SAT Vocabulary for Juniors

Lesson 10

#1 Idolatry: n. excessive or blind adoration; worship of an object

Some pediatricians have accused overprotective parents of child idolatry.

“Speak of the moderns without contempt, and of the ancients without idolatry.”-Philip Dorner Stanhope Chesterfield, 4th

#2 Adulterate: v. to make impure; to contaminatesyn: taint; corrupt / ant: refine; refined

By adding water to the wine, the shabby restaurant adulterated its quality and cheated

the customers.

“Ghost. The serpent that did sting thy father's life now wears his crown. Hamlet. O my prophetic soul! My uncle? Ghost. Ay, that incestuous, that adulterate beast.”-Shakespeare, Hamlet

#3 Emanate: v. to come forth; to send forthsyn: rise; emerge

A steady stream of water emanated from the broken fire hydrant.

“Speech emanating from a pure heart and mind of learned men and scholars are naturally pure just like water of a river.”-Yajur Veda

#4 Garish: adj. tastelessly gaudysyn: showy; glaring; flashy / ant: sedate; conservative

Some store window displays are simple and elegant, but others are garish and trashy.

“When he shall die, take him and cut him out in little stars and he will make the face of heaven so fine that all the world will be in love with night and pay no worship to the garish sun.”-Skakespeare, Romeo and Juliet

#5 Immutable: adj. unchangeable; fixedsyn: enduring / ant: flexible; changeable

The aging actress spent thousands on cosmetic surgery, only to find that the effects of age and

gravity are immutable.

“Truth is the most unbending and uncompliable, the most necessary, firm, immutable, and adamantine thing in the world.”-Ralph J. Cudworth

#6 Diadem: n. a crown

Looking to upgrade her image, the queen had her diadem encrusted with jewels.

“Nature, like us, is sometimes caughtWithout her diadem.”-Emily Dickinson

#7 Bucolic: adj. pertaining to the countryside; rural; rusticsyn: pastoral / ant: urban

Unicorns and griffins frolicked in the bucolic and verdant landscape.

“I tire of the labour of thinking, and, when the table is finished, start practical jokes and set all playing at games, which we carry on with bucolic boisterousness.”-Jack London, John Barleycorn

#8 Redolent: adj. having a pleasant odor; suggestive or evocativesyn: aromatic / ant: acrid

The crooked politician conducted a campaign redolent of vice and

corruption.

“My weary soul they seem to soothe,And, redolent of joy and youth,To breathe a second spring.”-Thomas Gray

#9 Impecunious: adj. without money; pennilesssyn: destitute; indigent / ant: affluent; prosperous

Despite their impecunious status, the family lived healthily and happily through foraging

and hunting.

“As it was precisely of that love that poor Winsett was starving to death, Archer looked with a sort of vicarious envy at this eager impecunious young man who had fared so richly in his poverty.”-Edith Wharton, The Age of Innocence

#10 Sedition: n. rebellion or resistance against the governmentsyn: treachery; disloyalty

No self-respecting government allows sedition and its rebellious methods to go unpunished.

“The Bill of Rights is a born rebel. It reeks with sedition. In every clause it shakes its fist in the face of constituted authority... it is the one guaranty of human freedom to the American people.”-Frank I, Cobb

#11 Defile: v. to pollute; to corrupt

An immoral act defiles the character of those who do it and those who let it

happen.

“To get power over is to defile. To possess is to defile.”-Simone Well

#12 Gratuitous: adj. unnecessary or uncalled for

Geri’s directions were helpful, but her gratuitous details confused the lost

travelers, and they were forced to stop and ask someone else for directions.

“Tolerance implies a gratuitous assumption of the inferiority of other faiths to one's own.”-Mahatma Gandhi

#13 Onus: n. a burden; a responsibilitysyn: obligation

John accepted the onus of explaining why his group was late.

“Liberals tend to put the onus of your success on society and conservatives on you and your family.”-Dennis Prager

#14 Impious: adj. disrespectful toward Godsyn: irreligious; profane / ant: devout; pious

Larry joined in the impious laughter at the bumbling clergyman.

“When obedience is so impious, revolt is a necessity.”-Pierre Corneille

#15 Caveat: n. a warningsyn: admonition; caution

Remember the buyer’s caveat: if it sounds too good to be true, it probably is.

“Caveat emptor” means “let the buyer beware.”