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GRE Wordlist: Meanings - Complete Sentences

Subjects : english, vocabulary
Instructions:
  • Answer 50 questions in 15 minutes.
  • If you are not ready to take this test, you can study here.
  • Match each statement with the correct term.
  • Don't refresh. All questions and answers are randomly picked and ordered every time you load a test.

This is a study tool. The 3 wrong answers for each question are randomly chosen from answers to other questions. So, you might find at times the answers obvious, but you will see it re-enforces your understanding as you take the test each time.
1. Modest; shy Given Susan't ________ personality - no one expected her to take up public speaking; surprisingly enough - she became a star of the school debate team.






2. Pertaining to disease As we study the pathological aspects of this disease - we must not overlook the ________ elements.






3. Teasing conversation Her friends at work greeted the news of her engagement with cheerful ________.






4. Unfounded rumor - It is almost impossible to protect oneself from such a base ________.






5. Balance After the divorce - he needed some time to regain his ________.






6. Excessive zeal The leader of the group was held responsible even though he could not control the ________ of his followers.






7. Acquire; take possession of for one's own use The ranch owners ________d the lands that had originally been set aside for the Indians' use.






8. Make a harsh noise; have an unpleasant effect; shred The screams of the quarreling children ________d on her nerves.






9. Cheerful; hopeful Let us not be too ________ about the outcome; something could go wrong.






10. Solemn wonder The tourists gazed with ________ at the tremendous expanse of the Grand Canyon.






11. Strict - stern His ________ demeanor prevented us from engaging in our usual frivolous activities.






12. Insult to one's character or reputation; slander Polls revealed that the front-runner's standing had been damaged by the ________s and innuendoes circulated by his opponent's staff.






13. Father and ruler of a family or tribe In many primitive tribes - the leader and lawmaker was the ________.






14. Ornamental clasp She treasured the ________ because it was an heirloom.






15. High praise; eulogy Uneasy with the ________s expressed by his supporters - Tolkien felt unworthy of such high praise.






16. Prevent; turn away She ________ed her eyes from the dead cat on the highway.






17. Change in voting district lines in order to favor a political party The illogical pattern of the map of this congressional district is proof that the state legislature ________ed this area in order to favor the majority party.






18. Shrink; reduce They spent so much money that their funds ________d to nothing.






19. Not identical on both sides of a dividing central line Because one eyebrow was set markedly higher than the other - William's face had a particularly ________ appearance.






20. Inclined to; prostrate She was ________ to sudden fits of anger.






21. A covered passageway - usually lined with shops The ________ was popular with shoppers because it gave them protection from the summer sun and the winter rain.






22. Someone who wastes money Easy access to credit encourages people to turn into ________s who shop till they drop.






23. Mixture as of metals ________ of gold are used more frequently than the pure metal.






24. Harass - annoy - torment; raid The guerrilla band ________(ied) the enemy nightly.






25. Reddish; healthy-looking His ________ features indicated that he had spent much time in the open.






26. Ooze; trickle During the rainstorm - water ________ed through the crack in the basement wall and damaged the floor boards.






27. Wring from; get money by threats - etc. The blackmailer ________ed money from his victim.






28. Boastful; excessively conceited She was a ________ and arrogant individual.






29. Foul-smelling The component heap was most ________ in summer.






30. Weakness Her greatest ________ was lack of willpower.






31. Periodic; on and off Our picnic was marred by ________ rains.






32. Untimely; poorly chosen A rock concert is an ________ setting for a quiet conversation.






33. Contend; compete Politicians ________ with one another - competing for donations and votes.






34. Calming drug or influence It is dangerous to drive after taking the ________; it brings drowsiness.






35. Homesickness; longing for the past The first settlers found so much work to do that they had little time for ________.






36. Gradual intrusion The ________ of the factories upon the neighborhood lowered the value of the real estate.






37. Learned; scholarly His ________ writing was difficult to read because of the many allusions which were unfamiliar to most readers.






38. Striker (tongue) of a bell - Wishing to be undisturbed by the bell - Dale wound his scarf around the ________ to muffle its striking.






39. Tool for mashing or grinding substances in a hard bowl From the way in which the elderly pharmacist pounded the drug with his ________ - young George could tell that his employer was agitated about something.






40. Meaning; distinguishing by name A dictionary will always give us the ________ of a word; frequently - it will always give us its connotation.






41. Extremely demanding The colonies rebelled against the ________ financial claims of the mother country.






42. Honor; tribute In her speech she tried to pay ________ to a great man.






43. Tending to overthrow; destructive At first glance - the notion that Styrofoam cups may actually be more ecologically sound than paper cups strikes most environmentalists as ________.






44. Cause; produce To receive praise for real accomplishments ________s self-confidence in a child.






45. Slingshot; hurling machine - Airplanes are sometimes launched from battleships by ________s.






46. Inner excitement; exuberance Nothing depressed her for long; her natural ________ soon reasserted itself.






47. Sleep producer; deadener of pain By such ________s - she made the people forget their difficulties and accept their unpleasant circumstances.






48. White with age The man was ________ and wrinkled when he was 70.






49. Straightforward; direct; frank I prefer Jill's ________ approach to Jack's tendency to beat around the bush.






50. Ill luck By ________ - he lost his week's salary.