Difficult SAT Words

The Scholastic Assessment Test or SAT,  conducted by the College Board is the first step towards achieving your dreams of studying in the USA. The SAT exam has a reading and writing part which requires students to have a strong vocabulary in order to score well on the SAT.  In this blog, we cover difficult words along with their meaning along with some tips that will help you prepare for your SAT exam!

Why is Studying SAT Vocabulary So Challenging?

Students who want to enrol in US institutions must take the SAT (Scholastic Assessment Test), which is administered by Educational Testing Service on behalf of the nonprofit College Board. The SAT is a challenge for many students since it not only demands strong English reading comprehension, but also that test-takers establish a strong foundation of specialised vocabulary in order to finish the reading comprehension and essays.

The SAT vocabulary themes centre on the economic sphere, and the majority of the words are highly foreign, challenging to learn, and challenging to retain, particularly for Vietnamese students for whom economics was not previously covered in the curriculum. In addition to the “shocking” economic jargon, the SAT also includes sections on literature, law, culture and society, and science (biology, physics, and chemistry), all of which call for test-takers to use their best memorization and application skills.

100 Difficult SAT Words with their Meaning

This is a list of 100 Difficult SAT Words that are a must-know for anyone preparing for this exam:

1. Abject: of the most contemptible kind
2. Aberration: a state or condition markedly different from the norm
3. Abjure: formally reject or disavow a formerly held belief
4. Abnegation: the denial and rejection of a doctrine or belief
5. Abrogate: revoke formally
6. Abscond: run away, often taking something or somebody along
7. Abstruse: difficult to understand
8. Accede: yield to another’s wish or opinion
9. Accost: approach and speak to someone aggressively or insistently
10. Accretion: an increase by natural growth or addition
11. Acumen: shrewdness shown by keen insight
12. Adamant: insistent; unwilling to change one’s mind or opinion
13. Admonish: scold or reprimand; take to task
14. Adumbrate: describe roughly or give the main points or summary of
15. Adverse: in an opposing direction
16. Advocate: a person who pleads for a person, cause, or idea
17. Affluent: having an abundant supply of money or possessions of value
18. Aggrandize: embellish; increase the scope, power, or importance of
19. Alacrity: liveliness and eagerness
20. Alias: a name that has been assumed temporarily
21. Ambivalent: uncertain or unable to decide about what course to follow
22. Amenable: disposed or willing to comply
23. Amorphous: having no definite form or distinct shape
24. Anachronistic: chronologically misplaced
25. Anathema: a formal ecclesiastical curse accompanied by ex-communication
26. Annex: attach to
27. Antediluvian: of or relating to the period before the biblical flood
28. Antiseptic: thoroughly clean and free of disease-causing organisms
29. Apathetic: showing little or no emotion or animation
30. Antithesis: the exact opposite
31. Apocryphal: being of questionable authenticity
32. Approbation: official acceptance or agreement
33. Arbitrary: based on or subject to individual discretion or preference
34. Arboreal: of or relating to or formed by trees
35. Arcane: requiring secret or mysterious knowledge
36. Archetypal: of an original pattern on which other things are modelled
37. Arrogate: seize and take control without authority
38. Ascetic: someone who practises self-denial as a spiritual discipline
39. Aspersion: a disparaging remark
40. Assiduous: marked by care and persistent effort
41. Atrophy: a decrease in size of an organ caused by disease or disuse
42. Bane: something causing misery or death
43. Bashful: self-consciously timid
44. Beguile: influence by slyness
45. Bereft: lacking or deprived of something
46. Blandishment: flattery intended to persuade
47. Bilk: cheat somebody out of what is due, especially money
48. Bombastic: ostentatiously lofty in style
49. Cajole: influence or urge by gentle urging, caressing, or flattering
50. Callous: emotionally hardened
51. Calumny: a false accusation of an offence
52. Camaraderie: the quality of affording easy familiarity and sociability
53. Candour: the quality of being honest and straightforward
54. Capitulate: surrender under agreed conditions
55. Carouse: engage in boisterous, drunken merrymaking
56. Carp: any of various freshwater fish of the family Cyprinidae
57. Caucus: meet to select a candidate or promote a policy
58. Cavort: play boisterously
59. Circumlocution: an indirect way of expressing something
60. Circumscribe: draw a geometric figure around another figure
61. Circumvent: surround so as to force to give up
62. Clamour: utter or proclaim insistently and noisily
63. Cleave: separate or cut with a tool, such as a sharp instrument
64. Cobbler: a person who makes or repairs shoes
65. Cogent: powerfully persuasive
66. Cognizant: having or showing knowledge or understanding or realisation
67. commensurate: corresponding in size or degree or extent
68. Complement: something added to embellish or make perfect
69. Compunction: a feeling of deep regret, usually for some misdeed
70. Concomitant: following or accompanying as a consequence
71. Conduit: a passage through which water or electric wires can pass
72. Conflagration: a very intense and uncontrolled fire
73. Congruity: the quality of agreeing; being suitable and appropriate
74. Connive: form intrigues (for) in an underhand manner
75. Consign: give over to another for care or safekeeping
76. Constituent: one of the individual parts making up a composite entity
77. Construe: make sense of; assign a meaning to
78. Contusion: an injury in which the skin is not broken
79. Contrite: feeling or expressing pain or sorrow for sins or offences
80. Contentious: showing an inclination to disagree
81. Contravene: go against, as of rules and laws
82. Convivial: occupied with or fond of the pleasures of good company
83. Corpulence: the property of excessive fatness
84. Covet: wish, long, or crave for
85. Cupidity: extreme greed for material wealth
86. Dearth: an insufficient quantity or number
87. Debacle: a sudden and complete disaster
88. Debauch: a wild gathering involving excessive drinking
89. Debunk: expose while ridiculing
90. Defunct: no longer in force or use; inactive
91. Demagogue: a leader who seeks support by appealing to popular passions
92. Denigrate: attack the good name and reputation of someone
93. Derivative: a compound obtained from another compound
94. Despot: a cruel and oppressive dictator
95. Diaphanous: so thin as to transmit light
96. Didactic: instructive, especially excessively
97. Dirge: a song or hymn of mourning as a memorial to a dead person
98. Disaffected: discontented as toward authority
99. Discomfit: cause to lose one’s composure
100. Disparate: fundamentally different or distinct in quality or kind

