1. 1.Though his captors tormented him, he refused to abjure his faith.
Abjure - verb
Parts: ab(away, from); jur(swear)
Educated Guess:
Definition: to remove under oath; to give up
Synonyms: abandon, abdicate, recant, spurn
Antonyms: embrace, proclaim
Variant forms: abjuration (n)
Context Phrase:

2. 2.The speaker’s clever anecdote quickly won him the attention and respect of the audience.
Anecdote - noun
Parts: an (not, without) ec (out) dot (give) not published
Educated Guess:
Definition: a short account of an interesting or humorous incident, An account regarded as unreliable or hearsay
Synonyms: story, joke
Antonyms: na
Variant forms: anecdotal (adj)
Context Phrase:

3. 3. I am averse to freedom of the press if it damages or threatens our national security.
Averse (adj) followed by to
Parts: a (apart, away); vers (turn)
Educated Guess:
Definition: Strongly disinclined. Having a strong dislike or opposition to something (not people)
Synonyms: reluctant, disinclined, unwilling, opposed
Antonyms willing, inclined, wanting, supportive
Variant forms: avert (v) aversion (noun)
Context Phrase:

4. 4. Experience has taught her to be circumspect when making such an important decision.
Circumspect: Adjective
Parts: circum: (around) spect: (look, see)
Educated Guess: to look around
Definition: Heedful of potential consequences; prudent
Synonyms: wary, prudent, careful, heedful, cautious
Antonyms: careless, non-chalant, foolish, reckless
Variant forms: circumspectly (adv), circumspection (n)
Context Phrase:

5. 5.How many states are contiguous to North Carolina?
Contiguous - adjective
Parts: con (together, with); tig (touch); ous (full of)
Educated Guess:
Definition: Sharing a common border, Immediately preceding or following.
Synonyms: touching, adjacent, neighboring:
Antonyms: disconnected, separate
Variant forms: contiguity (noun)
Context Phrase:

6. 6. The Soviet Union is now defunct, and many new countries have been created in that area.
Word/Part of speech - adj
Parts: de (down, from) un (not)
Educated Guess: not from a place
Definition: no longer in existence, operation, or use
Synonyms: dead, vanished, extinct, obsolete, expired
Antonyms: alive, functioning, operative
Variant forms:na
Context Phrase:

7. 7. The defendant hopes that the jurors are dispassionate, that they will listen carefully to the evidence, and that their verdict will be fair.
Dispassionate: adjective
Parts: dis(apart, away, not); passus(suffer, feel, endure); ate (that which)
Educated Guess: not feeling
Definition: not influenced by emotion or bias, free from passion, prejudice, or personal interest
Synonyms: abstract, colorless, detached, unemotional
Antonyms partial, biased, prejudiced
Variant forms:dispassion (n), dispassionately (adj.)
Context Phrase:

8. 8. War tends to engender feelings of cooperation and patriotism among the citizens.
Engender-verb
Parts:en(inside, within); gen (begin, race, family)
Educated Guess:inside family
Definition:to beget; to bring into being; bring about; cause; produce
Synonyms:breed, cause, produce, create, propagate
Antonyms:destroy, eliminate
Variant forms:N/A
Context Phrase:

9. 9. Collaboration will facilitate our completing the task on time.
Facilitate (verb)
Parts: facil (easy); ate (make, cause)
Educated Guess: to make easy
Definition: to make easy or easier
Synonyms: assist, easy
Antonyms: complicate
Variant forms: facilitation, facilitator
Context Phrase:

10. 10. If a parent can appear imperturbable during a child’s tantrum, the child will soon choose another way to seek attention.
Word/Part of speech: Adj.
Parts: im(not); per (thoroughly); turb (agitate); able (capable of)
Educated Guess: Not capable of agitation
Definition: Unshakably calm and collected.
Synonyms: Calm, Unruffled, Collected
Antonyms: Shaken, Bothered
Variant forms: Imperturbability; Imperturbably
Context Phrase:

