300+ Essential GRE Vocabulary Words (Free PDF Download)

Learning GRE vocabulary no longer means carrying thick prep books or memorising endless lists without context. The GRE Verbal section uses challenging academic words, so building a strong vocabulary is essential for understanding passages and eliminating tricky answer choices. 

If you're aiming for a higher Verbal score, this guide will help you master 300+ must-know GRE vocabulary words in a clear, structured, and score-boosting way.

What Is GRE Vocabulary?

A strong GRE vocabulary is essential for performing well in the Verbal Reasoning section. A richer vocabulary not only improves your accuracy but also boosts your confidence across Text Completion, Sentence Equivalence, and Reading Comprehension.

Why GRE Vocabulary matters:

• GRE Vocabulary helps you understand dense academic passages more quickly.
• Improves accuracy in choosing the correct word pair in Sentence Equivalence.
• Makes Text Completion questions easier by clarifying sentence tone and logic.
• Strengthens overall reading speed, comprehension, and inference skills.

Before we go ahead, you can also download the complete GRE Vocabulary PDF (Free Download) for quick revision anytime.

Top 300+ Important GRE Vocabulary Words 

These 300+ GRE words focus on high-frequency terms that appear repeatedly in GRE questions and academic-style passages. Learning them with meanings and usage examples helps you understand sentence tone, hidden logic, and subtle differences between similar words. Here is a curated list of the top 300 essential GRE words to help you learn faster, smarter, and stress-free.

1. Abate: reduce

The storm finally began to abate after raging for hours.

2. Aberration: abnormality

Such a low score was an aberration for the normally high-achieving student.

3. Abeyance: suspension

The project is held in abeyance until funding is approved.

4. Abjure: renounce

The witness was forced to abjure his former statement.

5. Abnegation: self-denial

Her abnegation of luxury was part of her spiritual practice.

6. Abrogate: abolish

The government moved to abrogate the outdated treaty.

7. Abscond: flee secretly

The thief absconded with the valuable paintings.

8. Abstemious: moderate

His abstemious lifestyle contributed to his long life.

9. Abstruse: difficult to understand

The professor's abstruse lecture confused everyone.

10. Accolade: honour

Winning the award was the highest accolade of her career.

11. Accretion: growth

The accretion of sediment formed the delta over centuries.

12. Acerbic: sharp-tongued

Her acerbic comments often offended people.

13. Acquiesce: agree reluctantly

With a sigh, he acquiesced to their demands.

14. Acrimony: bitterness

The divorce was settled with surprisingly little acrimony.

15. Admonish: warn

The teacher had to admonish the class for talking.

16. Adroit: skilful

Her adroit handling of the situation saved the deal.

17. Adulation: excessive praise

The star was overwhelmed by the adulation of his fans.

18. Adulterate: make impure

It is illegal to adulterate food with cheap fillers.

19. Aesthetic: concerning beauty

The building's design has a pleasing aesthetic.

20. Alacrity: eagerness

She accepted the challenge with alacrity.

21. Alleviate: relieve

This medicine will help alleviate the pain.

22. Amalgamate: combine

The two companies decided to amalgamate.

23. Ambiguous: unclear

His ambiguous instructions led to confusion.

24. Ambivalent: having mixed feelings

She felt ambivalent about the promotion.

25. Ameliorate: improve

The new policy aims to ameliorate poverty.

26. Amenable: cooperative

He was amenable to the new plan.

27. Anachronism: something out of place in time

The knight in the modern city was an anachronism

28. Anathema: something hated

The idea of failure was anathema to him.

29. Anomaly: irregularity

The strange test result was an anomaly.

30. Antipathy: dislike

She felt deep antipathy towards her rival.

31. Apathy: lack of interest

Voter apathy is a problem in many elections.

32. Apocryphal: of doubtful authenticity

The story about the haunted house is probably apocryphal.

33. Appease: pacify

They offered a refund to appease the angry customer.

34. Apprise: inform

Please apprise me of any changes.

35. Approbation: approval

The plan received the committee's approbation.

