A Guide to the GRE/Vocabulary List 6

= GRE Vocabularly List 6 =

Heterodox (adj.) lacking conformity with accepted standards or practices

Though discussed in some medical texts, homeopathy is still seen as a rather heterodox form of treatment.

Parsimonious (adj.) tending to not spend money; frugal

Though generally parsimonious, Scott spent top dollar on getting the right mattress for his bedroom.

Verisimilitude (n.) the state of appearing to be true or correct

The verisimilitude of Evan's statements would not go unquestioned, and they would ultimately be proved to be false.

Saturnine (adj.) having gloomy and dark mannerisms

The saturnine mortician tended to creep out potential customers.

Corrigible (adj.) something which is capable of being made right

Though the harm to the shipment of goods was severe, it was corrigible.

Sanction (n.) a penalty for disobeying a rule or principle; (v.) to levy with a sanction

The U.N. declared that a sanction be issued against each disobedient rogue state.

Solder (n.) (1) a metal which melts at a low temperature which is used to repair other metallic things; (2) something which causes two things to unite; (v.) to repair with solder

Andy's least favorite part of electrical repair was having to solder wires. Subtle (adj.) difficult to notice or observe without giving great attention

Roger's request was rather subtle and perhaps overlooked by whoever read the letter.

Idiosyncrasy (n.) a nuance or behavior which is unique to a particular individual or group, often which has no apparent reason or rationale

Not wanting to eat oranges was not Mr. Hepburn's only idiosyncrasy.

Erudite (adj.) having broad scholastic knowledge

Though they were both intelligent, Maria, with her lengthy education, was far more erudite.

Desiccate (v.) to dry out, drain out, or dehydrate

The hot weather would desiccate every stream in the region.

Sodden (adj.) (1) soaked or saturated with a particular liquid; (2) intoxicated by the consumption of alcohol

The mattress was sodden after sitting in the rainstorm for hours.

Furtive (adj.) stealthy or sly

With his devious smile and furtive tactics, Mr. D'Angelo wondered what the boy had planned for his daughter that night.

Eclectic (adj.) drawing influences from many different sources

South Philadelphia had a very eclectic past.

Peregrination (n.) travels or wanderings about

The couple went on to write a book about their years of peregrination.

Shambolic (adj.) lacking organization, order or management; in shambles

The planning commission's organization was utterly shambolic and in chaos.

Exigent (adj.) demanding prompt attention

While normally Clarence would've just waited until Monday, exigent reasons compelled him to come into the office on Sunday.

Desultory (adj.) lacking a purpose or plan, having no motivation

Chris and Matt's management of the wielding shop was rather desultory and uncoordinated.

Saturate (v.) to fill or soak until incapable of being filled or soaked further

The company went on to saturate all of South Florida with advertisements and promotions in order to best get its name out.

Iniquity (n.) that which is immoral or unfair

The underrepresentation of women in the professional fields struck Anne as a most severe iniquity.

Pariah (n.) a social outcast

Uma had been a pariah since the incident at the wedding.

Stimulant (n.) a substance that raises the rate of bodily physiological activity

Caffeine is perhaps the most commonly ingested stimulant.

Disconsolate (adj.) unhappy, depressed, or downtrodden

Brandy was rather disconsolate after the football team lost to Barnesville.

Chagrin (n.) a state of discontent or distress caused by one’s shortcomings

Much to Nate's chagrin, the store did not sell the brand of peanut butter he liked.

Fitful (adj.) irregular or unpredictable

Though it was supposed to come every hour, the Freret Street bus was rather fitful and unreliable.

Diffident (adj.) hesitant to speak through lack of self-confidence

Kelsey was quite intelligent, but was very diffident and had a difficult time speaking in front of people.

Sullen (adj.) having an unpleasant or depressing temper or personality

Though usually sullen, on that day, Antonella was the happiest person in Blakely.

Obfuscate (v.) to cause to become unclear, convoluted or incomprehensible

Jackie quickly found out the location to which Billy had absconded, despite his efforts to obfuscate his recent activities.

Descry (v.) to locate in one’s sight; to find out or learn

With a trip to the library, she was able to descry that "Hibernia" was in fact the Latin name for Ireland.

Magnanimous (adj.) showing great generosity or kindness, often toward those who would not expect it

The two found the judge to be rather magnanimous in his sympathy and understanding towards them.

