ISEE/SSAT Class Set 1

Abdicate

to formally give up a position of power or responsibility

Admonish

to warn or reprimand firmly

Allay

to reduce fear, worry, or pain; to calm or soothe

Allocate

to distribute resources or duties for a particular purpose

Amass

to collect or gather, especially in large amounts

Assail

to attack violently with words or actions

Banish

to send someone away as a punishment; to expel

Belittle

to make someone or something seem less important

Bolster

to support or strengthen

Coerce

to force someone to do something by using pressure or threats

Compel

to drive or urge forcefully; to require

Confer

to discuss something with someone else; to bestow

Contaminate

to make impure by contact with something unclean or harmful

Converge

to come together from different directions to meet at one point

Corroborate

to confirm or give support to a statement, theory, or finding

Counterfeit

made to imitate something valuable with the intent to deceive

Deplete

to use up resources or energy

Deride

to ridicule or mock

Disavow

to deny responsibility for or connection with

Disguise

to change the appearance of something to conceal its true identity

Disparage

to speak of something or someone as unimportant or inferior

Dispel

to drive away or scatter

Disperse

to spread out or distribute over a wide area

Dissipate

to gradually disappear or waste away

Endorse

to publicly support or approve

Evict

to force someone to leave a property

Exonerate

to clear from blame or wrongdoing

Genial

friendly and cheerful

Ostracize

to exclude or banish from a group

Redress

to set right or compensate for a wrong

Tarnish

to lose or cause to lose luster, especially due to damage or decay

Yield

to give way to pressure or surrender; to produce or provide