SAT Words I Flashcards
-cur
- to care.
- secure: safe.
-curr, curs
- to run.
- excursion: journey.
-da, dat
- to give.
- data: fact, statistics.
-deb, debit
- to owe.
- debt: something owed.
-dem
- people.
- democracy: rule of the people
-derm
- skin.
- epidermis: skin.
-di, diurn
- day.
- diary: a daily record of activities, feelings, etc.
-dic, dict
- to say.
- diction: speech
-doc, doct
- to teach.
- document: something that provides evidence.
-domin
- to rule.
- dominate: have power over.
-duc, duct
- to lead.
- aqueduct: artificial waterway.
-dynam
- power, strength.
- dynamite: powerful explosive.
-ego
- I.
- egotist: selfish person.
-erg, urg
- work.
- energy: power.
-err
- to wander.
- erratic: not reliable, wandering.
-eu
- good, well, beautiful.
- eulogize: praise.
-fac, fic, fec, fect
- to make, to do.
- factory: place where things are made.
-fall, fals
- to deceive.
- falsify: lie.
-fer, lat
- to bring, to bear.
- transfer: bring from one place to another.
-fid
- belief, faith.
- confidence: assurance, belief.
-fin
- end, limit.
- finite: having definite limits.
-flect, flex
- bend.
- flexible: able to bend.
-fort
- luck, chance.
- fortunate: lucky.
-fort
- strong.
- fortitude: strength, firmness of mind.
-frag, fract
- break.
- fragile: easily broken.
-fug
- flee.
- refuge: shelter, home for someone fleeing.
-Gus
- pour.
- diffuse: widespread (poured in many directions).
-gam
- marriage.
- monogamy: marriage to one person.
-gen, gener
- class, race.
- gender: class organized by sex.
Benevolent (adj.)
- generous, charitable.
- Mr. Fez was a benevolent employer, who wished to make Christmas merrier for young Scrooge and others.
Benign (adj.)
- kindly, favorable, not malignant.
- Though her benign smile and gentle bearing made Miss Marple seem a sweet old lady, in reality she was tough-minded.
Bent (adj.)
- determined, natural talent or inclination.
- Bent on advancing in the business world, the secretary of a show has a true bent for high finance.
Bequeath (v.)
- leave to someone by a will, hand down.
- Though Madrid had intended to bequeath the family home to her nephew, she died before that could happen.
Berate (v.)
- scold strongly.
- He feared she would berate him for his forgetfulness
Bereavement (n.)
- state of being deprived of something valuable or beloved.
- His friends gathered to console him upon his sudden bereavement.
Bereft (adj.)
- deprived of, lacking, desolate because of a loss.
- The foolish gambler soon found himself bereft of funds.
Berserk (adv.)
- frenzied.
- Angered, he went berserk and began to wreck the room.
Beseech (v.)
- beg, plead with.
- The workaholic executive’s wife beseeched him to spend more time with their son.
Beset (v.)
- harass or trouble, hem in.
- Sleeping Beauty’s castle was beset on all sides by dense thickets that hid it from view.
Besiege (v.)
- surround with armed forces, harass (with requests).
- Members of the new administration were besieged with job applications from people who had worked on the campaign.
Besmirch (v.)
- soil, defile.
- The scandalous remarks in the newspaper besmirch the reputations of every member of the society.
Bestial (adj.)
- beast-like, brutal.
- According to the legend, the werewolf was able to abandon its human shape and take on a bestial form.
Bestow (v.)
- give.
- He wished to bestow great honors upon the hero.
Betoken (v.)
- signify, indicate.
- The well-equipped docks, tall piles of cargo containers, and numerous vessels being loaded all betoken Oakland’s importance as a port.
Betroth (v.)
- become engaged to marry.
- The announcement that they had become betrothed surprised their friends who had not suspected any romance.
Bevy (n.)
- large group.
- The movie actor was surrounded by a bevy of photographers.
Biennial (adj.)
- every two years.
- Seeing no need to meet more frequently, the group held biennial meetings instead of annual ones.
Bigotry (n.)
- stubborn intolerance.
- Brought up in a democratic atmosphere, the student was shocked by the bigotry and narrowness expressed by his classmates.
Bilious (adj.)
- suffering from indigestion, irritable.
- His bilious temperament was apparent to all who heard him rant about his difficulties.
Bilk (v.)
- swindle, cheat.
- The con man specialized in bilking insurance companies.
Billowing (adj.)
- swelling out in waves, surging.
- Standing over the air vent, Marilyn Monroe tried vainly to control her billowing skirts.
Blanch (v.)
- bleach, whiten.
- Although age had blanched his hair, he was still energetic.
