GRE Saad Vocab - New Words List (Part 1) Flashcards
(129 cards)
1
Q
asperity
A
harshness of tone or manner
e.g. “he pointed this out with some asperity”
Synonym: acerbity, acrimony, bitterness
2
Q
anarchic
A
disordered; without law or control
e.g. “the citywide blackouts caused anarchic looting and rioting”
Synonym: illicit, disorderly, illegal, felonious
3
Q
expediency/expedient
A
the quality of being convenient and practical despite possibly being improper or immoral; convenience
e.g. “made the expedient decision to sell the land to whomever offered the most money”
Synonym: prudent, desirable, wise, tactical
4
Q
anemic
A
weak
e.g. “The band played an anemic rendition of a classic love song.”
Synonym: feeble, frail
5
Q
enduring
A
lasting over a period of time; durable.
e.g. “he formed several enduring relationships with women”
Synonym: persisting, surviving, withstanding
6
Q
unabashed
A
not embarrassed, disconcerted, or ashamed
e.g. “unabashed by their booing and hissing, he continued with his musical performance”
Synonym: unashamed, proud, shameless, impudent, brazen
7
Q
vitriolic
A
cruel and bitter criticism
e.g. “vitriolic attacks on the politicians”
Synonym: acrimonious, rancorous, bitter, caustic, mordant, acerbic, astringent
8
Q
bombastic
A
to be full of hot air – make grand promises but not delivering
e.g. “a bombastic speech intended to impress the voters in her congressional district”
Synonym: grandiose, histrionic, pompous, turgid
9
Q
dispatch
A
being prompt and efficient
e.g. “dispatched a messenger with urgent news”
10
Q
assiduous
A
showing great care and perseverance
e.g. “the fascinating sight of assiduous ants carrying food into the anthill”
Synonym: diligent, engaged, sedulous, industrious
11
Q
temerity
A
excessive confidence; boldness
e.g. “she had the temerity to ask me if she could borrow some money even though she never repaid the last loan”
Synonym: gall, nerve, audacity, impudence, brazenness
12
Q
slippery
A
a word or concept elusive in meaning
e.g. “a slippery concept that we had trouble understanding”
Synonym: elusive, evasive
13
Q
injudicious
A
poor judgment; unwise
e.g. “lost a job because of an injudicious comment regarding the boss’s toupee”
Synonym: inappropriate, imprudent, careless, indiscreet, tactless, unwise
14
Q
expurgated
A
to remove objectionable material
e.g. “the newspaper had to expurgate the expletive-laden speech that the criminal made upon being sentenced to life imprisonment”
Synonym: censored
15
Q
corpus
A
a collection of texts
e.g. “Jane Austen’s corpus is modest in number but magnificent in achievement”
Synonym: bulk, collection, compilation, core
16
Q
substantiated
A
provide evidence to support or prove the truth
e.g. “they had found nothing that substantiated the allegations”
Synonym: ascertained, assured, authenticated, corroborated, demonstrated
17
Q
frisson
A
thrill; excitement
e.g. “a frisson of excitement”
Synonym: thrill, exhilaration, rush, titillation
18
Q
maladaptive
A
not adapting well
e.g. “maladaptive coping strategies such as increasing consumption of alcohol”
Synonym: maladjusted, nonadaptive
19
Q
nugatory
A
has no real value; worthless
e.g. “a nugatory and pointless observation”
Synonym: unimportant, inconsequential, worthless
20
Q
veritable
A
true; real; actual; genuine
e.g. “the early 1970s witnessed a veritable price explosion”
Synonym: real, genuine, classic, utter, unmitigated
21
Q
jaded
A
fatigued or bored due to overwork; distrustful attitude; cynical
e.g. “Now, he says, we are all so jaded that we are almost unshockable.”
Synonym: bored, tired, weary, fatigued
22
Q
postulate
A
to assume or claim as true, existent, or necessary
e.g. “He postulates that all people are born with certain rights that can never be taken away from them”
Synonym: hypothesize, posit, presuppose, theorize, predicate
23
Q
visceral
A
based on intuition
e.g. “the voters’ visceral fear of change”
Synonym: ingrained, innate, intuitive
24
Q
measured
A
carefully considered
e.g. “his measured prose”
Synonym: careful, deliberate, meticulous
25
pulverized
powderize; reduce to very small particle
e.g. "the brick of the villages was pulverized by the bombardment"
Synonym: busted, collapsed, cracked, crumbled
26
histrionic
overly theatrical or melodramatic in character or style
e.g. "a histrionic outburst"
Synonym: theatrical, melodramatic, stagey, conspicuous, exaggerated, bombastic
27
stately
appear noble or dignified
e.g. "a stately 19th-century mansion"
Synonym: ceremonial, elegant, gracious, grand, palatial, solemn
28
passe
outdated; no longer fashionable
e.g. "minis are passé—the best skirts are knee-length"
Synonym: obsolete, odd, outdated, outmoded
29
pervasive
spreading widely throughout an area; prevalent
e.g. "A pervasive smell filled the room."
