Terms in GRE difficult
learn list browse lists
| Word | Meaning | Context |
|---|---|---|
| abate | to lessen to subside | |
| abdication | giving up control authority | |
| abet | help/encourage sb (in doing wrong) | 1 |
| abeyance | suspended action | |
| abjure | promise or swear to give up | |
| abrogate | repeal or annul by authority | |
| abscond | to go away suddenly (to avoid arrest) | |
| accolade | praise approval | |
| accretion | the growing of separate things into one | |
| affable | polite and friendly | |
| agog | eager/excited | |
| alacrity | Bereitwilligkeit, Eifer | eager and cheerful readiness |
| allegiance | duty support loyalty | |
| alloy | to debase by mixing with something inferior | |
| apostate | one who abandons long-held religious or political convictions | |
| apotheosis | deification glorification to godliness | |
| apprise | give notice to inform | |
| ardor | enthusiasm | |
| arduous | steep difficult ascent laborious | |
| argot | jargon slang | |
| arrant | in the highest degree | |
| ascribe | consider to be the origin of or belonging to | |
| asperity | Schärfe, Schroffheit | |
| aspersion | slander | |
| assiduous | diligent hard-working sedulous | |
| assuage | make sth (pain desire) less | |
| astringent | substance that shrinks | |
| astute | clever quick at seeing to get an advantage | |
| audacious | dreist, kühn, mutig | daring foolishly bold impudent |
| auspicious | favorable successful prosperous | |
| austere | severely moral and strict simple and plain | |
| avid | eager greedy | |
| baneful | causing harm or ruin pernicious destructive | |
| belabor | beat hard | |
| berate | scold sharply | |
| blandishment | flattery coaxing | |
| blandness | polite manner comforting uninteresting | |
| blatant | noisy and rough | |
| bogus | sham counterfeit not genuine | |
| boisterous | loud noisy rough lacking restraint | |
| bolster | give greatly needed support | |
| boorish | crude offensive rude | |
| brash | hasty rush cheeky saucy | |
| brook | to tolerate endure | |
| cabal | a scheme or plot a group of plotters | |
| cadge | to beg to get by begging | |
| cajole | use flattery or deceit to persuade | |
| calumny | slander aspersion | |
| caustic | biting sarcastic | |
| chary | cautious wary | |
| chastened | corrected punished | |
| clinch | come to grips/settle conclusively | |
| coalescing | coming together and uniting into one substance | |
| coerce | compel to force to make obedient | |
| cogent | strong convincing | |
| collusion | secret agreement for a deceitful purpose | |
| concord | agreement or harmony | |
| concur | agree in opinion happen together | |
| condone | forgive | |
| congeal | make or become stiff and solid | |
| conjoin | to join together | |
| consequential | pompous self important | |
| console | give comfort or sympathy to | |
| conspicuous | easily seen remarkable | |
| consternation | surprise and fear dismay | |
| constrain | compel | |
| contentious | argumentative pugnacious combative quarrelsome | |
| contrite | filled with deep sorrow for wrongdoing | |
| contumacious | insubordinate rebellious | |
| conundrum | a riddle dilemma enigma | |
| cordon | line (of police acting as a guard) | |
| corroboration | additional strengthening evidence | |
| countenance | to favor or approve of | |
| covert | disguised | |
| cumbersome | burdensome heavy and awkward to carry | |
| curmudgeon | bad-tempered person | |
| cursory | quick hurried | |
| daunt | intimidate make fearful | |
| debacle | a breakup overthrow sudden disaster | |
| decorum | propriety properness | |
| decree | order given by authority | |
| decry | disapprove of | |
| defer | postpone give way (to show respect) | |
| deferential | showing respect | |
| defiance | open disobedience or resistance | |
| delineate | to portray depict sketch out | |
| deluge | great flood heavy rush of water | |
| demagogue | person appealing not to reasons | |
| demur | to hesitate raise objections | |
| denigrate | blacken belittle sully defame | |
| denouement | an outcome or solution the unraveling of a plot | |
| deplete | use until none remains | |
| deposition | dethronement depositing | |
| deprave | make morally bad corrupt, verderben | |
| deprecate | protest against express disapproval of | |
| dereliction | deserting and leaving to fall into ruins | |
| derision | ridicule mockery deriding | |
| derivative | unoriginal obtained from another source | |
| derogatory | insulting tending to damage | |
| descry | catch sight of see sth in the distance | |
| desiccant | substance used to absorb moisture | |
| desuetude | cessation of use disuse | |
| desultory | aimless haphazard digressing at random | |
| deter | discourage hinder | |
| detraction | slandering verbal attack aspersion | |
| detumescence | diminishing or lessening of swelling | |
| deviance | being different in moral standards (from normal) | |
| dexterity | skill (esp. in handling) | |
| diaphanous | transparent gauzy | |
| diatribe | bitter and violent attack in words | |
| diffidence | shyness | |
| dilate | speak comprehensively become wider large | |
| disallow | refuse to allow or accept as a correct | |
| discern | see with an effort but clearly | |
| discomfit | confuse embarrass | |
| disconcert | upset the self-possession of | |
| discountenance | refuse to approve of | |
| discourse | speech lecture | |
| discredit | refuse to believe | |
| discreet | careful/prudent | |
| discrete | individually distinct | |
| disdain | look on with contempt | |
| disencumber | free from encumbrance | |
| disheveled | untidy | |
| disingenuous | sophisticated artful trying to deceive cunning | |
