GRE General Vocabulary Set 3

Ablution

a cleansing with water or other liquid, especially as a religious ritual; the liquid thus used.

Abnegate

to refuse or deny oneself (some rights, conveniences, etc.); reject; renounce; relinquish; give up.

Acidulous

slightly sour; sharp; caustic; moderately acid or tart.

Adventitious

associated with something by chance rather than as an integral part; extrinsic.

Afflatus

inspiration; an impelling mental force acting from within; divine communication of knowledge.

Impel

to drive or urge forward; press on; propel; incite or constrain to action.

Agathism

the belief that things ultimately lead to good.

Agnate

related or akin through males or on the father's side; allied or akin.

Aleatory

of or pertaining to accidental causes; of luck or chance; unpredictable

Ana

a collection of miscellaneous information, or an item, about a particular subject, person, place, or thing.

Animus

strong dislike or enmity; hostile attitude; animosity; purpose; intention; animating spirit.

Antediluvian

very old, old-fashioned, or out of date; antiquated.

Antinomy

opposition between one law, principle, rule, etc., and another (especially two seemingly true statements).

Aphasia

The loss of a previously held ability to speak or understand spoken or written language.

Aphorism

a terse saying embodying a general truth, or astute observation.

Arable

suitable for producing crops.

Downright

thorough; absolute; out-and-out; frankly direct; straightforward.

Out-and-out

complete; total; thoroughgoing.

Thoroughgoing

carried out to the full extent; thorough; complete; unqualified.

Arriviste

a person who has recently acquired unaccustomed status, wealth, or success, especially by dubious means and without earning concomitant esteem.

Dubious

of doubtful quality or propriety; questionable; wavering or hesitating in opinion.

Concomitant

existing or occurring with something else, often in a lesser way; accompanying; concurrent.

Aseptic

free from the living germs of disease, fermentation, or putrefaction.

Atrabilious

gloomy; morose; melancholy; morbid; irritable; bad-tempered; splenetic.

Morose

gloomily or sullenly ill-humored, as a person or mood.

Splenetic

irritable; peevish; spiteful; of the spleen.

Bailiwick

a person's area of skill, knowledge, authority, or work.

Banausic

serving utilitarian purposes only; mechanical; practical.

Bellwether

a person or thing that assumes the leadership or forefront.

Benison

blessing; benediction.

Bibulous

fond of or addicted to drink; absorbent; spongy.

Bifurcate

to divide or fork into two branches.

Boondoggle

a product of simple manual skill; work of little or no value done merely to keep or look busy.

Bosky

covered with bushes, shrubs, and small trees; woody; shady.

Braggadocio

empty boasting; bragging; a boasting person; braggart.

Brummagem

showy but inferior and worthless.

Caducity

the infirmity or weakness of old age; senility; frailty; transitoriness.

Infirm

feeble or weak in body or health; unsteadfast, faltering, or irresolute, as persons or the mind; vacillating; unsound or invalid, as an argument or a property title..

Vacillate

to waver in mind or opinion; be indecisive or irresolute; to sway unsteadily; waver; totter; stagger.

Transitoriness

not lasting, enduring, permanent, or eternal; lasting only a short time; brief; short-lived; temporary.

Canard

a false or baseless, usually derogatory story, report, or rumor.

Celerity

swiftness; speed.

Centrifugal

moving or directed outward from the center.

Centripetal

directed toward the center.

Claque

a group of persons hired to applaud an act or performer; a group of sycophants.

Obsequious

characterized by or showing servile complaisance or deference; fawning; obedient; dutiful.

Clerisy

learned persons as a class; intellectual elites.

Compendium

a concise treatise; a summary, epitome, or abridgment.

Epitome

a person or thing that is typical of or possesses to a high degree the features of a whole class; a condensed account, especially of a literary work; abstract.

Culvert

a drain or channel crossing under a road, sidewalk, etc.; sewer; conduit.

Conduit

a pipe, tube, or the like, for conveying water or other fluid.

Daedal

skillful; ingenious; cleverly intricate; diversified.

Deciduous

falling off or shed at a particular season, stage of growth, etc., as leaves, horns, or teeth; not permanent; transitory.

Defalcation

misappropriation of money or funds held by an official, trustee, or other fiduciary.

Defenestration

the act of throwing a thing, especially a person, out of a window.

Deism

belief in a God who created the world but has since remained indifferent to it.

Demimonde

prostitutes or courtesans in general; a group characterized by lack of success or status.

Courtesan

a prostitute or paramour, especially one associating with noblemen or men of wealth.

Paramour

an illicit lover, especially of a married person; any lover.

