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Printable GRE Vocabulary Builder - List 20

GRE - Flashcards - Multiple Choice Questions - SHOW ME LIST 20

#WordsDefinitions
1 posture (noun) characteristic way of bearing one's body; "stood with good posture"

(noun) position or arrangement of the body and its limbs; "he assumed an attitude of surrender"

(noun) capability in terms of personnel and materiel that affect the capacity to fight a war; "we faced an army of great strength"; "politicians have neglected our military posture"

(noun) a rationalized mental attitude

(verb) assume a posture as for artistic purposes; "We don't know the woman who posed for Leonardo so often"

(verb) behave affectedly or unnaturally in order to impress others; "Don't pay any attention to him--he is always posing to impress his peers!"; "She postured and made a total fool of herself"

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2 poverty (noun) the state of having little or no money and few or no material possessions

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3 pragmatic (adjective satellite) concerned with practical matters; "a matter-of-fact (or pragmatic) approach to the problem"; "a matter-of-fact account of the trip"

(adjective satellite) guided by practical experience and observation rather than theory; "a hardheaded appraisal of our position"; "a hard-nosed labor leader"; "completely practical in his approach to business"; "not ideology but pragmatic politics"

(adjective) of or concerning the theory of pragmatism

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4 precarious (adjective satellite) affording no ease or reassurance; "a precarious truce"

(adjective satellite) fraught with danger; "dangerous waters"; "a parlous journey on stormy seas"; "a perilous voyage across the Atlantic in a small boat"; "the precarious life of an undersea diver"; "dangerous surgery followed by a touch-and-go recovery"

(adjective satellite) not secure; beset with difficulties; "a shaky marriage"

(adjective satellite) dangerously insecure; "a precarious footing on the ladder"

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5 precept (noun) a doctrine that is taught; "the teachings of religion"; "he believed all the Christian precepts"

(noun) rule of personal conduct

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6 precipitate (noun) a precipitated solid substance in suspension or after settling or filtering

(verb) separate as a fine suspension of solid particles

(verb) hurl or throw violently; "The bridge broke and precipitated the train into the river below"

(verb) bring about abruptly; "The crisis precipitated by Russia's revolution"

(verb) fall vertically, sharply, or headlong; "Our economy precipitated into complete ruin"

(verb) fall from clouds; "rain, snow and sleet were falling"; "Vesuvius precipitated its fiery, destructive rage on Herculaneum"

(adjective satellite) done with very great haste and without due deliberation; "hasty marriage seldom proveth well"- Shakespeare; "hasty makeshifts take the place of planning"- Arthur Geddes; "rejected what was regarded as an overhasty plan for reconversion"; "wondered whether

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7 preclude (verb) keep from happening or arising; have the effect of preventing; "My sense of tact forbids an honest answer"

(verb) make impossible, especially beforehand

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8 precursory (adjective satellite) warning of future misfortune

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9 predilection (noun) a predisposition in favor of something; "a predilection for expensive cars"; "his sexual preferences"; "showed a Marxist orientation"

(noun) a strong liking; "my own preference is for good literature"; "the Irish have a penchant for blarney"

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10 predominate (verb) be larger in number, quantity, power, status or importance; "Money reigns supreme here"; "Hispanics predominate in this neighborhood"

(verb) appear very large or occupy a commanding position; "The huge sculpture predominates over the fountain"; "Large shadows loomed on the canyon wall"

(adjective satellite) having superior power and influence; "the predominant mood among policy-makers is optimism"

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11 preempt (verb) make a preemptive bid

(verb) acquire by preemption

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12 premature (adjective satellite) uncommonly early or before the expected time; "illness led to his premature death"; "alcohol brought him to an untimely end"

(adjective satellite) too soon or too hasty; "our condemnation of him was a bit previous"; "a premature judgment"

(adjective) born after a gestation period of less than the normal time; "a premature infant"

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13 preponderance (noun) exceeding in heaviness; having greater weight; "the least preponderance in either pan will unbalance the scale"

(noun) a superiority in numbers or amount; "there is a preponderance of Blacks in our prisons"

(noun) superiority in power or influence; "the preponderance of good over evil"; "the preponderance of wealth and power"

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14 presage (noun) a sign of something about to happen; "he looked for an omen before going into battle"

