SAT Vocabulary
Complete SAT Vocabulary Word List
All 249 words from our 10-lesson SAT vocabulary series in one alphabetical reference list, each with its part of speech and a clear definition. Browse the full list below, or download the free printable PDF to study offline.
This master list collects every word taught across our ten SAT vocabulary lessons — 249 high-frequency SAT words in all. Use it as a quick reference, a study checklist, or a printable review sheet. Each lesson breaks these words into sets of 25 and adds synonym, antonym, analogy, and sentence-completion practice with a full answer key.
Printable Word List (PDF)
The printable PDF lists all 249 words alphabetically with definitions — ready to print double-sided for a study packet. It is free for InstructorWeb members; create a free account to download it.
Prefer to study on the go? Get our printable SAT Vocabulary Flashcards — print, cut, and fold for two-sided self-quiz cards.
All 249 SAT Vocabulary Words
The complete alphabetical list. Each entry shows the word, its part of speech, and a student-friendly definition.
| Word | Part of Speech | Definition |
|---|---|---|
| abdicate | (v) | to decline or reject a powerful position, such as a kingship |
| aberration | (n) | a variation or change from what is normal or right; something unnatural |
| aboveboard | (adj) | honest and unconcealed; forthright |
| absence | (n) | the fact of being gone or not present |
| abundant | (adj) | occurring in profusion; easily and often found |
| accusation | (n) | a statement that a person is guilty of wrongdoing or error |
| admonish | (v) | to criticize or rebuke gently for a fault |
| affectation | (n) | an exaggerated or deliberate mannerism |
| aghast | (adj) | shocked; terrified or amazed |
| alcove | (n) | a recess or partially enclosed area connected to a larger room |
| ambiguous | (adj) | having two possible meanings; able to be understood in two different ways |
| ameliorate | (v) | to make something better, particularly a bad situation or condition; to improve |
| angular | (adj) | having sharp corners or many angles |
| annihilate | (v) | to destroy completely, so as to leave no trace |
| anteroom | (n) | a smaller room that serves as an entry into a larger room |
| apathy | (n) | a lack of emotion or caring |
| appellation | (n) | a name or title; a word used to identify a person or thing |
| arbitrary | (adj) | done or chosen without a reason; random |
| aroma | (n) | a typically pleasant scent or smell |
| askance | (adj) | with a sideways glance, as with distrust |
| aspire | (v) | to strive for a goal; to want or desire something excellent or far beyond the current state |
| assent | (v) | to agree |
| attest | (v) | to state or authenticate that something is true, valid, or genuine |
| banal | (adj) | overused or common |
| bauble | (n) | a worthless but attractive adornment |
| bemoan | (v) | to complain |
| beseech | (v) | to beg or plead |
| bewilder | (v) | to perplex or confuse; to disorder a person’s thinking |
| bibliophile | (n) | one who loves or collects books |
| bilateral | (adj) | having two sides |
| boisterous | (adj) | active and happy; full of energy |
| botany | (n) | the scientific study of plants |
| brusque | (adj) | the quality of being short or rude, especially in speech |
| bulbous | (adj) | like or relating to a bulb, especially round like a bulb |
| bureaucracy | (n) | government through administrative organizations or departments |
| candor | (n) | honesty or straightforwardness, especially being honest about something unpleasant |
| caricature | (n) | a representation, often a drawing that exaggerates or distorts features of the subject |
| censorious | (adj) | finding fault; judging harshly |
| chattel | (n) | a thing that is owned; a possession |
| clandestine | (adj) | secretive or covert |
| clumsy | (adj) | moving awkwardly, especially causing collisions, accidents, or mishaps |
| coercion | (n) | the use of physical force, threats, or fear to obtain a desired result |
| complacence | (n) | a sense of contentment with the current state or situation; not desiring change |
| condolence | (n) | sympathy for or acknowledgment of another’s pain or grief |
| conflagration | (n) | an extensive fire |
| consensus | (n) | an opinion that is agreed upon by all members of a group of people |
