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Hit Parade 2010 -4
GRE Hit Parade 2010 - 4
Question | Answer |
---|---|
acerbic | (adj) having a sour or bitter taste or character; sharp; biting |
aggrandize | (verb) to increase in intensity, power, influence or prestige |
alchemy | (noun) a medieval science aimed as the transmutation of metals, esp. base metals into gold |
amenable | (adj) agreeable; responsive to suggestion |
anachronism | (noun) something or someone out of place in terms of historical or chronological context |
astringent | (adj/noun) having a tightening effect on living tissue; harsh; severe; something with a tightening effect on tissue |
contiguous | (adj) sharing a border; touching; adjacent |
convention | (noun) a generally agreed-upon practice or attitude |
credulous | (adj) tending to believe too readily; gullible |
cynicism | (noun) an attitude or quality of belief that all people are motivated by selfishness |
decorum | (noun) polite or appropriate conduct or behavior |
derision | (noun) scorn, ridicule, contemptuous treatment |
desiccate | (verb) to dry out or dehydrate; to make dry or dull |
dilettante | (noun) one with an amateurish or superficial interest in the arts or a branch of knowledge |
disparage | (verb) to slight or belittle |
divulge | (verb) to disclose something secret |
fawn | (verb) to flatter or praise excessively |
flout | (verb) to show contempt for, as in a rule or convention |
garrulous | (adj) pointlessly talkative, talking too much |
glib | (adj) marked by ease or informality; nonchalant; lacking in depth; superficial |
hubris | (noun) overbearing presumption or pride; arrogance |
imminent | (adj) about to happen; impending |
immutable | (adj) not capable of change |
impetuous | (adj) hastily or rashly energetic; impulsive and vehement |
indifferent | (adj) having no interest or concern; showing no bias or prejudice |
inimical | (adj) damaging; harmful; injurious |
intractable | (adj) not easily managed or directed; stubborn; obstinate |
intrepid | (adj) steadfast and courageous |
laconic | (adj) using few words; terse |
maverick | (noun) an independent individual who does not go along with a group or party |
mercurial | (adj) characterized by rapid and unpredictable change in mood |
mollify | (verb) to calm or soothe; to reduce in emotional intensity |
neophyte | (noun) a recent convert; a beginner; novice |
obfuscate | (verb) to deliberately obscure; to make confusing |
obstinate | (adj) stubborn; hardheaded; uncompromising |
ostentatious | (adj) characterized by or given to pretentious display; showy |
pervade | (verb) to permeate throughout |
phlegmatic | (adj) calm; sluggish; unemotional |
plethora | (noun) an overabundance; a surplus |
pragmatic | (adj) practical rather than idealistic |
presumptuous | (adj) overstepping due bounds (as of propriety or courtesy); talking liberties |
pristine | (adj) pure; uncorrupted; clean |
probity | (noun) adherence to highest principles; complete and confirmed integrity; uprightness |
proclivity | (noun) a natural predisposition or inclination |
profligate | (adj) excessively wasteful; recklessly extravagant |
propensity | (noun) a natural inclination or tendency, penchant |
prosaic | (adj) dull; lacking in spirit or imagination |
pungent | (adj) characterized by a strong, sharp smell or taste |
quixotic | (adj) foolishly impractical; marked by lofty romantic ideals |
quotidian | (adj) occurring or recurring daily; commonplace |
rarefy | (verb) to make or become thin. less dense; to refine |
recondite | (adj) hidden; concealed; difficult to understand; obscure |
refulgent | (adj) radiant; shiny; brilliant |
renege | (verb) to fail to honor a commitment; to go back on a promise |
sedulous | (adj) diligent; persistent; hard-working |
shard | (noun) a piece of broken pottery glass |
soporific | (adj) causing drowsiness; tending to induce sleep |
sparse | (adj) thin; not dense; arranged at widely spaced intervals |
spendthrift | (noun) one who spends money wastefully |
subtle | (adj) not obvious; elusive; difficult to discern |
tacit | (adj) implied; not explicitly stated |
terse | (adj) brief and concise in wording |
tout | (verb) to publicly praise or promote |
trenchant | (adj) sharply perceptive; keen; penetrating |
unfeigned | (adj) genuine; not false or hypocritical |
untenable | (adj) indefensible; not viable; uninhabitable |
vacillate | (verb) to waver indecisively between one course of action or opinion and another; waver |
variegated | (adj) multicolored; characterized by a variety of patches of different color |
vexation | (noun) annoyance; irritation |
vigilant | (adj) alertly watchful |
vituperate | (verb) to use harsh, condemnatory language; to abuse or censure severely or abusively; berate |
volatile | (adj) readily changing to a vapor; changeable; fickle; explosive |