GRE Vocab

Plastic "The new material was very PLASTIC and could be formed into products of vastly different shapes."

Adaptable, pliant, ductile, malleable

Eloquent "The Gettysburg Address is moving not only because of its lofty sentiments but also because of its ELOQUENT words."

Articulate, meaningful, expressive, significant, fluent, smooth-spoken

Chicanery "Dishonest used car salespeople often use CHICANERY to sell their beat-up old cars."

Artifice, deception, pettifoggery, sophistry, conniving, deviousness, shadiness, subterfuge, craftiness, misrepresentation, sneakiness, underhandedness

Guile "Since he was not fast enough to catch the roadrunner on foot, the coyote resorted to GUILE in an effort to trap his enemy."

Artifice, duplicity, chicanery, connivery

Aesthetic "Followers of the AESTHETIC Movement regarded the pursuit of beauty as the only true purpose of art."

Artistic, tasteful

Dilate "When you enter a darkened room, the pupils of your eyes DILATE to let in more light."

Amplify, enlarge, develop, expand, elaborate, expatiate

Metaphor "The METAPHOR 'a sea of troubles' suggests a lot of troubles by comparing their number to the vastness of the sea."

Analogy, comparison

Archaic "Her ARCHAIC Commodore computer could not run the latest software."

Ancient, bygone, fusty, outdated, prehistoric, superseded, antediluvian, dated, obsolete, outmoded, stale, vintage, antique, dowdy, old-fashioned, passe, superannuated

Antipathy "The ANTIPATHY between the French and the English regularly erupted into open warfare."

Animosity, aversion, repellence, animus, enmity, antagonism, hostility

Vex "The old man who loved his peace and quiet was VEXED by his neighbor's loud music."

Annoy, exasperate, peeve, bother, irk, provoke, chafe, nettle

Exacerbate "It is unwise to take aspirin to try to relieve heartburn; instead of providing relief the drug will only EXACERBATE the problem."

Annoy, irritate, aggravate, provoke, intensify

Paradox "It is a PARADOX that those most in need of medical attention are often those least able to obtain it."

Anomaly, irony

Perfunctory "The machine like bank teller processed the transaction and gave the waiting customer a PERFUNCTORY smile."

Apathetic, automatic, mechanical

Lethargic "The clerk was so LETHARGIC that, even when the store was slow, he always had a long line in front of him."

Apathetic, listless, lackadaisical, torpid, languid

Stolid "The prisoner appeared STOLID and unaffected by the judge's harsh sentence."

Apathetic, phlegmatic, impassive, stoical, indifferent, unconcerned

Torpor "After surgery, the patient experienced TORPOR until the anesthesia wore off."

Apathy, languor

Emulate "The graduate student sought to EMULATE his professor in every way, copying not only how she taught, but also how she conducted herself outside of class."

Ape, imitate, simulate

Paragon "She is the PARAGON of what a judge should be: honest, intelligent, hardworking, and just."

Apotheosis, standard, ideal, quintessence

Placate "The burglar tried to PLACATE the snarling dog by saying, 'Nice doggy,' and offering it a treat."

Appease, conciliate, mollify

Mollify "Their argument was so intense that it was difficult to believe any compromise would MOLLIFY them."

Appease, pacify, assuage, conciliate

Propitiate "The management PROPITIATED the irate union by agreeing to raise wages for its members."

Appease, pacify, conciliate, placate, mollify

Capricious "Queen Elizabeth I was quite CAPRICIOUS; her courtiers could never be sure which of their number would watch her fancy."

Arbitrary, erratic, mercurial, willful, chance, fickle, random, changeable, inconstant, whimsical

Anachronism "The aged hippie used ANACHRONISTIC phrases like 'groovy' and 'far out' that had not been popular for year."

Archaism, incongruity

Zeal "She brought her typical ZEAL to the project, sparking enthusiasm in the other team members."

Ardency, passion, fervor, fire

Onerous "The assignment was so extensive and difficult to manage that it proved ONEROUS to the team in charge of it."

Arduous, cumbersome, formidable, oppressive, trying, backbreaking, difficult, hard, rigorous, burdensome, exacting, laborious, taxing

Naive "Having never traveled before, the hillbillies were more NAIVE than the people they met in Beverly Hills."