| contemptuous | (adj) | thinking poorly of; scornful or disdainful |
| contrite | (adj) | sorry for past actions; desiring forgiveness |
| converge | (v) | to come together; to meet |
| copious | (adj) | appearing in large number |
| corrode | (v) | to slowly destroy; to break down over time, as by acid |
| cower | (v) | to cringe or crouch fearfully |
| cranium | (n) | a skull, especially the case of the brain |
| cudgel | (n) | a short, thick blunt weapon; a club |
| culprit | (n) | the person responsible for an unlawful or unallowable act; the guilty party |
| debonair | (adj) | charming; having a sophisticated and attractive manner |
| decipher | (v) | to discover the meaning of a cipher or encryption; to understand a coded or hidden meaning |
| decrepit | (adj) | lacking in strength, especially due to old age or illness |
| defraud | (v) | to cheat; to gain something dishonestly, as through a lie, deception, or confidence game |
| deity | (n) | a god or goddess |
| demented | (adj) | mentally unbalanced or unhinged; insane |
| denude | (v) | to remove covering |
| derision | (n) | offensive attitude or speech; ridicule |
| desist | (v) | to stop; to discontinue an action |
| despite | (prep) | in spite of |
| detest | (v) | to have a profound dislike or abhorrence for; to hate |
| diaphanous | (adj) | sheer and filmy; transparent |
| diffidence | (n) | not trusting or believing in one’s self; self-doubt |
| diligence | (n) | perseverance; an attitude of careful, patient consistency to complete a task |
| discomfort | (n) | physical or mental pain or distress |
| disparage | (v) | to speak poorly of |
| dissuade | (v) | to convince a person to abandon an action or belief |
| duplicity | (n) | purposeful misrepresentation to deceive or defraud |
| effrontery | (n) | boldness; audacity |
| elasticity | (n) | the physical property of matter wherein matter returns to its original form after being reshaped, as an elastic band returns to its original shape after being stretched |
| elude | (v) | to escape from someone or something giving chase or searching; especially to use clever tactics to escape from pursuers |
| embroil | (v) | to entangle in disagreement, argument, or conflict |
| enthrall | (v) | to hold in a rapt state; to have overpowering influence |
| equilibrium | (n) | balance |
| equivocate | (v) | to use words that have multiple meanings, particularly in order to obscure the truth |
| exacerbate | (v) | to make worse; to aggravate a problem or condition |
| exhume | (v) | to remove from the ground something that was buried, especially removing a body from a grave |
| extravagant | (adj) | immoderate and excessive in spending money |
| fealty | (n) | loyalty; fidelity |
| fickle | (adj) | capriciously changeable in affection or belief; not remaining faithful to one idea or feeling |
| finite | (adj) | having an end or limit; not infinite |
| fixture | (n) | a permanency; a person or thing remaining fixed, in the same position |
| foresight | (n) | the ability to anticipate future happenings or to plan for the future |
| fray | (v) | to tear, cut, or pull the edges of a cloth or rope, so that the strings separate from each other |
| furtive | (adj) | acting in a suspicious manner; sneaky |
| geniality | (n) | friendly behavior or attitude |
| ghastly | (adj) | having a horrible appearance |
| granule | (n) | a small particle; a single grain, as of salt |
| gullible | (adj) | easily fooled or tricked |
| habitual | (adj) | usual; done by custom or habit |
| handwriting | (n) | the character or style of a person’s writing by hand; cursive writing |
| havoc | (n) | chaos or large-scale destruction |
| hesitant | (adj) | lacking decisiveness; uncertain or unwilling to make a decision |
| hindrance | (n) | an obstruction or impediment; something that blocks progress |
| horde | (n) | a large group or crowd; a mass of people or living things |
| hustle | (v) | to rush; to act with urgency |
| hypocrisy | (n) | professing beliefs or acting in opposition to one’s true beliefs or actions; insincerity |
| ignominious | (adj) | dishonorable or disgraceful |
| imbibe | (v) | to drink a liquid; to absorb or take in something |
| impartial | (adj) | without bias; having no preconceived belief or position |
| impetus | (n) | a factor that causes action |
