"Word of the Day": GRE edition

November 30

emollient • /ih-MOL-yuhnt/ • adjective

1 : making soft or supple; also : soothing especially to the skin or mucous membrane

2 : making less intense or harsh

"Word of the Day": GRE edition

November 29

barefaced •/BAIR-feyst/ • adjective

1 : shameless; impudent; audacious

2 : without concealment or disguise; boldly open

"Word of the Day": GRE edition

November 28

effluent • /EF-loo-uhnt/ • adjective

: flowing out or forth

"Word of the Day": GRE edition

November 27

leviathan • /li-VAHY-uh-thuhn/ • noun

1 : a sea monster

2 : any huge marine animal, as the whale

3 : anything of immense size and power, as a huge, oceangoing ship

"Word of the Day": GRE edition

November 26

encomium • /en-KOH-mee-uhm/ • noun

: a formal expression of high praise; eulogy.

"Word of the Day": GRE edition

November 25

depredation • /dep-ri-DEY-shuhn/ • noun

: the act of preying upon or plundering; robbery; ravage

"Word of the Day": GRE edition

November 24

aberrant • /uh-BER-uhnt/ • adjective

1 : departing from the right, normal, or usual course

2 : deviating from the ordinary, usual, or normal type; exceptional; abnormal

"Word of the Day": GRE edition

November 23

rarefy • /RAIR-uh-fahy/ • verb

: to become rare or less dense; become thinned

"Word of the Day": GRE edition

November 22

fervid • /FUR-vid/ • adjective

1 : heated or vehement in spirit, enthusiasm

2 : burning; glowing; intensely hot

"Word of the Day": GRE edition

November 21

florid • /FLAWR-id/ • adjective

1 : reddish; ruddy; rosy

2 : flowery; excessively ornate; showy

"Word of the Day": GRE edition

November 20

precipitate • /pri-SIP-i-teyt/ • verb

1 : to cast down headlong; fling or hurl down

2 : to cast, plunge, or send especially violently or abruptly

"Word of the Day": GRE edition

November 19

waver • /WEY-ver/ • verb

1 : to sway to and fro; flutter

2 : become unsteady; begin to fail or give way

3 : to feel or show doubt, indecision

"Word of the Day": GRE edition

November 18

burgeon • /BUR-juhn/ • verb

1 : to grow or develop quickly; flourish

2 : to begin to grow, as a bud; put forth buds, shoots, etc., as a plant

"Word of the Day": GRE edition

November 17

pulchritudinous • /puhl-kri-TOOD-nuhs/ • adjective

: physically beautiful; comely

"Word of the Day": GRE edition

November 16

quiescence • /kwee-ES-uhnt/ • adjective

: being at rest; quiet; still; inactive or motionless

"Word of the Day": GRE edition

November 15

aver • /uh-VUR/ • verb

: to assert or affirm with confidence; declare in a positive or peremptory manner

"Word of the Day": GRE edition

November 14

equivocal • /ih-KWIV-uh-kul/ • adjective

: ambiguous; unclear, subject to more than one interpretation

"Word of the Day": GRE edition

November 13

desiccate • /DES-i-keyt/ • verb

1 : to dry thoroughly; dry up

2 : to preserve (food) by removing moisture; dehydrate

"Word of the Day": GRE edition

November 12

antediluvian • /an-tee-di-LOO-vee-uhn/ • adjective

1 : of or belonging to the period before the Flood. Gen. 7, 8

2 : very old, old-fashioned, or out of date; antiquated; primitive

"Word of the Day": GRE edition

November 11

phlegmatic • /fleg-MAT-ik/ • adjective

1 : not easily excited to action or display of emotion; apathetic; sluggish

2 : self-possessed, calm or composed

"Word of the Day": GRE edition

November 10

sanguine • /SANG-gwin/ • adjective

1 : cheerfully optimistic, hopeful or confident

2 : reddish; ruddy

3 : blood-red; red

"Word of the Day": GRE edition

November 9

tyro • /THY-roh/ • noun

: a beginner in learning anything; novice

"Word of the Day": GRE edition

November 8

insular • /IN-suh-ler/ • adjective

1 : of or pertaining to an island or islands, thus, excessively exculsive

2 : detached; standing alone; isolated

"Word of the Day": GRE edition

November 7

noisome • /NOI-suhm/ • adjective

1 : offensive or disgusting, as an odor

2 : harmful or injurious to health; noxious

"Word of the Day": GRE edition

November 6

erudite • /ER-yoo-dhyt/ • adjective

: characterized by great knowledge; learned or scholarly

"Word of the Day": GRE edition

November 5

dearth • \DURTH\ • noun

: an inadequate supply; scarcity; lack

"Word of the Day": GRE edition

November 4

ambrosial • \am-BROH-zuhl\ • adjective

1 : exceptionally pleasing to taste or smell; especially delicious or fragrant

2 : worthy of the gods; divine

"Word of the Day": GRE edition

November 3

inimical • /ih-NIM-i-kuhl/ adjective

1 : being adverse often by reason of hostility or malevolence

2 a : having the disposition of an enemy : hostile

b : reflecting or indicating hostility : unfriendly

"Word of the Day": GRE edition

November 2

satire • \SAT-ire\ • noun

1 : a literary work holding up human vices and follies to ridicule or scorn

2 : trenchant wit, irony, or sarcasm used to expose and discredit vice or folly

"Word of the Day": GRE edition

November 1

truculent • \TRUHK-yuh-lunt\ • adjective

1 : feeling or displaying ferocity : cruel, savage

2 : deadly, destructive