SparkNotes SAT Vocabulary (Adjectives)

sentences with blanks containing SAT vocab words because the SAT asks you to fill in the blank with the most fitting term (source: https://img.sparknotes.com/content/testprep/pdf/sat.vocab.pdf)

After losing all her money, falling into a puddle, and breaking her ankle, Eloise was ______.

abject

Everyone else in the class understood geometry easily, but John found the subject ______.

abstruse

After studying with SparkNotes and getting a great score on the SAT, Marlena happily realized that her goal of getting into an Ivy-League college was ______.

accessible

Though the apartment was not big enough for three people, Arnold, Mark, and Zebulon were all friends and were ______ to each other.

accommodating

Jill became extremely ______ and began to cruelly make fun of all her friends.

acerbic

Because she was so ______, Libby instantly figured out how the magician pulled off his “magic.”

Arnold could not walk because the pain in his foot was so ______.

acute

Though public pressure was intense, the President remained ______ about his proposal.

adamant

Tarzan was ______ at jumping from tree to tree like a monkey.

adept

The ______ thief could pick someone’s pocket without attracting notice.

adroit (dexterous)

Because of ______ conditions, the hikers decided to give up trying to climb the mountain.

adverse

We watched as the fighter planes conducted ______ maneuvers.

aerial (related to the air)

We hired Susan as our interior decorator because she has such a fine ______ sense.

aesthetic

People like to be around George because he is so ______ and good-natured.

affable

Mrs. Grebelski was ______, owning a huge house, three cars, and an island near Maine.

afflluent

The foreman mercilessly overworked his ______ employees.

aggrieved

The dogs were too slow to catch the ______ rabbit.

agile

Joey’s parents are very religious, but he is ______.

agnostic

The scientist could sometimes seem ______, as if he didn’t care about his friends or family, but really he was just thinking about quantum mechanics.

aloof

Some people think Caesar married Cleopatra for her power, others believe he was charmed by her beauty. His actual reasons are ______.

ambiguous (variably interpretable)

My feelings about Calvin are ______ because on one hand he is a loyal friend, but on the other, he is a cruel and vicious thief.

ambivalent

Our father was ______ when we asked him to drive us to the farm so we could go apple picking.

amenable

A(n) ______ fellow, Harry got along with just about everyone.

amiable

Claudia and Jimmy got divorced, but ______ and without hard feelings.

amicably

Whenever Albert saw Mariah wear her slinky red dress, he began to feel quite ______.

amorous

The effort was doomed from the start, because the reasons behind it were so ______ and hard to pin down.

amorphous

In this book you’re writing, you say that the Pyramids were built after the Titanic sank, which is ______ (relating to time order).

anachronistic

Though they are unrelated genetically, the bone structure of whales and fish is quite ______.

analogous

When he begins to talk about drama, which is his true passion, he becomes very ______.

animated

Mary received a love poem from a(n) ______ admirer

anonymous

The ______ man still believed that Eisenhower was president of the United States and that hot dogs cost a nickel.

antediluvian (very old)

That ______ car has none of the features, like power windows and steering, that make modern cars so great.

antiquated

The ______ hospital was very bare, but its cleanliness helped to keep patients healthy.

antiseptic

Uninterested in politics, Bruno was ______ about whether he lived under a capitalist or communist regime.

apathetic

Because I am standing before you, it seems obvious that the stories circulating about my demise were ______.

apocryphal

The judge found the murderer’s crimes and lack of remorse ______.

appalling

The marine biologist studies starfish and other ______ creatures.

aquatic

The farmer purchased a plot of ______ land on which he will grow corn and sprouts.

arable

The boy’s decision to choose one college over another seems ______.

arbitrary (appearing random or ungrounded)

Leaves, roots, and bark are a few ______ traits.

arboreal

The professor is an expert in ______ Lithuanian literature.

arcane (obscure, little-known)

In a few select regions of Western Mongolian, an ______ Chinese dialect is still spoken.

archaic (outdated)

Some believe George Washington, with his flowing white hair and commanding stature, was the ______ politician.

archetypal

Little other than palm trees and cacti grow successfully in ______ environments.

arid

The priest lives an ______ life devoid of television, savory foods, and other pleasures.

ascetic

The construction workers erected the skyscraper during two years of _____ labor.

