Words Meanings as tested on GRE Context

fleeting lasting for a very short time. "hoping to get a fleeting glimpse of a whale
underwater"
trivial of little value or importance. "huge fines were imposed for trivial offenses"
diversity the state of being different; "there was considerable diversity in the style of the
variety. reports"
deviate depart from an established "you must not deviate from the agreed route"
course.
invigorate give strength or energy to. "the shower had invigorated her"
synoptic of or forming a general "a synoptic outline of the contents"
summary or synopsis.
sensational presenting information in a "cheap sensational periodicals"
way that is intended to
provoke public interest and
excitement, at the expense
of accuracy.
copious abundant in supply or "she took copious notes"
quantity.
lurid (of a description) presented "the more lurid details of the massacre were too
in vividly shocking or frightening for the children"
sensational terms, especially
giving explicit details of
crimes or sexual matters.
deferential respectful. "people were always deferential to him"
intransigent unwilling or refusing to "her father had tried persuasion, but she was
change one's views or to intransigent"
agree about something.
lax not sufficiently strict, severe, "lax security arrangements at the airport"
or careful.
obsequious obedient or attentive to an "they were served by obsequious waiters"
excessive or servile degree.
resolute admirably purposeful, "she was resolute and unswerving"
determined, and
unwavering.
probity the quality of having strong "financial probity"
moral principles; honesty
and decency.
extravagance lack of restraint in spending "his reckless extravagance with other people's
money or use of resources. money"
disapprobation strong disapproval, typically "she braved her mother's disapprobation and
on moral grounds. slipped out to enjoy herself"
acquisitive excessively interested in "we live in a competitive and acquisitive society"
acquiring money or material
things.
profligate recklessly extravagant or "profligate consumers of energy"
wasteful in the use of
resources.
tendentious expressing or intending to
promote a particular cause
or point of view, especially a
controversial one.
complacency a feeling of smug or
uncritical satisfaction with
oneself or one's
achievements.
fractious (of a group or organization)
difficult to control; unruly.
embrace an act of accepting or
supporting something
willingly or enthusiastically.
erroneous wrong; incorrect.
antithetical directly opposed or
contrasted; mutually
incompatible.
immutable unchanging over time or
unable to be changed.
defy openly resist or refuse to
obey.
replicate make an exact copy of;
reproduce.
surpass be better than.
reconcile cause to coexist in harmony;
make or show to be
compatible.
paradigm a typical example or pattern
of something; a model.
misnomer a wrong or inaccurate name
or designation.
profundity deep insight; great depth of
knowledge or thought.
anomaly something that deviates
from what is standard,
normal, or expected.
diffuse spread or cause to spread
over a wide area or among a
large number of people.
inimical unfriendly; hostile.
predominant having or exerting control or
power.
assertive having or showing a
confident and forceful
personality.
"a tendentious reading of history"
"the figures are better, but there are no grounds
for complacency"
"the notoriously fractious resistance groups are
declaring alliances to bolster their collective power"
"their eager embrace of foreign influences"
"employers sometimes make erroneous
assumptions"
"people whose religious beliefs are antithetical to
mine"
"an immutable fact"
"a woman who defies convention"
"it might be impractical to replicate Eastern culture
in the west"
"he continued to surpass me at all games"
"a landscape in which inner and outer vision were
reconciled"
"there is a new paradigm for public art in this
country"
"morning sickness is a misnomer for many women,
since the nausea can occur any time during the
day"
"the simplicity and profundity of the message"
"there are a number of anomalies in the present
system"
"technologies diffuse rapidly"
"an inimical alien power"
"the predominant political forces"
"patients should be more assertive with their
doctors"
enigmatic difficult to interpret or "he took the money with an enigmatic smile"
understand; mysterious.
malignant Hostile, harmful
virulence bitter hostility; rancor. "he was clearly pained by the virulence of the
attacks"
benign not harmful in effect. "a benign condition"
variability lack of consistency or fixed "a great deal of variability in quality"
pattern; liability to vary or
change.
innocuous not harmful or offensive. "it was an innocuous question"
conspicuous standing out so as to be "he was very thin, with a conspicuous Adam's
clearly visible. apple"
robust strong and healthy; vigorous. "the Caplans are a robust, healthy lot"
menacing threaten, especially in a "Africa's elephants are still menaced by poaching"
malignant or hostile manner.
distinctive characteristic of one person "juniper berries give gin its distinctive flavor"
or thing, and so serving to
distinguish it from others.
