A good vocabulary is crucial to acing Verbal section in GRE, CAT, SAT and other such exams. In this series of articles, we have compiled 1000 words that frequently feature in competitive exams. Spread over 25 lists of 40 words, these lists offer you a chance to learn the most essential English words.
Each word in the list is accompanied with its meaning and followed by a usage example. The words are categorized on three levels: 1, 2 and 3, according to the degree of difficulty. Go through the word lists and strengthen your vocabulary database.
Level 1: Let’s get warmed up
| Aspire: Have an ambitious plan or a lofty goal |
| He aspired to get admission in IIM. |
| Cache: A hidden storage space (for money or provisions or weapons) |
| A cache of weapons and explosives was found by the police. |
| Comprehensive: Including all or everything |
| The three month course included a comprehensive study of all the subjects. |
| Curtail: Place restrictions on |
| Personal freedom is curtailed in many countries. |
| Permeate: Spread or diffuse through |
| Water permeates sand easily. |
| Relegate: Refer to another person for decision or judgment |
| She likes to relegate difficult questions to her colleagues. |
| Saturate: Infuse or fill completely |
| The market has been saturated with paintings like that. |
| Sedentary: Requiring sitting or little activity |
| He was forced to lead a sedentary life due to his illness. |
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Level 2: Let’s take it up a notch
| Altruistic: Showing unselfish concern for the welfare of others |
| His motives of social service are not entirely altruistic. |
| Coerce: To cause to do through pressure or necessity, by physical, moral or intellectual means |
| Her uncle coerced her into matrimony against her wishes. |
| Coterie: An exclusive circle of people with a common purpose |
| The songs he recorded were written by a coterie of dedicated writers. |
| Coup: A sudden and decisive change of government illegally or by force |
| They ousted the chairman in a boardroom coup. |
| Embellish: Make more beautiful |
| The boat was embellished with red and blue carvings. |
| Frugal: Avoiding waste |
| His diet was frugal. |
| Jeopardize: Pose a threat to; present a danger to |
| He jeopardized his life to save the child from drowning. |
| Overt: Open and observable; not secret or hidden |
| He gathered information overtly and covertly. |
| Premise: A statement that is assumed to be true and from which a conclusion can be drawn |
| On the premise of a monetary benefit, he drew up the contract immediately. |
| Progeny: The immediate descendants of a person |
| They set aside funds to ensure the welfare of their progeny. |
| Prolific: Bearing in abundance especially offspring |
| Closer planting will give you a more prolific crop. |
| Strife: Lack of agreement or harmony |
| There was continuous strife between the husband and the wife. |
| Surmise: Infer from incomplete evidence |
| After hearing the disjointed facts the judge surmised that the witness had a lot to hide. |
Level 3: Time to be a master
| Amorous: Inclined toward or displaying love |
| She is the object of his amorous intentions. |
| Antithesis: Exact opposite |
| His theory is an antithesis of mine. |
| Bulwark: An embankment built around a space for defensive purposes |
| The mutineers built a bulwark against the English. |
| Corroborate: Give evidence for |
| The affidavit corroborated the lawyer’s statement. |
| Cryptic: Of an obscure nature |
| The new insurance policy is written without any cryptic or mysterious terms. |
| Cupidity: Extreme greed for material wealth |
| Politicians are well-known for their greed and cupidity. |
| Inchoate: Only partly in existence; imperfectly formed |
| A vague inchoate idea formed in his mind to go to a bigger city for a better job. |
| Incredulous: Not disposed or willing to believe; unbelieving |
| Incredulous stories about flying saucers were being circulated just to scare the kids in the community. |
| Inveigh: Complain bitterly |
| The housekeeper had good reason to inveigh against the facilities provided to her. |
| Legion: A vast multitude |
| His sense of humour won him a legion of friends. |
| Megalomania: A psychological state characterized by delusions of grandeur |
| His single-mindedness to succeed never veered into megalomania. |
| Nettle: Cause annoyance in; disturb, especially by minor irritations |
| The shop-keeper got nettled by the irritable behaviour of some of the customers. |
| Phlegmatic: Showing little emotion |
| His father was a phlegmatic and an undemonstrative person. |
| Profligate: Recklessly wasteful |
| The opulent wedding was the most profligate example of wasteful expenditure. |
| Propitious: Presenting favourable circumstances. |
| He asked the priests for the most propitious moment to launch his campaign. |
| Repress: Put down by force or intimidation |
| The voice of the freedom fighters was repressed during the British rule. |
| Temerity: Fearless daring |
| Very few patients have the temerity to challenge their doctors. |
| Virtuosity: Technical skill or fluency or style exhibited by a virtuoso |
| At that time his virtuosity on the trumpet had no parallel in jazz. |
| Zealous: Marked by active interest and enthusiasm |
| The marketing team was very zealous to achieve their goals. |
Vocabulary Preparation Series
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