GregMAT Word List - 3

abate

(verb) make less active or intense

Synonyms : slack , slake

(verb) become less in amount or intensity

Synonyms : die away , let up , slack , slack off

Example Sentence

The storm abated

The rain let up after a few hours

rebate means discount... i.e reducing the price..

abate and rebate are rhyming words

abjure

(verb) formally reject or disavow a formerly held belief, usually under pressure

Synonyms : forswear , recant , resile , retract

Example Sentence

He retracted his earlier statements about his religion

She abjured her beliefs

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Abjure think it like injure. so once you are injured you will give up.

so abjure means give up

anomalous

(adj) deviating from the general or common order or type

Example Sentence

advanced forms of life may be anomalous in the universe

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anomalous means abnormal. Think of abnormal when you read the word anomalous

antipathy

(noun) a feeling of intense dislike

Synonyms : aversion , distaste

(noun) the object of a feeling of intense aversion; something to be avoided

Example Sentence

cats were his greatest antipathy

CAN REMEMBER IT AS OPPOSITE OF sympathy.

RHYMING n OPPOSITE WORDS - antipathy n sympathy

arcane

(adj) requiring secret or mysterious knowledge

Example Sentence

the arcane science of dowsing

improvising the first mnemonic.., Ar + Kane - Kane's face always remains secret, as he uses a mask.

arduous

(adj) characterized by effort to the point of exhaustion; especially physical effort

Synonyms : backbreaking , grueling , gruelling , hard , heavy , laborious , operose , punishing , toilsome

Example Sentence

worked their arduous way up the mining valley

a grueling campaign

hard labor

heavy work

heavy going

spent many laborious hours on the project

set a punishing pace

(adj) taxing to the utmost; testing powers of endurance

Synonyms : straining , strenuous

Example Sentence

his final, straining burst of speed

a strenuous task

your willingness after these six arduous days to remain here

(adj) difficult to accomplish; demanding considerable mental effort and skill

Example Sentence

the arduous work of preparing a dictionary

arduous = read it as: "hard to do for us"

artless

(adj) characterized by an inability to mask your feelings; not devious

Synonyms : ingenuous

Example Sentence

an ingenuous admission of responsibility

(adj) simple and natural; without cunning or deceit

Example Sentence

an artless manner

artless elegance

(adj) showing lack of art

Example Sentence

an artless translation

(adj) (of persons) lacking art or knowledge

Synonyms : uncultivated , uncultured

without the art of deception

ascetic

(noun) someone who practices self denial as a spiritual discipline

Synonyms : abstainer

(adj) pertaining to or characteristic of an ascetic or the practice of rigorous self-discipline

Synonyms : ascetical

Example Sentence

ascetic practices

(adj) practicing great self-denial

Synonyms : ascetical , austere , spartan

Example Sentence

Be systematically ascetic...do...something for no other reason than that you would rather not do it

a desert nomad's austere life

a spartan diet

a spartan existence

someone who leaves all AESTHETICs is an ascetic

assuage

(verb) cause to be more favorably inclined; gain the good will of

Synonyms : appease , conciliate , gentle , gruntle , lenify , mollify , pacify , placate

Example Sentence

She managed to mollify the angry customer

(verb) satisfy (thirst)

Synonyms : allay , quench , slake

Example Sentence

The cold water quenched his thirst

(verb) provide physical relief, as from pain

Synonyms : alleviate , palliate , relieve

Example Sentence

This pill will relieve your headaches

ass-usage in the toilet gives huge relief

betray

(verb) reveal unintentionally

Synonyms : bewray

Example Sentence

Her smile betrayed her true feelings

(verb) deliver to an enemy by treachery

Synonyms : sell

Example Sentence

Judas sold Jesus

The spy betrayed his country

(verb) disappoint, prove undependable to; abandon, forsake

Synonyms : fail

Example Sentence

His sense of smell failed him this time

His strength finally failed him

His children failed him in the crisis

(verb) be sexually unfaithful to one's partner in marriage

Synonyms : cheat , cheat on , cuckold , wander

Example Sentence

She cheats on her husband

Might her husband be wandering?