| disinter | dig up from the earth | |
| dislodge | move force from the place occupied | |
| dismal | sad gloomy miserable | |
| disparate | essentially different | |
| disproof | proof to the contrary | |
| dissemble | speak or behave so as to hide sth (in mind) | |
| disseminate | distribute (esp. ideas) | |
| dissent | have a different opinion refuse to assent | |
| dissolution | disintegration looseness in morals | |
| distraught | distracted violently upset in mind | |
| divergence | getting farther apart from a point | |
| divestiture | taking off getting rid of giving up | |
| divulge | make known sth secret | |
| doggerel | trivial poorly constructed verse | |
| dogmatic | positive certain arbitrary without room for discussion | |
| dolt | stupid fellow | |
| dormant | in a state of inactivity but awaiting development | |
| dote | show much fondness center one\'s attention | |
| drawl | slow way of speaking | |
| droll | jesting | |
| drone | male bee person who isn\'t self-employed | |
| drowsiness | feeling sleepy half asleep | |
| dubious | feeling doubt | |
| dud | no use person sth that fails | |
| dulcet | melodious harmonious | |
| dupe | cheat make a fool of | |
| duplicity | deliberate deception | |
| duress | threats to compel sb | |
| dwarf | person or sb much below the usual size | |
| dynamo | a generator something that produces electric current | |
| earthenware | dishes made of baked clay | |
| ebullience | exuberance outburst of feeling | |
| ebullient | overflowing with enthusiasm showing excitement | |
| ecumenical | representing the whole Christian world | |
| edacious | voracious devouring | |
| eddy | circular or spiral movement (e.g.. of wind) | |
| edible | fit to be eaten/not poisonous | |
| effete | infertile worn out weak | |
| efficacy | production of a desired result | |
| effluvia | outflow in a stream of particles a noxious odor or vapor | |
| effrontery | boldness impudence arrogance | |
| egress | way out exit | |
| elaborate | worked out with much care in great detail | |
| elegy | a lament a melancholy composition | |
| elicit | draw out | |
| eloquence | fluent speaking skillful use of language | |
| emaciate | make thin and weak | |
| embellish | make beautiful | |
| embezzle | use in a wrong way for one\'s own benefit | |
| emote | stir up excite | |
| empirical | relying on experiment | |
| encapsulate | enclose in capsule | |
| encomium | warm or glowing praise eulogy panegyric | |
| encumbrance | burden things that get on the way of | |
| endearing | making dear or liked | |
| endemic | epidemic | |
| endorse | write one\'s name on the back of | |
| enduring | lasting | |
| enervate | weaken deprive of strength attenuate | |
| engender | cause produce give rise to | |
| engrave | impress deeply | |
| engrossing | taken up all the time or attention writing in large or formal | |
| engulf | swallow up | |
| enigma | sth that is puzzling | |
| enmity | hatred being an enemy | |
| ensign | flag/badge | |
| entangle | put into difficulties | |
| enthral | please greatly/enslave (fig) | |
| entice | tempt or persuade | |
| entreat | ask earnestly | |
| enunciate | pronounce (words)/express a theory | |
| enzyme | catalyst | |
| epicurean | devoted to pleasure (sensuous enjoyment) | |
| epistle | letter | |
| epithet | adjective | |
| epitome | brief summary representative example a typical model | |
| equable | steady regular | |
| equanimity | calmness of temperament | |
| equilibrium | state of being balanced | |
| equipoise | equal distribution of weight equilibrium | |
| equivocal | having a double or doubtful meaning suspicious | |
| equivocate | try to deceive by equivocal language | |
| eradicate | get rid of pull up by the roots | |
| erratic | irregular in behaviour or opinion | |
| erudite | learned scholarly | |
| eschew | avoid | |
| esoteric | abstruse intended only for a small circle of | |
| espouse | marry give one\'s support to | |
| eulogy | formal praise panegyric | |
| euphoria | elation state of pleasant excitement | |
| euthanasia | easy and painless death | |
| evasive | tending to evade | |
| evince | to show clearly to indicate | |
| evoke | call up bring out | |
| excoriation | severe criticism | |
| exculpate | to clear from a charge of guilt | |
| exhaustive | complete thorough | |
| exigency | emergency an urgent situation | |
| exoneration | set sb clear free (e.g.. from blame) | |
| exorbitant | much too high or great | |
| expatiate | to roam wander freely | |
| expedient | likely to be useful for a purpose | |
| expiation | ending expiring | |
| exploit | brilliant achievement develop use selfishly | |
| expostulate | argue earnestly to dissuade correct or protest | |
| expurgate | to remove obscenity purify censor | |
| exscind | to cut out cut away | |
| extant | still in existence | |
| extempore | without previous thought or preparation | |
| extenuate | reduce the strength of lessen seriousness partially excuse | |
| extinct | no longer active | |
| extinguish | end the existence of/wipe or put out | |
| extirpate | to destroy exterminate cut out exscind | |
| extol | praise highly | |
| extort | obtain by threats violence | |
| extralegal | outside the law | |
| extricable | that can be freed | |
| extrovert | cheerful person | |
| exuberance | state of growing vigorously being full of life | |
| facetious | humorous funny jocular | |
| facile | easily done | |
| fallacious | based on error | |
| falter | waver/move in an uncertain manner | |
| fatuous | without sense foolish self-satisfaction | |
| fawn | young deer try to win sb\'s favor | |
