Study List GRE Vocabulary

Abject wretched; lacking pride Abjure renounce upon oath Ablution washing Abnegation renunciation; self-sacrifice Abrogate abolish Abscission cutting off; separation Abstemious sparing in eating and drinking; temporate Abstruse obscure; profound; difficult to understand Abut border upon; adjoin Accede agree Acclivity sharp upslope of a hill Acme peak; pinnacle; highest point Actuarial calculating; pertaining to insurance statistics Addle muddle; drive crazy; become rotten Adjunct something added or attached Adjuration solemn urging Adjutant staff officer assisting the commander; assistant Adulation flattery; admiration Advent arrival Adventitious accidental; casual Advert refer Aegis shield; defense Aerie nest of a large bird of prey Affable easily approachable; warmly friendly Agog highly excited; intensely curious Alacrity cheerful promptness; eagerness Alimentary supplying nourishment Alloy mix; make less pure; lessen or moderate Alluvial pertaining to soil deposits left by running water Amalgamate combine; unite in one body Ameliorate improve Amenable readily managed or willing to be led; accountable legally Amity friendship Anachronism something or someone misplaced in time Anathema solemn curse; someone or something regarded as a curse Ancillary serving as an aid or accessory; auxiliary Animadversion critical remark Animus hostile feeling or intent Anneal reduce brittleness and improve toughness by heating and cooling Anodyne drug that relieves pain; opiate Antecede precede Antediluvian antiquated; extremely ancient Anthropoid manlike

Anthropomorphic having human form or characteristics Aphasia loss of speech due to injury or illness Ape imitate or mimic Aplomb poise; assurance Apocryphal untrue; made up Apogee highest point Apologist one who writes in defense of a cause or institution Apostate one who abandons his religious faith or political beliefs Apothegm pithy, compact saying Apotheosis elevation to godhood; an ideal example of something Application diligent attention Apposite appropriate; fitting Arcane secret; mysterious; known only to the initiated Array marshal; draw up in order Arrears being in debt Arroyo gully Artifice deception; trickery Artless without guile; open and honest Ascendancy controlling influence Ascetic practicing self-denial; austere Asperity sharpness (of temper) Aspersion slanderous remark Aspirant seeker after position or status Assay analyze; evaluate Assiduous diligent Astute wise; shrewd; keen Atavism resemblance to remote ancestors rather than to parents; throwback Attenuate make thin; weaken Aureole sun’s corona; halo Auroral pertaining to the aurora borealis Austere forbiddingly stern; severely simple and unornamented Automaton mechanism that imitates actions of humans Aver state confidently Avocation secondary or minor occupation Avuncular like an uncle Badinage teasing conversation Baleful deadly; having a malign influence; ominous Banal hackneyed; commonplace; trite; lacking originality Bate let down; restrain Beatitude blessedness; state of bliss Bedizen dress with vulgar finery Bedraggle wet thoroughly Beleaguer besiege or attack Bellicose warlike Bemused confused; lost in thought; preoccupied Benison blessing

Betoken signify; indicate Bifurcated divided into two branches; forked Bilious suffering from indigestion; irritable Bivouac temporary encampment Blandishment flattery Blighted suffering from a disease; destroyed Blithe gay; joyous Bluff rough but good-natured Bombastic pompous; using inflated language Bowdlerize expurgate Brackish somewhat saline Brindled tawny or grayish with steaks or spots Brocade rich, figured fabric Brook tolerate; endure Bucolic rustic; pastoral Buffet slap; batter; knock about Bugaboo bugbear; object of baseless terror Bulwark earthwork or other strong defense; person who defends Burnish make shiny by rubbing; polish Cabal small group of persons secretly united to promote their interests Cadence rhythmic rise and fall; beat Callow youthful; immature; inexperienced Calorific heat-producing Calumny malicious misrepresentation; slander Cameo shell or jewel carved in relief Canard unfounded rumor; exaggerated report Cant insincere expressions of piety; jargon of thieves Capitulate surrender Captious fault finding Carapace shell covering the back Carillon a set of bells capable of being played Cataclysm deluge; upheaval Cataract great waterfall Caulk make watertight Cavil make frivolous objections Celerity speed; rapidity Centripetal tending toward the center Chaffing bantering; joking Charlatan quack; pretender of knowledge Chary cautious; sparing or restrained about giving Chimerical fantastically improbable; highly unrealistic; imaginative Churlish boorish; rude Circuitous roundabout Circumlocution indirect or roundabout expression Clamber climb by crawling Clandestine secret

