GRE vocab 2 Flashcards
(25 cards)
mollify
to calm; makes less severe
Synonyms: appease, soften, assuage
Memory trick: The crying child will calm down if I give him my lolly.
“He stepped in and mollified the argument”
prudence
wisdom, caution, restraint
Synonyms: discretion, foresight, frugality
Memory trick: If you’re a prude, you are cautious and refrain from sex
“He always exercises prudence with his finances”
pusillanimous
lacking courage or resolution
Synonyms: fearful, cowardly, timid
Memory trick: pussy llama moose
“Stop being so pusillanimous when you speak in front of crowds”
guile
(noun) crafty or artful deception; the use of clever and dishonest methods to achieve something
Synonyms: trickery, artfulness, craftiness, chicanery
Memory trick: That guy faking ill to get girls’ attention is such a crafty pick-up artist.
“A person full of guile can never be trusted.”
pejorative
having a disparaging, derogatory, or belittling effect or force; having an unpleasant or disparaging connotation
Synonyms: belittling, debasing, deprecatory
Memory trick: pejor→peor (Spanish).
Peor adjective (i.e. a word describing something in a “worse” way)
“I avoid saying ‘I’m vegan’ because some people see it in a pejorative way.”
dissemble
To give a false or misleading appearance to; conceal the truth
Synonyms: disguise, conceal, pretend
Memory trick: The wolf said, “I use this ensemble to trick sheep into thinking I’m one of them before I eat them whole.”
“She smiled, dissembling her true emotion”
obsequious
overly submissive or eager to please
Synonyms: complacent, fawning, groveling
Memory trick: Spanish obsequio = gift. El gringo compró cien obsequios para complacer a su futuro suegro y poder pedir la mano de su hija.
“A person who is obsequious is a follower and not a leader.”
obstinate
firmly or stubbornly adhering to one’s purpose, opinion, etc; not yielding to argument or persuasion
Synonyms: adamant, dogged, inflexible
Memory trick: The pro-animal rights vegetarian abstained from eating the steak despite everyone’s arguments that it came from a happy cow.
“My parents remain as obstinate as ever”
iconoclast
a person who attacks established or traditional concepts, principles, laws
Synonyms: nonconformist, rebel, dissenter, radical
Memory trick: Jesus opposed the common worship of false icons.
“ISIS is an iconoclastic organization against Christianity and Judaism”
dissonance
lack of harmony among musical notes; a tension or clash resulting from the combination of two disharmonious or unsuitable elements
Synonyms: disagreement, discord, cacophony
Memory trick: sonance→sounds
dissonance→discordant sounds
“Cognitive dissonance is the inner conflict when long standing beliefs are contradicted by new evidence.”
prevaricate
to lie or deviate from the truth
Synonyms: deceive, con, distort, fabricate
Memory trick: Pre-bar Kate lies all the time, but once she’s drunk, the truth comes out.
“Government officials prevaricated about the real costs of the project.”
rarefy
To make rare, thin, porous, or less dense; to make more refined, spiritual, or exalted.
Synonyms: attenuate, decrease, diminish
Memory trick: Imagine you are a king and have blankets made of gold and silver. You decide you want the price of gold to go up so you make it rare. As your servants take out the gold from the blankets, they make little holes (porous) in them and the blankets become thinner. As the price of gold goes up, the poor can only afford these thin, porous, silver blankets, while the rich, refined people and religious leaders get blankets made of almost pure gold.
“Would an atmosphere perfumed by these Eastern woods clarify and rarefy our denser Occidental minds?”
doughty
Steadfastly courageous and resolute
Synonyms: valiant, brave, bold
Memory trick: The doughnut-eating policeman was surprisingly brave while fighting crime.
“David was doughty when he approached Goliath”
enervate
cause (someone) to feel drained of energy; weaken; wear out
Synonyms: debilitate, sap, exhaust
Memory trick: All his energy the virgin ate
“The flu causes me to feel enervated throughout the day.”
propriety
conformity to established standards of good or proper behavior or manner
Synonyms: correctness, decorum, rectitude
Memory trick: When you go to your grandparent’s property, you have to mind your manners
“The aristocracy maintained a high level of propriety”
engender
to produce, cause, or give rise to
Synonyms: bring about, cause to happen, precipitate
Memory trick: We all look the same as an early fetus, but then the dominant hormones in our bodies, like testosterone, give rise to different genders.
“We must expunge from our society the myths and half-truths that engender such groundless fears as these.”
garrulous
excessively talkative in a rambling, roundabout manner, especially about trivial matters
Synonyms: talkative, loquacious, verbose
Memory trick: Gary the gay pirate keep talking but all I heard was “Garrrrgh, Garrrgh, Garrrgh”
“I heard some shocking gossip from our garrulous friend”
irascible
easily made angry
Synonyms: testy, short-tempered, cranky
Memory trick: iras = anger in Spanish
“Attila the Hun’s irascible and violent nature made all who dealth with him fear for their lives”
indolent
having or showing a disposition to avoid exertion; slothful
Synonyms: lazy, idle, inert
Memory trick: Ese indio lento está tan gordo que no quiere ni caminar.
“He was too indolent to walk one block to the grocery store, so he ordered his groceries online.”
opprobrium
public disgrace arising from someone’s shameful conduct
Synonyms: infamy, dishonor
Memory trick: The opposition probed him about his sexual acts at the atrium, humiliating him in front of everyone in the court.
“Walking around with Google Glass is as likely to make you a target of opprobrium as it is a target of envy.”
abstruse
difficult to understand
Synonyms: esoteric, perplexing, obscure
Memory trick: It’s hard to understand the meaning of abstract paintings.
“It is often said that philosophy is a very difficult and abstruse subject.”
veracity
conformity to truth or fact; accuracy
Synonyms: honesty, integrity, credibility
Memory trick: Vera siempre dice la verdad
“Vinnie has a reputation for his veracity, so everyone trusts him”
ostentation
pretentious or conspicuous show, as of wealth or importance; display intended to impress others
Synonyms: pomposity, flamboyance, pretentiousness
Memory trick: Wizard of Oz Temptation (The Wizard of Oz put up a show to impress and appear powerful)
“The ostentation of the king’s court was evident at Versailles”
propitiate
to make favorably inclined; appease; conciliate
Synonyms: appease, assuage
Memory trick: To appease her angry captor with a sick fetish, his propelled pee she ate. (I know, ew)
“He made an offering to propitiate the angry gods”