Pertinent (adj.) relative or informative on a given issue

The police officer did not find the eyewitness' account to be particularly pertinent.

Admonish (v.) to advise, warn or reprimand

The chaperon admonished the two not to do that again.

Recreant (adj.) lacking courage; cowardly; (n.) one who is recreant

Theresa was rather recreant about fixing things around the house by herself.

Remittance (n.) (1) money sent in payment for goods or services or as a gift; (2) the act of sending a remittance

The employees were all instructed that the company would send them remittances to cover their expenses on the trip.

Exculpate (v.) to show a lack of guilt

Camera footage from the gas station proved to exculpate the two, and the charges against them were dismissed.

Coalesce (v.) to join into a single thing, to merge or agglomerate

Sarah sat back and let all the ideas she had just read about psychology coalesce in her mind.

Capitulate (v.) to give up, surrender or cease resistance

After Lee's surrender at Appomattox Court House, the Confederates would finally capitulate.

Punctilious (adj.) extremely attentive to detail and propriety

Though he himself had overlooked it, his punctilious assistant noticed a mistake in the numbers on the form.

Imperturbable (adj.) difficult or impossible to upset or disturb

They both tried to annoy her to the point of quitting her job, but Melinda was imperturbable.

Docile (adj.) gentle or submissive

The manatee is a docile creature.

Egress (v.) to exist

The band formed by Chris, Marty, and Nate, would egress for several years before ultimately dissolving.

Decorous (adj.) something which is appropriate and in good taste; something which exhibits decor

The room was full of decorous furnishings, all in a beautiful red and white color scheme.

Insensible (adj.) (1) lacking reason or logic; (2) numb; unable to feel

In Pat Buchanan's opinion, the decision to invade Iraq was insensible.

Bifurcate (v.) to split something into two

The freight team manager decided to bifurcate the tasks, designating one team for each.

Irresolute (adj.) uncertain or hesitant

Erica was irresolute about whether or not she wanted to marry Todd.

Succinct (adj.) clear and comprehensible, typically with regard to written language

The committee loved Henry's beautiful, succinct summary of the plan.

Iconoclast (n.) one who attacks or criticizes longstanding or beloved ideas or institutions

Kenny had by now gained a reputation as a local iconoclast, his latest book attacking religion and other traditional ideas.

Lachrymose (adj.) tending to induce crying; sad

Though a good movie, it was terribly lachrymose, and Catherine could not bear to watch it anymore.

Banal (adj.) lacking originality to the point of being obvious and boring

Meredith was not willing to sit through yet another banal B-movie.

Fathom (n.) a unit of measurement used by operators of watercraft equal to six feet, used to express the depth of a body of water; (v.) to comprehend or imagine

Walter could not fathom the damage that would be caused if the levees in Devils Lake broke.

Prevarication (n.) a statement which deliberately misrepresents the truth; a lie or exaggeration

The landlord's statement that it was a safe neighborhood turned out to be more than a small prevarication.

Squander (v.) to waste or recklessly allow to be lost

Though expected to squander his parents' wealth, Billy in fact went on to achieve great success in the business world.

Dearth (n.) a shortage, scarcity, or amount which is inadequate

There was a dearth of clean water in the city after the hurricane, and they found themselves drinking a great deal of soda.

Prudent (adj.) exercising good and reasonable judgment and consideration

Dawn thought that the prudent thing to do was to explain to Austin that what he had done was wrong, but not to punish him any further.

Apostate (adj.) having abandoned or renounced religious faith or some other loyalty

Yvonne had been apostate with regard to Christianity since her late teens.

Aggrandize (v.) to make something become greater or appear greater

Kelly loved to aggrandize even the smallest of her achievements.

Ersatz (n.) a lower quality substitute or imitation

According to Jonathan, Treet was just an ersatz of Spam.

Dogged (adj.) persistent and determined

Mike was the most dogged worker in the entire department, often staying late to get projects done.

Conspire (v.) to secretly agree to do something, often which is immoral or illegal; to form a conspiracy

Roman hoped he could get Theron to conspire with him with regard to the April Fool's Day prank.

Influx (n.) arrival or entry of a significant amount of something

The influx of Czechs into Vienna in the late 1800s had a dramatic effect on the culture of the city.

Inscrutable (adj.) unable to be understood or interpreted

Though initially inscrutable, after Anderson's work, the meaning of the cave writings began to be somewhat understood.