36. Arduous: difficult

The climb up the mountain was arduous.

37. Articulate: well-spoken

She was an articulate defender of human rights.

38. Ascetic: self-denying

The monk lived an ascetic life.

39. Assiduous: diligent

She was assiduous in her studies.

40. Assuage: soothe

He tried to assuage her fears.

41. Astringent: harsh

The critic's astringent review closed the play.

42. Asylum: sanctuary

The journalist sought asylum in another country.

43. Attenuate: weaken

The wall attenuated the sound from the street.

44. Audacious: bold

The general made an audacious plan.

45. Austere: severe

The room was furnished in an austere style.

46. Aver: assert

The witness averred that he saw the accused.

47. Banal: boring

His speech was full of banal phrases.

48. Belligerent: aggressive

The belligerent customer started shouting.

49. Benevolent: kind

The benevolent donor gave millions to charity.

50. Berate: scold

The coach berated the team for their poor play.

51. Blight: spoil

Urban decay can blight a city.

52. Blithe: carefree

He showed a blithe disregard for the rules.

53. Bolster: support

The data bolstered her argument.

54. Bombastic: pompous

The politician gave a bombastic speech.

55. Boorish: rude

His boorish behaviour was embarrassing.

56. Burgeon: grow rapidly

The town's population is burgeoning.

57. Cacophony: harsh noise

The cacophony of the city was overwhelming.

58. Cajole: coax

He managed to cajole her into going.

59. Calumny: slander

He was a target of calumny from his opponents.

60. Candid: frank

Please be candid with your feedback.

61. Capricious: unpredictable

The capricious weather ruined our picnic.

62. Castigate: criticise severely

The newspaper castigated the mayor for his inaction.

63. Catalyst: cause of change

The protest acted as a catalyst for reform.

64. Caustic: corrosive

Her caustic remarks hurt everyone's feelings.

65. Censure: condemn

The senator was censured for his conduct.

66. Chicanery: trickery

The election was full of chicanery.

67. Cogent: convincing

She made a cogent argument.

68. Commensurate: proportional

His salary was commensurate with his experience.

69. Complacent: self-satisfied

Don't become complacent after one success.

70. Complaisant: willing to please

His complaisant nature made him popular.

71. Convoluted: complicated

The plot of the movie was convoluted.

72. Corroborate: confirm

The new evidence corroborates his story.

73. Credulous: gullible

The credulous tourist bought the "magic" beans.

74. Culpable: guilty

The company was found culpable for the spill.

75. Dearth: scarcity

There is a dearth of affordable housing.

76. Debilitate: weaken

The illness debilitated him for weeks.

77. Decorous: proper

The guests were in their best decorous behaviour.

78. Deference: respect

He showed deference to his elders.

79. Defunct: no longer existing

The company is now defunct.

80. Demure: object

She demurred when asked to work late.

81. Denigrate: belittle

It's not helpful to denigrate your colleagues.

82. Deride: mock

The proposal was derided by experts.

83. Derivative: unoriginal

The film was derivative of earlier works.

84. Desiccate: dry out

The sun desiccated the plants.

85. Desultory: half-hearted

They made a desultory attempt to clean.

86. Diatribe: bitter criticism

He launched into a diatribe against the policy.

87. Dichotomy: division

There is a dichotomy between his words and actions.

88. Diffident: shy

Her diffident manner hid her intelligence.

89. Dilatory: slow

The senator used dilatory tactics.

90. Dilettante: amateur

He was a dilettante, not a serious artist.

91. Disabuse: correct a misconception

I had to disabuse him of that idea.

92. Discordant: clashing

His discordant views caused tension.

93. Disparate: fundamentally different

The two cultures are disparate.

94. Dispassionate: impartial

A journalist should be dispassionate.

95. Dissemble: disguise

He tried to dissemble his true intentions.

96. Dissonance: lack of harmony

There was a dissonance between his beliefs and his actions.

97. Dupe: deceive

She was duped by the scam artist.

98. Ebullient: enthusiastic

She was in an ebullient mood.

99. Eclectic: diverse

He has an eclectic taste in music.