Artless, ingenuous, credulous, simple, guileless, unaffected

Innocuous "Some snakes are poisonous, but most species are INNOCUOUS and pose no danger to humans."

Benign, harmless, inoffensive

Lavish "She LAVISHED the puppy with so many treats that it soon became overweight and spoiled."

Bestow, exuberant, prodigal, confer, luxuriant, profuse, extravagant, opulent, superabundant

Lament "The children continued to LAMENT the death of the goldfish weeks after its demise."

Bewail, mourn, deplore, grieve

Eulogy "His best friend gave the EULOGY, outlining his many achievements and talents."

Commend, extol, laud

Obsequious "The OBSEQUIOUS new associate made sure to compliment her supervisor's tie and agree with him on every issue."

Compliant, subservient, deferential, servile

Imperturbable "The counselor had so much experience dealing with distraught children that she seemed IMPERTURBABLE, even when faced with the wildest tantrums."

Composed, serene, dispassionate, stoical, impassive

Repudiate "The old woman's claim that she was Russian royalty was REPUDIATED when DNA tests showed she was of no relation to them."

Deny, disown, disavow, renounce, disclaim

Frugality "Scrooge McDuck's FRUGALITY was so great that he accumulated enough wealth to fill a giant storehouse with money."

Economical, sparing, parsimony, prudence

Loquacious "She was naturally LOQUACIOUS, which was a problem in situations in which listening was more important than talking."

Effusive, garrulous, verbose

Garrulous "The GARRULOUS parakeet distracted its owner with its continuous talking."

Effusive, loquacious

Dirge "Melville wrote the poem 'A DIRGE for James McPherson' for the funeral of a Union general who was killed in 1864."

Elegy, lament

Rhetoric "Lincoln's talent for RHETORIC was evident in his beautifully expressed Gettysburg Address."

Eloquence, oratory

Articulate "She is such an ARTICULATE defender of labor that unions are among her strongest supporters."

Eloquent, lucid, expressive, silver-tongued, fluent, smooth-spoken

Disabuse "Galileo's observations DISABUSED scholars of the notion that the sun revolved around the Earth."

correct, undeceive

Disparate "Although the twins appear to be identical physically, their personalities are DISPARATE."

different, diverse, dissimilar, variant, divergent, various

Opaque "The heavy buildup of dirt and grime on the windows almost made them OPAQUE."

Obscure

Chauvinist "The attitude that men are inherently superior to women and therefore must be obeyed is common among male CHAUVINISTS."

Partisan

Misanthrope "The character Scrooge in 'A Christmas Carol' is such a MISANTHROPE that even the sight of children singing makes him angry."

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Pedant "The graduate instructors' tedious and excessive commentary on the subject soon gained her a reputation as a PEDANT."

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Anomaly "Albino animals may display too great an ANOMALY in their coloring to attract normally colored mates."

Aberrance, deviance, preternaturalness, aberration, deviation, abnormality, irregularity

Precipitate "Upon learning that the couple married after knowing each other only two months, friends and family members expected such a PRECIPITATE marriage to end in divorce."

Abrupt, hurried, impulsive, reckless, hasty, ill-considered, prompt, sudden, headlong, impetuous, rash

Exonerate "The fugitive was EXONERATED when another criminal confessed to committing the crime."

Absolve, exculpate, acquit, vindicate, clear

Exculpate "The adversarial legal system is intended to convict those who are guilty and to EXCULPATE those who are innocent."

Absolve, exonerate, acquit, vindicate, clear

Esoteric "Only a handful of experts are knowledgeable about the ESOTERIC world of particle physics."

Abstruse, arcane, obscure

Laud "Parades and fireworks were staged to LAUD the success of the rebels."

Acclaim, compliment, hail, applaud, exalt, praise, commend, extol

Catalyst "The imposition of harsh taxes was the CATALYST that finally brought on the revolution."

Acerbic, trenchant, biting, mordant

Pungent "The smoke from the burning tires was extremely PUNGENT."

Acrid, poignant, caustic, stinging, piquant

Dissemble "The villain could DISSEMBLE to the police no longer- he admitted the deed and tore up the floor to reveal the body of the old man."

