GRE UPDATED Questions and CORRECT
Answers
boor - CORRECT ANSWER - a crude person; one lacking manners or taste
"That utter boor ruined my recital with his constant guffawing!" wailed the pianist.
Synonyms: clod; lout; oaf; vulgarian; yahoo
blithe - CORRECT ANSWER - joyful, cheerful, or without appropriate thought
Summer finally came, and the blithe students spent their days at the beach.
Synonyms: carefree; lighthearted; merry
bevy - CORRECT ANSWER - a group
As predicted, a bevy of teenagers surrounded the rock star's limousine.
Synonyms: band; bunch; gang; pack; troop
belfry - CORRECT ANSWER - a bell tower; the room in which a bell is hung
The town was shocked when a bag of money was found stashed in the old belfry of the church.
Synonyms: spire; steeple
banal - CORRECT ANSWER - predictable; clichéd; boring
,His conversations consisted of banal phrases like "Have a nice day" or "Another day, another
dollar."
Synonyms: bland; bromidic; clichéd; commonplace; fatuous; hackneyed; innocuous; insipid;
jejune; musty; platitudinous; prosaic; quotidian; shopworn; stale; stereotypic; threadbare;
timeworn; tired; trite; vapid; worn-out
audacious - CORRECT ANSWER - fearless and daring
The audacious peasant dared to insult the king's mother.
Synonyms: adventuresome; aggressive; assertive; bold; brave; courageous; daring; dauntless;
doughty; fearless; gallant; game; heroic; intrepid; mettlesome; plucky; stout; stouthearted; up
afraid; undaunted; valiant; valorous; venturesome; venturous
anachronism - CORRECT ANSWER - something out of place in time
The play was set in the nineteenth century, but was ruined by anachronisms, like the lead actor's
digital watch.
Synonyms: archaism; incongruity
ameliorate - CORRECT ANSWER - to make better; to improve
The doctor was able to ameliorate the patient's suffering using painkillers.
Synonyms: amend; better; improve; pacify; upgrade
affected - CORRECT ANSWER - phony; artificial
,The affected hairdresser spouted French phrases, though she had never been to France.
Synonyms: insincere; pretentious, put-on
adulterate - CORRECT ANSWER - to make impure
The restauranteur made his ketchup last longer by adulterating it with water.
Synonyms: debase; doctor; load
desultory - CORRECT ANSWER - jumping from one thing to another; disconnected
Athena had a desultory academic record; she had changed majors 12 times in 3 years.
Synonyms: aimless; disconnected; erratic; haphazard; indiscriminate; object less; purposeless;
random; stray; unconsidered; unplanned
diffident - CORRECT ANSWER - lacking self-confidence
Steve was diffident during the job interview because of his nervous nature and lack of experience
in the field.
Synonyms: backward; bashful; coy; demure; modest; retiring; self-effacing; shy; timid
dissemble - CORRECT ANSWER - to present a false appearance; to disguise one's real
intentions or character
, The villain could dissemble to the police no longer - he admitted the deed and tore up the floor to
reveal the stash of stolen money.
Synonyms: act; affect; assume; camouflage; cloak; counterfeit; cover up; disguise; dis simulate;
fake; feign; mask; masquerade; pose; pretend; put on; sham
effrontery - CORRECT ANSWER - impudent boldness; audacity
The receptionist had the effrontery to laugh out loud when the CEO tripped over a computer wire
and fell flat on his face.
Synonyms: brashness; gall; nerve; presumption; temerity
expurgate - CORRECT ANSWER - to censor
Government propagandists expurgated all negative references to the dictator from the film.
Synonyms: bowdlerize; cut; sanitize
florid - CORRECT ANSWER - excessively decorated or embellished
The palace had been decorated in an excessively florid style; every surface had been carved and
gilded
Synonyms: baroque; elaborate; flamboyant; ornate; ostentatious; rococo
foment - CORRECT ANSWER - to arouse or incite
The rebels tried to foment revolution through their attacks on the government.
