SAT Vocabulary Year B: Semester 2 - PowerPoint Presentation

SAT Vocabulary Year B: Semester 2

Set 4

4.1

Apathy Lack of interest or concern Noun Sounds like: apple tree Picture: George Washington’s father is qustion him about the chopped down apple tree. Young George just shrugs his shoulders “Who care who cut it down? Nobody likes those apples anyway.” Many citizens are apathetic about elections and don’t bother to vote.

Hyperbole Extreme exaggeration Noun Sounds like: hyper bowl Picture: For the Superbowl this year, all the players were given 10 energy drinks. For the entire game the players were extra hyper. “I’ve told you a million times” is an example of hyperbole.

Fickle Lacking loyalty; unpredictably changeable; erratic adj Rhymes with: pickle and nickel. Picture: A girl is asked whether she wants a pickle or a nickel. She can’t decide and keeps going back and forth. Audiences are fickle, which is why many celebrities fade from view.

4.2

pervade To spread to every part verb Sounds like: Parade Picture: It had been raining all morning, but as soon as the parade began, the sun came out and joy pervaded the crowd. The fire was pervasive and smoke had spread to every apartment.

mundane Ordinary; practical, boring adj Sounds like: Monday Picture: Every Monday every person in the office must go to the weekly meeting. The meeting is always long and boring. Some scientific theorists have trouble with mundane things, such as using a washing machine.

skeptic Someone who doesn’t believe unless shown absolute proof; doubter Noun Sounds like: skip tick Picture: There is a clock in a museum that is supposed to be the world’s most accurate clock. A man, refuses to believe that it never skips a tick. He watches the second hand all day to get proof. They all swore they saw a ghost, but the landlord remained a skeptic.

4.3

volatile Capable of evaporation, exploding, or changing moods quickly adj Sounds like: volley tile Picture: Two teams are playing volleyball, except instead of a ball, they are using a tile. This tile could explode at anytime, so the players try to keep it in the air. The judge had a volatile temper, so the lawyers were on their best behavior.

articulate Able to speak clearly and effectively adj Looks like: Artie Kool-Aid Picture: Artie uses a special Kool-Aid to help him make speeches. He says “This extraordinary thirst quenching concoction is the secret to my success!” To be effective, a preacher must be articulate.

trepidation Fear noun Sounds like: trap a dachshund Picture: Several young boys have trapped a dachshund in a metal cage. The dog is whining and trembling with fear. Alone in the house at night for the first time, Ed was filled trepidation.

4.4

myriad Large number; many adj Sounds like: Mary had Mary had a lamb. That lamb had babies and those lambs had babies. Now Mary has many lambs. The myriad of choices in a store can be overwhelming.

novelty Something new or unusual noun Sounds like: novel tea Picture: A teacup is holding up the teabag reading it as if it were a novel. The microwave is no longer novel; everyone has one.

invert Turn upside down or inside out; reverse position verb Looks like: invent Picture: A scientist named Dr. Bert Invert invented a device that turns inside out socks back the right way. The printer accidentally inverted the image on the poster.

Set 5

5.1

aloof Detached; apart; indifferent adj Sounds like: a roof Picture: a man runs away from his family to the roof of his house. He completely separated himself from the group. He always sat alone, so people assumed he was aloof.

bolster To support; to reinforce verb Rhymes with: bowl stir Picture: A mixing bowl is cheering on the wood spoon “come on spoon! Stir that batter!” Nancy’s goal of a scholarship was bolstered by an unexpected A in Biology.

concise Short and to the point; terse adj Rhymes with: Kohn’s ice Picture:A company called Kahn’s Ice sells and delivers blocks of ice. Their slogan is “Cold.” Phil read the concise note from his wife: “Leave. Now.”

5.2

Embellish To make more beautiful; decorate; adorn verb Sounds like: M bell fish Picture: A girl decorates her goldfish Mabel by tying a bell with the letter “M” on it to its tail. Their home was plain and simple, but they embellished it with handmade crafts.

lament Express sorrow; complain verb Sounds like: lamb mint Picture: A fancy restaurant serves “Lamb with Mint.” A sheep walked into the restaurant ordered the lamb and cried when he recognized his missing brother. The embarrassing incident at the salad bar was simply a lamentable mistake.

relevancy Having a clear relationship to the matter at hand; on topic noun Sounds like: really fancy Picture: A teacher is giving a lecture on the planet Neptune. He mentions the man who discovered the planet. A student raises his hand to comment that the man was really rich and lived in a really fancy house with really fancy furniture. The teacher says “that is not relevant.” A newspaper headline should have a clear relvancy to the article that follows it.

