Vocabulary is part and parcel of many competitive exams like SSC, Banks, Railways, GRE, GMAT etc. Here we have tried to showcase the most useful English vocabulary words from competitive exam perspective. So let’s dive into that.
Abbreviations used in this blog are as follows: –
n – noun
v – verb
adv – adverb
adj – adjective
prep – preposition
int – interjection
sb – somebody
sth – something
Syn – Synonyms
Ant – Antonyms
Abortive (adj) – unsuccessful, fruitless
# Prepare seriously for job and don’t just make some abortive attempts.
Syn: Futile, stillborn
Ant: successful, effective, well-timed
Note: Abort (v) — Abortion (n)
Acrimonious (adj) – sharp or harsh in language or temper
# An acrimonious answer.
# An acrimonious dispute.
Syn: caustic, acerb/acerbic pungent, tart, mordant, acrid, astringent
Ant: suave, affable
Note: Acrimony (n)
Atheist (n) – one who denies that God exists
Syn: infidel, agnostic, skeptic/sceptic
Ant: theist
Bequeath (v) – leave property or ownership of sth to a person or other beneficiary
# He bequeathed his lifelong earning to the state.
Syn: Bestow, grant, impart, transmit
Ant: Take
Fabricate (v) – falsify, make up a story
# Don’t believe social media news blindly, it’s can be fabricated.
Syn: concoct, contrive, feign, fib, forge, white lie
Ant: tell truth
Flimsy (adj) – something very thin or that can be easily broken or destroyed
# a flimsy cardboard box.
Syn: slight, thin, trivial
Ant: substantial, serious
Gossamer – 1. (n) a very thin gauzelike fabric or structure
2. (adj) thin and light
# gossamer wings
# a gossamer veil
# The gossamer wings of a dragon fly.
Syn: diaphanous, flimsy, gauzelike, filmy
Ant: substantial, ponderous
Immunity (n) – (in law) official protection from legal action, for example, not being judged in a court or punished for a crime
# legal/judicial/diplomatic immunity
Syn: Exemption, release, freedom
Ant: Subjection, liability
Note: Immune (adj)
Infringe (v) – actively break the terms of (a law, agreement, etc.)
# Making an unauthorized copy would infringe copyright.
Syn: Break, violate
Ant: Submit, obey
Note: to impinge is to come into contact or encroach or have an impact; to infringe is to encroach on a right or privilege or to violate
Laxity/ laxness (n) – Not strict or careful
# I am pretty much sure, your laxity on spending will make you insolvent one day
Syn: Looseness, slackness
Ant: Tightness, firmness
Note: Lax (adj)
Obdurate (adj) – hard-hearted; stubborn
# An obdurate, unrepentant criminal.
Syn: adamant, unyielding, inflexible
Ant: submissive, docile, compliant
Outrageous (adj) – unacceptable, offensive, violent, or unusual
# An outrageous character
# He made outrageous claims.
# The price of this tea is just outrageous (= much too high).
Syn: Atrocious, bold, daring
Ant: Timid, appropriate
Note: Outrage (n) — Outrage (v) — Outraged (adj)
Paramount (adj) – superior to all others
# The economy should be the paramount issue in the election.
Syn: Supreme, predominant, important, essential
Ant: Subordinate, inferior, irrelevant, unimportant
Perennial (adj) – Lasting or existing for a long or apparently infinite time; enduring or continually recurring.
# His perennial distrust of the media.
Syn: Everlasting, perpetual, eternal
Ant: temporary
Refute (v) – to prove incorrect or false
# The speaker refuted his opponent’s argument.
Syn: rebut, confute
Ant: substantiate, confirm, corroborate
Robust (adj) – 1. (of a person) strong and healthy
2. (of food or drink) full of flavour
3. strong and unlikely to break or fail
# She was in robust health.
Syn: Strong, hale, stout, lusty, portly
Ant: Thin, lean, weak, fragile
Note: Robustness (n). FYI Robusta and Arabica are type of coffee beans
Sovereign (adj) – supreme power and authority; independent of the control of any other government
# Possessing sovereign powers; a sovereign state.
Syn: autonomous, imperial, majestic, paramount, regal
Ant: Subject, ineffectual
Note: Sovereignty (n)
Stout (adj) – short and fat
# At just 5 feet 1 inch, Golu weighed approximately 120 Kg., thereby giving him a very stout physical appearance.
Syn: Strong, robust, portly
Ant: Thin, lean, weak
Untenable (adj) – If a situation, or an argument or a theory is untenable it is not possible to fend it against attack, or objection or complaints or logic
# In the past people thought the earth was flat but gained more and more evidence and now the theory the earth is flat is completely untenable.
# The company owes a lot of money to the bank and if interest rate goes up, the company situation will be untenable. (It will be impossible to hold the company, it will go bankrupt)
# Position of anyone who supports Mr. Chatterjee now can be untenable in the public eyes since he has done sth absolutely terrible.
Syn: flimsy, implausible, misleading, specious, unconvincing
Ant: Tenable, defensible
Voracious (adj) – wanting or devouring great quantities of food
# A voracious appetite
Syn: Greedy, ravenous
Ant: Suitable, satisfied