SAT Essay Vocabulary

abate: 
subside; decrease; become less in amount or intensity
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aberration: 
deviation, not normal
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abhor: 
fill with horror and loathing; horrify; hate
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abstruse: 
obscure; profound; difficult to understand.
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accost: 
approach and speak to boldly or aggressively, as with demand or request
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acrimony: 
bitter animosity
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acumen: 
mental keenness; quickness of perception
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adamant: 
extremely hard; inflexible; stubbornly unyielding
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adept: 
expert at; very skilled; having or showing knowledge and skill and aptitude
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adroit: 
skillful and adept under pressing conditions
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affected: 
speaking or behaving in artificial way; emotionally stirred or moved; infected or attacked
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alacrity: 
cheerful promptness or willingness; eagerness; speed or quickness
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aloocate: 
assign, portion
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altruistic: 
unselfishly generous; concerned for others
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amenable: 
responsive to advice or suggestion; responsible to higher authority; willing to comply with; agreeable
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amiable: 
good-natured and likable; lovable; warmly friendly
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amicable: 
exhibiting friendliness or goodwill; not quarrelsome
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antediluvian: 
antiquated; extremely old and ancient; belonging to very ancient times
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anthropology: 
social science that studies origins and social relationships of human beings
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antipathy: 
strong feeling of aversion; dislike
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apathetic: 
feeling or showing a lack of interest or concern; indifferent
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apt: 
likely; exactly suitable; appropriate; quick to learn or understand
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arcane: 
secret; mysterious; known only to the initiated
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ascendancy: 
superiority or decisive advantage; domination
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ascetic: 
leading a life of self-discipline and self-denial; austere
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aspire: 
seek to attain; long for; strive toward an end
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assail: 
assault; attack with or as if with violent blows
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assiduous: 
constant in application or attention; diligent; unceasing or persistent
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assuage: 
ease or lessen pain; satisfy or appease
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atrophy: 
wasting away; decrease in size; reduction in the functionality of an organ caused by disease
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attenuate: 
make slender, fine, or small; weaken; lessen density of
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august: 
impressive; majestic; inspiring awe or admiration
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aura: 
air, feeling
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auspicious: 
attended by favorable circumstances; marked by success; prosperous
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autocrat: 
dictator; ruler having unlimited power
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automaton: 
mechanism that imitates actions of humans
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avarice: 
greediness for wealth; insatiable desire of gain
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banal: 
obvious and dull; commonplace; lacking originality
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barrage: 
artificial obstruction; heavy curtain of artillery fire; rapid, concentrated discharge of missiles
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belie: 
contradict; give a false impression
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belligerent: 
inclined or eager to fight; aggressive
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benevolent: 
generous in providing aid to others; charitable
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bequeath: 
leave to someone by a will; hand down
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berate: 
rebuke or scold angrily and at length
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bitartisanship: 
supported by two opposing parties
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blighted: 
suffering from a disease; destroyed, ruined, or spoiled
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bog: 
marsh, swamp
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bolster: 
support or prop up with or as if with a long narrow pillow or cushion
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bombastic: 
pompous; using inflated language; high-sounding but with little meaning
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boorish: 
rude and clumsy in behavior; ungentlemanly; awkward in manners
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buoyant: 
able to float; cheerful and optimistic
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burgeon: 
grow forth; send out buds; grow or develop rapidly
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buttress: 
support physically; prop up; support something or someone by supplying evidence
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byzantine: 
convoluted, complex
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cacophonous: 
discordant; inharmonious; sounding harshly; ill-sounding
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cajole: 
influence or urge by gentle urging or flattering
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callous: 
emotionally hardened; unfeeling; toughened
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cantankerous: 
ill humored; irritable; marked by ill-tempered contradiction or opposition; ugly; malicious
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capricious: 
fickle; impulsive and unpredictable; apt to change opinions suddenly
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castigate: 
criticize severely; punish; revise or make corrections to publication
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caustic: 
capable of burning, corroding, dissolving, or eating away by chemical action
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censorious: 
critical; addicted to censure; severe in making remarks on others, or on their writings or manners; implying or expressing censure
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censure: 
expression of strong disapproval or harsh criticism; blame
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cerebral: 
relating to the brain or cerebrum; intellectual rather than emotional
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chagrin: 
anxiety caused by humiliation or injured pride; disappointment
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charlatan: 
quack; one who pretends to knowledge, skill, or importance
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chastise: 
punish, as by beating; criticize severely; rebuke
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chide: 
scold mildly so as to correct or improve; express disapproval
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churlish: 
difficult to work with; rude; unyielding; unmanageable
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circuitous: 
being or taking a roundabout, lengthy course; going round in a circuit; not direct
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circumscribe: 
limit narrowly; confine; draw a line around; encircle
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circumvent: 
surround an enemy; enclose or entrap; beat by cleverness and wit
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clandestine: 
secret; conducted with or marked by hidden aims or methods
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coalesce: 
combine; fuse; grow together; come together so as to form one whole; unite
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compendious: 
succinct
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complacency: 
feeling of contented self-satisfaction, especially when unaware of upcoming trouble
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compliant: 
yielding to request or desire; ready to accommodate; disposed or willing to comply
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conciliate: 
compromising, apologizing
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concur: 
agree
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conflagration: 
large destructive fire; burning; large-scale military conflict
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confluence: 
act of two things flowing together; junction or meeting place where two things meet
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congenial: 
compatible
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conscientious: 
