Words starting with U to Z | Analytical Writing Assessment (AWA) for GRE PDF Download

ubiquitous: omnipresent; present everywhere

A ubiquitous spirit followed the man wherever he went.
Water may seem ubiquitous, until a drought comes along.

ulterior: buried; concealed; undisclosed

She was usually very selfish, so when she came bearing gifts he suspected that she had ulterior motives.
My ulterior concerns are more important than my immediate ones.
The man's ulterior motive was to spy on the lab, though he said he wanted a job.

umbrage: offense or resentment

The candidate took umbrage at the remark of his opponent.

unalloyed: pure, of high quality

An unalloyed chain is of greater value than a piece of costume jewelry.

uncanny: of a strange nature; weird

That two people could be so alike was uncanny.

uncouth:  uncultured; crude

The social club would not accept an uncouth individual.

undermine: to weaken; often through subtle means

The attempts to undermine the merger were unsuccessful.
The supervisor undermined the director's power and began controlling the staff.

unequivocal: clear and unambiguous

The 50-0 vote against the bill was an unequivocal statement against the measure.
His response was unequivocal, which seemed unusual for a politician.

unfeigned: genuine; real; sincere

Her unfeigned reaction of surprise meant she had not expected the party.

ungainly: clumsy and unattractive

The ungainly man knocked over the plant stand. 

uniform: never changing, always with the same standard

The marching band moved in uniform across the field.
Patrons of fast-food chains say they like the idea of a uniform menu wherever they go.

unique: without equal; incomparable

The jeweler assured him that the dubloon was unique, as it was part of the long lost treasure of the Atocha.

universal: concerning everyone; existing everywhere

Pollution does not affect just one country or state- it's a universal problem.

unobtrusive: out of the way; remaining quietly in the background

The shy man found an unobtrusive seat in the far corner of the room.
It was easy to miss the unobtrusive plaque above the fireplace.

unprecedented: unheard of; exceptional

Weeks of intense heat created unprecedented power demands, which the utilities were hard pressed to meet.

unpretentious: simple; plain; modest

He was an unpretentious farmer: An old John Deere and a beat-up Ford pick-up were all he needed to get the job done.

unruly: not submitting to discipline; disobedient

The unruly boys had to be removed from the concert hall.

untoward: improper; unfortunate

Asking guests to bring their own food would be an untoward request.
All of their friends expressed sympathy about their untoward separation.

unwonted: rare

The unwonted raise would be the only one received for a few years.
The changed migratory habits of the Canada geese, though unwonted, is unwanted because of the mess they make.

upshot: the final act or result

The upshot of the debate was that the bill would be released to the floor.

urbane: cultured; suave

The gala concert and dinner dance was attended by the most urbane individuals.
The English businessman was described by his peers as witty and urbane.

usurpation: art of taking something for oneself; seizure

During the war, the usurpation of the country forced an entirely new culture on the natives.

usury: the lending of money with an excessively high interest rate

An interest rate 30 points above the prime rate would be considered usury in the United States.
Loan sharks frequently practice usury, but their debtors usually have little choice but to keep quiet and pay up.

utopia: imaginary land with perfect social and political systems

Voltaire wrote of a utopia where the streets were paved with gold.

"W"

waft: move gently by wind or breeze

The smoke wafted out of the chimney.

waive: to give up; to put off until later

I will waive my rights to have a lawyer present because I don't think I need one.
As hard as he tried, he could only waive his responsibility for so long.

wan: lacking color; sickly pale

Her face became wan at the sight of blood.

wane: to gradually become less; to grow dim

After time, interest in the show will wane and it will no longer be as popular.
The full moon waned until it was nothing but a sliver in the sky.

wanton: unmanageable; unjustifiably malicious

My wanton hunger must be satiated.
With wanton aggression, the army attacked the defenseless village.
It is hard to lose weight when one has a wanton desire for sweets.

warrant: justify; authorize

The police official warranted the arrest of the suspect once enough proof had been found.

welter: a confused mass; turmoil

When the emergency alarm sounded, a welter of shivering office workers formed in the street as people evacuated the site.
The welter moved from street to street to escape the fire.

wheedle: to influence or persuade

The crook may attempt to wheedle the money from the bank.
He tried hard to wheedle his father into buying him a car.

whet: to sharpen by rubbing; to stimulate

Before carving the turkey, you must whet the blade.
The smell of cooking food has whet my appetite.
The smell of dinner cooking whetted her appetite.

whimsical: fanciful; amusing

Strolling down Disney World's Main Street is bound to put child and grown-up alike in a whimsical mood.

wily: concealing; sly

The wily explanation was meant to confuse the investigator.

winsome: charming; sweetly attractive

His winsome words moved the crowd to love him even more.

wither: wilt; shrivel; humiliate; cut down

The plant withered slowly since it received little light and little water.

wizened: shriveled; withered

The wizened face of the old man was covered by his hat.

wooden: to be expressionless or dull

The wooden expression of the man made him look like a statue.

workaday: commonplace

The workaday meal was not exciting to the world class chef.

wrath: violent or unrestrained anger; fury

Do not trespass on his property or you will have to deal with his wrath.

wreak: to give vent; to inflict

The dragon will wreak havoc upon the countryside.

wrest: to pull or force away by a violent twistin.

The warriors wrest the power from the king.

wretched: miserable or unhappy; causing distress

Brought up in an orphanage, Annie led a wretched existence.
The continual rain made for a wretched vacation.

wry: mocking; cynical

He has a wry sense of humor which sometimes hurts people's feelings.

xenophobia: fear of foreigners

Xenophobia kept the townspeople from encouraging any immigrants to move into the neighborhood.

yoke: harness; collar; bond

The jockey led her horse by the yoke around its neck and face.

yore: former period of time

When he sees his childhood friends, they speak about the days of yore.

zealot: believer; enthusiast; fan

The zealot followed whatever rules the cult leader set.

zenith: point directly overhead in the sky; highest point

The astronomer pointed her telescope straight up toward the zenith.
The Broncos seemed to be at the zenith of their power just as their rivals on the turf were flagging.
The sun will reach its zenith at noon.
The zenith of her career occurred during her time as chairperson.

zephyr: a gentle wind; breeze

It was a beautiful day, with a zephyr blowing in from the sea.
The zephyr blew the boat slowly across the lake.