Page 322 - WEBSTER Essential vocabulary

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O – P: GRE Words
orb (AWRB) n. 1. a sphere or globe; 2. any of the celestial bodies such as the 313
sun, moon, planets, stars; 3. the eyeball
• An orb is round, no matter how you look at it.
• As an orb, I’m sure you’ll agree, the earth is nice to have around.
• To appreciate that an eyeball is an orb, you’ll have to see one outside of
the skull.
overt (oh VOERT) adj. not hidden; open; apparent; public; manifest; observable
• It is against the law in most states to carry a concealed weapon, but the
laws governing the carrying of an overt weapon differ from state to state.
• Most parents are very overt in their love for their children.
[-ly adv.] [Syn. open]
parody (PA ruh dee) n. 1. a humorous copy of a literary or musical work, often
applied to an inappropriate subject; 2. a weak imitation —vt. 1. to write or perform
a parody; 2. to imitate mockingly
• Gulliver’s Travels is a parody of the travel books that were so popular in
Jonathan Swift’s day.
• Parody is imitation and as such is a form of flattery.
• Certain comedians make a living parodying political figures.
• Mel Brooks parodies Mary Shelley’s book in the motion picture Young
Frankenstein.
[parodied, -ing, parodies pl.] [Syn. caricature]
parse (PARS) vt. 1. to separate a sentence into its parts, identifying and explain-
ing the use of each of those parts and their relationship to each other; 2. to describe
the preceding
• In times past, it was customary to parse sentences in English class, using a
diagram.
• When a sentence is parsed, it is separated into subject, predicate, and all
modifying words (associating them with the words they modify).
[-d, parsing] [Syn. analyze]
pastoral (PAS toer il) adj. 1. of shepherds, their work, or their way of life;
2. characteristic of rural life —n. a literary or musical work that deals with rural life,
usually in an idealized way
• The pastoral life is the lifestyle of a shepherd.
• Traditional pastoral life is quite different from life in today’s rural America.
• Beethoven’s Symphony No. 6 is also known as the Pastoral Symphony and
depicts country life.
[-ly adv.] [Syn. rural]
patron (PAY truhn) n. 1. a protector or benefactor; 2. one who uses his or her
money to sponsor artists or events
• Classical musicians could not earn a living if it weren’t for the support of
patrons.
• Austrian Prince Esterházy was Haydn’s patron for much of the musician’s
adult life.
[Syn. sponsor]