diligent; responsible; reliable
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consternation: 
intense state of fear or dismay; astonishment combined with terror
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contempt: 
state of being despised or dishonored; disgrace; disobedience to, or open disrespect of
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contemptible: 
worthy of contempt; deserving of scorn or disdain; mean
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contentious: 
quarrelsome; disagreeable; marked by heated arguments or controversy
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convivial: 
festive; occupied with or fond of the pleasures of good company
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copious: 
plentiful; containing plenty; affording ample supply
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corroborate: 
establish or strengthen as with new evidence or facts; support with evidence
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cosmopolitan: 
sophisticated; of worldwide scope
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credulity: 
readiness of belief; disposition to believe on slight evidence
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culpable: 
blameworthy
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cursory: 
casual; brief or broad; not cautious, nor detailed
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dauntless: 
bold; incapable of being discouraged; fearless
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dearth: 
scarcity; shortage of food; famine from failure or loss of crops
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debacle: 
sudden downfall; complete disaster
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debilitate: 
make weak; enfeeble; impair the strength of
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debunk: 
expose as false, exaggerated, worthless; ridicule
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decimate: 
destroy or kill a large part of; select by lot and kill one in every ten of
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decorum: 
propriety in manners and conduct; good taste in manners; conventions or requirements of polite behavior
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deference: 
willingness to carry out the wishes of others; great respect
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degredation: 
humiliation
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deleterious: 
having harmful effect; injurious; having quality of destroying life; noxious; poisonous
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delineate: 
portray; depict; draw or trace outline of; sketch out
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demonstrative: 
openly emotional
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demure: 
modest and reserved in manner or behavior
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demystify: 
clarify; free from mystery or obscurity
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denigrate: 
blacken; defame; attack reputation of; degrade
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depose: 
force to leave; remove from office
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depravity: 
extreme corruption or degradation; wickedness
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deprecate: 
express disapproval of; protest against; belittle
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depreciation: 
devaluation; decrease in price or value
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deride: 
ridicule; make fun of; laugh at with contempt
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derivative: 
unoriginal; derived from another source
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derogatory: 
expressing low opinion; disparaging; belittling
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desecration: 
violate the sacredness of
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despondent: 
in low spirits from loss of hope or courage
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despot: 
tyrant; harsh, authoritarian ruler; eastern Orthodox bishop
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destitute: 
extremely poor; utterly lacking; devoid
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deterrent: 
something that discourages; tending to deter
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devoid: 
completely lacking; barren or empty
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didactic: 
excessively morally instructive
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diffident: 
shy
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diffuse: 
spread out widely; scatter freely; pour out and cause to spread freely
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digress(ion): 
stray from the subject at hand
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dilatory: 
tending to waste time
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diminutive: 
below the average size; very small; little
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dire: 
urgent, dreadful
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discern: 
detect; perceive
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discomfited: 
disappointed, defeated
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discount: 
give reduction in price on
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disheartening: 
discouraging
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disillusionment: 
disenchantment, disappointment
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disingenuous: 
giving a false appearance of frankness; not straightforward or candid; insincere or calculating
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disparage: 
belittle; speak of in a slighting or disrespectful way; reduce in esteem or rank
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dispassionate: 
calm; impartial; unaffected by strong emotion or prejudice
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dispel: 
scatter; drive away; cause to vanish
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disputatious: 
argumentative; fond of arguing; inclined to dispute
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disquiet: 
make uneasy or anxious; trouble
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disseminate: 
distribute; spread; scatter like seeds
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distaste: 
dislike, aversion
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divergent: 
differing; tending to move apart in different directions
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divisive: 
creating conflict
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divulge: 
reveal; make known to public
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doctrine: 
principles presented for belief, as by religious; principle of law; act of teaching; instruction
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dormant: 
sleeping; not active but capable of becoming active
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dupe: 
easily deceived person; duplicate of photographic image
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duplicitous: 
deliberately deceptive
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ebullient: 
showing excitement; overflowing with enthusiasm
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eclectic: 
composed of elements from a variety of sources
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efface: 
rub or wipe out; make indistinct as if by rubbing
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effervesce: 
bubble, fizz
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egalitarian: 
belief in equality
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elated: 
overjoyed; extremely happy and excited
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elicit: 
draw out; bring forth or to light; generate or provoke as response or answer
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elucidate: 
make clear or plain, especially by explanation; clarify
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elude: 
avoid cleverly; escape perception of
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elusive: 
difficult to describe; difficult to detect or grasp by mind
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embitter: 
make worse
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embroiled: 
throw into confusion; deeply involved especially in something complicated
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empathetic: 
compassionate
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empirical: 
derived from experiment and observation rather than theory
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encompass: 
surround; form a circle or ring around; enclose; envelop
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encroaching: 
intrusive
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encumbrance: 
burden
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enigma: 
puzzle; difficult problem
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enumerate: 
list each one; mention one by one
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ephemeral: 
short-lived; enduring a very short time
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epiphany: 
sudden realization
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epitome: 
representative or perfect example of a class or type; brief summary, as of a book or article
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equanimity: 
calmness of temperament; steadiness of mind under stress.