| feckless | lacking purpose or vitality ineffective careless | |
| fecund | fertile | |
| feint | pretend | |
| felicitous | appropriate, suitable | |
| felon | person guilty of murder | |
| ferment | substance become excited | |
| ferocity | savage cruelty | |
| ferret | discover by searching search | |
| fervid | showing earnest feeling | |
| fervor | warmth of feelings earnestness | |
| fetid | stinking | |
| fetter | to shackle put in chains | |
| feud | bitter quarrel over a long period of time | |
| fidelity | loyalty accuracy | |
| fidget | move restlessly make nervous | |
| abstemious | ( adj) Avoid enjoying too much | |
| finesse | delicate way of dealing with a situation | |
| finical | too fussy about food clothing etc. | |
| finicky | finical | |
| fission | splitting or division (esp. of cells) | |
| fixate | stare at | |
| flak | criticism/anti-aircraft guns | |
| flamboyant | brightly colored florid | |
| flaunting | show off complacently | |
| flax | pale yellow (hair) a plant | |
| fledged | able to fly trained experienced | |
| fleet | number of ships quick-moving | |
| flinch | draw move back wince | |
| flop | fail/move/fall clumsily | |
| florid | very much ornamented naturally red (e.g.. of face) | |
| flout | reject mock to go against (as in going against tradition) | |
| fluke | lucky stroke | |
| fluster | make nervous or confused | |
| foible | defect of character (a person is wrongly proud) | |
| foil | prevent from carrying out contrast | |
| foment | put sth warm (to lessen the pain) | |
| foolproof | impossible to mess up or fail | |
| foppish | like a man who pays too much attention to his clothes | |
| forage | food for horses and cattle | |
| forbear | refrain from be patient ancestor | |
| forbearance | patience willingness to wait | |
| ford | shallow place in a river (to cross) | |
| forestall | prevent by taking action in advance preempt | |
| forfeit | suffer the loss of sth | |
| forge | workshop for the shaping of metal to shape metal lead | |
| forgery | counterfeit | |
| forswear | etw. abschwören, auf etw. verzichten | renounce disallow repudiate |
| foster | nurture care for | |
| fracas | noisy quarrel | |
| fragile | easily injured broken or destroyed | |
| fragrant | sweet-smelling | |
| frantic | wildly excited with joy pain anxiety | |
| frenetic | fanatisch, fieberhaft | frantic, frenzied |
| fret | worry irritation wear away | |
| fringe | edge ornamental border part of hair over the forehead | |
| froward | intractable not willing to yield or comply stubborn | |
| frugal | careful economical | |
| fulmination | bitter protest | |
| fulsome | disgusting offensive due to excessiveness | |
| gainsay | ableugnen, wiedersprechen, abstreiten | |
| garble | make unfair selection from facts | |
| garment | article of clothing | |
| garner | to gather and save to store up | |
| garrulity | talkativeness | |
| garrulous | too talkative | |
| gaucherie | socially awkward tactless behavior | |
| germane | relevant pertinent to | |
| gist | the point general sense | |
| glean | gather facts in small quantities | |
| glib | ready and smooth but not sincere | |
| glimmer | weak/unsteady light | |
| gloat | over look at with selfish delight | |
| glut | supply to much fill to excess | |
| gnaw | waste away bite steadily | |
| goad | sth urging a person to action | |
| gorge | eat greedily/narrow opening with a stream | |
| gossamer | soft light delicate material | |
| gouge | tool for cutting grooves in wood | |
| grandiloquent | using pompous words | |
| grave | serious requiring consideration | |
| graze | touch or scrape lightly in passing | |
| gregarious | living in societies liking the company | |
| grievous | causing grief or pain serious dire grave | |
| grovel | crawl humble oneself | |
| guile | deceit cunning | |
| gullible | easily gulled | |
| gush | burst out suddenly/talk ardently | |
| gust | outburst of feeling sudden rain wind fire etc. | |
| hack | cut roughly hired horse | |
| halcyon | calm and peaceful | |
| hallow | to make holy consecrate | |
| harangue | a long passionate speech | |
| harbinger | sth or sb that foretells the coming of | |
| harrow | to distress create stress or torment | |
| haughty | arrogant conceited | |
| heed | attention/give notice to | |
| heinous | odious (of crime) | |
| heresy | belief contrary to what is generally accepted | |
| hermetic | sealed by fusion | |
| heterogeneous | made up of different kinds | |
| hew | make by hard work cut (by striking) | |
| highbrow | (person) with superior tastes | |
| hirsute | hairy shaggy | |
| hoax | mischievous trick played on sb for a joke | |
| hoi | polloi the masses the rabble | |
| hollow | not soled with hole | |
| holster | leather case for a pistol | |
| homiletics | act of preaching | |
| hone | stone used for sharpening tools | |
| hoodwink | trick mislead | |
| hospitable | liking to give hospitality | |
| hubris | arrogant pride | |
| hush | make or become silent | |
| husk | worthless outside part of anything | |
| hypocrisy | falsely making oneself appear to be good | |
| iconoclast | person who attacks popular beliefs | |
| idiosyncrasy | personal mannerism | |
| idolatry | excessive admiration of | |
| idyll | a carefree episode or experience | |
| ignoble | dishonorable common undignified | |
| ignominious | shameful dishonorable undignified disgraceful | |
| illicit | unlawful forbidden | |
| imbroglio | complicated and embarrassing situation | |
| immaculate | pure faultless | |
| imminent | likely to come or happen soon | |
| immutable | that cannot be changed | |
| impair | worsen diminish in value | |
