Some words have an ineffably quality to them, a certain beauty that, through the mere connection of their respective syllables, evokes a world of associations. To me diaphanous conjures up a fairy-tale kingdom; lugubrious something pitifully comical; gossamer could be a spell Harry Potter casts to vanquish the vile Voldemort. Indeed all the words below [...]
Archive | Vocabulary Word Lists RSS feed for this section
GRE Vocabulary Wednesday: In Theory
Text Completions on the Revised GRE love to discuss theories. A physicist has refuted longstanding beliefs; fossil remains found in Kenya undermine prevailing wisdom; an ascendant theory in plate tectonics is not without its detractors. Whatever the spin on the verbiage may be, you can bet at least one of the questionstest day will discuss [...]
GRE Vocabulary eBook
Ask and you shall receive! Based on the many requests from our students (thank you, as always, for your suggestions!), we’ve compiled the best of our word lists into a one-stop vocabulary resource for the revised GRE in eBook form. It includes: Instructions on how to use word lists How to not use word lists! [...]
GRE Word List: The Dreaded “Imp” Vocabulary Words
An imp is a vile little creature, a small devil known for his fiendish ways. It is very apt then, that some of the trickiest, most easily confuse-able words on the GRE begin with the letters I-M-P. “Imp” is the theme for this week’s Vocab Wednesday. When learning words such as these, words that blur [...]
GRE Vocab Goes XXX
Yes, the title is tongue-in-cheek. But there will definitely be ‘x’ words on the GRE – and by that I mean ‘ex’ words. These vocab beasts have long been the bane of many a student, as many blur into one word. The key is not just learning the definition but coming up with an effective [...]
GRE Eponyms
An eponym is any word that is derived from a person’s name. In the past I’ve mentioned how English is the most promiscuous of languages, absorbing languages as unrelated as Sanskrit and Finnish into its bulging lexicon. By extension, I’ve also mentioned how relying on Latin/Greek roots can oftentimes cripple your word detective skills. Thwarting [...]
Test your GRE Vocabulary Skills
How strong is my vocabulary? As you prep for the GRE, this is a question you may have already asked yourself. Practice tests and practice questions have already given you a sense of this. Yet it is never a bad idea to get a vocab assessment. Below, I’ve done my best to pick words indicative [...]
GRE Vocab List: Religious Words
It’s not Sunday – but it is church day, at least as far as vocabulary is concerned. Below are words relating to the church or religion. A few of the words – such a cardinal – have a secondary definition that, while derived from the original church-based definition, is different enough from the original to [...]
GRE Vocabulary: Negative Words (People You Wouldn’t Want to Meet!)
Martinet Not to be confused with a doll dangled on strings (that’s a marionette) a martinet is a person who is a strict disciplinarian. Think of a drill sergeant who barks an order and a platoon of cadets jump to attention – the slightest misstep and its toilet duty. If anything, the martinet is the [...]
GRE Vocabulary: Around the Globe in Five Words
English is truly the global mutt of languages. Indeed, centuries of colonization and commerce has had the curious effect of both making English the global language and swelling the pages of English dictionaries with such loanwords as sauna and safari. (Sauna comes by way of Finland; safari comes via African-rooted Arabic and, somewhat inexplicably, means [...]
