1,000 Sat Words 10th Grade

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1. abate (v.) to reduce, lessen 14. agriculture (n.) farming

(The rain poured down for a while, then abated.) (It was a huge step in the progress of
civilization when tribes left hunting and
2. abet (v.) to aid, help, encourage (The spy succeeded
gathering and began to develop more
only because he had a friend on the inside to
sustainable methods of obtaining food, such
abet him.)
as agriculture.)
3. abjure (v.) to reject, renounce
15. allay (v.) to soothe, ease
(To prove his honesty, the President abjured the
(The chairman of the Federal Reserve gave a
evil policies of his wicked predecessor.)
speech to try to allay investors' fears about
4. abrogate (v.) to abolish, usually by authority an economic downturn.)
(The Bill of Rights assures that the government
16. aloof (adj.) reserved, distant
cannot abrogate our right to a free press.)
(The scientist could sometimes seem aloof, as
5. abstruse (adj.) hard to comprehend if he didn't care about his friends or family,
(Everyone else in the class understood geometry but really he was just thinking about quantum
easily, but John found the subject abstruse.) mechanics.)
6. acclaim (n.) high praise 17. ambivalent (adj.) having opposing feelings
(Greg's excellent poem won the acclaim of his (My feelings about Calvin are ambivalent
friends.) because on one hand he is a loyal friend, but
7. accost (v.) to confront verbally on the other, he is a cruel and vicious thief.)
(Though Antoinette was normally quite calm, 18. amiable (adj.) friendly
when the waiter spilled soup on her for the (An amiable fellow, Harry got along with just
fourth time in 15 minutes she stood up and about everyone.)
accosted the man.)
19. anachronistic (adj.) being out of correct chronological
8. acrimony (n.) bitterness, discord order
(In this book you're writing, you say that the
(Though they vowed that no girl would ever Pyramids were built after the Titanic sank,
come between them, Biff and Trevor could not which is anachronistic.)
keep acrimony from overwhelming their
20. anathema (n.) a cursed, detested person
friendship after they both fell in love with the
(I never want to see that murderer. He is an
lovely Teresa.)
anathema to me.)
9. adept (adj.) extremely skilled
21. animated (adj.) lively
(Tarzan was adept at jumping from tree to tree
(When he begins to talk about drama, which
like a monkey.)
is his true passion, he becomes very
10. adroit (adj.) skillful, dexterous animated.)
(The adroit thief could pick someone's pocket
22. anonymous (adj.) being unknown, unrecognized
without attracting notice.)
(Mary received a love poem from an
11. advocate 1. (v.) to argue in favor of something 2. (n.) a anonymous admirer.)
person who argues in favor of something
23. anthology (n.) a selected collection of writings, songs,
(Arnold advocated turning left at the stop sign,
etc.
even though everyone else thought we should
(The new anthology of Bob Dylan songs
turn right.)
contains all his greatest hits and a few songs
12. affinity (n.) a spontaneous feeling of closeness that you might never have heard before.)
24. antithesis (n.) the absolute opposite
(Jerry didn't know why, but he felt an incredible
(Your values, which hold war and violence in
affinity for Kramer the first time they met.)
the highest esteem, are the antithesis of my
13. aggregate 1. (n.) a whole or total 2. (v.) to gather into a mass pacifist beliefs.)
(1. The three branches of the U.S. Government
25. appalling (adj.) inspiring shock, horror, disgust
form an aggregate much more powerful than its
(The judge found the murderer's crimes and
individual parts.) (2. The dictator tried to
lack of remorse appalling.)
aggregate as many people into his army as he
possibly could.)
26. approbation (n.) praise 40. bilk (v.) cheat, defraud
(The crowd welcomed the heroes with
approbation.) (The lawyer discovered that this firm had
bilked several clients out of thousands of
27. arbiter (n.) one who can resolve a dispute, make a
dollars.)
decision
41. boisterous (adj.) loud and full of energy
(The divorce court judge will serve as the (The candidate won the vote after giving
arbiter between the estranged husband and several boisterous speeches on television.)
wife.)
42. brazen (adj.) excessively bold, brash
28. arcane (adj.) obscure, secret, known only by a few (Critics condemned the novelist's brazen
(The professor is an expert in arcane Lithuanian attempt to plagiarize Hemingway's story.)
literature.)