Synonym: widespread, general, prevalent, familiar, rife
30
unremitting
continuous; persistent
e.g. "unremitting rain that lasted for six days"
Synonym: ceaseless, continuous, enduring, eternal, incessant
31
slipshod
1. careless; disorganized
2. lack of care, thought or organization
e.g. "he'd caused many problems with his slipshod management"
Synonym: remiss, lax, shabby, impetuous
32
archetypal
typical
e.g. "St. Peter's basilica in Rome is considered by some art historians to be the archetypal structure in the baroque style"
Synonym: quintessential, paradigmatic, definitive, exemplary, stereotypical, imitable
33
in tandem
working or occurring in conjunction with each other
e.g. "The heart and lungs will be transplanted in tandem."
Synonym: in collaboration, in combination, in conjunction, synchronously
34
opulence
great wealth; affluence
e.g. "In some parts of the city, nearly unimaginable opulence can be found side by side with nearly unthinkable poverty"
Synonym: abundance, affluence, lavishness, plentitude
35
palliate
lessen or to try to lessen the seriousness or extent of; ease; abate
e.g. "Don't try to palliate your constant lying by claiming that everybody lies"
Synonym: abate, ease, allay, alleviate, assuage, camouflage, exculpate
36
inscrutable
not easily understood; unfathomable; enigmatic
e.g. "the many inscrutable beliefs of that ancient religion"
Synonym: enigmatic, impenetrable, incomprehensible, unfathomable, cryptic, obscure
37
stinting with
to be sparing or frugal
e.g. "He is a stinting boss who doesn't give paid sick leave no matter how long you've worked for him"
Synonym: parsimonious, frugal
38
unwonted
unusual; out of the ordinary
e.g. "He was honored for the unwonted courage he showed in battle"
Synonym: anomalous, especial, incredible, aberrant, atypical, preternatural
39
maverick
someone who exhibits independent thought; unorthodox
e.g. "George Sand's maverick views on marriage scandalized 19th-century French society"
Synonym: dissident, unconventional, iconoclastic
40
debased
adulterate; reduce in quality or value
e.g. "a book that examines the debased character of the criminal mind"
Synonym: degraded, corrupt, sick, depraved, perverted, decadent, debauched, warped, rakish
41
malefactor
criminal; culprit
e.g. "She regards anyone who would cause the breakup of a family as a malefactor of the worst sort"
Synonym: evildoer, immoralist, transgressor, rogue, outlaw
42
succor
a helping hand in time of need; aid
e.g. "We see it as our duty to give succor to those in need."
Synonym: assist, aid, help, palliation
43
blandish
praise someone dishonestly; flatter
e.g. "They blandished her into doing their work for them by complimenting her shamelessly"
Synonym: allure, beguile, cajole, caress, charm, coax, wheedle
44
wrangling
long argument or dispute
e.g. "a town meeting at which local residents wrangled for hours about property taxes"
Synonym: bickering, fighting, arguing, quarrelling, clashing, squabbling
45
propitious
presenting favorable circumstances; promising
e.g. "the success of the first big movie in May was a propitious start for the summer season of blockbusters"
Synonym: promising, bright, optimistic, auspicious, opportune
46
bemuse
puzzle; confuse
e.g. "the stage mishap momentarily bemused the actress"
Synonym: bewilder, perplex, confuse, baffle, puzzle, befuddle, mystify, flummox
47
loath
reluctant or unwilling
e.g. "I was loath to accept his claim of having climbed Mount Everest"
Synonym: reluctant, hesitant, unwilling, reticent, disinclined
48
upbeat
pleasantly (or unrealistically) optimistic; cheerful
e.g. "an upbeat attitude about life"
Synonym: buoyant, cheery, rosy, sanguine, blithe, pollyannish
49
pollyannish
unfailingly cheerful; upbeat
e.g. "Wishful thinking and Pollyannaish daydreaming left the trusting girl constantly disappointed."
