Help

Options

focusNode

Didn't know it?
click below

Knew it?
click below

Don't Know

Remaining cards (0)

Know

retry

shuffle

restart

0:00

Embed Code - If you would like this activity on your web page, copy the script below and paste it into your web page.

Normal Size Small Size show me how

GRE Noun

Term	Definition	Example
Constituent	a citizen who is represented in a government by official for whom she or he votes ; an abstract part of something	The mayor's constituents are no longer happy with her performance and plan to vote for another candidate in the upcoming election. ; The constituents of the metal alloy are nickel, copper, and tin.
Boon	a desirable state	Modern technology has been a boon to the travel industry.
Antic	a foolish act done for fun and amusement	I personally disagree with her on most issues, and her antics and rhetoric in pursuit of attention and better poll numbers sometimes make me cringe.
Contingent	a gathering of representatives from a larger group	The military contingent is assisting the police by providing a secure environment so law and order can be re-established.
Invective	a harsh or insulting words	The Internet has unleashed the invective in many of us; many people post stinging criticism on the comments section underneath newspaper articles or YouTube videos.
Fledgling	a new participant in an activity	Murray has years of experience in family practice, but he is just a fledgling in surgery.
Indigent	a poor or needy person	The indigents, huddled under the overpass, tried to start a small bonfire in the hope of staying warm.
Simulacrum	a representation of a person especially in the form of sculpture ; a bad imitation	The Shanghai Urban Planning Exhibition Center showcases a simulacrum of all the present and approved buildings in the city of Shanghai. ; The early days of computer graphics made real people into a simulacrum that now seems comical.
Smattering	a small amount or number ; a slight or superficial understanding of a subject	Only a smattering can be persuaded to attend the Dave's presentation since most people have already known it would be extremely boring. ; This intricate problem would have been overcome if they sent more experienced engineers.
Diminutive	a word that is formed with a suffix to indicate smallness	He prefers to be called a diminutive of his name ""Bill"" instead of ""John William"".
Aesthetic	a working guideline for artists or artistic movement	A statue that had little symbolic or aesthetic value became one of the most potent symbols of Shiite aspirations in the divided country.
Derelict	an abandoned building	At one time the waterfront factories were busy and productive, but now they stand derelict and will be torn down.
Presumption	an act of accepting that something is true until it is proved not true ; an audacious behavior	Jo acted under the presumption that his son had taken the car, but only later did he realize his wife had gone out to get her nails done. ; Ann known for her presumption: she had invited herself to several neighbors' homes and asking for a drink.
Apotheosis	an elevation to divine status ; the highest point of development	The best thing about the Catholic Church is the apotheosis of Mary, and yet this is denounced by Protestantism as idolatry. ; As difficult as it is to imagine, the apotheosis of Mark Zuckerberg’s career, many believe, is yet to come.
Ascetic	one who practices great self-denial	The new ascetic is someone who goes for a walk without their phone or takes a week off Twitter to cleanse themselves.
Anathema	someone or something that is very strongly disliked ; a ban or curse solemnly pronounced by ecclesiastical authority and accompanied by excommunication	Hundreds of years ago, Galileo was anathema to the church. ; The anathemas were eventually cancelled on by Pope Paul VI and Patriarch Athenagoras I, as part of a larger effort to draw the two Churches together, after centuries of separation.
Profligate	someone who spends resources wastefully	Most lottery winners go from being conservative, frugal types to outright profligates who blow millions on fast cars, lavish homes, and giant yachts.
Anodyne	something that soothes or comforts	Muzak, which is played in department stores, is intended to be an anodyne, but is often so cheesy and over-the-top that customers become irritated.
Summit	the highest point ; a meeting of high-level leaders	After hiking for two days, the climbers finally reached the summit of Mount Kilimanjaro. ; Since climate change policy has been mired in congressional fighting, this summit should help set the goals for president's next term.
Eponym	the name derived from a person (real or imaginary) ; the person for whom something is named	Alexandria, Egypt is an eponym because it is named after Alexander the Great. ; J. A. Heneghan, a New York City firefighter for over 30 years, is an eponym because he is the person from whom his restaurant was named.
Harangue	a long loud angry speech criticizing someone or something	Dinner at Billy's was more a punishment than a reward, since anyone who sat at the dinner table would have to listen to Billy's father's interminable harangues against the government.
Guffaw	a loud and unrestrained burst of laughter	It’s a truism, though, that New Yorker cartoons are meant to induce knowing chortles rather than guffaws.
