SAT VOCAB (LETTER A+C)

800 word

Abate

V. subside or moderate; to reduce in intensity or amount; diminish. (EXAMPLE: Rather than leaving immediately, they waited for the storm to ____)

Aberrant

Adj. departing from the normal or typical; deviating from usual behavior. (EXAMPLE: Given the _____ nature of the data, we came to doubt the validity of the entire experiment)

Abrasive

Adj. tending to annoy or cause irritation, rough or harsh in manner.

Absolute

Adj. free from restriction or limitation; total and complete; not relative or comparative.

Abstemious

Adj. not indulging in excess, especially with food or drink; moderate in diet. (Sparing in eating and drinking, Temperate)

Abstract

Adj. Theoretical; not concrete; nonrepresentational

Abstruse

Adj. Obscure; profound; difficult to understand (EXAMPLE: She carries around _______ works of philosophy, not because she understands but because she wants her friends to think she does.)

Accessible

Adj. easy to approach; obtainable (EXAMPLE: 1600 SAT is _______ for her)

Acclaim

V. Applaud; Announce with great approval

Accolade

N. Award of merit. (EXAMPLE: For us, 1600 SAT is the highest _____ a student can get.)

Acknowledge

V. Recognize: admit

Acquiesce

V. Assent, agree without protesting. (EXAMPLE: When we asked her to participate in a play, she immediately _____d)

Acrimonious

Adj. Bitter in words or banner (EXAMPLE: The candidate attacked his opponent in highly ______ terms.)

Acute

Adj. Sharp, keen, brief and severe

Address

V. direct a speech to; deal with or discuss.

Adjacent

Adj. neighboring; adjoining

Adroit

Adj. Skill; Nimble (EXAMPLE: The juggler’s admirers particularly enjoyed his ____ handling of difficult balancing tricks)

Adulation

N. Flattery; Admiration (EXAMPLE: The rock star relished the adulation she received from her groupies and yes-men.)

Adversary

Noun. Opponent, rival, enemy (EXAMPLE: The young wrestler struggled to overcome his _____)

Adverse

Adj. Unfavorable, Hostile (EXAMPLE: The recession had a highly _____ effect on SAT cheat sheets)

Advocate

V. support, urge; plead for

Aesthetic

Adj. Artistic; Dealing with or capable of appreciation of the beautiful (1600 Sat…)

Affable

Adj. Easily approachable; warmly friendly

Affinity

N. Natural liking; kinship; similarity. (EXAMPLE: Octavia felt an immediate _____ for the folk dancers she met; their love of dance was hers as well.)

Affirmation

N. positive assertation; confirmation

Alienate

V. make hostile; separate.

Alleviate

V. Relieve

Altruistic

Adj. Unselfishly generous; concerned for others.

Ambiguous

Adj. Unclear or doubtful in meaning (EXAMPLE: The doctor’s ______ instruction thoroughly confused us; We didn’t know which columns we should mark and which we should leave blank)

Ambivalence

N. the state of having contradictory or conflicting emotional attitudes.

Ameliorate

V. Improve; make more satisfactory.

Amend

V. Correct; Change, generally for the better.

Amorphous

Adj. Formless; lacking shape or definition.

Ample

Adj. Abundant (EXAMPLE: He got ___ opportunity to escape. Why did he let us catch him?)

Analogy

N. Similarity; Parallelism (EXAMPLE: A well-known ______ compares the body’s immune system to an army whose defending troops are the lymphocytes or white blood cells)

Anarchist

N. person who seeks to overturn the established government

Anecdote

N. short account of an amusing or interesting event (EXAMPLE: Rather than make concrete proposals for welfare reform, President Ronald Reagan told _____ about poor people who became wealthy despite their impoverished backgrounds)

Animosity

N. Active enmity, strong hostility (EXAMPLE: He no longer felt any ______ towards her.)

Antagonistic

Adj. Hostile; opposed

Antidote

N. medicine to counteract a poison or disease

Antiquated

Adj. Old-fashioned; Obsolete.

Apathy

N. Lack of caring; indifference

Apocryphal

Adj. Untrue; made up

Appease

V. pacify or soothe; relieve

Appreciate

V. Be thankful for; Increase in worth; Be thoroughly conscious of.

Apprehension

N. fear; discernment; capture

Arable

Adj; fit for growing crops

Arbitrary

Adj. Unreasonable or capricious; randomly selected without any reason; based solely on one’s unrestricted will or judgment

Archaic

Adj. Antiquated

Ardor

N. heat; passion; zeal (EXAMPLE: Katya’s _____ was catching; soon all her fellow demonstrators were busily making posters and handing out flyers, inspired by her enthusiasm for the cause)

Arid

Adj. Dry; barren (EXAMPLE: Ngoc Linh’s ___ jokes is ultimately one of the main causes of her downfall)

Arrogance

N. pride; haughtiness (EXAMPLE: Convinced that Emma thought she was better than everyone else in the class, Ed rebuked her for her ___)

Articulate

Adj. Effective; distinct

Artifact

N. object made by human beings, either being handmade or mass-produced

Artisan

N. manually skilled worker; craftsman, as opposed to artist

Ascendancy

N. controlling influence. (EXAMPLE: Leaders of religious cults maintain ______ over their followers by methods that can verge on brainwashing.)