Clarion shrill, trumpetlike sound Cleft split Clemency disposition to be lenient; mildness (weather) Cloying distasteful (because excessive); excessively sweet or sentimental Coalesce combine; fuse Coda concluding section of a musical or literal composition Codicil supplement to the body of a will Coeval living at the same time as; contemporary Cogent convincing Cogitate think over Cognate similar or akin in nature; allied by blood; related linguistically Collation a light meal Colloquy informal discussion Comestible fit to be eaten Comity courtesy; civility Complacency self-satisfaction; smugness Complaisant trying to please; obliging Complicity participation; involvement Compunction remorse Concatenate link as in a chain Concomitant that which accompanies Concord harmony Condign adequate; deservedly severe Conflagration great fire Confluence flowing together; crowd Congenital existing at birth Connubial pertaining to marriage or the matrimonial state Consanguinity kinship Consequential pompous; self-important Conservatory school of fine arts (esp. drama) Consign deliver officially; entrust; set apart Consonance harmony; agreement Consummate complete Contiguous adjacent to; touching upon Continence self-restraint; sexual chastity Contravene contradict; oppose; infringe on or transgress Contrite penitent Controvert oppose with arguments; attempt to refute Contumacious disobedient; resisting authority Conversant familiar with Convex curving outward Convivial festive; gay; characterized by joviality Convoke call together Cordon extended line of men or fortifications to prevent access or egress Cornice projecting molding on building Coterie group that meets socially; select circle

Countenance approve; tolerate Countermand cancel; revoke Cow terrorize; intimidate Cozen cheat; hoodwink; swindle Credence belief Crotchety eccentric; whimsical Cull pick out; reject Culvert artificial channel for water Cupidity greed Cursive flowing; running Cynosure object of general attention Daub smear Debunk expose as false, exaggerated, worthless, etc.; ridicule Decant pour off gently Declivity downward slope Décolleté having a low-cut neckline Decrepitude state of collapse caused by illness or old age Decry express strong disapproval of; disparage Deference courteous regard for another’s wish Defray provide for the payment of Defrock to strip a priest or minister of church authority Deign condescend; stoop Deleterious harmful Delineate portray; depict; sketch Demur object (because of doubts, scruples); hesitate Demure grave; serious; coy Denigrate blacken Denizen inhabitant or resident; regular visitor Deprecate express disapproval of; protest against; belittle Depredation plundering Derelict abandoned; negligent Descry catch sight of Desiccate dry up Despoil plunder Despondent depressed; gloomy Despot tyrant; harsh, authoritarian ruler Desultory aimless; haphazard; digressing at random Detraction slandering; aspersion Devolve deputize; pass to others Dialectical relating to the art of debate; mutual or reciprocal Diaphanous sheer; transparent Diatribe bitter scolding; invective Dictum authoritative or weighty statement; saying; maxim Diffuse wordy; rambling; spread out (like a gas) Dilatory delaying Dilettante aimless follower of the arts; amateur; dabbler

Diminution lessening; reduction in size Dint means; effort Disaffected disloyal Discomfit put to rout; defeat; disconcert Disconcert confuse; upset; embarrass Disconsolate sad Discursive digressing; rambling Disenfranchise deprive of a civil right Disgorge surrender something; eject; vomit Disingenuous not naïve; sophisticated Disinter dig up; unearth Disinterested unprejudiced Disjunction act or state of separation; disunity Disparate basically different; unrelated Disport amuse Disquisition a formal systematic inquiry Dissident dissenting; rebellious Dissolution disintegration; looseness in morals Dissonance discord; opposite of harmony Distend expand; swell out Distrait absentminded Divest strip; deprive Docket program as for trial; book where such entries are made Doctrinaire unable to compromise about points of doctrine; dogmatic Doff take off Doggerel poor verse Dormer window projecting from a roof Dotage senility Dour sullen; stubborn Dowdy slovenly; untidy Draconian extremely severe Droll queer and amusing Drone idle person; male bee Dross waste matter Ductile malleable; flexible; pliable Dyspeptic suffering from indigestion Ebullient showing excitement; overflowing with enthusiasm Eddy swirling current of water, air, etc. Edify instruct; correct morally Effectual able to produce a desired effect; valid Effete worn out; exhausted; barren Effluvium noxious smell Effusion pouring forth Effusive pouring forth; gushing Egregious notorious; conspicuously bad or shocking Egress exit

