SAT Vocabulary Lesson 1

1. SAT Vocabulary Lesson 1 • You will have a vocabulary quiz on Friday, March 29.

2. Altruistic Definition: Unselfishly concerned for the welfare of others, generous Sentence: Nuns and nurses are usually very altruistic people since they seek ways to help people.

3. Ambivalent • Definition: having contrary feelings or attitudes, uncertain as to course of action • Sentence: I am ambivalent about a permanent relationship with him, because I like him one day and not the next.

4. Angular • Definition: lean; sharp cornered; gaunt • Sentence: The patient has lost so much weight that his face has become angular.

5. Arrogant • Definition: overbearingly assuming; insolently proud • Because the girl was so arrogant, she had few friends.

6. Aversion • Definition: strong disinclination, disliking • I have an aversion to getting married.

7. Discern • Definition: to differentiate between two or more things • Because of the fog, I was barely able to discern the landing strip.

8. Disdain • Definition: intense dislike; to treat with scorn or contempt, to reject as unworthy • Never having had to do manual labor, he disdained the idea of becoming a cotton picker.

9. Disparage • Definition: to degrade, to speak of someone or something in a derogatory manner • His disparaging remarks about me caused the committee to give the job to another person.

10. Disparity • Definition: inequality, the condition or fact of being unequal in age, rank, or degree • The couple got married even though there was a great disparity in their ages.

11. Embellish • Definition: to decorate, to make beautiful with ornamentation • He would embellish his narratives with anecdotes about famous people.

12. Engender • Definition: to cause, to produce, to create • His angry words engendered strife in his relationship with his wife.

13. Innocuous • Definition: harmless, producing no injury • Since the drink is innocuous, it is okay for us to have some.

14. Insipid • Definition: boring and stupid • I am bored by your insipid talk.

15. Lament • Definition: To mourn or express sorry in a demonstrative manner • She lamented the death of her father in a very lachrymose manner. (That means she cried a lot.  )

16. Laud • Definition: to praise, extol • Her performance was lauded by all of the critics.

17. Obscure • Definition: difficult to see, vague • Because the meaning of the play was obscure, I was unable to enjoy it.

18. Ostentatious • Definition: showy, pretentious • The ostentatious socialite wore her mink fur coat even during the warmest days of August.

19. Prodigal • Definition: wasteful, a person given to extravagance • The prodigal son squandered his inheritance.

20. Repudiate • Definition: to reject, to disown, to disavow • He announced that he would repudiate all debts that had been created by his wife.

21. Reticence • Definition: restraint in speech, reluctance to speak • A lawyer must have great reticence in discussing matters that could violate his client’s rights.

22. Revere • Definition: to honor, to regard with respect • Nearly all Catholics revere the Pope.

23. Serene • Definition: calm, placid • The mountain on a clear spring morning is a serene setting.

24. Subtle • Definition: delicate, elusive, not obvious • To avoid being obtrusive in the elegant restaurant, he used subtle gestures to call the waiter to his table.

25. Superfluous • Definition: beyond what is needed or required, an overflow • The meeting lasted so long because of many superfluous comments by some of the speakers.

26. Taciturn • Definition: quite, not verbose • A shy person is usually taciturn.