SAT WORDS 2

Question 1

acumen

Answer 1

(n.) keen insight (Because of his mathematical acumen, Larry was able to figure
out in minutes problems that took other students hours.)

Question 2

acute

Answer 2

1. (adj.) sharp, severe (Arnold could not walk because the pain in his foot was so
   acute.) 2. (adj.) having keen insight (Because she was so acute, Libby instantly
   figured out how the magician pulled off his “magic.”)

Question 3

adamant

Answer 3

(adj.) impervious, immovable, unyielding (Though public pressure was
intense, the President remained adamant about his proposal.)

Question 4

adept

Answer 4

(adj. ) extremely skilled (Tarzan was adept at jumping from tree to tree like a
monkey. )

Question 5

adhere

Answer 5

1. (n.) to stick to something (We adhered the poster to the wall with tape.) 2. (n.)
   to follow devoutly (He adhered to the dictates of his religion without question.)

Question 6

admonish

Answer 6

(v.) to caution, criticize, reprove (Joe’s mother admonished him not to ruin
his appetite by eating cookies before dinner.)

Question 7

adorn

Answer 7

(v.) to decorate (We adorned the tree with ornaments.)

Question 8

adroit

Answer 8

(adj.) skillful, dexterous (The adroit thief could pick someone’s pocket without
attracting notice.)

Question 9

adulation

Answer 9

(n.) extreme praise (Though the book was pretty good, Marcy did not believe
it deserved the adulation it received.)

Question 10

adumbrate

Answer 10

(v.) to sketch out in a vague way (The coach adumbrated a game plan, but
none of the players knew precisely what to do.)

Question 11

adverse

Answer 11

(adj.) antagonistic, unfavorable, dangerous (Because of adverse conditions, the
hikers decided to give up trying to climb the mountain.)

Question 12

advocate

Answer 12

1. (v.) to argue in favor of something (Arnold advocated turning left at the
   stop sign, even though everyone else thought we should turn right.) 2. (n.) a person
   who argues in favor of something (In addition to wanting to turn left at every stop
   sign, Arnold was also a great advocate of increasing national defense spending.)

Question 13

aerial

Answer 13

(adj.) somehow related to the air (We watched as the fighter planes conducted
aerial maneuvers.)

Question 14

aesthetic

Answer 14

(adj.) artistic, related to the appreciation of beauty (We hired Susan as our
interior decorator because she has such a fine aesthetic sense.)

Question 15

affable

Answer 15

(adj.) friendly, amiable (People like to be around George because he is so affable
and good-natured.)

Question 16

affinity

Answer 16

(n.)a spontaneous feeling of closeness (Jerry didn’t know why, but he felt an
incredible affinity for Kramer the first time they met.)

Question 17

affluent

Answer 17

(adj.) rich, wealthy (Mrs. Grebelski was affluent, owning a huge house, three
cars, and an island near Maine.)

Question 18

affront

Answer 18

(n. ) an insult (Bernardo was very touchy, and took any slight as an affront to his
honor. )

Question 19

aggrandize

Answer 19

(v.) to increase or make greater (Joseph always dropped the names of the
famous people his father knew as a way to aggrandize his personal stature.)

Question 20

aggregate

Answer 20

1. (n.) a whole or total (The three branches of the U.S. Government form an
   aggregate much more powerful than its individual parts.) 2. (v.) to gather into a
   mass (The dictator tried to aggregate as many people into his army as he possibly
   could.)

Question 21

aggrieved

Answer 21

(adj.) distressed, wronged, injured (The foreman mercilessly overworked his
aggrieved employees.)

Question 22

agile

Answer 22

(adj.) quick, nimble (The dogs were too slow to catch the agile rabbit.)

Question 23

agnostic

Answer 23

(adj.) believing that the existence of God cannot be proven or disproven
(Joey’s parents are very religious, but he is agnostic.)

Question 24

agriculture

Answer 24

(n.)farming (It was a huge step in the progress of civilization when tribes left
hunting and gathering and began to develop more sustainable methods of obtaining
food, such as agriculture.)

Question 25

aisle

Answer 25

(n.) a passageway between rows of seats (Once we got inside the stadium we
walked down the aisle to our seats.)

Question 26

alacrity

Answer 26

(n.) eagerness, speed (For some reason, Chuck loved to help his mother
whenever he could, so when his mother asked him to set the table he did so with
alacrity.)

Question 27

alias

Answer 27

(n.) a false name or identity (He snuck past the guards by using an alias and fake
ID.)

Question 28

allay

Answer 28

(v.) to soothe, ease (The chairman of the Federal Reserve gave a speech to try to
allay investors’ fears about an economic downturn.)

Question 29

allege

Answer 29

(v.) to assert, usually without proof (The policeman had alleged that Marshall
committed the crime, but after the investigation turned up no evidence, Marshall
was set free.)

Question 30

alleviate

Answer 30

(v.) to relieve, make more bearable (This drug will alleviate the symptoms of
the terrible disease, but only for a while.)