| impassive | unmoved feeling no sign of passion | |
| impecunious | having little or no money | |
| impede | hinder get in the way of | |
| impediment | smth that hinders (e.g. stammer) | |
| impending | imminent being about to happen expected | |
| imperative | urgent essential | |
| imperious | commanding haughty arrogant | |
| impermeable | that cannot be permeated | |
| imperturbable | calm not capable of being excited | |
| impervious | not allowing to pass through (of materials) | |
| imperviousness | The capacity to withstand. | |
| impetuous | having sudden energy impulsive thrusting ahead forceful | |
| impiety | lack of reverence or dutifulness | |
| implacable | incapable of being placated unpleasable | |
| implicate | show that sb has a share | |
| implicit | implied though not plainly expressed | |
| implosion | collapse bursting inward | |
| importune | beg urgently solicit (of a prostitute) | |
| imprecation | an invocation of evil a curse | |
| impromptu | without preparation | |
| impudent | rash indiscreet | |
| impugn | anfechten, bestreiten | challenged to be doubted |
| impute | beimessen, anrechnen, unterstellen | |
| inadvertent | not paying proper attention | |
| inane | silly senseless | |
| inasmuch | since because | |
| incense | make angry | |
| incessant | often repeated continual | |
| inchoate | not yet fully formed rudimentary elementary | |
| incipient | beginning | |
| incise | engrave make a cut in | |
| incite | stir up rouse | |
| inclined | directing the mind in a certain direction | |
| incongruous | out of place not in harmony or agreement | |
| incorrigibility | cannot be cured or corrected | |
| incredulous | skeptical unwilling to believe | |
| inculcate | fix firmly by repetition | |
| incumbents | official duties | |
| incursion | a raid a sudden attack | |
| indefatigability | not easily exhaustible tirelessness | |
| indelible | that cannot be rubbed out | |
| indigence | poverty | |
| indigenous | native | |
| indistinct | not easily heard seen clearly marked | |
| indolence | laziness | |
| indomitable | not easily discouraged or subdued | |
| indulge | gratify give way to satisfy allow oneself | |
| indulgent | inclined to indulge | |
| ineffable | to great to be described in words | |
| ineluctable | certain inevitable | |
| inept | unskillful said or done at the wrong time | |
| ineptitude | quality of being unskillful | |
| inferno | hell | |
| infuriate | fill with fury or rage | |
| infuse | put pour fill | |
| ingenuous | naive young artless frank honest sincere | |
| ingest | take in by swallowing | |
| inimical | harmful or unfriendly | |
| inimitable | defying imitation unmatchable | |
| innocuous | causing no harm | |
| inscrutable | incapable of being discovered or understood | |
| insensible | unconscious unresponsive unaffected | |
| insinuate | make a way for sth. gently | |
| insipid | without taste or flavor | |
| insouciant | unconcerned carefree | |
| insularity | narrow-mindedness isolated | |
| insurrection | rising of people to open resistance to | |
| interdict | prohibit forbid | |
| interim | einstweilen, zeitweilig | |
| intersperse | place here and there | |
| intransigence | unwillingness to compromise stubbornness intractability | |
| intransigent | uncompromising | |
| intrepid | fearless brave undaunted | |
| introspection | examining one\'s own thoughts and feelings | |
| inundate | flood cover by overflowing | |
| inured | accustomed to adapted | |
| invective | abusive language curses | |
| inveigh | to attack verbally denounce deprecate | |
| inveterate | deep-rooted. long-established | |
| invincible | too strong to be defeated | |
| involute | verwickelt, verworren | complex |
| irascible | irritable easily angered | |
| irate | angry | |
| ire | anger | |
| irksome | tiresome | |
| irresolute | hesitating undecided | |
| irrevocable | final and unalterable | |
| itinerate | umherwandern | to travel from place to place, to peregrinate |
| jabber | talk excitedly utter rapidly | |
| jibe | gibe make fun of | |
| jocular | meant as a joke | |
| judicious | sound in judgment wise | |
| knit | draw together unite firmly | |
| labyrinthine | to entangle the state of affairs | |
| lachrymose | causing tears tearful | |
| lackluster | (of eyes) dull | |
| lament | show feel great sorrow | |
| lassitude | weariness tiredness | |
| latent | present but not yet active developed or visible | |
| laudatory | expressing or giving praise | |
| lavish | giving or producing freely liberally or generously | |
| legacy | smth handed down from ancestors | |
| levee | formal reception/embankment | |
| levity | lack of seriousness | |
| libel | statement that damages reputation | |
| liberality | free giving generosity | |
| libertine | immoral person | |
| lien | legal claim until a debt on it is repaid | |
| limn | paint portray | |
| limp | lacking strength walking unevenly | |
| lionize | treat as a famous person | |
| lithe | bending twisting | |
| loll | rest to sit or stand in a lazy way hang (dog\'s tongue) | |
| lope | move along with long strides | |
| loquacious | talkative garrulous | |
| lucubrate | write in scholarly fashion | |
| luculent | easily understood lucid clear | |
| lugubrious | mournful excessively sad | |
| lull | become quiet or less active | |
| lumber | move in a clumsy/noisy way | |
| luminary | star light-giving body | |
| lurk | be out of view ready to attack | |
| lustrous | being bright polished | |
| macabre | gruesome suggesting death | |
| macerate | make or become soft by soaking in water | |
| machination | plot scheme (esp. evil) | |
