SAT 17 Flashcards
Astute; adj.
– wise; shrewd; keen / ant. stupid
Donald Trump made astute investments, shrewdly purchasing real estate throughout New York.
Bolster; verb.
– support; reinforce; strengthen / ant. undermine
The debaters amassed file boxes full of evidence to bolster their arguments.
Complacency; noun
– self-satisfaction; smugness
Full of complacency about his latest victories, he looked smugly at the row of trophies on his mantelpiece.
Disseminate; verb
– distribute; broadcast; circulate; spread; scatter (like seeds)
By the use of the World Wide Web, activists are able to disseminate information to millions.
Dogmatic; adj.
– opinionated; arbitrary; doctrinal / ant. flexible
A goal of WHS’s Simple Faith club is not to be dogmatic about views, but to be inviting to anyone.
Euphemism; noun
– mild expression in place of an unpleasant one
The expression “he passed away” is a euphemism for “he died.”
Impede; verb.
– hinder; block; delay / ant. facilitate
A series of accidents impeded the launching of the space shuttle.
Inundate; verb
– overwhelm; flood; submerge
This school year, I am inundated with work; you should see the homework I am flooded with.
Mundane; adj.
– ordinary; dull; routine; everyday / ant. exotic
My first date with Jim was very mundane; we just talked about the weather and school.
Opaque; adj.
– solid; dense; not clear; obscure / ant. transparent
The windows on the star’s car were tinted so dark, they were opaque; we couldn’t see in.
Pervasive; adj.
– all-encompassing; enveloping; invasive / ant. contained
Max could not rid his clothes of the pervasive odor of smoke that clung to them.
Pretentious; adj.
– ostentatious; pompous; conceited; overly ambitious / ant. down-to-earth
None of the other prize winners are wearing their medals; isn’t it a bit pretentious of you to wear yours?
Profusion; noun
– overabundance; lavish expenditure; excess / ant. dearth
Sue was overwhelmed by the profusion of choices on the menu; she didn’t know what to order.
Provincial; adj.
– pertaining to a province; limited in outlook; narrow; unsophisticated
His provincial outlook was due to his extreme narrow-mindedness.
Ratify; verb.
– approve formally; confirm; verify
Party leaders doubted that they had enough votes in both houses of Congress to ratify the constitutional amendment.