43. buttress 1. (v.) to support, hold up 2. (n.) something that
29. arid (adj.) excessively dry offers support
(Little other than palm trees and cacti grow (1. The column buttresses the roof above the
successfully in arid environments.) statue.) (2. The buttress supports the roof
above the statues.)
30. ascertain (v.) to perceive, learn
(With a bit of research, the student ascertained 44. calamity (n.) an event with disastrous consequences
that some plants can live for weeks without (The earthquake in San Francisco was a
water.) calamity worse than any other natural disaster
in history.)
31. aspire (v.) to long for, aim toward
(The young poet aspires to publish a book of 45. camaraderie (n.) brotherhood, jovial unity (Camaraderie
verse someday.) among employees usually leads to success in
business.)
32. assuage (v.) to ease, pacify
(The mother held the baby to assuage its 46. capacious (adj.) very spacious
fears.) (The workers delighted in their new capacious
office space.)
33. atrophy (v.) to wither away, decay
(If muscles do not receive enough blood, they 47. carouse (v.) to party, celebrate
will soon atrophy and die.) (We caroused all night after getting married.)
34. audacious (adj.) excessively bold 48. caucus (n.) a meeting usually held by people working
(The security guard was shocked by the fan's toward the same goal
audacious attempt to offer him a bribe.) (The ironworkers held a caucus to determine
how much of a pay increase they would
35. austere (adj.) very bare, bleak
request.)
(The austere furniture inside the abandoned
house made the place feel haunted.) 49. cerebral (adj.) related to the intellect
(The books we read in this class are too
36. balk (v.) to stop, block abruptly
cerebral—they don't engage my emotions at
(Edna's boss balked at her request for another
all.)
raise.)
50. chide (v.) to voice disapproval
37. bard (n.) a poet, often a singer as well (Shakespeare
(Lucy chided Russell for his vulgar habits and
is often considered the greatest bard in the
sloppy appearance.)
history of the English language.)
51. circuitous (adj.) roundabout
38. behemoth (n.) something of tremendous power or size
(The bus's circuitous route took us through
(The new aircraft carrier is among several
numerous outlying suburbs.)
behemoths that the Air Force has added to its
fleet.) 52. circumvent (v.) to get around
(The school's dress code forbidding navel-
39. berate (v.) to scold vehemently
baring jeans was circumvented by the
(The angry boss berated his employees for
determined students, who were careful to
failing to meet their deadline.)
cover up with long coats when administrators
were nearby.)
53. cleave 1. (v.) to divide into parts 2. (v.) to stick 67. constrain (v.) to forcibly restrict
together firmly (His belief in nonviolence constrained
(1. Following the scandalous disgrace of him from taking revenge on his
their leader, the entire political party attackers.)
cleaved into warring factions.) (2. After
68. contemporaneous (adj.) existing during the same time
resolving their marital problems, Junior and
(Though her novels do not feature the
Rosa cleaved to one another all the more
themes of Romanticism, Jane Austen's
tightly.)
work was contemporaneous with that of
54. coagulate (v.) to thicken, clot Wordsworth and Byron.)
(The top layer of the pudding had
69. contusion (n.) bruise, injury
coagulated into a thick skin.)
(The contusions on his face suggested
55. cogent (adj.) intellectually convincing he'd been in a fight.)
(Irene's arguments in favor of abstinence
70. convivial (adj.) characterized by feasting, drinking,
were so cogent that I could not resist them.)
merriment
56. colloquial (adj.) characteristic of informal conversation (The restaurant's convivial atmosphere
(Adam's essay on sexual response in put me immediately at ease.)
primates was marked down because it
71. coronation (n.) the act of crowning
contained too many colloquial expressions.)
(The new king's coronation occurred the
57. commendation (n.) a notice of approval or recognition day after his father's death.)
(Jared received a commendation from Linda,
72. cosmopolitan (adj.) sophisticated, worldly
his supervisor, for his stellar performance.)
(Lloyd's education and upbringing were
58. compensate (v.) to make an appropriate payment for cosmopolitan, so he felt right at home
something among the powerful and learned.)
(Reginald bought Sharona a new dress to
73. covert (adj.) secretly engaged in
compensate her for the one he'd spilled his
(Nerwin waged a covert campaign
ice cream on.)
against his enemies, while outwardly
59. complicit (adj.) being an accomplice in a wrongful act appearing to remain friendly.)
