GRE/CAT VOCABULARY LIST 24

GRE/CAT VOCABULARY LIST 24

dilettante = aimless follower of an art or a field of knowledge
(not taking it seriously); amateur; dabbler; CF. delight
assurance = firm statement that something is certainly
true; promise or pledge; certainty; confidence in one.s
own ability; self-confidence; Ex. In spite of all his assurances,
he did not come back; Ex. assurance of his
loyalty; Ex. The teacher lacked assurance in fron of
his class; V. assure; tell firmly with confidence; ensure;
make (something) certain to heappen; make (someone)
feel sure; give confidence to; ADJ. assured: self-assured;
confident in one.s own ability; showing certainty
inordinate = beyond reasonable limits; unrestrained; excessive;
Ex. inordinate demands
macabre = gruesome; grisly; ghastly; CF. of death
commemorate = honor the memory of; serve as a memorial
to; Ex. commemorate the 100th anniversary/those
who died in the war
belabor = harp on; dwell on tediously; explain or go over
excessively or to a ridiculous degree; assail verbally;
beat severely; attack physically
quiescent = dormant; temporarily inactive; at rest; N. quiescence
complacency = self-satisfaction; smugness; ADJ. complacent
confiscate = seize; take possession of (private property)
by official order (usu. as a punishment); commandeer
hierarchy = arrangement by rank or standing; authoritarian
body divided into ranks; body of persons having authority
notable = conspicuous; worthy of note; remarkable; important;
distinguished; noted
shard = fragment generally of broken pottery (glass, clay
bowl, or cup)
abase = lower; degrade; humiliate; make humble; make
(oneself) lose self-respect
nonchalance = indifference; lack of concern; composure;
ADJ. nonchalant: unconcerned; cool; indifferent; Ex.
nonchalant attitude to his debts
bargain = agreement between two groups or people;
something for sale at a price advantageous to the buyer;
V: negotiate; trade; Ex. bargaining power
appellation = name; title
awry = distorted; crooked; bent; Ex. Our plans have gone
awry.
diversion = act of turning aside; pastime; V. divert: turn
aside from a course; distract; amuse
retrieve = recover; put right; find and bring in; regain; Ex.
retrieve the situation
baffle = frustrate; perplex
bluff = pretense (of strength); deception; high cliff; ADJ:
rough but good-natured
trunk = main wooden stem of a tree; human body excluding
the head and limbs; torso; prehensile nose of an elephant
blas´e = bored with pleasure or dissipation; uninterested
or bored
sophist = teacher of philosophy; quibbler; employer of
fallacious reasoning; N. sophism: plausible but fallacious
argument
dire = warning of disaster; disastrous; (of needs and dangers)
very great; urgent; Ex. dire prediction/need of
food
sextant = navigation tool used to determine a ship.s latitude
and longitude (by measuring the altitudes of stars)
prudent = cautious; careful; prudential
seamy = sordid; base; filthy; unwholesome; Ex. seamy
side of city life
constituency = voters represented by an elected official;
district so represented; group of supporters (or constituents)
hindmost = furthest behind; farthest to the rear
bog = soft wet land; V: hinder or be hindered; Ex. bogged
down in the mud
recluse = hermit; loner; ADJ. reclusive
ventilate = admit fresh air into to replace stale air
constraint = restraint; compulsion; repression of feelings;
reticence; V. constrain: hold back; restrain; compel;
oblige; confine forcibly; imprison
horde = crowd; swarm
pandemonium = wild tumult(commotion); wild noisy
disorder; CF. Paradise Lost
impropriety = improperness; unsuitableness
ostracize = banish from a group; exclude from public favor;
ban; Ex. His friends ostracized him. N. ostracism
ravine = narrow valley with steep sides; gorge; CF. gully,
canyon
vigilant = watchful; on the alert; watchfully awake; alert
to spot danger; N. vigilance
sway = swing from side to side; influence (someone) to
change one.s opinion; N.
ascertain = find out for certain; make certain
eccentric = irregular; odd; unconventional; whimsical;
bizarre; not concentric
rasp = (of a sound) grate on (eg. nerves); make a harsh
noise; have an unpleasant effect; rub with something
rough; Ex. The cat.s tongue rasped my hand.
recast = reconstruct (a sentence, story, statue, etc.); fashion
again
effervescence = inner excitement or exuberance; showing
high spirits; emitting bubbles forming inside; bubbling
from fermentation or carbonation; ADJ. effervescent; V.
effervesce
succumb = yield (to something overwhelming); give in;
die; Ex. succumb to the illness
encipher = encode; convert a message into code; put into
cipher
complaisant = trying to please; obliging; willing to please
others
negligible = so small, trifling, or unimportant as to be
easily disregarded
import = significance; importance; meaning
disinclination = unwillingness
scale = climb up; ascend; remove or come off in scales;
N: flake of epidermis; ascending or descending series of
musical tones




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