Elysian relating to paradise; blissful Emend correct, usually a text Emendation correction of errors; improvement Emetic substance causing vomiting Eminent high; lofty Emolument salary; compensation Empirical based on experience Enclave territory enclosed within an alien land Encomiastic praising; eulogistic Encomium high praise; eulogy Endemic prevailing among a specific group or in a specific area Endue provide with some quality; endow Enervate weaken Enfranchise admit to the rights of a citizen (especially the right to vote) Engender cause; produce Enjoin command; order; forbid Ennui boredom Ensconced settle comfortably Environ enclose; surround Epaulet ornament worn on the shoulder (of a uniform, etc.) Ephemeral short-lived; fleeting Epicure connoisseur of food and drink Episodic loosely connected Epistemologist philosopher who studies the nature of knowledge Equable steady; tranquil; uniform Equanimity calmness of temperament; composure Equipoise balance; balancing force; equilibrium Equity fairness; justice Equivocal ambiguous; intentionally misleading Equivocate lie; mislead; attempt to conceal the truth Errant wandering Erudite learned; scholarly Eschew avoid Esoteric hard to understand; known only to a chosen few Ethereal light; heavenly; unusually refined Ethos underlying character of a culture, group, etc. Eugenic pertaining to the improvement of a race Evanescent fleeting; vanishing Evince show clearly Exacerbate worsen; embitter Excoriate scold with bitter sharpness; strip off the skin Execrable very bad Execrate curse; express abhorrence for Exegesis explanation, especially of a biblical passage Exigency urgent situation Exiguous small; minute

Expatiate talk at length Expiate make amends for (a sin) Expostulation protest; remonstrance Expropriate take possession of Expurgate clean; remove offensive parts of a book Extant still in existence Extemporaneous not planned; impromptu Extirpate root up Extol praise; glorify Extrinsic external; not essential; extraneous Extrude force or push out Factitious artificial; sham Factotum handyman; person who does all kinds of work Fallow plowed but not sowed; uncultivated Fancier breeder or dealer of animals Fastidious difficult to please; squeamish Fatuous foolish; inane Febrile feverish Fecundity fertility; fruitfulness Feint trick; shift; sham blow Felicitous apt; suitable expressed; well chosen Fell cruel; deadly Fell cut or knock down; bring down (with a missile) Feral domestic; wild Ferment agitation; commotion Fete honor at a festival Fetid malodorous Fetter shackle Fiat command Filch steal Filial pertaining to a son or daughter Filibuster block legislation by making long speeches Filigree delicate, lacelike metalwork Firebrand hothead; troublemaker Flay strip off one’s skin; plunder Fleece rob; plunder Floe mass of floating ice Flotsam drifting wreckage Fluted having vertical parallel grooves (as in a pillar) Foment stir up; instigate Foppish vain about dress and appearance Foray raid Forebears ancestors Forensic suitable to debate or courts of law Forestall prevent by taking action in advance Forswear renounce; abandon

Fortuitous accidental; by chance Fractious unruly Frenetic frenzied; frantic Fulminate thunder; explode Fulsome disgustingly excessive Functionary official Furtive stealthy; sneaky Gadfly animal-biting fly; an irritating person Gaffe social blunder Gainsay deny Galvanize stimulate by shock; stir up; revitalize Gambit opening in chess in which a piece is sacrificed Garish overbright in color; gaudy Garrulous loquacious; wordy; talkative Gastronomy science of preparing and serving good food Gauche clumsy; coarse and uncouth Gentry people of standing; class of people just below nobility Genuflect bend the knee as in worship Germane pertinent; bearing upon the case at hand Germinal pertaining to a germ; creative Gerontocracy government ruled by old people Gerrymander change voting district lines in order to favor a political party Glower scowl Glutinous sticky; viscous Gossamer sheer; like cobwebs Gourmand epicure; person who takes excessive pleasure in food and drink Grandiloquent pompous; bombastic; using high-sounding language Gregarious sociable Grouse complain; fuss Gull hoodwink; trick Gustatory affecting the sense of taste Guy cable or chain attached to something that needs to be steadied Hackles hairs on back and neck, especially of a dog Hackneyed commonplace; trite Halcyon calm; peaceful Hale healthy Harangue long, passionate, and vehement speech Harry harass, annoy, torment; raid Hedonist one who believes that pleasure is the sole aim in life Hegemony dominance, especially one nation over another Hermetic obscure and mysterious; occult Herpetologist one who studies reptiles Hibernal wintry Hinterlands back country Homeostasis tendency of a system to maintain relative stability Homilies sermon; serious warning

Hortatory encouraging; exhortive Hummock small hill Humus substance formed by decaying vegetable matter Husbandry frugality; thrift; agriculture Iconoclastic attacking cherished traditions Idyllic charmingly carefree; simple Illusory deceptive; not real Imbroglio complicated situation; painful misunderstanding, entanglement Imbue saturate, fill Immolate offer as a sacrifice Immure imprison; shut up in confinement Impassive without feeling; impeturbable; stoical Impecunious without money Imperious domineering; haughty Impervious impenetrable; incapable of being damaged or distressed Impinge infringe; touch; collide with Impious irreverent Imponderable weightless Importunate urging; demanding Importune beg persistently Imprecation curse Improvident thriftless Impudence impertinence; insolence Impugn dispute or contradict (often in an insulting way); challenge Impuissance powerlessness; feebleness Impute attribute; ascribe Inchoate recently begun; rudimentary; elementary Incipient beginning; at an early stage Inclement stormy; unkind Incontinent lacking self-restraint; licentious Incorporeal lacking a material body; insubstantial Incorrigible uncorrectable Incredulous withholding belief; skeptical Incubus burden; mental care; nightmare Inculcate teach Incursion temporary evasion Indelible not able to be erased Indemnify make secure against loss; compensate for loss Indigent poor; destitute Indite write; compose Inductive proceeding from the specific to the general Ineffable unutterable; cannot be expressed in speech Ineluctable irresistible; not to be escaped Inequity unfairness Inerrancy infallibility Inexorable relentless; unyielding; implacable

