SAT vocabulary 5/7/13

Question 0

Serendipity

Answer 0

N. Gift for finding valuable or desirable things by accident; accidental good fortune or luck.
Many scientists discoveries are a matter of SERENDIPITY.

Question 1

Sequester

Answer 1

V. Isolate, retire from public life; segregate; seclude.
Banished from the kingdom, the wizard prospero SEQUESTERED himself on a desert island.
Isolate

Question 2

Serenity

Answer 2

N. calmness; placidity
The sound of air raid sirens pierced the SERENITY of the quiet village of Pearl Harbor.
Peace

Question 3

Serpentine

Answer 3

Adj. winding; twisting
The car swerved at every curve in the SERPENTINE road.
Twisting

Question 4

Severity

Answer 4

N. harshness; intensity; sterness; austerity
The SEVERITY of Jane’s migraine attack was so great that she took to her bed for a week.
Harshness

Question 5

Servile

Answer 5

Adj. Slavish; cringing

Constantly fawning on his employer, humble Uriah Heap was a SERVILE creature.

Question 6

Shackle

Answer 6

V. Chain, fetter

In a chain gang, convicts are SHACKLED together to prevent their escape.

Question 7

Sham

Answer 7

V. Pretend
He SHAMMED sickness to get out of going to school.
Pretend

Question 8

Shambles

Answer 8

N. wreck; mess
After the hurricane, the Carolina coast was a SHAMBLES.
Destruction

Question 9

Shard

Answer 9

N. fragment, generally of pottery
The archaeologist assigned several students the task of reassembling earthenware vessels from the SHARDS he had bought back from the expedition.

Question 10

Shear

Answer 10

V. Cut it clip (hair, fleece); strip of something
You may not care to cut a sheep’s hair, but sarah SHEARS sheep for Little Bo Beep.
Cut

Question 11

Sheathe

Answer 11

V. Place into a case

As soon as he recognized the approaching men, he SHEATHED his dagger and hailed them as friends.

Question 12

Sheer

Answer 12

Adj. very thin or transparent; very sleep; absolute

Wearing nothing but an almost SHEER robe, Delilah draped herself against the SHEER temple wall.

Question 13

Shimmer

Answer 13

V. Glimmer intermittently

The moonlight SHIMMERED on the water as the moon broke through the clouds for a moment.

Question 14

Shirk

Answer 14

V. Avoid (responsibility, work, etc.); malinger

Brian has a strong se se of duty; he would never SHIRK any responsibility.

Question 15

Shoddy

Answer 15

Adj. inferior; trashy; cheap
Grumbling, “They don’t make things the way they used to,” grandpa complained about the SHODDY workmanship nowadays.
Trashy

Question 16

Shrewd

Answer 16

Adj. clever; astute
A SHREWD investor, he took clever advantage of the fluctuations of the stock market.
Clever

Question 17

Shroud

Answer 17

V. Hide from view; wrap for burial.

Fog SHROUDED dracula’s castle, hiding the ruined tower beneath sheets of mist

Question 18

Shun

Answer 18

V. Keep away from

Cherishing his solitude, the recluse SHUNNED the company of other human beings.

Question 19

Simper

Answer 19

V. Smirk; smile affectedly

Complimented on her appearance, Stella self-consciously SIMPERED.

Question 20

Sinecure

Answer 20

N. well paid position with little responsibility

My job is no SINECURE; I work long hours and have much responsibly.

Question 21

Sinewy

Answer 21

Adj. tough; strong and firm
The steak was too SINEWY to chew.
Hard

Question 22

Singular

Answer 22

Adj. unique; extraordinary; odd
Though the young man tried to understand Father William’s SINGULAR behavior, he still found it odd that the old man incessantly stood on his head.
Distinct

Question 23

Sinuous

Answer 23

Adj. Winding; Bending in and out; not morally honest

The snake moved in a SINOUS manner.

Question 24

Skimped

Answer 24

V. Provide scantily; live very economically

They were forced to SKIMP on necessities in order to make their limited supplies last winter.

Question 25

Skinflint

Answer 25

N. stingy person; miser

Scrooge was an ungenerous old SKINFLINT until he reformed his ways and became a notable philanthropist.