Denouement

the outcome or resolution of a doubtful series of occurrences, in life or as in a novel or drama.

Denounce

to condemn or censure openly or publicly.

Diadem

A crown or cloth headband that indicates royalty; royal dignity or authority.

Dolorous

full of, expressing, or causing pain or sorrow; grievous; mournful.

�clat

brilliance of success, reputation, etc.; showy or elaborate display; acclamation; acclaim.

Edacious

devouring; voracious; consuming.

Ephemeral

lasting a very short time; short-lived; transitory.

Epicene

belonging to, or partaking of the characteristics of, both sexes; flaccid; feeble; weak; effeminate; unmasculine.

Effeminate

(of a man or boy) having traits, tastes, habits, etc., traditionally considered feminine, as softness or delicacy; characterized by excessive softness, delicacy, self-indulgence, etc.

Escarpment

cliff, a steep slope resulting from erosion.

Esculent

suitable for use as food; edible.

Etiolate

to cause to become weakened or sickly; drain of color or vigor.

Euthenics

a science concerned with bettering the condition of human beings through the improvement of their environment.

Evince

to show clearly; make evident or manifest; prove.

Filial

of, pertaining to, or befitting a son or daughter; noting or having the relation of a child to a parent.

Forward

presumptuous, impertinent, or bold.

Fustian

a stout fabric of cotton and flax; inflated or turgid language in writing or speaking.

Galoot

an awkward, eccentric, or foolish person.

Gemeinschaft

an association of individuals having sentiments, tastes, and attitudes in common; fellowship.

Grig

a cricket or grasshopper; a small or young eel; a lively person.

Hegira

any flight or journey to a more desirable or congenial place.

Congenial

agreeable, suitable, or pleasing in nature or character; compatible.

Homolgate

to approve; confirm or ratify.

Ratify

to confirm by expressing consent, approval, or formal sanction.

Sanction

authoritative permission or approval, as for an action; something that serves to support an action, condition, etc.

Horatory

urging to some course of conduct or action; exhorting; encouraging.

Exhort

to urge, advise, or caution earnestly; admonish urgently.

Admonish

to caution, advise, or counsel against something; to reprove or scold, especially in a mild and good-willed manner; to urge to a duty; remind.

Hugger-mugger

disorder or confusion; muddle; secrecy; reticence.

Imago

an adult insect; an idealized concept of a loved one, formed in childhood and retained unaltered in adult life.

Indeterminate

not determinate; not precisely fixed in extent; indefinite; uncertain; not clear; vague; not established; not settled or decided.

Indubitable

that cannot be doubted; patently evident or certain; unquestionable.

Ineffable

incapable of being expressed or described in words; inexpressible; not to be spoken because of its sacredness; unutterable.

Ineluctable

inescapable, not to be evaded.

Inquietude

restlessness or uneasiness; disquietude; disquieting thoughts.

Inure

to accustom to hardship, difficulty, pain, etc.; toughen or harden; habituate; to come into use; take or have effect; to become beneficial or advantageous.

Jejune

without interest or significance; dull; insipid; juvenile; immature; childish; uninformed; deficient or lacking in nutritive value.

Labile

apt or likely to change.

Apt

inclined; disposed; given; prone; likely; appropriate; unusually intelligent; able to learn quickly and easily.

Lachrymose

suggestive of or tending to cause tears; mournful; tearful.

Lambent

running or moving lightly over a surface; dealing lightly and gracefully with a subject; brilliantly playful; softly bright or radiant.

Lissome

lithesome or lithe, especially of body; supple; flexible; agile, nimble, or active.

Lithe

bending readily; pliant; limber; supple; flexible.

Pliant

bending readily; flexible; supple; adaptable; easily influenced; yielding to others; compliant.

Luminary

a celestial body; a body, object, etc., that gives light; a person who has attained eminence in his or her field or is an inspiration to others.

Lupine

pertaining to or resembling the wolf; savage; ravenous; predatory; any of numerous plants belonging to the genus "Lupinus.

Manqu�

having failed, missed, or fallen short; unsuccessful; unfulfilled or frustrated.

Manumit

to release from slavery or servitude.

Matrix

something that constitutes the place or point from which something else originates, takes form, or develops.

M�lange

a mixture; medley.

Medley

a mixture, especially of heterogeneous elements; hodgepodge; jumble.

Hodgepodge

a heterogeneous mixture; jumble.

Mien

air, bearing, or demeanor, as showing character, feeling, etc.

Bearing

the manner in which one conducts or carries oneself, including posture and gestures; the act, capability, or period of producing or bringing forth.

