The musician played a plaintive tune on his violin that brought tears to everyone's eyes.
synonyms
mournfulsorrowfulmelancholy
word origin — Middle English plaintif, from Old French plaintif, from plaint, meaning 'lament' or 'sorrow'.
GRE Vocabulary — Set 100
Set 100 of GRE Vocabulary covers 5 words: plaintive, obtrusive, unerring, peripheral, voluble. Each entry below includes its definition, an example sentence, and synonyms — practice them with the interactive cards above.
plaintive · adjective/ˈpleɪn.tɪv/
expressing sorrow or melancholy
The musician played a plaintive tune on his violin that brought tears to everyone's eyes.
Synonyms: mournful, sorrowful, melancholy
Origin: Middle English plaintif, from Old French plaintif, from plaint, meaning 'lament' or 'sorrow'.
obtrusive · adjective/əbˈtruːsɪv/
invasive or noticeable in a way that is unwelcome or inappropriate
The obtrusive noise from the construction site made it difficult to concentrate during the meeting.
Synonyms: intrusive, invasive, noticeable
Origin: from Latin obtrusus, past participle of obtrudere, meaning 'to thrust in' (ob- meaning 'against' and trudere meaning 'to thrust')
unerring · adjective/ʌnˈɝɪŋ/
always right or accurate
Her unerring judgment in selecting the right candidate made her an invaluable asset to the team.
Synonyms: infallible, impeccable, precise
Origin: originates from the prefix 'un-' meaning 'not' and the verb 'err' from Latin 'errare', meaning 'to wander, stray, or make a mistake'.
peripheral · adjective/pəˈrɪfɪrəl/
related to or situated on the edge or periphery of something
The study focused on the central issues rather than the peripheral concerns that could distract from the main argument.
Synonyms: marginal, outer, supplementary
Origin: From Greek 'peripheria', meaning 'circumference', from 'peripherēs', meaning 'to be carried around'
voluble · adjective/ˈvɑːljəbl/
characterized by a steady, rapid flow of speech
During the meeting, her voluble commentary kept everyone engaged and eager to participate.
Synonyms: talkative, loquacious, chatty
Origin: The word 'voluble' comes from the Latin 'volubilis', which means 'able to roll' or 'turning easily', derived from 'volvĕre', meaning 'to roll'.