(By keeping her daughter's affair a secret,
74. culmination (n.) the climax toward which something
Maddie became complicit in it.)
progresses (The culmination of the
60. compress (v.) to apply pressure, squeeze together couple's argument was the decision to
(Lynn compressed her lips into a frown.) divorce.)
61. concise (adj.) brief and direct in expression 75. cunning (adj.) sly, clever at being deceitful
(Gordon did not like to waste time, and his (The general devised a cunning plan to
instructions to Brenda were nothing if not surprise the enemy.)
concise.)
76. curtail (v.) to lessen, reduce
62. condolence (n.) an expression of sympathy in sorrow (Since losing his job, he had to curtail
(Brian lamely offered his condolences on his spending.)
the loss of his sister's roommate's cat.)
77. debase (v.) to lower the quality or esteem of
63. confidant (n.) a person entrusted with secrets something
(Shortly after we met, she became my chief (The large raise that he gave himself
confidant.) debased his motives for running the
charity.)
64. confound (v.) to frustrate, confuse
(MacGuyver confounded the policemen 78. decry (v.) to criticize openly (The kind video
pursuing him by covering his tracks.) rental clerk decried the policy of
charging customers late fees.)
65. congruity (n.) the quality of being in agreement
(Bill and Veronica achieved a perfect 79. deferential (adj.) showing respect for another's
congruity of opinion.) authority
(His deferential attitude toward her
66. consign (v.) to give something over to another's care
made her more confident in her ability
(Unwillingly, he consigned his mother to a
to run the company.)
nursing home.)
80. delegate (v.) to hand over responsibility for something 92. dispel (v.) to drive away, scatter
(The dean delegated the task of finding a new (She entered the office as usual on Monday,
professor to a special hiring committee.) dispelling the rumor that she had been fired.)
81. demagogue (n.) a leader who appeals to a people's 93. disseminate (v.) to spread widely
prejudices (The politician disseminated his ideas across
(The demagogue strengthened his hold over the town before the election.)
his people by blaming immigrants for the lack
94. dissuade (v.) to persuade someone not to do something
of jobs.)
(Worried that he would catch a cold, she tried
82. denigrate (v.) to belittle, diminish the opinion of to dissuade him from going out on winter
(The company decided that its advertisements nights.)
would no longer denigrate the company's
95. divisive (adj.) causing dissent, discord
competitors.)
(Her divisive tactics turned her two friends
83. deprecate (v.) to belittle, depreciate against each other.)
(Always over-modest, he deprecated his
96. dour (adj.) stern, joyless
contribution to the local charity.)
(The children feared their dour neighbor
84. desecrate (v.) to violate the sacredness of a thing or because the old man would take their toys if
place he believed they were being too loud.)
(They feared that the construction of a golf
97. dynamic (adj.) actively changing
course would desecrate the preserved
(The parents found it hard to keep up with the
wilderness.)
dynamic music scene with which their children
85. despot (n.) one who has total power and rules had become very familiar.)
brutally
98. edict (n.) an order, decree
(The despot issued a death sentence for
(The ruler issued an edict requiring all of his
anyone who disobeyed his laws.)
subjects to bow down before him.)
86. dialect (n.) a variation of a language
99. effrontery (n.) impudence, nerve, insolence (When I told
(In the country's remote, mountainous regions,
my aunt that she was boring, my mother
the inhabitants spoke a dialect that the
scolded me for my effrontery.)
country's other inhabitants had difficulty
understanding.) 100. elated (adj.) overjoyed, thrilled
(When she found out she had won the lottery,
87. diffuse 1. (v.) to scatter, thin out, break up 2. (adj.) not
the writer was elated.)
concentrated, scattered, disorganized
(1. He diffused the tension in the room by 101. elucidate (v.) to clarify, explain
making in a joke.) (2. In her writings, she tried (I didn't understand why my friend was so
unsuccessfully to make others understand her angry with me, so I asked Janine to elucidate
diffuse thoughts.) her feelings.)

88. dirge (n.) a mournful song, especially for a funeral 102. embezzle (v.) to steal money by falsifying records
(The bagpipers played a dirge as the casket (The accountant was fired for embezzling
was carried to the cemetery.) $10,000 of the company's funds.)

