SAT - I's Flashcards
Iconoclastic
Adj. attacking cherished traditions.
Deeply iconoclastic, Jean Genet deliberately set out to shock conventional theatergoers with his radical plays.
Idiosyncrasy
N. individual trait, usually odd in nature; eccentricity.
One of Richard Nixon’s little idiosyncrasies was his liking for ketchup on cottage cheese.
Ignominy
N. deep disgrace; shame or dishonor.
To lose the Ping-Pong match to a trained chimpanzee! How could Rollo stand the ignominy of his defeat?
Ignominious, Adj.
Illicit
Adj. illegal.
The defense attorney maintained that his client had never performed any illicit action.
Illusory
Adj. deceptive; not real.
Unfortunately, the costs of running the lemonade stand were so high that Tom’s profits proved illusory.
Immutable
Adj. unchangeable.
All things change over time; nothing is immutable.
Impair
V. injure; hurt.
Drinking alcohol can impair your ability to drive safely; if you’re going to drink, don’t drive.
Impeccable
Adj. faultless.
The uncrowned queen of the fashion industry, Diana was acclaimed for her impeccable taste.
Impecunious
Adj. without money.
Though Scrooge claimed he was too impecunious to give alms, he easily could have afforded to be charitable.
Impede
V. hinder; block; delay.
A series of accidents impeded the launching of the space shuttle.
Implausible
Adj. unlikley; unbelievable.
Though her alibi seemed implausible, it in fact turned out to be true.
Implement
V. put into effect; supply with tools.
The mayor was unwilling to implement the plan until she was sure it had the governor’s backing.
Also, N.
Impregnable
Adj. invulnerable.
Until the development of the airplane as a military weapon, the fort was considered impregnable.
Impudence
N. impertinence; insolence.
Kissed on the cheek by a perfect stranger, Lady Catherine exclaimed, “Of all the nerve! Young man, I should have you horse-whipped for your impudence.”
Inadvertently
Adj. unintentionally; by oversight; carelessly.
Judy’s great fear was that she might inadvertently omit a question on the exam and mismark her whole answer sheet.
Inane
Adj. silly; senseless.
There’s no point to what you’re saying. Why are you bothering to make such inane remarks?
Incidental
Adj. not essential; minor.
The scholarship covered his major expenses at college and some of his incidental expenses as well.
Incisive
Adj. cutting; sharp.
His incisive remarks made us the fallacy in our plans.
Incite
V. arouse to action; goad; motivate; induce to exist.
In a fiery speech, Mario incited his fellow students to go out on strike to protest the university’s anti-affirmative action stand.
Inclusive
Adj. tending to include all.
The comedian turned down the invitation to join the Players’ Club, saying any club that would let him in was too inclusive for him.
Incongruous
Adj. not fitting; absurd
Dave saw nothing incongruous about wearing sneakers with his tuxedo; he couldn’t understand why his date took one look at him and started to laugh.
Incongruity, N.
Inconsequential
Adj, insignificant; unimportant.
Brushing off Ali’s apologies for having broken the wineglass, Tamara said, “Don’t worry about it, it’s inconsequential.
Incontrovertible
Adj. indisputable; not open to question.
Unless you find the evidence against my client absolutely incontrovertible, you must declare her not guilty of this charge.
Incorrigible
Adj. not correctable.
Though Widow Douglas hoped to reform Huck, Miss Watson called him incorrigible and said he would come to no good.
Indefatigable
Adj. tireless.
Although the effort of taking out the garbage tired Wayne out for the entire morning, when it came to partying, he was indefagitable.
Indict
V. charge.
The district attorney didn’t want to indict the suspect until she was sure she had a strong enough case to convince a jury.
Indictment, N.
Indifferent
Adj. unmoved or unconcerned by; mediocre.
Because Ann felt no desire to marry, she was indiffierent to Carl’s constant proposals.
Indiscriminate
Adj. choosing at random; confused.
She disapproved of her son’s indiscriminate television viewing and decided to restrict him to educational programs.
Indolent
Adj. lazy.
Couch potatoes lead an indolent life lying back on their Lazyboy recliners watching TV.
Indolence, N.
Induce
V. persuade; bring out.
After the quarrel, Tina said nothing could induce her to talk to Tony again.
Inducement, N.
Ineffable
Adj. unutterable; cannot be expressed in speech.
Looking down at her newborn daughter, Ruth felt such ineffable joy that, for the first time in her adult life, she had no words to convey what was in her heart.
Inert
Adj. inactive; lacking power to move.
“Get up, you lazybones,” she cried to her husband, who lay in bed inert.
Inertia, N.
Inexorable
Adj. relentless; unyielding; implacable.
After listening to the pleas for clemency, the judge was inexorable and gave the convicted man the maximum punishment allowed by law.
Ingenious
Adj. clever; resourceful.
Kit admired the ingenious way that her computer keyboard opened up to reveal the built-in CD-ROM below.
Ingenuity, N.
Inherent
Adj. firmly established by nature or habit.
Katya’s inherent love of justice caused her to champion anyone she considered treating unfairly by society.
Innate
Adj. inborn.
Mozart’s parents soon recognized young Wolfgang’s innate talent for music.
Innocuous
Adj. harmless.
An ocassional glass of wine with dinner is innocuous and should have no ill effect on you.
Innovation
N. change; introduction of something new.
Although Richard likes to keep up with all the latest technology innovations, he didn’t always abandon tried and true techniques in favor of something new.
Innovate, V.
Insipid
Adj. lacking in flavor; dull.
Flat prose and flat ginger ale are equally insipid; both lack sparkle.
Insolvent
Adj. bankrupt; unable to repay one’s debts.
Although young Lord Widgeon was insolvent, he had no fear of being thrown into debtor’s prison, for he was sure that if his creditors pressed him for payment his wealthy parents would repay for what we owed.
Insolvency, N.
Instigate
V. urge; start; provoke.
Rumors of police corruption led the mayor to instigate an investigation into the department’s activities.
Insularity
N. narrow-mindedness; isolation.
The insularity of the islanders manifested itself in their suspicion of anything foreign.
Insular, Adj.
Insuperable
Adj. unsurmountable; unbeatable.
Though the odds against their survival seemed insuperable, the Apollo 13 astronauts reached earth safely.
Integrity
N. uprightness; wholeness.
Lincoln, whose personal integrity has inspired millions, fought a civil war to maintain the integrity of the Republic, that these United States right remain undivided for all time.
Intervene
V. come between.
When two close friends get into a fight, be careful if you try to intervene, they may join forces to gang up on you.
Intimidate
V. frighten.
I’ll learn karate and then those big bullies won’t be able to intimidate me any more.
Intractable
Adj. unruly; stubborn; unyielding.
Charlie Brown’s friend Pigpen was intractable; he absolutely refused to take a bath.
Intrepid
Adj. fearless.
For her intrepid conduct nursing the wounded during the war, Florence Nightingale was honored by Queen Victoria.
Innundate
V. overwhelm; flood; submerge.
This semester I am innundated with work: You should see the piles of paperwork flooding my desk.
Invert
V. turn upside down or inside out.
When he inverted his body in a handstand, he felt the blood rush to his head.
Ironic
Adj. resulting in an unexpected and contrary outcome.
It is ironic that his success came when he least wanted it.
Irreproachable
Adj. blameless; impeccable.
Homer’s conduct at the office party was irreproachable; even Marge didn’t have anything bad to say about how he behaved.
