The Best 4 GRE Prep Books:
・The Official Guide to the GRE General Test
・Princeton Review GRE Premium Prep, 2021
・500 Essential Words: GRE Vocabulary Flashcards
・500 Essential Vocabulary Words to Help Boost Your GRE Score
Essential Vocabulary for the GRE【Part 3】201. beatify ～ 300. catholic
201. beatify [verb]
to describe or think of someone as if they are extremely good and have no faults:
The church was quick to beatify Mary for her role as the mother of Jesus.
202. bedazzle [verb]
to make someone slightly confused, and not able to think clearly:
Greg felt compelled to bedazzle his boss, so he always tried hard to impress him during meetings.
203. bedizen [verb]
to dress or adorn gaudily:
In the 1970s, many hippies would bedizen themselves in bell bottoms that had large colorful flowers on them.
204. bedlam [noun]
a noisy situation with no order:
When the team won the championship the fans ran onto the court, and bedlam ensued.
205. beguile [verb]
to persuade, attract, or interest someone, sometimes in order to deceive them:
The car salesman tried to beguile the customer with an offer of free gas for a year.
206. behemoth [noun]
something that is extremely large and often extremely powerful:
I was scared of the behemoth roller coaster that was the tallest and fastest in the world.
207. beholden [adjective]
feeling you have a duty to someone because they have done something for you:
Stan refused to accept a college loan because he didn’t want to feel beholden to anyone.
208. beleaguer [verb]
to surround someone in order to attack them:
If we do not spray our house with insect repellant, mosquitos will beleaguer us all summer.
209. belie [verb]
to show something to be false, or to hide something such as an emotion:
Jason tried to belie the fact he was a lousy worker by showing up early at the office.
210. belletristic [adjective]
written or appreciated for aesthetic value rather than content:
A piece of prose writing that is belletristic in style is characterized by a casual, yet polished and pointed, essayistic elegance.
211. bellicose [adjective]
wishing to fight or start a war:
He expressed alarm about the government's increasingly bellicose statements.
212. belligerent [adjective]
wishing to fight or argue:
My brother was always belligerent and ready to fight.
213. bemuse [verb]
to slightly confuse someone:
During the festival, I was a little bemused by all the noise at the park.
214. beneficent [adjective]
helping people and doing good acts:
My beneficent neighbor gives out meals to the poor every Sunday.
215. beneficiary [noun]
a person or group who receives money, advantages, etc. as a result of something else:
My husband has listed me as the beneficiary of his life insurance policy.
216. benign [adjective]
pleasant and kind:
They are normally a more benign audience.
217. bent [noun]
a natural tendency:
He passionately talked about the philosophical bent of his mind.
218. bereave [verb]
to take away a valued or necessary possession especially by force:
Because Ted was severely depressed, he chose to bereave himself of companionship so no one would comment upon his misery.
219. berserk [adjective]
very angry or out of control:
Jimmy went totally berserk when Sandra told him that she was breaking off their engagement.
220. beseech [verb]
to ask for something in a way that shows you need it very much:
As soon as I reach the driving age, I will beseech my parents to buy me a car.
221. besiege [verb]
to surround a place, especially with an army, to prevent people or supplies getting in or out:
The journalists will besiege the police chief with questions about the prisoner’s escape.
222. besmirch [verb]
to say bad things about someone to influence other people's opinion of them:
He never forgave the reporter for besmirching his family's name.
223. besotted [verb]
completely in love with someone and always thinking of them:
The besotted mother treated her child like a princess, despite the fact that she risked spoiling her.
224. bestow [verb]
to give something as an honor or present:
During the ceremony, the prime minister will bestow medals of honor to the brave soldiers who rescued their comrades.
225. bevy [noun]
a large group of people, especially women or girls, or a large group of similar things:
My essay grade was low because I had a bevy of mistakes in my paper.
226. bifurcate [verb]
to divide into two parts:
The stream bifurcates into two narrow winding channels.
227. bigot [noun]
a person who has strong, unreasonable beliefs and who does not like other people who have different beliefs or a different way of life:
The bigot was a lonely old man who thought everyone was inferior to him.
228. bilk [verb]
to get money from someone unfairly or dishonestly:
They are charged with bilking investors out of millions of dollars.
229. biosphere [noun]
the part of the earth's environment where life exists:
Earth’s biosphere is made up of all living things, from the oceans to plants to the very atmosphere.
230. bizarre [adjective]
very strange and unusual:
Everyone stared at the student who wore the bizarre outfit to school.
231. blandish [verb]
to try to persuade someone by saying pleasant things:
It is impossible to blandish my boss since she isn’t persuaded by flattery or compliments.
232. blasé [adjective]
bored or not very interested:
Since a new smartphone comes out practically every month, He is blasé to the latest technological invention.