| impugn | (v) | to challenge or attack an idea or statement as being untrue, especially to bring up arguments or facts against an idea or statement |
| inaudible | (adj) | unable to be heard |
| inconceivable | (adj) | unimaginable or unthinkable |
| indigent | (adj) | poor; lacking sufficient money |
| inhospitable | (adj) | ill-disposed toward newcomers; unwelcoming |
| insipid | (adj) | lacking in taste or culture |
| inundate | (v) | to overwhelm as if being bombarded by a large quantity of water |
| ire | (n) | anger |
| jaundice | (n) | a yellow discoloration of the skin and tissues caused by a medical condition, such as hepatitis |
| jovial | (adj) | cheerful and joyous |
| juncture | (n) | a joint or seam, where two parts meet |
| kernel | (n) | in a plant, a grain or seed; often edible and found inside the plant |
| lapse | (n) | the act of falling from a righteous or just position; a slight or temporary moral failure |
| lenient | (adj) | tending to give a lesser punishment or penalty |
| liberate | (v) | to put at liberty; to set free |
| lithe | (adj) | moving or bending easily; graceful and fluid in motion |
| litigious | (adj) | willing and likely to pursue a lawsuit |
| loathe | (v) | to hate or despise |
| luminous | (adj) | giving off light |
| malady | (n) | a disease, illness, or medical condition, especially a serious or chronic condition |
| malign | (v) | to talk harshly or critically of, particularly to speak false criticisms |
| massacre | (n) | a mass killing or slaughter, especially the unnecessary killing of many people |
| maudlin | (adj) | excessively emotional |
| meager | (adj) | a small amount, often less than what is needed |
| melodious | (adj) | similar to or characterized by a pleasing and musical succession of sounds |
| metamorphosis | (n) | a change in form or shape, often from one stage of development to another, as a caterpillar turning into a butterfly |
| minimize | (v) | to make as small as possible |
| misapprehend | (v) | to misinterpret; to understand incorrectly |
| mollify | (v) | to calm or pacify |
| momentary | (adj) | lasting only a small amount of time |
| monomania | (n) | an obsession with a single thing or idea |
| morose | (adj) | sorrowful or sullen; broodingly gloomy |
| myriad | (n) | many; a large number; countless |
| myth | (n) | a fictional story told as true in a particular culture, often containing a moral or explaining natural phenomena through supernatural tales |
| navigate | (v) | to control the course and direction of a vessel or vehicle; to find a route, as with a map |
| necessitate | (v) | to make something necessary |
| nefarious | (adj) | exceedingly or undeniably evil |
| nestle | (v) | to lay or be enclosed comfortably; to snuggle |
| nocturnal | (adj) | belonging to, occurring in, or related to the nighttime |
| notorious | (adj) | widely known but viewed negatively or critically |
| obliterate | (v) | to destroy; to break down into nothing; to eliminate |
| oblivion | (n) | lack of consciousness, knowledge, or memory; being completely forgotten |
| obsolete | (adj) | no longer used or useful |
| obstinacy | (n) | stubbornness; an unbending adherence to a position or viewpoint |
| odious | (adj) | extremely distasteful; detestable |
| omnivorous | (adj) | eating food from both animals and plants |
| opinion | (n) | a belief or judgment; something held to be true but without conclusive knowledge |
| opulence | (n) | riches or affluence, especially as shown by expensive or ostentatious possessions or lifestyle |
| ordeal | (n) | an experience that is extremely difficult or trying |
| ostracize | (v) | to banish from or force out of a group or situation |
| outcry | (n) | a loud noise or exclamation, particularly of disapproval |
| outrage | (n) | an action that is outlandishly offensive or vicious |
| overpower | (v) | to use force to physically control or subdue; to master through powerful force |
| palatial | (adj) | large and glorious, as a palace |
| pandemic | (adj) | widespread and pervasive; affecting everyone |
| paralyze | (v) | to make incapable of motion or movement |
| parse | (v) | to break something down into its parts in order to explain or understand it; especially to break apart a sentence into words and phrases, describing each part |