5.3

irony An unexpected outcome, or the use of a word that is the opposite of its literal meaning noun Sounds like: iron knee Picture: A basketball player wished for strong knees like iron. Instead he got irons on his knees. It’s ironic that he tripped on a crutch and broke his leg.

incorrigible Impossible to correct, control, or discipline adj Sounds like: in car itch a bull Picture: A bull family is out driving when one of the kids puts a flea under their dad’s seat. As the father squirms around from the itch, the mother yells, “You are absolutely incorrigible!” Those prisoners deemed incorrigible are often separated from the others.

misconstrue Misunderstand; interpret incorrectly verb Sounds like: Miss Kahn’s Two Picture: A woman on the telephone at a restaurant called Miss Kahn’s two is talking with her friend, who thought they were meeting at Miss Khan’s on the other side of town. It’s easy to misconstrue someone’s meaning in an email, so be careful.

5.4

contingent Dependent upon other circumstances; conditional adj Sounds like: can tin gent Picture: A man made of tin cans likes to play golf. When asked if he was going to compete in the tournament, he replied, “It depends. If it’s sunny, I’ll be there. If it rains, I definitely won’t.” His release from jail was contingent upon his promise to show up in court.

profound Penetrating beyond the superficial; filled with wisdom and insight; deep adj Sounds like: Prof. found Picture: A philosophy professor from the local college had been missing for a week, but he’s been discovered alive trapped deep in a mine shaft. Today’s headline reads: PROF FOUND Tina came through the ordeal with a new and profound understanding of life.

chastise Scold; punish Verb Sounds like: Chase ties Picture: A crazy man runs around his yard chasing ties and scolding them. Roberta chastised her son for his low grades.

Set 6

6.1

banal Boring; trite; insipid adj Sounds like: ban Al Picture: A club’s members want to keep Al from joining. “I say we ban Al, “ says one. “He’s too boring.” The script was filled with banal and predictable scenes.

Warranted Justified; authorized adj Sounds like: Warren Ted Picture: Warren Ted, the town bully, punches a smaller man in the nose. “That wasn’t warrented!” the man yells as the bully walks away. Despite the coach’s protests, the referees agreed that the penalty was warranted.

Uniform Similar; consistent adj Sounds exactly like uniform Picture: A Girl Scout troop marches in a parade. One girl says “Wow, we all wore similar outfits!” The other girl responds “yeah, that’s why they call them uniforms.” Power tools are helpful when you need to cut a lot of lumber into uniform lengths.

6.2

Tyranny Government based on absolute power or cruelty noun Looks like: Tyrannosaur Picture: A Tyrannosaurus Rex seated on a throne. “I am the king!” he growls. “Everyone must listen to me or die!” The American colonies viewed British rule as tyranny.

Nullify Remove or cancel all value or force; negate verb Looks like: null if Y Picture: Nellie has an airplane ticket, but they won’t let her on the plane. They say if the ticket has a “Y” on it than it is null. The touchdown was nullified because the team had too many players on the field.

Discerning Insightful; perceptive adj Sounds like: this urn Ning Picture: An archeologist finds a urn while on a dig in China. When he finds it, he immediately knows where it came from “This urn? Ning. It is from the Ning Dynasty. Look at the color and shape and markings.” She has a discerning nature, which allows her to understand her clients on a deep level.

6.3

Cordial Friendly; welcoming; gracious adj Sounds like: Cord Jill Picture: A girl named Jill stands at the post office and hands out cord to customers in case they need to tie up packages.She is known as the friendliest person in town. We’d heard she was a grouch, so we were surprised by her cordial welcome.

Induce To cause to happen; bring about verb Sounds like: in deuce Picture: Two tennis players are in a match, and one of them falls behind. Suddenly, he manages to lure his opponent into a series of mistakes. Now they’re in duece. He was a persuasive salesman and could induce his customers to buy almost anything.

depleted Emptied; drained; used up verb Sounds like: the pleated Picture: Saleswoman says to a customer who is looking through a rack of pants, “I’m sorry, the pleated ones are all gone.” The epidemic became a medical emergency when supplies of the antibiotics were depleted.

6.4

inane Silly; insignificant adj Sounds like: insane (without the “s”) Picture: A man reads a letter from his psychiatrist to his wife: “He says I’m insane!” When he becomes hysterical his wife reads the letter. “No, it says inane. There’s nothing to worry about. You’re just being silly.” It’s hard to believe that grown men could argue over such inane matters.

Futile Hopelessly ineffective; useless; in vain adj Sounds like: few tile Picture: Two professional roofers are trying to figure out how to stretch the few tiles they have left to cover the rest of the roof. ‘It’s hopeless,” says one. “Too few tiles.” You can flap your arms forever, but trying to fly is a futile effort.

elated Extremely happy; overjoyed adj Sounds like: eel ate ted Picture: Mother eel says to father eel: “Dear, I’m so happy! Baby eel ate Ted this morning!” Father eel: “That’s great, honey! I’m elated!” Uncle frank was elated about winning the lottery.