SAT Vocabulary Unit 5

Acuity acuity The acuity of most people’s hearing diminishes as they grow older. (n) sharpness of the mind or senses

Delineate delineate The architects will delineate the main features of their plan at the next client meeting. (v.) to portray, sketch, or describe in accurate and vivid detail; to represent pictorially

Depraved depraved Oscar Wilde’s novel The Picture of Dorian Gray is about a depraved man whose portrait reveals his wickedness. (adj.) marked by evil or corruption; devoid of moral principals

Enervate enervated Unfortunately, the great musician’s mind was enervated by disease in the last decade of her life. (v.) to weaken or lessen the mental, moral, or physical vigor of; to enfeeble

Esoteric esoteric The secret society had a set of esoteric rites to be performed by anyone seeking membership. (adj.) intended for or understood by only a select few

Fecund fecund The remarkably fecund mind of Albert Einstein produced theories that revolutionized the science of physics. (adj.) intellectually productive; fruitful in offspring or vegetation

Fiat fiats The prime minster instituted several new fiats after taking office. (n.) an arbitrary order or decree; a command

Figment figment The silhouette of the man on the porch was a mere figment of your imagination. (n.) a fabrication of the mind; an arbitrary notion

Garner garner Over the years, the writer was able to garner some wisdom that she passed on to others in her books. (v.) to acquire as the result of effort; to gather and store away

Hallow hallowed In the Gettysburg Address, Lincoln hallowed the battlefield on which the Union soldiers fought and died. (v.) to set aside as holy or sacred, sanctify, consecrate; to honor greatly

Idiosyncrasy idiosyncrasy The fact that the plurals of some nouns are formed irregularly is an idiosyncrasy of English grammar. (n.) a peculiarity that serves to distinguish or identify

Ignominy ignominy Michael Vick went from glory to ignominy after he was convicted of cruelty to animals and illegal dog fighting. (n.) shame and disgrace

Mundane mundane While vocabulary may seem mundane, having a variety of words to choose from will add artistic flair to your writing. (adj.) ordinary, routine; practical

Nuance nuance In his writing, the poet paid close attention to every nuance of meaning in the words he chose. (n.) a subtle or slight variation

Overweening overweening It was the overweening confidence of the candidate that prevented her from acknowledging her weaknesses. (adj.) arrogant; conceited; inflated

Penchant penchant Corinne’s friends found her penchant for going on long tirades about trees to be a bit annoying. (n.) a strong attraction or inclination; a habit

Reputed reputed While Al Capone was reputed to have been a dangerous gangster, the only crime he was ever arrested and convicted of was tax evasion. (adj.) according to reputation or general belief; alleged

Sophistry sophistry The couple was tricked into buying a more expensive house than they wanted by the clever sophistry of the realtor. (n.) reasoning that seems plausible but is actually unsound; a fallacy

Sumptuous sumptuous The sumptuous feast honoring the king’s birthday was followed by musical entertainment. (adj.) costly, rich; lavish, opulent

Ubiquitous ubiquitous The cameras in the school are so ubiquitous that most people forget they are there. (adj.) present or existing everywhere; pervasive

QUIZ Your quiz is Wednesday, the 28 th ALL 20 words It will cover ALL 20 words This is your last vocabulary quiz of the year!!

Practice Create a comic or short story that uses at least 15/20 words from this section. You should have a minimum of 10 frames in your comic or 15 sentences in your short story. Your comic/story should focus on a group of students who decide to skip English class in order to avoid a vocabulary quiz.