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GRE vocabulary

atavistic

adjectiveCommon GRE wordMore A words

reverting to an ancestral or primitive type after an absence of generations

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In a sentence

Atavistic in a sentence

Here is an example sentence showing atavistic in a sentence.

A strange, atavistic fear gripped him at the sound of distant howling.

Synonyms
ancestralprimitivethrowback
Antonyms
progressivemodernevolved

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Verbal · Sentence Equivalence

The naturalist warned that the alpine bloom was blank, a spectacle of color that would vanish within days of the thaw, leaving no trace by midsummer.

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Common questions

Questions about “atavistic”

Atavistic (adjective) means reverting to an ancestral or primitive type after an absence of generations
Here is atavistic used in an example sentence: "A strange, atavistic fear gripped him at the sound of distant howling."
Common synonyms for atavistic include ancestral, primitive, throwback.
Antonyms of atavistic include progressive, modern, evolved.
Atavistic is a GRE-level vocabulary word worth knowing for the Verbal section.

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