89. disclose (v.) to reveal, make public 103. emote (v.) to express emotion
(The CEO disclosed to the press that the (The director told the actor he had to emote,
company would have to fire several or else the audience would have no idea what
employees.) his character was going through.)

90. discretion (n.) the quality of being reserved in speech or 104. enamor (v.) to fill with love, fascinate, usually used in
action; good judgment passive form followed by "of" or "with"
(Not wanting her patient to get overly (I grew enamored of that boy when he quoted
anxious, the doctor used discretion in my favorite love poem.)
deciding how much to tell the patient about 105. enfranchise (v.) to grant the vote to
his condition.) (The Nineteenth Amendment enfranchised
91. disheartened (adj.) feeling a loss of spirit or morale women.)
(The team was disheartened after losing in the 106. ennui (n.) boredom, weariness
finals of the tournament.) (I feel such ennui that I don't look forward to
anything, not even my birthday party.)
107. epistolary (adj.) relating to or contained in letters 121. forbearance (n.) patience, restraint, toleration
(Some people call me "Auntie's boy," because (The doctor showed great forbearance in
my aunt and I have such a close epistolary calming down the angry patient who
relationship that we write each other every day.) shouted insults at him.)
108. erudite (adj.) learned 122. fortitude (n.) strength, guts
(My Latin teacher is such an erudite scholar that (Achilles' fortitude in battle is legendary.)
he has translated some of the most difficult and
123. fractious (adj.) troublesome or irritable
abstruse ancient poetry.)
109. ethereal (adj.) heavenly, exceptionally delicate or refined (Although the child insisted he wasn't tired,
(In her flowing silk gown and lace veil, the bride his fractious behavior—especially his
looked ethereal.) decision to crush his cheese and crackers
all over the floor—convinced everyone
110. evince (v.) to show, reveal
present that it was time to put him to bed.)
(Christopher's hand-wringing and nail-biting
evince how nervous he is about the upcoming 124. frugal (adj.) thrifty, economical
English test.) (Richard is so frugal that his diet consists
almost exclusively of catfish and chicken
111. excavate (v.) to dig out of the ground and remove
liver—the two most inexpensive foods in
(The pharaoh's treasures were excavated by
the store.)
archeologists in Egypt.)
125. genial (adj.) friendly, affable
112. exhort (v.) to urge, prod, spur
(Although he's been known to behave like
(Henry exhorted his colleagues to join him in
a real jerk, I would say that my brother is
protesting against the university's hiring policies.)
an overall genial guy.)
113. expedient (adj.) advisable, advantageous, serving one's
126. grandiloquence (n.) lofty, pompous language (The student
self-interest
thought her grandiloquence would make
(In his bid for reelection, the governor made an
her sound smart, but neither the class nor
expedient move by tabling all controversial
the teacher bought it.)
legislation.)
127. grievous (adj.) injurious, hurtful; serious or grave in
114. extant (adj.) existing, not destroyed or lost
nature
(My mother's extant love letters to my father are
(Electrocuting the inmate without being
in the attic trunk.)
sure of his guilt would be a truly grievous
115. exult (v.) to rejoice mistake.)
(When she found out she won the literature
128. hapless (adj.) unlucky
prize, Mary exulted by dancing and singing
(My poor, hapless family never seems to
through the school's halls.)
pick a sunny week to go on vacation.)
116. fallacious (adj.) incorrect, misleading
129. haughty (adj.) disdainfully proud (The superstar's
(Emily offered me cigarettes on the fallacious
haughty dismissal of her costars will
assumption that I smoked.)
backfire on her someday.)
117. fecund (adj.) fruitful, fertile (The fecund tree bore
130. heterogeneous (adj.) varied, diverse in character
enough apples to last us through the entire
(I hate having only one flavor so I always
season.)
buy the swirled, or should I say
118. fetid (adj.) having a foul odor heterogeneous, type of ice cream.)
(I can tell from the fetid smell in your
131. hypothetical (adj.) supposed or assumed true, but
refrigerator that your milk has spoiled.)
unproven
119. figurative (adj.) symbolic (Even though it has been celebrated by
(Using figurative language, Jane likened the seven major newspapers, that the drug
storm to an angry bull.) will be a success when tested in humans is
120. florid (adj.) flowery, ornate still hypothetical.)
