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Are you wondering how important vocabulary is to SAT prep?
This guide will cover everything you need to know. Read on!
Why do I need to study vocabulary?
Expanding your vocabulary and becoming comfortable with understanding new words is a vital skill for anyone who wants to score well on the SAT test*. While it’s true that modern SAT tests place less emphasis on vocabulary than they did in the past, students still need a strong vocabulary to complete the test with confidence and do well.
The reading section of the SAT test presents students with five passages, and many of the questions that follow will test each student’s understanding of words used. In the writing and language section, students must read four more passages and improve upon the expression of the ideas therein with effective use of language.
So… How can students improve their vocabulary to score well on their SATs?
Read Widely
The best way to learn new vocabulary is to read. Fiction, nonfiction, online and in print, read as much and as widely as you can.
Old novels and modern literary fiction are both treasure troves full of words that you haven’t encountered before. Read books that you enjoy and take the time to look up and make note of any new words that you come across.
In this article on studying for the SAT test, high school English teacher Ashley Cullins recommends that students read challenging texts each and every week to help prepare them for the passages they’ll encounter on the SAT test. Cullins suggests academic research papers and magazines like Scientific American.
Make a List
You would do well to keep a running list of new vocabulary that you learn throughout all of your reading and any new words that you encounter in daily life. If you’re getting a late start and want to put together a list more quickly, there are countless resources online that list helpful vocabulary for SAT prep. We’ve even included one in this post!
Quiz yourself as you go through a prefab list, and write down or highlight each of the words that stumped you. Now you have your own personalized list of words to study.
Use Flashcards
Your list won’t do you much good if you don’t take the time to study it. Flashcards are a classic for a reason. You can write them out by hand, which is a great way to cement new words in your memory, or use one of many aps to create a virtual deck of flashcards to study whenever you find a free moment.
Write Novel Sentences
Memorizing definitions is all well and good, but you’ll never become truly comfortable with new vocabulary words until you begin to use them in context. As you go through your lists and flashcards, try using each word in a sentence. For a fun challenge, break out your flashcards and write a short story, incorporating each card in the stack into the next sentence.
Shake Things Up
Many people find that they study best when they’re on the move. Try going through your vocabulary while walking somewhere safe or jogging on a treadmill. You could also record the words and definitions on your phone and then play it back while you exercise; simply speaking and listening to the definitions can go a long way for auditory learners.
It’s all about what works best for you.
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200 SAT Vocabulary Words
We’ve put together a list of common SAT words that many high school students have not yet encountered or aren’t fully comfortable with. Use this list as a starting point for your studies, but remember: understanding new words in context is even more important than memorizing new vocabulary, and that’s a skill that you can only hone through extensive reading.
- abase (v.) to humiliate, degrade
- abate (v.) to reduce, lessen
- aberration (n.) something that differs from the norm
- abject (adj.) wretched, pitiful
- abjure (v.) to reject, renounce
- abnegation (n.) denial of comfort to oneself
- abrogate (v.) to abolish, usually by authority
- abscond (v.) to sneak away and hide
- abstruse (adj.) hard to comprehend
- accede (v.) to agree
- adroit (adj.) skillful, dexterous
- adumbrate (v.) to sketch out in a vague way
- alacrity (n.) eagerness, speed
- analogous (adj.)similar to, so that an analogy can be drawn
- anathema (n.) a cursed, detested person
- apocryphal (adj.) fictitious, false, wrong
