GRE Vocab 7

embatted

(of a place or people) involved in or prepared for war, especially because surrounded by enemy forces. "the embattled Yugoslavian republics" (hint: think em is in and battled is battle so in a battle)

incessant

(of something regarded as unpleasant) continuing without pause or interruption. "the incessant beat of the music" *ceaseless, unceasing, constant, continual, unabating, interminable, endless, unending, never-ending, everlasting, eternal, perpetual* (hint: a pest doesn't stop = continual)

farce

-broad comedy Nothing went right; the entire interview degenerated into a farce. *burlesque, vaudeville, buffoonery* -an absurd event. The debate turned into a drunken farce. *mockery, travesty, joke, sham, absurdity, masquerade* (hint: he decided to travel as far away as possible= an absurd event)

forensic

-suitable for debate or courts of law. In her beset forensic manner, the lawyer addressed the jury. -of, relating to, or denoting the application of scientific methods and techniques to the investigation of crime. "forensic evidence"

flair

A special or instinctive aptitude for doing something well. She has an uncanny flair for discovering new artists before the public has become aware of their existence. *gift, knack, instinct, talent, skill, bent, aptitude* (hint: some people have a knack for cutting people's hair really well)

commence

To begin. "his design team commenced work" *initiate, inaugurate* (hint: a comment begins with a thought)

vassals

a holder of land by feudal tenure on conditions of homage and allegiance. *serf, dependent, servant, slave, thrall, villein, vavasour, helot "a much stronger nation can also turn a weaker one into a vassal state"

exhortation

a speech intended to persuade. "exhortations to eat well" (hint: exhort=hore= and parents are suppose to encourage their children not to be whores)

ferment

agitation, commotion. With the breakup of the Soviet Union, much of Eastern Europe was in a state of ferment. *engender, provoke, stir up, instigate, foment* (hint: when a drink undergoes fermentation, it agitates the original drink)

provision

an amount of a thing supplied or provided. The action of providing or supplying for something for use. (hint: think providing for use)

gadfly

an irritating person. Like a gadfly, he irritated all the guests at the hotel; within forty eight hours, everyone regarded him as an annoying busybody. (hint: think of how a fly irritates people)

functionary

an official. As his case was transferred from one functionary to another. he began to despair of over reaching a settlement. (hint: an official makes the game function right)

gall

annoy; chafe. Bold impudent behavior. Their taunts galled him. The banks had the gall to demand a fee. *effrontery, impudence, impertinence, cheek, insolence, audacity, temerity, presumptuous* (hint: a girl can be demanding which comes off as annoying and impudent behavior)

fret

be annoyed or vexed. To fret over your poor grades is foolish; instead, decide to work harder in the future. (hint: brett is annoying)

fruition

bearing of fruit; fulfillment; realization. After years of scrimping and saving, her dream of owning her own home finally came to fruition. "the plans have come to fruition sooner than expected" (hint: once you are out of school, realization sets on because you have to start paying your tuition off.)

fatalism

belief that events are determined by forces beyond one's control. The belief that events are predetermined and are therefore inevitable. With fatalism, he accepted the hardships that beset him. (hint: think fate-determined before hand)

fortitude

bravery, courage in pain or adversity. He was awarded the medal for his fortitude in the battle. *mettle, resilience*

fracas

brawl, melee. The military police stopped the fracas in the bar and arrested the belligerents. (hint: frac equals fraction=right)

fickle

changeable; faithless. As soon as Romeo saw Juliet, he forgot all about his crush on Rosaline. Was Romeo fickle? *capricious, changeable, variable, volatile, mercurial; inconstant, undependable, unsteady, unfaithful, faithless, flighty, giddy, skittish* (hint: someone that is trickle is appearance is volatile)

gauche

clumsy; coarse and uncouth. unsophisticated and awkward. *maladroit, ungainly, gawky, inelegant, inept* Compared to the sophisticated young ladies in their elegant gowns, tomboyish Jo felt gauche and out of place. (hint: if a professional says gosh, that is awkward because no professional says that)