Bland (adj.)
- soothing or mild, agreeable.
- Jill tried a bland ointment for her sunburn.
Blandishment (n.)
- flattery.
- Despite the salesperson’s blandishments, the customer did not buy the outfit.
Blare (n.)
- loud, harsh roar or screech, dazzling blaze of light.
- I hate when the steady blare of a boom box tries to make you deaf.
Blasé (adj.)
- bored with pleasure or dissipation.
- Although Beth was excited about traveling, she tried to act cool and blasé in front of her friends.
Blasphemy (n.)
- irreverence, sacrilege, cursing.
- In my father’s house, the Yankees is the best team, to cheer for another team was to utter words of blasphemy.
Blatant (adj.)
- flagrant, conspicuously obvious, loudly offensive.
- “No Irish allowed” in the shop was a blatant mark of prejudice.
Bleak (adj.)
- cold or cheerless, unlikely to be favorable.
- The frigid, inhospitable Aleutian Islands are bleak military posts.
Blighted (adj.)
- suffering from a disease, destroyed.
- The extent of the blighted areas could be seen only when viewed from the air.
Blithe (adj.)
- joyous, carefree.
- Without a care in the world, Beth went her blithe, lighthearted way.
Bloated (adj.)
- swollen or puffed as with water or air.
- Her bloated stomach came from drinking so much water.
Bludgeon (n.)
- club, heavy-headed weapon.
- Attacked by Dr. Moriarty, Holmes used his walking stick as a bludgeon to defend himself.
Bluff (adj.)
- rough but good-natured.
- Jack had a bluff and hearty manner that belied his actual sensitivity.
Bluff (n.)
- pretense (of strength), deception, high cliff.
- She was astounded when he dove from the high bluff into the water.
Blunder (n.)
- error.
- The criminal’s fatal blunder led to his capture.
Blurt (v.)
- utter impulsively.
- Before she could stop him, he blurted out the news.
Bluster (v.)
- blow in heavy gusts, threaten emptily, bully.
- Let the stormy winds bluster.
Bode (v.)
- foreshadow, portend.
- The gloomy skies and the sulphurous odors from the mineral springs seemed to bode evil to those who settled in the area.
Bogus (adj.)
- counterfeit, not authentic.
- The police quickly found the distributors of the bogus $20 bills.
Bohemian (adj.)
- unconventional.
- Gary ran off to Paris to live a bohemian life with his friends.
Boisterous (adj.)
- violent, rough, noisy.
- The unruly crowd became even more boisterous when he tried to quiet them.
Bolster (v.)
- support, reinforce.
- The debaters amassed file boxes full of evidence to bolster their arguments.
Bombardment (n.)
- attack with missiles.
- The enemy bombardment demolished the town.
Bombastic (adj.)
- pompous, using inflated language.
- Puffed up with conceit, the orator spoke in such a bombastic manner that we longed to deflate him.
Booming (adj.)
- deep and resonant, flourishing, thriving.
- “Who needs a microphone?” Cried the mayor in his booming voice.
Boon (n.)
- blessing, benefit.
- The recent rains that filled our empty reservoirs were a boon to the whole community.
Boorish (adj.)
- rude, insensitive.
- Though Peter constantly interrupted his wife, she ignored his boorish behavior.
Boundless (adj.)
- unlimited, vast.
- Mike’s energy was boundless: the greater the challenge, the more vigorously he tackled the job.
Bountiful (adj.)
- abundant, graciously generous.
- Thanks to the good harvest, we had a bountiful supply of food.
Bourgeois (adj.)
- middle class, selfishly materialistic, dully conventional.
- Technically, anyone who belongs to the middle class is bourgeois.
Bovine (adj.)
- cow-like, placid and dull.
- Nothing excites Esther; when she won the lottery, she still preserved her air of bovine calm.
Bowdlerize (v.)
- expurgate.
- After the film editors had bowdlerized the language in the script, the rating of the movie changed.
Braggart (n.)
- boaster.
- Modest by nature, she was no braggart, preferring to let her accomplishments speak for themselves.
Brandish (v.)
- wave around, flourish.
- Alarmed, Doctor Watson wildly brandished his gun until Holmes told him to put the thing away before he shot himself.
Bravado (n.)
- swagger, assumed air of defiance.
- The bravado of the young criminal disappeared when he was confronted by the victims of his brutal attack.
Brawn (n.)
- muscular strength, sturdiness.
- It takes brawn to become a champion weightlifter.
Brazen (adj.)
- insolent.
- Her brazen contempt for authority angered the officials.
Breach (n.)
- breaking of contract or duty, fissure or gap.
- Jill sued Jack for breach of promise.
