinking routine or repetition

e.g. learn by rote
a joyless routine order, rote, and commercial hustle

85
Q

rotund

A

rounded
orotund, sonorous
chubby

e.g. The actor’s distinct baritone and his clear and rotund elocution are especially effective in dramatic readings.

86
Q

rout

A 
a crowd of people; specifically, rabble 
disturbance 
 to poke around; to search haphazardly 
to come up with; uncover
 a state of wild confusion or disorderly retreat 
debacle 
 to defeat decisively or disastrously

e.g. scouts routing out new talents
the discomfiture of seeing their party routed at the polls

87
Q

rove

A

to move aimlessly; roam

e.g. rove the woods

88
Q

ruck

A

the usual run of persons or things; generality
an indistinguishable gathering; jumble
pucker, wrinkle

e.g. trying to rise above the ruck

89
Q

rucksack

A

knapsack

e.g. hikers carrying their food and water in rucksacks

90
Q

rustle

A

to make or cause a rustle
to act or move with energy or speed
to forage food
to steal (as livestock) especially from a farm or ranch
to obtain by one’s own exertions (oft. used with up)
a quick succession or confusion of small sounds

e.g. trees rustling in the wind
able to rustle up $5,000 bail
a rustle of leaves behind him

91
Q

rustler

A

one who steals cattle, horses, etc.

92
Q

saccharine

A

of or relating to sugar
overly or sickishly sweet
ingratiatingly or affectedly agreeable or friendly
overly sentimental; mawkish

e.g. a saccharine love story

93
Q

saliferous

A

containing or producing salt

GRE Vocabulary (50 decks)

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