GRE Vocabulary List Set 3
SET 1 | SET 2 | SET 3
- Palatable – acceptable; pleasant
- Palliate – ease symptoms; reduce severity
- Pallid – pale; weak
- Palpable – obvious
- Panacea – cure-all
- Panache – flamboyant style
- Panegyric – formal praise
- Paradigm – model
- Paragon – a perfect example
- Pariah – an outcast
- Parley – negotiation
- Parsimonious – extremely frugal; stingy
- Parsimony – stinginess
- Pastiche – artistic imitation
- Patent – obvious
- Paucity – scarcity
- Peccadillo – minor offense
- Pedagogy – teaching
- Pedantic – overly concerned with details
- Pedestrian – dull; ordinary
- Pejorative – expressing disapproval; insulting
- Pellucid – clear; transparent
- Penchant – strong liking
- Penitent – remorseful; sorry
- Penumbra – shadow
- Penurious – extremely poor
- Perceptive – insightful
- Peremptory – commanding
- Perennial – lasting long
- Perfidious – treacherous
- Perfunctory – done without interest; superficial
- Peripatetic – traveling from place to place; wandering
- Pernicious – extremely harmful
- Perpetuate – make something continue
- Perquisite – perk
- Perspicacious – insightful; mentally sharp
- Perspicuity – clarity
- Pertinacious – stubborn
- Pertinent – relevant
- Perturb – disturb
- Peruse – read carefully
- Pervasive – spreading widely; widespread
- Pessimistic – expecting the worst
- Petulant – irritable
- Philanthropist – one who donates generously
- Phlegmatic – calm; unemotional
- Pious – religiously devoted
- Piquant – pleasantly spicy
- Pith – essence
- Pithy – concise and meaningful
- Placate – calm; to soothe anger
- Placid – calm; peaceful
- Plaintive – sad
- Platitude – a dull, overused remark
- Plausible – believable; seeming true
- Plethora – excess
- Pliant – flexible; easily influenced
- Plucky – brave
- Poignant – emotionally moving; emotionally touching
- Polarize – divide sharply
- Polemic – verbal attack
- Polemical – argumentative
- Ponder – think deeply
- Ponderous – heavy
- Portent – an omen; sign of future
- Portentous – ominous
- Pragmatic – practical
- Precarious – risky; unstable; unsafe
- Precept – principle
- Preclude – prevent
- Precocious – advanced for age
- Predilection – preference
- Preeminent – outstanding
- Prelude – introduction
- Premise – assumption; basis
- Preponderance – majority
- Presage – foretell
- Prescience – foresight
- Prescient – knowing beforehand
- Pretext – false excuse
- Prevaricate – lie
- Pristine – pure
- Proclivity – natural tendency
- Prodigal – wasteful
- Prodigious – enormous
- Profligacy – excessive wastefulness
- Profligate – extremely wasteful; reckless
- Progenitor – ancestor
- Prognosticate – predict
- Prolific – highly productive; producing many
- Proponent – supporter
- Propound – put forward an idea
- Prosaic – dull; unimaginative
- Proscribe – forbid
- Protagonist – main character
- Protean – able to change easily; changeable
- Providence – divine guidance
- Provincial – narrow-minded
- Provisional – temporary
- Prowess – skill
- Prudence – carefulness
- Prudent – wise; cautious
- Prurient – lustful
- Pseudonym – false name
- Pugnacious – combative; eager to fight
- Punctilious – extremely careful with details
- Sagacious – wise
- Sagacity – wisdom
- Salient – noticeable; important
- Salutary – beneficial
- Sanctimonious – falsely moral
- Sanguinary – bloody
- Sanguine – optimistic
- Sardonic – bitterly mocking
- Satiate – satisfy
- Scathing – extremely harsh; harshly critical
- Scintilla – tiny amount
- Scintillating – brilliant
- Scruple – moral doubt
- Scrupulous – moral; very careful
- Secrete – produce and release
- Sedentary – inactive
- Seditious – rebellious
- Sedulous – diligent
- Seminal – influential
- Sententious – moralizing, pompous
- Sentient – capable of feeling
- Seraphic – angelic
- Serendipity – fortunate discovery
- Servile – overly submissive
- Simulate – imitate
- Sinecure – easy job
- Sinuous – winding
- Skeptical – doubting
- Skittish – easily frightened; jumpy
- Slake – satisfy thirst
- Slovenly – untidy
- Sobriquet – nickname
- Solecism – grammatical mistake
- Solicitous – concerned; showing concern
- Soliloquy – dramatic monologue
