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GRE vocabulary

dormant

adjectiveHigh-frequency wordMore D words

temporarily inactive or sleeping

Word origin: From Latin dormire, to sleep.

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In a sentence

Dormant in a sentence

Here are example sentences showing dormant in a sentence.

The volcano had lain dormant for centuries before erupting.

The volcano had lain dormant for centuries before the first tremors returned.

Synonyms
Antonyms
activeawakeoperative

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Verbal · Text Completion

Although the senator's memoir was marketed as a frank reckoning with his failures, reviewers found it relentlessly blank, dwelling on grievances and recasting every setback as the fault of his adversaries.

Select the word that best completes the sentence.

Usage & nuance

Using “dormant” well

Dormant implies temporary, reversible inactivity, with the potential to reawaken, unlike extinct or dead. It applies to volcanoes, seeds, accounts, and latent feelings alike.

Common questions

Questions about “dormant”

Dormant (adjective) means temporarily inactive or sleeping
Here is dormant used in an example sentence: "The volcano had lain dormant for centuries before erupting." Another example: "The volcano had lain dormant for centuries before the first tremors returned."
Common synonyms for dormant include inactive, latent, quiescent.
Antonyms of dormant include active, awake, operative.
Clusters with inactive, latent, and quiescent in Sentence Equivalence. Its antonyms active, awake, and operative supply the contrast for a reactivation cue.
Yes. Dormant is a high-frequency GRE word, so it is worth prioritising as you build your vocabulary.

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