100. Efficacy: effectiveness

The efficacy of the drug is well proven.

101. Elegy: lament

The poet wrote an elegy for his friend.

102. Elucidate: explain

The diagram helped elucidate the process.

103. Endemic: native

The disease is endemic to the region.

104. Enervate: drain

The heat enervated the crew.

105. Engender: produce

His comments engendered distrust.

106. Enigma: puzzle

The artist's motives remain an enigma.

107. Ennui: boredom

A feeling of ennui set in during the long vacation.

108. Ephemeral: short-lived

Fashion trends are often ephemeral.

109. Equivocate: be ambiguous

Politicians often equivocate on difficult issues.

110. Erudite: learned

The professor was remarkably erudite.

111. Esoteric: obscure

The book was full of esoteric knowledge.

112. Eulogy: tribute

He delivered a moving eulogy at the funeral.

113. Euphemism: mild substitute

"Passed away" is a euphemism for "died."

114. Exacerbate: worsen

His comments only exacerbated the conflict.

115. Exculpate: clear from blame

The evidence served to exculpate the suspect.

116. Exigent: urgent

The exigent situation required immediate action.

117. Extraneous: iirrelevant

Please omit extraneous details.

118. Fastidious: meticulous

He is fastidious about his appearance.

119. Fatuous: foolish

She made a fatuous comment.

120. Fecund: fertile

The writer had a fecund imagination.

121. Ferret: search out

The detective ferreted out the truth.

122. Flag: tire

His enthusiasm flagged after the first hour.

123. Foment: instigate

They tried to foment a rebellion.

124. Forbear: refrain

He chose to forbear from commenting.

125. Fortuitous: lucky

Our meeting was entirely fortuitous.

126. Frugal: economical

They lived a frugal life.

127. Garrulous: talkative

The garrulous man wouldn't stop talking.

128. Gregarious: sociable

She is very gregarious and loves parties.

129. Guileless: honest

The child asked a guileless question.

130. Harangue: tirade

The boss delivered a harangue about punctuality.

131. Hedonist: pleasure-seeker

As a hedonist, he lived for pleasure.

132. Iconoclast: attacker of beliefs

The artist was an iconoclast who challenged tradition.

133. Idiosyncratic: quirky

He has an idiosyncratic style of painting.

134. Impetuous: impulsive

She regretted her impetuous decision.

135. Implacable: relentless

He was an implacable enemy.

136. Impunity: exemption from punishment

The soldiers looted with impunity.

137. Inchoate: undeveloped

The plan was still inchoate.

138. Incipient: beginning

The doctor noticed the incipient signs of the disease.

139. Incontrovertible: undeniable

The video provided incontrovertible proof.

140. Indefatigable: tireless

She was an indefatigable worker.

141. Indolent: lazy

He spent an indolent summer by the pool.

142. Ineffable: inexpressible

The ineffable beauty of the scene left us in awe.

143. Inert: inactive

The victim lay inert on the ground.

144. Ingenious: clever

It was an ingenious solution to the problem.

145. Innocuous: harmless

It seemed like an innocuous question.

146. Insipid: bland

The soup was insipid and needed salt.

147. Intransigent: uncompromising

The intransigent leader refused to negotiate.

148. Inundate: overwhelm

We were inundated with applications.

149. Inured: hardened

He had become inured to the criticism.

150. Irascible: irritable

The irascible old man yelled at the children.

151. Laconic: brief

His laconic reply was "Perhaps."

152. Lament: mourn

She lamented the loss of her friend.

153. Languid: sluggish

The heat made everyone feel languid.

154. Largess: generosity

The hospital relied on the largess of donors.

155. Laudable: praiseworthy

Her efforts to help are laudable.

156. Lethargic: sluggish

The medication made him feel lethargic.

157. Loquacious: talkative

The loquacious guest dominated the conversation.

158. Lucid: clear

She gave a lucid explanation.

159. Luminous: glowing

The moon was luminous in the sky.

160. Magnanimous: generous

The winner was magnanimous in victory.