11. 11. Accused of being infidels, the missionaries were tortured and executed.
Infidel - noun
Parts:in(in, into, not) fid(faith, trust)
Educated Guess:
Definition: an unbeliever with respect to a particular religion especially Christianity and Islam; one with no religious beliefs
Synonyms:faithlessness, sterility, atheism
Antonyms faithful, religious
Variant forms:
Context Phrase:

12. 12. As Jem walked down the street, Mrs
12. As Jem walked down the street, Mrs. Dubose sat on her porch and shouted invectives about his father.
Invective - noun
Parts: in (in, into) vect (carry) literally something carried into the heart that wounds it
Educated Guess: insult
Definition: Harsh and insulting language used to attack or denounce
Synonyms: verbal abuse, insult, vituperation
Antonyms praise, encouragement, euphemism
Variant forms: N/A
Context Phrase:

13. 13. A megalopolis such as New York City offers many diverse opportunities, but the crime rate is usually high.
Megalopolis- noun
Parts: mega(large), polis(city).
Educated Guess: a large city
Definition:a large city
Synonyms: boomtown, metropolis, municipality
Antonyms
Variant forms:
Context Phrase:

14. 14. The incumbent had considered the new candidate a political nonentity; therefore the upset victory was a shock.
Nonentity: Noun
Parts: non (not); esse (to be); ity (state, condition
Educated Guess:
Definition: a person of no importance or significance, non existence
Synonyms: nullity, zippo, nobody, unknown
Antonyms: celebrity, dignitary, luminary, priority
Variant forms: na
Context Phrase:

15. 15.Information is readily available to make teenagers aware of the pernicious effects of smoking.
Pernicious/adj
Parts: per(through, thoroughly); nic (death); ious (full of)
Educated Guess:
Definition: Having a harmful effect; usually in a gradual or subtle way
Synonyms: destructive, ruinous, fatal, deadly
Antonyms: constructive, beneficial, advantageous
Variant forms: perniciously (adv) , perniciousness (n)
Context Phrase:

16. 16. High school graduation should be the prelude to many other accomplishments.
Prelude - noun
Parts: pre(before), lud(play)
Educated Guess: a play before
Definition: something that serves as a preceding event or an introduction to what follows, an introductory piece of music
Synonyms: introduction, preamble, prologue, precursor
Antonyms closing, conclusion, finale, postlude
Variant forms:na
Context Phrase:

17. 17. After the fire destroyed their home, the prostrate family received help from many strangers.
Prostrate/adj
Parts: pro(before, forth); sternere(lie flat) ate cause, make
Educated Guess:
Definition: to put or throw flat with the face down (lie flat) lying stretched on the ground with one’s face downward, completely overcome or helpless, submission
Synonyms: abject, bowed low, abase, grovel, overcome
Antonyms: upright
Variant forms: prostration (n)
Context Phrase:

18. 18. The CIA arrested the renegade as he passed classified information to the enemy.
renegade/noun
Parts: re (back, again) negare (to deny)
Educated Guess:
Definition: one who rejects a religion, cause, allegiance, or group for another; deserter; one who gives up conventional or lawful behavior
Synonyms: traitor, infidel, outlaw, dissident, defector
Antonyms loyalist, patriot, conformist, chauvinist
Variant forms: na
Context Phrase:

19. 19. Because there was so much publicity about the case, the judge decided to sequester the jury.
sequester/verb
Parts: se (apart, away) quest (seek)
Educated Guess:
Definition: To isolate or hide something or someone; to isolate a jury from outside influences, to take temporary possession of property as security against legal claims
Synonyms: seclude, segregate, isolate, confiscate
Antonyms: include, integrate
Variant forms:sequestration (n) sequestrate (v)
Context Phrase:

20. 20. Hoping to be asked by someone more popular, she decided to temporize when the new student invited her to the prom, saying that she needed her parents’ permission before accepting.
temporize/ verb
Parts: tempor (time), ize (cause, make)
Educated Guess:
Definition: to gain time or avoid argument, as by postponing an action or decision; to yield to current conditions; to comply temporarily
Synonyms: compromise, procrastinate, suspend, delay
Antonyms: decide, commit
Variant forms: temporization (noun)
Context Phrase: