Common Words 6

Question 1

harried

Answer 1

troubled persistently especially with petty annoyances

Synonyms : annoyed , harassed , pestered , vexed

With a team of new hires to train, Martha was constantly harried with little questions and could not focus on her projects.

Question 2

antipathy

Answer 2

A deep seated ill will

Question 3

mendacity

Answer 3

fabrication
the tendency to be untruthful

I can forgive her for her mendacity but only because she is a child and is seeing what she can get away with.

Question 4

dilatory

Answer 4

(delay)
intended to cause delay
wasting time

Synonyms : laggard , pokey , poky

Lawyers use dilatory tactics so that it takes years before the case is actually decided.

Question 5

appease

Answer 5

pacify by acceding to the demands of

Synonyms : assuage , conciliate , gentle , gruntle , lenify , mollify , pacify , placate

Neville Chamberlain, the British prime minister during WWII, tried to appease Hitler and in doing so sent a clear message: you can walk all over us.

Question 6

erudite

Answer 6

scholarly
having or showing profound knowledge

Synonyms : learned

Before the Internet, the library was typically were you would find erudite readers.

Question 7

specious

Answer 7

delusive
spurious
having a deceiving nature
deceptively pleasing

Almost every image on TV is specious and not to be trusted.

Question 8

duress

Answer 8

being forced or threatened to do something

The witness said he signed the contract under duress and argued that the court should cancel the agreement.

Question 9

craven

Answer 9

pathetically cowardly

Synonyms : recreant

Though the man could have at least alerted the police, he crouched cravenly in the corner as the old woman was mugged.

Question 10

flux

Answer 10

a state of uncertainty about what should be done (usually following some important event)

Ever since Elvira resigned as the head of marketing, everything about our sales strategy has been in a state of flux.

Question 11

stringent

Answer 11

demanding strict attention to rules and procedures

Synonyms : rigorous , tight

Most of the students disliked the teacher because of his stringent homework policy, but many students would later thank him for demanding so much from them.

Question 12

misconstrue

Answer 12

interpret in the wrong way

Synonyms : be amiss , misapprehend , misconceive , misinterpret , misunderstand

The politician never trusted journalists because he though that they misconstrue his words and misrepresent his positions.

Question 13

maladroit

Answer 13

clumsy
inefficient or inept

As a child she was quite maladroit, but as an adult, she has become an adept dancer.

Both men are unhappy about the maladroit way the matter has been handled

Question 14

rebuke

Answer 14

rebuff
to reject and to refuse
criticize severely or angrily; censure

The police chief rebuked the two officers whose irresponsible decisions almost led to the deaths of seven innocent by-standers.

Question 15

contrition

Answer 15

guilt
the feeling of remorse or guilt that comes from doing something bad

Synonyms : attrition , contriteness

Those who show contrition during their prison terms–especially when under review by a parole board–often get shortened sentences.

Question 16

nonplussed

Answer 16

unsure how to act or respond

Shirley was totally nonplussed when the angry motorist cut her off and then stuck his finger out the window.

Question 17

transient

Answer 17

lasting a very short time

Synonyms : ephemeral , fugacious , passing , short-lived , transitory

The unpredictable and transient nature of deja vu makes it a very difficult phenomenon to study properly.

Question 18

truncate

Answer 18

reduce the length of something

The soccer game was truncated when the monsoon rain began to fall.

Question 19

sullen

Answer 19

Real GRE: sluggish or slow
gloomy

Question 20

imprudent

Answer 20

not wise

Hitler, like Napoleon, made the imprudent move of invading Russia in winter, suffering even more casualties than Napoleon had.

Question 21

ignominious

Answer 21

(used of conduct or character) deserving or bringing disgrace or shame

Synonyms : black , disgraceful , inglorious , opprobrious , shameful

Since the politician preached ethics and morality, his texting of revealing photographs was ignominious, bringing shame on both himself and his party

Question 22

capricious

Answer 22

cavalier
unpredictable

Question 23

arduous

Answer 23

Real GRE: challenging
marked by great effort

Question 24

edifying

Answer 24

enlightening or uplifting so as to encourage intellectual or moral improvement

Synonyms : enlightening

I recently read an article in the Times about whether good literature is edifying or not; specifically, does reading more make a person more moral.

Question 25

disseminate

Answer 25

GRE: to destroy Magoosh: cause to become widely known

Question 26

esoteric

Answer 26

confined to and understandable by only an enlightened inner circle Map collecting is an esoteric hobby to most, but to geography geeks it is a highly enjoyable past-time.

Question 27

dispassionate

Answer 27

unaffected by strong emotion or prejudice Synonyms : cold-eyed A good scientist should be dispassionate, focusing purely on what the evidence says, without personal attachment.

Question 28

posit

Answer 28

assume as fact Synonyms : postulate Initially, Einstein posited a repulsive force to balance Gravity, but then rejected that idea as a blunder.

Question 29

indecorous

Answer 29

not in keeping with accepted standards of what is right or proper in polite society Synonyms : indecent , unbecoming , uncomely , unseemly , untoward Eating with elbows on the table is considered indecorous in refined circles.

Question 30

bolster

Answer 30

support and strengthen The case for the suspect's innocence was bolstered considerably by the fact that neither fingerprints nor DNA were found at the scene. Synonyms : bolster up

Question 31

polemic

Answer 31

a strong verbal or written attack on someone or something. The professor launched into a polemic, claiming that Freudian theory was a pack of lies that absolutely destroyed European literary theory.

Question 32

opulence

Answer 32

wealth as evidenced by sumptuous living Synonyms : luxuriousness , luxury , sumptuousness Russian oligarchs are famous for their opulence, living in fancy homes and dining on expensive cavier.

Question 33

mundane

Answer 33

prosaic repetitive and boring; not spiritual relating to the ordinary world Though we think of the pope as someone always dealing in holy matters, he is also concerned with mundane events, such as deciding when to set his alarm each morning.

Question 34

timorous

Answer 34

timid by nature or revealing fear and nervousness Synonyms : fearful , trepid Since this was her first time debating on stage and before an audience, Di's voice was timorous and quiet for the first 10 minutes.

Question 35

impartial

Answer 35

objectivity unbiased unprejudiced

Question 36

reproach

Answer 36

GRE: disgrace or blaming someone disapproval or disappointment to express criticism towards

Question 37

nuance

Answer 37

a subtle difference in meaning or opinion or attitude Synonyms : nicety , refinement , shade , subtlety Because of the nuances involved in this case, I hired an outside consultant to advice us and help.

Question 38

pejorative

Answer 38

insult

Question 39

askance

Answer 39

with a look of suspicion or disapproval The old couple looked askance on the teenagers seated next to them, whispering to each other, "They've got rings through their noses and purple hair!"

Question 40

efficacious

Answer 40

producing the intended result Synonyms : effective , effectual Since Maggie's cough syrup, which had expired five years back, was no longer efficacious, she coughed through the night.

Question 41

placate

Answer 41

cause to be more favorably inclined; gain the good will of Synonyms : appease , assuage , conciliate , gentle , gruntle , lenify , mollify , pacify I was able to placate the angry mob of students by promising to bring cookies on Monday.

Question 42

banality

Answer 42

being banal; unoriginality

Question 43

maverick

Answer 43

someone who exhibits great independence in thought and action Synonyms : rebel Officer Kelly was a maverick, rarely following police protocols or adopting the conventions for speech common among his fellow officers.

Question 44

furtive

Answer 44

clandestine surreptitious shady

Question 45

jovial

Answer 45

mirthful good humor

Question 46

fastidious

Answer 46

demanding or hard to please