Act, cloak, cover up, fake, masquerade, put on, affect, counterfeit, disguise, feign, pose, sham, assume, camouflage, dissimulate, mask, pretend, simulate

Malleable "Gold is the most MALLEABLE of precious metals; it can easily be formed into almost any shape."

Adaptable, pliable, ductile, pliant, plastic

Arbitrate "Since the couple could not come to agreement, a judge was forced to ARBITRATE their divorce proceedings."

Adjudge, determine, referee, adjudicate, judge, rule, decide, moderate

Estimable "Most people consider it ESTIMABLE that Mother Teresa spent her life helping the poor of India."

Admirable, honorable, commendable, laudable, creditable, meritorious, praiseworthy, worthy, respectable, venerable

Amalgamate "Giant industries AMALGAMATED with Mega Products to form Giant-Mega Products Incorporated."

Admix, commingle, fuse, merge, blend, commix, intermingle, mingle, combine, compound, intermix, mix

Castigate "Americans are amazed at how harshly the authorities in Singapore CASTIGATE perpetrators of what would be considered minor crimes in the United States."

Admonish, rebuke, reprove, upbraid, chastise, reprimand, scold, chide, reproach, tax

Venerate "In a traditional Confucian society, the young VENERATE their elders, deferring to the elders' wisdom and experience."

Adore, revere, honor, idolize

Audacious "'And you, your majesty, may kiss my bum!' replied the AUDACIOUS peasant."

Adventuresome, bold, daring, fearless, heroic, plucky, unafraid, valorous, aggressive, brave, dauntless, gallant, intrepid, stout, undaunted, venturesome, assertive, courageous, doughty, game, mettlesome, stouthearted, valiant, venturous

Inimical "Even though a cease-fire had been in place for months, the two sides were still INIMICAL to each other."

Adverse, recalcitrant, antagonistic, dissident

Gregarious "She was so GREGARIOUS that when she found herself alone she felt quite sad."

Affable, sociable, communicative, congenial

Foment "The protestors tried to FOMENT feeling against the war through their speeches and demonstrations."

Agitate, instigate, impassion, kindle, inflame

Desultory "Diane had a DESULTORY academic record; she had changed majors 12 times in three years."

Aimless, haphazard, purposeless, unconsidered, disconnected, indiscriminate, random, unplanned, erratic, objectless, stray

Analogous "In a famous argument for the existence of God, the universe is ANALOGOUS to a mechanical timepiece, the creation of a divinely intelligent 'clockmaker.'"

Alike, equivalent, similar, comparable, homogeneous, corresponding, parallel

Assuage "Like many people, Philip Larkin used alcohol to ASSUAGE his sense of meaninglessness and despair."

Allay, comfort, lighten, pacify, propitiate, sweeten, alleviate, conciliate, mitigate, palliate, relieve, appease, ease, mollify, placate, soothe

Alleviate "Taking aspirin helps to ALLEVIATE a headache."

Allay, ease, mitigate, assuage, lessen, palliate, comfort, lighten, relieve

Mitigate "A judge may MITIGATE a sentence if she decides that a person committed a crime out of need."

Allay, ease, mollify, alleviate, lighten, palliate, assuage, moderate, temper

Philanthropy "New York's Metropolitan Museum of Art owes much of its collection to the PHILANTHROPY of private collectors who willed their estates to the museum."

Altruism, humanitarianism

Dilettante "Jerry's friends were such DILETTANTES that they seemed to have new jobs and hobbies every week."

Amateur, tyro, dabbler, superficial

Equivocate "When faced with criticism of his policies, the politician EQUIVOCATED and left all parties thinking he agreed with them."

Ambiguous, evasive, waffling

Ameliorate "The doctor was able to AMELIORATE the patient's suffering using painkillers."

Amend, pacify, better, upgrade, improve

Inchoate "The ideas expressed in Nietzsche's mature work also appear in an INCHOATE form in his earliest writing."

Amorphous, unorganized, incoherent, incomplete

Aggrandize "The supervisor sought to AGGRANDIZE himself by claiming that the achievements of his staff were actually his own."

