Barron gre word list A

Barron GRE word list - H 
habitat
natural home of a plant or animal; CF. habitation 
habituate
accustom or familiarize; addict 
hackles
hairs on back and neck, especially of a dog; Ex. make someone's hackles rise 
hackneyed
commonplace; trite 
haggard
wasted away; gaunt; Ex. haggard faces of the rescued miners 
haggle
argue about prices (in an attempt to bargain) 
hail
frozen rain drop; V: salute or greet; precipitate hail 

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halcyon
calm; peaceful; Ex. halcyon days 
hale
healthy 
halfhearted
exhibiting little interest or enthusiasm 
hallowed
blessed; consecrated; Ex. hallowed ground; V. hallow: set apart as holy 
hallucination delusion; false idea; false perception of objects with a compelling sense of 
their reality; objects so perceived; V. hallucinate; ADJ. hallucinatory 
halting
hesitant; faltering; not fluent; Ex. halting steps/voice; V. halt: proceed or act 
with uncertainty; falter; hesitate; waver; stop 
hamper
obstruct; prevent the free movement of; 
handsome
large in quantity; generous; Ex. handsome reward 
hap
chance; luck 
haphazard
random; by chance; happening in an unplanned manner; Ex. haphazard 
growth of the town 
hapless
unfortunate; luckless 
harangue
long, passionate, and vehement speech; V. 
harass
annoy by repeated attacks 
harbinger
forerunner (which foreshadows what is to come) 
harbor
give protection (by giving food and shelter); provide a refuge for; hide; keep 
in mind (thoughts or feelings); Ex. harbor a grudge/criminal; N: place of 
shelter; refuge 
hardy
(of people or animals) sturdy; robust; (of plants) able to stand 
inclement(stormy) weather 
harping
tiresome dwelling on a subject; V. harp: dwell on(think or speak a lot about) 
tediously 
harrowing
agonizing; distressing; traumatic; V. harrow: break up and level (soil) with a 
harrow; inflict great distress on; agonize; N: farming machine to break up the 
earth 
harry
harass, annoy, torment (by repeated attacks); raid 
hatch
deck opening; lid covering a deck opening; V: emerge from an egg; produce 
(young) from an egg 
haughtiness
pride; arrogance; ADJ. haughty 
haunt
(of a spirit) visit (a place); come to mind continually; visit (a place) regularly; 
frequent; Ex. haunted house; Ex. haunted by his last words; N: place much 
frequented 
haven
place of safety; refuge; harbor; Ex. tax haven 
havoc
widespread damage; disorder; chaos 

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hazard
venture; put in danger; risk; Ex. hazard a guess; N: possible source of danger 
hazardous
dangerous 
hazy
slightly obscure; misty; unclear; N. haze: light mist or smoke; confused state 
of mind 
headfirst
moving with the head leading; headlong 
headlong
hasty; rash; headfirst; ADV. 
headstrong
willful; stubborn; unyielding; determined to have one's own way; CF. no 
'excessive' 
healthful
conducive to good health; Ex. healthful mountain air 
healthy
possessing good health; healthful 
heckler
person who verbally harasses others; V. heckle: verbally harass as with gibes 
(by interrupting a speaker or speech) 
hedonist
one who believes that pleasure is the sole aim in life; CF. hedonism: practice 
of living one's life purely for pleasure 
heed
pay attention to; N: close attention 
heedless
not noticing; disregarding 
hegemony
dominance especially of one nation over others 
heinous
atrocious; wicked; hatefully bad; Ex. heinous crime 
helm
steering wheel of a ship; position of control 
hem
surround tightly so that movement is impossible; Ex. hem in; N. 
herald
messenger; sign of something to come; V: announce; proclaim; Ex. 
unheralded researcher 
herbivorous
grain-eating; CF. herbivore 
herd
group of animals; crowd; one who looks after a herd; Ex. shepherd/goatherd; 
Ex. herd instinct; Ex. herdsman; V: come together in a herd; look after a 
herd; Ex. herd cattle 
hereafter
life after death 
heresy
opinion contrary to popular belief; opinion contrary to accepted religion; 
ADJ. heretical; CF. heretic 
hermetic
concerning alchemy or magic; obscure and mysterious; occult 
hermitage
home of a hermit 
herpetologist one who studies reptiles; CF. herpetology: branch of zoology that deals with 
reptiles and amphibians 
heterodox
(of beliefs) against accepted opinion; unorthodox; unconventional 
heterogeneous dissimilar; mixed; not homogeneous; consisting of dissimilar elements or 