Synonym: buoyant, cheery, rosy, sanguine, blithe, upbeat
50
cynical
distrusting or disparaging the motives of others
e.g. "He's so cynical that he can't understand why anyone would volunteer to help out at a homeless shelter"
Synonym: misanthropic, skeptical, sardonic
51
disparage
belittle; depreciate; undervalue
e.g. "disparaged polo as a sport for the idle rich"
Synonym: diminish, criticize, denigrate, belittle, derogate
52
synergy
collaboration
e.g. "A synergy has developed among the different groups working on this project"
Synonym: alliance, coaction, harmony, symbiosis
53
prescience
foreknowing the future
e.g. "most believers would probably agree that complete prescience is one of God's attributes"
Synonym: foreknowledge, presage
54
formidable
intimidating; inspiring fear or respect
e.g. "a formidable, irascible old man who frightened the neighborhood children"
Synonym: daunting, intimidating, terrifying
55
sycophancy/sycophant
obsequious behavior toward someone important in order to gain advantage; fawning over someone
e.g. "be careful not to mistake sycophants for true friends"
Synonym: adulator, bootlicker, flunkey, lackey
56
munificent
very generous
e.g. "a munificent host who has presided over many charitable events at his mansion"
Synonym: charitable, benevolent, liberal, bountiful, magnanimous
57
clique
a small close-knit group of people
e.g. "that clique refuses to even talk to outsiders at their lunch table"
Synonym: cabal, clan, coterie, faction
58
superfluity
excess; abundance
e.g. "spends most of her money on designer clothes and other superfluities"
Synonym: abundance, indulgence, extra
59
paucity
lack of
e.g. "a paucity of useful answers to the problem of traffic congestion at rush hour"
Synonym: dearth, scantiness, shortage, poverty
60
facetious
treating serious issues with deliberately inappropriate humor
e.g. "The essay is a facetious commentary on the absurdity of war as a solution for international disputes"
Synonym: flippant, waggish, frivolous, jocular
61
sacrosanct
sacred; not to be violated, criticized, or tampered with
e.g. "The teacher's book of grades is sacrosanct, and someone could be expelled for changing anything in it"
Synonym: sacred, holy, inviolable, hallowed
62
perpetrate
carry out or commit (a crime)
e.g. "the anonymity of the Web allows pranksters to perpetrate their hoaxes with impunity"
Synonym: carry out, commit, execute, inflict, wreak, enact
63
pilloried
attack or ridicule harshly
e.g. "The press pilloried the judge for her decision."
Synonym: berated, excoriated, lashed, upbraided, castigated, lambasted, rebuked
64
shelved
to put off aside; postpone
e.g. "Let's shelve the project for now"
Synonym: abandoned, deserted, discontinued, repudiated, scrapped
65
immoderation
overindulgence; excessive
e.g. "immoderation seemed to inhabit every facet of the actress's over-the-top life"
Synonym: excess, exorbitance, intemperance, extremism
66
dissimulate
conceal one’s thoughts or feelings; pretense; dissemble
e.g. "As an actress she had been trained to dissimulate, so she had no trouble hiding her true feelings offstage as well"
Synonym: camouflage, cloak, deceive, dissemble
67
avocation
a hobby or minor occupation
e.g. "photography is merely an avocation for me—I've never tried to make money off of it"
Synonym: amusement, diversion
68
amplitude
a lot of; abundant
e.g. "Her life had taken on such an amplitude of late that even her dreams seemed richer."
Synonym: largeness, magnitude, vastness
69
tenebrous
dark; shadowy or obscure
e.g. "a tenebrous night with no moon"
Synonym: dark, murky, obscure
70
maladroit
inefficient or inept; clumsy.
e.g. "some maladroit steering on her part caused the bicycle to go crashing into the bushes"
Synonym: clumsy, awkward, gauche, inept, klutz
71
adroit
clever, skilful
e.g. "he was adroit at tax avoidance"
Synonym: artful, adept, dexterous, deft, agile, nimble, ingenious, masterful
72
concord
agreement or harmony
e.g. "a pact of peace and concord"
Synonym: harmony, peace, comity, unity, compatibility, solidarity
73
gratuitous
unwarranted; unnecessary; without cause; freely bestowed
e.g. "that violent scene was completely gratuitous and didn't need to be in the movie at all"
Synonym: needless, unwarranted, dispensable, redundant
74
schematic
simple representation of something complex
e.g. "We cannot form more than a schematic conception of what it is like."
