Wednesday, May 27, 2020
Top Five Confusing SAT Words
With thousands of words to memorize, the SAT often leads to students to jumble up words in their heads. Its hard to separate the most common SAT words from the no-shows on test day. And itââ¬â¢s hardly their faultsââ¬âthe English language is consists of many words that either look and/or sound very similar. See if you know the difference between the words below. Loathe vs. Loath The first word is the most common one, as in: I loathe youââ¬âyou ate all my yummy chocolates. An easy way to remember that loathe means ââ¬Ëto hate intenselyââ¬â¢ is to look at the last four letters: loââ¬Ëatheââ¬â¢. If you unscramble ââ¬Ëatheââ¬â¢ you get hate. I wish I had a fun nifty mnemonic for loath, but alas I donââ¬â¢t. To be loath is to be reluctant. He was loath to study for the SAT, but realized his future was at stake.à Indigent vs. Indigenous The first word is an adjective which means ââ¬Ëvery poorââ¬â¢. It can also work as a noun: The indigents down by the railroad tracks slept in soggy cardboard boxes. The second word means ââ¬Ënative to a certain areaââ¬â¢. Despite what many believe, the kiwi is not a fruit indigenous to New Zealand but was originally grown in China. Discrete vs. Discreet To be discreet simply means ââ¬Ënot to draw attention to somethingââ¬â¢. This word is more commonly used than discrete. The student discreetly raised her hand and asked softly whether she could leave to use the restroom. Discrete means ââ¬Ëbroken into distinct groupsââ¬â¢. For the word ââ¬Ëdiscreteââ¬â¢, I do have a nifty mnemonic: notice the ââ¬Ëtââ¬â¢ in discrete. It breaks up the two ââ¬Ëeââ¬â¢s. Now the two eââ¬â¢s are discrete (they are split by the ââ¬Ëtââ¬â¢). à Extant vs. Extinct The first word means ââ¬Ëstill existingââ¬â¢. The second means ââ¬Ëno longer in existenceââ¬â¢. Many of Shakespeareââ¬â¢s original manuscripts are extantââ¬âthe same cannot be said of Euripidesââ¬â¢ works. Deter vs. Defer The first word means ââ¬Ëto prevent something from happen, usually by threatââ¬â¢. The second can mean ââ¬Ëto submit to another personââ¬â¢s judgment or authorityââ¬â¢. It can also mean ââ¬Ëto put aside for laterââ¬â¢. The word ââ¬Ëdeferââ¬â¢ has many different definitions but donââ¬â¢t let that deter you from learning it. Hopefully the tricks I used in these words also show how to remember SAT vocabulary in a way thats better than just remembering or scrolling through SAT vocabulary flashcards.
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