fiat

command; authorize. Although the bill abolishing the allowances and privileges of the former princes was rejected by the upper house, it was put into effect by presidential fiat. *decree, edict, order, command, commandment, injunction, proclamation, mandate, dictum, diktat* (hint: fe fi fo fum - at march or command)

muddled

confused. "misplaced suggestions and muddled thinking" *bewilder, disarrange, bemuse, baffle, mystify* (hint: it's hard to see in mud = confused)

foil

contrast. prevent from succeeding OR defeat/frustrate In star wars, dark, evil darth vader is a perfect foil for fair-haired, naive Luke Skywalker. *thwart, frustrate, counter, balk, impede, obstruct, hamper, euchre, hinder, snooker, cripple, scotch, derail, scupper, scuttle, smash; stop, block, prevent, defeat* (hint: not knowing how to foil will prevent some people from succeeding on the GRE or defeat/frustrate you while doing the problem)

avant-garde

daring or cutting edge; new and unusual or experimental ideas, especially in the arts, or the people introducing them. "a controversial avant-garde composer" *innovative, inventive, experimental, advanced, pioneering, progressive, bohemian, revolutionary, unorthodox, unconventional* (hint: being on guard to buying or knowing technology is having to know the cutting edge or unusual technology)

embellishments/gilding

decorations used to add beauty. (hint: think build by adding decorations onto something)

profundity

deep insight; great depth of knowledge or thought. great depth or intensity of a state, quality, or emotion. (hint: think profound)

fulminate

denounce thunderously; explode. Express vehement protest. *protest, declaim, censure, disparage, decry* Known for his fire and brimstone sermons, the preacher fulminated against sinners and backsliders,consigning them to the flames of hell. (hint: we denounce people that are full of themselves in today's society)

forsake

desert, abandon, renounce. No one expected Foster to forsake his wife and children and run off with another woman. *relinquish, disclaim, disavow, disown* (hint: if someone abandons someone else, someone might say for heaven's sake, why did they do that?)

fastidious

difficult to please; squeamish. Bobby was such a fastidious eater that he would eat a sandwich only if his mother first cut off every scrap of crust. *scrupulous, punctilious, painstaking, meticulous; perfectionist, fussy, finicky* (hint: someone that wants something done fast all the time is picky or fussy or difficult to please)

indistinguishable

difficult to tell apart; not able to be identified as different or distinct. "the counterfeit bills were virtually indistinguishable from the real thing" *identical*

enjoin

direct; order. instruct or encourage someone to do something. "the code enjoined members to trade fairly" (hint: to join something, you must go direct or order others or encourage others to do something)

faze

disconcert; dismay. No crisis could faze the resourceful hotel manager. *perturb, unnerve, daunt, rattle* (hint: a maze rattles someone)

flaunt

display ostentatiously. Mae West saw nothing wrong with showing off her considerable physical arms, saying "Honey, if you've got it, flaunt it!" (hint: taunting someone is really noticeable)

ferret

drive or hunt out of hiding. She ferreted out their secret. *unearth, discover, uncover* (hint: a ferret can unearth things by digging into things)

patsies

dupe; the victim of a scam. a person who is easily taken advantage of, especially by being cheated or blamed for something. (hint: patsy is someone that is a victim of a scam)

infiltrated

enter or gain access to (an organization, place, etc.) surreptitiously and gradually, especially in order to acquire secret information. "other areas of the establishment were infiltrated by fascists" *pervade, permeate*

gamut

entire range. In a classic put-down of actress Katharine, the critic wrote that the actress ran the gamut of emotions from A to B. (hint: during a game, you want to make sure that you play the entire range of the court) *range, spectrum, scope, span, extent, catalog*

fanaticism

excessive zeal. extreme devotion to a belief or cause. When Islamic fundamentalists demanded the death of Salman because his novel questioned their faith, world opinion condemned them for their fanaticism.

