14 - july - GRE Verbal Question

14 - july - GRE Verbal Question

Today's Words:


1. Stricture(n): a remark or comment, esp. an adverse criticism; an abnormal contraction of any passage or duct of the body; a restriction; the act of enclosing or binding tightly; severe criticism.


2. Unbend(v): to straighten from a bent form or position; to release from the strain of formality, intense effort, etc.; to release from tension, as a bow; to untie or loosen; To become less tense; relax; make less taut;
Synonyms: condescend, relax, slacken, straighten, vouchsafe.


3.Fling(v): to put suddenly or violently; To put or send suddenly or unexpectedly; to project or speak sharply, curtly, or forcefully; to speak harshly or abusively; To throw (oneself) into an activity with abandon and energy.
Synonyms: affair, binge, cast, catapult, chuck, dart, discard, flip, flirt, flounce, heave, hurtle, pitch, plunge, scatter, sling, splurge, spree, toss, whirl.


4. Touchy(adj): sensitive to touch; Tending to take offense with slight cause; oversensitive; Easily ignited; flammable; requiring caution, tactfulness, or expert handling.
Synonyms: cantankerous, choleric, crabby, cranky, delicate, fragile, grouchy, grumpy, huffy, irascible, peevish, precarious, temperamental, tetchy, ticklish, umbrageous, volatile, edgy, snappish.


5. Flock(n): a number of animals of one kind, esp. sheep, goats, or birds, that keep or feed together or are herded together; a large number of things; crowd; a band or company of persons.
Synonyms: bevy, covey, flight, gaggle, brood, hatch, shoal, swarm, brood, drove, herd, litter, skein.


6. Obfuscate(v): to confuse; to make so confused or opaque as to be difficult to perceive or understand; to darken; unclear.
Synonyms: muddle, perplex, bewilder, blur, cloud, dim, garble, hide, obscure, puzzle.
Antonyms: clarify.


7. Euphemism(n): an inoffensive or indirect expression that is substituted for one that is considered offensive or too harsh; a pleasant name for something that is unpleasant; The act or an example of substituting a mild, indirect, or vague term for one considered harsh, blunt, or offensive; the expression so substituted.


8. Nugtory(adj): of no real value; worthless; of no force or effect; ineffective; not valid.
Synonyms: futile, hollow, idle, ineffectual, invalid, trifling, trivial, unavailing; vain, insignificant, frivolous.


9. Evident(adj): plain or clear to the sight or understanding; obvious; clearly revealed to the mind or the senses or judgment; capable of being seen or noticed.
Synonyms: obvious, manifest, palpable, patent, apparent, certain, conclusive, conspicuous, glaring, manifest, noticeable, overt, transparent, unmistakable.

10. Concealed(adj): To keep from being seen, found, observed, or discovered; not accessible to view; hidden on any grounds for any motive; To hide or withdraw from observation; to cover; to cover or keep from sight.
Synonyms: abstruse, blindfold, clandestine, covert, disguised, hidden, incognito, latent, occult, perdue, privy, recondite, secreted.


10. Pitfall(n): a lightly covered and unnoticeable pit prepared as a trap for people or animals; any trap or danger for the unwary; an unapparent source of trouble or danger; an unforeseen or unexpected or surprising difficulty.
Synonyms: artifice, drawback, hazard, inveiglement, maelstrom, peril, risk, snag, snare, subterfuge, temptation, traps.


11. Inane(adj): lacking sense, significance, or ideas; empty; void; devoid of intelligence; Without contents; empty; something that is empty or void.
Synonyms: pointless, asinine, daft, dumb, fatuitous, feckless, frivolous, idiotic, illogical, imbecile, insubstantial, jejune, nonsensical, puerile, ridiculous, shallow, silly, stratospheric, vacuous, vapid, void, worthless.




Analogies:


1. Judge: laws

2. Assembly: humans

3. Musical band:musicians

4. Inane: weightage

5. Soil: Mud



Issue Topic:

1. "Money spent on research is almost always a good investment, even when the results of that research are controversial".


2. "Tradition and modernization are incompatible. One must choose between them".


3. "The most essential quality of an effective leader is the ability to remain consistently committed to particular principles and objectives. Any leader who is quickly and easily influenced by shifts in popular opinion will accomplish little".



Argument Topic:


1. The following appeared in a letter to the school board in the town of Centerville.
"All students should be required to take the driver's education course at Centerville High School. In the past two years several accidents in and around Centerville have involved teenage drivers. Since a number of parents in Centerville have complained that they are too busy to teach their teenagers to drive, some other instruction is necessary to ensure that these teenagers are safe drivers. Although there are two driving schools in Centerville, parents on a tight budget cannot afford to pay for driving instruction. Therefore an effective and mandatory program sponsored by the high school is the only solution to this serious problem.


2. The following appeared in a memorandum to faculty from the academic vice president of Waymarsh University.
"So that we can better accomplish Waymarsh University's academic goals, we should adopt the job-opportunity (job-op) program offered at Plateau Technical College and strongly encourage all students at Waymarsh to participate in it. The success of the job-op program at Plateau is evident: Over the past two years, more than 75% of the freshmen at Plateau have enrolled in the optional job-op program. Moreover, at Plateau, the grades of job-op students are consistently higher than those of other students, 90% of the job-op students receive job offers within a month after their graduation, and most former job-op students report much success in their careers.