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150 Words that will Elevate your SAT Preparation

Here are 150 Difficult SAT Words that are going to help you ace your SAT exam:

101. Dispel: cause to separate and go in different directions
102. Disrepute: the state of being held in low esteem
103. Divisive: causing or characterised by disagreement or disunity
104. Dogmatic: pertaining to a code of beliefs accepted as authoritative
105. Dour: showing a brooding ill humour
106. Duplicity: the act of deceiving or acting in bad faith
107. Duress: compulsory force or threat
108. Eclectic: selecting what seems best of various styles or ideas
109. Edict: a formal or authoritative proclamation
110. Ebullient: joyously unrestrained
111. Egregious: conspicuously and outrageously bad or reprehensible
112. Elegy: a mournful poem; a lament for the dead
113. Elicit: call forth, as an emotion, feeling, or response
114. Embezzlement: the fraudulent appropriation of funds or property
115. Emend: make corrections to
116. Emollient: a substance with a soothing effect when applied to the skin
117. Empirical: derived from experiment and observation rather than theory
118. Emulate: strive to equal or match, especially by imitating
119. Enervate: weaken physically, mentally, or morally
120. Enfranchise: grant freedom to, as from slavery or servitude
121. Engender: call forth
122. Ephemeral: anything short-lived, as an insect that lives only for a day
123. Epistolary: written in the form of letters or correspondence
124. Equanimity: steadiness of mind under stress
125. Equivocal: open to two or more interpretations
126. Espouse: choose and follow a theory, idea, policy, etc.
127. Evanescent: short-lived; tending to vanish or disappear
128. Evince: give expression to
129. Exacerbate: make worse
130. Exhort: spur on or encourage especially by cheers and shouts
131. Execrable: unequivocally detestable
132. Exigent: demanding immediate attention
133. Expedient: appropriate to a purpose
134. Expunge: remove by erasing or crossing out or as if by drawing a line
135. Extraneous: not belonging to that in which it is contained
136. Extol: praise, glorify, or honour
137. Extant: still in existence; not extinct or destroyed or lost
138. Expurgate: edit by omitting or modifying parts considered indelicate
139. Fallacious: containing or based on incorrect reasoning
140. Fatuous: devoid of intelligence
141. Fetter: a shackle for the ankles or feet
142. Flagrant: conspicuously and outrageously bad or reprehensible
143. Foil: hinder or prevent, as an effort, plan, or desire
144. Foment: instigate or stir up
145. Forbearance: good-natured tolerance of delay or incompetence
146. Fortuitous: lucky; occurring by happy chance
147. Fractious: easily irritated or annoyed
148. Garrulous: full of trivial conversation
149. Gourmand: a person who is devoted to eating and drinking to excess
150. Grandiloquent: lofty in style
151. Gratuitous: unnecessary and unwarranted
152. Hapless: unfortunate and deserving pity
153. Hegemony: the dominance or leadership of one social group over others
154. Heterogenous: consisting of elements that are not of the same kind
155. Iconoclast: someone who attacks cherished ideas or institutions
156. Idiosyncratic: peculiar to the individual
157. Impecunious: not having enough money to pay for necessities
158. Impetuous: characterized by undue haste and lack of thought
159. Impinge: infringe upon
160. Impute: attribute or credit to
161. Inane: devoid of intelligence
162. Inchoate: only partly in existence; imperfectly formed
163. Incontrovertible: impossible to deny or disprove
164. Incumbent: necessary as a duty or responsibility; morally binding
165. Inexorable: impossible to prevent, resist, or stop
166. Inimical: tending to obstruct or cause harm
167. Injunction: a judicial remedy to prohibit a party from doing something
168. Inoculate: inject or treat with the germ of a disease to render immune
169. Insidious: working or spreading in a hidden and usually injurious way
170. Instigate: provoke or stir up
171. Insurgent: in opposition to a civil authority or government