Amplify, dignify, ennoble, magnify, wax, apotheosize, elevate, exalt, swell, augment, enlarge, glorify, uplift

Ingenuous "She was so INGENUOUS that her friends feared that her innocence and trustfulness would be exploited when she visited the big city."

Artless, naive, guileless, simple, innocent, unaffected

Prudence "The college student exhibited PRUDENCE by obtaining practical experience along with her studies, which greatly strengthened her resume."

Astuteness, frugality, thrift, circumspection, judiciousness, discretion, providence

Rarefy "Since the atmosphere RAREFIES as altitudes increase, the air at the top of very tall mountains is too thin to breathe."

Attenuate, thin

Sublime "The music was so SUBLIME that it transformed the rude surroundings into a special place."

August, grand, noble, superb, exalted, magnificent, regal, glorious, majestic, resplendent

Corroborate "Fingerprints CORROBORATED the witness's testimony that he saw the defendant in the victim's apartment."

Authenticate, buttress, validate, back, confirm, verify, bear out, substantiate

Dogmatic "The dictator was DOGMATIC- he, and only he, was right."

Authoritarian, doctrinaire, magisterial, peremptory, bossy, domineering, masterful, dictatorial, imperious, overbearing

Advocate "The vegetarian ADVOCATED a diet containing no meat."

Back, champion, support

Diffident "Steve's DIFFIDENT manner during the job interview stemmed from his nervous nature and lack of experience in the field."

Backward, demure, self-effacing, bashful, modest, shy, coy, retiring, timid

Insipid "The critic claimed that the painting was INSIPID, containing no interesting qualities at all."

Banal, stale, bland, vapid, dull

Florid "The palace had been decorated in a FLORID style; every surface had been carved and gilded."

Baroque, ornate, elaborate, ostentatious, flamboyant, rococo

Occlude "A shadow is thrown across the Earth's surface during a solar eclipse, when the light from the sun is OCCLUDED by the moon."

Barricade, obstruct, block, close

Engender "His fear and hatred of clowns was ENGENDERED when he witnessed the death of his father at the hands of a clown."

Beget, proliferate, generate, reproduce, procreate, spawn

Dupe "Bugs Bunny was able to DUPE Elmer Fudd by dressing up as a lady rabbit."

Beguile, cozen, betray, deceive, bluff, delude, fool, mislead, hoodwink, take in, humbug, trick

Banal "He used BANAL phrases like 'Have a nice day,' or 'Another day, another dollar.'"

Bland, commonplace, innocuous, musty, quotidian, stereotypic, tired, worn-out, bromidic, fatuous, insipid, platitudinous, shopworn, threadbare, trite, cliched, hackneyed, jejune, prosaic, stale, timeworn, vapid

Austere "The lack of decoration makes Zen temples seem AUSTERE to the untrained eye."

Bleak, hard, dour, harsh, grim, severe

Stigma "In 'The Scarlet Letter,' Hester Prynne was required to wear the letter 'A' on her clothes as a public STIGMA for her adultery."

Blemish, stain, blot, taint, opprobrium

Bombastic "Mussolini's speeches were mostly BOMBASTIC; his boasting and outrageous claims had no basis in fact."

Bloated, grandiloquent, magniloquent, rhetorical, declamatory, grandiose, orotund, self-important, fustian, high-flown, pretentious

Fawn "The understudy FAWNED over the director in hopes of being cast in the part on a permanent basis."

Bootlick, toady, grovel, pander

Bolster "The presence of giant footprints BOLSTERED the argument that Sasquatch was in the area."

Brace, support, uphold, buttress, sustain, prop, underpin

Proliferate "Although he only kept two guinea pigs initially, they PROLIFERATED to such an extent that he soon had dozens."

Breed, propagate, multiply, reproduce, procreate, spawn

Eclectic "Budapest's architecture is an ECLECTIC mix of eastern and western styles."

Broad, Catholic, selective

Fervid "The fans of Maria Callas were particularly FERVID, doing anything to catch a glimpse of the great opera singer."

Burning, vehement, impassioned, zealous, passionate

Convoluted "Although many people bought A Brief History of Time, few could follow its CONVOLUTED ideas and theories."

Byzantine, intricate, perplexing, complex, knotty, tangled, elaborate, labyrinthine

Explicit "The owners of the house left a list of EXPLICIT instructions detailing their house sitter's duties, including a schedule for watering the house plants."