- arbiter (n.) one who can resolve a dispute, make a decision
- archetypal (adj.) the most representative or typical example of something
- arrogate (v.) to take without justification
- ascetic (adj.) practicing restraint as a means of self-discipline, usually religious
- banal (adj.) dull, commonplace
- behemoth (n.) something of tremendous power or size
- bilk (v.) cheat, defraud
- bombastic (adj.) excessively confident, pompous
- bourgeois (n.) a middle-class person, capitalist
- calumny (n.) an attempt to spoil someone else’s reputation by spreading lies
- caucus (n.) a meeting usually held by people working toward the same goal
- circumlocution (n.) indirect and wordy language
- circumspect (adj.) cautious
- cogent (adj.) intellectually convincing
- collusion (n.) secret agreement, conspiracy
- commendation (n.) a notice of approval or recognition
- commensurate (adj.) corresponding in size or amount
- complacency (n.) self-satisfied ignorance of danger
- concomitant (adj.) accompanying in a subordinate fashion
- confluence (n.) a gathering together
- congruity (n.) the quality of being in agreement
- contemporaneous (adj.) existing during the same time
- contravene (v.) to contradict, oppose, violate
- credulity (n.) readiness to believe
- cupidity (n.) greed, strong desire
- dearth (n.) a lack, scarcity
- decorous (adj.)socially proper, appropriate
- deleterious (adj.) harmful
- demagogue (n.) a leader who appeals to a people’s prejudices
- denigrate (v.) to belittle, diminish the opinion of
- desolate (adj.) deserted, dreary, lifeless
- despondent (adj.) feeling depressed, discouraged, hopeless
- despot (n.) one who has total power and rules brutally
- didactic (adj.) intended to instruct or overly moralistic
- diffident (adj.) shy, quiet, modest
- dilatory (adj.) tending to delay, causing delay
- disaffected (adj.) rebellious, resentful of authority
- disavow (v.) to deny knowledge of or responsibility for
- discretion (n.) the quality of being reserved in speech or action; good judgment
- discursive (adj.) rambling, lacking order
- dissemble (v.) to conceal, fake
- dogmatic (adj.) aggressively and arrogantly certain about unproved principles
- efface (v.) to wipe out, obliterate, rub away
- elicit (v.) to bring forth, draw out, evoke
- emollient (adj.) soothing
- enervate (v.) to weaken, exhaust
- enfranchise (v.) to grant the vote to
- engender (v.) to bring about, create, generate
- ennui (n.) boredom, weariness
- ephemeral (adj.) short-lived, fleeting
- equivocal (adj.) ambiguous, uncertain, undecided
- espouse (v.) to take up as a cause, support
- evince (v.) to show, reveal
- expiate (v.) to make amends for, atone
- forbearance (n.) patience, restraint, toleration
- fractious (adj.) troublesome or irritable
- garrulous (adj.) talkative, wordy
- gregarious (adj.) drawn to the company of others, sociable
- grievous (adj.) injurious, hurtful; serious or grave in nature
- hallowed (adj.) revered, consecrated
- hedonist (n.) one who believes pleasure should be the primary pursuit of humans
- hegemony (n.) domination over others
- heinous (adj.) shockingly wicked, repugnant
- hypocrisy (n.) pretending to believe what one does not
- iconoclast (n.) one who attacks common beliefs or institutions
- ignominious (adj.) humiliating, disgracing
- immutable (adj.) not changeable
- impassive (adj.) stoic, not susceptible to suffering
- impecunious (adj.) poor
- imperative (adj.) necessary, pressing or (n.) a rule, command, or order
- impervious (adj.) impenetrable, incapable of being affected
- impinge (v.) to impact, affect, make an impression or (v.) to encroach, infringe
- implacable (adj.) incapable of being appeased or mitigated
- impute (v.) to ascribe, blame
- inchoate (adj.) unformed or formless, in a beginning stage
- incorrigible (adj.) incapable of correction, delinquent
- increment (n.) an enlargement; the process of increasing
- indefatigable (adj.) incapable of defeat, failure, decay
- indigent (adj.) very poor, impoverished
- indolent (adj.) lazy
- indomitable (adj.) not capable of being conquered
- ineffable (adj.) unspeakable, incapable of being expressed through words
- inexorable (adj.) incapable of being persuaded or placated
- inimical (adj.) hostile
- injunction (n.) an order of official warning
- intimation (n.) an indirect suggestion