161. Malinger: feign illness

He was suspected of malingering to avoid work.

162. Malleable: pliable

Children's minds are malleable.

163. Maverick: nonconformist

He was a political maverick.

164. Mendacious: lying

The witness was mendacious.

165. Mercurial: volatile

The director was known for his mercurial temper.

166. Meticulous: careful

She was meticulous in her research.

167. Misanthrope people-hater

The old misanthrope lived alone.

168. Mitigate: lessen

We must try to mitigate the damage.

169. Mollify: soothe

He tried to mollify the angry customer.

170. Morose: gloomy

He became morose after the loss.

171. Munificent: generous

A munificent donor funded the new library.

172. Myriad: countless

The city is a mix of myriad cultures.

173. Nadir: lowest point

The defeat was the nadir of his career.

174. Nascent: emerging

The nascent technology showed great promise.

175. Nebulous: vague

The company's plans are still nebulous.

176. Nefarious: wicked

The spy was part of a nefarious plot.

177. Negligible: insignificant

The price difference is negligible.

178. Nonplussed: perplexed

She was nonplussed by his strange behavior.

179. Nuance: subtle distinction

A good actor understands nuance.

180. Obdurate: stubborn

The obdurate child refused to eat.

181. Obfuscate: confuse

Don't obfuscate the issue with jargon.

182. Oblique: indirect

He made an oblique reference to the problem.

183. Obsequious: servile

The obsequious waiter was annoying.

184. Obtuse: slow to understand

He was being deliberately obtuse.

185. Onerous: burdensome

The new regulations placed an onerous burden on the business.

186. Opaque: unclear

The writer's prose is often opaque.

187. Opulent: luxurious

The hotel lobby was opulent.

188. Ostensible: apparent

 His ostensible reason for visiting was business.

189. Ostracize: exclude

The group ostracized him for his views.

190. Panacea: cure-all

There is no panacea for poverty.

191. Paradigm: model

His research introduced a new paradigm.

192. Paragon: model of excellence

She is a paragon of virtue.

193. Pariah: outcast

After the scandal, he became a pariah.

194. Parsimonious: stingy

His parsimonious aunt reused everything.

195. Partisan: biased

The newspaper took a partisan stance.

196. Paucity: scarcity

There is a paucity of evidence.

197. Pedantic: overly concerned with rules

His pedantic corrections were annoying.

198. Penchant: liking

She has a penchant for chocolate.

199. Penurious: poor

They lived in penurious conditions.

200. Perfidious: treacherous

The perfidious knight betrayed his king.

201. Perfunctory: superficial

He gave a perfunctory nod.

202. Peripheral: marginal

The issue is peripheral to our main goal.

203. Perspicacious: shrewd

Her perspicacious comments were insightful.

204. Peruse: read carefully

He perused the contract before signing.

205. Pervasive: widespread

A pervasive sense of dread filled the city.

206. Philanthropist: charitable person

The philanthropist donated a new hospital wing.

207. Phlegmatic: calm

His phlegmatic demeanor was useful in a crisis.

208. Pithy: concise

She summarised the issue with a pithy statement.

209. Placate: pacify

The manager tried to placate the customer.

210. Plasticity: flexibility

The plasticity of the material makes it useful.

211. Platitude: cliché

The speech was full of empty platitudes.

212. Plethora: excess

The library has a plethora of books on the topic.

213. Pragmatic: practical

We need a pragmatic solution.

214. Precarious: unstable

The ladder was in a precarious position.

215. Precipitate: cause to happen

The scandal precipitated his resignation.

216. Precursor: forerunner

The telegraph was a precursor to the telephone.

217. Prescient: far-seeing

His prescient warnings were ignored.

218. Prevaricate: evade the truth

The suspect continued to prevaricate.

219. Pristine: unspoiled

The forest was in a pristine state.

220. Probity: integrity

He was known for his probity.

221. Proclivity: tendency

He has a proclivity for exaggeration.

222. Prolific: productive

He was a prolific writer.

223. Propagate: spread

The group aims to propagate its ideas.