- Solipsistic – self-centered; only self exists
- Somber – dark; depressing
- Somnolent – sleepy
- Sophistry – clever but false argument; false reasoning
- Sophomoric – immature
- Spate – large number
- Specious – falsely plausible
- Sporadic – irregular; occasional
- Spurious – false; not genuine
- Squalid – filthy
- Stagnant – not moving
- Staid – serious
- Stark – harsh; plain
- Static – unchanging
- Steadfast – firm
- Stentorian – loud
- Stigma – mark of shame
- Stigmatize – brand as disgraceful
- Stoic – emotionless
- Stolid – unemotional
- Stratagem – clever plan; trick; scheme
- Stratify – arrange in layers
- Strident – loud, harsh
- Stringent – strict
- Stupor – daze
- Stymie – block; hinder
- Subdue – control; restrain
- Subjugate – conquer
- Submissive – yielding
- Subordinate – lower in rank
- Substantiate – prove; support with evidence
- Subsume – include
- Subtle – difficult to detect
- Subversive – seeking to overthrow
- Succinct – brief
- Succumb – yield
- Supercilious – arrogant
- Superfluous – unnecessary
- Supernal – heavenly
- Supplant – replace
- Surfeit – excess; excessive amount
- Surly – rude
- Surmise – guess
- Surreptitious – secret
- Susceptible – easily influenced
- Sybarite – lover of luxury
- Sycophant – flatterer
- Synthesis – combining parts
- Tacit – unspoken
- Taciturn – silent
- Talisman – magical charm
- Tangential – off-topic
- Tangible – touchable
- Tantamount – equivalent
- Temerity – boldness
- Tenable – defensible
- Tenacious – persistent
- Tenuous – weak; fragile
- Tepid – lukewarm
- Terse – brief
- Timorous – fearful
- Tirade – long angry speech
- Toady – flatterer
- Torpid – sluggish
- Torpor – sluggishness
- Tortuous – twisting
- Tractable – easy to control; manageable
- Transient – temporary
- Translucent – partly transparent
- Trenchant – sharp; forceful; incisive
- Trepidation – fear
- Trite – overused
- Trivial – unimportant
- Truculent – aggressive
- Tumult – disorder
- Turbid – cloudy
- Turbulent – disorderly
- Turgid – pompous
- Turpitude – moral corruption
- Tyranny – harsh rule
- Ubiquitous – present everywhere
- Umbrage – offense; annoyance
- Unctuous – oily, insincere; overly flattering
- Undermine – weaken
- Unequivocal – clear; definite
- Unfettered – free; unrestricted
- Unprecedented – never done before
- Untenable – impossible to defend; not defensible
- Unwitting – unintentional
- Unwonted – unusual
- Upbraid – scold
- Urbane – polished; sophisticated
- Usurp – seize power unlawfully
- Uxorious – excessively submissive to wife
- Vacillate – waver
- Vacuous – empty
- Vanguard – leading position
- Vapid – dull
- Variegated – varied
- Vehement – forceful; intense; passionate
- Veil – conceal
- Venal – corrupt
- Venerate – respect deeply
- Venial – pardonable
- Veracity – truthfulness
- Verbose – wordy
- Verdict – final decision
- Verisimilitude – appearance of truth
- Vernacular – everyday language
- Versatile – adaptable
- Vestige – trace
- Vex – annoy
- Viable – workable
- Vicarious – experienced secondhand; felt indirectly
- Vicissitude – change
- Vilify – slander
- Vindicate – clear from blame; free from blame
- Vindictive – revengeful
- Virago – loud, aggressive woman
- Virulent – extremely harmful
- Viscous – thick, sticky
- Vitiate – weaken
- Vitriolic – harsh; corrosive
- Vociferous – loud; passionate
- Volatile – changeable; explosive
- Volition – free will
- Voluble – talkative
- Voracious – eager; greedy
- Voracity – greed
- Waggish – humorous
- Wan – pale
- Wane – decrease
- Wanton – reckless
- Wary – cautious
- Wastrel – wasteful person
- Waver – hesitate
- Wax – increase
- Welter – confused mass; turmoil
- Whimsical – unpredictable
- Wily – cunning
- Winsome – charming
- Wistful – longing sadly
- Wither – shrink
- Wizen – shrivel
- Wizened – shriveled; withered
- Wraith – ghost
- Xenial – hospitable
- Xenophile – lover of foreign cultures
- Xenophobia – fear of foreigners
- Yare – ready; nimble
- Yoke – join or unite
- Yokel – unsophisticated person
- Zany – comical, strange
- Zealot – fanatic
- Zealotry – fanaticism
- Zenith – highest point; peak
- Zephyr – gentle breeze
- Zest – enthusiasm
- Zigzag – move in turns
SET 1 | SET 2 | SET 3