| maladroit | tactless clumsy | |
| malapropism | misuse of a word (for one that resembles it) | |
| malevolence | wishing to do evil | |
| malign | injurious speak ill of smb tell lie | |
| malinger | to fake illness or injury in order to shirk a duty | |
| malleable | yielding easily shaped moldable adapting | |
| manacle | chains for the hands or feet | |
| massacre | cruel killing of a large number of people | |
| matriculation | be admitted enter a university as a student | |
| maudlin | sentimental in a silly or tearful way | |
| maul | hurt by rough handling | |
| maverick | rebel nonconformist | |
| mellifluous | sweetly flowing | |
| mendacity | dishonesty | |
| mendicant | a beggar | |
| mercurial | quick changeable in character fleeting | |
| meretricious | attractive on the surface but of little value | |
| mesmerize | hypnotize | |
| meticulous | giving great attention to details | |
| mettle | quality of endurance or courage | |
| mettlesome | courageous high-spirited | |
| middling | fairly good but not very good | |
| minatory | bedrohlich | menacing threatening |
| mince | pronounce or speak affectedly euphemize | |
| misanthrope | person who hates mankind | |
| mischievous | harmful causing mischief | |
| miser | person who loves wealth and spends little | |
| misogynist | one who hates women/females | |
| moderation | quality of being limited not extreme | |
| mollify | make calmer or quieter | |
| molt | moult lose hair feathers before new growing | |
| morbid | diseased unhealthy (e.g.. about ideas) | |
| morose | ill-tempered unsocial | |
| muffler | cloth worn round the neck/silencer | |
| multifarious | varied motley greatly diversified | |
| mundane | worldly as opposed to spiritual commonplace everyday | |
| myriad | very great number | |
| nadir | lowest weakest point | |
| nascent | coming into existence emerging | |
| nebulous | cloud-like hazy vague indistinct | |
| negligent | taking too little care | |
| neophyte | person who has been converted to a belief | |
| nexus | a connection tie or link | |
| nibble | show some inclination to accept (an offer) | |
| noisome | offensive disgusting (smell) | |
| nonchalant | not having interest | |
| nonplused | greatly surprised | |
| nostrum | a quack remedy an untested cure | |
| noxious | harmful | |
| nugatory | trifling/worthless | |
| obdurate | hardened and unrepenting stubborn inflexible | |
| obfuscate | to darken make obscure muddle | |
| oblivious | unaware having no memory | |
| obloquy | abusively detractive language sharp criticism vituperation | |
| obsequious | too eager to obey or serve | |
| obstreperous | noisy loud | |
| obtain | auftreiben, erzielen, bekommen, herrschen | to be established accepted or customary |
| obtrusive | projecting prominent undesirably noticeable | |
| obtuse | blunt/stupid | |
| obviate | to make unnecessary get rid of | |
| occluded | blocked up | |
| odious | repulsive hateful | |
| odium | contempt dislike aversion | |
| odor | smell favor reputation | |
| officious | too eager or ready to help offer advice | |
| ominous | threatening | |
| onerous | needing effort burdensome | |
| opaqueness | dullness/not allowing light to pass through | |
| opprobrious | showing scorn or reproach | |
| ossify | to turn to bone to settle rigidly into an idea | |
| ostensible | scheinbar, anscheinend | seeming appearing as such professed |
| ostentation | display to obtain admiration or envy | |
| ostracism | shut out from society refuse to meet talk | |
| overhaul | examine thoroughly to learn about the condition | |
| overweening | presumptuously arrogant overbearing immoderate being a jerk | |
| paean | song of praise or triumph | |
| palate | roof of the mouth sense of taste | |
| palatial | magnificent | |
| palliate | lessen the severity of | |
| palpability | can be felt touched understood | |
| palpitate | tremble beat rapidly and irregularly | |
| panegyric | formal praise eulogy | |
| paradigm | a model example or pattern | |
| parenthesis | sentence within another one smth separated | |
| pariah | an outcast a rejected and despised person | |
| parsimonious | too economical miserly | |
| partisan | one-sided committed to a party biased or prejudiced | |
| patron | regular customer person who gives support | |
| paucity | scarcity a lacking of | |
| peccadillo | small sin small weakness in one\'s character | |
| pedantic | bookish showing off learning | |
| pedestrian | commonplace trite unremarkable | |
| pellucid | transparent easy to understand | |
| penchant | strong inclination a liking | |
| penitent | feeling or showing regret | |
| penurious | poor/stingy | |
| penury | extreme poverty | |
| peregrination | traveling about wandering | |
| peremptory | bestimmt, endgültig, unabweislich | urgent imperative unchallengeable ending debate |
| perfidious | treacherous faithless | |
| perfidy | treachery breaking of faith | |
| perfunctory | done as a duty without care | |
| perilous | dangerous | |
| peripatetic | wandering | |
| perish | be destroyed decay | |
| perjury | willful FALSE statement unlawful act | |
| permeate | spread into every part of | |
| pernicious | harmful injurious | |
| perpetrate | be guilty commit (a crime) | |
| personable | pleasing in appearance attractive | |
| perspicacity | quick judging and understanding | |
| pertain | belong as a part have reference | |
| pest | destructive thing or a person who is nuisance | |
| petrified | taken away power (to think feel act) | |
| petrify | to make hard rocklike | |
| petrous | like a rock hard stony | |
| petulant | unreasonably impatient | |
