GRE Root Words

A, AN

Not, Without
atrophy: the wasting away of body tissue
atypical: not typical

AB

From, Away, Apart
abhor: to hate, detest
abdicate: to renounce or relinquish a throne
abstruse: hard to understand; secret, hidden

ABLE, IBLE

Capable Of, Worth Of
amenable: willing to respond to persuasion or suggestion

AC, ACR

Sharp, Sour, Bitter
acute: sharp at the end; ending in a point
acerbic: sour or astringent in taste, harsh in temper
exacerbate: to increase bitterness or violence
acrid: sharp or biting to the taste or smell
acrimonious: caustic, stinging, or bitter in nature

ACOU

Hearing
acoustic: of or relating to sound

AD, A

To
adept: good at, skillful

AMBI, AMPHI

Both, On Both Sides, Around
ambiguous: open to various interpretations

AMBL, AMBUL

Walk
ambient: moving freely, circulating

ANIM

Mind, Spirit
unanimous: in complete accord

ANT, ANTE

Before
antedate: precede in time

ANTI, ANT

Against, Opposite
antipathy: aversion

AQUA, AQUE

Water
aquatic: relating to water

ARD

Burn
ardor: fiery intensity of feeling

AUTO, AUT

Self
automatic: self-moving or self-activ

BEL

Beautiful
embellish: to make beautiful by ornamentation

BELL, BELLI

War
Belligerent: given to waging war

BEN

Well, Good
Benign: kindly disposition

BI, BIN

Two
bilateral: pertaining to or affecting both sides

BON, BOUN

Good, Generous
bonanza: source of great wealth or prosperity
bountiful: given freely and abundantly

BREV, BRID

Short, Small
abbreviate: to make shorter
abridge: to reduce the length of a text

BURS

Purse, Money
reimburse: return money

CARN

Flesh
carnival: travelling amusement show
incarnation: a being invested with a bodily form

CAUST

Burn, heat
caustic: capable of burning, corroding

CED, CESS

Yield, Go
antecedent: existing, being, or going before
incessant: without stop

CELER

Speed
accelerate: to increase speed

CENT

Hundred, Hundreth
centurion: commander of a century in the roman army

CHROM

Color
chromosome: threadlike linear strand of DNA

CIRCUM

Around
circuitous: roundabout, indirect

CO, COM, CON

With, Together
collide: to strike one another with a forceful impact
compatible: capable of existing together in harmony
conciliate: to placate, win over

CONTRA, CONTRO, COUNTER

Against
contrast: to set in opposition to emphasize differences

CORD, CARD

Heart
concord: agreement, peace
cardiac: pertaining to the heart

CORP, CORS

Body
corpulent: excessively fat

COSM

Order, Universe, World
microcosm: small representative system having analogies to a larger system

CRED

Trust, Believe
incredible: unbelievable

CRYPT

Hide
apocryphal: of doubtful authorship or authenticity

CULP

Fault, Blame
culpable: deserving blame or censure

CUMB, CUB

Lie Down
succumb: to give away to superior force, yield
recumbent: lying down, reclining

CYN, CAN

Dog
cynicism: attitude of scornful or jaded negativity

DE

Down, Out, Away From, Apart
delineate: sketch or trace in outline

DEL

Erase
deleterious: harmful, injurious

DEXT

Right Hand, Right Side
dexterity: skill or adroitness

DI

Day
diurnal: daily

DIA

Through, Across
dilatory: inclined to delay or procrastinate

DIC, DICT, DIT

Speak
interdict: to forbid, prohibit

DI, DIS

Away, Apart
diffuse: to pour out and spread, as a fluid
disperse: to send off in various directions

DOL

Grieve, Suffer Pain
doleful: sorrowful, mournful

DORM

Sleep
dormitory: room providing sleeping quarters for a number of persons

DORS

Back
endorse: to give support especially by public statement

DUC, DUCT

Lead
conducive: personal behaviour, a way of acting
abduct: to carry off

DULC

Sweet
dulcet: pleasing to the ear, melodious

DUR

Hard, Lasting
endure: to hold out against

E, EF, EX

Out, Former, Completely
evade: to escape from
efface: to rub or wipe out
exonerate: to declare free from blame