172. Interlocutor: a person who takes part in a conversation
173. Intimation: a slight suggestion or vague understanding
174. Inure: cause to accept or become hardened to
175. Invective: abusive language used to express blame or censure
176. Intransigent: impervious to pleas, persuasion, requests, or reason
177. Inveterate: habitual
178. Irreverence: a mental attitude showing lack of due respect
179. Knell: the sound of a bell rung slowly to announce a death
180. Laconic: brief and to the point
181. Largesse: liberality in bestowing gifts
182. Legerdemain: an illusory feat
183. Libertarian: an advocate of freedom of thought and speech
184. Licentious: lacking moral discipline
185. Linchpin: a central cohesive source of support and stability
186. Litigant: a party to a lawsuit
187. Maelstrom: a powerful circular current of water
188. Maudlin: effusively or insincerely emotional
189. Maverick: someone who exhibits independence in thought and action
190. Mawkish: effusively or insincerely emotional
191. Maxim: a saying that is widely accepted on its own merits
192. Mendacious: given to lying
193. Modicum: a small or moderate or token amount
194. Morass: a soft wet area of low-lying land that sinks underfoot
195. Mores: the conventions embodying the fundamental values of a group
196. Munificent: very generous
197. Multifarious: having many aspects
198. Nadir: the lowest point of anything
199. Negligent: characterised by undue lack of attention or concern
200. Neophyte: any new participant in some activity
201. Noisome: offensively malodorous
202. Noxious: injurious to physical or mental health
203. Obdurate: stubbornly persistent in wrongdoing
204. Obfuscate: make obscure or unclear
205. Obstreperous: noisily and stubbornly defiant
206. Officious: intrusive in a meddling or offensive manner
207. Onerous: burdensome or difficult to endure
208. Ostensible: appearing as such but not necessarily so
209. Ostracism: the act of excluding someone from society by general consent
210. Palliate: lessen or to try to lessen the seriousness or extent of
211. Panacea: hypothetical remedy for all ills or diseases
212. Paradigm: a standard or typical example
213. Pariah: a person who is rejected from society or home
214. Partisan: a fervent and even militant proponent of something
215. Paucity: an insufficient quantity or number
216. Pejorative: expressing disapproval
217. Pellucid: transparently clear; easily understandable
218. Penchant: a strong liking or preference
219. Penurious: excessively unwilling to spend
220. Pert: characterised by a lightly saucy or impudent quality
221. Pernicious: exceedingly harmful
222. Pertinacious: stubbornly unyielding
223. Phlegmatic: showing little emotion
224. Philanthropic: of or relating to charitable giving
225. Pithy: concise and full of meaning
226. Platitude: a trite or obvious remark
227. Plaudit: enthusiastic approval
228. Plenitude: a full supply
229. Plethora: extreme excess
230. Portent: a sign of something about to happen
231. Potentate: a powerful ruler, especially one who is unconstrained by law
232. Preclude: make impossible, especially beforehand
233. Predilection: a predisposition in favour of something
234. Preponderance: exceeding in heaviness; having greater weight
235. Presage: a foreboding about what is about to happen
236. Probity: complete and confirmed integrity
237. Proclivity: a natural inclination
238. Profligate: unrestrained by convention or morality
239. Promulgate: state or announce
240. Proscribe: command against
241. Protean: taking on different forms
242. Prurient: characterised by lust
243. Puerile: displaying or suggesting a lack of maturity
244. Pugnacious: ready and able to resort to force or violence
245. Pulchritude: physical beauty, especially of a woman
246. Punctilious: marked by precise accordance with details
247. Quaint: attractively old-fashioned
248. Quixotic: not sensible about practical matters
249. Quandary: state of uncertainty in a choice between unfavourable options
250. Recalcitrant: stubbornly resistant to authority or control