Savvy	a particular understanding or knowledge	Although a great CEO, he did not have the political savvy to win the election.
Sanction	a penalty for a forbidden action	International sanctions have been placed on certain shipping lanes that were thought to be involved in human trafficking.
Start	a sudden movement	Kelsey awoke with a start and shook her head a few times to get rid of her dream.
Gall	a trait of being rude and angry	I have been in politics a while and I have seen some examples of impertinence, cheek, and gall , but that last speech beats them all.
Quip	a witty remark	In one of the most famous quips about classical music, Mark Twain said: ""Wagner's music is better than it sounds"".
Check	an act of limiting power or action	When government abuses are not kept in check, that government is likely to become autocratic.
Glut	an excessive supply	The price of oil fell on concerns that the current glut of oil would persist well into next year.
Dupe	one who is easily tricked or swindled	It is the simplest scam in the world and accounts for 20 pc of all internet fraud, taking millions of pounds from innocent dupes.
Briddle	the act of restraining power or limiting excess	That agreement reached earlier this year promises the lifting of crippling economic sanctions in exchange for bridles on Tehran’s nuclear program.
Dispatch	the property of being prompt and efficient	She finished her thesis with dispatch, amazing her advisors who couldn't believe she had written 60 scholarly pages so quickly.
Surfeit	the state of being more than needed	There was no such thing as a surfeit of shopping for Nancy: she could stay at the outlet stores from opening to closing time.
Chagrin	the strong feelings of embarrassment	Much to the timid writer's chagrin, the audience chanted his name until he came back on the stage.
Credence	a belief in something	He placed no credence in psychics, claiming that they offered no special powers beyond the ability to make people part with their money.
Chauvinism	a belief that one's group or cause is superior to all other groups or causes	Vegetarians argue that man is chauvinistic in his belief that animals do not consciously feel the pain we humans do.
Vicissitude	a change in one’s circumstances usually for the worse	Even great rulers have their vicissitudes - massive kingdoms have diminished overnight, and once beloved kings have faced the scorn of angry masses.
Jargon	a characteristic language of a particular group	To those with little training in medicine, the jargon of doctors can be very difficult to understand.
Ploy	a clever plan to turn a situation to one’s advantage	Dennis arranged an elaborate ploy, involving 14 different people lying for him in different situations, so that it could appear that he was meeting Mary completely by chance at the wedding reception.
Egotist	a conceited and self-centered person	Simon described Lai as an instinctive backer of underdogs rather than an "egotist" who believes that he will single-handedly change China.
Imbroglio	a confusing and potentially embarrassing situation	The chef cook-off featured one gourmand who had the unfortunate distinction of mixing the wrong broths, creating an imbroglio that diners would not soon forget.
Hodgepodge	a confusing mixture or jumble	Technically, we might not be in a world war, but little by little, the globe is becoming a chaotic hodgepodge of military conflicts.
Tact	a consideration in dealing with others and avoiding giving offense	A construtive debate is one that builds toward a conclusion: all parties demonstrate mutual respect, and keep relationships in tact.
Turpitude	a corrupt or depraved act	During his reign, Caligula indulged in unspeakable sexual practices, so it is not surprising that he will forever be remembered for his turpitude.
Graft	a corruption usually through bribery	In countries with rampant graft, getting a driver's license can require no more than paying an official.
Exegesis	a critical explanation or analysis especially of a text	The Bible is fertile ground for exegesis - over the past five centuries there have been as many interpretations as there are pages in the Old Testament.
Despot	a cruel and oppressive dictator	The Emperor Claudius was regarded as a fair-minded leader; his successor, Nero, was an absolute despot.
Artifice	a cunning trick used to deceive others	The mayoral candidates both spent much of the campaign accusing each other of artifices designed to mislead the voting public.
Duplicity	a deceitfulness which is pretending to want one thing but actually interested in something else	A life of espionage is one of duplicity: an agent must pretend to be a totally different person than who she or he actually is.
Melancholy	a deep and long-lasting sadness	Hamlet is a figure of tremendous melancholy: he doesn't have a truly cheerful scene throughout the entire play.
Canard	a deliberately misleading fabrication	The public will always be fooled by the media's canards.
Conundrum	a difficult problem	Computers have helped solve some of the mathematical conundrums which have puzzled man for many centuries.
Malady	a disease	The town was struck by a malady throughout the winter that left most people sick in bed for two weeks.
Panache	a distinctive and stylish elegance	Shera known for her panache: wearing colorful, polkadotted dress and sparkling diamond bracelet in her wrist while attending a party.
