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SAT Vocabulary Words Starting With A

Can you guess the definitions of these words that commonly appear on the Scholastic Aptitude Test?
Quiz by Quizmaster
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Last updated: September 21, 2019
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First submittedMarch 30, 2019
Times taken17,689
Average score73.3%
Rating4.41
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1. Abate (verb)
To exploit selfishly
To make less intense
To stir discontent
To modify by a small amount
Example: The storm abated during the night and by morning the weather was clear
2. Austere (adjective)
Severe; lacking ornament
Conducive to success
Invigorating
Insufficient
Example: I am a man of reserved, cold, austere and forbidding manners
3. Acumen (noun)
Candor
Toxicity
Vivacity
Shrewdness
Example: With my business acumen and your scientific know-how, we can hardly fail
4. Anathema (noun)
Something that one vehemently dislikes
A sudden reversal in fortune
Din; cacophony
A potion
Example: Studying for the SAT was anathema to the star football player
5. Affluent (adjective)
Related to fluids
Wealthy
Generous
Honest
Example: 95% of students at Ivy League universities come from affluent households
6. Ambivalent (adjective)
Having contradictory feelings about something
Uninteresting
Ecstatic
Poorly defined
Example: Modern Britons are often ambivalent about Winston Churchill
7. Archetype (noun)
An ideal example of something
One who is rejected from society
A person who opposes conventional ideas
Something that is possible
Example: Leonardo da Vinci was the archetype of a Renaissance Man
8. Ascetic (noun)
A person devoted to helping others
A medicine that is effective but difficult to tolerate
One who practices strict self-denial
An acid
Example: The ascetic lived in his humble cell, eating just one plain meal a day
9. Adulation (noun)
Nonsense
Excessive praise or flattery
A large windfall
False hope
Example: At first he enjoyed the adulation of the masses, but he soon grew tired of posing for photographs with starstruck fans
10. Abscond (verb)
To leave suddenly and secretly
To criticize harshly
To dig for gold or other precious metals
To buy a political favor
Example: The barkeeper absconded with the cash from the till and was never seen again
11. Antipathy (noun)
Something that is not well designed
Something passed down in a will
A feeling of dislike
Extreme greed
Example: He professed antipathy towards Nickleback, but secretly he liked them
12. Ardent (adjective)
Angular; pointed
Very stupid
Needlessly expensive
Passionate
Example: He was an ardent supporter of the Boston Red Sox
13. Audacious (adjective)
Related to music
Bold; reckless
Completely immoral
Fiscally conservative
Example: The thief hatched an audacious plan to rob a bank in broad daylight
14. Alacrity (noun)
Affected disinterest
Bitterness
Enthusiasm and promptness
Fear
Example: He accepted the dinner invitation with alacrity
15. Anthology (noun)
A polite lie
Secret knowledge
A collection of writings
A proposed schedule
Example: She had been published in an anthology of young poets
+4
Level 90
Mar 30, 2019
15/15 first try. Maybe I should retake the SAT. Do they let you do that when you're over 40?
+2
Level 85
Mar 30, 2019
Yeah, I noticed that my vocabulary seems to have grown in the last 40 years.
+3
Level ∞
Mar 31, 2019
You're not alone. Research has shown that vocabulary improves with age, and doesn't peak until late in life.
+19
Level 83
Apr 6, 2019
^ I mean... the reverse would be quite concerning. Imagine having peak vocab aged 12 and then just forgetting it all.
+5
Level 90
Mar 30, 2019
I think a better definition of archetype would be an original or typical example, not an ideal example.
+2
Level 82
May 14, 2019
that would be an odd usage though I can see how the way the word is commonly used it would lead to people thinking that.
+3
Level 76
May 14, 2019
I concur, considering the meaning of the greek arché is beginning, origin (among other things).
+1
Level 65
Mar 30, 2019
How about GRE vocab quizzes? Then I'm studying through procrastination :-)
+2
Level ∞
Mar 31, 2019
Honestly, the GRE vocab list is pretty similar to the SAT. Which makes sense as college students don't learn much.
+1
Level 65
Mar 31, 2019
I challenge: https://www.prepscholar.com/gre/blog/gre-vs-sat/ #12; https://education.seattlepi.com/similar-gre-sat-1357.html :-) The GRE tests incredibly obscure words as well as the more obscure definitions of common words. The math is supposedly easier, but I hate the whole shebang
+1
Level ∞
Mar 31, 2019
I guess you are right. They made some changes to the SAT in 2016 to remove a lot of the vocab. The reason for my original statement is that test-prep sites seemed to have the same words on both their SAT and GRE lists.
+1
Level 85
Mar 30, 2019
Typo in the instructions: "commonly in appear"
+1
Level ∞
Mar 31, 2019
Fixed
+1
Level 60
Mar 31, 2019
Is this how students are tested in America? Depends on luck rather than knowledge ! You have 1 change in 4 that it is right, even if you have no idea.
+5
Level ∞
Mar 31, 2019
On a large enough test, luck is not going to play that large a role. Interestingly enough, the SAT used to penalize incorrect guesses. They changed it because they found that girls were more afraid to guess than boys and it was hurting their scores.
+1
Level 66
May 16, 2019
Did the predictive value of the scores change when they removed the guessing penalty?
+1
Level 78
Mar 31, 2019
So this test determines who can go to uni/college? Far from ideal but still much better than the German way, which only takes into account the final graduation grade in most cases.
+4
Level 90
Mar 31, 2019
It doesn't 'determine'...it is one of many factors. Each Uni/College has its own standards, but generally, they look at things like: average grade through all 4 years of high school, grades for final year of HS, grade trend through HS, (academic) awards, participation in extra-curricular activities, writing skills, and SAT/ACT test scores.
+1
Level 83
Apr 1, 2019
Huh... Turns out the acid is spelled "acetic".
+2
Level 81
Apr 1, 2019
the example on number 11 lol
+3
Level 74
Apr 2, 2019
Do I smell a vocab series in the works? Yayyyyyy
+1
Level 82
May 14, 2019
easy
+2
Level 79
May 14, 2019
Love the Nickleback sentence
+1
Level 24
May 14, 2019
I clicked this thinking these were words from SATs (National Curriculum assessment) here in England but I clearly guess wrong after seeing the first vocabulary word...
+1
Level 67
May 14, 2019
Pretty sure they ditched the vocabulary section of the SAT, but these were definitely the kinds of words that appeared when it was included.
+1
Level 72
May 14, 2019
Learned 9 new words!
+1
Level 39
May 14, 2019
I bet you everyone feels that way about Nickleback.
+1
Level 79
Feb 20, 2021
'adulation'?
+1
Level 79
May 15, 2019
'Cacophony' in the second option of the fourth question is spelt wrong.
+1
Level ∞
Sep 21, 2019
Fixed
+1
Level 79
Feb 20, 2021
Thanks
+3
Level 63
Jan 3, 2021
I'm gonna fail SAT
+1
Level 79
Feb 20, 2021
I got only ascetic wrong!
+1
Level 52
May 10, 2021
abate actually means to be the best luigi player in melee
+1
Level 46
Jan 1, 2022
27%. Good message I should probably get back to studying. Taking the SAT in march.
+1
Level 78
Sep 17, 2022
I got tricked by alacrity...but the rest I got right. Should probably study a bit more so I don't slip up again!