Study vocabulary selected for SAT preparation, with definitions, usage examples, and links to individual entries.
This is an editorial study collection, not an official or guaranteed exam list. Learn each word in context and compare nearby meanings.
Suggesting favorable prospects or good fortune; promising success at the outset.
Use for: Suggest that circumstances appear to favor a new venture. · Give a beginning, omen, or first impression a hopeful sense of promise.
Natural phrases: auspicious sign · auspicious start · auspicious occasion
An auspicious dawn revealed clear skies for their first voyage.Meaning, forms & examples
Difficult to carry or handle because of great size, weight, or awkward shape.
Use for: Use for bulky things that are awkward to carry, wear, or maneuver. · Make a carried object or garment obstruct movement and complicate action.
Natural phrases: cumbersome equipment · cumbersome coat · cumbersome load
The cumbersome generator had to be dragged through the snow.Meaning, forms & examples
Causing harm, damage, or disadvantage, especially by affecting health, progress, or welfare.
Use for: Describe a circumstance that quietly undermines health, progress, or well-being. · State the adverse effect of a condition, decision, or environment.
Natural phrases: detrimental to health · detrimental effect · detrimental impact
Years of sleep loss proved detrimental to the engineer’s concentration.Meaning, forms & examples
Resolutely courageous and adventurous, especially when facing danger or difficulty.
Use for: Describe a person or group venturing into risk without flinching. · Characterize someone who continues into danger with conspicuous courage.
Natural phrases: intrepid explorer · intrepid investigator · intrepid crew
The intrepid diver descended beneath the ice without pausing to look back.Meaning, forms & examples
Unwilling or hesitant to act, usually because of doubt, resistance, or discomfort.
Use for: Describe hesitation that complicates a choice, confession, or departure. · Show a character’s resistance through a qualified action or delayed decision.
Natural phrases: reluctant to admit · reluctant agreement · reluctant witness
Reluctant to reveal the letter, Mara folded it into her sleeve.Meaning, forms & examples
Present or encountered everywhere within a place, group, or situation; seemingly universal.
Use for: Use when something seems to be everywhere across a setting or society. · Make a detail feel commonplace throughout a city, institution, or culture.
Natural phrases: ubiquitous presence · ubiquitous technology · ubiquitous feature
Smartphones were so ubiquitous in the city that even the night guards used them.Meaning, forms & examples
Not supported by reliable evidence or facts; lacking an adequate basis.
Use for: Use when a belief, allegation, or suspicion has no adequate factual support. · Distinguish a convincing fear or accusation from one that lacks evidence.
Natural phrases: unfounded claim · unfounded accusation · unfounded fear
The inspector dismissed the unfounded rumor after checking the station logs.Meaning, forms & examples
To judge or consider someone or something to have a particular quality or status.
Use for: Use in official, measured, or character-revealing judgments. · Let a narrator or character deliver a considered judgment in concise formal language.
Natural phrases: deem necessary · deem appropriate · deem someone unfit
The committee deemed the evidence too weak to justify another search.Meaning, forms & examples
To strengthen a place or structure against attack, damage, or collapse.
Use for: Describe strengthening a defense, resolve, or food with added nutrients. · Make a shelter or barrier more resistant to attack or damage.
Natural phrases: fortify a wall · fortify a doorway · fortify defenses
They fortified the warehouse doors before the armed convoy arrived.Meaning, forms & examples