SAT Power Vocabulary - Princeton Book

amoral

lacking a sense of right and wrong

neither good or bad

circumnavigate

to sail or travel all the way around

circumscribe

to draw a line around

to set limits

to define

to restrict

circumspect (noun = circumspection)

cautious

It's important to be circumspect when sharing personal information online.

magnate

a rich, powerful, or very successful businessperson

omniscient

all-knowing; having infinite wisdom

benediction

a blessing

benign

gentle; harmless; kind; mild

burgeon

to expand; to flourish

The town burgeoned into a city.
He burgeoned into a fine actor.

complacent

self-satisfied; overly pleased with oneself

The team cannot afford to be complacent after just one big win.

equanimity

composure; calm

She accepted the bad news with surprising equanimity, staying calm and quiet instead of getting upset.

evoke

to summon forth; to draw forth

to awaken

to produce or suggest

-

Peaches evoke memories.

invoke

to call on (like on a deity)
to petition for help or support

I invoke my right to a lawyer.
I invoke the ghost of Christmas past.
The protesters invoked the aid of the Supreme Court

malaise

a feeling of depression, being sick, uncomfortable, or uneasy

She felt a general malaise for two days before the flu started.
A sense of malaise spread through the team after they lost five games in a row.

malfeasance

a wrongdoing

The mayor was charged with malfeasance after taking bribes from local contractors.

vociferous

loud; noisy; expressed in a forceful or loud way

The new tax plan faced vociferous opposition from local residents.

volition

will; conscious choice

anachronism

something out of place in time or history

an incongruity (things don’t fit together)

anthropomorphic

ascribing human characteristics to nonhuman animals or objects

The children's book features an anthropomorphic rabbit who wears a blue coat and talks.
Cartoons often show anthropomorphic cars with big windshield eyes and smiling grates.

antipathy

firm dislike; hatred

eulogy

a spoken or written tribute to a person (to a dead person)

pathos

that which makes people feel pity or sorrow

The cast is excellent, landing the jokes no less than the pathos.

philanthropy

love of humankind (by doing good deeds)

sophomoric

juvenile; childishly goofy

amenable

willing; agreeable; obedient (agree to do something)

I am amenable to procede as you suggest.

deign

to condescend

to do something that one thinks is beneath one’s dignity

She did not deign to answer the maid's question.

elocution

the art of public speaking

It was easy to tell she had formal training by her graceful elocution and steady voice.

ignominy

deep disgrace, humiliation, shame

The ignominy of being forced to resign.

impugn

to attack, doubt, challenge (the truth or integrity of something)

dispute the truth, validity, or honesty of

The lawyer tried to impugn the witness's honesty during the trial.
Do not try to impugn my professional integrity with false rumors.

impunity

freedom from punishment or harm

above the rules

He is so rich that he acts with great impunity.

indict

to charge with a crime

to accuse of wrongdoing

indignant

insulted; offended

He was indignant that he was accused of the crime.

intractable

stubborn (person)
- He was an intractable child who refused to follow any simple rules.

---

hard to fix, manage, or control (problem)
- The country faces an intractable economic crisis.
- The patient suffered from intractable chronic pain.

lucid

clear; easy to understand

The teacher gave a lucid explanation of the hard math problem. It was very easy for all the kids to understand.

nominal

in name only

insignificant

Bert was the nominal chair, but Sue did everything.

temporal

relating to time

The film uses a complex temporal structure, jumping back and forth across different decades.
——————————
earthly, secular (as opposed to spiritual)

Kings hold temporal power, while religious leaders guide the spirit.
——————————

lasting for only a short, passing time (as opposed to the gods that live forever)

veracity

truthfulness

verity

the quality of being true

ascertain

to determine with certainty

astute

smart, sharp, quick to notice things, good at understanding a tricky situation to get a good result

An astute student who spots a trick question on a test.
An astute choice to save money before prices go up.

callous

insensitive; emotionally hardened

erudition (adj. erudite)

impressive or extensive knowledge (achieved by studying / schooling)

scholarly knowledge

erudite scholar

gaffe

a social blunder

an embarrassing mistake

indolent

lazy

insolent

arrogant; insulting

She answered her mother with an insolent tone and was sent to her room.

insular

like an island; isolated

pedantic (noun = pedant)

overly concerned with rules (small details)

At the risk of sounding pedantic, I must point out that you used the wrong verb tense.

penchant (for…)

a strong taste or liking for something

a predilection

penitent

sorry; repentant; contrite

She stood at the door with a penitent look, ready to apologize for her mistake.

reticent

reluctant

She was reticent to speak up in class.

sagacious

discerning; shrewd; keen in judgement; wise

specious

deceptively plausible or attractive (false but looks like it may be true)

A specious claim.

temper

to lessen; to soften

His enthusiasm was tempered by the knowledge of the hard work involved.

abstruse

hard to understand

The philosopher's theories were so abstruse that only a handful of scholars could fully grasp their meaning.

affront

noun: an insult; a deliberate act of disrespect
- He regarded her rude comments as a personal affront to his dignity.