- intrepid (adj.) brave in the face of danger
- inure (v.) to cause someone or something to become accustomed to a situation
- inveterate (adj.) stubbornly established by habit
- irascible (adj.) easily angered
- judicious (adj.) having or exercising sound judgment
- knell (n.) the solemn sound of a bell
- laconic (adj.) terse in speech or writing
- languid (adj.)sluggish from fatigue or weakness
- latent (adj.) hidden, but capable of being exposed
- libertarian (adj.) advocating principles of liberty and free will
- licentious (adj.) displaying a lack of moral or legal restraints
- lithe (adj.) graceful, flexible
- lurid (adj.) ghastly, sensational
- magnanimous (adj.) noble, generous
- manifold (adj.) diverse, varied
- maudlin (adj.) weakly sentimental
- mendacious (adj.) having a lying, false character
- mitigate (v.) to make less violent, alleviate
- modicum (n.) a small amount of something
- mollify (v.) to cause to soften in temper
- multifarious (adj.) having great diversity or variety
- munificence (n.) generosity in giving
- nadir (n.) the lowest point of something
- nascent (adj.) in the process of being born or coming into existence
- nebulous (adj.) vaguely defined, cloudy
- neophyte (n.) someone who is young or inexperienced
- obdurate (adj.) unyielding to persuasion or moral influences
- obfuscate (v.) to render incomprehensible
- obsequious (adj.) excessively compliant or submissive
- obstreperous (adj.) noisy, unruly
- odious (adj.) instilling hatred
- onerous (adj.) burdensome
- oscillate (v.) to sway from one side to the other
- ostensible (adj.) appearing as such, seemingly
- palliate (v.) to reduce the severity of
- panacea (n.) a remedy for all ills
- paradox (n.) an apparently contradictory statement that is perhaps true
- paramount (adj.) greatest in importance, rank, character
- pariah (n.) an outcast
- parsimony (n.) frugality, stinginess
- paucity (adj.) small in quantity
- pejorative (adj.) derogatory, uncomplimentary
- pellucid (adj.) easily intelligible, clear
- penitent (adj.) remorseful, regretful
- penultimate (adj.) next to last
- penurious (adj.) miserly, stingy
- perfidious (adj.) disloyal, unfaithful
- perfunctory (adj.) showing little interest or enthusiasm
- pernicious (adj.) extremely destructive or harmful
- perspicacity (adj.) shrewdness, perceptiveness
- pert (adj.) flippant, bold
- pertinacious (adj.) stubbornly persistent
- petulance (n.) rudeness, irritability
- phlegmatic (adj.) uninterested, unresponsive
- pithy (adj.) concisely meaningful
- placate (v.) to ease the anger of, soothe
- plaudits (n.) enthusiastic approval, applause
- plethora (n.) an abundance, excess
- pliable (adj.) flexible
- poignant (adj.) deeply affecting, moving
- portent (n.) an omen
- potentate (n.) one who has great power, a ruler
- preclude (v.) to prevent
- preponderance (adj.) superiority in importance or quantity
- presage (n.) an omen
- presumptuous (adj.) disrespectfully bold
- pretense (n.)an appearance or action intended to deceive
- privation (n.) lacking basic necessities
- probity (n.) virtue, integrity
- profligate (adj.) dissolute, extravagant
- promulgate (v.) to proclaim, make known
- propensity (n.) an inclination, preference
- propitious (adj.) favorable
- prosaic (adj.) plain, lacking liveliness
- puerile (adj.) juvenile, immature
- pugnacious (adj.) quarrelsome, combative
- pulchritude (n.) physical beauty
- quagmire (n.) a difficult situation
- quandary (n.) a perplexed, unresolvable state
- quixotic (adj.) idealistic, impractical
- rancor (n.) deep, bitter resentment
- rapport (n.) mutual understanding and harmony
- raucous (adj.) loud, boisterous
- raze (v.) to demolish, level
- recalcitrant (adj.) defiant, unapologetic
- replete (adj.) full, abundant
- rife (adj.) abundant
- sagacity (n.) shrewdness, soundness of perspective
- salient (adj.) significant, conspicuous
- surfeit (n.) an overabundant supply or indulgence
- tacit (adj.) expressed without words
- tantamount (adj.) equivalent in value or significance
- temerity (n.) audacity, recklessness
- truculent (adj.) ready to fight, crue
- ubiquitous (adj.) existing everywhere, widespread
- vestige (n.) a mark or trace of something lost or vanished
- wily (adj.) crafty, sly
- zenith (n.) the highest point, culminating point
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