(The writer's florid prose belongs on a 132. ignominious (adj.) humiliating, disgracing
sentimental Hallmark card.) (It was really ignominious to be kicked out
of the dorm for having an illegal gas
stove in my room.)
133. impassive (adj.) stoic, not susceptible to suffering
(Stop being so impassive; it's healthy to
cry every now and then.)
134. imperious (adj.) commanding, domineering
(The imperious nature of your manner led
me to dislike you at once.)
135. impinge 1. (v.) to impact, affect, make an impression
2. (v.) to encroach, infringe
(1. The hail impinged the roof, leaving
large dents.) (2. I apologize for impinging
upon you like this, but I really need to use
your bathroom. Now.)
136. implicit (adj.) understood but not outwardly
obvious, implied
(I know Professor Smith didn't actually say
not to write from personal experience, but
I think such a message was implicit in her
instruction to use scholarly sources.)
137. inane (adj.) silly and meaningless
(Some films are so inane that the
psychology of the characters makes
absolutely no sense.)
138. incessant (adj.) unending
(We wanted to go outside and play, but
the incessant rain kept us indoors for two
days.)
139. incontrovertible (adj.) indisputable
(Only stubborn Tina would attempt to
disprove the incontrovertible laws of
physics.)
140. indefatigable (adj.) incapable of defeat, failure, decay
(Even after traveling 62 miles, the
indefatigable runner kept on moving.)
141. indolent (adj.) lazy
(Why should my indolent children, who
can't even pick themselves up off the
couch to pour their own juice, be
rewarded with a trip to the mall?)
142. inept (adj.) not suitable or capable, unqualified
(She proved how inept she was when she
forgot three orders and spilled a beer in a
customer's lap.)
143. infusion (n.) an injection of one substance into
another; the permeation of one substance
by another
(The infusion of Eastern religion into
Western philosophy created interesting
new schools of thought.)
144. inimical (adj.) hostile, enemy like
(I don't see how I could ever work for a
company that was so cold and inimical to me
during my interviews.)
145. innocuous (adj.) harmless, inoffensive
(In spite of their innocuous appearance, these
mushrooms are actually quite poisonous.)
146. inquisitor (n.) one who inquires, especially in a hostile
manner
(The inquisitor was instructed to knock on
every door in town in order to find the
fugitive.)
147. insipid (adj.) dull, boring
(The play was so insipid, I fell asleep halfway
through.)
148. insurgent (n.) one who rebels
(The insurgent snuck into and defaced a
different classroom each night until the
administration agreed to meet his demands.)
149. interminable (adj.) without possibility of end
(The fact that biology lectures came just
before lunch made them seem interminable.)
150. intrepid (adj.) brave in the face of danger
(After scaling a live volcano prior to its
eruption, the explorer was praised for his
intrepid attitude.)
151. inveterate (adj.) stubbornly established by habit
(I'm the first to admit that I'm an inveterate
coffee drinker—I drink four cups a day.)
152. irreverence (n.) disrespect
(The irreverence displayed by the band that
marched through the chapel disturbed many
churchgoers.)
153. juxtaposition (n.) the act of placing two things next to each
other for implicit comparison
(The interior designer admired my
juxtaposition of the yellow couch and green
table.)
154. laconic (adj.) terse in speech or writing
(The author's laconic style has won him many
followers who dislike wordiness.)
155. latent (adj.) hidden, but capable of being exposed
(Sigmund's dream represented his latent
paranoid obsession with other people's
shoes.)
156. lenient (adj.) demonstrating tolerance or gentleness
(Because Professor Oglethorpe allowed his
students to choose their final grades, the
other teachers believed that he was
excessively lenient.)
157. licentious (adj.) displaying a lack of moral or legal
restraints
(Marilee has always been fascinated by the
licentious private lives of politicians.)
158. litigant (n.) someone engaged in a lawsuit
(When the litigants began screaming at each
other, Judge Koch ordered them to be silent.)
159. maelstrom (n.) a destructive whirlpool which rapidly sucks
in objects
(Little did the explorers know that as they
turned the next bend of the calm river a vicious
maelstrom would catch their boat.)
