Sat (C)

Front 1

Cacophony

Back 1

n.) tremendous noise, disharmonious sound

The elementary school orchestra created a cacophony at the recital.

Front 2

Cadence

Back 2

a rhythm, progression of sound

The pianist used the foot pedal to emphasize the cadence of the sonata.

Front 3

Cajole

Back 3

v.) to urge, coax

Fred’s buddies cajoled him into attending the bachelor party.

Front 4

Calamity

Back 4

n.) an event with disastrous consequences

The earthquake in San Francisco

was a calamity worse than any other natural disaster in history.

Front 5

Calibrate

Back 5

v.) to set, standardize

The mechanic calibrated the car’s transmission to make the motor run most efficiently.

Front 6

Callous

Back 6

adj.) harsh, cold, unfeeling

The murderer’s callous lack of remorse shocked the jury.

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Calumny

Back 7

(n.) an attempt to spoil someone else’s reputation by spreading lies

The local official’s calumny ended up ruining his opponent’s prospect of winning the election.

Front 8

Camaraderie

Back 8

n.) brotherhood, jovial unity

Camaraderie among employees usually leads to success in business.

Front 9

Candor

Back 9

n.) honesty, frankness

We were surprised by the candor of the mayor’s speech because he is usually rather evasive.

Front 10

Canny

Back 10

(adj.) shrewd, careful

The canny runner hung at the back of the pack through much of the race to watch the other runners, and then sprinted past them at the end.

Front 11

Canvas

Back 11

1. (n.) a piece of cloth on which an artist paints

Picasso liked to work on canvas rather than on bare cement.

2. (v.) to cover, inspect

We canvassed the neighborhood looking for clues.

Front 12

Capacious

Back 12

adj.) very spacious

The workers delighted in their new capacious office space.

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Capitulate

Back 13

v.) to surrender

The army finally capitulated after fighting a long costly battle.

Front 14

Capricious

Back 14

adj.) subject to whim, fickle

The young girl’s capricious tendencies made it difficult for her to focus on achieving her goals.

Front 15

Captivate

Back 15

v.) to get the attention of, hold

The fireworks captivated the young boy, who had never seen such things before.

Front 16

Carouse

Back 16

v.) to party, celebrate

We caroused all night after getting married.

Front 17

Carp

Back 17

to annoy, pester

The husband divorced his wife after listening to her carping voice for decades.

Front 18

Catalog

Back 18

1. (v.) to list, enter into a list

The judge cataloged the victim’s injuries before calculating how much money he would award.

2. (n.) a list or collection

We received a catalog from J. Crew that displayed all of their new items.

Front 19

Catalyze

Back 19

v.) to charge, inspire

The president’s speech catalyzed the nation and resuscitated the economy.

Front 20

Caucus

Back 20

n.) a meeting usually held by people working toward the same goal

The ironworkers held a caucus to determine how much of a pay increase they would request.

Front 21

Caustic

Back 21

adj.) bitter, biting, acidic

The politicians exchanged caustic insults for over an hour during the debate.

Front 22

Cavort

Back 22

v.) to leap about, behave boisterously

The adults ate their dinners on the patio, while the children cavorted around the pool.

Front 23

Censure

Back 23

1. (n.) harsh criticism

The frustrated teenager could not put up with anymore of her critical mother’s censure.

2. (v.) to rebuke formally

The principal censured the head of the English Department for forcing students to learn esoteric vocabulary.

Front 24

Cerebral

Back 24

adj.) related to the intellect

The books we read in this class are too cerebral— they don’t engage my emotions at all.

Front 25

Chaos

Back 25

n.) absolute disorder

Mr. Thornton’s sudden departure for the lavatory plunged his classroom into chaos.

Front 26

Chastise

Back 26

v.) to criticize severely (After being chastised by her peers for mimicking Britney Spears, Miranda dyed her hair black and affected a Gothic style.

Front 27

Cherish

Back 27

v.) to feel or show affection toward something

She continued to cherish her red plaid trousers, even though they had gone out of style and no longer fit her.

Front 28

Chide

Back 28

v.) to voice disapproval

Lucy chided Russell for his vulgar habits and sloppy appearance.