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50 Words for Your SAT Preparation 

Following is a list of Difficult SAT Words to elevate your preparation strategy:

251. Redoubtable: inspiring fear
252. Relegate: assign to a lower position
253. Remiss: failing in what duty requires
254. Reprieve: postpone the punishment of a convicted criminal
255. Reprobate: a person without moral scruples
256. Rescind: cancel officially
257. Requisition: an authoritative demand
258. Rife: excessively abundant
259. Sanctimonious: excessively or hypocritically pious
260. Sanguine: confidently optimistic and cheerful
261. Scurrilous: expressing offensive, insulting, or scandalous criticism
262. Semaphore: an apparatus for visual signalling
263. Serendipity: good luck in making unexpected and fortunate discoveries
264. Sobriety: the state of being unaffected or not intoxicated by alcohol
265. Solicitous: full of anxiety and concern
266. Solipsism: the philosophical theory that the self is all that exists
267. Spurious: plausible but false
268. Staid: characterised by dignity and propriety
269. Stolid: having or revealing little emotion or sensibility
270. Subjugate: make subservient; force to submit or subdue
271. Surfeit: indulge (one’s appetite) to satiety
272. Surreptitious: marked by quiet and caution and secrecy
273. Swarthy: naturally having the skin of a dark colour
274. Tangential: of superficial relevance, if any
275. Tirade: a speech of violent denunciation
276. Tome: a large and scholarly book
277. Toady: a person who tries to please someone to gain an advantage
278. Torpid: in a condition of biological rest or suspended animation
279. Travesty: a composition that imitates or misrepresents a style
280. Trenchant: having keenness and forcefulness and penetration in thought
281. Trite: repeated too often; overfamiliar through overuse
282. Truculent: defiantly aggressive
283. Turpitude: a corrupt or depraved or degenerate act or practice
284. Ubiquitous: being present everywhere at once
285. Umbrage: a feeling of anger caused by being offended
286. Upbraid: express criticism towards
287. Utilitarian: having a useful function
288. Veracity: unwillingness to tell lies
289. Vestige: an indication that something has been present
290. Vicissitude: a variation in circumstances or fortune
291. Vilify: spread negative information about
292. Virtuoso: someone who is dazzlingly skilled in any field
293. Vitriolic: harsh, bitter, or malicious in tone
294. Vituperate: spread negative information about
295. Vociferous: conspicuously and offensively loud
296. Wanton: a lewd or immoral person
297. Wily: marked by skill in deception
298. Winsome: charming in a childlike or naive way
299. Yoke: join with stable gear, as two draft animals
300. Zephyr: a slight wind

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Tips to Improve your SAT Vocabulary

While preparing for the SATs, you come across various Difficult SAT Words. However, improving your vocabulary and following the below mentioned tips would not make any SAT words sound difficult:

• The best thing you can do is read, read and read. Reading improves your vocabulary in addition to helping you remember new and difficult SAT words as it is easier to remember when a word is used in a sentence.
• Use a dictionary. Whenever you have the slightest doubt, refer to a dictionary.
• You can practice by writing words down or using difficult words to frame sentences.
• Practice with flashcards.
• The key is consistency, discipline and practice. Do exercises and worksheets regularly and take practice tests.

