GRE Word List 1
Click to download entire workbook as PDF
VERNACULAR (NOUN)
(used in) everyday speech
“The French I learnt in school is very different from the local vernacular of the village I’m
now living in.”
RECEDE (VERB)
move back, retreat
“As the boat picked up speed, the coastline receded into the distance until finally it
became invisible."
REMITTANCE (NOUN)
payment sent to a party in another place
"He worked as a builder in Chicago and received remittances from his bank in Chicago."
Copyright 2007 eReflect Software. All rights reserved.
DISPARAGE (VERB)
express a negative opinion of
"The actor's work for charity has recently been disparaged in the press as an attempt to
get publicity."
OSTENSIBLE (ADJECTIVE)
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 to
unseat the government."
SOPHISTRY (NOUN)
elaborate, eloquent but logically invalid arguments intended to deceive
"Her argument that she wasn't being selfish was pure sophistry."
PROSCRIBE (VERB)
command against
"The Broadcasting Act allows ministers to proscribe any channel that offends against
good taste and decency."
Copyright 2007 eReflect Software. All rights reserved.
ERSATZ (ADJECTIVE)
artificial and inferior
"I'm allowed to eat ersatz chocolate made from carob beans, but it's a poor substitute
for the real thing."
ENCAPSULATE (VERB)
contain the essential truths in
"It was very difficult to encapsulate the story of the revolution in a single one-hour
documentary."
GUISE (NOUN)
deceptive outward appearance
"The men who arrived in the guise of drug dealers were actually undercover police
officers."
PRAGMATIC (ADJECTIVE)
practical
"In business, the pragmatic approach to problems is often more successful than an
idealistic one."
Copyright 2007 eReflect Software. All rights reserved.
APHORISM (NOUN)
expression of a general truth in a short witty saying
"Oscar Wilde was famous for such aphorisms as 'Experience is the name everyone gives
to their mistakes'."
SEMBLANCE (NOUN)
appearance of things that is deceptive
"The city has now returned to some semblance of normality after last night's
celebrations."
SPURIOUS (ADJECTIVE)
not genuine
"Some of the arguments in favour of shutting the factory are questionable and others
downright spurious."
NEFARIOUS (ADJECTIVE)
wicked
"The director of the company seems to have been involved in some nefarious
practices/activities."
IMPETUS (NOUN)
force that keeps something moving
"The recent publicity surrounding homelessness has given (a) fresh impetus to the
cause."
VITRIOL (NOUN)
sharp, spiteful speech; a highly corrosive acid
"He is a writer who has often been criticized by the press but never before with such
vitriol."
VIABLE (ADJECTIVE)
able to be continue living or being used
"In order to make the company viable, it will unfortunately be necessary to reduce
staffing levels."
POSTERITY (NOUN)
future generations of people
"Every attempt is being made to ensure that these works of art are preserved for
posterity."
TRANSLITERATE (NOUN)
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."
DISPARATE (ADJECTIVE)
vastly different
"The two cultures were so utterly disparate that she found it hard to adapt from one to
the other."
MISNOMER (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."
SUBTEXT (NOUN)
implicit meaning in a piece of writing
"The political subtext of her novel is a criticism of government interference in individual
lives."
AUGURY (NOUN)
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 of
the year."
VINDICATE (VERB)
shown to be correct or innocent
"The decision to include Morris in the team was completely vindicated when he scored
three goals."
INVECTIVE (NOUN)
abusive language used to express blame
"A stream of invective from some sectors of the press continues to assail the
government."
UNFLAPPABLE (ADJECTIVE)
not easily shocked
"She's totally unflappable - you have to be when working in such a highly-pressured
environment."
VIRULENT (ADJECTIVE)
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."
UNPRECEDENTED (ADJECTIVE)
of events where nothing similar has happened in the past
"This century has witnessed environmental destruction on an unprecedented scale."