| philistine | a smug ignorant person one who lacks knowledge | |
| phlegmatic | calm sluggish temperament unemotional | |
| picaresque | involving clever rogues or adventurers | |
| pied | of mixed colors | |
| pinch | be too tight take between the thumb and finger | |
| pine | waste away through sorrow or illness | |
| pious | dutiful to parents devoted to religion | |
| piquant | agreeably pungent stimulating | |
| pique | hurt the pride or self-respect stir (curiosity) | |
| pitfall | covered hole as a trap unsuspected danger | |
| pith | essential part force soft liquid substance | |
| pivotal | of great importance (others depend on it) | |
| placate | soothe pacify calm | |
| plaintive | mournful melancholy sorrowful | |
| plaque | flat metal on a wall as a memorial | |
| platitude | a trite or banal statement unoriginality | |
| plea | request | |
| plead | address a court of law as an advocate | |
| plethora | glut | |
| pliant | pliable easily bent shaped or twisted | |
| plod | continue doing smth without resting | |
| pluck | pull the feathers off pick (e.g.. flowers) | |
| plumb | get to the root of | |
| plummet | fall plunge steeply | |
| plunge | move quickly suddenly and with force | |
| poignant | deeply moving keen | |
| poncho | large piece of cloth | |
| ponderous | heavy bulky dull | |
| portent | omen marvelous threatening | |
| precarious | uncertain risky dangerous | |
| precepts | rules establishing standards of conduct | |
| preclude | prevent make impossible | |
| precursory | preliminary anticipating | |
| predilection | special liking mental preference | |
| predominate | have more power than others | |
| preen | tidy/show self-satisfaction | |
| premature | doing or happening smth before the right time | |
| preponderance | greatness in number strength weight | |
| presage | warning sign | |
| presumption | arrogance | |
| preternatural | not normal or usual | |
| prevalent | common | |
| prevaricate | to equivocate to stray from the truth | |
| prim | neat formal | |
| pristine | primitive unspoiled pure as in earlier times unadulterated | |
| probity | uprightness incorruptibility principle | |
| proclivity | inclination | |
| procrastination | keeping on putting off | |
| prodigal | wasteful reckless with money | |
| prodigious | enormous wonderful | |
| profane | worldly having contempt for God | |
| profligacy | shameless immorality | |
| profligate | wasteful prodigal licentious extravagant | |
| profundity | depth | |
| profuse | abundant/lavish | |
| proliferate | grow reproduce by rapid multification | |
| prolix | tiring because too long | |
| prone | prostrate inclined to (undesirable things) | |
| propagation | increasing the number spreading extending | |
| propinquity | nearness in time or place affinity of nature | |
| propitiatory | conciliatory appeasing mitigating | |
| propitious | auspicious presenting favorable circumstances | |
| prosaic | everyday mundane commonplace trite pedestrian | |
| proscribe | ächten, verbieten, denounce as dangerous | |
| protracted | prolonged | |
| provident | frugal looking to the future | |
| provisional | of the present time only | |
| provoke | make angry vax | |
| prudence | careful forethought | |
| prudish | easily shocked excessively modest | |
| prune | dried plum silly person | |
| pry | get smth inquire too curiously | |
| pucker | wrinkle | |
| pugnacious | fond of in the habit of fighting | |
| puissance | strength | |
| punctilious | precise paying attention to trivialities | |
| pundit | pedant authority on a subject | |
| pungency | sharpness stinging quality | |
| purvey | provide supply | |
| pusillanimous | cowardly craven | |
| putrefaction | becoming rotten | |
| pyre | large pile of wood for burning | |
| quack | person dishonestly claiming to sth | |
| quaff | drink deeply | |
| quail | lose courage turn frightened | |
| qualm | feeling of doubt temporary feeling of sickness | |
| quandary | state of doubt or perplexity | |
| quell | suppress subdue | |
| quibble | try to avoid by sophistication | |
| quiescence | state of being passive/motionless | |
| quiescent | at rest dormant torpid | |
| quirk | habit or action peculiar to sb or sth | |
| quixotic | generous unselfish | |
| quotidian | banal everyday | |
| rabble | mob crowd the lower classes of populace | |
| raconteur | person who tells anecdotes | |
| raffish | low vulgar base tawdry | |
| ramify | to be divided or subdivided to branch out | |
| rancorous | feeling bitterness spitefulness | |
| rant | use extravagant language | |
| rapacious | greedy (esp for money) | |
| rarefy | to make thin to make less dense to purify or refine | |
| rave | act with excessive enthusiasm | |
| reactionary | opposing progress | |
| rebuff | snub | |
| recalcitrant | disobedient | |
| recant | take back as being FALSE give up | |
| recast | cast or fashion anew | |
| recidivism | relapse into antisocial or criminal behavior | |
| reciprocity | granting of privileges in return for similar | |
| recitals | a number of performance of music | |
| recluse | person who lives alone and avoids people | |
| recompense | make payment to reward punish | |
| reconcile | settle a quarrel restore peace | |
| recondite | little known abstruse | |
| recreancy | cowardice a cowardly giving up | |
| recuperate | become strong after illness loss exhaustion | |
| redeem | get back by payment compensate | |
| redoubtable | formidable causing fear | |
| refine | make or become pure cultural | |
| refractory | stubborn unmanageable untractable | |
| refulgent | shining brilliant | |
| regale | to delight or entertain to feast | |
