3.
Unbridled passion, whether rage or ardor,
For questions 1 to 7, select the two answer choices that, when used to
complete the sentence, fit the meaning of the sentence as a whole and
produce completed sentences that are alike in meaning.
1. The representative’s violent ascension to prominence
began with a __________ attack on the comparatively
conciliatory leaders of his own party.
(A) truculent
(B) partisan
(C) savage
(D) biased
(E) imperious
(F) dissembling
( Truculent, savage. You’d like a word that contrasts with
conciliatory, since the word comparatively suggests an
opposition. You’d also like a word that sensibly modifies attack.
You might anticipate something as simple as “attacking.”
Truculent and savage both suggest a disposition to fight.)
2. The tremendous wealth of ancient life on display as
part of the Ancient Life of New York exhibit —
billion-year-old blue-green bacteria from the
Adirondacks, fossilized tree stumps and spiders from
Schoharie County, trilobites from Oneida County, and
armored fish from throughout the state — represents
only a tiny fraction of the New York State Museum’s
________________ collection of over one million
specimens.
(A) piecemeal
(B) voluble
(C) exhaustive
(D) evergreen
(E) compendious
(F) commanding
( Exhaustive, compendious. Since the tremendous wealth… on
display represents only a tiny fraction of the collection, and
since the collection has over one million specimens, it is a very
large collection indeed. You might anticipate an answer like
“huge.” Exhaustive, which means “including everything,” is a bit
stronger even than anticipated, but it will work. The primary
meaning of compendious is something like “synoptic, briefly
stating all the essentials,” and that’s not what you want, but
compendious can also mean simply “complete.” The primary
meaning is the one you’re most likely to encounter on the GRE,
but in this question, you should take the other meaning,
“complete.” (The meaning you rely on for this question,
incidentally, is most common even in formal writing, though it’s
not first in the dictionary.) Imperfect though both these
answers are, nothing else is even close.)
gives way to the sort of rash declarations that too
often end in __________ and sorrow.
(A) disdain
(B) pity
(C) rue
(D) affinity
(E) remorse
(F) contempt
( Rue, remorse. You would like an answer very much
close to “sorrow,” perhaps something like “regret.” Rue
and remorse are the nearest synonyms.)
4. Academic freedom does not protect a
professor’s classroom remarks on matters
irrelevant to his subject, though it guarantees the
professor considerable liberty of speech about
matters __________ to his or her academic work.
(A) germane
(B) indifferent
(C) mimetic
(D) disinterested
(E) congruent
(F) pertinent
( Germane, pertinent. Though implies that the
matters about which a professor enjoys liberty are
opposite those “irrelevant to his subject.” So you might
anticipate an answer like “relevant.” Germane and
pertinent are the best synonyms. Mimetic and
congruent are slightly related to the idea at hand —
the former means “copying” (like a mime,for instance)
and the latter means something like “standing in a
similar relation.” )
5. Isherwood’s sympathy for communism
during the interwar period was not only a
reaction against fascism, but also a mark of
his fellow feeling for the laboring classes and
his __________ to engage as an equal with
working people.
(A) disinclination
(B) hankering
(C) proclivity
(D) implacability
(E) unwillingness
(F) joviality
( Hankering, proclivity. The word and suggests that
the phrases before and after the conjunction will agree.
Isherwood has “fellow feeling for the laboring classes,”
that is he is sympathetic with working people, and so
wants to“engage as an equal” with them. You should
anticipate a word like desire. Hankering and proclivity
are the nearest synonyms. Disinclination and
unwillingness are the opposite of what you want
(implacability is also egative).Joviality might seem
attractive, but is more extreme than your clue of
“fellow feeling.”)
6. The saying “Time stops for no man” also
applies to rock and roll; once the rebellious
sound of the young, it _________ became part of
the culture of the old, just as had every
preceding style of music.
(A) inevitably
(B) accidentally
(C) deliberately
(D) unavoidably
(E) resolutely
(F) painfully
( Inevitably, unavoidably. The clues here are pretty blatant
— Time stops for no man and just as had every preceding
style of music. In other words, everything always goes pretty
much the same way.)
7. The government interpreted the enemy’s decision to
move their army to the borderline as _________ act of
aggression.
