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SAT VOCAB > Week 4 > Flashcards

Week 4 Flashcards

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1
Q

hearsay

A

rumors

the mailman updated the slaves on the latest hearsay about Lincoln’s election

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2
Q

sardonic

A

grimly mocking or cynical, even sarcastic

he smiled at him sardonically

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3
Q

brawny

A

physically strong, muscular

the brawny man went to the gym every day

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4
Q

frenetic

A

fast, energetic, wild

the whole plan was frenetic- they had no time between activities

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5
Q

tactile

A

connected with sense of touch

his tactile signals were very keen- he could feel slight differences in materials without looking

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6
Q

debacle

A

a sudden and ignominious failure; a fiasco.

the economic debacle became known as the great depression

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7
Q

rend

A

tear, rip apart

the dogs sharp bite could rend human flesh easily

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8
Q

preclude

A

prevent from happening

The secret nature of his work precluded any official recognition

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9
Q

expunge

A

erase or remove completely

he expunged those bad influences from his life

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10
Q

pomposity

A

the quality of being pompous (self-important)

he had a reputation for being arrogant and pompous

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11
Q

bombast

A

high-sounding language with little meaning, meant to impress people

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12
Q

sprightly

A

lively, full of energy

he was a very sprightly soul

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13
Q

lugubrious

A

looking or sounding sad or dismal

he was known for his lugubrious disposition

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14
Q

prescient

A

having or showing knowledge of events before they happen

The prescient economist was one of the few to see the financial collapse coming.

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15
Q

austere

A

severe or strict in manner, attitude, or appearance
Also- ascetic
the austere man never joked around

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16
Q

histrionic

A

theatrical or melodramatic

he let out a histrionic laugh, showing how bad of a liar he was

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17
Q

lackadaisical

A

lacking enthusiasm and determination; careless, lazy

the lackadaisical defense left them for dead in the second half

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18
Q

perspicacity

A

having ready insight into things; shrewdness

the perspicacity of her remarks made her seem like a show off

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19
Q

belligerent

A

hostile and aggressive

he thought all Latinos were belligerent

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20
Q

bondage

A

state of being a slave

the Egyptians subjected the jews to bondage

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21
Q

bashful

A

reluctant to draw attention, shy

don’t be bashful about telling folks how you feel

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22
Q

conspicuous

A

standing out; clearly visible

he was very thin, with a conspicuous Adam’s apple

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23
Q

ubiquitous

A

present, appearing, or found everywhere

he believed in an ubiquitous higher power

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24
Q

pariah

A

outcast

he was treated like a social pariah

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25
Q

kindle

A

set on fire, spark an emotion

he kindled a spark of hope inside of her

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26
Q

irate

A

caused or characterized by anger

the irate costumer wrote a letter of complaint

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27
Q

inure

A

becoming accustomed to something unpleasant or unwelcome

he was inured to the boring chores he had to do every day

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28
Q

drudgery

A

hard, menial, or dull work

he was tired of the drudgery of his chores

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29
Q

menial

A

not requiring a lot of skill, lacking prestige

he worked a menial factory job

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30
Q

inundate

A

overwhelm

I am inundated with work

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31
Q

intimate

A

make known; communicate indirectly or delicately

he intimated that he had bad breath, the principal intimated the decision to end the after school program

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32
Q

insularity

A

narrow provincial point of view- ignorance lack of interest outside one’s own experience
he was the epitome of British insularity

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33
Q

instigate

A

incite to action

reports of police corruption led the mayor to instigate an investigation

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34
Q

innocuous

A

not likely to harm or injure

an occasional glass of wine with dinner is relatively innocuous

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35
Q

innate

A

existing from birth

he had an innate gift for music

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36
Q

indefatigable

A

incapable of becoming tired

he was indefatigable when it came to partying

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37
Q

incorrigible

A

incapable of being reformed

she thought the boy was incorrigible beyond hope

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38
Q

incite

A

arouse to action

Mario incited his peers to go out on a strike

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39
Q

incisive

A

highly direct and decisive

The teacher’s incisive tone made it clear that she was done playing games.

40
Q

incidental

A

not essential

for a fieldworker dealing with real problems, paperwork is incidental

41
Q

immutable

A

not subject to change

nothing is immutable, except maybe his attitude

42
Q

immaterial

A

of no particular importance

she said having a birthday party was immaterial

43
Q

husband (verb)

A

use sparingly; manage carefully

marathon runners must husband their energy so they can keep running the entire distance

44
Q

hamper

A

interfere with

taking care of her son hampered her social life

45
Q

guile

A

crafty or cunning deception to achieve a goal

he used guile to trick him into believing that he had won the bet

46
Q

gratuitous

A

uncalled for, or given freely without charge

quit making gratuitous comments about my driving

47
Q

gratify

A

give pleasure to

he was gratified by his success on the SAT`

48
Q

futile

A

incapable of serving any useful purpose

it is futile for me to try to get any studying done with the ruckus going on downstairs

49
Q

founder (verb)

A

fail completely, sink
peace talks foundered after a compromise was unable to be reached. The titanic foundered soon after hitting the iceberg.