---

verb: to insult
- He was deeply affronted by the committee's lack of basic respect.

allocate

to distribute

to assign

to allot

bombast

pompous or pretentious speech or writing

Behind the bombast of his speech, he shared zero actual plans.

brawn

big muscles; great strength

castigate

to criticize severely; to chastise

The coach castigated the team for their poor performance during the first half of the game.

cosmopolitan

at home in many places or situations; internationally sophisticated

A truly cosmopolitan traveler never feels like a foreigner in any country.

epitome

a brief summary that captures the meaning of the whole

the perfect example of something; a paradigm

The first paragraph is an epitome of the book.

Traveling the world with friends is the epitome of a good life.

expedient

providing an immediate advantage

helpful, useful, or practical for a specific situation, often providing an easy or quick solution

Taking a quick shortcut seemed expedient, but it missed the main point.

flagrant

glaringly bad; notorious; scandalous

Driving very fast through the town showed a flagrant disregard for safety.

fledgling

inexperienced or immature

The fledgling writer submitted her first short story to a magazine.

flippant

frivolously disrespectful; a lack of respect or a careless attitude when something serious is expected

She gave a flippant answer when the teacher asked about her missing homework.
Please do not be flippant about your health; this is a major medical issue.

laud

to praise; to applaud; to celebrate

lavish

adjective: very rich, fancy, or large

The couple hosted a lavish wedding with a five-tier cake and hundreds of guests.

---

verb: to spend freely or bestow generously; to waste/squander

She lavishes her grandchildren with candy.

orthodox

conventional; adhering to established principles or doctrines

partisan

one who supports a particular person, cause, or idea

rhetoric

the art of using language (speaking or writing) effectively and persuasively to influence an audience

The candidate's speech was full of fiery rhetoric, but it lacked concrete plans.

squander

waste

tangential

only superficially related to the matter at hand

not especially relevant

peripheral

vestige

a remaining bit of something; a last trace

These old stone walls are the last vestiges of a medieval castle.

vie

to compete; to contest; to struggle

They vied for the promotion.

vigilant

constantly alert; watchful; wary

antagonistic

hostile; acting in opposition

My stepbrother has always been very antagonistic toward me, and he refuses to share his things.

antithesis

the direct opposite

autocratic

ruling with absolute authority; extremely bossy

debase

to lower in quality or value; to degrade

The King was forced to debase the coinage.
She refused to debase herself by telling a lie.

debunk

to expose the nonsense of

Debunk the myth.

defame

to slander; to ruin the good name of

defile

to make filthy or foul; to desecrate

Factory waste will defile the clean river.

defunct

no longer in effect; no longer in existence

The payphone is defunct now that everyone has a cellphone.

degenerate

to break down; to deteriorate

The discussion quickly degenerated into an argument.

deplore

to condemn; to regret; to lament

I deplore violence in all its forms.

deride

to ridicule; to laugh at contemptuously

The film critic took every opportunity to deride the actor's performance in the new movie.

exonerate

to free completely from blame

intrinsic

belonging naturally; inherent; essential

access to the arts is intrinsic to a high quality of life

magnanimous

gracious, generous, forgiving
(especially towards a rival or less powerful person)

She should be a magnanimous winner.

posterity

future generations

posthumous

occurring after one’s death

The posthumous publication of the novel…

replete

completely filled

The stream was replete with fish.

vocation

a job

repudiate

refuse to be associated with

The president repudiated the previous regime’s policies.

-

deny the truth of

The president repudiated allegations that he committed unlawful acts.

annex

to add or attach; to incorporate

capitalism

an economic and political system in which a country's trade and industry are controlled by private owners for profit (not the government)

dogmatic

arrogantly/stubbornly assertive of ideas or beliefs

The teacher was too dogmatic to accept a fresh way to solve the math problem.

impose

to thrust something upon others

to bring about by authority

-

Strudel’s a dog of free will. He says, “Don’t impose your will on me.”

insinuate

to hint / suggest

He was insinuating that I had no self-control.

---

to creep in; gain favor or entry into a group or space by slow and artful means

He tried to insinuate himself into the boss's inner circle.

provisional

conditional; temporary; tentative

A provisional license.