Infidel unbeliever Ingenuous naïve and trusting; young; unsophisticated Ingrate ungrateful person Inimical unfriendly; hostile; harmful; detrimental Iniquitous wicked; immoral; unrighteous Insalubrious unwholesome; not healthful Inscrutable impenetrable; not readily understood Insensate without feeling Insidious treacherous; stealthy; sly Insipid lacking in flavor; dull Insouciant indifferent; without concern or care Insularity narrow-mindedness; isolation Insuperable insurmountable; unbeatable Insurgent rebellious Insurrection rebellion Interdict prohibit; forbid Interloper intruder Internecine mutually destructive Interregnum period between two reigns Intractable unruly; stubborn; unyielding Intransigence refusal to any compromise; stubbornness Intrepid fearless Invective abuse Inveigh denounce; utter censure or invective Inveterate deep-rooted; habitual Invidious designed to create ill will or envy Irascible irritable; easily angered Irremediable incurable; uncorrectable Isotope varying form of an element Itinerant wandering; traveling Jaundiced prejudiced (envious, hostile, or resentful) Jaunty lighthearted; animated; easy and carefree Jingoist extremely militant patriot; warlike chauvinist Juggernaut irresistible crushing force Junket trip, especially for pleasure by an official at public expense Jurisprudence science of law Ken range of knowledge Kernel central or vital part Kinetic producing motion Knotty intricate; difficult; tangled Labile likely to change; unstable Laconic brief and to the point Laity laypersons; persons not connected with the clergy Lancet small surgical tool for making incisions Languish lose animation or strength Languor lassitude; depression

Larder pantry; place where food is kept Largess generous gift Lassitude languor; weariness Leaven cause to rise or grow; enliven Lectern reading desk Legerdemain slight of hand Leonine like a lion Lexicographer compiler of a dictionary Lexicon dictionary Libertine debauched person; roue Libretto text of an opera Licentious lewd; amoral; unrestrained Ligneous like wood Limn draw; outline; describe Limpid clear Lineaments features, especially the face Lionize treat as a celebrity Litany supplicatory prayer Lithe flexible; supple Litotes understatement for emphasis Livid lead-colored; black and blue; ashen; enraged Lode metal-bearing vein Loom appear or take shape (usually in an enlarged, distorted form) Lope gallop slowly Low moo Lucre money Lugubrious mournful Luminary celebrity; dignitary Lurid wild; sensational; graphic; gruesome Macerate soften by soaking in liquid; waste away Machiavellian crafty; double-dealing Maculated spotted; stained Madrigal pastoral song Magnanimity generosity Magnate person of influence or prominence Magniloquent boastful, pompous Maladroit clumsy; bungling Malaise uneasiness; vague feeling of ill health Malediction curse Malefactor evildoer; criminal Malfeasance wrongdoing Malingerer one who feigns illness to escape duty Manacle restrain; handcuff Manifest evident; visible; obvious Mannered affected; not actual Manumit emancipate; free from bondage

Marsupial mammals that nurse their offspring in a pouch Martinet one who observes all rules Matrix point of origin; array of numbers or algebraic symbols; mold or die Maudlin effusively sentimental Mauve pale purple Maverick rebel; nonconformist Mawkish mushy and gushy; icky-sticky sentimental; maudlin Mealymouthed indirect in speech; hypocritical; evasive Meek submissive; patient and long-suffering Megalomania mania for doing grandiose things Mellifluous sweetly or smoothly flowing; melodious Mendacious lying; habitually dishonest Mendicant beggar Mercenary motivated solely by money or gain Mercurial capricious; changing; fickle Meretricious flashy; tawdry Metaphysical pertaining to speculative philosophy Mete measure; distribute Meteoric swift; momentarily brilliant Miasma swamp gas; heavy, vaporous atmosphere Milieu environment; means of expression Militate work against Minatory menacing; threatening Mincing affectedly dainty Minion a servile dependent Minutiae petty details Misanthrope one who hates mankind Misapprehension error; misunderstanding Miscreant wretch; villain Misogamy hatred of marriage Misogynist hater of women Missive letter Mitigate appease; moderate Modicum limited quantity Mollify soothe Mollycoddle pamper; indulge excessively Monolithic solidly uniform; unyielding Moratorium legal delay of payment Mordant biting; sarcastic; stinging Moribund dying Mote small speck Mountebank charlatan; boastful pretender Mulct defraud a person of something Multifarious varied; greatly diversified Munificent very generous Mutability ability to change in form; fickleness

