Barron’s GRE Word List (Vocabulary) Test Prep- Letter F

fabricate
build; lie; make up (a story) in order to deceive; CF. fabric: underlying structure; Ex. fabric of society

He fabricated the whole story

façade

front or face (of building); superficial or false appearance

The façade of the building has to be varnished

facet
small plane surface (of a gem(precious stone)); a side

You have ignored a very important facet of the story

facetious
joking (often inappropriately); unserious; humorous

He made a facetious comment

facile
easily accomplished; ready or fluent; superficial; not deep; Ex. facile speaker; N. facility: ability to do something easily and well; ease in doing resulting from skill or aptitude; something that facilitates an action; amenity; Ex. with great facility

Facile solution to a complex problem

facilitate
help bring about; make less difficult

Political agreements that facilitated troop withdrawals

facsimile
copy

The advocate was given facsimiles of original documents

faction
party; clique (within a large group); dissension

That seems to be a terrorist faction

factious
inclined to form factions; causing dissension

A factious group was trying to undermine the government

factitious
artificial; produced artificially; sham; false;

He shed factitious tears

factotum
handyman; person who does all kinds of work; CF. do everything

He is a factotum of the college

faculty
mental or bodily powers; teaching staff

Her faculties started deteriorating

fallacious
false; based on a fallacy; misleading; N. fallacy: false idea or notion; false reasoning; Ex. popular fallacy; Ex. fallacy of the argument

Her arguments sound fallacious

fallible
liable to err

Humans are only fallible

falsify
make (something written) false by changing

He falsified the history of his family to conceal his humble origins

fallow
(of land) plowed but not sowed (to improve the quality); uncultivated

My creative energies have lain fallow this year

falter
hesitate; weaken in purpose or action; walk or move unsteadily through weakness; N

She approached the criminal with faltering steps

fanaticism
excessive zeal; extreme devotion to a belief or cause; N. fanatic; ADJ. fanatic

Fanaticism is not very healthy

fancied
imagined; unreal

She fancied a carefree life

fancier
breeder or dealer of animals; one who has a special interest, as for raising specific plant or animal

He is a fancier by profession

fanciful
whimsical; visionary; imaginary; produced by imagination; Ex. fanciful scheme

He usually ignored her fanciful ideas

fanfare
call by bugles or trumpets; showy display

A fanfare is a spectacular public display

farce
broad comedy; mockery; humorous play full of silly things happening; ADJ. farcical

He specialized in writing farce comedies

fastidious
difficult to please; squeamish; fussy; finicky

Students have become fastidious

fatalism
belief that events are determined by forces or fates beyond one’s control; ADJ. fatalistic; CF. fatal: causing death

Religions are based on fatalism

fathom
comprehend; investigate; determine the depth of; N. unit of measurement for the depth of water

It was hard to fathom his knowledge

fathomless
too deep to be measured or understood; unfathomable

She had fathomless love for him

fatuous
smugly and unconsciously foolish; inane; silly; N. fatuity, fatuousness

That was a fatuous conversation

fauna
animals of a period or region; CF. flora

She specializes in the fauna of Africa

fawning
courting favor by cringing and flattering; V. fawn: exhibit affection as a dog; seek favor or attention by obsequiousness

The minister was fawned by his henchmen

faze
disconcert; dismay; embarrass

The worst insults cannot faze him

feasible
practical; able to be carried out; practicable

They could not offer a feasible solution to the problem

febrile
feverish

Febrile action

fecundity
fertility; fruitfulness; ADJ. fecund: very productive of crops or young

Fecundity of imagination

fertile
producing many young, fruits, or seeds; (of land) producing good crops; V. fertilize

The deltas are the most fertile lands

fruitful
producing results; profitable; prolific; producing in abundance

They were looking forward to a fruitful result

feign
pretend

The child feigned illness

feint
trick; shift; sham blow; feigned attack to draw away defensive action; V.

His air of approval was a feint to conceal his real motives

felicitous
(of a word or remark) apt; suitably expressed; well chosen

The chairman’s felicitous anecdote set everyone at ease

felicity
happiness; appropriateness (of a remark, choice, etc.); quality of being felicitous

The many felicities of the poem

feline
of a member of the cat family; N.