233. blatant [adjective]
obvious or intentional, and done without worry about what others think:
The judge became very angry when he heard the defendant’s blatant lie.
234. blemish [noun]
a mark on something that spoils its appearance:
Oliver was worried that the small blemish on the tip of his nose would stand out in the wedding photographs.
235. blight [verb]
to spoil something:
The scandal blighted the careers of several leading politicians.
236. blithe [adjective]
happy and without worry:
Because my answers came across as blithe during the interview, I did not receive a job offer.
237. blunt [adjective]
saying what you think without trying to be polite or caring about other people’s feelings:
I’ve lost friends due to being a very blunt person and speaking my mind.
238. boast [verb]
to speak too proudly or happily about what you have done or what you own:
I didn’t want to boast, but I did exceptionally well on my college entrance exam.
239. bode [verb]
to be a sign of something that will happen in the future, usually something very good or bad:
These recently published figures bode well for the company's future.
240. bog [verb]
to become impeded or stuck:
Your car will bog down in the mud due to the heavy rains.
241. bogus [adjective]
false, not real, or not legal:
The jewelry store owner was arrested for selling bogus diamonds as genuine gems.
242. boisterous [adjective]
noisy, energetic, and rough:
Your boisterous actions at church cannot be tolerated.
243. bolster [verb]
to support, improve something, or make it stronger:
Free tickets were given away to bolster attendance at the game.
244. bombastic [adjective]
using long and difficult words, usually to make people think you know more than you do:
Because he is a bit too bombastic for me, I will not be voting for that politician again.
245. bonhomie [noun]
friendliness and happiness:
There was a casual bonhomie between the actors at rehearsals.
246. boon [noun]
something that is very helpful and improves the quality of life:
The donation from the billionaire was a nice boon for the homeless charity.
247. boondoggle [verb]
to deceive or attempt to deceive:
They were all boondoggled by her big talk.
248. boor [noun]
a person who is rude and does not consider other people's feelings:
Jack was such a boor he would not even hold a door for his mother.
249. boorish [adjective]
rude and not considering other people's feelings:
The comedian’s jokes were so vulgar and boorish that the only ones left in the audience were those who were too drunk to be offended.
250. botch [verb]
to spoil something by doing it badly:
You will botch the recipe if you leave the chicken in the marinade for too long.
251. bourgeois [noun]
belonging to or typical of the middle class especially in supporting existing customs and values, or in having a strong interest in money and possessions:
In America, the traditional bourgeois family consists of two parents, two children, and a family pet.
252. bovine [adjective]
slow or stupid in a way that a cow is thought to be:
Although Charles was active and talkative at work, at home he was usually bovine and sat around with a dull look on his face.
253. braggart [noun]
someone who proudly talks a lot about himself or herself and his or her achievements or possessions:
My rich uncle is a braggart who constantly boasts about his possessions.
254. brandish [verb]
to wave something in the air in a threatening or excited way:
When the crazed man decided to brandish a gun in the airport, he was immediately shot by a security guard.
255. brazen [adjective]
obvious, without any attempt to be hidden:
There were instances of brazen cheating in the exams.
256. breach [noun]
an act of breaking a law, promise, agreement, or relationship:
Sarah was allowed to keep her job because the committee decided her efforts to save the patient were not a breach of any nursing laws or codes.
257. brilliance [noun]
great skill or intelligence:
The genius’s brilliance allowed him to come up with some life-changing surgical techniques.
258. broach [verb]
to begin a discussion of something difficult:
I thought I would better broach the matter with my boss.
259. brood [verb]
to think for a long time about things that make you sad, worried, or angry:
Don't brood too much and just let it be, and you will finally have what you should.
260. brook [verb]
to not allow or accept something, especially a difference of opinion or intention:
She won't brook any criticism of her work.
261. brunt [noun]
the main force of something unpleasant:
As the task manager, my husband will bear the brunt of the client’s anger when the project is not finished on time.
262. brusque [adjective]
quick and rude in manner or speech:
His secretary was rather brusque with me.
263. brutality [noun]
an act or behavior that is cruel and violent:
The minority group accused the police of brutality.
264. bucolic [adjective]
relating to the countryside:
The postcard image was beautiful and featured a bucolic white house in a dark green pasture.
265. buoyant [adjective]
happy and confident:
With a great deal of confidence, the buoyant model strolled down the runway.
266. burgeon [verb]
to develop or grow quickly:
As car prices go down, car dealers are expecting sales to burgeon.
267. burnish [verb]
to rub metal until it is smooth and shiny:
Richard is forever attempting to burnish his reputation so that he can advance his position within our company.
268. buttress [noun]
a structure made of stone or brick that sticks out from and supports a wall of a building:
The professor told him that he needed to do some more research to find data to be a buttress for his theory.