assiduous (diligent)

Much of Roger’s success in politics results from his ability to provide ______ answers to reporters’ questions.

astute

Screaming and crying is ______ adult behavior.

atypical

The security guard was shocked by the fan’s ______ attempt to offer him a bribe.

audacious

The missing person’s shouts were unfortunately not ______.

audible

The tennis player considered the sunny forecast a(n) ______ sign that she would win her match.

auspicious

The ______ furniture inside the abandoned house made the place feel haunted.

austere (bleak, bare)

The client rejected our proposal because they found our presentation ______ and unimpressive.

banal

Frankie’s mother told him not to be ______ when he refused to attend the birthday party.

bashful

Police officers should be commended for their ______ service to the community.

benevolent

We were all relieved to hear that the medical tests determined her tumor to be ______.

benign

His family was ______ of food and shelter following the tornado.

bereft

The candidate won the vote after giving several ______ speeches on television.

boisterous

The singer’s ______ performance disgusted the crowd.

bombastic (excessively pompous)

Many businessmen receive criticism for their ______ approach to life.

bourgeois

Critics condemned the novelist’s ______ attempt to plagiarize Hemingway’s story.

brazen

The captain’s ______ manner offended the passengers.

brusque (dismissive)

The murderer’s ______ lack of remorse shocked the jury.

callous (unfeeling)

The ______ runner hung at the back of the pack through much of the race to watch the other runners, and then sprinted past them at the end.

canny

The family didn’t purchase the duplex because the house had a ______ backyard with space for the children to run.

capacious

The young girl’s ______ tendencies made it difficult for her to focus on achieving her goals.

capricious (subject to whim)

The husband divorced his wife after listening to her ______ voice for decades.

carping

The politicians exchanged ______ insults for over an hour during the debate.

caustic

The books we read in this class are too ______— they don’t engage my emotions at all.

cerebral

Lionel carefully arranged the snapshots of his former girlfriends in ______ order, and then set fire to them.

chronological

The bus’s ______ route took us through numerous outlying suburbs.

circuitous

Though I promised Rachel’s father I would bring her home promptly by midnight, it would have been more ______ not to have specified a time.

circumspect

Zelda’s uncanny ability to detect my lies was nothing short of ______.

clairvoyant

Announcing to her boyfriend that she was going to the gym, Sophie actually went to meet Joseph for a ______ liaison.

clandestine

Though Ronald was physically attractive, Maud found his constant compliments and solicitous remarks ______.

cloying

Irene’s arguments in favor of abstinence were so ______ that I could not resist them.

cogent (convincing by logos)

Jake avoided speaking to women in bars because he was ______ of the fact that drinking impairs his judgment.

cognizant

Renee could not figure out what Monroe had seen because he was too distraught to deliver a ______ statement.

coherent

Divorcing my wife had the ______ effect of making me poor, as she was the only one of us with a job or money.

collateral

Adam’s essay on teenage fashion choices was marked down because it contained too many ______ expressions.

colloquial

Ahab selected a very long roll and proceeded to prepare a tuna salad sandwich ______ with his enormous appetite.

commensurate

Holden invited the three women to join him in the back seat of the taxicab, assuring them that the car was quite ______.

commodious

Eliot’s speech was so ______ that Lenore accepted his proposal on the spot.

compelling

Sue had very strong opinions about what to do on a first date, and Ted was absolutely ______.

compliant

By keeping her daughter’s affair a secret, Maddie became ______ in it.

complicit

She sent me a ______ list of the ingredients needed to cook rabbit soufflé.

comprehensive

I took our new neighbor’s invitation to dinner as a very ______ gesture.

conciliatory

Gordon did not like to waste time, and his instructions to Brenda were nothing if not ______.

concise

His dislike of hard work carried with it a ______ lack of funds.

concomitant (accompanying subordinately)

His ______ manner made him popular wherever he went.

congenial

The singers’ ______ voices were beautiful.

consonant (in harmony)

Though her novels do not feature the themes of Romanticism, Jane Austen’s work was ______ with that of Wordsworth and Byron.

contemporaneous

George’s ______ personality made him unpopular with his classmates.

contentious (confrontational)

Blake’s ______ behavior made it impossible to stay angry at him.

contrite (eager to be forgiven)