Nadir lowest point Nascent incipient; coming into being Natation swimming Natty neatly or smartly dressed Necromancy black magic; dealings with the dead Nefarious very wicked Neologism new or newly coined word or phrase Neophyte recent convert; beginner Nether lower Nettle annoy; vex Nexus connection Nib beak; pen point Nicety precision; minute distinction Niggardly meanly stingy; parsimonious Niggle spend too much time on minor points; carp Nihilist one who considers traditional beliefs to be groundless Noisome foul-smelling; unwholesome Nominal in name only; trifling Nonplus bring to a halt by confusion; perplex Nostrum questionable medicine Nubile marriageable Nugatory futile; worthless Numismatist person who collects coins Obdurate stubborn Obeisance bow Obelisk tall column tapering and ending in a pyramid Obfuscate confuse; muddle; cause confusion; make needlessly complex Oblique indirect; slanting Obloquy slander; disgrace; infamy Obsequious slavishly attentive; servile; sycophantic Obsequy funeral ceremony Obstreperous boisterous; noisy Obtrude push (oneself or one’s ideas) forward or intrude; butt in Obviate make unnecessary; get rid of Occident the West Occlude shut; close Odium detestation; hatefulness; disrepute Officious meddlesome; excessively pushy in offering one’s services Oligarchy government by a privileged few Onerous burdensome Opalescent iridescent; lustrous Opaque dark; not transparent Opprobrium infamy; vilification Opulence extreme wealth; luxuriousness; abundance Opus work Oratorio dramatic poem set to music

Ordination ceremony conferring holy orders Orthography correct spelling Osseous made of bone; bony Ossify change or harden into bone Ostensible apparent; professed; pretended Overweening presumptuous; arrogant Overwrought extremely agitated; hysterical Ovoid egg-shaped Pachyderm thick-skinned animal Paean song of praise or joy Palimpsest parchment used for second time after original has been erased Pall grow tiresome Pallet small, poor bed Palliate ease pain; make less severe or offensive Pan criticize harshly Panacea cure-all; remedy for all diseases Pandemic widespread; affecting the majority of people Pander cater to the low desires of others Panegyric formal praise Paragon model of perfection Pariah social outcast Parity equality; close resemblance Parlance language; idiom Parochial narrow in outlook; provincial; related to parishes Paroxysm fit or attack of pain, laughter, rage Parquet floor made of wood strips inlaid in a mosaic-like pattern Parry ward off a blow; deflect Parsimony stinginess; excessive frugality Pastiche imitation of another’s style in musical composition or writing Pastoral rural Pathos tender sorrow; pity; quality in art or lit that produces these feelings Patina green crust on old bronze works; tone taken by varnished painting Patois local or provincial dialect Patrician noble; aristocratic Paucity scarcity Peccadillo slight offense Pecuniary pertaining to money Pedagogue teacher Pedagogy teaching; art of education Pedant scholar who overemphasizes book learning or technicalities Pedantic showing off learning; bookish Pellucid transparent; limpid; easy to understand Penchant strong inclination; liking Penumbra partial shadow (in an eclipse) Penury severe poverty; stinginess Peon landless agricultural worker; bond servant

Perdition damnation; complete ruin Peregrination journey Peremptory demanding and leaving no choice Perennial something long-lasting Perfidious treacherous; disloyal Perfunctory superficial; not thorough; lacking interest, care or enthusiasm Perigee point of moon’s orbit when it is nearest the earth Peripatetic walking about; moving Pernicious very destructive Peroration conclusion in an oration Perquisite any gain above stipulated salary Perspicacious having insight; penetrating; astute Perspicuity clearness of expression; freedom from ambiguity Perspicuous plainly expressed Pert impertinent; forward Pertinacious stubborn; persistent Pestle tool for mashing or grinding substances in a hard bowl Petulant touchy; peevish Pharisaical pertaining to the Pharisees; attention to tradition; hypocritical Philatelist stamp-collector Philistine narrow-minded person, uncultured and interested in material gain Philology study of language Phlegmatic calm; not easily disturbed Physiognomy face Piebald of different colors; mottled; spotted Pied variegated; multicolored Pillory punish by placing in a wooden frame; subject to ridicule Pinion restraint Piquant pleasantly tart-tasting; stimulating Pique irritation; resentment Pique provoke or arouse; annoy Piscatorial pertaining to fishing Pith core or marrow; essence; substance Plaintive mournful Platitude trite remark; commonplace statement Plaudit enthusiastic approval; round of applause Plenary complete; full Plumb examine critically to understand; measure depth (by sounding) Plumb vertical Plutocracy society ruled by the wealthy Polemic controversy; argument in support of point of view Polemical aggressive in verbal attack; disputatious Polity form of government of a nation or state Polyglot speaking several languages Poseur person who pretends to be sophisticated, elegant, etc. Potentate monarch; sovereign

