SAT Words XII Flashcards
Serendipity (n.)
- gift for finding valuable or desirable things by accident, accidental good fortune or luck.
- Many scientific discoveries are a matter of serendipity: Newton wasn’t sitting under a tree thinking about gravity when the apple dropped on his head.
Sequester (v.)
- isolate, retire from public life, segregate, seclude.
- Banished from his kingdom, the wizard Prosperous sequestered himself on a desert island.
Serenity (n.)
- calmness, placidity.
- The sound of air raid sire s pierced the serenity of the quiet village of Pearl Harbor.
Serpentine (adj.)
- winding, twisting.
- The car swerved at every curve in the serpentine road.
Servile (adj.)
- slavish, cringing.
- Constantly fawning on his employer, humble Uriah Heap was a servile creature.
Severity (n.)
- harshness, intensity, sternness, austerity.
- The severity of Jane’s migraine attack was so great that she took to her bed for a week.
Shackle (v.)
- chain, fetter.
- In a chain gang, convicts are shackled together to prevent their escape.
Sham (v.)
- pretend.
- He shammed sickness to get out of going to schoo.
Shambles (n.)
- wreck, mess.
- After the hurricane, the Carolina coast was a shambles.
Shard (n.)
- fragment, generally of pottery.
- The archaeologist assigned several students the task of reassembling earthenware vessels from the shards he had brought back from the expedition.
Shear (v.)
- cut or clip (hair, fleece), strip of something.
- You may not care to cut a sheep’s hair, but Sarah shears sheep for Little Bo Peep.
Sheathe (v.)
-As soon as he recognized the approaching men, he sheathed his dagger and hailed them as friends.
Sheer (adj.)
- very thin or transparent, very steep, absolute.
- Wearing nothing but an almost sheer robe, Delilah drapes herself against her sheer temple wall.
Shimmer (v.)
- glimmer intermittently.
- The moonlight shimmered on the water as the moon broke through the clouds for a moment.
Shirk (v.)
- avoid (responsibility, work, etc.), malinger.
- Brian has a strong sense of duty; he would never shirk any responsibility.
Shoddy (adj.)
- inferior, trashy, cheap.
- Grumbling, “They don’t make things the way they used to,” Grandpa complained about the shoddy workmanship nowadays.
Shrewd (adj.)
- clever, astute.
- A shrewd investor, he took clever advantage of the fluctuations of the stock market.
Shroud (v.)
- hide from view, wrap for burial.
- Fog shrouded Dracula’s castle, hiding the ruined tower beneath sheets of mist.
Shun (v.)
- keep away from.
- Cherishing his solitude, the recluse shunned the company of other human beings.
Simper (v.)
- smirk, smile affectedly.
- Complimented on her appearance, Stella self-consciously simpered.
Sinecure (n.)
- well-paid position with little responsibility.
- My job is no sinecure; I work long hours and have much responsibility.
Sinewy (adj.)
- tough, strong and firm.
- The steak was too sinewy to chew.
Singular (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.
Sinuous (adj.)
- winding, bending in and out, not morally honest.
- The snake moved in a sinuous manner.
Skimp (v.)
- provide scantily, live very economically.
- They were forced to skimp on necessities in order to make their limited supplies last the winter.
Skinflint (n.)
- stingy person, miser.
- Scrooge was an in generous old skinflint until he reformed his ways and became notable philanthropist.
