Hard SAT Words

abase  

v. humiliate; lower or depress in rank or esteem

abash  

v. embarrass; make ashamed or uneasy; disconcert

abbreviate  

v. make shorter; reduce to shorter form intended to represent full form, as for word or phrase

abdicate  

v. give up, renounce, abandon, lay down, or withdraw from, as a right or claim

abdication  

n. the act of giving up or renouncing a right, office, or position of power etc.

abet  

v. aid, usually in doing something wrong; encourage

abhorrent  

a. disgusting, loathsome

abjure  

v. renounce upon oath; abandon forever

ablution  

n. washing or cleansing of the body, especially as part of religious rite

abnegate  

v. give up or surrender; deny something to oneself

abnegation  

n. repudiation; self-sacrifice; renouncing your own interests in favor of interests of others

abrade  

v. wear away by friction; scrape; erode

abridge  

v. condense; shorten; reduce length of written text

abrogate  

a. abolish, do away with, or annul, especially by authority

abscond  

v. leave quickly and secretly and hide oneself, often to avoid arrest or prosecution

abstemious  

a. sparing or moderation in eating and drinking; temperate

acclimate  

v. accustom or become accustomed to a new environment or situation; adapt

acclivity  

n. upward slope, as of hill

accolade  

n. award of merit; expression of approval; praise

accost  

v. approach and speak to boldly or aggressively, as with demand or request

accouter  

v. equip; provide with military equipment

accretion  

n. growth or increase in size by gradual external addition, fusion, or inclusion

acerbity  

n. bitterness of speech and temper; sourness or acidness of taste, character, or tone

acetic  

a. having properties of vinegar; sour

acidulous  

a. slightly sour in taste or in manner; sharp; caustic

acquisition  

n. the act of acquiring or gaining possession

acrimonious  

a. bitter and sharp in language, tone, or manner

acrimony  

n. animosity, sharp or bitter hatred

acrophobia  

n. fear of heights; abnormal fear of high places

actuarial  

a. calculating; pertaining to insurance statistics

actuate  

v. put into motion or action; activate

acuity  

n. sharpness; acuteness of vision or perception; keenness

adage  

n. an old saying, that has obtained credit by long use

addle  

v. muddle; drive crazy; become confused

adjoin  

v. be next to; be contiguous to; border on

adjudicate  

v. hear and settle a case by judicial procedure

adjunct  

n. something added on or attached generally nonessential or inferior

adjure  

v. appeal to or entreat earnestly; command or enjoin solemnly, as under oath

admonition  

n. gentle or friendly reproof; cautionary advice or warning

adulation  

n. excessive flattery or admiration; unmerited praise

adulterate  

v. make impure by adding inferior or tainted substances

adumbrate  

v. give hint or indication of something; disclose partially or guardedly; overshadow; shade

adventitious  

a. accidental; casual; not inherent but added extrinsically

advert  

n. advertisement an ad; public promotion of some product or service

aerie  

n. nest of bird, such as eagle, built on a cliff or other high place

affix  

v. fasten; append; add on; secure to something

affluence  

n. abundance; a plentiful supply of material goods; wealth

agglomeration  

n. collection; heap; act or process of gathering into a mass

aggrandize  

v. increase scope of; extend; intensify; make greater in power, influence, stature, or reputation

agnostic  

n. one who is skeptical of existence of a god or any ultimate reality

aka  

ad. as known or named at another time or place; also known as

alacrity  

n. cheerful promptness or willingness; eagerness; speed or quickness

algorithm  

n. established procedure for solving problem

alimentary  

a. providing nourishment; concerned with food, nutrition, or digestion

allay  

v. calm; pacify; reduce the intensity of; relieve

allege  

v. to assert to be true

allegory  

n. symbolic representation of abstract ideas or principles in narrative, dramatic, or pictorial form

alliteration  

n. repetition of beginning sound in poetry

allocate  

v. assign; distribute according to plan

allusion  

n. an indirect reference

altar  

n. elevated place or structure before which religious ceremonies may be enacted or upon which sacrifices may be offered

amalgam  

n. a combination of many different things; an alloy of mercury and other metals

amalgamate  

v. combine; unite in one body; mix or alloy a metal with mercury

amass  

v. collect; gather for oneself, as for one's pleasure or profit

ambidextrous  

a. capable of using either hand with equal ease

ambivalence  

n. state of having contradictory or conflicting emotional attitudes, such as love and hate

amble  

n. moving at an easy pace; walk slowly or leisurely

ambulatory  

a. able to walk; formed or adapted for walking; not stationary

ameliorate  

v. make or become better; improve; grow better

amity  

n. friendship; peaceful relations, as between nations

amorphous  

a. formless; lacking shape or definition

amphitheater  

n. oval building with tiers of seats from central open space or arena

amplify  

v. broaden or clarify by expanding; intensify; make larger or more powerful; increase