Lure tempt (a person or animal) "the child was lured into a car but managed to
to do something or to go escape"
somewhere, especially by
offering some form of
reward.
enchant put (someone or something) "Marcia had enchanted the rope so that it simply
under a spell; bewitch. regenerated when any length was cut off"
banish forbid, abolish, or get rid of "all thoughts of romance were banished from her
(something unwanted). head"
immure enclose or confine "her brother was immured in a lunatic asylum"
(someone) against their will.
distort give a misleading or false "many factors can distort the results"
account or impression of.
objective (of a person or their "historians try to be objective and impartial"
judgment) not influenced by
personal feelings or opinions
in considering and
representing facts.
comprehensive complete; including all or "a comprehensive list of sources"
nearly all elements or
aspects of something.
redundant not or no longer needed or "many of the old skills had become redundant"
useful; superfluous.
pithy (of language or style) concise
and forcefully expressive.
anticipate expect or predict. "she anticipated scorn on her return to the theater"
heed pay attention to; take notice "he should have heeded the warnings"
of.
delineate describe or portray "the law should delineate and prohibit behavior
(something) precisely. that is socially abhorrent"
condone accept and allow (behavior
that is considered morally
wrong or offensive) to
continue.
novelty the quality of being new,
original, or unusual.
visionary (especially of a person)
thinking about or planning
the future with imagination
or wisdom.
dispassionate not influenced by strong
emotion, and so able to be
rational and impartial.
unsound not based on sound evidence
or reasoning and therefore
unreliable or unacceptable.
discredit harm the good reputation of
(someone or something).
imminent about to happen.
imprudent not showing care for the
consequences of an action;
rash.
corroborate confirm or give support to (a
statement, theory, or
finding).
curtail reduce in extent or quantity;
impose a restriction on.
row a serious dispute.
accord Harmony, agreement
predicament a difficult, unpleasant, or
embarrassing situation.
fester become worse or more
intense, especially through
long-term neglect or
indifference.
consensus a general agreement.
divergence a difference or conflict in
opinions, interests, wishes,
etc.
rein keep under control; restrain.
bolster support or strengthen; prop
up.
indemnify compensate (someone) for
harm or loss.
Prop up provide support or
assistance for a person or
"the college cannot condone any behavior that
involves illicit drugs"
"the novelty of being a married woman wore off"
"a visionary leader"
"she dealt with life's disasters in a calm,
dispassionate way"
"unsafe and unsound banking practices"
"his remarks were taken out of context in an effort
to discredit him"
"they were in imminent danger of being swept
away"
"it would be imprudent to leave her winter coat
behind"
"the witness had corroborated the boy's account of
the attack"
"civil liberties were further curtailed"
"the director is at the center of a row over policy
decisions"
"his views accorded well with those of Merivale"
"the club's financial predicament"
"anger which festers and grows in his heart"
"a consensus view"
"a fundamental divergence of attitude"
"with an effort, she reined back her impatience"
"the fall in interest rates is starting to bolster
confidence"
"the amount of insurance that may be carried to
indemnify the owner in the event of a loss"
"these attempts to prop up struggling industries are
foolish"
 thing that would otherwise
fail or decline.
manacle keep under control; restrain. "his hands were manacled behind his back"
lionize give a lot of public attention "modern athletes are lionized"
and approval to (someone);
treat as a celebrity.
bridle bring (something) under "the fact that he was their servant bridled his
control; curb. tongue"
disaffection a state or feeling of being "there is growing disaffection with large
dissatisfied with the people corporations"
in authority and no longer
willing to support them.
dislocation disturbance from a proper, "he fell prey to loneliness and a wrenching sense of
original, or usual place or dislocation"
state.
disentangle free (something or someone) ““I must go,” she said, disentangling her fingers
from an entanglement; from Gabriel's"
extricate.
estrangement separation. "a parent's rights in the event of divorce or
estrangement"
uninteresting not arousing curiosity or "the scenery is dull and uninteresting"
interest.
scrupulous diligent, thorough, and "the research has been carried out with scrupulous
extremely attentive to attention to detail"
details.
scrupulous Honest; very concerned to "she's too scrupulous of a civil servant"
avoid doing wrong.