Ascetic

Adj. Practicing self-denial; austere. Characterized by severe self-discipline and abstention from all forms of indulgence, typically for religious reasons.

Aspire

V. seek to attain; long for

Assuage

V. ease or lessen (pain); satisfy (hunger); soothe (anger). (EXAMPLE: Jilted by Jane, Dick tried to _____ his heartache by indulging in ice cream. One gallon later, he had _____ his appetite but not his grief.)

Astute

Adj. Wise; Shrewd (Example: Expecting Miss Marple to be a woolly-headed old lady, Inspector Craddock was startled by the ____ observations she made.)

Atrophy

V. waste away. (EXAMPLE: After three months in a cast, Stan’s biceps had ___ied somewhat)

Attentive

Adj. Considerate; thoughtful; paying attention

Attribute

V. ascribe; explain. (EXAMPLE: I _____ her success in science to the encouragement she received from her parents)

Audacious

Adj. Daring; Bold.

Augment

V. increase; add to. (EXAMPLE: Beth ____ her inadequate salary by selling Tupperware at parties at friends’ homes.)

Austerity

N. sternness; severity; strict economy; lack of luxuries

Authentic

Adj. Genuine

Authoritarian

Adj. favoring or exercising total control; nondemocratic

Autonomous

Adj. self-governing

Aversion

N. firm dislike (EXAMPLE: Their mutual aversion was so great that they refused to speak to one another.)

Adherent

N. supporter; follower.

Abridge

V. Condense or shorten

Banal

Adj. Hackneyed; commonplace; trite (EXAMPLE: Was it Pendleton’s stale plot or his cliche-ridden dialogue that made his play seem so ___?)

Bane

N. Cause of ruin. (EXAMPLE: Lack of public transportation is the bane of urban life)

Belittle

V. disparage; make fun of.

Belligerent

Adj. quarrelsome, hostile and aggressive, wishing to fight or argue

Benevolent

Adj. generous; charitable

Benign

Adj. kindly; favorable; not malignant (EXAMPLE: Though her ______ smile and gentle bearing made Miss Marple seem a sweet little old lady, in reality she was a tough-minded, shrewd observer of human nature.)

Bequeath

V. leave to someone by a will; hand down, pass down (EXAMPLE: Although Maud had intended to __ the family home to her nephew, she died before changing her will.)

Biased

Adj. Slanted; prejudiced

Bland

Adj. soothing; mild; dull

Blasphemy

N. boastful person (EXAMPLE: I wouldn’t mind Bob’s being such a _____ if I felt he’d done anything worth bragging about.)

Bolster

V. support; reinforce (The debaters amassed file boxes full of evidence to _____ their arguments)

Braggart

(Alternative) N. Boastful person (EXAMPLE: I wouldn’t mind Bob’s being such a _____ if I felt he’d done anything worth bragging about.)

Brawn

N. Muscular strength; sturdiness (EXAMPLE: It takes ______ to become a champion weightlifter.)

Brevity

N. conciseness; briefness, concise and exact use of words in writing or speech (EXAMPLE: _______ is essential when you send a telegram or cablegram; you are charged for every word.)

Buttress

V and N. Support; prop up (EXAMPLE: The attorney came up with several far-fetched arguments in a vain attempt to _____ his weak case)

Cacophonous

Adj. Discordant; inharmonious (EXAMPLE: Do the students in the orchestra enjoy the ______ sounds they make when they’re tuning up? I don’t know how they can stand the racket.)

Cajole

V. Coax; Wheedle, persuade (someone) to do something by sustained coaxing or flattery (EXAMPLE: Diana tried to ______ her father into letting her drive the family car.)

Calculated

Adj. deliberately planned; Likely

Candor

N. the quality of being open and honest; frankness. (EXAMPLE: The ______ with which Gene spoke during the job interview impressed us all; it was clear he held nothing back.)

Capricious

Adj. Fickle; Incalculable (EXAMPLE: The storm was _____, changing its course constantly.)

Caricature

N and V. distortion; burlesque. (EXAMPLE: The ______ he drew always emphasized a personal weakness of the people he burlesqued.)

Censorious

Adj. severely critical of others (EXAMPLE: _____ people delight in casting blame)

Censure

V and N. blame; criticize (EXAMPLE: The senator was ____ed for his inappropriate behavior.)

Charlatan

N. certainty. (EXAMPLE: Though there was no _____ of his getting the job, Lou thought he had a good chance of doing so.)

Chronicle

V and N. report; record. (EXAMPLE: The gossip columnist was paid to _____ the latest escapades of socially prominent celebrities.)

Civil

Adj. Having to do with citizens or the state; courteous and polite.

Clamor

N and V. noise (EXAMPLE: The ____ of the children at play outside made it impossible for her to take a nap.)

Clemency

N. Disposition to be lenient; mildness, as of the weather (EXAMPLE: Why did the defense lawyer look pleased when his case was sent to Judge Bland’s chambers? Bland was known for her _____ toward first offenders.)