SAT - C's Flashcards

1
Q

Cacophonous

A

ADJ. discordant; inharmonious.

Do the students in the orchestra enjoy the cacophonous sounds they make when they’re tuning up?

Cacophony, N.

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2
Q

Cajole

A

V. coax; wheedle.

Diane tried to cajole her fahter into letting her drive the family car.

Cajolery; N.

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3
Q

Calculated

A

ADJ. deliberately planned; likely.

Lexy’s choice of clothes to wear to the debate tournament was carefully calculated.

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4
Q

Candor

A

N. frankness; open honesty.

Jack can carry candor too far; when he told Jill his honest opinion of her, she nearly slapped his face.

Candid; ADJ.

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5
Q

Capricious

A

ADJ. unpredictable; fickle; fanciful.

The storm was capricious; it changed course constantly.

Caprice; N.

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6
Q

Carping

A

ADJ. finding fault.

A carping critic is a nit-picker; he loves to point out flaws.

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7
Q

Cliche

A

N. phrase dulled in meaning by repetition.

High school compositions are often marred by such cliches as “strong as an ox.”

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8
Q

Coalesce

A

V. combine; fuse.

The brooks coalesce into one large river.

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9
Q

Coercion

A

N. use of force to get someone to obey.

The inquisitors used both physical and psychological coercion to force Joan of Arc to deny that her visions were sent by God.

Coerce, N.

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10
Q

Colloquial

A

ADJ. pertaining to conversational or common speech.

Some of the new, less formal reading passages on the SAT have a colloquial tone that is intended to make them more appealing to students.

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11
Q

Combustible

A

ADJ. easily burned.

After the recent outbreak of fires in private homes, the fire comissioner ordered that all combustible materials be kept in safe containers.\

Also N.

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12
Q

Commemorate

A

V. honor the memory of.

The statue of Minute Man commemorates the valiant soldiers who fought in the Revolutionary War.

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13
Q

Compile

A

V. assemble; gather; accumulate.

We planned to compile a list of the words most frequently used on SAT examinations.

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14
Q

Complacency

A

N. self-satisfaction; smugness.

Full of complacency about his latest victories, he looked smugly at the row of trophies on his mantlepiece.

Complacent, ADJ.

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15
Q

Complementary

A

ADJ. serving to complete something.

John and Lisa’s skills are complementary; he’s good at following a daly routine, while she’s great at improvising and handling emergencies.

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16
Q

Compliance

A

N. readiness to yield; conformity in fulfilling requirements.

Bullheaded Bill was not noted for easy compliance with the demands of others.

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17
Q

Composure

A

N. mental calmness.

Even the latest work crisis failed to shake her composure.

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18
Q

Comprehensive

A

ADJ. through; inclusive.

This book provides a comprehensive review of verbal and math skills for the SAT.

19
Q

Concede

A

V. admit; yield.

Despite all the evidence Monica had assembled, Mark refused to concede that she was right.

20
Q

Conciliatory

A

ADJ. reconciling; soothing.

She was still angry despite his conciliatory words.

Conciliate, V.

21
Q

Concise

A

ADJ. brief and compact.

When you define a new word, be concise; the shorter the definiton, the easier it is remember.

22
Q

Concur

A

V. agree.

Did you concur with the decision of the court or did you find it unfair?

23
Q

Condone

A

V. overlook; forgive; give tacit approval; excuse.

Unlike the frail widow, who indulged her only son and condoned his minor offenses, the boy’s stern uncle did nothing but scold.

24
Q

Conflagration

A

N. great fire.

In the conflagration that followed the 1906 earthquake, much of San Francisco was destroyed.

25
Q

Confluence

A

N. flowing together; crowd.

They built the city at the confluence of two rivers.

26
Q

Confound

A

V. confused; puzzle.

No mystery could confound Sherlock Homles for long.

27
Q

Conjecture

A

V. surmise; guess.

Although there was no differencial count, the organizers conjectured that more than 10,000 marchers took part in the March for Peace.

Also N.

28
Q

Consensus

A

N. general agreement.

Every time the garden club members had nearly reached a consensus about what to plant, Mistress Mary, quite contrary, disagreed.

29
Q

Constraint

A

N. compulsion; repression of feelings.

There was a feeling of the constraint in the room because no one dared to criticize the speaker.

Constrain, V.

30
Q

Contend

A

V. struggle; compete; assert earnestly.

Sociologist Harry Edwards contends that young black athletes are exploited by some college recruiters.

31
Q

Contentious

A

ADJ. quarrelsome.

Disagreeing violently with the referees’ ruling, the coach becames so contentious that they threw him out of the game.

32
Q

Contract

A

V. compress or shrink; make a pledge; catch a disease.

Warm metals expand; cold metals contract.

33
Q

Converge

A

V. approach; tend to meet; come together.

African-American men from all over the United States converged to Washington to take part in the historic Million Men march.

34
Q

Conviction

A

N. judgement that someone is guilty of a crime; strongly held belief.

Even her convection for murder did not shake Peter’s conviction that Harriet was innocent of the crime.

35
Q

Cordial

A

ADJ. gracious; heartfelt.

Our hosts greeted us at the airport with a cordial welcome and a hearty hug.

36
Q

Corroborate

A

V. confirm; support.

Though Huck was quite willing to corroborate Tom’s story, Aunt Polly knew better than to believe either of them.

37
Q

Corrode

A

V. destroy by chemical action.

The grider’s supporting the bridge corroded so gradually that no one suspected any danger until the bridge suddenly collapsed.

Corrosion, N.

38
Q

Corrugated

A

ADJ. wrinkled; ridged.

She wished she could smooth away the wrinkles from his corrugated brow.

39
Q

Credulity

A

N. belief on slight evidence; gullibility; naivete.

Con artists take advantage of the credulity of inexperienced investors to swindle them out of their savings.

Credulous, ADJ.

40
Q

Criterion

A

N. standard used in judging.

What criterion did you use when you selected this essay as the prizewinner?

Criteria, PL.

41
Q

Cryptic

A

ADJ. mysterious; hidden; secret.

Thoroughly baffled by Holmes’s cryptic remarks, Watson wondered whether Holmes was intentionally concealing his thoughts about the crime.

42
Q

Culpable

A

ADJ. deserving blame.

Corrupt politicians who condone the activities of the gamblers are equally culpable.

43
Q

Cursory

A

ADJ. casual; hastily done.

Because a cursory examination of the ruins indicates the possibility of arson, we believe the insurance agency should undertake a more extensive investigation of the fire’s cause.