Prate speak foolishly; boast idly Precept practical rule guiding conduct Precipitant something causing a substance in a solution to separate to solid Precipitate throw headlong; hasten Précis concise summing up of main points Preclude make impossible; eliminate Precocious advanced in development Preen make oneself tidy in appearance; feel self-satisfaction Prehensile capable of grasping or holding Prelate church dignitary Premonitory serving to warn Presage foretell Prescience ability to foretell the future Presentiment feeling something will happen; anticipatory fear; premonition Pretentious ostentatious; pompous; making unjustified claims; overambitious Preternatural beyond that which is normal in nature Pretext excuse Prevaricate lie Primogeniture seniority by birth Privation hardship; want Probity uprightness; incorruptibility Profligate dissipated; wasteful; wildly immoral Profusion overabundance; lavish expenditure; excess Progenitor ancestor Progeny children; offspring Prolixity tedious wordiness; verbosity Promulgate proclaim a doctrine or law; make known by official publication Propagate multiply; spread Propinquity nearness; kinship Propitiate appease Propitious favorable; fortunate; advantageous Propound put forth for analysis Propriety fitness; correct conduct Proscribe ostracize; banish; outlaw Proselytize induce someone to convert to a religion or belief Prosody the art of versification Protean versatile; able to take on many forms Protégé person receiving protection and support from a patron Protract prolong Protuberance protrusion; bulge Provenance origin or source of something Provender dry food; fodder Provident displaying foresight; thrifty; preparing for emergencies Proviso stipulation Proxy authorized agent Prurient having or causing lustful thoughts and desires

Puerile childish Pugilist boxer Pugnacity combativeness; disposition to fight Puissant powerful; strong; potent Pulchritude beauty; comeliness Punctilious stressing niceties of conduct or form; minutely attentive to fine pts Pundit authority on a subject; learned person; expert Purport intention; meaning Purported alleged; claimed; reputed or rumored Purveyor furnisher of foodstuffs; caterer Pusillanimous cowardly; fainthearted Putative supposed; reputed Quaff drink with relish Quagmire soft, wet, boggy land; complex situation difficult to escape Quail cower; lose heart Quarry victim; object of a hunt Quarry dig into Quay dock; landing place Quell extinguish; put down; quiet Querulous fretful; whining Quiescent at rest; dormant; temporarily inactive Quip taunt Quisling traitor who aids invaders Quotidian commonplace; customary; daily Raconteur story-teller Raiment clothing Rakish stylish; sporty Ramify divide into branches or subdivisions Rampart defensive mound of earth Rankle irritate; fester Rapacious excessively grasping; plundering Rarefied made less dense (of a gas) Ratiocination reasoning; act of drawing conclusions from premises Raucous harsh and shrill; disorderly and boisterous Ravel fall apart into tangles; unravel or untwist; entangle Rebus puzzle in which pictures stand for words Recalcitrant obstinately stubborn determined to resist authority; unruly Recapitulate summarize Recast reconstruct (a sentence, story, etc.); fashion again Recidivism habitual return to crime Recondite abstruse; profound; secret Recourse resorting to help when in trouble Recrimination countercharges Recumbent reclining; lying down completely or in part Redolent fragrant; odorous; suggestive of an odor Redoubtable formidable; causing fear

Redress remedy; compensation Refectory dining hall Refractory stubborn; unmanageable Refulgent brightly shining; gleaming Regale entertain Rejoinder retort; comeback; reply Relegate banish to an inferior position; delegate; assign Remediable reparable Remission cancellation of a debt; forgiveness or pardon; disease letting up Remonstrance protest; objection Remunerative compensating; rewarding Render deliver; provide; represent Rent rip; split Repast meal; feast; banquet Repine fret; complain Replete filled to the brim or to the point of being stuffed Reprisal retaliation Reproach express disapproval or disappointment Reprobate person hardened in sin, devoid of a sense of decency Reprobation severe disapproval Reprove censure; rebuke Repudiate disown; disavow Requite repay; revenge Respite interval of relief; time of rest; delay in punishment Restitution reparation; indemnification Restive restlessly impatient; obstinately resisting control Retentive holding; having a good memory Reticent reserved; uncommunicative; inclined to silence Retinue following; attendants Retiring modest; shy Retrench cut down; economize Retrograde go backwards; degenerate Reverie daydream; musing Revulsion sudden violent change of feeling; negative reaction Rhapsodize to speak or write in an exaggeratedly enthusiastic manner Ribald wanton; profane Rider an amendment or clause added to a legislative bill Rife abundant; current Rile vex; irritate; muddy Roil to make liquids murky by stirring up sediment; to disturb Roseate rosy; optimistic Rostrum platform for speech-making; pulpit Rubric title or heading (in red ink); directions for religious ceremony Ruddy reddish; healthy-looking Runic mysterious; set down in an ancient alphabet Rusticate banish to the country; dwell in the country

