GRE Word List

move back, retreat

“As the boat picked up speed, the coastline receded into the distance until finally itbecame invisible."

express a negative opinion of




"The actor's work for charity has recently been disparaged in the press as an attempt toget publicity."

of motives or facts that are apparent but not necessarily real or true



"Their ostensible goal was to clean up government corruption, but their real aim was tounseat the government."

elaborate, eloquent but logically invalid arguments intended to deceive


"Her argument that she wasn't being selfish was pure sophistry."

command against


"The Broadcasting Act allows ministers to proscribe any channel that offends againstgood taste and decency."Copyright 2007 eReflect Software. All rights reserved.

artificial and inferior


"I'm allowed to eat ersatz chocolate made from carob beans, but it's a poor substitutefor the real thing."

expression of a general truth in a short witty saying

"Oscar Wilde was famous for such aphorisms as 'Experience is the name everyone givesto their mistakes'."

appearance of things that is deceptive


"The city has now returned to some semblance of normality after last night'scelebrations."

of illegitimate birth; bastard

driving force : impulse : incentive, stimulus

sharp, spiteful speech; a highly corrosive acid


"He is a writer who has often been criticized by the press but never before with suchvitriol.

able to be continue living or being used

"In order to make the company viable, it will unfortunately be necessary to reducestaffing levels

rewrite a text using the same language but a different writing system


"On the road signs, the Greek place names have been transliterated into the Latin alphabet.

(ADJECTIVE) vastly different



"The two cultures were so utterly disparate that she found it hard to adapt from one tothe other."

(NOUN)

name that misrepresents its meaning

"It was the scruffiest place I've ever stayed in, so 'Hotel Royal' was a bit of a misnomer."

event seen as a sign of thing to come

"The company's sales figures for the first six months are a good augury for the rest ofthe year."

(NOUN)

abusive language used to express blame"A stream of invective from some sectors of the press continues to assail the government.

not easily shocked; marked by assurance and self-control

"She's totally unflappable - you have to be when working in such a highly-pressuredenvironment."

very poisonous or infectious

"A particularly virulent strain of flu has recently claimed a number of lives in the US."

APLOMB (NOUN)

composure under strain"Rosalind conducted the meeting with characteristic aplomb/with her usual aplomb."

break up the flow of something


"The documentary intersperses graphical animations with film clips of the actual event."

return to a previous state

"The new procedures are being seen as a reversion to old, inefficient ways of working."

unable to be believed

"If three people in four no longer support the government, isn't this an untenablesituation?"

put an offender on probation by suspending his sentence

"Before probate can be granted, all business assets have to be identified and valued."

without having made a will

"Many people die intestate because they thought they were too young to make a will."

of the countryside

"The painting shows a typically bucolic scene with peasants harvesting crops in a field."

bitter or sour in temper, mood, or tone

"The letters show the acerbic wit for which Parker was both admired and feared."

fraud

"The investigation revealed political chicanery and corruption at the highest levels."

someone who is excessively eager to please in order to get something

"There was sycophantic laughter from the audience at every one of his terrible jokes."

two dots occurring above a vowel to indicate it is pronounced differently

"The German language uses many umlauts."

troops arranged in a line"These salary increases will affect only the highest echelons of local government."