Minion

a servile follower or subordinate of a person in power; a favored or highly regarded person; a minor official.

Moue

a pouting grimace.

Mugwump

a person who is unable to make up his or her mind on an issue; a person who is neutral on a controversial issue.

Nefandous

unspeakable, unutterable; appalling.

Nimbus

a cloud, aura, atmosphere, etc., surrounding a person or thing; a rain cloud.

Obloquy

censure, blame, or abusive language aimed at a person or thing, especially by numerous persons or by the general public; disgrace or discredit from public blame.

Obstreperous

resisting control or restraint in a difficult manner; unruly; noisy, clamorous, or boisterous.

Clamor

a vehement expression of desire or dissatisfaction; a popular outcry; any loud and continued noise.

Offal

the parts of a butchered animal that are considered inedible by human beings; carrion; viscera; refuse; rubbish; garbage.

Carrion

dead and putrefying flesh; rottenness; anything vile.

Viscera

the organs in the cavities of the body, especially those in the abdominal cavity; the intestines, bowels.

Opine

to hold or express an opinion.

Pace

with deference to; with the permission of.

Pachyderm

any thick skinned hoofed animal, such as an elephant; a person who is not sensitive to criticism, ridicule, etc.; a thick-skinned person.

Paralogism

an argument or conclusion violating principles of valid reasoning.

Paroxysm

any sudden, violent outburst; a fit of violent action or emotion.

Parvenu

a person who has recently or suddenly acquired wealth, importance, position, or the like, but has not yet developed the conventionally appropriate manners, dress, surroundings, etc.

Pastiche

a literary, musical, or artistic piece consisting wholly or chiefly of motifs or techniques borrowed from one or more sources; an incongruous combination of materials, forms, motifs, etc., taken from different sources; hodgepodge.

Percipience

having perception; discerning; discriminating.

Perdition

a state of final spiritual ruin; loss of the soul; damnation; the future state of the wicked; hell; utter destruction or ruin.

Plenary

full; complete; entire; absolute; unqualified; attended by all qualified members; fully constituted.

Pluvial

of or pertaining to rain, especially much rain; rainy.

Poltroon

a wretched coward; craven.

Proscenium

the part of the stage in front of the curtain; the wall frame for the stage; the stage itself; the arch or opening separating the stage from the auditorium together with the area immediately in front of the arch.

Proselytize

to seek to convert someone to a religion, cause, belief, or political position.

Pulchritude

physical beauty; comeliness.

Comely

pleasing in appearance; attractive; fair; proper; seemly; becoming.

Qua

as; as being; in the character or capacity of.

Quiddity

the quality that makes a thing what it is; the essential nature of a thing; a trifling nicety of subtle distinction, as in argument.

Quisling

a person who betrays his or her own country by aiding an invading enemy.

Quotidian

usual or customary; ordinary; everyday; daily; characterized by paroxysms that recur daily.

Retinue

a body of retainers in attendance upon an important personage; suite.

Retainer

a servant or attendant who has served a family for many years; A fee paid to secure services, as of a lawyer.

Suite

a number of things forming a series or set; a company of followers or attendants; a train or retinue.

Saporous

full of flavor or taste; flavorful.

Satrap

a subordinate ruler, often a despotic one.

Subordinate

placed in or belonging to a lower order or rank; of less importance; secondary; subservient; subject; dependent.

Despot

a king or other ruler with absolute, unlimited power; autocrat; any tyrant or oppressor.

Sciolism

superficial knowledge.

Senescence

growing old; aging; characteristic of old age.

Sequacious

following with smooth or logical regularity; ready to follow any leader; pliant; slavish; obsequious.

Slavish

of or befitting a slave; abjectly submissive; base; mean; ignoble; deliberately imitative; lacking originality.

Abject

utterly hopeless, miserable, humiliating, or wretched; contemptible; despicable; base-spirited; shamelessly servile; slavish.

Ignoble

of low character, aims, etc.; mean; base; of low grade or quality; inferior.

Serried

pressed together or compacted; crowded together.

Tyro

a beginner in learning anything; novice.

Attenuate

to weaken or reduce in force, intensity, effect, quantity, or value; to make thin; make slender or fine.

Bombastic

pompous and grandiloquent language; pretentious.

Grandiloquent

speaking or expressed in a lofty style, often to the point of being pompous or bombastic.

Chauvinist

a person who is aggressively and blindly patriotic; a person who believes one gender is superior to the other.

Desultory

lacking in consistency, constancy, or visible order, disconnected; fitful; digressing from or unconnected with the main subject; random.

Diffident

lacking confidence in one's own ability, worth, or fitness; timid; shy; restrained or reserved in manner, conduct, etc.