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50 words you Hear Day-to-Day

Here are 50 Difficult SAT Words which we hear on a daily basis but might not be aware of their meanings:

1. Albeit: a fancier way of saying “although’
2. Appease: pacify or placate (someone) by acceding to their demands.
3. Arbitrary: based on random choice or personal whim, rather than any reason or system
4. Banal: so lacking in originality as to be obvious and boring
5. Bemused: puzzled, confused, or bewildered
6. Benchmark: a standard or point of reference against which things may be compared
7. Candour: the quality of being open and honest; frankness
8. Chronic: (of an illness) persisting for a long time or constantly recurring
9. Contrived: deliberately created rather than arising naturally or spontaneously
10. Colloquial: (of language) used in ordinary or familiar conversation; not formal or literary
11. Compelled: force or oblige (someone) to do something
12. Conundrum: a confusing and difficult problem or question
13. Cult: a system of religious veneration and devotion directed towards a particular figure or object
14. Deferential: showing deference; respectful
15.  Dilemma: a situation in which a difficult choice has to be made between two or more alternatives, especially ones that are equally undesirable
16. Dystopia: an imagined state or society in which there is great suffering or injustice, typically one that is totalitarian or post-apocalyptic.
17. Egregious: outstandingly bad; shocking
18. Entitled: believing oneself to be inherently deserving of privileges or special treatment
19. Empathetic: showing an ability to understand and share the feelings of another
20. Epitome: a person or thing that is a perfect example of a particular quality or type
21. Exponential: (of an increase) becoming more and more rapid
22. Existential: relating to the existence
23. Facetious: treating serious issues with deliberately inappropriate humour; flippant
24. Fortuitous: happening by chance rather than intention
25. Hot-Button:  This is often used to refer to scenarios that are very politically- or emotionally charged.
26. Impeach: charge (the holder of a public office) with misconduct
27. Incongruous: not in harmony or keeping with the surroundings or other aspects of something
28. Inflammable: easily set on fire
29. Infamous: well known for some bad quality or deed
30. Ironic: happening in a way contrary to what is expected, and typically causing wry amusement because of this
31. Jargon: special or technical words that are used by a particular group of people in a particular profession and that other people do not understand
32. Literally: in a literal manner or sense; exactly.
33. Mitigate: make (something bad) less severe, serious, or painful
34. Modicum: a small quantity of a particular thing, especially something desirable or valuable
35. Moot: subject to debate, dispute, or uncertainty.
36. Myriad: a countless or extremely great number of people or things.
37. Nauseous: affected with nausea; feeling inclined to vomit
38. Nuance: a subtle difference in or shade of meaning, expression, or sound
39. Paradox: a seemingly absurd or contradictory statement or proposition which when investigated may prove to be well-founded or true.
40. Penchant: a strong or habitual liking for something or tendency to do something.
41. Perfunctory: (of an action) carried out without real interest, feeling, or effort.
42. Peruse: read (something), typically in a thorough or careful way
43. Plethora: a large or excessive amount of something.
44. Obsolete: no longer produced or used; out of date
45. Oxymoron: a figure of speech in which apparently contradictory terms appear in conjunction (e.g. faith unfaithful kept him falsely true).
46. Redundant: not or no longer needed or useful; superfluous.
47. Stark: severe or bare in appearance or outline
48. Travesty: a false, absurd, or distorted representation of something.
49. Umami: one of the basic tastes; its taste is often described as the meaty, savoury deliciousness that deepens the flavour.
50. Vernacular: the language or dialect spoken by the ordinary people in a particular country or region

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