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equitable: 
marked by or having equity; just and impartial
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equivocal: 
open to two or more interpretations and often intended to mislead
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erudite: 
learned; scholarly, with emphasis on knowledge gained from books
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esoteric: 
hard to understand; known only in a particular group
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estrange: 
alienate
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eulogy: 
expression of praise, often on the occasion of someone's death
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evoke: 
bring out; arouse; call forth
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exacting: 
making severe demands; rigorous; requiring great care, effort, or attention
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excavate: 
unearth; dig out; make a hole in; hollow out
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exemplar: 
representative example
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exhibitionist: 
deliberately behaving a certain way to attract attention
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exhort: 
urge on or encourage, especially by shouts; make urgent appeal
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exorbitant: 
greatly exceeding bounds of reason or moderation; exceeding proper limits
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expedient: 
suitable; appropriate to a purpose; serving to promote your interest
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expose: 
set forth; set out to public view
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extol: 
praise highly; glorify; celebrate
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extricate: 
free, as from difficulties or perplexities; cause to be emitted or evolved
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facile: 
done or achieved with little effort or difficulty; ready or fluent
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faction: 
a party of persons having a common end in view
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fallacious: 
false; tending to mislead; deceptive
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fallacy: 
deceptive or false appearance; false notion; deception
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fanaticism: 
excessive zeal; extreme devotion to a belief or cause
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fastidious: 
difficult to please; having complicated requirements; excessively particular demanding about details
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fathom: 
measure the depth; come to understand
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felicitious: 
well-suited, happy
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finesse: 
refinement and delicacy of performance; skillful, subtle handling
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flagrant: 
obvious and offensive, blatant, scandalous; flaming into notice
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flippant: 
lacking proper seriousness; speaking freely; talkative; communicative
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florid: 
reddish; elaborately or excessively ornamented
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flummox: 
confuse
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folly: 
foolishness; lack of good sense, understanding, or foresight
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foolhardy: 
rash; marked by unthinking boldness
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forlorn: 
sad and lonely; wretched; abandoned or left behind
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fortitude: 
bravery; force; power to attack or to resist attack
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fortuitous: 
accidental; by chance; coming or occurring without any cause
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fraudulent: 
cheating; deceitful; planning or using fraud; given to practice of fraud
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frugal: 
sparing; economical; costing little; inexpensive
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furor: 
great excitement; public disorder or uproar
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furtive: 
marked by quiet and caution and secrecy
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futile: 
useless; having no useful result; vain
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gait: 
manner of walking or stepping; bearing or carriage while moving; walk; rate of moving
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gallant: 
courtly; lively and spirited; having or displaying great dignity or nobility
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gargantuan: 
huge; of a tremendous size, volume, degree
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garish: 
over-bright in color; tastelessly showy
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genial: 
friendly; cordial; having a pleasant or friendly disposition or manner
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germinate: 
cause to sprout or grow; come into existence
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glutton: 
person who eats too much food and drink
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grandiose: 
impressive from inherent grandeur; large and impressive, in size, scope or extent
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hackneyed: 
repeated too often; over familiar through overuse
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hamper: 
put at disadvantage; prevent progress or free movement of
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hardy: 
in robust and good health; able to survive under unfavorable conditions
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hasten: 
accelerate; quicken
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heresy: 
opinion contrary to popular belief; opinion contrary to accepted religion
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histrionic: 
characteristic of acting or stage performance
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hubris: 
excessive pride or self-confidence
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