Sacrosanct most sacred; inviolable Sagacious perceptive; shrewd; having insight Salacious lascivious; lustful Salient prominent Salubrious healthful Salutary tending to improve; beneficial; wholesome Sanguinary bloody Sardonic disdainful; sarcastic; cynical Sartorial pertaining to tailors Sate satisfy to the full; cloy Saturnine gloomy Savant scholar Schism division; split Scintilla shred; least bit Scotch stamp out; thwart; hinder Scourge lash; whip; severe punishment Scruple fret about; hesitate, for ethical reasons Scurrilous obscene; indecent Scuttle sink Sedition resistance to authority; insubordination Sedulous diligent Seemly proper; appropriate Seethe be disturbed; boil Seine net for catching fish Sententious terse; concise; aphoristic Sentient capable of sensation; aware; sensitive Septic putrid; producing putrefaction Sere parched; dry Serendipity gift for finding valuable or desirable things by accident; luck Serpentine winding; twisting Sextant navigational tool used to determine a ship’s latitude and longitude Shard fragment, generally of pottery Sheaf bundle of stalks of grain; any bundle of tied things Shunt turn aside; divert; sidetrack Sibylline prophetic; oracular Sidereal relating to the stars Simper smirk; smile affectedly Sinecure well-paid position with little responsibility Sinuous winding; bending in and out; not morally honest Skinflint stingy person; miser Skittish lively; frisky Skulduggery dishonest behavior Skulk move furtively and secretly Slag residue from smelting metal; dross; waste matter Slake quench; sate Slapdash haphazard; careless; sloppy

Slipshod untidy or slovenly; shabby Sluice artificial channel for directing or controlling the flow of water Smattering slight knowledge Sodden soaked; dull, as if from drink Solecism construction that is flagrantly incorrect grammatically Solicitous worried, concerned Solvent able to pay all debts Somatic pertaining to the body; physical Somnolent half asleep Sophist teacher of philosophy; quibbler; employer of fallacious reasoning Sophistry seemingly plausible but fallacious reasoning Soporific sleep-causing; marked by sleepiness Spangle small metallic piece sewn to clothing for ornamentation Spartan lacking luxury and comfort; sternly disciplined Spate sudden flood Specious seemingly reasonable but incorrect Spectral ghostly Spoonerism accidental transposition of sounds in successive words Spurious false; counterfeit; forged; illogical Squalor filth; degradation; dirty, neglected state Staid sober; sedate Stalwart strong, brawny; steadfast Stanch check the flow of blood Statutory created by statute or legislative action Steep soak; saturate Stentorian extremely loud Stint be thrifty; set limits; supply; allotted amount (of work) Stipple paint or draw with dots Stolid dull; impassive Stratagem clever trick; deceptive scheme Stratum layer of earth’s surface; layer of society Stricture critical comments; severe and adverse criticism Strident loud and harsh; insistent Stringent binding; rigid Strut supporting bar Stultify cause to appear or become stupid or inconsistent; frustrate; hinder Stygian gloomy; hellish; deathly (Styx) Subaltern subordinate Sublimate refine; purify Sublime exalted; noble and uplifting; utter Suborn persuade to act unlawfully (especially to commit perjury) Subsidiary subordinate; secondary Subsistence existence; means of support; livelihood Substantive essential; pertaining to the substance Subsume include; encompass Succor aid; assist; comfort

Suffuse spread over Sunder separate; part Sundry various; several Superannuated retired or disqualified because of age Supercilious arrogant; condescending; patronizing Supererogatory superfluous; more than needed or demanded Supernumerary person or thing in excess of what is necessary; extra Supplant replace; usurp Suppliant entreating; beseeching Supplicate petition humbly; pray to grant a favor Suppositious assumed; counterfeit; hypothetical Surfeit satiate; stuff; indulge to excess in anything Surly rude; cross Surreptitious secret; furtive; sneaky; hidden Swathe wrap around; bandage Swill drink greedily Sybarite lover of luxury Sycophant servile flatterer; bootlicker; yes man Syllogism logical formula consisting of premises; deceptive argument Sylvan pertaining to the woods; rustic Synoptic providing a general overview; summary Tantamount equivalent in effect or value Tarry delay; dawdle Tautological needlessly repetitious Teetotalism practice of abstaining totally from alcoholic drinks Temerity boldness; rashness Temporize avoid committing oneself; gain time Tendentious having an aim; biased; designed to further a cause Tenet doctrine; dogma Tensile capable of being stretched Tenuous thin; rare; slim Terminus last stop of a railroad Terrestrial on or relating to the earth Tesselated inlaid; mosaic Testator maker of a will Theocracy government run by religious leaders Thrall slave; bondage Threadbare worn through till the threads show; shabby and poor Tiller handle used to move boat’s rudder Timorous fearful; demonstrating fear Tipple drink (alcoholic beverages) frequently Titular having the title of an office without the obligations Toady servile flatterer; yes man Tome large volume Tonsure shaving of the head, especially by person entering religious orders Torpor lethargy; sluggishness; dormancy

