SAT Vocabulary Word Lists 37-44

Comprehensive list of vocabulary terms and definitions from the SAT word lists provided in the lecture notes.

preempt

head off; forestall by acting first; appropriate for oneself; supplant.

preen

make oneself tidy in appearance; feel self-satisfaction.

prehensile

capable of grasping or holding.

prelate

church dignitary.

premise

assumption; postulate.

premonition

forewarning.

pretext

excuse.

primp

groom oneself with care; adorn oneself.

profligate

dissipated; wasteful; wildly immoral.

proliferation

rapid growth; spread; multiplication.

promontory

headland.

propinquity

nearness; kinship.

propitiate

appease.

propitious

favorable; fortunate; advantageous.

protean

versatile; able to take on many shapes.

prurient

having or causing lustful thoughts and desires.

puerile

childish.

quaff

drink with relish.

quagmire

soft wet boggy land; complex or dangerous situation from which it is difficult to free oneself.

quail

cower; lose heart.

quandary

dilemma.

quay

dock; landing place.

quixotic

idealistic but impractical.

quizzical

teasing; bantering; mocking; curious.

quorum

number of members necessary to conduct a meeting.

rabid

like a fanatic; furious.

raconteur

storyteller.

raiment

clothing.

ramification

branching out; subdivision.

rapacious

excessively greedy; predatory.

rapport

emotional closeness; harmony.

rapt

absorbed; enchanted.

rarefied

made less dense (of a gas).

ratiocination

reasoning; act of drawing conclusions from premises.

rave

overwhelmingly favorable review.

ravel

fall apart into tangles; unravel or untwist; entangle.

ravenous

extremely hungry.

raze

destroy completely.

reactionary

recoiling from progress; politically ultraconservative.

recalcitrant

obstinately stubborn; determined to resist authority; unruly.

recapitulate

summarize.

receptive

quick or willing to receive ideas, suggestions, etc.

recidivism

habitual return to crime.

recumbent

reclining; lying down completely or in part.

redolent

fragrant; odorous; suggestive of an odor.

redoubtable

formidable; causing fear.

rejuvenate

make young again.

relent

give in.

remission

temporary moderation of disease symptoms; cancellation of a debt; forgiveness or pardon.

remunerative

compensating; rewarding.

renegade

deserter; traitor.

renege

deny; go back on.

reproach

express disapproval or disappointment.

requiem

mass for the dead; dirge.

rhapsodize

to speak or write in an exaggeratedly enthusiastic manner.

riveting

absorbing; engrossing.

rivulet

small stream.

ruffian

bully; scoundrel.

saboteur

one who commits sabotage; destroyer of property.

salacious

lascivious; lustful.

saturnine

gloomy.

scintillate

sparkle; flash.

scourge

lash; whip; severe punishment.

sequester

isolate; retire from public life; segregate; seclude.

serendipity

gift for finding valuable or desirable things by accident; accidental good fortune or luck.

sinecure

well-paid position with little responsibility.

sinewy

tough; strong and firm.

solicit

request earnestly; seek.

solicitous

worried; concerned.

soliloquy

talking to oneself.