Writer’s Mark 2020-2021 SAT Vocabulary List

               

1. abject
   of the most contemptible kind
2. abscond
   run away, often taking something or somebody along
3. accost
   approach and speak to someone aggressively or insistently
4. acumen
   shrewdness shown by keen insight
5. adamant
   impervious to pleas, persuasion, requests, or reason
6. admonish
   scold or reprimand; take to task
7. adverse
   in an opposing direction
8. advocate
   a person who pleads for a person, cause, or idea
9. affluent
   having an abundant supply of money or possessions of value
10.    aggrandize
    embellish; increase the scope, power, or importance of
11. alacrity
    liveliness and eagerness
12. alias
    a name that has been assumed temporarily
13. ambivalent
    uncertain or unable to decide about what course to follow
14. amenable
    disposed or willing to comply
15. anathema
    a formal ecclesiastical curse accompanied by excommunication
16. annex
    attach to
17. antediluvian
    of or relating to the period before the Biblical flood
18. antiseptic
    thoroughly clean and free of disease-causing organisms
19. apathetic
    showing little or no emotion or animation
20. antithesis
    exact opposite
21.    apocryphal
    being of questionable authenticity
22. arbitrary
    based on or subject to individual discretion or preference
23. archetypal
    of an original type after which other things are patterned
24. ascetic
    someone who practices self denial as a spiritual discipline
25. aspersion
    a disparaging remark
26. assiduous
    marked by care and persistent effort
27. bashful
    self-consciously timid
28. beguile
    influence by slyness
29. bereft
    sorrowful through loss or deprivation
30. bombastic
    ostentatiously lofty in style
31. cajole
    influence or urge by gentle urging, caressing, or flattering
32. callous
    emotionally hardened
33. calumny
    a false accusation of an offense
34. camaraderie
    the quality of affording easy familiarity and sociability
35. candor
    the quality of being honest and straightforward
36. capitulate
    surrender under agreed conditions
37. cavort
    play boisterously
38. circumvent
    surround so as to force to give up
39. clamor
    utter or proclaim insistently and noisily
40. cleave
    separate or cut with a tool, such as a sharp instrument
41.     cogent
    powerfully persuasive
42. cognizant
    having or showing knowledge or understanding or realization
43. commensurate
    corresponding in size or degree or extent
44. complement
    something added to embellish or make perfect
45. compunction
    a feeling of deep regret, usually for some misdeed
46. congruity
    the quality of agreeing; being suitable and appropriate
47. connive
    form intrigues (for) in an underhand manner
48. construe
    make sense of; assign a meaning to
49. contusion
    an injury in which the skin is not broken
50. contrite
    feeling or expressing pain or sorrow for sins or offenses
51. contentious
    showing an inclination to disagree
52. convivial
    occupied with or fond of the pleasures of good company
53.      covet
    wish, long, or crave for
54. debunk
    expose while ridiculing
55. defunct
    no longer in force or use; inactive
56. demagogue
    a leader who seeks support by appealing to popular passions
57. denigrate
    attack the good name and reputation of someone
58. disaffected
    discontented as toward authority
59. discomfit
    cause to lose one's composure
60. disparate
    fundamentally different or distinct in quality or kind
61. dispel
    cause to separate and go in different directions
62. disrepute
    the state of being held in low esteem
63. divisive
    causing or characterized by disagreement or disunity
64. dogmatic
    pertaining to a code of beliefs accepted as authoritative
65. dour
    showing a brooding ill humor
66. duplicity
    the act of deceiving or acting in bad faith
67. eclectic
    selecting what seems best of various styles or ideas
68. elegy
    a mournful poem; a lament for the dead
69. elicit
    call forth, as an emotion, feeling, or response
70. empirical
    derived from experiment and observation rather than theory
71. emulate
    strive to equal or match, especially by imitating
72. enervate
    weaken mentally or morally
73. enfranchise
    grant freedom to, as from slavery or servitude
74. engender
    call forth
75. ephemeral
    anything short-lived, as an insect that lives only for a day
76. epistolary
    written in the form of letters or correspondence
77. equanimity
    steadiness of mind under stress
78. equivocal
    open to two or more interpretations
79. espouse
    choose and follow a theory, idea, policy, etc.