Tortuous winding; full of curves Touchstone stone used to test the fineness of gold alloys; criterion Tout publicize; praise excessively Tract pamphlet; a region of indefinite size Tractable docile; easily managed Traduce expose to slander Transmute change; convert to something different Transport strong emotion Travail painful labor Travesty comical parody; treatment making something appear ridiculous Trenchant cutting; keen Trepidation fear; nervous apprehension Tribute tax levied by a ruler; mark of respect Troth pledge of good faith especially in betrothal Truculence aggressiveness; ferocity Tryst meeting Tumid swollen; pompous; bombastic Turbid muddy; having the sediment disturbed Turgid swollen; distended Turpitude depravity Tutelary protective; pertaining to a guardianship Tyro beginner; novice Ubiquitous being everywhere; omnipresent Umbrage resentment; anger; sense of injury or insult Unction the act of anointing with oil Unctuous oily; bland; insincerely suave Unfledged immature Unguent ointment Unmitigated unrelieved or immoderate; absolute Unprepossessing unattractive Untenable indefensible; not able to be maintained Untoward unfortunate or unlucky; adverse; unexpected Unwitting unintentional; not knowing Unwonted unaccustomed Upbraid severely scold; reprimand Urbane suave; refined; elegant Urchin mischievous child (usually a boy) Ursine bearlike; pertaining to a bear Usury lending money at illegal rates of interest Uxorious excessively devoted to one’s wife Vagary caprice; whim Vagrant stray; random Vainglorious boastful; excessively conceited Valedictory pertaining to farewell Vanguard forerunners; advance forces Vapid dull and unimaginative; insipid and flavorless

Variegated many-colored Vaunted boasted; bragged; highly publicized Vegetate live in a monotonous way Venal capable of being bribed Veneer thin layer or cover Venerable deserving high respect Venerate revere Venial forgivable; trivial Ventral abdominal Venue location Veracious truthful Veracity truthfulness Verbiage pompous array of words Verdant green; lush in vegetation Verdigris green coating on copper which has been exposed to the weather Verisimilar probable or likely; having the appearance of truth Verisimilitude appearance of truth; likelihood Veritable actual; being truly so; not false or imaginary Verity quality of being true; lasting truth or principle Vernacular living language; natural style Vernal pertaining to spring Verve enthusiasm; liveliness Vestige trace; remains Viand food Vicissitude change of fortune Victuals food Vignette picture; short literary sketch Vilify slander Vintner winemaker; seller of wine Virulent extremely poisonous; hostile; bitter Visceral felt in one’s inner organs Viscid adhesive; gluey Vital vibrant and lively; critical; living, breathing Vitiate spoil the effect of; make inoperative Vitreous pertaining to or resembling glass Vitriolic corrosive; sarcastic Vituperative abusive; scolding Vivisection act of dissecting living animals Vixen female fox; ill-tempered woman Vociferous clamorous; noisy Voluble fluent; glib; talkative Voluminous bulky; large Vortex whirlwind; whirlpool; center of turbulence Vouchsafe grant condescendingly; guarantee Vulpine like a fox; crafty Waffle speak equivocally about an issue

Waggish mischievous; humorous; tricky Wan having a pale or sickly color; pallid Wanderlust strong longing to travel Wangle wiggle out; fake Wanton unrestrained; willfully malicious; unchaste Warble sing; babble Warren tunnels in which rabbits live; crowded conditions people live in Wastrel profligate; waste money Wax increase; grow Waylay ambush; lie in wait Welter turmoil; bewildering jumble; wallow Whit smallest speck Whorl ring of leaves around stem; ring Winnow sift; separate good parts from bad Winsome agreeable; gracious; engaging Wispy thin; slight; barely discernible Wistful vaguely longing; sadly pensive Wizened withered; shriveled Wont custom; habitual procedure Wry twisted; with a humorous twist Xenophobia fear or hatred of foreigners Yen longing; urge Yeoman man owning a small estate; middle-class farmer Zealot fanatic; person who shows excessive zeal Zenith point directly overhead in the sky; summit Zephyr gentle breeze; west wind