amputee  

n. a person who has had one or more limbs removed by amputation

anachronistic  

a. having time error in story; erroneous in date; in wrong time

analgesic  

a. serving to reduce sensibility to pain without loss of consciousness

anathema  

n. solemn curse; someone or something regarded as a curse

ancestry  

n. family descent; series or line of ancestors; lineage

ancillary  

a. serving as aid or accessory; auxiliary

anew  

ad. once more; again; in a new and different way

angular  

a. sharp-cornered; consisting of an angle or angles; stiff in manner

animus  

n. feeling of animosity

annotate  

v. comment; make explanatory notes

anodyne  

n. source of relaxation or comfort; medicine that relieves pain

antecede  

v. precede; go before in time, and sometimes in place, rank, or logical order

antecedents  

n. preceding events or circumstances that influence what comes later; ancestors or early background

antediluvian  

a. antiquated; extremely old and ancient; belonging to very ancient times

anthology  

n. book of literary selections by various authors

anthropocentric  

a. regarding human beings as the center of the universe

anthropoid  

a. manlike; resembling a human, especially in shape or outward appearance

anthropomorphic  

a. having human form or characteristics

anticlimax  

n. letdown in thought or emotion; decline viewed in disappointing contrast with previous rise

antipathy  

n. strong feelings of aversion or dislike

apartheid  

n. South Africa's policy of racial separation, in place from 1948 to 1990.

aphasia  

n. loss of speech due to injury or illness

aphorism  

n. definition or concise statement of principle; tersely phrased statement of truth or opinion

apiary  

n. place where bees and beehives are kept, especially where bees are raised for their honey

aplomb  

n. poise; self-confident assurance

apogee  

n. the highest point; point in orbit most distant from the body being orbited

apolitical  

a. having aversion or lack of concern for political affairs

apologist  

n. person who argues in defense or justification of something, such as doctrine, policy, or institution

apostate  

n. one who abandons his religious faith or political beliefs

apotheosis  

n. elevation to godhood; fact or action of becoming a god; an ideal example of something

appall  

v. depress or discourage with fear; grow faint or become weak

append  

v. attach; add as supplement or appendix

apposite  

a. strikingly appropriate and relevant; well-suited

appraise  

v. estimate value of; evaluate, especially in official capacity

apprenticeship  

n. term during which one learns a trade from skilled worker; service or legal condition of an apprentice

apprise  

v. inform; give notice to; make aware

aquifer  

n. underground bed or layer yielding ground water for wells and springs etc

archetype  

n. prototype; original model or type after which other similar things are patterned

archipelago  

n. a large group of islands; a sea, containing a large number of scattered islands

arena  

n. an enclosed area, often outdoor, for the presentation of sporting events or other spectacular events

aristocracy  

n. hereditary nobility; privileged class

arraign  

v. officially charge someone in a court of law

arrogate  

v. claim without justification; claim for oneself without right

artisan  

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

aseptic  

a. preventing infection; having cleansing effect

ashen  

a. ash-colored; very pale; consisting of ashes

askance  

a. with sideways or indirect look; Turned to side, especially of eyes

aspect  

n. look, or particular appearance of the face; the visual percept of a region

asperity  

n. harshness of manner, roughness

aspirant  

n. one who aspires, as to advancement, honors, or a high position

assay  

v. analyze; evaluate; examine by trial or experiment; put to test

assimilate  

v. to make similar, to incorporate or absorb into

astigmatism  

n. eye defect that prevents proper focus

astringent  

a. causing contraction; having the effect of drawing tissue together; stern or austere

asymmetric  

a. not identical on both sides of a dividing central line

at loggerheads  

ad. engaged in a dispute

atavism  

n. resemblance to remote ancestors rather than to parents; deformity returning after passage of two or more generations

atavistic  

a. displaying characteristics of previous cultural era or of previous ancestral form

atheistic  

a. denying existence of God; godless

atrocity  

n. extreme criminality or cruelty; quality of being shockingly cruel and inhumane

attenuate  

v. make slender, fine, or small; weaken; lessen density of

attrition  

n. gradual decrease in numbers; reduction in work force without firing employees; wearing away of opposition by means of harassment

atypical  

a. not normal; unusual or irregular; not representative of a group, class, or type

aura  

n. an invisible breath; distinctive atmosphere or quality associated with something

aureole  

n. the outermost region of the sun's atmosphere; halo

auroral  

a. characteristic of dawn; dawning, eastern, like new beginning; relating to the atmospheric phenomenon auroras

austerity  

n. severe and rigid economy; severe or rigorous simplicity; absence of adornment or luxury

authenticate  

v. prove genuine; establish authenticity of

authoritarian  

a. expecting absolute obedience; completely dominating another's will

autocrat  

n. dictator; ruler having unlimited power

autocratic  

a. having absolute, unchecked power; dictatorial

automaton  

n. mechanism that imitates actions of humans

autonomous  

a. self-governing; not controlled by others or by outside forces; independent

avalanche  

n. fall or slide of a large mass, as of snow or rock, down a mountainside

aviation  

n. art or act of flying; specifically, the science or art of directing and controlling flying-machines

avocation  

n. activity taken up in addition to one's regular work or profession, usually for enjoyment

avuncular  

a. in manner of uncle, pertaining to uncle; kind, genial, benevolent or tolerant