Front 29

Choreography

Back 29

n.) the arrangement of dances

The plot of the musical was banal, but the choreography was stunning.

Front 30

Chronicle

Back 30

1. (n.) a written history

The library featured the newly updated chronicle of World War II.

2. (v.) to write a history

Albert’s diary chronicled the day-to-day growth of his obsession with Cynthia.

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Chronological

Back 31

adj.) arranged in order of time

Lionel carefully arranged the snapshots of his former girlfriends in chronological order, and then set fire to them.

Front 32

Circuitous

Back 32

adj.) roundabout

The bus’s circuitous route took us through numerous outlying suburbs.

Front 33

Circumlocution

Back 33

n.) indirect and wordy language

The professor’s habit of speaking in circumlocutions made it difficult to follow his lectures.

Front 34

Circumscribed

Back 34

adj.) marked off, bounded

The children were permitted to play tag only within a carefully circumscribed area of the lawn

Front 35

Circumspect

Back 35

adj.) cautious

Though I promised Rachel’s father I would bring her home promptly by midnight, it would have been more circumspect not to have specified a time

Front 36

Circumvent

Back 36

v.) to get around

The school’s dress code forbidding navel-baring jeans was circumvented by the determined students, who were careful to cover up with long coats when administrators were nearby.

Front 37

Clairvoyant

Back 37

(adj.) able to perceive things that normal people cannot

Zelda’s uncanny ability to detect my lies was nothing short of clairvoyant.

Front 38

Clamor

Back 38

1. (n.) loud noise

Each morning the birds outside my window make such a clamor that they wake me up.

2. (v.)to loudly insist

Neville’s fans clamored for him to appear on stage, but he had passed out on the floor of his dressing room.

Front 39

Clandestine

Back 39

adj.) secret

nnouncing to her boyfriend that she was going to the gym, Sophie actually went to meet Joseph for a clandestine liaison.

Front 40

Cleave

Back 40

1. (v.) to divide into parts

Following the scandalous disgrace of their leader, the entire political party cleaved into warring factions.

2. (v.) to stick together firmly

After resolving their marital problems, Junior and Rosa cleaved to one another all the more tightly.

Front 41

Clemency

Back 41

(n.) mercy

After he forgot their anniversary, Martin could only beg Maria for clemency.

Front 42

Clergy

Back 42

n.) members of Christian holy orders

Though the villagers viewed the church rectory as quaint and charming, the clergy who lived there regarded it as a mildewy and dusty place that aggravated their allergies.

Front 43

Cloying

Back 43

adj.) sickeningly sweet

Though Ronald was physically attractive, Maud found his constant compliments and solicitous remarks cloying.

Front 44

Coagulate

Back 44

v.) to thicken, clot

The top layer of the pudding had coagulated into a thick skin.

Front 45

Coalesce

Back 45

v.) to fuse into a whole

Gordon’s ensemble of thrift-shop garments coalesced into a surprisingly handsome outfit.

Front 46

Cobbler

Back 46

n.) a person who makes or repairs shoes

I had my neighborhood cobbler replace my worn-out leather soles with new ones.

Front 47

Cogent

Back 47

adj.) intellectually convincing

Irene’s arguments in favor of abstinence were so cogent that I could not resist them.

Front 48

Cognizant

Back 48

adj.) aware, mindful

Jake avoided speaking to women in bars because he was cognizant of the fact that drinking impairs his judgment.

Front 49

Coherent

Back 49

adj.) logically consistent, intelligible

Renee could not figure out what Monroe had seen because he was too distraught to deliver a coherent statement.

Front 50

Colloquial

Back 50

adj.) characteristic of informal conversation

Adam’s essay on sexual response in primates was marked down because it contained too many colloquial expressions.

Front 51

Collusion

Back 51

n.) secret agreement, conspiracy

The three law students worked in collusion to steal the final exam.

Front 52

Colossus

Back 52

n.) a gigantic statue or thing

For 56 years, the ancient city of Rhodes featured a colossus standing astride its harbor.

