Test-prep vocabulary isn't about rare words for their own sake. These 25 come up in the kind of reading passages tests use, and the questions usually ask what a word means in that sentence.
Learn words in pairs
Many of these words have an opposite or a near-twin in the same set. Learning them together halves the work:
| Makes it worse | Makes it better |
|---|---|
| exacerbate | ameliorate, mitigate |
| Steady | Changeable |
|---|---|
| tenacious, diligent | capricious, impetuous |
Watch the near misses
- Ambivalent is mixed feelings, not no feelings. No feelings is indifferent.
- Ephemeral (short-lived) and ubiquitous (everywhere) both describe trends, so tests like to put them side by side.
- Candid is honest; verbose is long. An answer can be both, or neither.
Use the roots
A few words carry their meaning in their parts: ambi- (both) in ambivalent, bene- (good) in benevolent, ubique (everywhere) in ubiquitous. The third deck in this unit is all roots.
Make it yours
For each new word, say one sentence you'd actually use. “My little brother is gregarious” sticks better than a definition.
Independent study material, not affiliated with College Board or ETS.