200 SAT Words You Need to Know – Vocabulary Flashcards

Vocabulary-style flashcards covering the 200 most common SAT words, with each term (including synonym groups) paired with a concise definition to aid memorization.

abstemious

moderate in eating and drinking

acquiesce

to comply

acrimonious

great bitterness

admonish

to earnestly caution/ reprimand

adroit / deft / dexterous

skillful

aesthetic

an appreciation of what is beautiful or attractive

affable / amiable / genial / gregarious

agreeable; friendly

aloof

detached; reserved

amalgam

a mixture; combination of different elements

ambiguous

unclear; not definitive

ambivalent

having mixed feelings

anachronism

something not in its proper time period

analogy

a similarity or likeness

anguish

agonizing physical or mental pain

anomaly

a deviation from the norm

atypical

not typical; unusual

antecedent / forerunner

a preceding event

antipathy / animosity

strong dislike

antithesis / antipodal

the direct opposite of something

archaic

out of date

ascetic

a person who leads a life of self-denial

audacious

very bold; daring

auspicious

very favorable

automaton

a person who acts in a mechanical fashion; a mindless follower

autonomous

independent

bane

a source of harm

belie

to give a false impression

benefactor

a person who gives gifts

beneficiary

a person who receives benefits

boon

a timely benefit

boorish / uncouth

vulgar; crude

bowdlerize

to remove or delete objectionable parts of a book

bucolic / rustic / pastoral

charmingly rural

bungler

a clumsy or inept person

callous

insensitive

capricious / mercurial

fickle; constantly shifting moods

charlatan

a fake; fraud; cheat

chimerical

a fantastic scheme; unchecked imagination

circuitous

circular and therefore indirect

circumscribe

to narrowly restrict; draw a line around

circumspect / prudent

cautious; careful

circumvent

to avoid by artful maneuvering

clairvoyant

a person who uses intuition to see into the future

confounded / perplexed / mystified

puzzled; confused

clandestine / surreptitious

secretive; covert

conjecture / supposition

an inference; guess

convoluted

twisted; intricate

copious

abundant; plentiful

covet

to strongly desire; crave

cryptic

mysterious; having a hidden meaning

curtail

to cut short; reduce

dearth / paucity

scarcity; shortage

debunk

to expose false claims

decry

to express strong disapproval

deleterious

harmful; injurious

demagogue

a speaker who appeals to emotions, fear, or prejudice

demise

the downfall; final ending of something

denounce

to speak against

deride

to put down with contemptuous jeering

despondent / forlorn

feeling downcast; dejected

devoid

completely lacking in something

diatribe / tirade

a bitter denunciation

diffident

lacking self-confidence

digress

to depart from a subject

dilettante

an amateur or dabbler

diminutive

very small

dirge

a funeral hymn; mournful music

dismissive

rejecting; showing disregard

disparage

to belittle; slight

disparity

an inequality; imbalance

dispel

to drive away; scatter

dissembler / prevaricator

a liar; deceiver

draconian

very strict laws and rules

eccentric

an odd, unconventional person

elusive

out of reach; difficult to catch

enigmatic / inscrutable

mysterious; baffling

enumerate

to list; tick off

equanimity

calmness; composure

erroneous

filled with errors; wrong

evocation

an imaginative recreation

exemplary

outstanding

exhort

to strongly encourage

exorbitant

unreasonably expensive

extricate

to get out of a difficult situation

expunge / excise / expurgate

to delete; remove

fiasco / debacle

a complete failure

fleeting / ephemeral

very brief; short-lived

fortitude

strength of mind

fortuitous

accidental but fortunate occurrence

futile

doomed to failure

galvanize

to electrify; stir into action

gerrymander

to divide a district to give one side an advantage

halcyon

idyllically calm and tranquil

haughty

proud; arrogant

hedonist

seeker of pleasure

hypothetical

based on assumption; supposed

iconoclast

one who attacks cherished ideas and institutions

impasse

failure to reach an agreement

impeccable

faultless; perfect

impecunious

poor; penniless