tumultuous

excited, confused, or disorderly. *tempestuous, stormy, turbulent, passionate, intense, explosive, violent, volatile,* The tumultuous crowd.

solipsistic

extreme ego-centrism. The self is the only existent thing. self involved. *egoism, subjectivity, self-containment* (hint: soley is just itself)

epochal

extremely important, significant, or influential. "As those who had planned it had hoped, his capture was to prove an epochal event-but in ways they had not envisaged." (hint: an apocalypse would be important or significant or influential on our world's survival)

founder

fail completely; sink. After hitting the submerged iceberg, the Titanic started taking in water rapidly and soon foundered. (hint: once someone fails completely and sinks in life, he will then have found the key to life)

feckless

feeble and ineffective; careless and irresponsible. Richard proved such a feckless ruler that Bolingbroke easily convinced parliament to elect him king in Richard's place. *useless, worthless, incompetent, inept, lazy, idle, slothful, indolent, irresponsible* (hint: freckles are useless or worthless, they don't do anything)

fraught

filled or charged with; causing emotional distress. "Parenting, like brain surgery, is now all consuming, fraught with anxiety, worry, and self doubt.We have allowed what used to be simple and natural to become bewildering and intimidating. *distraught, overwrought, antsy, desperate* (hint: if someone calls you a fraud, you'd be filled with emotional distress)

flaccid

flabby. His sedentary life had left him with flaccid muscles. *soft, loose, lax, flabby* (hint: think flat tire)

victuals

food or provisions; typically as prepared for consumption. The dogs had water and sampled the victuals at a doggie bar. (hint: someone that gets evicted and sent to jail has food that is made for them)

furor

frenzy; great excitement. The story of her embezzlement of the funds created a furor on the stock exchange. (hint: think fervor)

felicity

happiness; appropriateness. She wrote a note to the newlyweds wishing them great felicity in their wedded life. (hint: same as felicitous-appropriate) (hint: felix is always happy playing football because it is appropriate for him)

utilitarian

having a useful function. designed to be useful or practical rather than attractive. *practical, functional, pragmatic, serviceable, useful, sensible, efficient, utility, workaday, unadorned-(lacking decoration)* (hint: utilize something is using it because it has a useful function)

vacuous

having or showing a lack of thought or intelligence; mindless. *silly, inane, unintelligent, insipid, foolish, stupid, fatuous, idiotic, brainless, witless, vapid, vacant, empty-headed* (hint: a vacuum is empty)

judicious

having, showing, or done with good judgment or sense. *wise, sensible, prudent, politic, shrewd, astute, canny, sagacious, intelligent* (hint: judge judy has very good judgement)

falter

hesitate. When told to dive off the high board, she did not falter, but proceeded at once. *waver, vacillate, waffle*

firebrand

hothead; troublemaker. The police tried to keep track of all the local firebrands when the president came to town. *radical, revolutionary, agitator, incendiary, subversive, troublemaker* (hint: playing with fire is trouble)

gargantuan

huge; enormous. The gargantuan sandwich has just about everything you can imagine on it. (hint: think of herbs and gerbs)

fictitious

imaginary. Although this book purports to be a biography of george washington, many of the incidents are fictitious. *false, fake, sham, feigned, affected, bogus, spurious* (hint: fiction is imaginary or made up)

gamely

in a spirited manner; with courage. Because he had fought gamely against a much superior boxer, the crowd have him a standing ovation when he left the arena. *plucky* (hint: everyone should have courage and high spirits when playing a game)

foist

insert improperly. impose an unwelcome or unnecessary person or thing on someone or something. I will not permit you to foist such ridiculous ideas upon the membership of this group. (hint: imposing something improperly on someone is is saying that she is moist)

inculcate

instill (an attitude, idea, or habit) by persistent instruction. "the failures of the churches to inculcate a sense of moral responsibility" (hint: think putting something into your head)