Candid, unequivocal, frank, straightforward

Veracity "She had a reputation for VERACITY, so everyone trusted her description of events."

Candor, probity, exactitude, fidelity

Irascible "Attila the Hun's IRASCIBLE and violent nature made all who dealt with him fear for their lives."

Cantankerous, testy, irritable, ornery

Whimsical "The ballet was WHIMSICAL, delighting the children with its imaginative characters and unpredictable sets."

Capricious, frivolous, erratic, flippant

Volatile "His VOLATILE personality made it difficult to predict his reaction to anything."

Capricious, inconsistent, temperamental, erratic, inconstant, fickle, mercurial

Erratic "The plot seemed predictable until it suddenly took a series of ERRATIC turns and surprised the audience."

Capricious, whimsical, inconstant, irresolute

Enumerate "Moses returned from the mountain with tablets on which the commandments were ENUMERATED."

Catalog, index, tabulate

Discern "It is easy to DISCERN the difference between butter and butter-flavored topping."

Catch, differentiate, espy, separate, tell, descry, discriminate, glimpse, spot, detect, distinguish, know, spy

Cacophony "The junior high orchestra created an almost unbearable CACOPHONY as they tried to tune their instruments."

Chaos, discord, clamor, disharmony, din, noise

Abyss "The submarine dove into the ABYSS to chart the previously unseen depths."

Chasm, void

Euphemism "The funeral director preferred to use the EUPHEMISM "sleeping" instead of the word 'dead'."

Circumlocution, whitewash

Dissonance "Cognitive DISSONANCE is the inner conflict produced when long-standing beliefs are contradicted by new evidence."

Clash, dissension, friction, contention, dissent, strife, discord, dissidence, variance

Antagonize "The child discovered that he could ANTAGONIZE the cat by pulling its tail."

Clash, irritate, provoke, conflict, oppose, vex, incite, pester

Lucid "The explanations were written in a simple and LUCID manner so that students were immediately able to apply what they learned."

Clear, intelligible, coherent, limpid, explicit

Ambiguous "The directions he gave were so AMBIGUOUS that we disagreed on which way to turn."

Cloudy, equivocal, obscure, doubtful, indeterminate, unclear, dubious, nebulous, vague

Satiate "His desire for power was so great that nothing less than complete control of the country could SATIATE it."

Cloy, surfeit, glut

Chaos "In most religious traditions, God created an ordered universe from CHAOS."

Clutter, disarray, disorganization, muddle, topsy-turviness, confusion, disorder, jumble, scramble, turmoil, disarrangement, disorderliness, mess, snarl

Laconic "She was a LACONIC poet who built her reputation on using words as sparingly as possible."

Concise, taciturn, curt, terse, pithy

Meticulous "To find all the clues at the crime scene, the investigators METICULOUSLY examined every inch of the area."

Conscientious, precise, scrupulous

Homogenous "The class was fairly HOMOGENOUS, since almost all of the students were senior journalism majors."

Consistent, unvarying, standardized, uniform

Ostentation "The OSTENTATION of the Sun King's court is evident in the lavish decoration and luxuriousness of his palace at Versailles."

Conspicuousness, showiness, flashiness, pretentiousness

Enigma "Speaking in riddles and dressed in old robes, the artist gained a reputation as something of an ENIGMA."

Conundrum, perplexity

Cogent "Swayed by the COGENT argument of the defense, the jury had no choice but to acquit the defendant."

Convincing, sound, persuasive, telling, solid, valid

Reticent "Physically small and RETICENT in her speech, Joan Didion often went unnoticed by those upon whom she was reporting."

Cool, standoffish, introverted, taciturn, laconic, undemonstrative

Apathy "The APATHY of voters is so great that less than half the people who are eligible to vote actually bother to do so."

Coolness, impassivity, lassitude, phlegm, unresponsiveness, disinterest, indifference, lethargy, stolidity, disregard, insensibility, listlessness, unconcern

Decorum "The countess complained that the vulgar peasants lacked the DECORUM appropriate for a visit to the palace."

Correctness, manners, seemliness, decency, mores, etiquette, propriety

Deference "The respectful young law clerk treated the Supreme Court justice with the utmost DEFERENCE."

