Word List: CAT 2024 Exam | Verbal Ability & Reading Comprehension (VARC) PDF Download

Introduction

Unlock the power of words with this comprehensive vocabulary list compiled from the CAT 2024 Slots 1, 2, and 3 question papers! Packed with challenging terms, clear definitions, and contextual example sentences, this resource is your key to mastering the Verbal Ability and Reading Comprehension (VARC) section. Boosting your confidence and acing the exam with a sharper, more precise understanding of complex language.

CAT 2024 Slot 1 

1. Word: Marsupial
   Meaning: A mammal characterised by a pouch in which it carries and nurses its young, typically found in Australia and the Americas (e.g., kangaroos, bandicoots).
   Example Sentence: At the zoo, I saw a marsupial like a kangaroo hopping around with its baby safely tucked in its pouch.
2. Word: Mercurial
   Meaning: Characterised by rapid and unpredictable changes in mood or behaviour; volatile.
   Example Sentence: My friend’s mercurial moods make it hard to predict if she’ll be cheerful or upset during our study sessions.
3. Word: Exclosure
   Meaning: An area fenced off to prevent access by certain animals, typically to protect wildlife or vegetation.
   Example Sentence: The park set up an enclosure around the new plants to keep curious dogs and rabbits from eating them.
4. Word: Ecosystem Engineer
   Meaning: A species that significantly modifies, creates, or maintains habitats, impacting the environment and other organisms.
   Example Sentence: Beavers are ecosystem engineers because their dams create ponds that help other animals and plants thrive.
5. Word: Naive
   Meaning: Lacking experience or understanding, especially in a specific context, often leading to vulnerability.
   Example Sentence: Being naive about online scams, she shared her password with a stranger who promised free concert tickets.
6. Word: Imperial
   Meaning: Relating to an empire or characterised by a dominating, overbearing attitude.
   Example Sentence: The team leader’s imperial attitude made everyone feel like their ideas didn’t matter during group projects.
7. Word: Homo Economicus
   Meaning: A theoretical model of human behaviour in economics, assuming individuals make rational decisions to maximize their self-interest.
   Example Sentence: The idea of homo economicus suggests I’d always choose the cheapest phone, but sometimes I pick one for its cool features instead.
8. Word: Naturalised
   Meaning: Adapted or accepted as natural or native, especially in the context of cultural or linguistic codes that seem innate due to widespread use.
   Example Sentence: Using emojis in texts has become so naturalised that even my grandma adds smiley faces to her messages.
9. Word: Ephemerality
   Meaning: The quality of being short-lived or transient, lasting only briefly.
   Example Sentence: The ephemerality of social media stories means my posts disappear after 24 hours, which keeps things fresh.
10. Word: Commodification
    Meaning: The process of turning something into a commodity, often for commercial purposes, sometimes at the expense of its intrinsic value.
    Example Sentence: The commodification of fitness trackers turned exercise into a game of earning points and badges for steps.
11. Word: Sisyphean
    Meaning: Referring to a task that is endless and laborious, often futile, derived from the Greek myth of Sisyphus.
    Example Sentence: Studying for exams can feel Sisyphean when I keep reviewing the same notes without feeling ready.
12. Word: Artisanship
    Meaning: The skill or practice of a craftsman or artisan, emphasising handmade quality and creativity.
    Example Sentence: The artisanship of the local potter shone through in the unique designs of her handmade coffee mugs.
13. Word: Preponderant
    Meaning: Having greater importance, influence, or weight; predominant.
    Example Sentence: The preponderant reason I chose this college was its strong placement record over other factors.
14. Word: Polyphonic
    Meaning: Involving multiple independent melody lines or voices, often used in music to describe complex, interwoven sounds.
    Example Sentence: The choir’s polyphonic performance, with different voices singing unique parts, gave me chills at the concert.
15. Word: Usability
    Meaning: The degree to which something is easy to use or effective for its intended purpose, often studied in design or technology.
    Example Sentence: The app’s usability makes it simple for me to track my study schedule without any confusion.
16. Word: Feral
    Meaning: Existing in a wild or untamed state, especially after having been domesticated or introduced.
    Example Sentence: The feral cats in our neighbourhood roam freely and hunt birds, unlike our pampered house cat.
17. Word: Marginal Utility
    Meaning: The additional satisfaction or benefit gained from consuming one more unit of a good or service.
    Example Sentence: The marginal utility of eating another slice of pizza decreases when I’m already full from the first two.
18. Word: Bravura
    Meaning: A display of boldness or brilliance, often with a sense of showiness or confidence.
    Example Sentence: Her bravura presentation at the debate competition won over the audience with its bold arguments.
19. Word: Hierarchical
    Meaning: Organised in a structure where elements are ranked above one another, often in terms of authority or importance.
    Example Sentence: The company’s hierarchical structure meant I had to get approval from three managers for my project idea.
20. Word: Cartographer
    Meaning: A person who designs and creates maps to represent geographical or spatial information.
    Example Sentence: As a cartographer, she made a map of our city that was so clear even I could navigate it easily.