(A) an explicit
(B) an extant
(C) an impudent
(D) a bellicose
(E) an overt
(F) a belligerent
( An explicit, an overt. This sentence doesn’t give you much
to go on for meaning, but odds are good that if your enemy
moves to the border, you see it as a pretty “direct act of
aggression.” Explicit and overt both fit this meaning. Bellicose
and belligerent are a pair, but they would be redundant (“A
belligerent act of aggression”).
8. The famous Notre Dame cathedral in Paris took almost
two hundred years to complete; this immense
architectural effort included the first notable use of a
flying _______________, but this renowned feature was not
part of the original design and only employed when the
walls forming the nave began to crumble and needed
additional support.
(A) ballast
(B) albatross
(C) hallmark
(D) buttress
(E) trademark
(Buttress. Buttress, as a noun or a verb, relates to support and
is therefore justified by the clue “additional support.” None of
the other choices relate to the text. Note that you certainly do
not need to memorize architectural terms for the GRE, but you
should definitely know the metaphorical meaning of buttress
(to support), and the sentence provides the clue about “needed
additional support,” so this question is fair game.)
9. While no single empirical investigation can ever
conclusively prove the (i) _________ of a theory, the fact that
our data are (ii) _________ findings from over a dozen
independent labs worldwide bodes well for our
framework’s resilience.
Blank (i) Blank (ii)
(A) rationality (D) consistent with
(B) veracity (E) founded on
(C) candor (F) antithetical to
( Veracity, consistent with. No single experiment can ever
prove the “truth,” or veracity, of a theory. Rationality
is close but connotes the idea of the theory being logical,
rather than factual. For the second blank, in order for the
theory to be supported, or “resilient,” the results from
independent labs should agree with each other, or be
consistent with each other. )
10. A full account of the complexities of sleep, sought
after by scientists, philosophers, and mystics for
millennia, continues to elude us. That we are still so
ignorant about a topic so (i) _________ to our daily lives
is at once fascinating and (ii) _________.
Blank (i) Blank (ii)
(A) mysterious (D) deeply humbling
(B) obscure (E) fully impenetrable
(C) pertinent (F) totally blatant
( Pertinent, deeply humbling. Sleep is important, or
relevant, to your daily life, making pertinent the best word
for the first blank. Don’t be misled by the fact that you don’t
fully understand sleep into choosing mysterious or
obscure; both are trap answers (being ignorant about a
mysterious or obscure topic is hardly “fascinating”). It is
also grammatically incorrect to call a topic mysterious or
obscure to your daily life. Regarding the second blank, the
expression “at once X and Y” indicates at least a loose
contrast, so you need something that could contrast with
fascinating. The clue “so ignorant” is a good indication that
what you want is deeply humbling. Don’t fall for the trap
answer fully impenetrable. While the topic of sleep is
presented as somewhat impenetrable (that is, hard to
understand), the blank is not describing sleep, but rather
your ignorance about it.)
11. Mozart’s brief life exemplified a discrepancy between fame
and means: as his musical star (i) _________ beyond
measure, his income (ii) _________.
Blank (i) Blank (ii)
(A) abated (D) grew exponentially
(B) waxed (E) remained exorbitant
(C) dwindled (F) barely stirred
( Waxed, barely stirred. You’ve been told that there is a
“discrepancy” or mismatch between Mozart’s fame and
his financial situation, so whatever happened to one did not
happen to the other. The clue “beyond measure” tells you
that his musical star must have grown, so waxed is the only
possibility for the first blank. That means Mozart’s income
must have either gone down, remained low or barely stirred, which
is the correct answer for the second blank. It could not be the case
that his income “grew exponentially” or “remained exorbitant,” or
there would be no“discrepancy.” )
12. Though some judges have found in the Third Amendment
to the US Constitution a (i) ______________ for a right to
privacy, it was drafted primarily to appease opponents of
the Constitution, and was particularly a (ii) ____________
to those antifederalists who sought to prevent the new
state from maintaining a standing army. Since Article 1,
section 8 of the Constitution explicitly grants to Congress
the power to raise and maintain an army, the Third
Amendment was largely (ii) _________ before it was written.