unscrupulous having or showing no moral "unscrupulous landlords might be tempted to
principles; not honest or fair. harass existing tenants"
entrench establish (an attitude, habit, "ageism is entrenched in our society"
or belief) so firmly that
change is very difficult or
unlikely.
venal showing or motivated by "their generosity had been at least partly venal"
susceptibility to bribery.
puzzled unable to understand; "the questioners were met with puzzled looks"
perplexed.
indiscernible impossible to see or clearly
distinguish.
arduous involving or requiring "an arduous journey"
strenuous effort; difficult
and tiring.
superfluous unnecessary, especially "the purchaser should avoid asking for superfluous
through being more than information"
enough.
sham bogus; false. "a clergyman who arranged a sham marriage"
unpremeditated (of an act, remark, or state) "it was a totally unpremeditated attack"
not thought out or planned
beforehand.
cloak hide, cover, or disguise "the horror of war was cloaked in the trappings of
(something). chivalry"
ameliorate make (something bad or "the reform did much to ameliorate living
unsatisfactory) better. standards"
illuminate help to clarify or explain. "placing the events of the 1930s in a broader
historical context helps to illuminate their
significance"
latitude freedom "journalists have considerable latitude in criticizing
public figures"
sporadically occasionally or at irregular "he worked sporadically at part-time jobs"
intervals.
entails necessitate, require, need "a situation that entails considerable risks"
dissolution the closing down or dismissal "the dissolution of their marriage"
of an assembly, partnership,
or official body.
melding blend; combine. "Australia's winemakers have melded modern
science with traditional art"
orthodox (of a thing) of the ordinary or "they avoided orthodox jazz venues"
usual type; normal.
clerical (of a job or person) "temps are always needed for clerical work"
concerned with or relating to
work in an office, especially
routine documentation and
administrative tasks.
civil courteous and polite. "we tried to be civil to him"
cerebral of or relating to the brain or
the intellect
ecstatic feeling or expressing "ecstatic fans filled the stadium"
overwhelming happiness or
joyful excitement.
crestfallen sad and disappointed. "he came back empty-handed and crestfallen"
indifferent having no particular interest "most workers were indifferent to foreign affairs"
or sympathy; unconcerned.
euphoric characterized by or feeling "a euphoric sense of freedom"
intense excitement and
happiness.
disgruntled angry or dissatisfied. "judges receive letters from disgruntled members
of the public"
affect touch the feelings of "the atrocities he witnessed have affected him
(someone); move most deeply"
emotionally.
forsake abandon (someone or "he would never forsake Tara"
something).
betray unintentionally reveal; "she drew a deep breath that betrayed her
indignation"
astounding surprisingly impressive or "the summit offers astounding views"
notable.
ruinous disastrous or destructive. "a ruinous effect on the environment"
unprecedented never done or known before.
subtle making use of clever and "he tried a more subtle approach"
indirect methods to achieve
something.
humdrum lacking excitement or "humdrum routine work"
variety; dull; monotonous.
abridge shorten (a piece of writing) "the introduction is abridged from the author's
without losing the sense. afterword to the novel"
impetuous acting or done quickly and "her friend was headstrong and impetuous"
without thought or care.
impetuous moving forcefully or rapidly. "an impetuous but controlled flow of water"
inhibit hinder, restrain, or prevent "cold inhibits plant growth"
(an action or process).
peculiar strange or odd; unusual. "his accent was a peculiar mixture of Cockney and
Irish"
pellucid lucid in style or meaning; "he writes, as always, in pellucid prose"
easily understood.
plodding slow-moving and unexciting. "a plodding comedy drama"
provoke stimulate or incite "a teacher can provoke you into working harder"
(someone) to do or feel
something, especially by
arousing anger in them.
put to rest to make someone stop “I want to lay/put to rest any lingering doubts
thinking about or believing about my decision.”
(something) by showing it is
not true
reinforce strengthen (an existing "various actions of the leaders so reinforced fears
feeling, idea, or habit). and suspicions that war became unavoidable"
subvert undermine the power and
authority of (an established
system or institution),
destabilize, overthrow
undermine lessen the effectiveness, "this could undermine years of hard work"
power, or ability of,
especially gradually or
insidiously.
underscore emphasize. "the company underscored the progress made with
fuel cells"
understate describe or represent "the press has understated the extent of the
(something) as being smaller, problem"
worse, or less important
than it actually is.