(verb) give away information about somebody

Synonyms : denounce , give away , grass , rat , shit , shop , snitch , stag , tell on

Example Sentence

He told on his classmate who had cheated on the exam

(verb) cause someone to believe an untruth

Synonyms : deceive , lead astray

Example Sentence

The insurance company deceived me when they told me they were covering my house

bet.+ray ..so a bet that was won by your friend by cheating you, so you are noW unfaithful about hIS NATURE, as his behaviour has left NO RAY OF HOPE.

bucolic

(noun) a country person

Synonyms : peasant , provincial

(noun) a short poem descriptive of rural or pastoral life

Synonyms : eclogue , idyl , idyll

(adj) (used with regard to idealized country life) idyllically rustic

Synonyms : arcadian , pastoral

Example Sentence

a country life of arcadian contentment

a pleasant bucolic scene

charming in its pastoral setting

rustic tranquility

(adj) relating to shepherds or herdsmen or devoted to raising sheep or cattle

Synonyms : pastoral

Example Sentence

pastoral seminomadic people

pastoral land

a pastoral economy

bucolic sounds a bit like bullock which is used in the "country side"...

burgeon

(verb) grow and flourish

Example Sentence

The burgeoning administration

The burgeoning population

Burge+on sounds like Bulge which means growing big

cacophonous

(adj) having an unpleasant sound

Synonyms : cacophonic

Example Sentence

as cacophonous as a henyard

caco sounds like cactus and phonous like phone. So kindly try to remember it like this...a phone with a cactus makes irritating sounds.

canonize

(verb) declare (a dead person) to be a saint

Synonyms : canonise , saint

Example Sentence

After he was shown to have performed a miracle, the priest was canonized

(verb) treat as a sacred person

Synonyms : canonise

Example Sentence

He canonizes women

CANON camera.......canonize means to glorify...when we take too many photos of a person by CANON camer, we GLORIFY him by printing those pictures in newspapers or uploading on internet...

censure

(noun) harsh criticism or disapproval

Synonyms : animadversion

(noun) the state of being excommunicated

Synonyms : exclusion , excommunication

(verb) rebuke formally

Synonyms : criminate , reprimand

Try to link the meaning of this word with the censor board which always critisizes every inch of the film and also disapproves of some of the parts.

chicanery

(noun) the use of tricks to deceive someone (usually to extract money from them)

Synonyms : chicane , guile , shenanigan , trickery , wile

chicanery sounds like shikari who uses means of deception to trick animals into his traps.

coalesce

(verb) mix together different elements

Synonyms : blend , combine , commingle , conflate , flux , fuse , immix , meld , merge , mix

Example Sentence

The colors blend well

(verb) fuse or cause to grow together

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coal- combination of wood and charcoal.

cogent

(adj) powerfully persuasive

Synonyms : telling , weighty

Example Sentence

a cogent argument

a telling presentation

a weighty argument

cogent - gent - a gentle person is always the right person to convince others.

compelling

(adj) driving or forcing

Example Sentence

compelling ambition

(adj) tending to persuade by forcefulness of argument

Example Sentence

new and compelling evidence

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compelling sounds like come yelling ..which is overpowering and also which gathers attention of everyone

contend

(verb) maintain or assert

Synonyms : postulate

Example Sentence

He contended that Communism had no future

(verb) have an argument about something

Synonyms : argue , debate , fence

(verb) to make the subject of dispute, contention, or litigation

Synonyms : contest , repugn

Example Sentence

They contested the outcome of the race

(verb) come to terms with

Synonyms : cope , deal , get by , grapple , make do , make out , manage

Example Sentence

We got by on just a gallon of gas

They made do on half a loaf of bread every day

(verb) compete for something; engage in a contest; measure oneself against others