Equivocate

to use ambiguous or unclear expressions, usually to avoid commitment or in order to mislead; prevaricate or hedge.

Hedge

any barrier or boundary; an act or means of preventing complete loss of a bet, an argument, an investment, or the like, with a partially counterbalancing or qualifying one; to prevent or hinder free movement; obstruct.

Gregarious

fond of the company of others; sociable; pertaining to a flock or crowd.

Iconoclast

a person who attacks cherished beliefs, traditional institutions, etc., as being based on error or superstition; a breaker or destroyer of images, especially those set up for religious veneration.

Imperturbable

incapable of being upset or agitated; not easily excited; calm.

Inimical

adverse in tendency or effect; unfavorable; harmful; unfriendly; hostile.

Adverse

unfavorable or antagonistic in purpose or effect; opposing one's interests or desire; being or acting in a contrary direction; opposite; confronting.

Loquacious

talking or tending to talk much or freely; talkative; chattering; babbling; garrulous; wordy.

Malinger

to pretend illness, especially in order to shirk one's duty, avoid work, etc.

Monotony

wearisome uniformity or lack of variety; the continuance of an unvarying sound; monotone.

Obstinate

firmly or stubbornly adhering to one's purpose, opinion, etc.; not yielding to argument, persuasion, or entreaty; not yielding readily to treatment, as a disease; not easily controlled or overcome.

Paragon

a model or pattern of excellence or of a particular excellence; quintessence; someone of exceptional merit; an unusually large, round pearl.

Plethora

overabundance; excess; superfluity.

Superfluity

a superabundant or excessive amount; something superfluous, as a luxury.

Superfluous

unnecessary or needless; exceeding what is sufficient or required; being more than is sufficient or required; excessive.

Precipitate

to hasten the occurrence of; bring about prematurely, hastily, or suddenly; to cast, plunge, or send, especially violently or abruptly.

Quiescent

being at rest; quiet; still; inactive or motionless; dormant.

Rarefy

to make rare or rarer; make less dense; thin out; to make more refined, spiritual, or exalted.

Rhetoric

the undue use of exaggeration or display; bombast; the study of the effective use of language; the ability to use language effectively; the art of prose in general as opposed to verse; the art of using speech to persuade, influence, or please; oratory; sp

Oratory

skill or eloquence in public speaking; the art of public speaking.

Soporific

causing or tending to cause sleep; sleepy; drowsy.

Specious

apparently good or right though lacking real merit; superficially pleasing or plausible; pleasing to the eye but deceptive.

Stigma

a mark of disgrace or infamy; a stain or reproach, as on one's reputation; a small scar or mark such as a birthmark.

Stolid

not easily stirred or moved mentally; unemotional; impassive.

Impassive

without emotion; apathetic; unmoved; calm; serene; unconscious; insensible; not subject to suffering.

Sublime

fear to the point of awe; elevated or lofty in thought, language, etc.; impressing the mind with a sense of grandeur or power; inspiring awe, veneration, etc.; supreme or outstanding; complete; absolute; utter.

Torpor

sluggish inactivity or inertia; lethargic indifference; apathy; dormancy, as of a hibernating animal.

Inertia

inertness, especially with regard to effort, motion, action, and the like; inactivity; sluggishness.

Inert

having no inherent power of action, motion, or resistance; inactive or sluggish by habit or nature.

Vex

to confuse; to irritate; annoy; provoke; to torment; trouble; distress; plague; worry; to discuss or debate with vigor or at great length; to afflict with physical pain.

Serviette

a table napkin.

Shantung

a heavy silk fabric with a knobbly surface.

Supervene

to take place or occur as something additional or extraneous; to follow closely; to ensue.

Ensue

to follow in order; come afterward, especially in immediate succession; to follow as a consequence; result.

Surcease

to cease from some action; desist; to come to an end.

Desist

to cease, as from some action or proceeding; to stop or abstain.

Tatterdemalion

a person in tattered clothing; a shabby person; ragged; unkempt or dilapidated.

Unkempt

not combed; uncared-for or neglected; disheveled; messy; unpolished; rough; crude.

Teleology

the doctrine that there is evidence of purpose or design in the universe, and esp that this provides proof of the existence of a Designer.

Theology

the field of study and analysis that treats of God and of God's attributes and relations to the universe; study of divine things or religious truth; divinity.

Temerarious

reckless; rashness or boldness.

Tenebrous

dark; gloomy; obscure.

Termagant

a violent, turbulent, or brawling woman; violent; turbulent; brawling; shrewish.

