SAT Vocab Words

SAT Vocab

​Serious

• earnest

• solemn

• zealous

• sober

• momentous​

​Earnest:

-serious and intentional

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Ex. Wadsworth made earnest attempts to reconcile.​

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(When doing something earnest, you are carrying it out with a purpose and a serious face)​

​Solemn:

-serious, formal, and grave

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Ex. Yesterday's funeral was a solemn affair ​

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(You can make a solemn request or file a solemn petition)​

​Zealous:

-filled with or showing a strong energetic desire to get something done or see something succeed

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Ex. His zealous attitude made him a winner in overcoming every obstacle of life with a smile on his face.​

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(used to describe keenness for an ​activity, eagerness in behavior, zest for life, extreme commitment to work, passion for a hobby or fondness for a person)

​Sober:

-having or showing a serious attitude​

-clear-headed​

-not drunk​

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Ex. Often, however; her sober ideas are not to be laughed at.​

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​Momentous:

-of great importance or significance

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Ex. My baptism was a momentous day in my life.​

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​Respectful

• deferential

• revere

• regardful

• yielding

• exalted​

​Deferential:

-showing respect toward others who are superior to you in any way

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Ex. The student's behavior was deferential toward the teacher.​

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(doing something out of deference is so​mething that is done out of respect)

​Revere:

-to deeply respect and worship; to be in awe of

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Ex. My grandmother revered God and went to church every day.

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His father treated his baseball glove with reverence.​

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[When you treat something with reverence, you treat it with special care and respect.

(reverence means respect, but irreverence means disrespect)​]

​Regardful:

-paying attention to; mindful of

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Ex. He is regardful of other people's feelings.​

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​Yielding:

-to give way under pressure or influence

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Ex. The slave was yielding toward his master​.

​Exalted:

-placed at a high or powerful level; held in high regard

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Ex. The Romans exalted their king.​

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​Kind

• benevolent

• endearing

• altruistic

• benign

• compassionate​

​Benevolent:

-well-meaning and charitable

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Ex. Ben was a kind boss and wanted to create a benevolent environment at his firm.​

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(Elephants are always considered kind and well-​meaning, so thinking of a benevolent elephant may help you remember the word.)

​Endearing:

-adorable; inspiring love and affection

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Ex. His radical openness and honesty was endearing.

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(a person's endearing qualities might include being naive, genuine, sweet, and charming)​

​Altruistic:

-having or showing an unselfish concern for the welfare of others

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Ex. Mother Teresa was a woman of altruistic character.​

Benign:

-gentle and kindly

-usually a person of mild character; not harmful

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Ex. A benign substance or process does not have any harmful effects.​

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SpongeBob loves Gary with all of his heart and Gary is a benign character who is very loyal to his owner.​

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​Compassionate:

-feeling or showing sympathy and concern for others

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Ex. Alice was compassionate to her friend that was going through a tough time.

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(I'm sure everyone knows what compassionate means.)​

​Spiteful

• sinister

• malice, malignant, malicious, malevolent

• malign

• pernicious

• noxious​

​Sinister:

-bad or evil

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Ex. She made a sinister remark about his health condition.​

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(The word sin, which describes wrongdoing, can help you remember that the adjective sinister is linked to something bad or evil.)​

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​Malice, Malignant, Malicious, Malevolent:

-​all words are used to indicate or show an intention to do evil to others.

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Ex.​ Possessed by a malevolent force, he burned his painting.

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...to underscore how Lucy's benevolent intentions contradict her malicious conduct​.

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​The narrator described Lucy as a malevolent being.

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...thoughts filled with malice.

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Edwards malignant behavior...​

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[All of these words come from the Latin root mal, which means bad. You can also think about maleficent who is an evil character. (These words often showup in the SAT answer choices - So practice them!)​

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​Malign:

-evil in nature or effect

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Ex. She had a strong and malign influence.​

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(similar to last slide)​

​Pernicious:

-having a harmful effect, especially in a gradual or subtle way

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Ex. She thinks that TV has a pernicious influence on her children.

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Not taking care of an open wound can have a pernicious effect .​

​Noxious:

-harmful, poisonous, or very unpleasant

-physically harmful or destructive to human beings

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Ex. The smell is noxious; it is industrial and chemical rather than agricultural.

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​Sincere

• genuine

• candid

• authentic

• virtuous

• ardent

• unfeigned​

​Genuine:

-true, real, or heartfelt

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Ex. He expressed genuine love and asked a heartfelt question.

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The shoemaker used genuine leather.

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(Genuine can be used with both living subjects and ​inanimate objects)

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Not Genuine:​ Genuine:

​Candid:

-frank, honest, or straightforward

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Ex. This candid book reveals the inner workings of the CEO.​

​Authentic:

-traditional; undisturbed by novelty; baded on facts; pure and honest

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Ex. An authentic person is someone who is always open and real.

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To authenticate is to verify authenticity.​

​Virtuous:

-having or exhibiting morality; morally excellent, righteous​

​

Ex. Oprah Winfrey seems like a virtuous person.​

​Ardent:

-enthusiastic or passionate

​

Ex.​ Cameron is an ardent Aggies fan.

​Unfeigned:

-genuine; sincere

-to not be hypocritical

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Ex. unfeigned joy

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He had a broad smile of unfeigned delight.​

​Fake

• hoax

• disguise

• deception

• fabricate

• complacent

• counterfeit

• f​raudulent

• phony​

​Hoax:

-deception of a malicious or humorous manner

​​

Ex. She was willing to get involved in a hoax just to end up among the popular crowd.​

​Disguise:

-to obscure the truth or appearance

​

Ex. One of the girls disguised herself as a tree.​

​Deception:

-the act of deceiving​

​Fabricate:

-to make up from thin air

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Ex. He fabricated evidence that suited his assumptions.​

​Complacent:

​-marked by a fake satisfaction or happiness with the current state of things

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Ex. Even though he had to watch his salt intake, he remained complacent about his health.​

​Counterfeit:

-made in exact imitation of something valuable or important ​with the intention to deceive or defraud

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​Fraudulent:

-unjustifiably claiming or being credited with particular accomplishments or qualities

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​Phony:

-not genuine; fraudulent

-fake/fictional person or thing​