SAT Vocabulary Lecture Notes

A complete set of VOCABULARY flashcards based on SAT vocabulary lecture notes, covering definitions and parts of speech for over 150 academic terms.

Perfunctory

Routine, mechanical, done without care.

Permeate

To spread throughout or penetrate something.

Pertinent

Directly and significantly related to the matter at hand.

Peruse

To read or examine, typically with thoroughness or care.

Petulant

Rudely impatient, irritable; childishly sulky or bad-tempered.

Stymie

To block or thwart.

Suave

Smoothly and effortlessly polished; charmingly tactful.

Sublime

Awe-inspiring.

Subpoena

A writ commanding a person to appear in court under penalty for failure.

Upbraid

To criticize or scold severely.

Urbane

Sophisticated; refined; elegant.

Vapid

Offering nothing stimulating or challenging; dull.

Venerate

To regard with reverential respect or admiration.

Verbose

Using more words than necessary; wordy.

Vexation

A cause of irritation or annoyance.

Transgress

To violate a law, command, or moral code; to go beyond proper bounds.

Tremulous

Timid or fearful; marked by trembling or quivering.

Trenchant

Forceful, effective, sharply perceptive; incisive.

Tribulation

Great suffering or distress; a cause of suffering or trouble.

Trite

Not new or original; overused and clichéd.

Understated

Restrained, subtle, not obvious or bold; preferring simplicity.

Undulate

To move in waves or with a smooth wavelike motion.

Unfeigned

Genuine, not false or hypocritical; sincere.

Unnerve

To make nervous or anxious; shake courage.

Sycophant

One who flatters for self-gain.

Tacit

Implied or indicated but not directly expressed.

Tactile

Perceptible by touch; relating to the sense of touch.

Taint

To contaminate, corrupt, or infect with evil or undesirable elements.

Tangential

Only superficially related to the matter at hand; digressing.

Tenuous

Having little substance or strength; flimsy; weak.

Tepid

Only moderately warm; lacking in enthusiasm or conviction.

Sordid

Vile, base; marked by immorality and squalor.

Specious

Deceptively plausible or attractive but actually wrong.

Staid

Sedate, sober, characterized by dignity and propriety.

Stalwart

Steadfast, loyal, unwavering.

Stint

To restrict.

Stolid

Expressing little or no sensibility; impassive.

Strife

Bitter conflict or rivalry.

Stringent

Strictly harsh; having a precise standard.

Rhetoric

Language intended to persuade or impress.

Rue

To feel regret, remorse, or repentance over.

Sacrilegious

Violating or misusing what is regarded as sacred.

Sardonic

Scornfully mocking or cynical; contemptuously bitter.

Scathing

Severely critical; harshly condemnatory.

Slander

Defamation; false statements harming a reputation.

Relegate

To assign to an unimportant position.

Render

To provide, deliver, or represent.

Renege

To fail to honor a commitment or promise.

Reprobate

An unprincipled, wicked person.

Repudiate

To refuse to accept or support; reject as untrue or unjustified.

Quandary

A state of perplexity or uncertainty.

Query

A question or inquiry.

Quibble

To argue or complain about trivial matters.

Quiescent

At rest, dormant, temporarily inactive.

Quotidian

Everyday, mundane, commonplace.

Rebuff

To reject bluntly; snub.

Rebuttal

A contradiction in argument.

Predilection

A preference, partiality, or prepossession.

Preeminent

Superior in achievement or standing; foremost.

Premise

A proposition upon which an argument, theory, or calculation is based.

Presumptuous

Overstepping due bounds; taking liberties.

Pretense

A false display or a claim not supported by fact.

Prodigious

Abundant in size, force, or extent; extraordinary.

Profanity

Speech that condemns or demeans that which is sacred or divine; foul, offensive language.

Prolific

Abundantly productive; immensely creative.

Obstinate

Stubbornly adhering to an attitude, opinion, or course of action.

Onerous

Involving heavy effort, burden, or hardship.

Opulent

Characterized by extravagant luxury and sumptuousness.

Overt

Done or shown openly, plainly apparent; not hidden.

Palliate

To lessen the severity of; moderate.

Capricious

Characterized by or subject to whim; impulsive; unpredictable.

Castigate

To punish or criticize severely.

Censure

Blame or condemn.

Circumspect

Cautious or prudent, especially in speech or action.

Judicious

Showing sound judgment; wise and prudent.

Laconic

Using few words; terse, succinct.

Lucid

Clear, easy to perceive or understand; expressing oneself intelligibly and rationally.

Extol

To praise highly or glorify.

Extricate

To free or release from a difficult situation or entanglement.

Facilitate

To make easier or help bring about.

Fathom

To understand something thoroughly.

Fatuous

Silly, foolish, smugly ignorant.

Feckless

Weak, ineffective, incompetent; irresponsible.

Fervor

Great warmth and intensity of feeling; a strong feeling of excitement and enthusiasm.

Fickle

Frequently changing; erratic.

Arbitrary

Chosen at random, without reason.

Flagrant

Conspicuously offensive.

Banal

Lacking originality, freshness, or novelty.

Belligerent

Hostile, aggressive, or pugnacious.

Brevity

Concise expression without wasted words.

Brusque

Abrupt or offhand in speech or manner; rudely concise.

Callous

Showing little sympathy for others; insensitive.

Acclimate

Adopt or accustom.

Obviate

To prevent or anticipate.

Subsume

To absorb or include into something else into a more larger, comprehensive category.

Copacetic

Satisfactory.

Eschew

To intentionally avoid.

Posited

Put forward as fact or as a basis for argument.

Confound

Cause surprise or confusion in someone, especially by not according with their expectations.

Disseminate

To spread (especially information) widely.