Courtesy, obeisance, veneration, homage, respect, honor, reverence

Gullible "The con man pretended to be a bank officer so as to fool GULLIBLE bank customers into giving him their account information."

Credulous, exploitable, naive

Dogma "Linus's central DOGMA was that children who believed in the Great Pumpkin would be rewarded."

Creed, tenet, doctrine, teaching

Exigent "The patient was losing blood so rapidly that it was EXIGENT to stop the source of the bleeding."

Critical, urgent, imperative, needed

Attenuate "The Bill of Rights ATTENUATED the traditional power of government to change laws at will."

Debilitate, enervate, sap, undo, weaken, devitalize, enfeeble, thin, unnerve, dilute, rarefy, undermine, water

Enervate "The guerrillas hoped that a series of surprise attacks would ENERVATE the regular army."

Debilitate, weaken, enfeeble, sap

Propriety "The aristocracy maintained a high level of PROPRIETY, adhering to even the most minor social rules."

Decency, seemliness, decorum, modesty

Desiccate "After a few weeks of lying on the desert's baking sands, the cow's carcass became completely DESICCATED."

Dehydrate, dry, parch

Inundate "The tidal wave INUNDATED Atlantis, which was lost beneath the water."

Deluge, flood, drown, submerge, engulf

Ardor "Bishop's ARDOR for landscape was evident when he passionately described the beauty of the scenic Hudson Valley."

Devotion, fervidity, fire, zealousness, enthusiasm, fervidness, passion, fervency, fervor, zeal

Tirade "Observers were shocked at the manager's TIRADE over such a minor mistake."

Diatribe, obloquy, fulmination, revilement, harangue, vilification

Candid "The observations of a child can be charming since they are CANDID and unpretentious."

Direct, honest, straight, forthright, open, straightforward, frank, sincere, undisguised

Elegy "Although Thomas Grays' 'ELEGY Written in a Country Churchyard' is about death and loss, it urges its readers to endure this life and to trust in spirituality."

Dirge, lament

Opprobrium "After the scheme to embezzle from the elderly was made public, the treasurer resigned in utter OPPROBRIUM"

Discredit, disrepute, obloquy, disgrace, ignominy, shame, dishonor, infamy

Perfidious "The actress's PERFIDIOUS companion revealed all of her intimate secrets to the gossip columnist."

Disloyal, treacherous, faithless, traitorous

Waver "If you WAVER too long before making a decision about which testing site to register for, you may not get your first choice."

Dither, oscillate, falter, vacillate, fluctuate

Vacillate "The customer held up the line as he VACILLATED between ordering chocolate chip or rocky road ice cream."

Dither, oscillate, falter, waver, fluctuate

Adulterate "The restauranteur made his ketchup last longer by ADULTERATING it with water"

Doctor

Quiescent "Many animals are QUIESCENT over the winter months, minimizing activity in order to conserve energy."

Dormant, latent

Dilatory "The congressman used DILATORY measures to delay the passage of the bill."

Dragging, lagging, slow-going, flagging, slow, slow-paced, laggard, slow-footed, tardy

Monotony "The MONOTONY of the sound of the dripping faucet almost drove the research assistant crazy."

Drone, tedium

Efficacy "The EFFICACY of penicillin was unsurpassed when it was first introduced; the drug completely eliminated almost all bacterial infections for which it was administered."

Dynamism, force, proficiency, effectiveness, power, strength, efficiency, productiveness, vigor

Abate "As the hurricane's force ABATED, the winds dropped and the sea became calm.

Ebb, moderate, subside, lapse, relent, wane, let up, slacken

Transitory "The reporter lived a TRANSITORY life, staying in one place only long enough to cover the current story."

Ephemeral, impermanent, evanescent, momentary, fleeting

Prevaricate "Rather than admit that he had overslept again, the employee PREVARICATED and claimed that heavy traffic had prevented him from arriving at work on time."

Equivocate, lie, perjure

Ephemeral "The lives of mayflies seem EPHEMERAL to us, since the flies' average life span is a matter of hours."

Evanescent, transient, fleeting, momentary

Condone "Some theorists believe that failing to prosecute minor crimes is the same as CONDONING an air of lawlessness."