160. malleable (adj.) capable of being shaped or transformed
(Maximillian's political opinions were so
malleable that anyone he talked to was able to
change his mind instantly.)
161. maudlin (adj.) weakly sentimental
(Although many people enjoy romantic
comedies, I usually find them maudlin and
shallow.)
162. meager (adj.) deficient in size or quality
(My meager portion of food did nothing to
satisfy my appetite.)
163. meritorious (adj.) worthy of esteem or reward x
(Though he was widely respected for his
mathematical proofs, the mercurial genius was
impossible to live with.)
164. moderate 1. (adj.) not extreme 2. (n.) one who expresses
moderate opinions
(1. Luckily, the restaurant we chose had
moderate prices; none of us have any money.)
(2. Because he found both the liberal and
conservative proposals too excessive, Mr. Park
sided with the moderates.)
165. morass (n.) a wet swampy bog; figuratively, something
that traps and confuses
(When Theresa lost her job, she could not get
out of her financial morass.)
166. mundane (adj.) concerned with the world rather than with
heaven, commonplace
(He is more concerned with the mundane
issues of day-to-day life than with spiritual
topics.)
167. nadir (n.) the lowest point of something
(My day was boring, but the nadir came when I
accidentally spilled a bowl of spaghetti on my
head.)
168. negligent (adj.) habitually careless, neglectful
(Jessie's grandfather called me a negligent fool
after I left the door to his apartment unlocked
even though there had been a recent string of
robberies.)
169. nomadic (adj.) wandering from place to place
(In the first six months after college, Jose led a
nomadic life, living in New York, California, and
Idaho.)
170. notorious (adj.) widely and unfavorably known
(Jacob was notorious for always arriving late at
parties.)
171. nurture (v.) to assist the development of
(Although Serena had never watered the plant,
which was about to die, Javier was able to
nurture it back to life.)
172. oblivious (adj.) lacking consciousness or awareness of
something
(Oblivious to the burning smell emanating from
the kitchen, my father did not notice that the
rolls in the oven were burned until much too
late.)
173. obstinate (adj.) not yielding easily, stubborn
(The obstinate child refused to leave the store
until his mother bought him a candy bar.)
174. officious (adj.) offering one's services when they are
neither wanted nor needed
(Brenda resented Allan's officious behavior
when he selected colors that might best
improve her artwork.)
175. oration (n.) a speech delivered in a formal or
ceremonious manner
(The prime minister was visibly shaken when the
unruly parliament interrupted his oration about
failed domestic policies.)
176. ostensible (adj.) appearing as such, seemingly
(Jack's ostensible reason for driving was that
airfare was too expensive, but in reality, he was
afraid of flying.)
177. palatable (adj.) agreeable to the taste or sensibilities
(Despite the unpleasant smell, the exotic cheese
was quite palatable.)
178. panacea (n.) a remedy for all ills or difficulties
(Doctors wish there was a single panacea for
every disease, but sadly there is not.)
179. paramount (adj.) greatest in importance, rank, character
(It was paramount that the bomb squad
disconnect the blue wire before removing the
fuse.)
180. partisan (n.) a follower, adherent 193. pretense (n.) an appearance or action intended to
(The king did not believe that his rival could deceive
round up enough partisans to overthrow the (Though he actually wanted to use his
monarchy.) parents' car to go on a date, Nick borrowed
his parents' car under the pretense of
181. paucity (adj.) small in quantity
attending a group study session.)
(Gilbert lamented the paucity of twentieth
century literature courses available at the 194. proclivity (n.) a strong inclination toward something
college.) (In a sick twist of fate, Harold's childhood
proclivity for torturing small animals grew
182. penitent (adj.) remorseful, regretful
into a desire to become a surgeon.)
(The jury's verdict may have been more lenient
if the criminal had appeared penitent for his 195. profuse (adj.) plentiful, abundant
gruesome crimes.) (The fans were profuse in their cheers for the
star basketball player.)
183. perfunctory (adj.) showing little interest or enthusiasm
(The radio broadcaster announced the news of 196. propitious (adj.) favorable
the massacre in a surprisingly perfunctory (The dark storm clouds visible on the horizon
manner.) suggested that the weather would not be
propitious for sailing.)