The model has feline features

fell
cruel; (of a disease) deadly

To fell a moose

felon
person convicted of a grave crime; CF. felony: serious crime

He is a felon

feral
(of an animal) not domestic; wild

A pack of feral dogs roaming the woods

ferment
agitation; commotion(noisy and excited activity); unrest (of a political kind); V. produce by fermentation; undergo fermentation; cause (a state of trouble)

Curd undergoes the process of fermentation

ferret
drive or hunt out of hiding; hunt with ferrets; drive out (as from a hiding place); expel; uncover or discover by searching; N. small fierce animal which catches rats and rabbits by going into their holes

Ferret out the secret

fervent
ardent; zealous; hot

He made a fervent speech

fervor
glowing ardor; intensity of feeling; quality of being fervent or fervid; zeal; intense heat

The students performed with lot of fervor

fester
rankle; produce irritation or resentment; (of a cut or wound) generate pus or rot; His insult festered in my mind for days.

festive
joyous; celebratory; relating to a feast or festival

It was a festive occasion for them

fete

honor at a festival; celebrate or honor with a feast; N. (outdoor) festival or feast; CF. feast

The college hosted a fete

fetid
malodorous; foul

The food produced a fetid odor

foul
very bad or disagreeable; very dirty; Ex. foul smell/flavor/temper/language/air/deed/weather/means; N. act against the rules; V. make or become foul; commit a foul

The meat produced foul smell

fetish (fetich)
object believed to have spiritual powers; object of excessive attention or reverence; CF. fetishism

She had fetish for saints

fetter
shackle; restrict the freedom of; N. chain or shackle for the foot of a prisoner; CF. foot

He fettered her creativity

fiasco
total failure; CF. bottle

The new venture turned out to be a fiasco

fiat
command; arbitrary order; Ex. presidential fiat; CF. let it be done

The army general’s fiat

fickle
changeable (in affections or friendship); faithless

He seems to be fickle minded

fictitious
imaginary; non-existent; purposely invented to deceive; untrue; Ex. fictitious name/boyfriend; CF. fictional

It is a fictitious story

fidelity
loyalty; accuracy

figment
invention; something invented; imaginary thing;

It’s nothing but a figment of your imagination

figurative
not literal but metaphorical; using a figure(impression) of speech

A hyperbole is figurative speech

figure
written symbols; number; amount represented in numbers; outline or silhouette of a thing or human body; person (well-known); impression; diagram; pattern; group in a dance; Ex. figure of speech; V. calculate with numbers; adorn with figures; appear; consider;

My name did not figure in the list.

figurine
small ornamental statuette(very small statue)

The figurine was made of gold

filch
steal (things of small value)

She had a penchant to filch things

filial
pertaining to or befitting a son or daughter;

filial respect

filibuster
block legislation or prevent action in a lawmaking body by making very slow long speeches; N; freebooter

To use a filibuster against

freebooter
pirate or plunderer who makes war in order to grow rich

A freebooter is a pirate

filigree
delicate ornamental lacelike metalwork

A filigree of frost

filing
particle removed by a file

Magnet attracts iron filings

finale
conclusion; concluding part

The finale was a grand one

finesse
delicate skill; V: handle with finesse

Exceptional diplomatic finesse

finicky
too particular; fussy; difficult to please; too concerned with unimportant details or quality

She is extremely finicky about her food

finite
limited

The situation has finite possibilities

firebrand
piece of burning wood; hothead; troublemaker; person who stirs up trouble

She is a firebrand politician

fissure
crevice; crack

The blast was because of the fissure

fitful
spasmodic; intermittent; irregular

His mood is fitful

fit
sudden outburst of an illness or feeling; convulsion caused by epilepsy

She suffers from fits

flaccid
flabby; lacking firmness; weak

flaccid muscles

flag
droop; grow feeble; decline in vigor or strength; ADJ. flagging; CF. unflagging