| regicide | crime of killing a king | |
| reiterate | say or do again several times | |
| rejuvenation | becoming young in nature or appearance | |
| relapse | fall back again | |
| remonstrate | to protest object | |
| render | deliver provide represent | |
| renovate | restore sth to better condition | |
| renowned | celebrated famous | |
| repast | meal | |
| repel | refuse to accept/cause dislike | |
| repine | at be discontented with | |
| reproach | scold upbraid | |
| reprobate | person hardened in sin one devoid of decency | |
| repudiate | disown refuse to accept or pay | |
| repulsive | causing a feeling of disgust | |
| requite | repay give in return | |
| rescind | repeal/annul/cancel | |
| resigned | unresisting submissive | |
| resilience | quality of quickly recovering the original shape | |
| resort | to frequently visit | |
| restive | refusing to move reluctant to be controlled | |
| resuscitation | coming back to consciousness | |
| retard | check hinder | |
| reticent | reserved untalkative silent taciturn | |
| revere | have deep respect for | |
| reverent | feeling or showing deep respect | |
| riddle | puzzling person or thing | |
| rift | split crack dissension | |
| rivet | fix take up secure metal pin | |
| roll | call calling of names | |
| rotund | rich and deep plump and round | |
| ruffian | violent cruel man | |
| rumple | make rough | |
| sagacious | having sound judgment perceptive wise like a sage | |
| salacious | obscene | |
| salubrious | healthful | |
| salutary | remedial wholesome causing improvement | |
| sanctimony | self-righteousness hypocritical with FALSE piety | |
| sanction | approval (by authority) penalty | |
| sanguine | cheerful confident optimistic | |
| sanity | health of mind soundness of judgement | |
| sash | long strip worn round the waist | |
| satiate | satisfy fully | |
| saturnine | gloomy dark sullen morose | |
| savant | person of great learning | |
| savor | taste flavor smth | |
| sawdust | tiny bits of wood | |
| scabbard | sheath for the blade | |
| scent | smell (esp pleasant) | |
| scorch | become discolored/dry up/go at high speed | |
| scribble | write hastily | |
| scurvy | mean contemptible | |
| secular | material (not spiritual) living outside monasteries | |
| sedulous | persevering | |
| seminal | like a seed constituting a source originative | |
| sententious | short and pithy full of maxims/proverbs | |
| sequence | succession connected line of | |
| sere | make hard and without feeling | |
| sermon | reproving a person for his faults | |
| serrated | having a toothed edge | |
| serration | having a toothed edge | |
| servile | like a slave lacking independence | |
| sever | break off | |
| severance | severing | |
| shallow | little depth not earnest | |
| shard | piece of broken earthenware | |
| sheath | cover for the blade of a weapon or a tool | |
| shrewd | astute showing sound judgement | |
| shrill | sharp piercing | |
| shun | keep away from avoid | |
| shunt | send from one track to another lay aside evade discussion | |
| sidestep | step to one side | |
| simper | (give a) silly/self-conscious smile | |
| sinuous | winding undulating serpentine | |
| skiff | small boat | |
| skit | short piece of humorous writing | |
| slack | sluggish dull not tight | |
| slake | to assuage to satisfy allay | |
| slate | king of blue-grey stone propose criticize | |
| sluggard | lazy slow-moving person | |
| slur | join sounds/words (indistinct) | |
| smolder | burn slowly without flame | |
| snare | trap | |
| snub | treat with contempt | |
| soar | rise fly high | |
| sober | self-controlled | |
| sobriety | quality or condition of being sober | |
| sodden | soaked saturated | |
| soggy | heavy with water | |
| solvent | of the power of forming a solution | |
| somatic | of the body | |
| soot | black powder in smoke | |
| sophisticated | complex subtle refined | |
| sophistry | fallacious reasoning faulty logic | |
| sophomoric | self-assured though immature affected bombastic overblown | |
| soporific | producing sleep | |
| sordid | wretched comfortless contemptible | |
| spear | weapon with a metal point on a long shaft | |
| specious | illogical of questionable truth or merit | |
| splenetic | bad-tempered irritable | |
| splice | join (two ends) | |
| sponge | porous rubber for washing live at once expense | |
| spurious | FALSE counterfeit | |
| spurn | have nothing to do reject or refuse | |
| squalid | foul filthy | |
| squander | spend wastefully | |
| squat | crouch/settle without permission | |
| stanch | to stop the flow of a fluid | |
| steeply | rising or falling sharply | |
| stentorian | extremely loud and powerful | |
| stickler | person who insists on importance of smth | |
| stigma | mark of shame or disgrace | |
| stigmatize | describe sb scornfully | |
| sting | sth sharp | |
| stingy | spending using unwillingly | |
| stint | to be thrifty to set limits | |
| stipple | paint with dots | |
| stipulate | state or put forward as a necessary condition | |
| stolid | showing no emotion impassive | |
| stray | wander lose one\'s way | |
| streak | long thin move very fast | |
| striated | striped grooved or banded | |
| stride | walk with long steps | |
| strut | a supporting bar | |
| stygian | hence dark gloomy | |
| stymie | to hinder obstruct or block | |
| subdue | overcome bring under control | |
| sublime | extreme astounding | |
| submerge | put under water liquid sink out of sight | |
| suborn | induce by bribery or smth to commit perjury | |
| subpoena | written order requiring a person to appear in a low court | |
| substantiation | giving facts to support (statement) | |