EGO

Self
egotist: self-centered person, selfish

EQU

Equal
iniquity: gross injustice

ERR

Wander
erratic: deviating from the proper course, or usual conduct

EU

Well, Good
euphemism: pleasant-sounding term for something unpleasant

FAL

Liable To Err To Deceive
fallacy: false notion

FATU

Foolish
fatuous: foolish or silly, in a smug, self-satisfied way

FERV

Boil
fervor: passion, zeal

FID, FI

Faith
confide: to entrust with a secret
fiduciary: given or held in trust

FLAGR, FULG, FULM

Burn, Shine
conflagration: large destructive fire

FLECT, FLEX

Bend, Turn
deflect: bend or turn aside from a purpose
genuflect: to bend knee

FUG

Flee
subterfuge: deceptive stratagem or device

FUM

Smoke
fumigation: applying smoke or vapor for disinfection

GEN

Birth, Class, Kin
congenital: existing or as such from birth

GNO, GNI, COGN, CONN

Know
ignore: refuse to take notice
recognize: to identify as already known
reconnaissance: act of scouting or exploring an area to gain information

GRAM, GRAPH

Write, Draw
epigram: short witty poem expressing a single thought or observation
demography: study of characteristics of human populations

GREG

Flock
gregarious: sociable

HAP

By Chance
haphazard: characterized by mere chance

HEMI

Half
hemisphere: half of a sphere

HETERO

Other, Different
heterodox: different from acknowledged standard

HOL

Whole
catholic: of broad or liberal scope, comprehensive

HOMO

Same
homogenous: uniform structure of composition throughout

HUM

Earth
humble: marked by meekness or modesty in behavior

ICON

Image, Idol
iconoclast: one who attacks and seeks to overthrow traditional or popular ideas or institutions

IM, IN

Not
impartial: not partial or biased
indolence: avoid exertion, slothful

IN, IM, I

In, On
intrinsic: belonging to a thing by its very nature
implicit: not expressly stated, implied

INTER

Between, Among
interloper: one who intrudes in the domain of others

INTRA

Inside, Within
intravenous: within or administered into a vein

IT, ITER

Go, Repeat
sedition: inciting rebellion
iterate: to say or perform again, repeat

JOC

Joke
jocular: given to joking

JOUR

Day
sojourn: a temporary stay

JUD

Judge
judgment: the act or process of judging

JUNCT, JUG

Join
junction: the act of combining
conjugal: relating to the relationship of spouses

JUR

To Swear
abjure: to renounce on oath

JUV

Young
rejuvenate: to restore youthful appearance or vigor

LAUD

Praise
plaudit: enthusiastic expression of praise or approval

LAV, LAU, LU

Wash
lavatory: room with equipment for washing
ablution: act of cleasing

LAX, LAK, LEASE, LES

Loose
laxative: stimulating evacuation of the bowels
release: to set free from confinement

LEG, LEC, LEX

Read, Speak
lecture: An earnest admonition or reproof
lexicon: dictionary

LEV

Lift, Light, Rise
alleviate: to make easier to endure, lessen

LIBER

Free
deliberate: Done with or marked by full consciousness of the nature and effects

LIG, LI

Tie, Bind
oblige: constrain by physical, legal, social, or moral means
liable: legally obligated or responsible

LING, LANG

Tongue
language: communication of thoughts and feelings through a system of arbitrary signals

LITH

Stone
monolith: large block of stone used in architecture or sculpture

LOG, LOQU

Speech, Thought
dialogue: conversation
eulogy: speech or writing in praise of someone

LUC, LUS

Light
lucid: easily understood
illustrious: highly distinguished

MACRO

Great, Long
macroscopic: large enough to be perceived or examined by the unaided eye

MAG, MAX, MAJ, MAS

Great, Big
magnify: to increase the apparent size of
maxim: expression of general truth or principal

MAL

Bad
malign: to slander