SAT words - E
| Eccentric - adj. decidedly odd | |
| syn. unusual, aberrational | |
| ant. normal | |
| No one understood why that strange and eccentric guy had to quack every 15 minutes. | |
| Eclectic - adj. carefully selected form many good sources | |
| syn. critical, choicy | |
| ant. unparticular | |
| Every year, Miss Universe is the eclectic selection from a group of the finest girls from all around the world. | |
| Efface - v. to erase or wear away | |
| syn. obliterate, destroy | |
| ant. build, fix | |
| Out of hatred, my sister destroyed and effaced my history project. | |
| Effervescent - adj. bubbling with high spirits | |
| syn. exhilarated | |
| ant. bored, emotionless | |
| That girl always looks so effervescent, hyper, and happy every single day. | |
| Egoist - n. someone who is selfish | |
| syn. misanthrope, narcissist | |
| ant. philanthropist | |
| The egoist didn't care about anyone but himself. | |
| Egregious - adj. painfully noticeable | |
| syn. flagrant, outstandingly bad | |
| ant. inconspicuous | |
| That last obvious and egregious foul had the entire stadium booing. | |
| Elation - n. high spirits | |
| syn. exultation | |
| ant. sadness | |
| After finally getting asked out on a date, I was filled with elation and happiness. | |
| Electorate - n. a group of people that determine the vote in an election | |
| syn. electors, constituency | |
| ant. (none) | |
| In the 2000 elections, the electorate voted in Bush as president, not the general public. | |
| Elucidate - v. to explain fully and clearly | |
| syn. clarify | |
| ant. confuse | |
| I need my teacher to elucidate and explain that theorem in more detail. | |
| Emanate - v. to seep forth | |
| syn. emit | |
| ant. absorb | |
| The sadness that emanated from him spread all over campus. | |
| Emendation - n. correction | |
| syn. alteration, amendment | |
| ant. (none) | |
| I hope my SAT definitions are correct and won't need emendations. | |
| Emollient - n. something that softens | |
| syn. analgesic, lotion, cream | |
| ant. abrasive, irritant | |
| To help her skin, the supermodel used an emollient. | |
| Empathy - n. identification with and understanding of another's situation | |
| syn. concord, rapport | |
| ant. antipathy, antagonism | |
| Since I had been in a similar situation, I felt empathy towards the pain he had to go through. | |
| Emulate - v. to try to equal an example | |
| syn. imitate, copy | |
| ant. differentiate, change | |
| The copycat killer emulated the tactics of Jack the Ripper. | |
| Enervate - v. to drain of energy | |
| syn. exhaust | |
| ant. empower | |
| After running for 10 straight hours and enervating all of my energy, I was exhausted. | |
| Enfranchise - v. to set free | |
| syn. emancipate, disenthrall | |
| ant. enslave, incarcerate | |
| After 2 weeks of being grounded, my mom enfranchised me from the confines of my house. | |
| Enjoin - v. to command or order urgently | |
| syn. advise, demand | |
| ant. allow, encourage, comply | |
| The major enjoined his subordinates to hide in the barracks until the Martians went away. | |
| Ennui - n. boredom | |
| syn. doldrums, languor | |
| ant. enthusiasim, excitement | |
| Ennui quickly set in after 20 straight hours of playing nothing but poker. | |
| Ensconce - v. to hide, cover up | |
| syn. conceal | |
| ant. expose | |
| The mad murderer went to great lengths to ensconce the bodies of those she killed. | |
| Enthrall - v. to hold spellbound | |
| syn. captivate, enchant, bewitch | |
| ant. bore, turn off | |
| That captivating starlet kept me enthralled the entire night. | |
| Entreaty - n. an earnest request | |
| syn. plea, appeal | |
| ant. (none) | |
| Though I sent a desperate entreaty asking for aid, i received none whatsoever. | |
| Ephemeral - adj. short-lived | |
| syn. fleeting, transient | |
| ant. anchored, long, lengthy | |
| The Little Prince's flower was ephemeral and would eventually die. | |
| Equanimity - n. coolness or evenness of dispostion | |
| syn. balance, equality | |
| ant. nervousness, hesitation, emotional | |
| The equanimity and composure he showed was impressive considering the ensuing chaos. | |
| Equitable - adj. impartial | |
| syn. candid, nondiscriminatory | |
| ant. biased, unjust | |
| The equitable judge gave a fair, unbiased decision in the trial. | |
| Equivocal - adj. open to two interpretations | |
| syn. evasive, unclear | |
| ant. definite, clear | |
| Most equivocal poems have multiple meanings, depending on how you look at it. | |
| Erudition - n. learning | |