Hegemony	a dominance over a certain area	Until the Spanish Armada was defeated in 1587, Spain had hegemony over the seas, controlling waters stretching as far as the Americas.
Jingoism	a fanatical patriotism	North Korea maintains intense control over its population through a combination of jingoism and cult of personality.
Apprehension	a fearful expectation	The student looked around the examination room with apprehension, wondering how the questions would be.
Temerity	a fearless daring	No child has the temerity to go in the rundown house at the end of the street and see if it is haunted.
Umbrage	a feeling of anger caused by being offended	Since he was so in love with her, he took umbrage at her comments, even though she had only meant to gently tease him.
Presentiment	a feeling of evil to come	On the night that Lincoln would be fatally shot, his wife had a presentiment about going to Ford's Theater, but Lincoln persuaded her that everything would be fine.
Solicitude	a feeling of excessive concern	I walked to his house in the rain to make sure he had enough to eat while he was sick, but he seemed not to appreciate my solicitude.
Schadenfreude	a feeling of joy from watching the suffering of others	From his warm apartment window, Stanley reveled in schadenfreude as he laughed at the figures below, huddled together in the arctic chill.
Zeal	a feeling of strong eagerness (usually in favor of a person or cause)	She brought her typical zeal to the project, sparking enthusiasm in the other team members.
Altruism	a feeling that shows a desire to help others	Although chimps rarely share wild plants with one another, they often share stolen crops, a form of altruism more commonly associated with humans.
Metaphor	a figure of speech in which an expression is used to refer to something that does not literally denote in order to suggest a similarity	The metaphor "a sea of troubles" suggests a lot of troubles by comparing their number to the vastness of the sea.
Charlatan	a flamboyant deceiver	You may call him a "motivational speaker", but I call him a charlatan: he doesn't have any idea what he's really talking about.
Juggernaut	a force that cannot be stopped	Napoleon was considered a juggernaut until he decided to invade Russia in winter; after which, his once indomitable army was decimated by cold and famine.
Eulogy	a formal expression of praise	In his eulogy, Moore said “I stand here today to honor the life of one of America’s bravest, most fearless servants.
Panegyric	a formal expression of praise	Dave asked Jessie to do just a simple toast, but she launched into a full panegyric: enumerating a complete list of Dave's achievements and admirable qualities.
Aplomb	a great coolness and composure under strain	Nancy acted with aplomb during dangerous situations: she once calmly climbed up an oak tree to save a cat.
Complicity	a guilt as an accomplice in a crime or offense	While the grand jury cleared the senator of all criminal charges, the public believed he was still involved in another complicity.
Misanthrope	a hater of mankind	I've been called in the past a misanthrope but it isn't so much that I dislike people but that I have a physical need to be apart from them.
Intimation	a hint or indirect suggestion	At first the hostess tried intimation, praising the benefits of cutlery; when Cecil continued eating with his hands, the hostess told him to use a fork at dinner.
Panacea	a hypothetical remedy for all ills or diseases	While the company credit card has made most large purchases easier, it is no panacea; some smaller basic transactions still must be conducted in cash.
Discord	a lack of agreement or harmony	In conflict, communication wears two faces: It can create discord and lead to time-wasting arguments, or it can catalyze peaceful resolution and spark creative diversions.
Insouciance	a lack of concern	Surprisingly, Hank had become a high-powered CEO; his high school friends remembered him as "Hanky Panky", who shrugged off each failed class with insouciance.
Paucity	a lack of something	There is a paucity of jobs hiring today that require menial skills, since most such jobs have either been automated or outsourced.
Myriad	a large indefinite number	There are a myriad of internet sites hawking pills that claim to boost energy for hours on end.
Raft	a large number of something	Despite a raft of city ordinances passed by an overzealous council, noise pollution continued unabated in the megalopolis.
Raillery	a light teasing	The new recruit was not bothered by the raillery, finding most of it light-hearted and good-natured.
Litany	a long and tedious account of something	Mr. Rogers spoke to a Senate committee and did not give a litany of reasons to keep funding the program, but instead, appealed to the basic human decency of all present.
Screed	a long angry speech or writing that accuses someone of something or complains about something	Joey had difficulty hanging out with his former best friend Perry, who, during his entire cup of coffee, enumerated all of the government’s deficiencies; only to break ranks and launch into some screed against big business.
Calumny	a making of false statement about someone or something to injury its reputation	With the presidential primaries well under way, the air is thick with calumny, and the mud already waist-high.
