GRE Vocab Groups 1-11

abound

plentiful / be present in large quantities (v)

amorphous

shapeless / lacking structure; unclear (adj)

austere (2)

strict / simple / (of a person) strict and stern in character (adj) / (of living conditions) lacking luxury; extremely harsh (adj)

belie

mask / give a false impression of (v)

capricious

volatile / having varying moods; fickle (adj)

cerebral (2)

intellectual / related to the brain / focused on learning rather than emotion (adj) / (adj)

congenial (2)

compatible / pleasing / (of a person) likable and friendly, often due to shared interests (adj) / (of a thing) enjoyable because it aligns with one's tendencies (adj)

conspicuous

obvious / easily noticed (adj)

cursory

hasty / lacking effort; without care (adj)

daunting

initimidating / scary or frightening; (of a task) seeming impossible (adj)

deify

worship / look up to someone or something as a god (v)

didactic

instructive sometimes condescending / meant for teaching; educational, sometimes in a condescending manner (adj)

disseminate

spread widely (v)

feasible

easily doable / likely to be achieved; practical (adj)

flout

openly disregard / break a rule without guilt (v)

homogeneous

uniform / composed of similar parts; alike (adj)

humdrum

monotonous / boring; unlikely to excite (adj)

insipid

bland / without flavor; lacking energy (adj)

loquacious

talkative / likely to talk a lot; wordy (adj)

misanthropic

dislike people / having a distaste for humans and society (adj)

misnomer

wrong name / a misleading or inaccurate name (n)

negligent

careless / lacking care or attention (adj)

obsequious

overly obedient / excessively submissive to authority (adj)

placate

appease / decrease someone's anger or other negative emotion (v)

proclivity

tendency / a fondness or liking for something (n)

puerile

childish / immature and childish (adj)

quixotic

unrealistic / excessively visionary; unfeasible (adj)

spendthrift

wasteful spender / someone who spends money recklessly (n)

taciturn

of few words; speaking little / of few words; speaking little (adj)

wary

cautious / exercising caution; careful (adj)

adulterate

corrupt / damage the quality of (v)

advocate (2)

support / supporter / be in favor of (v) / someone who supports a cause, organization, or person (n)

aggrandize

exaggerate status / enhance one's power or standing (v)

alacrity

eagerness / eagerness to do something (n)

ambivalent

conflicted / having conflicting emotions; unsure (adj)

ameliorate

improve / improve a bad feeling or bad situation (v)

amenable (2)

open / receptive / (of a person) receptive to change (adj) / (of a thing) responsive to (adj)

anachronistic

out of date / of the wrong time or era (adj)

audacious (2)

bold / disrespectful / unafraid of risks (adj) / rude; exhibiting disrespect (adj)

avaricious

greedy / always wanting more (adj)

banal

unoriginal / dull; lacking creativity (adj)

benign (2)

harmless / nice / harmless; having little effect (adj) / (of a person's character) kindhearted (adj)

brazen

bold / shameless and excessively forward (adj)

calumny

slander / defamation (n)

candid

honest / without deception (adj)

castigate

harshly scold / scold someone harshly (v)

caustic (2)

harsh speech / corrosive / (of speech) hostile and bitter (adj) / (of a chemical) corrosive; acidic (adj)

construe

understand something subjectively (v)

contrite

remorseful / feeling regretful or guilty (adj)

convoluted

complex / difficult to understand or follow (adj)

covet

greedily desire / strongly desire; yearn for (v)

craven

cowardly / lacking bravery; weak-kneed (adj)

decorum

etiquette / politeness and proper behavior (n)

deft

skillful / highly proficient; skilled (adj)

demur (2)

hesitate / hesitation / hesitate or object; express doubt (v) / hesitation (n)

derivative

unoriginal / based on someone else's work (often used in a negative sense) (adj)

desiccate

dry out / remove all moisture (v)

diatribe

rant / an angry rant; verbal abuse (n)

incredulous

skeptical / doubtful and disbelieving (adj)

ingenuous

innocent / naive and lacking experience (adj)

abate

decrease / decrease in intensity; lessen (v)

abjure

renounce / strongly reject (an idea); forgo (v)

anomalous

atypical / differing from what is normal (adj)

antipathy

hatred / profound hostility or hatred (n)

arcane

understood by few / comprehended by very few people; secret (adj)

arduous

strenuous / very challenging; needing great effort (adj)

artless (3)

naive / simple / unskilled / naive; inexperienced (adj) / plain and simple (adj) / lacking skill (adj)

ascetic (2)

strict / strict person / (of a lifestyle) very strict and lacking luxury (adj) / someone who adopts an ascetic lifestyle (n)

assuage (2)

soothe / fullfill a desire / decrease a negative feeling (v) / fulfill a certain desire (v)

betray

unintentionally reveal / unknowingly disclose or reveal (v)

bucolic

pleasantly rural / associated with tranquil rural life (adj)

burgeon

flourish / quickly increase or grow; skyrocket (v)

cacophonous

harsh sounding / extremely noisy; grating (adj)

canonize

glorify / treat like a god; deeply venerate (v)

censure

condemn / strongly criticize or disapprove (v)

chicanery

trickery / using deception to attain a certain goal (n)

coalesce

merge / bring elements together; unite (v)

cogent

convincing / persuasive and clear; compelling (adj)

compelling (2)

sound / captivating / persuasive and clear (adj) / attracting interest; fascinating (adj)

contend (3)

assert / compete / struggle / argue a certain point of view (v) / (v) / struggle or attempt to overcome something (v)

copious

plentiful / existing in great supply; abundant (adj)

cosmopolitan (2)

worldly / diverse / (of a person) sophisticated and urbane (adj) / (of a city) highly diverse (adj)

deference

respect / high regard and respect; esteem (n)

desultory

aimless / unplanned; without enthusiasm (adj)

diffident

shy / reserved or shy; without confidence (adj)

dilatory

delaying / slow and unhurried; meant to stall (adj)

equivocate

evasive speech / speak evasively or dishonestly; avoid taking a stance (v)

polarize

divide / separate into two opposing groups (v)

prodigal

wasteful / carelessly wasteful; extravagant (adj)

verbose

wordy / excessively talkative (adj)

abstain

avoid participating / avoid taking part in something (v)

approbation

approval / appreciation toward someone (n)

cherish

love / greatly love or protect something (v)

corroborate

support / lend support to; bolster (v)

disparate

different / contrasting (adj)

emulate

imitate / imitate someone or something (v)

enervate

tire out / sap the energy out of someone; fatigue (v)

ephemeral

short lived / extremely shortlasting (adj)

fervid

energetic / excessively energetic or eager (adj)

garrulous

annoyingly talkative / tending to talk too much; wordy (adj)