| subsume | include under a rule | |
| succor | assistance relief in time of distress | |
| suffice | be enough | |
| suffocate | cause or have difficulty in breathing | |
| sullied | to be stained or discredited | |
| summarily | briefly without delay | |
| sumptuous | magnificent | |
| sundry | various miscellaneous separate | |
| supercilious | disdainful characterized by haughty scorn | |
| superfluous | more then is needed or wanted | |
| superimpose | put smth on the top | |
| supersede | take the place of | |
| supine | lying on the back slow to act passive | |
| suppliant | asking humbly beseeching | |
| supplicate | make a humble petition to | |
| suppress | prevent from being known put an end to | |
| surcharge | additional load/charge | |
| surfeit | satiate feed to fulness or to excess | |
| susceptibility | sensitiveness | |
| swerve | change direction suddenly | |
| sycophant | person who flatter to the rich and powerful | |
| synopsis | summary or outline | |
| taciturn | untalkative silent | |
| tadpole | form of a frog when it leaves the egg | |
| talon | claw of a bird of prey | |
| tamp | tap or drive down by repeated light blows | |
| tamper | interfere with | |
| tangential | suddenly changeable | |
| tarnished | lost brightness | |
| tassel | bunch of threads | |
| taunt | contemptuous reproach hurtful remark | |
| taut | tightly stretched | |
| tautology | a repetition a redundancy | |
| tawdry | cheap gaudy showy tacky | |
| teetotal | oppose to alcohol | |
| temerity | boldness brashness intrepidness | |
| temperance | abstinence from alcohol self-control moderation | |
| temperate | showing self-control | |
| tenacity | firmness persistency adhesiveness tending to hang on | |
| tenuous | insubstantial flimsy weak | |
| tepid | lukewarm | |
| terse | brief and to the point | |
| testiness | witness/evidence | |
| thrift | care economy thriving prosperous | |
| thwart | obstruct/frustrate | |
| timid | shy easily frightened | |
| timorous | fearful timid afraid | |
| toady | obsequious flatterer | |
| tonic | sth giving strength or energy | |
| topple | be unsteady and overturn | |
| torment | severe pain or suffering | |
| torpid | sleeping sluggish lethargic dormant | |
| torque | twisting force causing rotation | |
| tortuous | devious/not straightforward | |
| tout | person who worries others to buy sth to use his service | |
| tractable | easily controlled or guided | |
| transgress | break go beyond (a limit) | |
| transient | temporary fleeting | |
| transitory | brief | |
| travesty | parody/imitation | |
| trenchant | forceful effective vigorous extremely perceptive incisive | |
| trepidation | alarm excited state of mind | |
| trickle | flow in drops | |
| trifling | unimportant | |
| trite | not new | |
| truce | (agreement) stop of fighting for a time | |
| truculence | aggressiveness ferocity | |
| trudge | walk heavily | |
| turbid | muddy having the sediment stirred up | |
| turbulence | being uncontrolled violent | |
| turgid | excessively ornate swollen or bloated | |
| turmoil | trouble disturbance | |
| turpitude | wickedness shamefulness | |
| turquoise | greenish-blue precious stone | |
| tyro | tiro beginner | |
| ubiquitous | present everywhere | |
| ulterior | situated beyond | |
| umbrage | offense resentment | |
| uncouth | rough awkward | |
| underbid | make a lower bid then sb else | |
| undermine | weaken gradually at the base make sth under | |
| undulate | to move in wavelike fashion fluctuate | |
| unearth | discover and bring to light | |
| unencumbered | easy-going trifle | |
| unfeigned | not pretended sincere | |
| unscathed | unharmed unhurt | |
| untoward | unfortunate inconvenient | |
| upbraid | scold reproach | |
| urbane | elegant refined in manners | |
| vacillation | being uncertain hesitating | |
| vagary | strange act or idea | |
| vain | without use result conceited | |
| valiant | brave | |
| valorous | brave | |
| vanquish | conquer | |
| veer | change direction | |
| venal | ready to do sth dishonest | |
| veneer | surface appearance covering the TRUE nature | |
| veneration | regard with deep respect | |
| veracity | truth | |
| verdant | fresh and green | |
| verisimilitude | appearing TRUE or real | |
| veritable | real rightly named | |
| verve | spirit vigor enthusiasm | |
| vestige | trace or sign | |
| vex | annoy distress trouble | |
| vigilance | watchfulness self-appointed group who maintain order | |
| vigilant | member of a vigilance committee | |
| vigorous | strong energetic | |
| vilify | slander say evil things | |
| vindictive | having a desire to revenge | |
| virago | a loud domineering woman a scold or nag | |
| visceral | of the internal organs of the body | |
| viscous | sticky/semi-fluid | |
| vitiate | lower the quality weaken the strength | |
| vituperate | curse abuse in words | |
| vivacious | lively high-spirited | |
| volatile | changeable inconstant fickle unstable explosive | |
| volubility | fluency verbosity easy use of spoken language | |
| voluble | fluent | |
| waffle | talk vaguely and without much result | |
| waft | scent waving movement carry lightly through | |
| wag | merry person | |
| warmonger | person who stirs up war | |
| warrant | authority written order guarantee | |
| wean | to turn away (from a habit) | |
| weigh | measure hoe heavy sth is | |
| welter | turmoil a bewildering jumble | |
| wend | to go proceed | |
| whimsical | full of odd and fanciful ideas | |
| wince | show bodily or mental pain | |
| woo | try to win | |
| writ | written order | |
| yarn | tale story fibers for knitting |
learn list browse lists