Gambit	a maneuver or risk in a game or conversation designed to secure an advantage	Randy played a gambit, telling his boss that he would leave at the end of the week if he didn't get a raise.
Junta	a military or political group that rules a country after taking power by force	As dangerous of a threat as North Korea is, some analysts believe that were a junta suddenly to gain power, it could be even more unpredictable and bellicose than the current leadership.
Foible	a minor and distinctive weakness in someone's personality	We could tolerate uncle Jim's foibles because we loved him dearly.
Malfeasance	a misconduct or wrongdoing especially by a public official	Not even the mayor’s trademark pearly-toothed grin could save him from charges of malfeasance: while in power, he’d been running an illegal gambling rink in the room behind his office.
Amalgam	a mixture of multiple things	Music and dance were often plainly pursuing separate lines; the amalgam of the two therefore felt all the more wonderful.
Epiphany	a moment in which you suddenly see or understand something in a new or very clear way	Gary one day had an epiphany that he was a people person: he promptly quit his factory job and began working as a salesman.
Elegy	a mournful poem	The key genres - poems of praise and blame and elegies for the dead - were maintained, and new modes grew out of the old material.
Mendicant	a pauper who lives by begging	Tolstoy was an aristocrat, but he strove to understand the Christianity of the Russian peasants by wandering among them as a mendicant.
Respite	a pause from doing something	Every afternoon, the small company has a respite in which workers play foosball or board games.
Curmudgeon	a person (especially an old man) who is easily annoyed or angered and who often complains	Since Uncle Mike was the family curmudgeon, each Thanksgiving he was plied with copious amounts of wine, in the hope that he would become less grouchy.
Raconteur	a person skilled in telling anecdotes	Jude is entertaining, but he is no raconteur: beyond the handful of amusing stories he has memorized, he has absolutely no spontaneous story-telling ability.
Miscreant	a person who breaks the law	Come back you miscreant! yelled the woman who just had her purse stolen.
Misogynist	a person who dislikes women in particular	Many have accused Hemingway of being a quiet misogynist, but recently unearthed letters argue against this belief.
Apostate	a person who has abandoned a religious faith or cause	An apostate of the Republican Party, Sheldon has yet to become affiliated with any party and dubs himself an independent.
Parvenu	a person who has suddenly become wealthy but not socially accepted as part of a higher class	The theater was full of parvenus who each thought that they were surrounded by true aristocrats.
Arriviste	a person who has suddenly risen to a higher economic status but has not gained social acceptance of others in that class	The city center was aflutter with arrivistes who tried to outdo one another with their ostentatious sports cars and chic evening dress.
Sybarite	a person who indulges in luxury	Despite the fact that he’d maxed out fifteen credit cards, Max was still a sybarite at heart: when the police found him, he was at a $1,000 an hour spa in Manhattan, getting a facial treatment.
Proponent	a person who pleads or supports something	Ironically, the leading proponent of Flat-Earth Theory flies all over the world in an effort to win more adherents.
Sycophant	a person who tries to please someone to gain personal advantage	Corruption has affected the army's combat ability: money for development is skimmed off, morale is terribly low and only sycophants are promoted.
Reprobate	a person without morals who is disapproved to	Those old reprobates drinking all day down by the river–they are not going to amount to much.
Euphemism	a pleasant word or phrase used in place of a more unpleasant or offensive one	He is suspected of "serious breaches of discipline and the law", the report said, using the usual euphemism for corruption.
Corollary	a practical consequence that follows naturally	Corollary of Hurricane Sandy, which ravaged the east coast of the US, is a push to build higher sea walls to protect against future hurricanes.
Decorum	a propriety in manner and conduct	Many of the boys operated below the desired level of decorum, making prank phone calls and failing to have patience with customers.
Celerity	a rapid speed	We aim to respond to customers' questions with celerity and accuracy, with no longer than a 24 hour wait time. ; The method I put in this software provides a celerity which could truncate the running time up to 75%.
Stipend	a regular allowance	He was hoping for a monthly allowance loan from the government, but after no such stipend was forthcoming he realized he would have to seek other means of paying for his college tuition.
Reprisal	a retaliatory action against an enemy in wartime	The Old Testament doctrine of "an eye for an eye" would seem to justify an immediate physical reprisal for any injury, but that interpretation neglects the many passages that value mercy and loving-kindness over revenge.