Shrew

a woman of violent temper and speech; termagant; any of several small, mouselike insectivores of the genus Sorex and related genera, having a long, sharp snout.

Tor

a rocky pinnacle; a peak of a bare or rocky mountain or hill.

Pinnacle

a lofty peak; the highest or culminating point, as of success, power, fame, etc.; any pointed, towering part or formation, as of rock; to set on or as if on a pinnacle.

Trilemma

a situation, analogous to a dilemma, in which there are three almost equally undesirable alternatives; a quandary posed by three alternative courses of action.

Quandary

a state of perplexity or uncertainty, especially as to what to do; dilemma; predicament.

Ukase

any order or proclamation by an absolute or arbitrary authority; an official edict.

Edict

a decree issued by a sovereign or other authority; any authoritative proclamation or command.

Arbitrary

subject to individual will or judgment without restriction; contingent solely upon one's discretion; decided by a judge or arbiter rather than by a law or statute; having unlimited power; uncontrolled or unrestricted by law; despotic; tyrannical; capricio

Arbiter

a person empowered to decide matters at issue; judge; umpire; a person who has the sole or absolute power of judging or determining.

Umpire

one selected to settle disputes about the application of settled rules or usages; a person agreed on by disputing parties to arbitrate their differences.

Usufruct

the right to use someone else's property as long as it is not damaged in the process.

Vernal

of, pertaining to, or suggesting spring; springlike; belonging to or characteristic of youth.

Vituperation

verbal abuse or castigation; violent denunciation or condemnation.

Acrimonious

caustic, stinging, or bitter in nature, speech, behavior, etc.

Votary

a person who is bound by solemn religious vows; a person who is devoted or addicted to some subject or pursuit; a devoted follower or admirer.

Welter (verb)

to roll, toss, or heave; to writhe, or tumble about; wallow, as animals; to lie bathed in or be drenched in something, especially blood; to become deeply or extensively involved, associated, entangled, etc.

Welter (noun)

a confused mass; a jumble or muddle; a state of commotion, turmoil, or upheaval; a rolling, tossing, or tumbling about.

Writhe

to twist the body about, or squirm, as in pain, violent effort, etc.; to shrink mentally, as in acute discomfort; to twist or bend out of shape or position; distort; contort.

Wallow

to roll about or lie in water, snow, mud, dust, or the like, as for refreshment; to live self-indulgently; luxuriate; revel; to flounder about; move along or proceed clumsily or with difficulty; to surge up or billow forth, as smoke or heat.

Luxuriate

to enjoy oneself without stint; revel; to grow fully or abundantly; thrive; to take voluptuous pleasure.

Stint

to be frugal; get along on a scanty allowance; to limit to a certain amount, number, share, or allowance, often unduly; set limits to; restrict; a period of time spent doing something.

Unduly

excessively; in an inappropriate, unjustifiable, or improper manner; immoderately; in contradiction of moral or legal standards.

Winnow

to blow off or away; to separate the good from the bad; to subject to some process of separating or distinguishing; sift; to analyze critically.

Wraith

an apparition of a living person supposed to portend his or her death; a visible spirit; a ghost or any apparition; an insubstantial copy of something; something pale, thin, and lacking in substance, such as a column of smoke.

Portend

to indicate in advance; to foreshadow or presage, as an omen does; to signify.

Presage

a presentiment or foreboding; something that portends or foreshadows a future event; an omen, prognostic, or warning indication; prophetic significance; augury; foresight; prescience.

Forebode

to foretell or predict; be an omen of; to warn or indicate beforehand; portend; to have a strong inner feeling or notion of; have a presentiment of.

Augur

soothsayer; prophet; to divine or predict, as from omens; prognosticate; to conjecture from signs or omens; predict; to argue, talk, or converse; an excessively talkative person.

Prognostic

of or pertaining to prognosis; predictive of something in the future; a forecast or prediction; an omen or portent; sign.

Prognosis

a forecasting of the probable course and outcome of a disease, especially of the chances of recovery; a forecast or prognostication.

Ziggurat

massive structure built in the ancient Mesopotamian valley and western Iranian plateau, having the form of a terraced step pyramid of successively receding stories or levels.

Terrace

a raised level with a vertical or sloping front or sides faced with masonry, turf, or the like, especially one of a series of levels rising one above another; the flat roof of a house.

Soothsayer

a person who professes to foretell events; a seer.

Arrant

downright; thorough; unmitigated; notorious; wandering; errant.

Errant

deviating from the regular or proper course; erring; straying; moving in an aimless or lightly changing manner.

Err

to go astray in thought or belief; be mistaken; be incorrect.