GRE Vocabulary Words

anomaly

deviation from what is normal

assuage

to make something less severe

enigma

a puzzle; mystery

equivocal

open to question

erudite

learned; educated

fervid

having great passion
SYN: zeal

lucid

easily understood; clear

opaque

obscure; obtuse

placate

to pacify or appease

precipitate

done with very great haste and without due deliberation

prodigal

rashly or wastefully extravagant

zeal

Enthusiastic devotion
SYN: fervid

abstain

To refrain

adulterate

to make impure or inferior

apathy

lack of concern, interest or emotion

audacious

bold; insolent

capricious

impulsive and unpredictable

corroborate

to confirm or support; make more certain

desiccate

to dry out thoroughly

engender

to bring into existence; give rise to

ephemeral

lasting for a markedly brief time

gullible

easily deceived or duped

homogenous

all of the same or similar kind in nature

laconic

terse or concise

laudable

praiseworthy

loquacious

very talkative; garrulous

mitigate

to make milder
SYN: alleviate

pedant

someone who obliges to book knowledge without regard to common sense

pragmatic

practical

propriety

appropriateness

vacillate

to sway from one side to another; indecisive

volatile

fickle, tending to violence

advocate

to speak in favor of

antipathy

extreme dislike

bolster

to support; to prop up

cacophony

harsh, jarring noise

deride

to speak of or treat with contempt; to mock

dissonance

a harsh and disagreeable combination, often of sounds

enervate

to reduce in strength

eulogy

speech in praise of someone

garrulous

tending to talk a lot

ingenuous

showing innocence or childlike simplicity

lethargic

acting in an indifferent or slow, sluggish manner

malleable

capable of being shaped

misanthrope

a person who dislikes others

obdurate

hardened in feeling; resistant to persuasion

ostentation

excessive showiness

paradox

a contradiction or dilemma

philanthropic

humanitarian

prevaricate

to lie or deviate from the truth

venerate

to respect deeply

waver

to fluctuate between choices

Panacea

Cure-all

Prolix

Using or containing too many words; tediously lengthy

Fecklessness

Weak or ineffective

Dynamism

the quality of being characterized by vigorous activity and progress

Egoism

an ethical theory that treats self-interest as the foundation of morality.

Incendiary

Designed to cause fires

Veracious

Speaking or representing the truth

Luminary

Enlightening person

Clangorous

Clanging noise; loud resonant metallic sound

Tepid

Lukewarm; unenthusiastic, marked by an absence of interest

Augment

To make larger, increase

Dubious

Hesitating or doubting

precocious

showing unusually early development (especially in talents and mental capacity)

impecunious

having little or no money

assiduous

persistent, attentive, diligent

abtruse

difficult to understand

hortatory

tending or aiming to exhort

Extant

Still in existence

Malign

Evil in nature or effect

Penchant

A strong attraction or inclination

disseminate

to scatter or spread widely

promulgate

to announce; to make known

confound

confuse; puzzle

Banal

predictable; cliched; boring

Insipid

lacking interest or flavorful

fortuitous

accidental, occurring by a happy chance

foresight

ability to foresee future happenings; prudence in providing for the future

Prescient

Showing knowledge of events before they happen

serendipitous

occurring or discovered by chance in a happy or beneficial way

pretension

use of affection to impress/ a claim

commensurate

proportional

kindred

having similar origin, nature, or character

coalesce

Coming together and form one mass or whole

iconoclastic

characterized by attack on established beliefs or institutions

Integrative

serving or intending to unify separate things.

doctrinaire

rigidly devoted to theories without regard for practicality; dogmatic

heterodox

unorthodox

dogmatic

strongly opinionated in an unwarranted manner

ubiquitous

present or existing everywhere

scanty

inadequate; minimal

omnipresent

present everywhere

meager

Lacking in quantity or quality

acute

extremely sharp or intense

ameliorate

to make better

obsolete

out-of-date, no longer in use

disparate

fundamentally different; entirely unlike

quotidian

occurring daily; commonplace

herald

to bear news; to announce

harbinger

an omen or sign

cursory

hasty, not thorough

perfunctory

done without care; in a routine fashion

efficacy

effectiveness

Prevalence

Commonness

canny

having or showing shrewdness and good judgement

shrewd

having or showing sharp powers of judgement