Front 53

Commendation

Back 53

n.) a notice of approval or recognition

(Jared received a commendation from Linda, his supervisor, for his stellar performance.

Front 54

Commensurate

Back 54

adj.) corresponding in size or amount

Ahab selected a very long roll and proceeded to prepare a tuna salad sandwich commensurate with his enormous appetite.

Front 55

Commodious

Back 55

adj.) roomy

Holden invited the three women to join him in the back seat of the taxicab, assuring them that the car was quite commodious.

Front 56

Compelling

Back 56

adj.) forceful, demanding attention

Eliot’s speech was so compelling that Lenore accepted his proposal on the spot

Front 57

Compensate

Back 57

v.) to make an appropriate payment for something

Front 58

Complacency

Back 58

n.) self-satisfied ignorance of danger

Front 59

Complement

Back 59

v.) to complete, make perfect

Front 60

Compliant

Back 60

adj.) ready to adapt oneself to another’s wishes

Sue had very strong opinions about what to do on a first date, and Ted was absolutely compliant.

Front 61

Complicit

Back 61

adj.) being an accomplice in a wrongful act

By keeping her daughter’s affair a secret, Maddie became complicit in it.

Front 62

Concede

Back 62

v.) to accept as valid

Andrew had to concede that what his mother said about Diana made sense.

Front 63

Conciliatory

Back 63

adj.) friendly, agreeable

I took Amanda’s invitation to dinner as a very conciliatory gesture.

Front 64

Concomitant

Back 64

adj.) accompanying in a subordinate fashion

(His dislike of hard work carried with it a concomitant lack of funds.

Front 65

Concord

Back 65

n.) harmonious agreement

Julie and Harold began the evening with a disagreement, but ended it in a state of perfect concord.

Front 66

Condone

Back 66

v.) to pardon, deliberately overlook

He refused to condone his brother’s crime.

Front 67

Conduit

Back 67

n.) a pipe or channel through which something passes

The water flowed through the conduit into the container.

Front 68

Confection

Back 68

n.) a sweet, fancy food

We went to the mall food court and purchased a delicious confection.

Front 69

Confidant

Back 69

(n.) a person entrusted with secrets

Front 70

Conflagration

Back 70

n.) great fire

The conflagration consumed the entire building.

Front 71

Confluence

Back 71

n.) a gathering together

A confluence of different factors made tonight the

perfect night.

Front 72

Conformist

Back 72

n.) one who behaves the same as others

Julian was such a conformist that he had to wait and see if his friends would do something before he would commit.

Front 73

Confound

Back 73

(v.) to frustrate, confuse

MacGuyver confounded the policemen pursuing him by covering his tracks.

Front 74

Congeal

Back 74

v.) to thicken into a solid

The sauce had congealed into a thick paste.

Front 75

Congenial

Back 75

adj.) pleasantly agreeable

His congenial manner made him popular

wherever he went.

Front 76

Congruity

Back 76

n.) the quality of being in agreement

Bill and Veronica achieved a perfect congruity of opinion.

Front 77

Connive

Back 77

v.) to plot, scheme

She connived to get me to give up my vacation plans.

Front 78

Consecrate

Back 78

v.) to dedicate something to a holy purpose

Arvin consecrated his spare bedroom as a shrine to Christina.

Front 79

Consensus

Back 79

n.) an agreement of opinion

The jury was able to reach a consensus only after days of deliberation.

Front 80

Consign

Back 80

v.) to give something over to another’s care

Unwillingly, he consigned his mother to a nursing home.

Front 81

Consolation

Back 81

n.) an act of comforting

Darren found Alexandra’s presence to be a consolation for his suffering.)

Front 82

Consonant

Back 82

adj.) in harmony

The singers’ consonant voices were beautiful.

Front 83

Constituent

Back 83

n.) an essential part

The most important constituent of her perfume is something called ambergris.

Front 84

Constrain

Back 84

v.)to forcibly restrict

His belief in nonviolence constrained him from taking revenge on his attackers.

Front 85

Contravene

Back 85

v.) to contradict, oppose, violate

Edwidge contravened his landlady’s rule against overnight guests.

