gre vocabulary a2
Terms
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- agnostic
- one who is sketpical of the existence of a god or any ultimate reality. Agnostics say we can neither prove nor disprove the existence of God; we simply have no way to know
- agitate
- stir up; disturb. her fiery remarks agitated the already angry mob
- agility
- nimbleness; The agility of the acrobat amazed and thrilled the audience
- aghast
- horrified; dumbfounded. Miss Manners was aghoast at the crude behavior of the fraternity brothers at the annual toga party
- aggressor
- attacker. Before you punish both boys for fighting, see whether you can determine which one was the aggressor
- aggregate
- gather; accumulate. Before the Wall Street scandals, dealers in so called junk bonds managed to aggregate great wealth in short periods of time. adj aggretation N
- aggrandize
- increase or intensify; raise in power, wealth rank or honor. The history of the past quarter century illustrates how a President may aggrandize his power to act aggressively in international affairs wihtout considering the wises of Congress
- agglomeration
- collection; heap. It took weeks to assort the agglomeration of miscellaneous items she had collected on her trip
- agenda
- items of business at a meeting
- agape
- openmouthed. She stared, agape, at the many strange animals in the zoo
- affront
- insult; offense; intentional act of disrespect. When Mrs. Poudlie was not seated beside te Archdeacon at the head table, she took it as a personal affront and refused to speak to her hosts for a week
- affluence
- abundance; wealth. Foreigners are amazed y the affluence and luxuery of the American way of life
- affliction
- state of distress; cause of suffering. Even in the midst of her affliction, Elizabeht tried to keep up the spirits of those around her
- afflix
- attach or add on; fasten. First the registrar had to affix his signature to the liecense; then he had to affix his official seat
- affirmation
- positive assertion; confirmation; solemn pledge by one who refuses to take an oath. Despite Tom's affirmations of innocence, Aunt Polly still suspected he had eaten the pie
- affiliation
- joining; associating with. His affiliation with the political party was of short duration for he soon disagreed with his colleagues.
- affidavit
- written statement made under oath. The court refused to accept her statement unless she presented it in the form of an affidavit
- affected
- artificia; pretended; assumed in order to impress. His affected mannerism-his 'harvard ' accents his air of bordom, his use of obsecure foreign words bugged us; he acted as if he thought he was too good for his old high school friends. affectation N
- affable
- easily approchable; warmly friendly. Accustomed to cold, aloof supervisors, Nicky was amazed at how affable his new employer was. affability N
- aesthetic
- artistic; dealing with or capable of appreciating the beautiful. The beatuy of Tiffany's stained glass apppealed to Alice's aesthetic sense. aesthete N
- aegis
- nest of large bird of prey (eagle, hawk) the mother eagle swooped down on the rabbit and bore it off to her aere high in the Rocky mountains
- eagis
- shield; defense. Under the aegis of the Bill of Rights, we enjoy our most treasured freedoms
- advocate
- urge; plead for. The abolitionsists advocated freedom for the slaves.
- advocacy
- support; active pleading on behalf of someone or something. No threats could dissuade BIshop Desmond Tutu from his advocacy of the human rights of black south africans
- advert
- refer (to). Since you advert to this matter so frequently, you must regard it as important
- adversity
- poverty; misfortune. We must larn to meet adversity gracefully
- adverse
- unfavorable; hostile. The recession had a highly adverse effect on Father's investment portfolio he lost so much money that he could no longer afford the butler and the upstairs maid
- adversary
- opponent; enmy. Batman struggled to save Gotham City from the machinations of his wicked adversary, the Joker
- adventitious
- accidental;coincident, casual. She found this adventitious meeting with her friend extremely fortunate
- advent
- arrival. Most Americans were unaware of the advent of the NUclear Age until the news of HIroshima reached them
- adulterate
- make impure by adding inferior or tainted substances. It is a crime to adulterate foods without informing the buyer
- adulation
- flattery; admiration. The rock star thrived on the adulation of his groupies and yes man. adulate v
- adroit
- skillfu;. Her adoit handling of the delicate situation pleased her employers
- adorn
- decorate; wall paintings and carved statues adorned the temple. adornment N
- admonish
- warn; reprove. When her courtiers questioned her religious beliefs, Mary Stuart admonished them, declaring that she would worship as she pleased
- adjutant
