SAT “A Midsummer Night’s Dream” Vocabulary 1) Appease – to please, satisfy, pacify, soothe or relieve a. To appease liberals in his party who were unhappy with his conservative policies, the president appointed a liberal to the Supreme Court. 2) Austere – strict, severely stern a. Schoolmasters in colonial America generally were austere figures who inspirited fear in their students. 3) Beguile – charm, mislead delude a. Many British soldiers enlisted in the army in World War I because they were beguiled by the idea of taking part in a quick and glorious victory. 4) Candor – open honesty; frankness a. It’s unrealistic to expect people to speak with candor at all times. 5) Eclectic – diverse; composed of elements drawn from a variety of sources a. Lionel has an eclectic collection of model trains from all over the world. 6) Heresy – an opinion that is contrary to popular belief a. The view that organized sports are a waste of time probably would be regarded as heresy by a majority of Americans. 7) Incite – start; arouse action a. Inciting a riot is a criminal offense because it endangers public safety. 8) Jocular – said or done on jest a. The young diplomat closed his tribute to the outgoing ambassador with what he intended to be a jocular remark about the ambassador’s love of food; the ambassador, however, saw it as an insult. 9) Listless – lacking spirit or energy a. We were surprised y the band’s listless performance until we learned that it had been touring for three months straight and its members were exhausted. 10) Mercenary – interested solely in a profit a. The investor’s motive in building a resort in the poor country isn’t entirely mercenary; he believes that a resort will bring employment that will help the local people. 11) Nonchalance – indifferent; lack of concern a. An appearance of nonchalance is required for anyone who wants to be considered “cool.” 12) Orator – public speaker a. In the age of television, a politician needs fewer of the skills of the traditional orator and more of those of a popular television personality. 13) Pithy – meaningful; concise; substantial a. Try putting a pithy quotation from a well-known person in your essay to capture your reader’s interest. 14) Raucous – loud; harsh, shrill, disorderly, boisterous a. The inexperienced speaker had no idea how to quiet the raucous crowd so that she could begin her speech. 15) Raze – to demolish a. The hotel was razed so that an office building could be built on the site.