Barron's GRE Verbal Workbook > L > Flashcards

L Flashcards

(96 cards)

Study These Flashcards
1
Q

labile

A

adj. likely to change

Tom’s labile personality can make him difficult to get along with.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
2
Q

labyrinth

A

n. maze

The office building was like a labyrinth.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
3
Q

laceration

A

n. cut or wound

The child was treated for lacerations suffered in the accident.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
4
Q

lachrymose

A

adj. tearful, sad

The mood at the funeral was lachrymose.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
5
Q

lackadaisical

A

adj. idle, lazy; apathetic, indifferent

Stuart is a lackadaisical studnet.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
6
Q

lackluster

A

adj. lacking brightness or vitality

His performance this year has been lackluster.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
7
Q

laconic

A

adj. using few words

The laconic scientist was not an ideal guest on the talk show.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
8
Q

laissez-faire

A

adj. relating to a doctrine that opposes government interference in the economy; noninterference in the affairs of others

The principal asked the teacher to take a less laissez-faire approach to students.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
9
Q

Lamaism

A

n. Tibetan Buddhism

The term “Lamaism” probably derives from the Chinese “lama jiao” used to distinguish Tibetan Buddhism from Han Chinese Buddhism, “fo jiao.”

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
10
Q

Lamarckism

A

n. a theory of biological evolution holding that acquired traits can be inherited

A form of Lamarckism was revived in the Soviet Union of the 1930s when Trofim Lysenko promoted Lysenkoism, which suited the ideological opposition of Joseph Stalin to genetics.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
11
Q

lambaste

A

v. to thrash verbally or physically\

The champion boxer lambasted his opponent.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
12
Q

lament

A

v. to grieve; express sorrow; regret deeply

The poem laments the death of the poet’s son.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
13
Q

lamentable

A

adj. distressing; deplorable

There has been a lamentable increase in air pollution.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
14
Q

lampoon

A

v. to attack with satire, mock harshly

The movie lampoons the country’s leaders.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
15
Q

languid

A

adj. lacking energy, indifferent, slow

Time moves at a languid pace at this tropical island resort.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
16
Q

languish

A

v. to become weak; to live in disheartening conditions; to be neglected

A small part of the population was left to languish in poverty.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
17
Q

languor

A

n. lassitude

They were overcome by weakness and languor during their stay in the tropics.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
18
Q

lapidary

A

adj. relating to precious stones

Mr. Saunders sells lapidary equipment to jewelers in the New York area.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
19
Q

larceny

A

n. theft of property

Bob was charged with larceny.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
20
Q

larder

A

n. place where food is stored

It’s a good idea to keep some canned food in the larder in case of emergency.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
21
Q

largess

A

n. generosity; gift

As a result of the billionaire’s largess, our town has a new public library.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
22
Q

larynx

A

n. organ containing vocal cords

The larynx plays a vital role in speech.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
23
Q

lascivious

A

adj. lustful

The movie appeals primarily to the lascivious impulses in people.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
24
Q

