GRE VOCAB

Question 1

appraise

Answer 1

to determine the value of something

Question 2

ascertain

Answer 2

to make certain of

Question 3

assay

Answer 3

to evaluate, analyze or test

Question 4

descry

Answer 4

to detect by looking carefully

use when you see the word although

Question 5

peruse

Answer 5

to examine or consider with attention

Question 6

aver

Answer 6

to state or prove as true

Question 7

avert

Answer 7

to prevent

Question 8

abate

Answer 8

to reduce in amount, degree or severity

As the hurricanes force abated, the winds dropped and the sea became calm

Question 9

abscond

Answer 9

to leave secretly

The patron absconded from the restaurant without paying his bill by sneaking out the back door

Question 10

abstain

Answer 10

to choose not to do something

She abstained from choosing a mouthwatering dessert from the tray

Question 11

abyss

Answer 11

an extremely deep hole

The submarine dove into the abyss to chart the previously unseen depths

Question 12

adulterate

Answer 12

to make impure

The chef made his ketchup last longer by adulterating it with water

Question 13

advocate

Answer 13

to speak in favor of

The vegetarian advocated a diet containing no meat

Question 14

aesthetic

Answer 14

concerning the appreciation of beauty

Followers of the aesthetic movement regarded the pursuit of beauty as the only true purposes of art

Question 15

aggrandize

Answer 15

to increase in power, influence and reputation

The supervisor sought to aggrandize herself by claiming that the achievements of her staff were actually her own

Question 16

alleviate

Answer 16

to make more bearable

taking aspirin helps to alleviate a headache

Question 17

amalgamate

Answer 17

to combine; to mix together

Giant industries amalgamated with mega products to form giant-mega products incorporated

Question 18

ambiguous

Answer 18

doubtful or uncertain; able to be interpreted several ways

The directions she gave were so ambiguous that we disagreed on which way to turn

Question 19

ameliorate

Answer 19

to make better; to improve

The doctor was able to ameliorate the patients suffering using painkillers

Question 20

anachronism

Answer 20

something out of place in time

The aged hippie used anachronistic phrases, like “groovy” and “far out”, that had not been popular for years

Question 21

analogous

Answer 21

similar or alike in some way; equivalent to

We couldn’t decide between the two tiles because they were analogous to one another.

Question 22

anomaly

Answer 22

deviation from what is normal

Since my son has a history of failing classes, his good grades are a welcome anomaly.

Question 23

antagonize

Answer 23

to annoy or provoke to anger

The child discovered that he could antagonize the cat by pulling its tail

Question 24

antipathy

Answer 24

extreme dislike

The antipathy between the french and english regularly erupted into open warfare

Question 25

apathy

Answer 25

lack of interest or emotion the apathy of voters is so great that less than half

Question 26

arbitrate

Answer 26

to judge a dispute between two opposing parties since the couple could not come to an agreement, a judge was forced to arbitrate their divorce proceedings

Question 27

Archaic

Answer 27

ancient, old-fashioned her archaic commodore computer could not run the latest software

Question 28

ardor

Answer 28

intense and passionate feeling Bishops ardor for the landscape was evident when he passionately described the beauty of the scenic Hudson Valley.

Question 29

Articulate

Answer 29

able to speak clearly and expressively she is such an articulate defender of labor that unions are among her strongests supporters

Question 30

assuage

Answer 30

to make something unpleasant less severe serena used aspirin to assuage her pounding headache

Question 31

attenuate

Answer 31

; to weaken the bill of rights attenuated the traditional power of governments to change laws at will

Question 32

audacious

Answer 32

fearless and darling her audacious nature allowed her to fulfill her dream of skydiving

Question 33

austere

Answer 33

severe or stern in appearance undecorated the lack of decoration makes military barracks seem austere to the civilian eye

Question 34

banal

Answer 34

predictable, clichéd, boring he used banal phrases like “have a nice day” and “another day, another dollar”

Question 35

bolster

Answer 35

to support; to prop up the presence of giant footprints bolstered the argument that sasquatch was in the area

Question 36

bombastic

Answer 36

pompous in speech and manner the ranting of the radio talk-show host was mostly bombastic; his boasting and outrageous claims had no basis in fact

Question 37

cacophony

Answer 37

harsh, jarring noise the junior high orchestra created an almost unbearable cacophony as they tried to tune their instruments