Virulent (adj.) highly dangerous or infective, usually with regard to a disease

A most virulent strain of influenza swept the world in the early 1900s.

Solicitous (adj.) demonstrating eagerness or strong interest

At the job interview, Miriam came off as very solicitous, but also as very naive.

Boisterous (adj.) having rowdily high spirits

Hockey crowds were ordinarily boisterous, and the crowd present that day was no exception.

Distrait (adj.) distracted or diverted in terms of attention

Regan was distrait for most of the lecture because she was worried about her little brother being stuck at the border station in Michigan.

Vitality (adj.) the state of being strong, health and active

Though twelve years old, the couple's pet poodle still had a great deal of vitality.

Subjective (adj.) based on or affected by an individual’s personal opinions, beliefs and nuances

While the essay grading was entirely subjective, the multiple choice sections were not, and thus assured that there would be some level of objectivity.

Intemperate (adj.) lacking moderation; indulgent or impulsive; lacking temperance

Milt was rather intemperate, and would often yell and scream when he didn't get his way.

Expiate (v.) to make amends or restitution for something

Over a year later, Steve showed up to expiate with regard to his behavior at the family picnic.

Wend (v.) to slowly or indirectly travel in a given direction

The two would ultimately wend their way up through Arkansas to Cape Girardeau.

Corporeal (adj.) having a physical form or existence

Though Janice could look after all of her deceased mother's corporeal property, she wondered what other rights she had, such as a potential stake in her brother's business.

Cunning (n.) a personality trait of cleverness or ingenuity; (adj.) that which displays cunning

Daniel's cunning was all too apparent when he built a program to automatically double-check page number references in documents.

Vilify (v.) to create the impression that a particular person or thing is the source of a problem; to make another a villain in a situation

The American media went on to vilify the Iranian head of state with regard to his comments on Israel.

Anachronism (n.) something which exists out of its proper place in time

Michelle loved literature that contained the occasional anachronism, such as a medieval-style fairy tale which would mention cellphones or Twitter.

Striated (adj.) to marked with lines or linear indents, grooves or stretches

The side of the cantaloupe was striated; no one was sure why.

Probity (n.) the state of having good morals and ethics

Father Gregory's probity was well-known in the neighborhood as well as throughout the city.

Pejorative (adj.) conveying contempt or disapproval; (n.) a word or remark which is pejorative

Even Tony would sometimes describe himself using pejorative words for his profession.

Unfounded (adj.) lacking any sound basis in fact

Though interesting, Cliff's claim that the Book of Acts was written by a woman was for the most part unfounded.

Tautology (n.) something which is repetitive, circular or self-establishing

Eddie loved to say the occasional tautology, such as "you're either in or your out."

Perennial (adj.) enduring or occurring year after year; often in the context of a plant; (n.) a plant which is perennial

Backyard flooding was a perennial problem for the Kennedys.

Converge (v.) to unite, meet, or come together

The old streetcar lines went on to converge at Canal Street.

Innocuous (adj.) incapable of causing anything undesirable; harmless

Sheila worried that the vaccine was not entirely innocuous and that it perhaps would cause harm to her little boy.

Vestigial (adj.) (1) that which is a very small remnant of something which was once much greater; (2) that which while once useful and serving a purpose is now not used, especially in the context of organs

The vestigial parts of whales and dolphins such as their pelvic bones strengthen the theory that they are descended from land creatures.

Anthology (n.) a collection of pieces of art, literature, or music, often but not necessarily all-encompassing

His mother loved to put on her Beatles anthology and crochet.

Inured (adj.) (1) having taken effect; (2) having become used to something, often which is undesirable

By now, Kwame was inured to the poor conditions of the streets in Central City.

Bestial (adj.) of or relating to beasts; beastly

Despite his hairy and bestial appearance, Rick was a very nice and well-mannered person.

Impecunious (adj.) poor; lacking money

Freddie agreed to help Samantha with her taxes, despite how very impecunious she was, out of the goodness of his heart.

Ephemeral (adj.) lasting only a very short amount of time

The ephemeral "Roman Republic" created by Napoleon had a flag similar to the French flag, albeit with a black stripe instead of blue.

Quintessential (adj.) the most perfect example of something

Steven was the quintessential hipster.

Opprobrium (n.) public disgrace that results from shameful conduct

The excessive use of force in the course of riot control measures led to a great opprobrium for the police department