Recrudescence	a return of something after a period of abatement	After years of gamblers anonymous, Tony thought he'd broken his compulsive slot machine playing, but it took only one trip to the Atlantic City for a full recrudescence; he lost $5k on the one armed bandit.
Perquisite	a right reserved exclusively by a particular person or group (especially a hereditary or official right)	Even as the dishwasher at the French restaurant, Josh quickly learned that he had the perquisite of being able to eat terrific food for half the price diners would pay.
Epigram	a short and clever poem or saying	My favorite epigram from Mark Twain is "A man who carries a cat by the tail learns something he can learn no other way".
Apothegm	a short and pithy instructive saying	Winston Churchill is famous for many apothegms, but this might be his most famous: "It has been said that democracy is the worst form of government except all the others that have been tried".
Maxim	a short saying expressing a general truth	Johnson initially suggests that the secret to business can be summarized in a single maxim but then requires a 300-page book to explain exactly what he means.
Inkling	a slight suggestion or vague understanding	Lynne speaks four Romance languages, but she doesn't have an inkling about how East Asian languages are structured.
Pittance	a small amount (of money)	The program would be surprisingly cheap, costing around $6 billion annually, a pittance in the federal budget.
Modicum	a small amount of something	If my sister had even a modicum of sense, she wouldn't be engaged to that barbarian.
Gaffe	a socially awkward or tactless act	During the course of his campaign Donald Trump has made statements that mainstream politicians would consider disastrous gaffes, alienating important parts of the electorate.
Dirge	a song or hymn of mourning for a memorial to a dead person	There’s a self-evident history of music romanticizing pain: torch songs for abandoned relationships, dirges for tragic deaths, pleading hymns hoping to persuade.
Venality	a state of being susceptible to bribes or corruption	Even some of the most sacred sporting events are not immune to venality, as many of the officials have received substantial bribes to make biased calls.
Flux	a state of being uncertain about what should be done	The industry's current state of flux - some companies losing staff, others recruiting heavily - means that there is now a great deal of potential for building new teams.
Opprobrium	a state of extreme dishonor	After the scheme to embezzle the elderly was made public, the treasurer resigned in utter opprobrium.
Quandary	a state of uncertainty especially as requiring a choice between equally unfavorable options	Steve certainly is in a quandary: if he doesn't call Elaine, she will blame him for everything, but if he does call her, the evidence of where he currently is could cost him his job.
Bromide	a statement or remark that has been made very often and therefore not interesting	Instead of sharing his umbrella, the cheeky stranger offered Martha the following bromide: "Looks like it's raining".
Platitude	a statement or remark that has been made very often and therefore not interesting	The professor argued that many statements regarded as wise in previous times, such as the Golden Rule, are now regarded as mere platitudes.
Martinet	a strict disciplinarian	The job seemed perfect to Rebecca, until she found out that her boss was a total martinet after each project the boss would come by to scrunitize and inevitably criticize every little detail of the work Rebecca had done.
Predilection	a strong liking	Monte had a predilection for the fine things in life: Cuban cigars, 200 dollar bottles of wine, and trips to the French Riviera.
Probity	a strong moral principles	The ideal politician would have the probity to lead, but reality gravely falls short of the ideal of morally upright leaders.
Broadside	a strong verbal attack	Political broadsides are usually strongest in the weeks leading up to a national election.
Diatribe	a strong verbal attack against a person or institution	Steve’s mom launched into a diatribe during the PTA meeting, contending that the school was little more than a daycare in which students stare at the wall and teachers stare at the chalkboard.
Polemic	a strong verbal or written attack on someone or something	The professor launched into a polemic, claiming that Freudian theory was a pack of lies that absolutely destroyed European literary theory.
Nuance	a subtle difference in opinion, meaning or attitude	Because of the nuances involved in this case, I hired an outside consultant to advise us and help.
Duress	a threat meant to force someone to do something	The witness said he signed the contract under duress and argued that the court should cancel the agreement.
Quisling	a traitor	History looks unfavorably upon quislings; indeed they are accorded about the same fondness as Nero - he who watched his city burn down while playing the violin.
Enmity	a very deep unfriendly feeling	The rude remark Charles made toward Sarah yesterday was due to his illness, not due to any real enmity toward Sarah.
Conflagration	a very intense and uncontrolled fire	In the summer months, conflagrations are not uncommon in the southwest, due to the heat and lack of rain.
Melee	a wild and confusing fight or struggle	Three inmates wounded in the melee remained hospitalized Monday in stable condition, but Watkins declined to disclose the nature of their injuries.
