GRE word list

agnate \ag-neyt\, noun

1. A relative whose connection is traceable exclusively through males.

2. Any male relation on the father's side.

adjective:

1. Related or akin through males or on the father's side.

2. Allied or akin.

It was considered abomination; no agnate gives up its infant kin in Igboland, no matter the crime.

-- M. O. Ené, Blighted Blues

His uncle in the third segment was the only other agnate who shared patriotic sentiments with Yat-Kuan.

-- Saikaku Ihara, Tales of Japanese Justice

Agnate is derived from the Latin word agnatus which referred to paternal kinsmen.

aliquant \AL-i-kwuhnt\, adjective

Contained in a number or quantity, but not dividing it evenly: An aliquant part of 16 is 5.

Cunning is the aliquant of talent; as hypocrisy is of religion; all the threes in the universe cannot make ten

-- Thomas Hall, The Fortunes and Adventures of Raby Rattler and His Man Floss

...even though that number was an odd number and by a quarter the number of his confiteors, even though four was an aliquant part of two thousand to hundred and nineteen, nothing being changed with regard to the masses...

-- Raymond Queneau, The Blue Flowers

Aliquant stems from the Latin roots ali- meaning "differently" and quantus meaning "great."

antic \an-tik\, adjective

1. Ludicrous; funny.

2. Fantastic; odd; grotesque: an antic disposition.

noun:

1. Usually, antics. A. A playful trick or prank; caper. B. A grotesque, fantastic, or ludicrous gesture, act, or posture.

2. Archaic. A. An actor in a grotesque or ridiculous presentation. B. A buffoon; clown.

3. Obsolete. A. A grotesque theatrical presentation; ridiculous interlude. B. A grotesque or fantastic sculptured figure, as a gargoyle.

From the subversive to the antic, the uproarious to the disturbing, the stories of Bruce Sterling are restless,

energy-filled journeys through a world running on empty.

-- Bruce Sterling, A Good Old-Fashioned Future

Grey Magic is a work of great scope and stylistic virtuosity, combining antic humor with immense sophistication, an Anglo-American setting with an Anglo-European sensibility and a profound insight into contemporary issues of both personal and collective resonance.

-- Richard Leigh, Grey Magic

Antic comes from the Italian word antico which meant "ancient." Apparently, it was associated with the fantastic figures of the Roman ruins and came to mean "grotesque."