184. perspicacity (adj.) shrewdness, perceptiveness
(The detective was too humble to 197. protean (adj.) able to change shape; displaying great
acknowledge that his perspicacity was the variety
reason for his professional success.) (Among Nigel's protean talents was his ability
to touch the tip of his nose with his tongue.)
185. pervasive (adj.) having the tendency to spread
throughout 198. puerile (adj.) juvenile, immature
(Stepping off the plane in Havana, I (The judge demanded order after the lawyer's
recognized the pervasive odor of sugar cane puerile attempt to object by stomping his feet
fields on fire.) on the courtroom floor.)
186. pillage (v.) to seize or plunder, especially in war 199. pungent (adj.) having a pointed, sharp quality—often
used to describe smells
(Invading enemy soldiers pillaged the homes (The pungent odor in the classroom made
scattered along the country's border.) Joseph lose his concentration during the test.)
187. placate (v.) to ease the anger of, soothe 200. quaint (adj.) charmingly old-fashioned (Hilda was
(The man purchased a lollipop to placate his delighted by the quaint bonnets she saw in
irritable son.) Amish country.)
188. plausible (adj.) believable, reasonable 201. quixotic (adj.) idealistic, impractical
(He studied all the data and then came up (Edward entertained a quixotic desire to fall in
with a plausible theory that took all factors love at first sight in a laundromat.)
into account.)
202. rancor (n.) deep, bitter resentment (When Eileen
189. poignant (adj.) deeply affecting, moving challenged me to a fight, I could see the
(My teacher actually cried after reading to us rancor in her eyes.)
the poignant final chapter of the novel.)
203. raze (v.) to demolish, level
190. potentate (n.) one who has great power, a ruler (The old tenement house was razed to make
(All the villagers stood along the town's main room for the large chain store.)
road to observe as the potentate's procession
204. reciprocate (v.) to give in return
headed towards the capital.)
(When Steve gave Samantha a sweater for
191. precocious (adj.) advanced, developing ahead of time Christmas, she reciprocated by giving him a
(Derek was so academically precocious that kiss.)
by the time he was 10 years old, he was
205. redoubtable 1. (adj.) formidable 2. (adj.) commanding
already in the ninth grade.)
respect
192. presage (n.) an omen (1. The fortress looked redoubtable set against
(When my uncle's old war injury ached, he a stormy sky.) (2. The audience greeted the
interpreted it as a presage of bad weather redoubtable speaker with a standing ovation.)
approaching.)
206. regurgitate 1. (v.) to vomit 2. (v.) to throw back exactly 218. scintillating (adj.) sparkling
(1. Feeling sick, Chuck regurgitated his (The ice skater's scintillating rhinestone
dinner.) (2. Margaret rushed through the test, costume nearly blinded the judges.)
regurgitating all of the facts she'd
219. semaphore (n.) a visual signal
memorized an hour earlier.)
(Anne and Diana communicated with a
207. remiss (adj.) negligent, failing to take care semaphore involving candles and window
(The burglar gained entrance because the shades.)
security guard, remiss in his duties, forgot to
220. serendipity (n.) luck, finding good things without looking
lock the door.)
for them
208. repentant (adj.) penitent, sorry (In an amazing bit of serendipity, penniless
(The repentant Dennis apologized profusely Paula found a $20 bill in the subway station.)
for breaking his mother's vase.)
221. sobriety (n.) sedate, calm
209. reprieve (n.) a temporary delay of punishment (Jason believed that maintaining his sobriety in
(Because the governor woke up in a times of crisis was the key to success in life.)
particularly good mood, he granted
222. solvent 1. (n.) a substance that can dissolve other
hundreds of reprieves to prisoners.)
substances 2. (adj.) able to pay debts
210. repudiate (v.) to reject, refuse to accept (1. Water is sometimes called the universal
(Kwame made a strong case for an solvent because almost all other substances
extension of his curfew, but his mother can dissolve into it.) (2. Upon receiving an
repudiated it with a few biting words.) unexpected check from her aunt, Annabelle
found herself suddenly solvent.)
211. rescind (v.) to take back, repeal
(The company rescinded its offer of 223. speculative (adj.) not based in fact
employment after discovering that Jane's (Sadly, Tessa was convicted on merely
resume was full of lies.) speculative evidence.)