lassitude

A

n. lethargy, sluggishness

I’m often overcome by lassitude on Sunday afternoon.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
25
latent
adj. present but hidden; potential The program is designed to bring out the student's latent talent.
26
laud
v. to praise Julia's mother lauded her daughter's effort to improve her vocabulary.
27
laudable
adj. praiseworthy The student made a laudable effort to improve his vocabulary.
28
lavish
adj. liberal; wasteful The company president put a stop to lavish spending by his staff.
29
lax
adj. careless Lax safety standards were partially to blame for the accident.
30
layman
n. a nonprofessional The layman could not understand the technical language in the scientist's paper.
31
leery
adj. suspicious The child was taught to be leery of strangers.
32
legacy
n. a gift made by a will; something handed down Tom's watch is a legacy from his grandfather.
33
legerdemain
n. trickery The magician's legerdemain entertained the audience.
34
legible
adj. readable Make sure your handwriting is legible.
35
legion
adj. constituting a large number The number of atoms in the universe is legion.
36
legislate
v. to decree, mandate, make laws The primary purpose of Congress is to legislate.
37
legislation
n. laws decrees, mandates The legislation was passed unanimously.
38
legitimate
adj. in accordance with established standards; genuine; reasonable The New York Jets have a legitimate change to win the Super Bowl this year.
39
leitmotif
n. a dominant, recurrent theme Staircase imagery is a leitmotif in T.S. Eliot's writings.
40
lethargy
n. inactivity After a summer of lethargy, the students had difficult adjusting to school work.
41
levitate
v. to rise in the air or cause to rise The magician made his assistant appear to levitate.
42
levity
n. light manner or attitude The principal told the students she wanted no levity during the exam period.
43
lexicon
n. dictionary, list of words The teacher compiled a lexicon of words that appear frequently on the GRE.
44
lexis
n. vocabulary; the set of words in a language Professor Summers is an expert in the field of lexis and grammar.
45
liaise
v. to communicate and maintain contact One of Amy's tasks as county librarian is to liaise with local libraries.
46
libel
n. defamatory statement; act of writing something that smears a person's character The writer was sued for libel.
47
liberal
adj. tolerant, broad-minded; generous, lavish Humanism is generally credited with creating a more liberal populace in Europe.
48
liberation
n. freedom; emancipation The liberation of the political prisoners was celebrated around the world.
49
libertarian
n. one who believes in unrestricted freedom The libertarian believes that government is an unnecessary evil.
50
livertine
n. one without moral restraint The young libertine was condemned by members of his community.
51
libidinal
adj. relating to sexual desire The court ruled that the movie appeals solely to libidinal impulses.
52
libido
n. sexual desire The research team is studying the effects of the drug on the male libido.
53
libretto
n. the text of a dramatic musical work The opera's libretto was translated from French into English.
54
licentious
adj. immoral; unrestrained by society Tom's licentious behavior threatened his good standing in the community.
55
lien
n. right to possess and sell the property of a debtor The court ordered a lien to be put on the property.
56
Lilliputian
adj. extremely small The doll house contains Lilliputian dishes on the dining table.
57
limn
v. to draw; describe The art teacher asked her students to limn the models torso.
58
limpid
adj. clear, transparent Looking into the lake's limpid water, Paul saw fish swimming near the bottom.
59
lineage
n. ancestry The family has an ancient lineage.
60
linear
adj. having one dimension; straight Time can be imagined as moving in a linear fashion.
61
lingua franca
n. a language used for communication among peoples speaking different languages In Asia, English is often used as a lingua franca in business.
62
linguistics
n. study of language Linguistics studies such topics as the origin and structure of language.
63
liniment
n. medicinal liquid used externally to ease pain The trainer applied liniment to the football player's strained muscle.
64
lionize
v. to to treat as a celebrity After winning the Nobel Prize for Literature, the writer was lionized.
65
lissome
adj. easily flexed, limber, agile The lissome gymnast warmed up for her performance.
66
listless
adj. lacking energy and enthusiasm The class was listless on the hot July afternoon.
67
litany
n., a lengthy recitation; repetitive chant The student repeated his usual litany of excuses.
68
literate
adj. able to read and write; well-read and educated The government started a program to increase the proportion of literate people.
69
literati
n. scholarly or learned persons The London literati united to defend one of its members.
70
lithe
adj. moving and bending with ease; graceful We admired the dancer's lithe movements.
71
litigation
n. legal proceedings The government discouraged litigation in order to conserve the court's resources.
72
livid
adj. discolored from a bruise; reddened with anger Tom's father was livid after learning that his son had been caught stealing.
73
loath
adj. unwilling or reluctant; disinclined Russ is loath to change his major so late in his academic career.
74
loathe
v. to abhor, despise, hate Gavin loathes snakes.
75
lobbyist
n. person who attempts to influence legislators or other public officials toward desired action The Congressman ignored the lobbyists and voted the way he wanted to.
76
locomotion
n. movement from place to place Humankind has devised many means of locomotion.
77
locus
n. locality; center of great activity The locus of the bomb blast was the town center.
78
lofty
adj. very high; noble Ralph has lofty ideals.
79
logo
n. corporate symbol The company recently changed its logo.
80
loiter
v. to stand around idly The principal doesn't allow students to loiter around the school after 5 P.M.
81
loquacious
adj. talkative The people on the bus were so loquacious I had trouble doing any work.
82
Lothario
n. seducer Henry has a reputation on campus as something of a Lothario.
83
low
v. to make a deep sustained sound like a cow, moo As I went to sleep I heard the sheep lowing in the field.
84
lucid
adj. bright; clear; intelligible This is a lucid piece of writing.
85
lucre
adj. money or profits Modern men and women spend a lot of their time in pursuit of lucre.
86
ludicrous
adj. laughable, ridiculous For many years the idea of space flight was considered ludicrous.
87
lugubrious
ad. sorrowful, mournful We listened to the lugubrious notes of the bagpipes.
88
lumber
v. to move slowly and awkwardly The child ran ahead, her grandfather lumbering behind.
89
luminary
n. a person who has achieved eminence in a specific field Every year science luminaries gather in Stockholm, Sweden, to receive the Nobel Prize.
90
luminous
adj. bright, brilliant, glowing Witnesses said that the UFO suddenly became luminous.
91
lunar
adj. relating to the moon The astronomy department recently appointed a specialist in lunar science.
92
lurid
adj. harshly shocking, sensational The newspaper account left out the lurid details of the murder.
93
lurk
v. to prowl, sneak The thief lurked outside the store.
94
luxuriant
adj. marked by lavishness The luxuriant palace contains priceless antiques.
95
luxuriate
v. take luxurious pleasure; indulge oneself Sally luxuriated in a bubble bath.
96
lyric
adj. suitable for poetry and song; expressing feeling The English poet John Keats wrote excellent lyric poetry.
Barron's GRE Verbal Workbook
flashcards
Decks in class (26)
# Cards
Brainscape helps you reach your goals faster, through stronger study habits.
© 2026 Bold Learning Solutions. Terms and Conditions