figment

invention; imaginary thing. Was he hearing real voices in the night, or were they just a figment of his imagination? *invention, creation, fabrication; hallucination, illusion, delusion, fancy, vision* (hint: a wig is imaginary hair)

bromidic

lacking in originality; trite. ordinary and dull. *platitude, bromide, trite., cliche* (hint: bromide is a boring element in the periodic table)

frivolous

lacking in seriousness; self-indulgently care-free; relatively unimportant. Though Nancy enjoyed Bill's frivolous, lighthearted companionship, she sometimes wondered whether he could ever be serious. *glib, facetious, flippant, fatuous, inane, senselessness*

fallible

liable to error or making mistakes. *errant, imperfect, flawed* Although I am fallible, I feel confident that I am right this time.

faculty

mental or bodily powers; teaching staff. *reason, intelligence, capacity, facility, wherewithal* As he grew old, Professor Twiggly feared he might lose his faculties and become unfit to teach. However, while he was in full possession of his faculties, the school couldn't kick him off the faculty.

feral

not domestic, wild. Abandoned by their owners, dogs may revert to their feral state, roaming the woods in packs. *undomesticated, untamed, unrestrained* (hint: a parrot is wild in nature- lives in the jungle)

figurative

not literal, but metaphorically. using a figure of speech. To lose one's marbels is a figurative expression; if you're told that Jack has lost his marbels, no one expects you to go out and but him another set of marbels. *metaphorical, nonliteral, symbolic, allegorical, representative, emblematic*

bourgeois (boor-shwa)

of or characteristic of the middle class, typically with reference to its perceived materialistic values or conventional attitudes. *conventional, common place* "a rich, bored, bourgeois family"

municipal

of or relating to a city or town or its governing body. "land use is controlled by the municipal authorities" *civic, civil, metropolitan, urban, city, town, borough* (hint: a principal is in control over a body of people that are related in that town)

gazette

official periodical publication. He read the gazettes regularly for the announcement of his promotion. *bulletin, periodical, newspaper* (hint: old people gaze at newspapers and drink coffee)

garish

overly bright in color. obtrusively bright and showy; lurid. She wore a rhinestone necklace with a garish red and gold dress trimmed with sequins. *gaudy, lurid, brassy, showy*

faction

party, clique, dissension. The quarrels and bickering of the two small factions within the club disturbed the majority of the members. *cabal, group, coterie*

evanesce

pass out of sight, memory, or existence; disappear like vapor. Since she loved him with her whole heart, even though they haven't talked for 5 years, her memory of him did not evanesce. (hint: after a van leaves, it disappears out of sight and memory, fades away into the distance)

forbearance

patience. Be patient with John. Treat him with forbearance; he is still weak from his illness. *tolerance, patience, resignation, endurance, fortitude, stoicism; leniency, clemency, indulgence; restraint, self-restraint, self-control*

familial

pertaining to the family. Even though the younger generation had moved away from Michigan, they still maintained close familial ties, chatting regularly on FB and holding yearly family reunions. *hereditary, ancestral, brotherly*

picayune

petty; worthless; trivial and insignificant. "We have to answer this question at the macroscopic level, not by examining the learning of some picayune item." (hint: think decay and when something decays, it is usually worthless)

feasible

practical. Possible to do easily and conveniently; realistic. Is it feasible to build a new stadium for the Yankees on New York's west side? Without additional funding, the project is clearly unrealistic. (hint: a fee is realistic if you dont park right)

foreboding

premonition of evil. fearful apprehension. Suspecting no conspiracies against him, Caesar gently ridiculed his wife's forebodings about the ides of March. *trepidation, disquiet, unease, suspicion, misgiving* (hint: think foreboding evil)

feign

pretend. Lady Macbeth feigned illness in the courtyard although she was actually healthy. *fake, sham* (hint: foreigners pretend to be americans)

foray

raid. The company staged a midnight foray against the enemy outpost. *raid, attack, assault, incursion, swoop, strike, onslaught, sortie, sally, push, thrust* (hint: sounds like raid)