| partition | (n) | something which separates two parts or areas |
| peccadillo | (n) | a minor sin or fault; a trifling wrongdoing |
| peerless | (adj) | without equivalent; better than or above all others |
| penitence | (n) | a desire to atone for wrongdoing |
| perceptible | (adj) | able to be seen, heard, felt, tasted, or touched |
| permissible | (adj) | able to be permitted; allowable |
| perspective | (n) | a particular mental outlook or point of view |
| petrify | (v) | to cause to become hardened or stone like |
| philosophize | (v) | to express an attitude or moral position; to espouse a philosophy |
| phonetic | (adj) | of, relating to, or representing the sounds of speech |
| placid | (adj) | tranquil and calm; at rest |
| plenteous | (adj) | found in ample supply |
| pommel | (v) | to strike repeatedly; to beat, as with a club |
| precarious | (adj) | having potential dangers; hazardous |
| prelude | (n) | an introduction or overture, especially to a musical performance |
| premonition | (n) | a prophetic feeling; an impression that an event, often a bad event, will happen in the future |
| priggish | (adj) | excessively conceited or snobbish |
| prolong | (v) | to make something last longer; to extend a period of time |
| prosaic | (adj) | matter-of-fact; without spirit, style, or imagination |
| prudence | (n) | wise caution; the quality of being careful and judicious |
| purloin | (v) | to steal |
| pyromania | (n) | an abnormal and unhealthy obsession with fire; often the obsessive desire to start fires |
| querulous | (adj) | tending to whine or complain; disagreeable |
| queue | (n) | a line; a group of people waiting in order |
| quiescent | (adj) | inactive or at rest |
| ravenous | (adj) | extremely hungry; filled with hunger that cannot be satisfied |
| ravine | (n) | a deep, long depression in the earth, as a canyon or gorge |
| rebuff | (n) | a refusal or rejection, especially one that is unexpected, harsh, or abrupt |
| reckless | (adj) | careless or unwise; unheeding of danger |
| rectitude | (n) | correctness or uprightness; unerring in following principles |
| recur | (v) | to happen for a second time, or to happen repeatedly at intervals |
| regress | (v) | to move backwards, especially to retreat to a former state |
| remuneration | (n) | money paid for goods or services; compensation or payment |
| reprisal | (n) | retaliation; an act of revenge or retribution |
| resilience | (n) | the ability to quickly or easily recover or regain a former state |
| reticent | (adj) | unwilling to speak; tending to be silent |
| rhapsody | (n) | an expression of exaltation or elation in writing or speech |
| rigor | (n) | a harsh or stern rigidity; unyielding |
| salient | (adj) | noticeable or important; standing out |
| sapient | (adj) | wise |
| scuttle | (v) | to sink a ship by creating a hole or holes in the ship beneath the water line; also to destroy or wreck |
| sediment | (n) | particles that fall to the bottom of a liquid |
| seethe | (v) | to move with violent agitation |
| sequester | (v) | to confine and isolate |
| shiftless | (adj) | lacking willingness or energy to accomplish anything |
| skepticism | (n) | an attitude of doubt or questioning that maintains a need for proof |
| somnolent | (adj) | drowsy or inclined to sleep |
| spurious | (adj) | inauthentic; not bona fide |
| stupendous | (adj) | immense in size or magnitude |
| subsequent | (adj) | occurring afterward |
| suffrage | (n) | the legal right to vote |
| superfluous | (adj) | beyond what is necessary; extra |
| surmise | (v) | to guess, imagine, or deduce |
| tacit | (adj) | not stated outright but understood |
| teem | (v) | to be excessively or abundantly filled with things |
| tenacious | (adj) | stubborn; holding fast to a belief or goal |
| thearchy | (n) | a government ruled by the leaders of a religion or by the power of a god or gods |
| tincture | (n) | a typically alcoholic mixture containing a medicine or remedy |
| toilsome | (adj) | difficult; requiring great labor |
| tortuous | (adj) | having many twists and turns; intricate and difficult to follow |
| transcend | (v) | to go beyond or rise above |
| transition | (n) | an element that serves to smoothly connect two things, places, or states |
| tremulous | (adj) | unsteady and shaking |