80. evanescent
    tending to vanish like vapor
81. evince
    give expression to
82. exacerbate
    make worse
83. exhort
    spur on or encourage especially by cheers and shouts
84. execrable
    unequivocally detestable
85. exigent
    demanding immediate attention
86. expedient
    appropriate to a purpose
87. expiate
    make amends for
88. expunge
    remove by erasing or crossing out or as if by drawing a line
89. extraneous
    not belonging to that in which it is contained
90. extol
    praise, glorify, or honor
91. extant
    still in existence; not extinct or destroyed or lost
92. expurgate
    edit by omitting or modifying parts considered indelicate
93. fallacious
    containing or based on incorrect reasoning
94. fatuous
    devoid of intelligence
95. fetter
    a shackle for the ankles or feet
96. flagrant
    conspicuously and outrageously bad or reprehensible
97. foil
    hinder or prevent, as an effort, plan, or desire
98. forbearance
    good-natured tolerance of delay or incompetence
99. fortuitous
    lucky; occurring by happy chance
100. fractious
     easily irritated or annoyed
101. hapless
     unfortunate and deserving pity
102. iconoclast
     someone who attacks cherished ideas or institutions
103. idiosyncratic
     peculiar to the individual
104. impetuous
     characterized by undue haste and lack of thought
105. impinge
     infringe upon
106. inane
     devoid of intelligence
107. incontrovertible
     impossible to deny or disprove
108. inoculate
     inject or treat with the germ of a disease to render immune
109. insidious
     working or spreading in a hidden and usually injurious way
110. instigate
     provoke or stir up
111. insurgent
     in opposition to a civil authority or government
112. intimation
     a slight suggestion or vague understanding
113. irreverence
     a mental attitude showing lack of due respect
114. knell
     the sound of a bell rung slowly to announce a death
115. laconic
     brief and to the point
116. largesse
     liberality in bestowing gifts
117. linchpin
     a central cohesive source of support and stability
118. maudlin
     effusively or insincerely emotional
119. maverick
     someone who exhibits independence in thought and action
120. modicum
     a small or moderate or token amount
121. morass
     a soft wet area of low-lying land that sinks underfoot
122. mores
     the conventions embodying the fundamental values of a group
123. negligent
     characterized by undue lack of attention or concern
124. noxious
     injurious to physical or mental health
125. onerous
     burdensome or difficult to endure
126. ostracism
     the act of excluding someone from society by general consent
127. panacea
     hypothetical remedy for all ills or diseases
128. paradigm
     a standard or typical example
129. pariah
     a person who is rejected from society or home
130. penchant
     a strong liking
131. pert
     characterized by a lightly saucy or impudent quality
132. pernicious
     exceedingly harmful
133. phlegmatic
     showing little emotion
134. philanthropic
     of or relating to charitable giving
135. pithy
     concise and full of meaning
136. platitude
     a trite or obvious remark
137. plenitude
     a full supply
138. plethora
     extreme excess
139. portent
     a sign of something about to happen
140. potentate
     a powerful ruler, especially one who is unconstrained by law
141. preclude
     make impossible, especially beforehand
142. predilection
     a predisposition in favor of something
143. preponderance
     exceeding in heaviness; having greater weight
144. presage
     a foreboding about what is about to happen
145. probity
     complete and confirmed integrity
146. proclivity
     a natural inclination
147. profligate
     unrestrained by convention or morality
148. promulgate
     state or announce
149. pugnacious
     ready and able to resort to force or violence
150. quaint
     attractively old-fashioned
151. quandary
     state of uncertainty in a choice between unfavorable options
152. remiss
     failing in what duty requires
153. reprieve
     postpone the punishment of a convicted criminal
154. rescind
     cancel officially
155. rife
     excessively abundant
156. sanctimonious
     excessively or hypocritically pious
157. sanguine
     confidently optimistic and cheerful
158. scurrilous
     expressing offensive, insulting, or scandalous criticism
159. serendipity
     good luck in making unexpected and fortunate discoveries
160. tome
     a large and scholarly book
161. trite
     repeated too often; overfamiliar through overuse
162. ubiquitous
     being present everywhere at once
163. utilitarian
     having a useful function
164. veracity
     unwillingness to tell lies
165. vilify
     spread negative information about
166. virtuoso
     someone who is dazzlingly skilled in any field
167. vitriolic
     harsh, bitter, or malicious in tone
168. vociferous
     conspicuously and offensively loud
169. winsome
     charming in a childlike or naive way
170. yoke
     join with stable gear, as two draft animals