Synonyms : compete , vie

(verb) be engaged in a fight; carry on a fight

Synonyms : fight , struggle

Example Sentence

the tribesmen fought each other

Siblings are always fighting

Militant groups are contending for control of the country

contend...sounds very similar to content....when the content of your essay is not good, you have less chances of COMPETEING WITH the other's essay.

copious

(adj) large in number or quantity (especially of discourse)

Synonyms : voluminous

Example Sentence

she took copious notes

a subject of voluminous legislation

(adj) affording an abundant supply

Synonyms : ample , plenteous , plentiful , rich

Example Sentence

had ample food for the party

copious provisions

food is plentiful

a plenteous grape harvest

a rich supply

By copying in an exam, some get a LOT of marks

cosmopolitan

(noun) a sophisticated person who has travelled in many countries

Synonyms : cosmopolite

(adj) growing or occurring in many parts of the world

Synonyms : widely distributed

Example Sentence

a cosmopolitan herb

cosmopolitan in distribution

(adj) composed of people from or at home in many parts of the world; especially not provincial in attitudes or interests

Example Sentence

his cosmopolitan benevolence impartially extended to all races and to all creeds

the ancient and cosmopolitan societies of Syria and Egypt

that queer, cosmopolitan, rather sinister crowd found around the Marseilles docks

(adj) of worldwide scope or applicability

Synonyms : ecumenical , general , oecumenical , universal , world-wide , worldwide

Example Sentence

an issue of cosmopolitan import

the shrewdest political and ecumenical comment of our time

universal experience

cosmos has variety

deference

(noun) a courteous expression (by word or deed) of esteem or regard

Synonyms : respect

Example Sentence

his deference to her wishes was very flattering

be sure to give my respects to the dean

(noun) courteous regard for people's feelings

Synonyms : respect , respectfulness

Example Sentence

in deference to your wishes

out of respect for his privacy

(noun) a disposition or tendency to yield to the will of others

Synonyms : complaisance , compliance , compliancy , obligingness

if there is no DIFFERENCE between you and him, then you will respect his wishes.

desultory

(adj) marked by lack of definite plan or regularity or purpose; jumping from one thing to another

Example Sentence

desultory thoughts

the desultory conversation characteristic of cocktail parties

De-result...Obviously a haphazard or desultory approach will result to nothing.

diffident

(adj) showing modest reserve

Example Sentence

she was diffident when offering a comment on the professor's lecture

(adj) lacking self-confidence

Synonyms : shy , timid , unsure

Example Sentence

stood in the doorway diffident and abashed

problems that call for bold not timid responses

a very unsure young man

diffident = difficult to be confident

dilatory

(adj) wasting time

Synonyms : laggard , pokey , poky

Extract 'late' from the word dilatory and you get.... delay which is generally due to waste of time.

equivocate

(verb) be deliberately ambiguous or unclear in order to mislead or withhold information

Synonyms : beat around the bush , palter , prevaricate , tergiversate

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equi(equal) vocal(sound)... if we make similar sounds then it would be ambiguous(unclear) to distinguish!!

polarize

(verb) cause to vibrate in a definite pattern

Synonyms : polarise

Example Sentence

polarize light waves

(verb) cause to concentrate about two conflicting or contrasting positions

Synonyms : polarise

(verb) become polarized in a conflict or contrasting situation

Synonyms : polarise

reminds of the two poles "N-Pole", "S-Pole" which is nothing but division of two extreme poles.

prodigal

(noun) a recklessly extravagant consumer

Synonyms : profligate , squanderer

(adj) recklessly wasteful

Synonyms : extravagant , profligate , spendthrift

Example Sentence

prodigal in their expenditures

prod(rodies) +gals(girls)=extravagance.

If you are with girls of rodies then you have to be extravagant..

verbose

(adj) using or containing too many words

Synonyms : long-winded , tedious , windy , wordy

Example Sentence

long-winded (or windy) speakers

verbose and ineffective instructional methods

newspapers of the day printed long wordy editorials

proceedings were delayed by wordy disputes

VER for verbal BOSE for boss; so you may say that your boss is excessively verbal.