Answers
boor - CORRECT ANSWER - a crude person; one lacking manners or taste
"That utter boor ruined my recital with his constant guffawing!" wailed the pianist.
Synonyms: clod; lout; oaf; vulgarian; yahoo
blithe - CORRECT ANSWER - joyful, cheerful, or without appropriate thought
Summer finally came, and the blithe students spent their days at the beach.
Synonyms: carefree; lighthearted; merry
bevy - CORRECT ANSWER - a group
As predicted, a bevy of teenagers surrounded the rock star's limousine.
Synonyms: band; bunch; gang; pack; troop
belfry - CORRECT ANSWER - a bell tower; the room in which a bell is hung
The town was shocked when a bag of money was found stashed in the old belfry of the church.
Synonyms: spire; steeple
banal - CORRECT ANSWER - predictable; clichéd; boring
,His conversations consisted of banal phrases like "Have a nice day" or "Another day, another
dollar."
Synonyms: bland; bromidic; clichéd; commonplace; fatuous; hackneyed; innocuous; insipid;
jejune; musty; platitudinous; prosaic; quotidian; shopworn; stale; stereotypic; threadbare;
timeworn; tired; trite; vapid; worn-out
audacious - CORRECT ANSWER - fearless and daring
The audacious peasant dared to insult the king's mother.
Synonyms: adventuresome; aggressive; assertive; bold; brave; courageous; daring; dauntless;
doughty; fearless; gallant; game; heroic; intrepid; mettlesome; plucky; stout; stouthearted; up
afraid; undaunted; valiant; valorous; venturesome; venturous
anachronism - CORRECT ANSWER - something out of place in time
The play was set in the nineteenth century, but was ruined by anachronisms, like the lead actor's
digital watch.
Synonyms: archaism; incongruity
ameliorate - CORRECT ANSWER - to make better; to improve
The doctor was able to ameliorate the patient's suffering using painkillers.
Synonyms: amend; better; improve; pacify; upgrade
affected - CORRECT ANSWER - phony; artificial
,The affected hairdresser spouted French phrases, though she had never been to France.
Synonyms: insincere; pretentious, put-on
adulterate - CORRECT ANSWER - to make impure
The restauranteur made his ketchup last longer by adulterating it with water.
Synonyms: debase; doctor; load
desultory - CORRECT ANSWER - jumping from one thing to another; disconnected
Athena had a desultory academic record; she had changed majors 12 times in 3 years.
Synonyms: aimless; disconnected; erratic; haphazard; indiscriminate; object less; purposeless;
random; stray; unconsidered; unplanned
diffident - CORRECT ANSWER - lacking self-confidence
Steve was diffident during the job interview because of his nervous nature and lack of experience
in the field.
Synonyms: backward; bashful; coy; demure; modest; retiring; self-effacing; shy; timid
dissemble - CORRECT ANSWER - to present a false appearance; to disguise one's real
intentions or character
, The villain could dissemble to the police no longer - he admitted the deed and tore up the floor to
reveal the stash of stolen money.
Synonyms: act; affect; assume; camouflage; cloak; counterfeit; cover up; disguise; dis simulate;
fake; feign; mask; masquerade; pose; pretend; put on; sham
effrontery - CORRECT ANSWER - impudent boldness; audacity
The receptionist had the effrontery to laugh out loud when the CEO tripped over a computer wire
and fell flat on his face.
Synonyms: brashness; gall; nerve; presumption; temerity
expurgate - CORRECT ANSWER - to censor
Government propagandists expurgated all negative references to the dictator from the film.
Synonyms: bowdlerize; cut; sanitize
florid - CORRECT ANSWER - excessively decorated or embellished
The palace had been decorated in an excessively florid style; every surface had been carved and
gilded
Synonyms: baroque; elaborate; flamboyant; ornate; ostentatious; rococo
foment - CORRECT ANSWER - to arouse or incite
The rebels tried to foment revolution through their attacks on the government.