Exculpate, remit, excuse, pardon

Prodigal "The PRODIGAL son quickly wasted all of his inheritance on a lavish lifestyle devoted to pleasure."

Extravagant, spendthrift, lavish, wasteful, profligate

Fanatical "The stormtroopers were FANATICAL in their devotion to the Emperor, readily sacrificing their lives for him."

Extremist, zealous, fiery, frenzied

Abscond "The patron ABSCONDED from the restaurant without paying his bill by sneaking out the back door."

Flee, decamp, escape

Abstain "During Lent, practicing Catholics abstain from eating meat."

Forbear, refrain, withhold

Obviate "The river was shallow enough to wade across at many points, which OBVIATED the need for a bridge."

Forestall, preclude, prohibit

Diatribe "The trucker bellowed a DIATRIBE at the driver who had cut him off."

Fulmination, jeremiad, tirade, harangue, malediction, invective, obloquy

Deride "The awkward child was often DERIDED by his 'cooler' peers."

Gibe, ridicule, taunt, jeer, scoff, mock, sneer

Plethora "Assuming that more was better, the defendant offered the judge a PLETHORA of excuses."

Glut, surfeit, overabundance, superfluity

Soporific "The movie proved to be so SOPORIFIC that soon loud snores were heard throughout the theater."

Hypnotic, somnolent, narcotic, slumberous

Specious "The student's SPECIOUS excuse for being late sounded legitimate, but was proved otherwise when his teacher called his home ."

Illusory, spurious, ostensible, sophistical, plausible

Permeate "This miraculous new cleaning fluid is able to PERMEATE stains and dissolve them in minutes!"

Imbue, infuse, suffuse

Intransigent "The professor was INTRANSIGENT on the deadline, insisting that everyone turn the assignment in at the same time."

Implacable, obdurate, rigid, unyielding, inexorable, obstinate, unbending, irreconcilable, remorseless, unrelenting

Tacit "Although not a word had been said, everyone in the room knew that a TACIT agreement had been made about which course of action to take."

Implicit, unsaid, implied, unuttered, undeclared

Impetuous "It is not good for an investment broker to be IMPETUOUS, because much thought should be given to all the possible options."

Impulsive, reckless, precipitate, spontaneous, rash

Luminous "The park was bathed in LUMINOUS sunshine, which warmed the bodies and the souls of the visitors."

Incandescent, radiant, lucent, resplendent, lustrous

Implacable "His rage at the betrayal was so great that he remained IMPLACABLE for weeks."

Inexorable, relentless, unrelenting, intransigent, remorseless, irreconcilable, unforgiving

Obdurate "The president was completely OBDURATE on the issue, and no amount of persuasion would change his mind."

Inflexible, tenacious, intransigent, unyielding, recalcitrant

Pristine "Since concerted measures had been taken to prevent looting, the archeological site was still PRISTINE when researchers arrived."

Innocent, undamaged

Obstinate "The OBSTINATE child could not be made to eat any food that he disliked."

Intransigent, pertinacious, mulish, stubborn, persistent, tenacious

Taciturn "The clerk's TACITURN nature earned him the nickname 'Silent Bob.'"

Laconic, reticent

Verbose "The professor's answer was so VERBOSE that his student forgot what the original question had been."

Long-winded, superfluous, loquacious, prolix

Iconoclast "His lack of regard for traditional beliefs soon established him as an ICONOCLAST."

Maverick, revolutionary, nonconformist, rebel

Credulous "Although some 4-year-olds believe in the Easter Bunny, only the most CREDULOUS 9-year-olds also believe in him."

Naive, susceptible, trusting

Pragmatic "While daydreaming gamblers think they can get rich by frequenting casinos, PRAGMATIC gamblers realize that the odds are heavily stacked against them."

Rational, realistic

Impervious "A good raincoat is IMPERVIOUS to moisture."

Resistant, impregnable

Erudite "The annual meeting of philosophy professors was a gathering of the most ERUDITE, well-published individuals in the field."

Scholastic, learned, wise

Malinger "A common way to avoid the draft was by MALINGERING- pretending to be mentally or physically ill so as to avoid being taken by the Army."

Shirk, slack