| trepidation | (n) | a feeling of anxiety or uncertainty |
| trident | (n) | a large three-pronged fork used as a spear |
| turgid | (adj) | enlarged by fluid; swollen or engorged |
| umbrage | (n) | resentment based on a feeling of having been injured |
| unctuous | (adj) | smarmy or greasy |
| undermine | (v) | to work against a project or purpose; to subvert or sabotage |
| underworld | (n) | a world beneath or below the normal world, especially a criminal world such as mafia society or a world of the dead such as Hades |
| unison | (n) | a state of acting together as one |
| usurious | (adj) | requiring excessive or illegal interest to be paid on a loan |
| vapid | (adj) | lacking in liveliness and flavor; dull |
| veneer | (n) | a superficial, often deceptive, outer layer |
| veracity | (n) | honesty; the quality of keeping to the truth |
| veto | (n) | the action of the president of the United States, according to the provision in the constitution, to reject a law passed by congress |
| vigilance | (n) | alertness; unbreaking attention to a duty |
| virtuoso | (n) | a person who is supremely skilled in a fine art |
| voluble | (adj) | easily and readily speaking; fluent |
| waif | (n) | a person, especially a child, with no home or prospects |
| wane | (v) | to diminish or become less bright, as the progression of the moon from full to new |
| wizen | (v) | to cause to dry out; to deplete all moisture from an object |
| writhe | (v) | to move uncomfortably; to twist around, especially to express pain |
| zealot | (n) | a person who is fanatical or holds extreme and passionate views on a particular topic, especially a religion |
| zenith | (n) | the highest point; a peak of achievement |
| zephyr | (n) | a gentle, low wind |
Study by Lesson
Work through the words in sets of 25. Each lesson has its own printable worksheet, exercises, and answer key.
- SAT Vocabulary Lesson 1 — 25 words with definitions, exercises, and an answer key.
- SAT Vocabulary Lesson 2 — 25 words with definitions, exercises, and an answer key.
- SAT Vocabulary Lesson 3 — 25 words with definitions, exercises, and an answer key.
- SAT Vocabulary Lesson 4 — 25 words with definitions, exercises, and an answer key.
- SAT Vocabulary Lesson 5 — 25 words with definitions, exercises, and an answer key.
- SAT Vocabulary Lesson 6 — 25 words with definitions, exercises, and an answer key.
- SAT Vocabulary Lesson 7 — 25 words with definitions, exercises, and an answer key.
- SAT Vocabulary Lesson 8 — 25 words with definitions, exercises, and an answer key.
- SAT Vocabulary Lesson 9 — 25 words with definitions, exercises, and an answer key.
- SAT Vocabulary Lesson 10 — 24 words with definitions, exercises, and an answer key.
Complete SAT Vocabulary Quiz
A quick 12-question check drawn from across all ten lessons. Select the best answer for each question and submit to see your score.
Complete SAT Vocabulary Quiz
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Which word means 'honesty or straightforwardness'?
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Which word means 'drowsy or inclined to sleep'?
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Which word means 'not believable' or 'impossible to imagine'?
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Which word means 'poor or lacking money'?
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Which word means 'to charm or hold the attention of'?
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Which word means 'to go beyond or surpass'?
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Which word means 'generous or plentiful'?
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Which word means 'a large destructive fire'?
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Which word means 'honesty or truthfulness'?
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Which word means 'the highest point'?
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Which word means 'to destroy or eliminate completely'?
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Which word means 'a state of balance'?
Teaching Guide
Planning SAT vocabulary instruction? See How to Prepare for SAT Vocabulary — a 10–12 week study plan covering what the test rewards, the core word list, active study methods, and how to pace this 10-lesson series.