Cornucopia	an abundant supply of something good	The International Food Expo was a cornucopia of culinary delights: gourmet foods from every continent were under one roof.
Perfidy	an act of deliberate betrayal or breaching a trust	She was weeping her heart out over this latest proof of the perfidy and loathsomeness of the man she loved.
Redress	an act of making something right	Barry's redress for forgetting his wife's birthday two years in a row was surprising her with a trip to Tahiti.
Collusion	an agreement on a secret plot	Many have argued that Lee Harvey Oswald, JFK's assassin, was in collusion with other criminals; others maintain that Oswald was a lone gunman.
Dilettante	an amateur that engages in an activity without serious intentions and who pretends to have knowledge	Charles wasn’t a dilettante: he was serious about the breeding and created his own new lines of pigeons.
Row	an angry dispute	The Prime Minister looked very foolish after his row with the foreign dignitary was caught on video and posted on youtube.
Tirade	an angry speech	He has berated public school teachers in loud tirades and crossed rope lines to give consoling hugs to people in grief.
Effrontery	an audacious or even arrogant behavior	The skateboarders acted with effrontery, skating through the church grounds and spray-painting signs warning trespassers.
Accolade	an award granted as a special honor	Previously the UK Climate Change Act has been regarded as a world-leading climate policy but critics say that accolade is now seriously in doubt.
Alacrity	an eager willingness to do something	The first three weeks at his new job, Mark worked with such alacrity that upper management knew it would be giving him a promotion.
Cataclysm	an event resulting in great loss and misfortune	The introduction of smallpox was a cataclysm for Native Americans, killing off more than half of their population.
Precedent	an example that is used to justify similar occurrences at a later time	The messaging surrounding the hiatus is entirely genial and hopeful, but precedent suggests this is the beginning of the band's end.
Plethora	an extreme excess	He faces a plethora of charges ranging from aggravated assault to indecent exposure and corruption of a minor.
Virago	an ill-tempered or violent woman	Poor Billy was the victim of the virago’s invective: she railed at him for a good 30-minutes about how he is the scum of the earth for speaking loudly on his cellphone in public.
Solecism	an impolite or improper way of behaving in social settings	Mother Anna was always on guard against any solecism from her children and scolded them immediately if any of them talked out of place in public.
Powwow	an informal meeting or discussion	All the departments met for a brief powwow after lunch.
Dearth	an insufficient quantity or number	I am surprised by the dearth of fast food chains; this is America and I assumed they were on every street.
Animosity	an intense dislike or hostility	The current war has deepened animosity between the Nuer and the Dinka, the country's two biggest ethnic groups.
Antipathy	an intense feeling of dislike or aversion	They come at a time when there is growing international antipathy towards Israeli settlement activity on the West Bank, especially in Europe.
Sinecure	an office that involves minimal duties	The position of Research Director is a sinecure: the job entails almost no responsibilities, nor does the person in that position have to answer to anyone.
Pariah	an outcast	The once eminent scientist, upon being found guilty of faking his data, has become a pariah in the research community.
Semblance	an outward or token appearance or form that is deliberately misleading	While the banker maintained a semblance of respectability in public, those who knew him well were familiar with his many crimes.
Hauteur	an overbearing pride evidenced by a superior manner toward inferiors	As soon as she won the lottery, Alice began displaying a hauteur to her friends, calling them dirty-clothed peasants behind their backs.
Hubris	an overbearing pride or presumption	Bill Clinton was criticized for his hubris, since he believed he could get away with anything once in the White House.
Qualm	an uneasiness about one's own conduct or action	While he could articulate no clear reason why Harkner's plan would fail, he nevertheless felt qualms about committing any resources to it.
Acrimony	an unpleasant feel	Latvala’s awful comments were another sign of the acrimony that has developed between the Senate and the more conservative House.
Reservation	an unstated doubt that prevents you from accepting something wholeheartedly	My only reservation about buying the car was its high price.
Abyss	any unfathomable (or apparently unfathomable) cavity or chasm or void extending below (often used figuratively)	Today Republican governors are plunging – or have plunged – their states into one abyss after another, all under the banner of conservatism
Sangfroid	calmness in difficult situations	The hostage negotiator exhibited a sangfroid that oftentimes was more menacing than the sword at his throat, or the gun at his head.
Gumption	courage and confidence	Wallace Stegner lamented the lack of gumption in the US during the sixties, claiming that no young person knew the value of work.