Front 86

Contrite

Back 86

adj.) penitent, eager to be forgiven

Blake’s contrite behavior made it impossible to stay angry at him.

Front 87

Contusion

Back 87

n.) bruise, injury

The contusions on his face suggested he’d been in a fight.

Front 88

Conundrum

Back 88

n.) puzzle, problem

Interpreting Jane’s behavior was a constant conundrum.

Front 89

Convene

Back 89

v.) to call together

Jason convened his entire extended family for a discussion.

Front 90

Convention

Back 90

1. (n.) an assembly of people

The hotel was full because of the cattle- ranchers’ convention.

2. (n.) a rule, custom

The cattle-ranchers have a convention that you take off your boots before entering their houses.

Front 91

Convivial

Back 91

adj.) characterized by feasting, drinking, merriment

he restaurant’s convivial atmosphere put me immediately at ease.

Front 92

Convoluted

Back 92

adj.) intricate, complicated

Grace’s story was so convoluted that I couldn’t follow it.

Front 93

Copious

Back 93

adj.) profuse, abundant

Copious amounts of Snapple were imbibed in the cafeteria.)

Front 94

Cordial

Back 94

adj.) warm, affectionate

His cordial greeting melted my anger at once

Front 95

Coronation

Back 95

n.) the act of crowning

The new king’s coronation occurred the day after his father’s death

Front 96

Corpulence

Back 96

adj.)extreme fatness

Henry’s corpulence did not make him any less attractive to his charming, svelte wife.

Front 97

Corroborate

Back 97

v.) to support with evidence

Luke’s seemingly outrageous claim was corroborated by witnesses.

Front 98

Corrosive

Back 98

adj.) having the tendency to erode or eat away

The effect of the chemical was highly corrosive.

Front 99

Cosmopolitan

Back 99

adj.) sophisticated, worldly

Lloyd’s education and upbringing were cosmopolitan, so he felt right at home among the powerful and learned.

Front 100

Counteract

Back 100

v.) to neutralize, make ineffective

The antidote counteracted the effect of the poison.

Front 101

Coup

Back 101

1. (n.) a brilliant, unexpected act

(Alexander pulled off an amazing coup when he got a date with Cynthia by purposely getting hit by her car.)

2. (n.) the overthrow of a government and assumption of authority (In their coup attempt, the army officers stormed the Parliament and took all the legislators hostage.)

Front 102

Covet

Back 102

(v.) to desire enviously

I coveted Moses’s house, wife, and car.

Front 103

Covert

Back 103

adj.) secretly engaged in

Nerwin waged a covert campaign against his enemies, while outwardly appearing to remain friendly.

Front 104

Credulity

Back 104

n.) readiness to believe

His credulity made him an easy target for con men.

Front 105

Crescendo

Back 105

(n.) a steady increase in intensity or volume

The crescendo of the brass instruments gave the piece a patriotic feel.

Front 106

Criteria

Back 106

n.) standards by which something is judged

Among Mrs. Fields’s criteria for good cookies are that they be moist and chewy.

Front 107

Culmination

Back 107

(n.) the climax toward which something progresses

Front 108

Culpable

Back 108

adj.) deserving blame

He was culpable of the crime, and was sentenced to perform community service for 75 years.

Front 109

Cultivate

Back 109

(v.) to nurture, improve, refine

At the library, she cultivated her interest in spy novels.

Front 110

Cumulative

Back 110

adj.) increasing, building upon itself

The cumulative effect of hours spent in the sun was a deep tan.

Front 111

Cunning

Back 111

adj.) sly, clever at being deceitful

The general devised a cunning plan to surprise the enemy.

Front 112

Cupidity

Back 112

n.) greed, strong desire

His cupidity made him enter the abandoned gold mine despite the obvious dangers.

Front 113

Cursory

Back 113

adj.) brief to the point of being superficial

Late for the meeting, she cast a cursory glance at the agenda.

Front 114

Curt

Back 114

adj.) abruptly and rudely short

Her curt reply to my question made me realize that she was upset at me.

Front 115

Curtail

Back 115

v.) to lessen, reduce

Since losing his job, he had to curtail his spending.