fester

rankle; produce irritation or resentment. Joe's insult festered in Anne's mind for days, and made her too angry to speak to him. (hint: think flustered)

foolhardy

rash. Don't be foolhardy. Get the advice from experience people before you take this venture. (hint: a fool thinks rashly)

foster

rear; encourage. According to the legend, Romulus and Remus were fostered by a she-wolf that raised the abandoned infants as her own. (hint: foster parents help the kid out)

forswear

renounce, abandon. The captured knight could only escape death if he agreed to forswear Christianity and embrace Islam as the one true faith. *forgo, repudiate, disavow, reject, renounce* (hint: swearing your going to do something and then abandoning it forever is not right)

disaffirm

repudiate; declare void. Contradict. "to disaffirm a contract is to say it never existed" (hint: affirming something is accepting it to be there whereas this is declaring something void or false)

redaction

revision or editing something. "They also proposed modifications for the redaction of the text." (hint: think to reduce by editing or revising something)

curt/churlish

rude in a mean-spirited or surly way. *rude, ill-mannered, ill-bred, discourteous, impolite, unmannerly, uncivil* (hint: curt is so short that it is impolite and churlish is a discourteous girl)

gaffe

social blunder. an unintentional act or remark causing embarrassment to its originator; a blunder. According to Miss Manners, to call your husband by your lover's name is worse than a mere gaffe; it is a tactical mistake. *slip, error, faux pas, indiscretion, impropriety, gaucherie, solecism* (hint: a giraffe may cause embarrassment to the owner if it does not behave properly)

fitful

spasmodic, intermittent. After several fitful attempts, he decided to postpone the start of the project until he felt more energetic. A few hours of fitful sleep caused him to be tired the next day. (hint: to stay fit you need to work out so much that you have an irregular schedule compared to the average person)

gawk

stare foolishly; look in open mouthed awe. The country boy gawked at the skyscrapers and the neon lights on the big city. *gape, gaze, stare* (hint: gAWk is to look at in awe)

provoked

stimulate or give rise to a reaction or emotion, typically a strong and unwelcome one, in someone. "the decision provoked a storm of protest from civil rights organizations" *kindle, engender, elicit, arouse, evoke, excite, induce, precipitate, instigate* (hint: to prove something, you need to give rise to your idea)

forte

strong point or special talent. I am not eager to play this rather serious role, for my forte is comedy.

catechize

teach by questioning. *interrogation* (hint: a tech can be taught on the job by questioning the employee to see if he is learning)

tenure

the conditions under which land or buildings are held or occupied. *incumbent, incumbency* "His tenure with the company"

frugality

thrift; economy. In economically hard times, anyone who doesn't learn to practice frugality risks bankruptcy. (hint: being fragile with money means to not spend a lot)

frustrate

thwart; defeat. Constant partisan bickering frustrated the governor's efforts to persuade the legislature to approve his proposed budget. (hint: being frustrated hinders you from other things)

inaugurate

to begin, to start, to commence. "he inaugurated a new policy of trade and exploration" (hint: an augur needs to be started before you can drill a hole in the ice)

liberate

to free.

circumvent

to get around by ingenuity. deceive or out wit. overcome (a problem or difficulty), typically in a clever and surreptitious way. "I found it quite easy to circumvent security" *bypass, dodge, evade* (hint: circumference is around)

feint

trick, shift, sham blow. pretended blow (usually in boxing or fencing) The boxer was fooled by his opponent's feint and dropped his guard. "a brief feint at the opponent's face" (hint: like feign)

unprovoked

uncalled for. (of an attack, or a display of aggression or emotion) not caused by anything done or said. "acts of unprovoked aggression" (hint: opposite of provoke)

impeccable/unsullied

untarnished; not spoiled or made impure. *spotless, untarnished, unblemished, unspoiled, untainted, impeccable, undamaged, unimpaired, stainless, immaculate, flawless, unflawed* "He has an unsullied reputation" (hint: not able to be pecked at will leave that object untarnished)