Largesse	extreme generosity and giving	He relied on the largesse of friends after he lost his job.
Miser	one who does not spends much money because they are greedy	She saved practically all of her earnings, living like a miser, hoarding each penny.
Maverick	one who exhibits great independence in thought and action	Officer Kelly was a maverick, rarely following police protocols or adopting the conventions for speech common among his fellow officers.
Heretic	one who has unorthodox or out of the box opinions in any field	He was an ardent heretic and freethinker - maybe an out-and-out atheist - and a vocal defender of the ideas of Charles Darwin.
Spendthrift	one who spends money extravagantly	Taking weekly trips to Vegas, Megan was a spendthrift whose excesses eventually caught up to her.
Aesthete	one who values the beauty of art or nature	He was a cultured aesthete who loved and appreciated music, architecture, and philosophy, even corresponding at length with Voltaire.
Tyro	someone new to a field or activity	All great writers, athletes, and artists were tyros at one time - unknown, clumsy, and unskilled with much to learn.
Firebrand	someone who deliberately creates trouble	Freddie is a firebrand: every time he walks into the office, he winds up at the center of heated argument.
Pundit	someone who has been admitted to membership in a scholarly field	Some pundits worry that all this market turmoil could presage something like the meltdown of 2007-09 or the Asian financial crisis of 1997-98.
Malingerer	someone who is avoiding their duty by pretending to be sick or incapacitated	At one time, our country was full of hardworking respectful people, but now it seems that everyone is a malingerer with little inclination to work.
Desideratum	something desired as a necessity	The desideratum of the environmental group is that motorists should rely on carpooling.
Chimera	something desired or wished for but is only an illusion and impossible to achieve	Many believe that a world free of war is a chimera: a dream that ignores humanity's violent tendencies.
Subterfuge	something intended to misrepresent the true nature of an activity	Finally deciding to abandon all subterfuge, Arthur revealed to Cindy everything about his secret affair over the past two years.
Tribulation	something that causes difficulty and suffering especially an event	As of 2013, nearly 1.5 million Syrians have fled their country hoping to escape the tribulations of a civil war tearing their country to pieces.
Palimpsest	something that has been changed numerous times but on which traces of former iterations can still be seen	The downtown was a palimpsest of the city’s checkered past: a new Starbucks had opened up next to an abandoned, shuttered building, and a freshly asphalted road was inches away from a pothole large enough to swallow a small dog.
Anachronism	something that is inappropriate for the given time period (usually something old)	Dressed in 15th century clothing each day, Edward was a walking anachronism.
Travesty	something that is ridiculous or absurd because it is not what it is supposed to be	What I expected to be an intelligent, nuanced historical documentary turned out to be a poorly-produced travesty of the form.
Exemplar	something to be imitated	Lena's homework is on the wall because it is an exemplar of clean, neat, and thoughtful work.
Resignation	the acceptance of something unpleasant that cannot be avoided	Since Jack could not think of a convincing reason why he had to miss the seminar, he attended it with a sense of resignation.
Bastardization	the act of changing something so that its value declines (as in art or product)	The movie World War Z is a complete bastardization of the book with little more in common than zombies and a title.
Enormity	the act of extreme wickedness	The enormity of Pol Pot's regime is hard to capture in words: within months hundreds of thousands of Cambodians lost their lives.
Verisimilitude	the appearance of truth	All bad novels are bad for numerous reasons; all good novels are good for their verisimilitude of reality, placing the readers in a world that resembles the one they know.
Malapropism	the confusion of a word with another word that sounds similar	Whenever I looked glum, my mother would offer to share "an amusing antidote" with me - an endearing malapropism of "anecdote" that never failed to cheer me up.
Cupidity	the greed for money	Some people believe that amassing as much wealth as possible is the meaning to life - yet they often realize that cupidity brings anything but happiness.
Asperity	the harshness of manner	The editor was known for his asperity, often sending severe letters of rejection to amateur writers. ; As a supervisor, Vardy always keeps his mind cool while he is harried by his manager and avoid showing asperity to his subordinates.
Apex	the highest point	The pitched roof of each shelter was 2.2 m above ground level at its apex and 1.5 m high along the sides and ends.
Apogee	the highest point	The apogee of the Viennese style of music, Mozart’s music continues to mesmerize audiences well into the 21st century.
Pinnacle	the highest point	It's an indisputable fact that departmental status represents the pinnacle of academic success - in both scholarly and institutional terms.