(noun) a foreboding about what is about to happen

(verb) indicate by signs; "These signs bode bad news"

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15 preternatural (adjective satellite) existing outside of or not in accordance with nature; "find transcendental motives for sublunary action"-Aldous Huxley

(adjective satellite) surpassing the ordinary or normal; "Beyond his preternatural affability there is some acid and some steel"- George Will

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16 prevalent (adjective satellite) encountered generally especially at the present time; "the prevailing opinion was that a trade war could be averted"; "the most prevalent religion in our area"; "speculation concerning the books author was rife"

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17 prevalent (adjective satellite) encountered generally especially at the present time; "the prevailing opinion was that a trade war could be averted"; "the most prevalent religion in our area"; "speculation concerning the books author was rife"

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18 prevaricate (verb) be deliberately ambiguous or unclear in order to mislead or withhold information

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19 prim (verb) dress primly

(verb) contract one's lips; "She primmed her lips after every bite of food"

(verb) assume a prim appearance; "They mince and prim"

(adjective satellite) exaggeratedly proper; "my straitlaced Aunt Anna doesn't approve of my miniskirts"

(adjective satellite) affectedly dainty or refined

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20 pristine (adjective satellite) immaculately clean and unused; "handed her his pristine white handkerchief"

(adjective satellite) completely free from dirt or contamination; "pristine mountain snow"

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21 probity (noun) complete and confirmed integrity

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22 proclivity (noun) a natural inclination; "he has a proclivity for exaggeration"

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23 procrastination (noun) the act of procrastinating; putting off or delaying or defering an action to a later time

(noun) slowness as a consequence of not getting around to it

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24 prodigal (noun) a recklessly extravagant consumer

(adjective satellite) very generous; "distributed gifts with a lavish hand"; "the critics were lavish in their praise"; "a munificent gift"; "his father gave him a half-dollar and his mother a quarter and he thought them munificent"; "prodigal praise"; "unsparing generosity";

(adjective satellite) marked by rash extravagance; "led a prodigal life"

(adjective satellite) recklessly wasteful; "prodigal in their expenditures"

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25 prodigious (adjective satellite) so great in size or force or extent as to elicit awe; "colossal crumbling ruins of an ancient temple"; "has a colossal nerve"; "a prodigious storm"; "a stupendous field of grass"; "stupendous demand"

(adjective satellite) far beyond what is usual in magnitude or degree; "a night of exceeding darkness"; "an exceptional memory"; "olympian efforts to save the city from bankruptcy"; "the young Mozart's prodigious talents"

(adjective satellite) of momentous or ominous significance; "such a portentous...monster raised all my curiosity"- Herman Melville; "a prodigious vision"

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26 profane (verb) violate the sacred character of a place or language; "desecrate a cemetary"; "violate the sanctity of the church"; "profane the name of God"

(verb) corrupt morally or by intemperance or sensuality; "debauch the young people with wine and women"; "Socrates was accused of corrupting young men"; "Do school counselors subvert young children?"; "corrupt the morals"

(adjective satellite) characterized by profanity or cursing; "foul-mouthed and blasphemous"; "blue language"; "profane words"

(adjective satellite) grossly irreverent toward what is held to be sacred; "blasphemous rites of a witches' Sabbath"; "profane utterances against the Church"; "it is sacrilegious to enter with shoes on"

(adjective satellite) not holy because unconsecrated or impure or defiled

(adjective) not sacred or concerned with religion; "sacred and profane music"; "children being brought up in an entirely profane environment"

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27 profligate (noun) a recklessly extravagant consumer

(noun) a dissolute man in fashionable society

(adjective satellite) unrestrained by convention or morality; "Congreve draws a debauched aristocratic society"; "deplorably dissipated and degraded"; "riotous living"; "fast women"

(adjective satellite) recklessly wasteful; "prodigal in their expenditures"

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28 profundity (noun) intellectual depth; penetrating knowledge; keen insight; etc; "the depth of my feeling"; "the profoundness of the silence"

(noun) the quality of being physically deep; "the profundity of the mine was almost a mile"

(noun) the intellectual ability to penetrate deeply into ideas

(noun) wisdom that is recondite and abstruse and profound; "the anthropologist was impressed by the reconditeness of the native proverbs"