224. Propitiate: appease

They made a sacrifice to propitiate the gods.

225. Prosaic: ordinary

The reality was more prosaic than she had imagined.

226. Proscribe: forbid

The law proscribes discrimination.

227. Protean: variable

He was a protean actor, able to play any role.

228. Prudent: wise

It is prudent to save money.

229. Pugnacious: combative

The pugnacious boxer was always ready for a fight.

230. Pulchritude: beauty

She was known for her pulchritude.

231. Querulous: complaining

The patient's querulous voice was annoying.

232. Quixotic: idealistic

His quixotic quest was doomed to fail.

233. Rancorous: bitter

The debate became rancorous.

234. Rarefy: make less dense

The air rarifies at high altitudes.

235. Recalcitrant: defiant

The recalcitrant student was sent to the office.

236. Recant: take back

The heretic was forced to recant.

237. Recondite: obscure

The book was full of recondite information.

238. Refractory: stubborn

The refractory horse refused to jump.

239. Refute: disprove

The scientist refuted the old theory.

240. Relegate: assign to an inferior position

The team was relegated to a lower league.

241. Repudiate: reject

She repudiated the endorsement.

242. Rescind: cancel

The company rescinded the job offer.

243. Reticent: reserved

He was reticent about his past.

244. Reverent: respectful

The crowd was reverent during the ceremony.

245. Sagacious: wise

His sagacious advice was valued.

246. Salubrious: healthful

The salubrious mountain air was refreshing.

247. Sanction: approve

The government sanctioned the operation.

248. Sanguine: optimistic

She is sanguine about her chances.

249. Satiate: satisfy fully

The large meal satiated his hunger.

250. Saturate: soak

The rain saturated the ground.

251. Sedulous: diligent

She was a sedulous worker.

252. Soporific: sleep-inducing

The professor's soporific voice put everyone to sleep.

253. Specious: misleadingly attractive

He made a specious argument.

254. Stolid: unemotional

The stolid guard didn't react.

255. Stratagem: scheme

The general's clever stratagem worked.

256. Stringent: strict

The school has stringent rules.

257. Stymie: hinder

The project was stymied by a lack of funds.

258. Subjugate: conquer

The empire sought to subjugate its neighbors.

259. Sublime: magnificent

The view from the summit was sublime.

260. Substantiate: verify

Can you substantiate that claim?

261. Supercilious: arrogant

The supercilious waiter sneered at us.

262. Superfluous: unnecessary

The last paragraph was superfluous.

263. Surfeit: excess

A surfeit of cake made him feel sick.

264. Surreptitious: secret

She took a surreptitious glance at her notes.

265. Sycophant: flatterer

The CEO was surrounded by sycophants.

266. Tacit: implied

We have a tacit agreement.

267. Taciturn: untalkative

The taciturn man said very little.

268. Tangential: peripheral

His comment was only tangential to the discussion.

269. Tenuous: weak

The connection between the events is tenuous.

270. Timorous: timid

The timorous child hid behind her mother.

271. Tirade: angry speech

The boss went on a tirade about laziness.

272. Torpor: inactivity

The heat caused a state of torpor.

273. Tortuous: twisting

The path up the mountain was tortuous.

274. Tractable: manageable

The dog was tractable and easy to train.

275. Transient: temporary

Her fame was transient.

276. Trenchant: incisive

She wrote a trenchant critique of the policy.

277. Trivial: unimportant

He focused on trivial details.

278. Truculent: defiant

The truculent teenager argued constantly.

279. Ubiquitous: everywhere

Mobile phones are now ubiquitous.

280. Umbra: shadow

The moon was in the umbra of the Earth.

281. Unctuous: oily

The unctuous salesman was insincere.

282. Undermine: weaken

The constant criticism undermined his confidence.

283. Unequivocal: clear

The evidence was unequivocal.

284. Unprecedented: novel

The internet provides unprecedented access to information.

285. Vacillate: waver

He vacillated between two choices.

286. Venerate: revere

The philosopher was veneratedby his students.

287. Veracious: truthful

She had a reputation for being veracious.