Blank (i) Blank (ii) Blank (iii)
(A) detriment (D) boon (G) daft
(B) basis (E) sop (H) gauche
(C) counterargument (F) bolster ( I) moot
( Basis, sop, moot. The first sentence begins with though, so the
first part containing the blank should be opposed to the second
part, saying that the Amendment was actually meant to appease
opponents. So, the best choice is basis. Your second word should
echo “appease.” Sop, which can mean “something given to pacify,”
is closest. Since Article 1, section 8 apparently made the Third
Amendment of only abstract concern, you want an answer that
means something like “of no practical importance.” Moot, which
can mean “of merely academic interest,” is your best option.)
13. Desktop publishing allows (i) _________ to do for
themselves the work once reserved for professionals
whose (ii) _________ or other training developed
design skills along with narrow technical mastery.
Blank (i) Blank (ii)
(A) dilettantes (D) sensibility
(B) artisans (E) acumen
(C) idealogues (F) apprenticeship
( Dilettantes, apprenticeship. Your first word should
indicate an opposite of the “professionals” with “training.”
The word that suggests itself is amateurs, and the closest
answer to that is dilettantes, which is roughly synonymous
with “dabblers.” The second word should suggest a type of
“training,” and among your options only apprenticeship
does so. Acumen might be the result of training, but it is not
itself training. )
14. Even thrill-seeking visitors to amusement parks will
avoid those attractions with a reputation for real
(i) ________, like those at the now-shuttered Action
Park. These patrons want not danger but its (ii)
_________, a ride that (iii) _________ but is in fact
perfectly safe.
Blank (i) Blank (ii) Blank (iii)
(A) peril (D) complement (G) satisfies
(B) titillation (E) simulacrum (H) mollifies
(C) lavishness (F) abettor ( I ) terrifies
( Peril, simulacrum, terrifies. Even suggests that first
word describes the sort of thing you might otherwise expect
a thrill seeker to find attractive. You want something bad —
a meaning like, “too thrilling, in a bad way.” You are also
told that these patrons want not danger, so you might
anticipate a word as simple as “danger.” Peril is the best
choice. Although “titillation” does describe a sort of thrill, it
is neither negative, nor does it suggest danger. The third
word is probably easier to anticipate than the second, so
let’s skip ahead. “In fact” suggests that you want a word
that means “seems to be unsafe,” and the earlier “thrill-
seeking visitors” suggests that you want something, well,
thrilling. So anticipate “seems unsafe, thrills,” and take
terrifies as your closest synonym. Satisfies yields a perfectly
fine sentence, but there is no reason to anticipate quite that
meaning. To return to your second word, you now know you
want a word that means something like “imitation,” and
simulacrum is the closest synonym among your answers.
1. ascension : act of moving up
conciliate : make peace
truculent: aggressively defiant
partisan: biased ; one-sided
imperious : haughty and domineering
dissemble: put on false appearance
2. trilobite: extinct arthropod
piecemeal: little by little / in parts
voluble : talking great deal
exhaustive: complete
compendious: full and concise
3. unbridled : openly expressed / without restrain
disdain: intense scorn
rue: feel regret for
affinity: empathy ; kinship
4. germane: relevant
mimetic: imitating something
disinterested: impartial
congruent: in agreement
pertinent: relevant
5. disinclination: wish to avoid something
hankering: want something
proclivity: natural tendency
implacable: impossible to pacify
jovial: cheerful
6. resolute: having determination
7. extant: still in existence
Impudent: rude
bellicose: warlike
belligerent: hostile or aggressive
8. ballast : something that gives stability
albatross : oppressive burden / large seabird
hallmark : mark of quality
buttress : support for wall
9. empirical: based on observation and experiment
resilience: flexibility / spirit
veracity: truth
candor: lack of sophistication
antithetical: exact opposite
10. elude: escape or avoid
blatant: offensively conspicuous
11. discrepancy: failure to match
abate : decrease
exponentially: rapidly growing
wax : increase
exorbitant: unreasonably high or large
dwindle : diminish
stir : mix ; swirl
12. detriment : disadvantage
boon : great benefit / gift
daft: not sensible / sensible
gauche: socially awkward
bolster: encourage something through support
moot: open to argument or dispute / not relevant
13. dilettante: novice / amateur
artisan: skilled craftsperson
acumen: sharpness of mind
14. shutter: close (v)
peril: danger
titillation: excite somebody
simulacrum : representation or image
mollify: pacify somebody
abet: help somebody