SAT Vocabulary

WEEK 2/27/2012

Alacrity\ah LACK ri tee\

(n.) cheerful willingness, eagerness; speed

The eager dog obeyed with great alacrity, fetching the stick that had been tossed for him.

Benevolent\bu NEV uh lint\ (adj.) friendly and helpful Erika and Jose volunteer at the shelter,

which is typical of their benevolent natures.

Calamity\ka LAM uh tee\ (n.) Harmful – disaster, catastrophe Last year’s formal dance was a

calamity; the band was an hour late, and the food was spoiled.

Enervate\EN er vayt\ (v.) Weak, to weaken, to sap strength

from The guerillas hoped that a series of

surprise attacks would enervate the regular army.

Enfranchise\en FRAN chiyz\ (v.) ADD – to give the right to vote American women were not

enfranchised until the ratification of the Nineteenth Amendment in 1920.

Flourish\FLUR ish\ (v.) PRODUCTIVE – prosper, thrive While one immigrant family had a hard

time and was unable to survive in their new country, the second family flourished in their new home.

Intrepid\in TREP id\

(adj.) brave, fearless The intrepid explorer entered the

ominous-looking cave without a moment’s hesitation.

Jubilation\JOO bi LAY shin\ (n.) happy, joy, celebration, exultation Tales of the teams jubilation became

legendary when the celebration of their victory lasted an entire month.

Larceny\LAR suh nee\ (n.) theft of property The crime of stealing a wallet can be

categorized as petty larceny.

Lithe/LIYTH/ (adj.) flexible, moving and bending with

ease; graceful The lithe movements of the dancers

were the result of months of grueling practice.

Lummox\LUM iks\ (n.) Clumsy, oafish Having already broken three crystal

bowls, the lummox was forever banned from the antique store.

Maxim\MAK sim\ (n.) Belief, fundamental principle Abby tried her best to live her life

according to the maxim “Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.”

Mitigate\MIT ih gayt\ (v.) Soothe – To soften or make milder A judge may mitigate a sentence if she

decides that a person committed a crime out of need.

Modicum\MOH di kum\ (n.) small or token amount When teachers walk into their

classrooms, they expect at least a modicum of respect from their students.

Paradox\PAR uh doks\ (n.) Contradiction, dilemma, puzzle It is a paradox that those most in need

of medical attention are often those least able to obtain it.

Proliferate\pro LIF uh rayt\

(v.) Increase – propagate, reproduce, enlarge, expand

He only had two guinea pigs initially, but they proliferated to such an extent that he soon had dozens.

Quandary\KWAN du ree\ Indecisive – predicament, dilemma

The ruler realized he was in a quandary when the public demanded the insurgent’s release.

Raucous\RAW kus\ Harsh sounding, boisterous

The primary school cafeteria was a raucous place at lunchtime.

Repudiate\re PYOO dee ayt\ Disapprove – to reject as having no

authority

The old woman’s claim that she was Russian royalty was repudiated when DNA tests showed that she was unrelated to the royal family.

Revelry\REV ul ree\ Happy – boisterous festivity An atmosphere of revelry filled the

school after its basketball team’s surprising victory.

Sagacious\su GAY shiss\ (adj.) Intelligent – wise, shrewd Owls have a reputation for being

sagacious, perhaps because their big eyes resemble glasses.

Stealth\STELTH\ (n.) Hidden – the act of moving in a

covert way The special units traveled by stealth so

the enemy scouts would not detect their position.

Synergy\SIN er jee\ Cooperative interaction producing

greater results Improved synergy among team

members helped to produce a better product than had been developed a year earlier.

Thwart\THWART\ To stop, block or prevent from

happening Our efforts to build a skate park were

thwarted by a lack of funds.

Vicarious\viy KAYR ee us\ Inactive, second hand experience,

endured on behalf of another Although Yuri had never travelled

outside his hometown, he felt vicarious thrills of adventure through the many novels he read.