- staff officer assisting the commander; assistant. Though Wellington delegated many tasks to his chief adjutant, Lord Fitzroy Somerset, Somerset was in no doubt as to who made all major decisions
- adjacent
- adjoining; neighboring; close by. Philip's best friend Jason lived only four horuses down the block, near but not immediately adjacent
- adherent
- supporter; follower. In the wake of the scandal, the senator's one time adherents quietly deserted him
- adhere
- stick fast. I will adhere to this opinion until proof that I am wrong is presented. adhesion n. adherence N
- adept
- expert at. She was adept at the fine art of irritating people
- address
- direct a speech to; deal with or discuss. Due to address the convetion in July, Brown planned to address the issue of low-income housing in his speech
- addle
- muddle; drive crazy; become rotten. This idiotic plan is conusinng enough to addle anone. addled adj
- addiction
- compulsive, habitual need. His addiction to drugs caused his friends much grief
- addendum
- addition; appendix to book. Hane's editior approved her new comparative literature text but thought it would be even better with an addendum on recent developments in literary criticism
- adapt
- alter; modify. Some species of animals have become extinct because they could not adapt to a changing environment
- adament
- hard; inflexxible. In this movie Bronson played the part of a revenge driven man, adamant in his determination to punish the criminals who destroyed his family
- adage
- wise saying; proverb. There is much truth in teh old adage about fools and their money
- acute
- quickly perceptive; keen; brief and sever. The acute young doctor realized immeidatley that theg radual deterioration of her patient's once acute hearing was due to a crhonic illness. not an acute one
- acumen
- mental keenness. Her busines acumen helped her to succeed where others had failed
- acuity
- sharpness. In time his youhful acuity of vision failed him, and he needed glasses
- actuate
- motivate. I fail to understand what actuated you to reply to this letter so nastily
- actuarial
- calculating, pertaining to insurance statistics. According to recent actuarial tables, life expectancy is greater today than it was a century ago
- acrophobia
- fear of heights. A born salesman, he could convince someone with a bad case of acrophobia to sign up for a life membership in a sky-diving club
- acrimonious
- bitter in words or manner. The cadidate attacked his opponent in highly acrimonious terms. acrimony N
- acrid
- sharp; bitterly; pungent. The acrid odor of burnt gunpowder filled the room after the pistol had been fired
- acquittal
- deliverance from a charge. His acquittal by the jury surprised those who had thought him guilty. acquit v
- acquiesce
- assent; agree passively. Although she appeared to acquiesce to her employer's suggestion, I could tell she had reserations about the changes he wanted made. acquiescnece N acquiescent adj
- acoustics
- science of sound; quality that makes a room easy or hard to hear in. Carnegie Hall is liked by music lovers because of its fine acoustics
- acme
- peak; pinnacle; highest point. Welles's success in Citizen Kane marked the acme of his career as an actor; never again did he achive such popular acclaim
- acknowledge
- recognize; admit.
- acidulous
- slightly sour. sharp; caustic. James was unpopular because of his sarcastic and acidulous remarks
- acetic
- vinegary. The salad had an exceedingly acetic flavor
- accrue
- come about by addition. you must pay the interest that has accrued on your debt as well as the principal sum. accrual N
- accretion
- growth; increase. Over the years Bob put on weight; because of this accretion of flesh, he went from size M to size XL. accrete v
- accoutre
- equip. The fisherman was accoutred with the best that the sporting goods store could supply. accoutrement n
- accost
- approach and speak first to a person. When the two young men accosted me, I was frightened because I thought they were going to attack me
- accord
- agreement. she was in complete accord with the verdict
- accomplice
- partner in crime. Because he had provided the criminal with the lethal weapon, he was arrested as an accomplice in the murder
- accommodate
- oblige or help someone; adjust or bring into harmony; adapt
- acclivity
- sharp upslope of a hill. The car could not go up the acclivityin high gear
- acclimate
- adjust to climate or environment.;adapt.. One of the difficulties of our present air age is the need of travelers to acclimate themselves to their new and often strange enviornments
- acclaim
- applaud; announce with great approval. The sportscasters acclaimed every American victory in the Olympics and decried every American defea. acclamation. n
- accessory
- additional object; useful but not essential thing. Seh bought an attractive handbag as an accessory for her dress.