Question 38

candid

Answer 38

impartial and honest in speech the observations of a child can be charming since they are candid and unpretentious

Question 39

carpricious

Answer 39

changing ones mind quickly and often queen elizabeth i was quite capricious; her courtiers would never be sure which of their number would catch her fancy

Question 40

castigate

Answer 40

to punish or criticize harshly many americans are amazed at how harshly the authorities in singapore castigate perpetrators of what would be considered minor crimes in the US

Question 41

catalyst

Answer 41

something that brings about a change in something else the imposition of harsh taxes was the catalyst that finally brought on the revolution

Question 42

caustic

Answer 42

biting in wit dorothy parker gained her reputation for caustic wit from her cutting, yet clever insults

Question 43

chaos

Answer 43

great disorder or confusion in many religious traditions, God created an ordered universe from chaos

Question 44

chauvinist

Answer 44

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

Question 45

chicanery

Answer 45

deception or being deceitful dishonest used car salespeople often use chicanery to sell their beat-up old cars

Question 46

cogent

Answer 46

convincing and well reasoned swayed by the cogent argument of the defense, the jury had no choice but to acquit the defendant

Question 47

condone

Answer 47

to overlook, pardon, or disregard some theorists believe that failing to prosecute minor crimes is the same as condoning an air of lawlessness

Question 48

convoluted

Answer 48

intricate and complicated although many people bought a brief history of time, few could follow its convoluted ideas and theories

Question 49

corroborate

Answer 49

to provide supporting evidence fingerprints corroborated the witness’s testimony that he saw the defendant in the victims apartment

Question 50

credulous

Answer 50

too trusting; gullible although some four year olds believe in the easter bunny only the most credulous nine-year olds still believe in him

Question 51

crescendo

Answer 51

steadily increasing volume of force the crescendo of tension became unbearable as evel knievel prepared to jump his motor cycle over the school buses

Question 52

decorum

Answer 52

appropriateness of behavior or conduct; propriety the countless complained that the vulgar peasants lacked the decorum appropriate for a visit to the place

Question 53

deference

Answer 53

respect, courtesy the respectful young law clerk treated the supreme court justice with the utmost deference

Question 54

deride

Answer 54

to speak of or treat with contempt; to mock the awkward child was often derided by his “cooler” peers

Question 55

desiccate

Answer 55

to dry out thoroughly after a few weeks of lying on the deserts baking sands, the cows carcass be aw completely desiccated

Question 56

desultory

Answer 56

lacking a plan

Question 57

diatribe

Answer 57

an abusive, condemnatory speech the trucker bellowed a diatribe at the driver who had cut him off

Question 58

diffident

Answer 58

lacking self-confidence steve’s diffident manner during the job interview stemmed from his nervous nature and lack of experience in the field

Question 59

dilate

Answer 59

to make larger; to expand when you enter a darkened room, the pupils of your eyes dilate to let in more light

Question 60

dilatory

Answer 60

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

Question 61

dilettante

Answer 61

someone with an amateurish and superficial interest in a topic jerry’s friends were such dilettantes that they seemed to have new jobs and hobbies every week

Question 62

dirge

Answer 62

a funeral hymn or mournful speech melville wrote the poem “a dirge for james mcpherson” for the funeral of a union general who was killed in 1864

Question 63

disabuse

Answer 63

to set right; to free form error galileos observations disabused scholars of the notion that the sun resolved around the earth

Question 64

discern

Answer 64

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

Question 65

disparate

Answer 65

fundamentally different; entirely unlike although the twins appear to be identical physically, their personalities are disparate

Question 66

dissemble

Answer 66

to present a false appearance; to disguise ones real intentions or character the villain could dissemble to the police no longer- he admitted the deed and tore up the floor to reveal the body of the old man

Question 67

dissonance

Answer 67

a harsh and disagreeable combination, often of sounds cognitive dissonance is the inner conflict produced when long-standing beliefs are contradicted by new evidence

Question 68

dogma

Answer 68

a firmly help opinion, often a religious belief linus’s central dogma was that children who believed in the great pumpkin would be rewarded

Question 69

dogmatic

Answer 69

dictatorial in ones opinions the dictator was dogmatic- he, and only he was right

Question 70

dupe

Answer 70

to deceive; a person who is easily deceived bugs bunny was able to dupe elmer fudd by dressing up as a lady rabbit