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29 profusion (noun) the property of being extremely abundant

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30 proliferate (verb) cause to grow or increase rapidly; "We must not proliferate nuclear arms"

(verb) grow rapidly; "Pizza parlors proliferate in this area"

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31 prolix (adjective) tediously prolonged or tending to speak or write at great length; "editing a prolix manuscript"; "a prolix lecturer telling you more than you want to know"

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32 prone (adjective satellite) lying face downward

(adjective satellite) having a tendency (to); often used in combination; "a child prone to mischief"; "failure-prone"

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33 propagation (noun) the act of producing offspring or multiplying by such production

(noun) the spreading of something (a belief or practice) into new regions

(noun) the movement of a wave through a medium

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34 propinquity (noun) the property of being close together

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35 propitiate (verb) make peace with

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36 propitiatory (adjective satellite) intended to reconcile or appease; "sent flowers as a propitiatory gesture"

(adjective) having power to atone for or offered by way of expiation or propitiation; "expiatory (or propitiatory) sacrifice"

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37 propitious (adjective) presenting favorable circumstances; "propitious omens"

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38 prosaic (adjective satellite) not challenging; dull and lacking excitement; "an unglamorous job greasing engines"

(adjective satellite) lacking wit or imagination; "a pedestrian movie plot"

(adjective satellite) not fanciful or imaginative; "local guides describe the history of various places in matter-of-fact tones"; "a prosaic and unimaginative essay"

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39 proscribe (verb) command against; "I forbid you to call me late at night"; "Mother vetoed the trip to the chocolate store"

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40 protracted (adjective satellite) relatively long in duration; tediously protracted; "a drawn-out argument"; "an extended discussion"; "a lengthy visit from her mother-in-law"; "a prolonged and bitter struggle"; "protracted negotiations"

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41 provident (adjective) providing carefully for the future; "wild squirrels are provident"; "a provident father plans for his children's education"

(adjective satellite) careful in regard to your own interests; "the prudent use and development of resources"; "wild squirrels are provident"

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42 provisional (adjective satellite) under terms not final or fully worked out or agreed upon; "probationary employees"; "a provisional government"; "just a tentative schedule"

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43 provoke (verb) provide the needed stimulus for

(verb) call forth; "Her behavior provoked a quarrel between the couple"

(verb) call forth (emotions, feelings, and responses); "arouse pity"; "raise a smile"; "evoke sympathy"

(verb) annoy continually or chronically; "He is known to harry his staff when he is overworked"; "This man harasses his female co-workers"

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44 prudence (noun) discretion in practical affairs

(noun) knowing how to avoid embarrassment or distress; "the servants showed great tact and discretion"

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45 prudish (adjective satellite) exaggeratedly proper; "my straitlaced Aunt Anna doesn't approve of my miniskirts"

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46 prune (noun) dried plum

(verb) weed out unwanted or unnecessary things; "We had to lose weight, so we cut the sugar from our diet"

(verb) cultivate, tend, and cut back the growth of; "dress the plants in the garden"

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47 pry (noun) a heavy iron lever with one end forged into a wedge

(verb) be nosey; "Don't pry into my personal matters!"

(verb) to move or force, especially in an effort to get something open; "The burglar jimmied the lock", "Raccoons managed to pry the lid off the garbage pail"

(verb) make an uninvited or presumptuous inquiry; "They pried the information out of him"

(verb) search or inquire in a meddlesome way; "This guy is always nosing around the office"

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48 pugnacious (adjective satellite) ready and able to resort to force or violence; "pugnacious spirits...lamented that there was so little prospect of an exhilarating disturbance"- Herman Melville; "they were rough and determined fighting men"

(adjective satellite) tough and callous by virtue of experience

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49 punch (noun) (boxing) a blow with the fist; "I gave him a clout on his nose"

(noun) a tool for making (usually circular) holes

(noun) an iced mixed drink usually containing alcohol and prepared for multiple servings; normally served in a punch bowl

(verb) deliver a quick blow to; "he punched me in the stomach"

(verb) make a hole into or between, as for ease of separation; "perforate the sheets of paper"

(verb) drive forcibly as if by a punch; "the nail punched through the wall"

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