CAT 2024 Slot 2

Revised Vocabulary Word List from CAT 2024 Slot 2

1. Word: Cultivated
   Meaning: Produced or grown under controlled conditions, often referring to food or crops developed through artificial processes rather than natural growth.
   Example Sentence: The new cultivated veggies at the supermarket are grown in labs, making them a sustainable choice for my salads.
2. Word: Habituated
   Meaning: Accustomed or adapted to a particular situation or environment, often through repeated exposure.
   Example Sentence: After months of feeding stray dogs near my house, they’ve become habituated to me and wag their tails when I pass by.
3. Word: Euthanised
   Meaning: The act of intentionally ending an animal’s life, typically to prevent suffering or for safety reasons, often in a humane manner.
   Example Sentence: The vet euthanised my neighbour’s old dog to spare it from the pain of a serious illness.
4. Word: Heterogeneity
   Meaning: The quality or state of being diverse in character or content, often referring to varied elements within a system or landscape.
   Example Sentence: The heterogeneity of my college’s student body, with people from different cities and backgrounds, makes group projects exciting.
5. Word: Exacerbate
   Meaning: To make a problem, situation, or negative feeling worse or more severe.
   Example Sentence: Forgetting to study for the quiz will only exacerbate my stress during exam week.
6. Word: Postmortem
   Meaning: An examination or analysis conducted after an event, often to determine causes or learn from outcomes, originally referring to medical autopsies.
   Example Sentence: After our group presentation flopped, we did a postmortem to figure out why we didn’t prepare well.
7. Word: Empirical
   Meaning: Based on observation, experience, or experiment rather than theory or speculation.
   Example Sentence: My empirical evidence from trying different study apps shows that flashcards help me memorise better.
8. Word: Malleable
   Meaning: Capable of being shaped, influenced, or altered; adaptable or pliable.
   Example Sentence: My opinions on career paths are still malleable, so I’m open to advice from my seniors.
9. Word: Calcareous
   Meaning: Containing or composed of calcium carbonate, often referring to materials like shells or limestone.
   Example Sentence: The calcareous shells I collected at the beach were hard and shiny, perfect for my art project.
10. Word: Transmuting
    Meaning: Changing or transforming from one form, nature, or substance into another.
    Example Sentence: By practising daily, I’m transmuting my basic guitar skills into something I can perform at college fests.
11. Word: Procure
    Meaning: To obtain or acquire something, especially through effort or special means.
    Example Sentence: I had to procure rare books from the library for my history project, which took a lot of effort.
12. Word: Humoral
    Meaning: Relating to the theory of bodily fluids (humours) that were believed in medieval medicine to influence health and temperament.
    Example Sentence: In history class, we learned how medieval doctors used spices to balance humoral energies in sick patients.
13. Word: Externalities
    Meaning: Consequences or side effects of an activity that affect other parties without being reflected in the cost or benefit of that activity.
    Example Sentence: Using my loudspeaker for late-night study music has externalities, like annoying my roommate.
14. Word: Innocuous
    Meaning: Not harmful or offensive; harmless or inoffensive.
    Example Sentence: Sharing a funny meme seemed innocuous, but it sparked a huge debate in our group chat.
15. Word: Animatronic
    Meaning: Relating to mechanical devices designed to move and appear lifelike, often used in entertainment or robotics.
    Example Sentence: The animatronic dinosaur at the theme park looked so real that it scared my little cousin.
16. Word: Publons
    Meaning: A platform where researchers can share and receive credit for peer review work, often to track and showcase their contributions.
    Example Sentence: My professor uses Publons to show off her peer review work, which helps her get noticed in academic circles.
17. Word: Opacity
    Meaning: The quality of being unclear, obscure, or difficult to understand; lack of transparency.
    Example Sentence: The opacity of the club’s budget made it hard for us to know how much we could spend on the annual fest.
18. Word: Cyber Troops
    Meaning: Government or political actors tasked with manipulating public opinion online, often through disinformation or propaganda.
    Example Sentence: I read about cyber troops spreading fake news on social media to sway opinions during elections.
19. Word: Night Owls
    Meaning: People who prefer to stay awake and active late into the night, as opposed to early risers.
    Example Sentence: As a night owl, I do my best studying after midnight when the house is quiet.
20. Word: Lore
    Meaning: Traditional knowledge or stories passed down, often based on cultural beliefs rather than verified facts.
    Example Sentence: The lore about a haunted house in our town keeps kids away from it every Halloween.