212. resolve 1. (v.) to find a solution 2. (v.) to firmly 224. stingy (adj.) not generous, not inclined to spend or
decide give
(1. Sarah and Emma resolved their (Scrooge's stingy habits did not fit with the
differences and shook hands.) (2. Lady generous, giving spirit of Christmas.)
Macbeth resolved to whip her husband into
225. strident (adj.) harsh, loud
shape.)
(A strident man, Captain Von Trapp yelled at
213. restive (adj.) resistant, stubborn, impatient his daughter and made her cry.)
(The restive audience pelted the band with
226. submissive (adj.) easily yielding to authority
mud and yelled nasty comments.)
(In some cultures, wives are supposed to be
214. revoke (v.) to take back submissive and support their husbands in all
(After missing the curfew set by the court matters.)
for eight nights in a row, Marcel's freedom of
227. surmise (v.) to infer with little evidence
movement was revoked.)
(After speaking to only one of the students, the
215. ruminate (v.) to contemplate, reflect teacher was able to surmise what had caused
(Terry liked to ruminate while sitting on the the fight.)
banks of the river, staring pensively into the
228. sycophant (n.) one who flatters for self-gain
water.)
(Some see the people in the cabinet as the
216. sagacity (n.) shrewdness, soundness of perspective president's closest advisors, but others see
(With remarkable sagacity, the wise old man them as sycophants.)
predicted and thwarted his children's plan
229. tantamount (adj.) equivalent in value or significance (When
to ship him off to a nursing home.)
it comes to sports, fearing your opponent is
217. sanctimonious (adj.) giving a hypocritical appearance of tantamount to losing.)
piety
230. tenable (adj.) able to be defended or maintained
(The sanctimonious Bertrand delivered stern
(The department heads tore down the
lectures on the Ten Commandments to
arguments in other people's theses, but Johari's
anyone who would listen, but thought
work proved to be quite tenable.)
nothing of stealing cars to make some cash
on the side.)
231. tirade (n.) a long speech marked by harsh or biting 244. vituperate (v.) to berate (Jack ran away as soon as his
language father found out, knowing he would be
(Every time Jessica was late, her boyfriend went vituperated for his unseemly behavior.)
into a long tirade about punctuality.)
245. wallow (v.) to roll oneself indolently; to become or
232. torrid (adj.) giving off intense heat, passionate remain helpless (My roommate can't get over
(I didn't want to witness the neighbor's torrid her breakup with her boyfriend and now just
affair through the window.) wallows in self-pity.)
233. transgress (v.) to violate, go over a limit 246. wily (adj.) crafty, sly
(The criminal's actions transgressed morality and (Though they were not the strongest of the
human decency.) Thundercats, wily Kit and Kat were definitely the
most clever and full of tricks.)
234. tremulous (adj.) fearful
(I always feel a trifle tremulous when walking 247. wrath (n.) vengeful anger, punishment
through a graveyard.)
(Did you really want to incur her wrath when
235. truculent (adj.) ready to fight, cruel
she is known for inflicting the worst
(This club doesn't really attract the dangerous
punishments legally possible?)
types, so why was that bouncer being so
truculent?) 248. zephyr (n.) a gentle breeze (If not for the zephyrs that
were blowing and cooling us, our room
236. ubiquitous (adj.) existing everywhere, widespread (It seems
would've been unbearably hot.)
that everyone in the United States has a
television. The technology is ubiquitous here.)
237. undulate (v.) to move in waves
(As the storm began to brew, the placid ocean
began to undulate to an increasing degree.)
238. utopia (n.) an imaginary and remote place of
perfection

(Everyone in the world wants to live in a utopia,

but no one can agree how to go about building
one.)
239. vapid (adj.) lacking liveliness, dull (The professor's
comments about the poem were surprisingly
vapid and dull.)
240. venerable (adj.) deserving of respect because of age or
achievement
(The venerable Supreme Court justice had made
several key rulings in landmark cases
throughout the years.)
241. verdant (adj.) green in tint or color
(The verdant leaves on the trees made the
world look emerald.)
242. vicissitude (n.) event that occurs by chance

(The vicissitudes of daily life prevent me from

predicting what might happen from one day to
the next.)
243. vindictive (adj.) vengeful
(The vindictive madman seeks to exact
vengeance for any insult that he perceives is
directed at him, no matter how small.)