288. Verbose: wordy

The verbose letter could have been shorter.

289. Vex: annoy

The problem vexed him for days.

290. Vilify: defame

The newspaper vilified the politician.

291. Vindicate: clear from blame

The evidence vindicated him completely.

292. Virtuoso: expert performer

The pianist was a virtuoso.

293. Vitiate: impair

Fraud vitiates a contract.

294. Vituperate: berate

The critic vituperated the artist's work.

295. Vociferous: loud

The vociferous crowd demanded answers.

296. Volatile: unstable

The political situation is volatile.

297. Waver: fluctuate

His determination wavered.

298. Whimsical: fanciful

The story was filled with whimsical characters.

299. Wily: cunning

The wily fox escaped the trap.

300. Zealot: fanatic

The religious zealot was intolerant of other beliefs.

GRE Vocabulary Practice Questions

Strengthen your GRE Verbal skills with quick vocabulary-based practice questions. These sample Text Completion and Sentence Equivalence items help you test meaning-in-context, identify synonyms, and understand how GRE words function within real exam-style sentences.

1. Although the scientist was known for her bold theories, her latest paper was surprisingly ______, offering only cautious and familiar ideas.

A) audacious
B) conventional
C) speculative
D) visionary
E) precarious

Answer: B

Explanation: The contrast with “bold theories” suggests the paper is the opposite—safe or familiar.

2. The CEO’s speech was so ______ that even seasoned employees struggled to determine his actual stance on the issue.

A) lucid
B) ambiguous
C) forthright
D) candid
E) transparent

Answer: B

Explanation: If people struggled to determine his stance, the speech was unclear or ambiguous.

3. The novel’s plot is ______ with symbolic references, making it a favorite among literary scholars.

A) barren
B) replete
C) deficient
D) incompatible
E) sparse

Answer: B

Explanation: “Filled with” symbolic references → replete.

4. Despite his reputation for arrogance, the professor was surprisingly ______ during the seminar, listening patiently to every question.

A) dismissive
B) obstinate
C) affable
D) curt
E) truculent

Answer: C

Explanation: The contrast with “arrogance” suggests unexpectedly friendly behaviour.

5. The committee found her proposal ______; it lacked concrete evidence and clear reasoning.

A) cogent
B) persuasive
C) tenuous
D) compelling
E) robust

Answer: C

Explanation: A proposal lacking evidence is weak → tenuous.

How to Improve GRE Vocabulary?

Building a rich GRE vocabulary requires consistent practice and smart learning strategies. With the right routine, you can learn new GRE words faster and apply them correctly on exam day.

• Read widely: Explore newspapers like The Guardian, The New York Times, The Economist, and academic-style blogs. 
• Listen to high-quality English content: TED Talks, BBC News, and academic podcasts help you hear sophisticated vocabulary used naturally and in context.
• Learn words through context: Don’t memorise definitions alone. For example, understand usage pairs like “a tenuous argument,” “a pragmatic solution,” or “an equivocal statement.”
• Practice actively: Write short summaries, create example sentences, and speak using new words to reinforce memory. Active usage strengthens long-term retention.
• Solve GRE-style questions:  Work on Text Completion, Sentence Equivalence, and RC passages regularly. 
• Stay consistent: Aim to learn 10–20 new GRE words per day using Yocket Prep GRE word list, spaced repetition apps, and review sessions.

Best Books for Practising GRE Vocabulary in 2025

The right prep books for the GRE help you learn high-frequency vocabulary words used in GRE. We have compiled some trusted books to help you enhance your GRE Vocabulary words and ace the Verbal Section in 2025.

From the Desk of Yocket

Preparing for the GRE can feel overwhelming, but with Yocket Prep, you get expert-made study material, practice tests, and the right guidance to strengthen your vocabulary and ace the Verbal Reasoning section. A strong GRE vocabulary helps you understand complex passages faster, tackle Text Completion and Sentence Equivalence questions accurately, and boost your overall score.

At Yocket Prep, our goal is to help you prepare smarter and achieve the GRE score you need for your study abroad plans.