The audience’s spirits were flagged by the end of the day

flagrant
conspicuously wicked, bad, or offensive; blatant; outrageous

His intentions are flagrant

flail
beat with or as if with a flail; move wildly; thresh grain by hand; strike or slap; toss about; N: threshing tool consisting of a stick swinging from the end of a long handle

A flail is a threshing tool

flair
talent

She has flair for English

flamboyant
ornate; highly elaborate; richly colored; ostentatious; showy; CF. flame

His flamboyant manners attracted all

flaunt
display ostentatiously;

“Honey, if you’ve got it, flaunt it !”

flay
strip off skin; plunder; remove the skin from; criticize harshly

With her nails she’ll flay thy wolfish visage. –Shak

fleck
spot; mark with flecks; N: small mark or spot

There’s not a single fleck on her face

fledgling(fledgeling)
inexperienced; N: young bird that has acquired wing feathers and is learning to fly; inexperienced person

He’s a fledgling poet

fleece
wool coat of a sheep; V: shear the fleece from; rob by a trick; swindle; plunder

The sheep’s fleece was as white as snow

flick
light stroke as with a whip; V: move with a light quick blow; strike with a light quick blow (as from a whip);

Flick the switch

flicker
burn unsteadily or fitfully; move waveringly; N: brief sensation; Ex. flicker of excitement

Flickering movement or light

flutter
(of a bird with large wings) wave (the wings) lightly, rapidly, and irregularly; vibrate rapidly or erratically; fly by waving quickly; flitter; N.

The bird fluttered in the air

flinch
hesitate; shrink back (in fear of something unpleasant)

She did not flinch in the face of danger.

flippant
lacking proper seriousness; N. flippancy

I could not bear her flippant remarks about death

flip
send (something) spinning, often into the air, by striking with a light quick blow; turn over

She flipped the keys into the air

flit
fly; fly or move lightly or quickly; dart lightly; pass swiftly by;

A bee flitting from flower to flower

floe
flat mass of floating ice

Floe is a flat mass of flowing ice

flora
plants of a region or era

The flora of England

florescence
condition or period of flowering

She was awestruck at the exuberant fluorescence

florid
ruddy; (of a complexion) reddish; flowery; very ornate; CF. rose

It was a florid decoration

flush
redden; blush; flow suddenly and abundantly; wash out by a rapid brief flow of water; N: reddish tinge; blush; brief rush; rush of strong feeling; ADJ: having surfaces in the same plane; even; blushing

One could see a flush of pride on her face

flowery
full of flowers; full of ornate expressions

It was a flowery talk

flotsam
drifting wreckage

The flotsam of the city slums in medieval Europe

flounder
struggle and thrash about; proceed clumsily or falter (as in water, mud, snow, etc.); proceed in confusion

He saw the child floundering about in the water

flourish
grow well; prosper; make sweeping gestures; wave; brandish; N: showy movement or gesture; embellishment or ornamentation (esp. in handwriting)

The trees flourished in the sun.

flout
reject; mock; show contempt for; scorn

The citizens flouted the rules

fluctuate
waver; shift; rise and fall as if in waves; change or vary irregularly

His speech fluctuated

fluency
smoothness of speech; ADJ. fluent

He made a fluent speech

fluke
unlikely occurrence; stroke of fortune; accidental stroke of good luck; ADJ. fluky

It was by fluke she won

fluster
confuse; make nervous and confused; N

The accused tried to fluster the judges

fluted
having vertical parallel grooves (as in a pillar); V. flute: make long parallel inward curves in; N. flute: long rounded groove incised on the shaft of a column

The pillars stand fluted

flux
flowing; series of changes; fluctuation;

The decision was still in a state of flux

fodder
coarse food for cattle, horses, etc.; feed for livestock; CF. food

His words were fodder for thought

foible
small weakness of character; slight fault; CF. feeble

That’s just a foible

foil
contrast; one that by contrast enhances the distinctive characteristics of another

She tried to foil his plans

foist
insert improperly; impose upon another by coercion; palm off; pass off as genuine or worthy; CF. fist

to foist inferior merchandise on a customer

foliage
masses of leaves; CF. defoliate