Zenith	the highest point	Indonesia oil production reached its zenith during 1980s when they can 1.5 million barrels oil per day and become one of the OPEC members.
Acme	the highest point of achievement	The acme of their basketball season was their hard-won victory over last year's state champs.
Serendipity	the instance in which an accidental and fortunate discovery is made	By pure serendipity, Sarah discovered, at a flea market in Peoria, a matching earring to replace the one that fell down the storm drain back home.
Ardor	the intense feeling of love or eagerness	He embraced the new avocations with so much ardor that his stamp collection is now on permanent display in the British Library in London.
Inequity	the lack of fairness or justice	After decades of racial inequity, the "separate but equal" doctrine was successfully overturned.
Indifference	the lack of interest in or cencern	In an effort to fight indifference, the president of the college introduced a new, stricter grading system.
Nadir	the lowest point	For many pop music fans, the rap– and alternative-rock–dominated 90s were the nadir of musical expression.
Empiricism	the method that derives knowledge from experience using experimental science as a way to gain insight and knowledge	Empiricism does not always lead to knowledge; an experience or experiment may raise more questions than it answers.
Paragon	the model of excellence of a kind or an ideal instance of a concept	Even with the rise of Kobe Bryant, many still believe that Michael Jordon is the paragon for basketball players. ; Some say that Athens was the paragon of democracy, but these people often forget that slaves and women were still not allowed to vote.
Pith	the most essential part of something	When Cynthia hears a speaker presenting a complex argument, she is always able to discard the irrelevant details and extract the pith of what the speaker is trying to convey.
Recrimination	the mutual accusations	The two brothers sat and cried, pointing fingers and making elaborate recriminations of the other's guilt.
Approbation	the official expression of recognition or approval	Although it might not be her best work, Hunter's new novel has generally received approbation.
Denouement	the outcome of a complex sequence of events or many strands of a literary or dramatic work	At the denouement of the movie, all questions were answered, and the true identity of the robber was revealed.
Idiosyncrasy	the peculiar behavior or thought of an individual	Peggy's numerous idiosyncrasies include wearing mismatched shoes, laughing loudly to herself, and owning a pet aardvark.
Ingenuity	the power of creative imagination	Daedalus was famous for his ingenuity: he was able to fashion his son Icarus with a pair of wings, using wax to hold them together.
Variance	the quality of being different	The cynic quipped, “There is not much variance in politicians; they all seem to lie”.
Volubility	the quality of speaking or writing easily and continuously	The professor's volubility knows no bounds; he could talk through a hurricane and elaborate a point from one St. Patrick's Day to the next.
Rapprochement	the reestablishing of cordial relations	Although Ann hoped that her mother and her aunt would have a rapprochement, each one's bitter accusations against the other made any reconciliation unlikely.
Zeitgeist	the spirit of the times	Each decade has its own zeitgeist - the 1990’s was a prosperous time in which the promise of the American Dream never seemed more palpable.
Primacy	the state of being first in importance	The primacy of Apple Computers is not guaranteed, as seen in the recent lawsuits and weak growth.
Tumult	the state of chaos or confusion	Riots broke out just in front of our apartment building, and the tumult continued late into the night.
Torpor	the state of inactivity caused by lack of vigor or energy	Researchers in Vienna found that when less food was available, garden dormice used a short sleep-like state called torpor to save energy.
Ascendancy	the state that exist when someone or a group has the power over another	He feels much of the conflict is that of old structures fighting to keep hold their dominance against the ascendancy of the new paradigm.
Heyday	the top of a time period or career	In its heyday, the club encouraged and continued the development of traditional Afro-Cuban musical styles such as "son", which is the root of salsa.
Temperance	the trait of avoiding excesses	Welles wasn't known for his temperance: he usually ate enough for two and drank enough for three.
Guile	the use of clever and usually dishonest methods to achieve something	Without notes, he was eloquent, thoughtful, fluent in policy yet plainspoken, accessible and utterly free of artifice or guile.
Travail	the use of physical or mental energy	While they experienced nothing but travails in refinishing the kitchen, they completed the master bedroom in less than a weekend.
Chicanery	the use of tricks to deceive someone	Weiner centered the action on Draper, whose gift for image-making, seduction and strategic chicanery was perfectly suited to the advertising game.

Created by: chaedarkeju

Popular GRE sets

Complete list of GRE Barrons words with sentences, synonyms, antonyms.

300 High Frequency Root Words for GRE

Kaplan's List of Most Common GRE words

GRE math

Doug's GRE Stack

GRE Words from Kaplan

"Know" box contains:
Time elapsed:
Retries: