SAT Vocabulary

SAT Reading Prep

haphazard

(negative) lack of plan or order; careless, random

premediated

thought out or planned beforehand

rudimentary

basic, unsophisticated

surmise

to form an idea or assumption with little evidence

contrive

(neutral) think up

innocuous

(positive) not harmful or offensive; mild, unharmful

novel

original, new

quarrel

open disagreement

paucity

lack of

profusion

great abundance of

verisimilitude

appearance of being true or real

buttress

to strengthen or defend

corollary

(neutral) a statement or condition that logically results from a proven argument

bolster

support or strengthen; prop up

coroborrate

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

proponent

one who is in favor of

substantiate

provide evidence to support or prove the truth of

ruminate

think deeply about something

coalesce

come together to form one mass or whole

detractor

a person who criticizes something or someone, often unfairly

discount

regard as being unworthy of consideration because it lacks credibility

recant

say that one no longer holds an opinion or belief

rescind

take back, cancel

confound

cause surprise or confusion in, especially by acting against expectations

bevy

large group of people of things of a particular kind

myriad

a countless or extremely great number

plethora

a large or excessive amount of

profusion

an abundance or large quantity of something

dearth

a scarcity or lack of something

intrinsic

belonging naturally; essential; inborn

predisposed

having a tendency toward

anthropology

study of human behavior and social organization, usually on a large scale; can include linguistics, biology, and archaeology

ethnography

study of individual cultures

predilection

(positive) liking for

assuage

(positive) make (an unpleasant feeling) less intense

mollify

(positive) appease the anger or anxiety of

placate

(positive) make less angry or hostile

contingent

(positive) dependent upon

galvanize

(positive) to spur into action

infallible

(positive) faultless, never wrong

punctilious

(positive) extremely careful

multifaceted

(positive) detailed; involving or examining many aspects of a topic

nuanced

(positive) detailed; involving or examining many aspects of a topic

prescient

(positive) able to foresee or predict future events

ambiguous

(negative) unclear, open to multiple niterpretations

antithetical

(negative) directly opposing

cursory

(negative) very brief, lasting only a short time

ephemeral

(negative) very brief, lasting only a short time

debacle

(negative) disastrous situation

equivocal

(negative) uncertain, refusing to give a clear answer

immutable

(negative) unable to be changed

preclude

(negative) prevent, block

peripheral

(negative) unimportant

misconstrue

(negative) misunderstand

nebulous

(negative) unclear; cloudy

obdurate

(negative) stubborn

obstinate

(negative) stubborn

tenuous

(negative) weak

vacillate

(negative) be indecisive; go back and forth

austere

(neutral) very plain, undecorated

conspicuous

(neutral) striking

disposition

(neutral) personality

disseminate

(neutral) to spread

engender

(neutral) to give rise to

epitome

(neutral) essence

evince

(neutral) to make clear (a thought or emotion)

idiosyncratic

(neutral) highly distinctive, unusual

inextricable

(neutral) completely joined

laconic

(neutral) using few words

succinct

(neutral) using few words

terse

(neutral) using few words

mercurial

(neutral) changeable, constantly shifting

mutable

(neutral) changeable

pragmatic

(neutral) practical

precipitate

(neutral) to set off; cause to occur

scrutinize

(neutral) to examine very closely

discern

to recognize or distinguish

incentivize

provide someone with a reward for doing something

incisive

sharply focused and accurate

unassuming

modest

unqualified

absolute