Synonym: simplified, diagrammatic, representational, illustration
75
trumped up
invented as an excuse; false accusation
e.g. "he was arrested on trumped-up charges"
Synonym: fraudulent, made-up, fabricated, mendacious, fallacious
76
ignominy
deep personal humiliation and disgrace
e.g. "he spent the remainder of his life in ignominy after being involved in a bribery scandal"
Synonym: infamy, contempt, disrepute, odium, opprobrium
77
illustrious
well-known, respected, and admired for past achievements
e.g. "his illustrious predecessor"
Synonym: distinguished, eminent, esteemed, exalted, famed
78
repugnant
distasteful, objectionable, or offensive
e.g. "graffiti that featured absolutely repugnant racial slurs"
Synonym: abhorrent, abominable, contradictory, disgusting, distasteful, nauseous
79
gaudy
flashy/ cheaply showy
e.g. "gaudy decorations on all the doors and windows at festival time"
Synonym: flashy, garish, jazzy, ostentatious, swank
80
adjure
to ask or order someone to do something
e.g. "He adjured them not to break the drug laws of any of the countries they would be visiting"
Synonym: beseech, entreat, implore, obligate, admonish, counsel
81
exculpate
show or declare that (someone) is not guilty of wrongdoing; absolve
e.g. "I will present evidence that will exculpate my client"
Synonym: absolve, acquit, amnesty, exonerate, remit
82
impugn
attack as false or wrong; challenge
e.g. "He impugned his rival's character."
Synonym: criticize, blame, denounce, condemn, accuse, lambast, rebuke
83
cosset
to pamper, to treat with extreme kindness and attention
e.g. "a luxury spa where guests are cosseted with no expense spared"
Synonym: pamper, indulge, overindulge, mollycoddle
84
absolved
declare free from guilt, obligation, or punishment
e.g. "they were absolved of their crimes"
Synonym: exculpate, acquit, amnesty, exonerate, remit
85
atrophied
weaken; diminish
e.g. "His body has atrophied to the point where he can't move."
Synonym: attenuated, famished, anemic
86
inchoate
Not fully formed or developed; imperfect; rudimentary
e.g. "She had inchoate feelings of affection for a man whom she had, up till now, thought of as only a friend"
Synonym: nascent, incipient, inceptive, budding, embryonic, rudimentary
87
onerous
burdensome; troublesome
e.g. "He had the onerous and stressful job of notifying the families of soldiers killed in action"
Synonym: arduous, backbreaking, burdensome, cumbersome, laborious
88
incipient
beginning to happen or develop; inchoate
e.g. "I have an incipient dislike and distrust of that guy, and I only met him this morning"
Synonym: embryonic, nascent, rudimentary
89
foreboding
fearful apprehension; feeling that something bad will happen
e.g. "foreboding clouds began to gather"
Synonym: trepidation, apprehension, dread, premonition, perturbation
90
perturbation
unhappy; worried
e.g. "The Dude looks up, one hand flicks his hair out of eyes in perturbation."
Synonym: anxiety, commotion, confusion, disorder, disruption, apprehension
91
polemical
major disagreement; provoking dispute
e.g. "during the Middle Ages even theologians could be surprisingly polemical in their writings"
Synonym: virulent, vitriolic, acerbic, scathing
92
consequential
something which is important or significant
e.g. "the new congress lacked consequential leaders"
Synonym: momentous, tectonic, monumental, much, important
93
prelude
preliminary; introduces what follows
e.g. "a ceasefire had been agreed as a prelude to full peace negotiations"
Synonym: preliminary, overture, prologue
94
pretext
something that is put forward to conceal a true purpose or object
e.g. "The leaders used a minor clash at the border as a pretext for war."
Synonym: justification, pretense, guise
95
ostensible
intended for display
e.g. "the ostensible reason for the meeting turned out to be a trick to get him to the surprise party"
Synonym: plausible, superficial, demonstrable
96
contriving
the act of devising something
e.g. "contrived abstract metal sculptures using old household utensils"
Synonym: devising, concocting, constructing, inventing
97
conflate
mix together different elements or concepts
e.g. "be careful not to conflate gossip with real news"
Synonym: confuse, confound, mistake, amalgamate
98
saccharine
excessively sweet or sentimental
e.g. "the movie was funny, but it had a saccharine ending in which everyone lives happily ever after"
Synonym: cloying, mawkish, schmaltzy, sentimental
99
oblique
indirect
e.g. "he issued an oblique attack on the President"
Synonym: roundabout, circuitous, circumlocutory, implicit, backhanded
100
posit
put forward; postulate; assert
e.g. "the Confucian view posits a perfectible human nature"
Synonym: postulate, put forward, hypothesize, propound, predicate
101
embolden
to fill with courage or strength of purpose
e.g. "his poor showing in his first swim meet just emboldened him to train even harder"
Synonym: buoy, energize, inspire, invigorate, reassure, galvanize
102
hagiography
a biography of saints or venerated person
e.g. "a hagiography of the leader written by one of his closest confidants"
Synonym: biography, memoir
103
edifying
providing moral or intellectual instruction
e.g. "his sermon was instructive and edifying"
Synonym: didactic, instructive
104
derail
to obstruct the progress of
e.g. "the violence threatens to derail the peace process"
Synonym: hinder, impede, interfere, stall, stonewall, thwart, stymie
105
foible
weakness
e.g. "We could tolerate my uncle's foibles because we loved him dearly"
Synonym: infirmity, frailty
106
acquiescence
agreement or consent by silence or without objection compliance
e.g. "good manners demanded our cheerful acquiescence to our host's plans for dinner"
Synonym: obedience, assent, deference, submissiveness, docility, compliance, subservience
107
emancipatory
set free from the control of someone; given freedom (social or political)
e.g. "under the cover of darkness animal rights activists emancipated the inhabitants of the mink ranch"
Synonym: affranchise, discharge, disencumber, enfranchise, loose, manumit
108
prophylactic
preventing or contributing to the prevention of disease
e.g. "the many prophylactic measures that city officials could have taken to reduce the scope of the disaster"
Synonym: preventive, preventative, precautionary
109
ulterior
lying beyond what is openly revealed or avowed; undisclosed
e.g. "could there be an ulterior motive behind his request?"
