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PSAT VOCAB
SET 2 LIST
107
English
Not Applicable
09/25/2005

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Cards

Term
lugubrious
Definition
exaggeratedly mournful
Term
luminary
Definition
a person who has attained eminence in his/her field
Term
maudlin
Definition
silly and overly sentimental
Term
maverick
Definition
a nonconformist; a rebel
Term
mellifluous
Definition
flowing sweetly, usually refers to sounds of voices
Term
mendacious
Definition
lying, dishonest
Term
meritorious
Definition
deserving praise or reward
Term
mirth
Definition
amusement or laughter
Term
misanthrope
Definition
one who hates people
Term
mollify
Definition
to soften, soothe, pacify
Term
moribund
Definition
dying
Term
narcissism
Definition
excessive love of one's body or oneself
Term
nebulous
Definition
vague, hazy, indistinct
Term
neologism
Definition
a new word or phrase; a new usage of a word
Term
neophyte
Definition
a novice or beginner
Term
noisome
Definition
offensive or disgusting; stinking, noxious
Term
noxious
Definition
harmful, offensive
Term
nuance
Definition
a subtle difference or distinction
Term
numerology
Definition
the study of numbers for the purposes of predicting the future
Term
obdurate
Definition
stubborn, insensitive, unyielding, resistant to persuasion
Term
obeisance
Definition
deep reverence; a bow or curtsy
Term
obfuscate
Definition
to darken or confuse
Term
obsequious
Definition
fawning, subservient, servile, excessively deferential
Term
odometer
Definition
instrument that measures how many miles one has traveled
Term
olfactory
Definition
pertaining to the sense of smell
Term
oligarchy
Definition
government by only a very few people
Term
ornate
Definition
very fancy, usually refers to tangible objects, e.g. ornate woodwork
Term
palliative
Definition
something that provides temporary relief without getting rid of the problem
Term
paltry
Definition
insignificant; worthless
Term
panacea
Definition
something that cures everything
Term
panache
Definition
flair, verve; dashing elegance
Term
paragon
Definition
a model of excellence
Term
peccadillo
Definition
a minor offense or error
Term
pedantic
Definition
boringly scholarly or academic; overconcerned with details
Term
penurious
Definition
extremely stingy, poor or miserly
Term
perfidy
Definition
treachery
Term
perfunctory
Definition
unethusiastic, careless
Term
pernicious
Definition
deadly, extremely evil
Term
perquisite
Definition
a privilege that goes along with a job; a perk
Term
philistine
Definition
a smugly ignorant person with no appreciation for intellectual or artistic matters
Term
piquant
Definition
pleasantly sharp in flavor; interestingly provocative or stimulating
Term
pique
Definition
to excite; to arouse an emotion or provoke to action
Term
plebeian
Definition
common, vulgar, low-class
Term
poignant
Definition
painfully emotional, extremely moving, sharp, or astute
Term
polemic
Definition
a powerful argument often made to attack or refute a controversial issue
Term
portent
Definition
an omen, a sign of something coming
Term
potentate
Definition
a person who possesses great power
Term
predilection
Definition
a natural preference for something
Term
predilection
Definition
a natural preference for something
Term
preempt
Definition
to seize something by prior right
Term
prescient
Definition
having knowledge of things before they exist or happen
Term
priggish
Definition
very fussy, self-righteous, high maintenance, usually refers to people
Term
profligate
Definition
extravagantly wasteful; wildly immoral
Term
prolific
Definition
abundantly productive, fruitful, or fertile
Term
promulgate
Definition
to publicly or formally declare something
Term
prosaic
Definition
dull, unimaginative
Term
pugnacious
Definition
quarrelsome, combative, always ready to fight
Term
pulchritude
Definition
physical beauty
Term
queue
Definition
a line; to line up
Term
quiescent
Definition
motionless; at rest; still
Term
quintessential
Definition
being the most perfect example of
Term
quixotic
Definition
idealistic to a foolish or impractical degree, like Don Quixote
Term
quotidian
Definition
daily; everyday; ordinary
Term
raze
Definition
to completely destroy or level something
Term
rebuke
Definition
to critize sharply
Term
recapitulate
Definition
to review or summarize
Term
recidivism
Definition
the act of repeating an offense
Term
redolent
Definition
fragrant
Term
renege
Definition
to go back on a bet or promise
Term
retrenchment
Definition
cutting down or off, reduction
Term
rhetoric
Definition
the study or art of using language well; the use of undue exaggeration
Term
sacrosanct
Definition
sacred, held to be inviolable
Term
sanguine
Definition
cheerful, optimistic, hopeful
Term
sardonic
Definition
mocking, scornful
Term
saturnine
Definition
gloomy or taciturn
Term
scrupulous
Definition
strict, careful; hesitant for ethical reasons
Term
semantic
Definition
pertaining to the meaning of words or symbols
Term
semaphore
Definition
a system of signaling, usually through the use of flags
Term
serendipity
Definition
accidental good fortune, discovering good things without looking for them
Term
skinflint
Definition
a mean, penny-pinching person
Term
smidgen
Definition
a very small amount
Term
somber
Definition
depressing, dismal, gloomy
Term
specious
Definition
deceptively plausible or attractive; misleading
Term
stand
Definition
a group of trees
Term
sublime
Definition
of great intellectural, moral, or spiritual value
Term
subsidy
Definition
a gift of money
Term
subterfuge
Definition
deceptive strategy used to conceal, escape, or evade
Term
supercilious
Definition
haughty, patronizing
Term
supplicate
Definition
to ask or beg humbly
Term
tenable
Definition
valid, capable of being argued successfully
Term
threadbare
Definition
falling apart, meager, poor, old
Term
truculent
Definition
fierce, cruel, savagely brutal
Term
turbid
Definition
unclear or opaque; lacking clarity or purity
Term
uncanny
Definition
extraordinary, mysterious, uncomfortably strange
Term
unilateral
Definition
involving one side only; done on behalf of one side only
Term
usury
Definition
the practice of lending money at a high rate of interest
Term
vacuous
Definition
empty of content; lacking in ideas or intelligence
Term
vapid
Definition
dull, spiritless
Term
verdant
Definition
covered with green plants; leafy; inexperienced
Term
vernacular
Definition
everyday speech, slang, idiom
Term
vestige
Definition
a remaining bit of something, a trace
Term
vilify
Definition
to say vile things about; to defame
Term
wane
Definition
to decrease in strength or intensity; to fade away; to decline in power
Term
wanton
Definition
malicious, unjustifiable, unprovoked, egregious
Term
wizened
Definition
shriveled, withered, shrunken
Term
zeitgeist
Definition
the mood or spirit of the times
Term
zenith
Definition
the highest point; peak; pinnacle
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