Vocabulary Psat Words - Sma

Front 1

degenerate

Back 1

v. to fall below a normal or desirable state, especially functionally or morally; deteriorate ~flourish~

Front 2

depict

Back 2

v. to represent, show, describe

Front 3

derision

Back 3

n. object of ridicule, laughtingstock; laughter, ridicule

Front 4

desiccate

Back 4

v. to dry out thoroughly (as to preserve foods) ~moisten~

Front 5

desultory

Back 5

adj. moving or jumping from one thing to another; disconnected ~connected~

Front 6

didactic

Back 6

adj. intented to instruct

Front 7

digression

Back 7

n. deviation

Front 8

dirge

Back 8

n. a mournful poem, literary work musical composition

Front 9

discernible

Back 9

adj. perceptible

Front 10

disputatious

Back 10

adj. argumentative ~agreeable~

Front 11

clemency

Back 11

n.mercy (especially used in law or lawishness) ~punishment~

Front 12

coalesce

Back 12

v. to grow together; fuse; to come together as to form one whole; unite ~seperate, dissolve~

Front 13

cogitate

Back 13

v. to think deeply or ponder ~disregard~

Front 14

compliance

Back 14

n. a disposition or tendency to; adaptation to; yield to the will of others; the act of following one's wishes or demands; obedience ~disobedience, dissent, resistance~

Front 15

compunction

Back 15

n. remorse (lots of times = w/out compunction)

Front 16

conflagration

Back 16

n. a large destructive fire

Front 17

connotation

Back 17

n. implied meaning of the word: implication (eg thrify and stingy)

Front 18

convivial

Back 18

adj. fond of feasting, drinking, and good company; sociable; merry, festive, jovial ~morose, dull, solitary~

Front 19

covert

Back 19

adj. secretive or undercover ~overt, open, publicized~

Front 20

culpable

Back 20

adj. deserving of blame or censure as being wron, evil, improper, or injurious; guilty ~innocent~

Front 21

bane

Back 21

n. downfall (e.g. of my existence) ~pride~

Front 22

benevolent

Back 22

adj. kind, intending good things ~malevolent~

Front 23

blandishment

Back 23

n. flattery ~degredation~

Front 24

bourgeois

Back 24

adj. middle-class; pretty andn materialistic (common American use) ~working class~

Front 25

brevity

Back 25

n. the quality of being brief; conciseness ~lenth, longevity~

Front 26

cadaverous

Back 26

adj. like a cadaver; ill-looking, gaunt ~robust, healthy~

Front 27

candor

Back 27

n. frankness, directness, forthright with honesty ~guile~

Front 28

cathartic

Back 28

adj. healing ~harmful~

Front 29

charlatan

Back 29

n. a person who is a quack, a fake: a fake doctor

Front 30

clairvoyant

Back 30

n. a person who is these things
adj. profit-like, seeing into the future, predicting etc.

Front 31

abase

Back 31

v. to lower in rank, prestige, or esteem; mortify, degrade ~encourage, promote~

Front 32

acrimony

Back 32

n. bitter, sharp animosity, especially in speech or behavior; bitterness ~sweetness, kindness~

Front 33

aesthetic

Back 33

adj. a guiding principle of artistic matters; appreciation of beaty; good taste

Front 34

affable

Back 34

adj. easy; pleasant to speak to; approachable; gentle,gracious ~cranky, mean, disdainful, unfriendly~

Front 35

affinity

Back 35

n. a natural attraction, liking, or feeling of kinship ~averision~

Front 36

altruistic

Back 36

n. showing unselfish concern for the welfare of others (selfless) ~selfish~

Front 37

ambiguous

Back 37

adj. open to more than one interpretation; doubtful, uncertain, unclear ~clear~

Front 38

ambivalence

Back 38

n. coexistence of opposing attitudes or feelings; uncertainty as to path; indifference ~certainty~

Front 39

amenable

Back 39

adj. responsive to advice, authority, suggestion; willing ~stubborn, unwilling~

Front 40

aversion

Back 40

n. a fixed, intense dislike; repungance; cause or obj. ~affinity~

Front 41

tempestuous

Back 41

adj. tumultuous, stormy, turbulent ~calm~

Front 42

tenuous

Back 42

adj. long and thing; slender; having little substance; weak ~well-established, strong~

Front 43

thwart

Back 43

v. to prevent the occurrence, realization, or attainment of ~encourage, aid, assist~

Front 44

toady

Back 44

n. a person who flatters or deters others for self-serving reasons; suck-up ~sycophant~

Front 45

ubiquitous

Back 45

adj. being or seeming ot be everywhere at once ~scarce~

Front 46

undulate

Back 46

v. to cause to move in a smooth wavelike motion

Front 47

usurp

Back 47

v. to take over or occupy without right ~relinquish~

Front 48

vigor

Back 48

n. physical or mental strength, energy, or force ~relinquish~

Front 49

volatile

Back 49

adj. tending to very often or widely; inconsistent; explosive; unstable ~stable~

Front 50

wane

Back 50

v. to decrease gradually in size, amount, intensity, or degree; to approach an end ~wax, increase~

Front 51

abdicate

Back 51

v. to formally relinquish power or responsibility ~acquire~

Front 52

aberration

Back 52

n. a deviation from the proper or expected course ~normality~

Front 53

bastion

Back 53

n. a defensive stronghold

Front 54

brusque

Back 54

adj. abrupt and curt in manner or speech; discourteously blunt ~gentle~

Front 55

capitulate

Back 55

to surrender under specified conditions; come to terms ~defeat~

Front 56

castigation

Back 56

n. the act of inflicting severe punishment on; the act of critizing severely ~praise~

Front 57

deciduous

Back 57

adj. falling off or shed at a specific season or stage of growth ~evergreen

Front 58

defunct

Back 58

adj. having ceased to exist or live ~extant (in existence)~

Front 59

erroneus

Back 59

adj. containing or derived from error; mistaken ~correct~

Front 60

exuberant

Back 60

adj. full of unrestrained enthusiasm or joy ~gloomy~

Front 61

bracken

Back 61

(n.) an area overgrown with this fern; widespread, often weedy fern with large triangular fronds - often forming dense thickets; coarse ferns

Front 62

coarse

Back 62

(adj.) rough; lacking delicacy or refinement ~smooth~

Front 63

desolate

Back 63

(adj.) abandoned, devoid of inhabitants, deserted; sad and forlorn ~inhabited~

Front 64

forlorn

Back 64

(adj.) appearing sad or lonely because deserted or abandoned, sad ~cheerful~

Front 65

kloof

Back 65

(n.) a deep ravine (S. African) ~hill~

Front 66

matted

Back 66

(adj.) tangled in a dense mass ~untangled~

Front 67

nature

Back 67

(n.) character; the essential qualities or characteristics by which something is recognized