CAT 2024 Slot 3

1. Word: Hitherto
   Meaning: Up to this time; until now.
   Example Sentence: Hitherto, I thought group studies were boring, but joining my friends’ study sessions has made them fun.
2. Word: Artefacts
   Meaning: Objects or creations made by humans, often of cultural or historical significance, such as laws, myths, or artworks.
   Example Sentence: The artefacts in our college museum, like old books and posters, show how student life has changed over decades.
3. Word: Subvert
   Meaning: To undermine or overthrow, especially in a subtle or gradual way, often targeting established systems or values.
   Example Sentence: Posting misleading info online can subvert trust in our college’s event announcements.
4. Word: Exacerbate
   Meaning: To make a problem, situation, or negative feeling worse or more severe.
   Example Sentence: Skipping breakfast before a long exam day can exacerbate my stress and make it harder to focus.
5. Word: Pastoralists
   Meaning: People who raise livestock and move with their herds to find fresh pastures, often in nomadic or semi-nomadic lifestyles.
   Example Sentence: I read about pastoralists who travel with their goats to find green fields, like farmers moving for better crops.
6. Word: Acute
   Meaning: Severe or intense, often describing a critical or urgent situation, such as in medical or social contexts.
   Example Sentence: The acute shortage of study rooms during exams forced us to book library slots weeks in advance.
7. Word: Tipple
   Meaning: An alcoholic drink, often used informally to refer to someone’s preferred beverage.
   Example Sentence: At the reunion, my uncle’s favourite tipple was a cold soda, while others enjoyed fruit juice.
8. Word: Elitism
   Meaning: The belief or practice that a select group, often based on wealth, status, or ability, is superior and should have greater influence.
   Example Sentence: The club’s elitism made it hard for new students to join unless they knew someone important.
9. Word: Ageism
   Meaning: Discrimination or prejudice based on a person’s age, often against older or younger individuals.
   Example Sentence: The tech workshop’s ageism ignored older students, assuming they wouldn’t understand the new apps.
10. Word: Travesty
    Meaning: A false, absurd, or distorted representation of something, often seen as a mockery or injustice.
    Example Sentence: It was a travesty that our group project got a low grade despite all our hard work.
11. Word: Georgic
    Meaning: Relating to rural or agricultural life, often idealised in literature or art, derived from pastoral poetry.
    Example Sentence: Her Georgic outfit, inspired by farm life, stood out at the college’s cultural fest.
12. Word: Artifice
    Meaning: Clever or cunning devices or expedients, especially used to deceive or create a false impression.
    Example Sentence: The artifice of his perfect Instagram posts hid how stressed he was during exam prep.
13. Word: Hullabaloo
    Meaning: A commotion or fuss, often caused by public outcry or excitement.
    Example Sentence: The hullabaloo over the new cafeteria menu had everyone debating the food options online.
14. Word: Idiosyncratic
    Meaning: Peculiar or individual in character, often describing unique or unconventional behaviours or traits.
    Example Sentence: My professor’s idiosyncratic habit of starting class with a joke makes her lectures memorable.
15. Word: Hegemonic
    Meaning: Dominating or controlling, especially in the context of a group or ideology exerting power over others.
    Example Sentence: The hegemonic influence of popular trends makes it hard to wear unique clothes without standing out.
16. Word: Mercurial
    Meaning: Characterised by rapid and unpredictable changes, often in mood, behaviour, or conditions.
    Example Sentence: My mercurial study schedule shifts daily, depending on how tired I feel after classes.
17. Word: Desiccated
    Meaning: Completely dried out or dehydrated, often used to describe environments or objects lacking moisture.
    Example Sentence: The desiccated plants in my dorm room remind me I forgot to water them for weeks.
18. Word: Pristine
    Meaning: In its original condition; unspoiled or pure, often used to describe untouched environments.
    Example Sentence: The pristine library books looked brand new until I spilt coffee on one by mistake.
19. Word: Synapse
    Meaning: The junction between two nerve cells where chemical signals are transmitted, crucial for neural communication.
    Example Sentence: Learning new concepts feels like my brain is building synapses to connect ideas faster.
20. Word: Pruning
    Meaning: The process of selectively removing or reducing parts, such as neural connections, to enhance efficiency or functionality.
    Example Sentence: My brain seems to be pruning old math formulas to make room for new CAT prep tricks.