269. by far
by a great amount:
That was by far the worst speech he had ever made.
270. bystander [noun]
a person who is standing near and watching something that is happening but is not taking part in it:
A bystander witnessed the wreck, and called the police to assist.
271. byzantine [adjective]
complicated and difficult to understand:
Because the plot was revealed in a byzantine manner, it was difficult to understand.
272. cabal [noun]
a small group of people who plan secretly to take action, especially political action:
Hundreds of workers formed a cabal to demonstrate their dissatisfaction with the firm’s healthcare plan.
273. cachinnate [verb]
to laugh loudly or immoderately:
At one of the funniest parts of the film, the audience began to cachinnate with such force that guests in the other theaters could hear them.
274. cacophony [noun]
an unpleasant mixture of loud sounds:
Because the band had not practiced enough, their arrangement came across as a cacophony instead of entertaining music.
275. cadge [verb]
to try to get something from someone else without paying for it:
The homeless man was constantly trying to cadge cigarettes from pedestrians.
276. cajole [verb]
to persuade someone to do something they might not want to do, by pleasant talk and promises:
He really knows how to cajole people into doing what he wants.
277. callous [adjective]
unkind, cruel, and without sympathy or feeling for other people:
There is so much crime in this country that many people have become callous about it and tend to look the other way.
278. callow [adjective]
someone, especially a young person, who is callow behaves in a way that shows they have little experience, confidence, or judgment:
Since the callow baker was new to cake decorating, she did not know how to properly frost the multi-layer cake.
279. calumniate [verb]
to make statements about someone that are not true and that are damaging to their reputation:
In an attempt to prevent the mayor’s reelection, someone has been using the Internet to calumniate the city leader’s family.
280. canard [noun]
a false report or piece of information that is intended to deceive people:
The newspaper was sued for publishing a canard about a popular celebrity.
281. candor [noun]
the quality of being honest and telling the truth, especially about a difficult or embarrassing subject:
Because the realtor was an honest woman, she replied with candor about the damage to the house.
282. canny [adjective]
thinking quickly and cleverly, especially in business or financial matters:
The canny man would not buy the used car until it passed his mechanic’s inspection.
283. canon [noun]
a rule, principle, or law, especially in the Christian Church:
He had to read a canon of accepted literary texts.
284. canonize [verb]
to declare a deceased person an officially recognized saint:
In religion, people tend to canonize the words of their most significant religious figure, holding them as holy and indisputable.
285. cant [noun]
special words used by a particular group of people such as thieves, lawyers, or priests, often in order to keep things secret:
The older woman did not understand the modern cant spoken by her grandchildren.
286. cantankerous [adjective]
annoyed and tending to argue and complain:
The leading character in the movie was a cantankerous old man who hated the world.
287. caprice [noun]
a sudden and usually silly wish to have or do something, or a sudden and silly change of mind or behavior:
The professor was not the type of man to engage in anything as reckless as a caprice.
288. capricious [adjective]
changing mood or behavior suddenly and unexpectedly:
Because of his capricious nature, Jeremy found it hard to keep a steady job.
289. captious [adjective]
often expressing criticisms about matters that are not important:
My captious father is never satisfied with anything I do.
290. cardinal [adjective]
of great importance:
The cardinal belief with the nonprofit organization to help others in a time of crisis seemed to be overlooked which resulted in people feeling animosity towards the charity.
291. carnal [adjective]
relating to the physical feelings and wants of the body:
Minors are not invited to the art exhibit because the paintings display carnal nudity.
292. carping [adjective]
marked by or inclined to querulous and often perverse criticism:
My carping mother-in-law is constantly criticizing my housekeeping skills.
293. cartography [noun]
the science or art of making or drawing maps:
Since Greg was an expert in cartography, he quickly located the inaccuracy in the map.
294. caste [noun]
a social class system in any society:
In the tribe, there is a caste system based on skin color with the darker-skinned people comprising the lower class.
295. castigate [verb]
to criticize someone or something severely:
My mother was a cruel woman who never missed an opportunity to castigate my father.
296. cataclysm [noun]
an event that causes a lot of destruction, or a sudden, violent change:
A severe attack upon the Internet could cause a cataclysm in the financial world.
297. catalyst [noun]
something that makes a chemical reaction happen more quickly without itself being changed:
The chemical substance acts as a catalyst in the process of fermentation.
298. catastrophe [noun]
a sudden event that causes very great trouble or destruction:
The attempt to expand the business was a catastrophe for the firm.
299. categorical [adjective]
without any doubt or possibility of being changed:
My father’s categorical denial let me know there was no need to ask again.
300. catholic [adjective]
including many different types of thing:
He was a man of catholic tastes, a lover of grand opera, history and the fine arts.
REFERENCE
: Essential Vocabulary for the GRE
What's next?
