GRE Vocab Flashcards D1

Question 1

abate

Answer 1

to reduce in amount, degree, or severity

Question 2

aberrant

Answer 2

deviating from the norm

Question 3

abjure

Answer 3

to renounce or reject solemnly; to recant; to avoid

Question 4

abrogate

Answer 4

to abolish or annul by authority; put down

Question 5

abscission

Answer 5

act of cutting off or removing

Question 6

abscond

Answer 6

to leave secretly; to steal off & hide

Question 7

abstain

Answer 7

to choose not to do something

Question 8

abyss

Answer 8

an extremely deep hole; profound

Question 9

accolade

Answer 9

expression of praise; an award

Question 10

accretion

Answer 10

growth, increase by successive addition, building up

Question 11

adulterate

Answer 11

to make impure

Question 12

advocate

Answer 12

to speak in favor of

Question 13

aesthetic

Answer 13

concerning the appreciation of beauty

Question 14

aggrandize

Answer 14

to increase in power, influence, and reputation

Question 15

alleviate

Answer 15

to make more bearable

Question 16

amalgamate

Answer 16

to combine; to mix together

Question 17

ambiguous

Answer 17

doubtful or uncertain; able to be interpreted several ways

Question 18

ameliorate

Answer 18

to make better; to improve

Question 19

anachronism

Answer 19

something out of place in time

Question 20

analogous

Answer 20

similar or alike in some way; equivalent to

Question 21

anomaly

Answer 21

deviation from what is normal

Question 22

antagonize

Answer 22

to annoy or provoke to anger

Question 23

antipathy

Answer 23

extreme dislike; loathing; aversion

Question 24

apathy

Answer 24

lack of interest or emotion

Question 25

arbitrate

Answer 25

to judge a dispute between two opposing parties

Question 26

archaic

Answer 26

ancient, old-fashioned

Question 27

ardor

Answer 27

intense and passionate feeling

Question 28

articulate

Answer 28

able to speak clearly and expressively

Question 29

assuage

Answer 29

to make something unpleasant less severe

Question 30

attenuate

Answer 30

to reduce in force or degree; to weaken

Question 31

audacious

Answer 31

fearless and daring

Question 32

austere

Answer 32

severe or stern in appearance; undecorated, simple; serious

Question 33

baleful

Answer 33

sinister, pernicious, ominous

Question 34

banal

Answer 34

predictable, cliche, boring

Question 35

bane

Answer 35

cause of injury, source of harm; source of persistent frustration

Question 36

beatify

Answer 36

to bless, make happy, or ascribe a virtue to; to regard as saintly

Question 37

bedizen

Answer 37

to adorn, especially in a cheap, showy manner; festoon, caparison

Question 38

belie

Answer 38

belligerent, pugnacious, warlike

Question 39

benign

Answer 39

favorable, harmless

Question 40

bent

Answer 40

leaning, inclination, proclivity, tendency

Question 41

blandish

Answer 41

to coax with flattery, toady or fawn

Question 42

bolster

Answer 42

to support; to prop up

Question 43

bombastic

Answer 43

arrogant, inflated; pompous in speech and manner

Question 44

cacophony

Answer 44

harsh, jarring noise; unpleasant & discordant sound

Question 45

cadge

Answer 45

to sponge, beg, mooch

Question 46

cajole

Answer 46

to inveigle, coax, wheedle, sweet-talk; make someone do something thru flattery

Question 47

calumniate

Answer 47

to slander, make a false accusation

Question 48

candid

Answer 48

impartial and honest in speech

Question 49

canon

Answer 49

an established set of principles or codes of laws, often religious in nature

Question 50

capricious

Answer 50

changing one's mind quickly and often; fickle, erratic

Question 51

cardinal

Answer 51

of utmost important; primary

Question 52

caret

Answer 52

an insertion mark used by editors & proofreaders

Question 53

castigate

Answer 53

to punish or criticize harshly

Question 54

catalyst

Answer 54

something that brings about change in something else

Question 55

caustic

Answer 55

biting in wit, sarcastic

Question 56

chaos

Answer 56

great disorder or confusion

Question 57

chauvinist

Answer 57

someone prejudiced in favor of a group to which he/she belong

Question 58

chicanery

Answer 58

deception by means of craft or guile

Question 59

cogent

Answer 59

convincing and well reasoned

Question 60

condone

Answer 60

to overlook, pardon, or disregard

Question 61

convoluted

Answer 61

intricate and complicated

Question 62

corroborate

Answer 62

to confirm; to provide supporting evidence

Question 63

credulous

Answer 63

too trusting; gullible

Question 64

crescendo

Answer 64

steadily increasing volume or force

Question 65

damp

Answer 65

to diminish the intensity or check something, such as sound or feeling

Question 66

daunt

Answer 66

to intimidate or dismay

Question 67

dearth

Answer 67

smallness of quantity or number; scarcity; lack

Question 68

debacle

Answer 68

rout, fiasco, complete failure

Question 69

decorum

Answer 69

appropriateness of behavior or conduct; propriety

Question 70

deference

Answer 70

respect, courtesy

Question 71

deleterious

Answer 71

injurious; harmful

Question 72

demur

Answer 72

to question or oppose

Question 73

denigrate

Answer 73

blacken, belittle, sully, defame, disparage

Question 74

denouement

Answer 74

outcome or solution; unraveling of a plot

Question 75

deride

Answer 75

to speak of or treat with contempt; to mock

Question 76

desiccate

Answer 76

to dry out thoroughly

Question 77

desultory

Answer 77

jumping from one thing to another; disconnected

Question 78

diatribe

Answer 78

an abusive, condemnatory speech

Question 79

diffident

Answer 79

lacking self-confidence; restrained; reserved

Question 80

dilate

Answer 80

to make larger; to expand

Question 81

dilatory

Answer 81

intended to delay