| syn. bookishness, intellectuality | |
| ant. illiteracy | |
| Her high level of erudition came from 20 years of private tutoring. | |
| Eschew - v. to avoid | |
| syn. shun, abjure, abstain | |
| ant. choose, indulge in | |
| I went to great lengths to eschew the bully that beat me up last week. | |
| Esoteric - adj. of knowledge belonging to initiated people | |
| syn. mysterious, hidden | |
| ant. obvious, well-known | |
| That esoteric information was only available to the top members of the CIA. | |
| Espouse - v. support | |
| syn. adopt, advocate | |
| ant. deny, reject, spurn | |
| Not even my parents would espouse me and lend me money to start a toothpick factory. | |
| Esteem - n. high opinion of one's worth or character | |
| syn. respect, admiration | |
| ant. dislike, disrespect | |
| The respected professor is held in high esteem by most people here on campus. | |
| Eulogy - n. praise | |
| syn. acclaim, accolade | |
| ant. condemnation, damning | |
| The eulogies given at his funeral were extremely respectful and full of praise. | |
| Euphemism - n. use of a "nice" word instead of an offensive or terrible honest one | |
| syn. delicacy | |
| ant. crude term | |
| Though he used euphemisms and flowery language, it was obvious he hated my work. | |
| Euphony - n. pleasing or sweet sound | |
| syn. harmony | |
| ant. cacophony, unpleasant sound | |
| The beautiful euphony produced by the orchestra brought tears to my eyes. | |
| Evanescent - adj. fading or vanishing quickly | |
| syn. transient | |
| ant. permanent | |
| The evanescent alien disappeared as quickly and as suddenly as it appeared. | |
| Exacerbate - v. to make a condition worse | |
| syn. worsen, aggravate, annoy | |
| ant. heal, alleviate, mitigate | |
| I exacerbated my sprained ankle after retwisting it during a game of basketball. | |
| Exasperation - n. extreme annoyance or irritation | |
| syn. displeasure, aggravation | |
| ant. pleasure, enjoyment | |
| My annoying baby brother is a source of great exasperation for me. | |
| Excoriate- v. to censure strongly | |
| syn. denounce, decry | |
| ant. support, laud | |
| The police officer excoriated Peter Parker's decision to let the robber go. | |
| Exculpate - v. forgive | |
| syn. acquit, condone | |
| ant. blame, condemn | |
| Though she destroyed my toothpick projects 5 times, I exculpated her every time. | |
| Exemplar - n. model that others imitate | |
| syn. archetype, criterion | |
| ant. anomaly, atypical | |
| Brad Pitt is the manly exemplar that girls wish their boyfriends would imitate. | |
| Expatriate - n. someone in exile | |
| syn. exile, deportee | |
| ant. repatriate, citizen | |
| Many people became expatriates and exiled themselves from the US to protest the war. | |
| Expedient - adj. opportunistic, suitable | |
| syn. practical, advisable | |
| ant. unsuitable, nonadvisable | |
| The best, most efficient, and expedient way to do well on a test is to know all you need to know beforehand. | |
| Expedite - v. to smooth or speed up a process | |
| syn. facilitate | |
| ant. hinder, hamper | |
| To expedite the trial, lawyers on both sides turned their paperwork in early. | |
| Expropriate - v. seize | |
| syn. appropriate, confiscate | |
| ant. give, relinquish | |
| The credit card company expropriated my industrial toothpick maker after I couldn't afford the monthly payments anymore. | |
| Expurgation - n. removal of objectionable material from a literary work before publication | |
| syn. catharsis, cleansing | |
| ant. contamination, defilement | |
| The expurgation before publication removed all mentions of sex, drugs, or alcohol in the children's book. | |
| Extenuating - adj. reducing in severity or importance | |
| syn. mitigating, alleviating | |
| ant. worsening | |
| His trip to Hawaii after a hard and frantic year in school was an extenuating experience. | |
| Extort - v. to obtain from another by intimidation | |
| syn. blackmail, coerce | |
| ant. (none) | |
| Bullies extort weaker kids in order to get what they want. | |
| Extraneous - adj. lacking relevance | |
| syn. nonessential, redundant | |
| ant. important, necessary | |
| My English teacher wants me to remove all extraneous material from my paper so that I stay on topic. | |
| Extricate - v. to free from an entanglement or awkward spot | |
| syn. release, free | |
| ant. entangle, hamper | |
| Due to overcrowding in the prisons, the warden was forced to extricate and release the ones with the least serious offenses. | |
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© Raymond Ma 2004