Synonym: underlying, covert
110
heralded
be a sign that (something) is about to happen
e.g. "the speech heralded a change in policy"
Synonym: betoken, presage, prescience, portend, forebode
111
foreclose
to take back property that was bought with borrowed money
e.g. "They've been unable to make their mortgage payments, and the bank has threatened to foreclose."
Synonym: expropriate, confiscate, dispossess, impound
112
sequester
keep away from others; set aside; segregate
e.g. "she is sequestered in deepest Dorset"
Synonym: insulate, restrain, seclude, quarantine
113
risible
arousing or provoking laughter
e.g. "a risible comment that made the whole class laugh"
Synonym: farcical, slapstick, facetious
114
comely
suitable; fitting; handsome
e.g. "a brood of comely children that any parent would be proud to claim"
Synonym: alluring, attractive
115
jejune
dull, insipid; naive, simplistic
e.g. "another moralizing tale filled with jejune platitudes"
Synonym: dull, insipid, humdrum, naive, simplistic
116
oddity
odd; strange
e.g. "she was regarded as a bit of an oddity"
Synonym: quirk, peculiarity, idiosyncrasy, eccentricity
117
enterprising
undertake; attempt to perform
e.g. "some enterprising teachers have started their own recycling programmes"
Synonym: resourceful, imaginative, ingenious, vigorous
118
interloper
invader; a person who becomes involved in a place or situation where they are not wanted
e.g. "Japanese consumers have in the past been unreceptive to foreign interlopers in the cell phone market"
Synonym: encroacher, trespasser, invader, infiltrator
119
riotous
disruptive; unrest; turbulent time
e.g. "a riotous crowd"
Synonym: unruly, rowdy, disorderly, anarchic
120
prattle
blabber; unintelligible talk; palaver
e.g. "parents often claim to understand the prattle of their infant offspring"
Synonym: cajole, palaver, coax
121
palaver
blabber; prattle
e.g. "seemingly endless palaver between the negotiating parties"
Synonym: cajole, prattle, coax
122
protracted
long in duration; longer than expected
e.g. "a protracted and bitter dispute"
Synonym: enduring, prolonged, everlasting
123
hubris
excessive pride/arrogance
e.g. "His failure was brought on by his hubris."
Synonym: conceit, haughtiness, pride, vanity, hauteur, pomposity
124
controverts
to dispute or oppose by reasoning
e.g. "ever since the poem was first published, critics and scholars have controverted over the meaning of its concluding lines"
Synonym: bicker, quarrel, wrangle
125
disdain
abhorrence; to act mean and superior; arrogant
e.g. "showing undisguised disdain for the other employees"
Synonym: malice, hostility, hatefulness, antipathy, arrogance, aversion, contempt
126
skittish
unpredictably excitable; flighty; nervous
e.g. "a skittish housing market had both buyers and sellers on edge"
Synonym: capricious, mercurial, temperamental, protean
127
a snare for
a trap for
e.g. "you fell for my clever snare, you fool!"
Synonym: deception, entanglement, envelopment, snag, entrapment
128
a boon to
helpful to
e.g. "the route will be a boon to many travelers"
Synonym: blessing, gift, relief, godsend
129
unseemly
not keeping with accepted standards of what is right or proper
e.g. "an unseemly squabble"
Synonym: incongruous, unbecoming, indecorous, perverse