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plants 
hew
cut to pieces with ax or sword; chop; N. 
heyday
time of greatest success or power; prime 
hiatus
gap; pause; gap or interruption in space or time; break 
hibernal
wintry; wintery; of or like winter 
hibernate
sleep throughout the winter; N. hibernation 
hide
skin of an animal 
hideous
repulsive to the sight; ugly; repugnant; Ex. hideous face/scream 
hierarchy
arrangement by rank or standing; authoritarian body divided into ranks; 
body of persons having authority 
hieroglyphic picture writing; ADJ. 
high-flown
highly pretentious or inflated 
hilarity
boisterous mirth(merriment; laughter); ADJ. hilarious: full of laughter 
hindmost
furthest behind; farthest to the rear 
hindrance
block; obstacle; V. hinder 
hindsight
understanding the nature of an event after it has actually happened 
hinterlands
back country; inner part of a country; OP. foreland 
hireling
one who serves for hire (usually used contemptuously); one who works solely 
for compensation; Ex. hireling politician 
hirsute
hairy; having a lot of hair 
historic
important in history; Ex. historic battle 
historical
connected with history; based on events in history (whether regarded as 
important or not) 
histrionic
theatrical; excessively dramatic or emotional; affected; of actors or acting; N. 
histrionics: histrionic behavior 
hive
box for bees; V: cause to go in a hive 
hoard
stockpile; accumulate for future use; N: supply stored for future use 
hoary
white with age 
hoax
trick which makes someone take action; practical joke; Ex. hoax mail; V. 
holocaust
destruction by fire; CF. burnt whole; CF. Holocaust 
holster
leather pistol case (that hangs on a belt around the waist) 
homage
honor; tribute; great respect; Ex. pay/do homage to 
homely
not good-looking; unattractive 
homeostasis
tendency of a system or organism to maintain relative stability or internal 

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equilibrium; CF. homeo-: constant; Ex. homeotherm 
homespun
domestic; made at home; spun or woven at home; simple and ordinary; Ex. 
homespun philosophy 
homily
sermon; tedious moralizing lecture; serious warning; ADJ. homiletic 
homogeneous of the same kind; uniform in composition throughout 
hone
sharpen (a tool); N: whetstone for sharpening a tool 
hoodwink
deceive; delude 
horde
crowd; swarm 
horoscope
diagram of the positions of stars at a given moment (eg. of a person's birth) 
used by astrologers 
hortatory
encouraging; exhortive; marked by exhortation; CF. exhort 
horticultural
pertaining to cultivation of gardens; N. horticulture: science or art of 
cultivating fruits, vegetables, or ornamental plants; CF. agriculture: science 
or art of farming or growing crops 
hostage
person who is kept as a prisoner by an enemy so that the other side will do 
what the enemy demands 
hostility
unfriendliness; hatred; enmity; ADJ. hostile 
hothead
person who does things too quickly without thinking; ADJ. hotheaded 
hovel
shack; small wretched house 
hover
hang about; (of birds or aircraft) stay in the air in one place; (of people) wait 
nearby; stay around one place; waver; be in an uncertain state 
hubbub
confused uproar; loud noise; din 
hubris
arrogance; excessive self-conceit 
hue
color; aspect; Ex. opinions of every hue 
hue_and_cry outcry; loud cry or clamor; strong protest; Ex. hue and cry against the new 
rule 
hull
husk; dry outer covering of a seed; frame or body of a ship 
humane
marked by kindness or consideration; kind and compassionate; 
humanitarian 
humanitarian one devoted to the promotion of human welfare; CF. humanism 
humble
of low rank or position; modest; having a low opinion of oneself and a high 
opinion of others; unassuming; not proud; V. humiliate: make humble; cause 
to feel ashamed or to lose the respect of others 
humdrum
dull; monotonous 
humid
damp; N. humidity 

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humility
humbleness of spirit 
hummock
small hill; hillock 
humor
indulge; comply with the wishes of; N. quality that makes something 
amusing; state of mind; mood; Ex. in a bad humor; Ex. out of humor 
humus
substance or rich soil formed by decaying vegetable matter; CF. soil 
hurl
throw forcefully; shout out violently 
hurtle
crash; rush; move with great speed; Ex. hurtling runaway train 
husband
use sparingly; conserve; save; Ex. husband one's energy; CF. house holder 
husbandry
frugality; thrift; economy; agriculture; farming; Ex. animal husbandry; CF. 
husbandman 
hut
crude dwelling; shack 
hybrid
mongrel; mixed breed; V. hybridize 
hydrophobia fear of water; rabies 
hygiene
science and practice of the promotion and preservation of health; ADJ. 
hygienic: showing careful attention to cleanness (to prevent disease); Ex. 
hygienic condition 
hyperbole
exaggeration; overstatement; ADJ. hyperbolic: of hyperbole; of a hyperbola 
hypercritical excessively exacting; too critical (without noticing good qualities) 
hypnosis
induced sleeping state; ADJ. hypnotic; V. hypnotize 
hypochondriac person unduly worried about his health; worrier without cause about illness; 
ADJ. CF. hypochondria: neurosis that one is or is becoming ill; CF. abdomen 
hypocritical
pretending to be virtuous; deceiving; N. hypocrisy: profession of beliefs one 
does not possess; CF. hypocrite 
hypothetical based on assumptions or hypotheses; supposed; N. hypothesis 
hysteria
excessive or uncontrollable excitement; N. hysteric: person suffering from 
hysteria; CF. hysterics: attack of hysteria 
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