50
Q

fanaticism

A

extreme devotion to a belief or cause

religious fanaticism can be dangerous

51
Q

falter

A

move or act hesitantly or unsteadily

Walter didn’t falter when told to jump off the high board

52
Q

ebullience

A

intense enthusiasm

a sense of ebullience swept over the fans when the rookie scored

53
Q

exuberant

A

full of unrestrained enthusiasm or joy

he was exuberant when he found out he got into his top college

54
Q

opulent

A

displaying great wealth

his opulent home was the envy of his friends

55
Q

penchant

A

strong inclination or liking

his penchant for goldfish caused him to pig out on them all day

56
Q

vicarious

A

felt or undergone as if one were taking part in the experience or feelings of another
he wasn’t athletic, but he lived vicariously through his brother, a pro basketball player

57
Q

multifarious

A

diverse, various

his multifarious achievements are unparalleled in the school

58
Q

palliative

A

relieving or soothing the symptoms of a disease or disorder without effecting a cure
ice cream is a palliative for anyone

59
Q

felicitous

A

admirably suited, apt

he made a felicitous speech when he received the award

60
Q

mendacious

A

lying, untruthful

his mendacious statements in court resulted in perjury charges

61
Q

specious

A

having the ring of truth or plausibility, but actually false

her specious argument seemed to make sense, but it turned out to be illogical

62
Q

capricious

A

impulsive and unpredictable
the ref’s capricious behavior angered the players; he would call a foul for minor contact but ignore elbowing and kicking

63
Q

impetuous

A

suddenly and forcefully energetic or emotional; impulsive and passionate
he was so impetuous that we never knew what he would do next

64
Q

impetus

A

an impelling force or stimulus

the looming deadline provided him with the impetus he needed to stop procrastinating

65
Q

whimsical

A

characterized by whim, unpredictable

he was a whimsical soul, rarely behaving as expected

66
Q

Effigy

A

a crude likeness or model of a loathed person

he created a cardboard effigy of his boss and burned it in public

67
Q

Egregious

A

blatantly wrong

an egregiously high self-score will result in one letter grade deduction

68
Q

Emollient

A

soothing like lotion

the emollient cream felt good on her skin

69
Q

Empirical

A

based on data, evidence, or observations rather than logic or theory
he provided empirical evidence for his argument; although it was illogical, the facts supported it

70
Q

Enfranchise

A

to free from slavery and give the right to vote

the slaves were enfranchised in the mid 19th century

71
Q

Espouse

A 
to support (a cause, belief, or way of life)
he turned his back on the modernism he had espoused as a child
72
Q

Extant

A

existing

the manuscript is no longer extant

73
Q

Felicitous

A

well chosen for the circumstance- a felicitous bottle of wine
pleasing and fortunate- the room’s view was its only felicitous feature

74
Q

Feral

A

wild, savage

the feral cat

75
Q

Flotilla

A

a fleet or ships or cargo boats

his yacht came across a flotilla of cargo ships

76
Q

Flotsam

A

wreckage, debris floating around

the flotsam of the wrecked ship found its way to shore

77
Q

Galvanize

A

shock or excite into action

the urgency of his voiced galvanized his team into action

78
Q

Gaunt

A

thin, haggard

he was a gaunt young fellow

79
Q

Gingerly

A

carefully

he sat down gingerly

80
Q

Grovel

A

to lie or move abjectly facedown on the ground-he groveled with fear
to act obsequiously to gain someone’s favor- everyone expected me to grovel with gratitude
to beg or plead

81
Q

Hapless

A

unfortunate

he was one of the few hapless people who were targeted by cyber criminals

82
Q

Harbinger

A

messenger, omen

April showers are the harbinger of May flowers

83
Q

Hermetic

A

sealed in an airtight manner

the waterproof phone case had a hermetic seal, so it didn’t let any water in

84
Q

impasse

A

a situation in which no progress is possible

they reached a political impasse- no one could do anything about the issues at hand

85
Q

impecunious

A

having little or no money

the family was large but impecunious

86
Q

impetus

A

the force or energy that makes something happen

his curiosity provided the impetus to go and explore the new land

87
Q

implacable

A

unable to be placated (less angry or hostile)- relentless, unstoppable
he was an implacable nuisance

88
Q

martinet

A

a strict disciplinarian

As a colonel in the army, John is a martinet who believes discipline is the only path to success.

89
Q

maudlin

A

self pitying or tearfully sentimental, often through drunkenness
being drunk made him maudlin

90
Q

maverick

A

an independent person

he was the maverick among his friends

91
Q

mellifluous

A

sweet or musical, pleasant to the ears

the smooth voice was mellifluous

92
Q

misanthrope

A

a person who hates humankind and avoids social interaction

the misanthrope never left his home

93
Q

mollify

A

to appease the anger or anxiety of someone

nature reserves were set up to mollify local conservationists

94
Q

nadir

A

lowest point in the fortunes of something

they had reached the nadir of their sufferings

95
Q

nefarious

A

wicked or criminal

the crime group conducted nefarious activities

SAT VOCAB (7 decks)

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