- accessible
- easy to approach; obtainable
- accelerate
- move faster
- accede
- agree. If I accede to this demand for black mail, I am afraid that I will be the victim of future demands
- academic
- related to a schoo; not practical or irectly useful. The dean's talk about reforming academic polices was only an academic discussion; we knew little, if naything would change
- abyss
- enormous chasm; vast, bottomless pit. Darth vader seized the vil emperor and hurled him into the abyss
- abysmal
- bottomless. His arrogance is exceeded only by his abysmal ignorance
- abut
- border upon; adjoin. Where our estates abut, we must build a fence
- abusive
- coarsely insulting; physically harmful
- abstruse
- obscure; profound; difficult to understand. Baffled by the abstruse philosophical texts assigned in class, Dave asked Lexy to explain Kant's Critique of Pure Reasons
- abstract
- theoretica;; not conrete; nonrepresentational. To him, hunger was an abstract concept; he had never missed a meal
- abstinence
- restraint from eating or drinking. The doctor recommended total abstinence from salted foods. abstain.v
- abstemious
- sparing in eating and drinking; temperate. Concerned whether her vegetarian son's abstemious diet provided him with sufficient protein, the worried mother pressed food on him
- abstain
- refrain; withhold from participation. After considering the effect of alcohol on his athletci performance, he decided to abstain from drinkning while he trained for the race
- absolve
- pardon (an offense). The father confessor absolved him of his sins. absolution N
- absolute
- complete; totally unlimted; certain. Although the King o Siam was an absolute monarch, he did not want to behead his unfaithful wife without absolute evidence of her infidelity
- abscond
- depart secretly and hide. The teller who absconded with the bonds went uncaptured until someone recognized him from his photograph on America's most wanted
- abscission
- removal by cutting of, as in surgery; separation. Gas gangrene spreads so swiftly and is so potentially deadly that doctors advise abscission of the gangrenous tissue
- abrogate
- abolish. The king intended to abrogate the decree issued by his predecessor
- abridge
- condense or shorten. Because the publishers felt the public wanted a shorter version of War and Peace, they proceeded to abridge the novel
- abrasive
- rubbing away; tending to grind down. Just as abrasive cleaning powders can wear away a shiny finish, abrasive remarks can wear away a listener's patience. abrade v
- abortive
- unsuccessful; fruitless. Attacked by armed troops, te Chinese students had to abandon their abortive attempt to democratize Beijing peacefully. abort v
- aboriginal
- being the first of its kind in a region, primitive; native. Her studies of the pirmitive art forms of the aboriginal indians were widely reported in the scientific journals. aborigine n
- abominate
- loathe; hate. Moses scolded the idol worshippers in the tribe because he abominated the custom
- abolish
- cancel; put an end to. The prsident of the college refused to abolish the physical education requirement. abolishion n
- abnegation
- renunciation; self-sacrifice. Though Rudolph and Duchess Flavia loved one anther, their love was doomed, for she had to wed the king; their act of abnegation was necessary to preserve the kingdom
- ablution
- washing, HIs daily ablutions were accompanied by loud noises that he humorously labeled 'opera in the Bath'
- abjure
- renounce upon oath; disavow Pressure from university authorities caused the young scholar to abjure his heretical opinions. abjuration N
- abject
- wretched; lacking pride. On the streets of NY the homeless live in abject poverty, huddling in doorways to find shelter from the wind
- abhor
- detest; hate. She abhorred all forms of bigotry. abhorrence N
- abeyance
- suspended action. The deal was held in abeyance until her arrival
- abet
- assist; usually in doing something wrong; encourage. she was unwiling to abet him in thes windle he had planned
- aberration
- abnormality; departure from the norm; mental irregularity or disorder. It remains the consensus among investors on Wall Street that current high oil prices are a temporary aberration and that we shall soon see a return to cheap oil
- aberrant
- abnormal or deviant. Given the aberrant nature of the data, we came to doubt the validity of the entire experiment
- abdicate
- renounce; give up. When Edward VIII abdicated the BRitish throne, he surprised the entire world
- abbreviate
- shorten. Because we were running out of tiem, the lecturer had to abbreviate her speech
- abate
- subside or moderate. Rather than leaving immediately, the waited for the storm to abate
- abash
- embarrass. He was not at all abasehed by her open admiration
- abase
- lower; degrade; humiliate. Anna expected to have to curtsy to the King of Siam; when told to cast herself down on the ground before hi, she refuse to abse herself. abasement N