SAT Vocabulary Ep. 8: 10 High-Frequency Words, Definitions & Practice Quiz

SAT high-frequency vocabulary Set 8: abate, deft, elicit, facilitate, hinder, and 5 more words with definitions, look-alike word pairs, and a 13-question practice quiz.

CRAMBOOKNOTES SAT Vocab Series

SAT High-Frequency Vocabulary

Ep.8 Words in Context - Set 8

High School Grades 10-12 10 Key Words Digital SAT

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Word List

Word	Part of Speech	Definition	SAT Context
Abate Neutral	verb	To become less intense or severe; to reduce	"As the storm began to abate, engineers were finally able to inspect the damage to the levee."
Deft Positive	adjective	Neatly skillful and quick in one's movements or actions	"The surgeon's deft hands completed the delicate procedure in half the expected time."
Elicit Neutral	verb	To draw out a response, answer, or reaction	"The interviewer's carefully worded questions were designed to elicit honest answers from a usually guarded subject."
Facilitate Positive	verb	To make a process or action easier	"The new online portal was built to facilitate communication between students and their academic advisors."
Hinder Negative	verb	To create difficulty for someone, delaying or preventing progress	"Poor lighting in the archive hindered researchers as they tried to read the fragile, centuries-old documents."
Incite Negative	verb	To encourage or stir someone into action, often forcefully	"The pamphlet was banned after officials claimed it was written to incite unrest among factory workers."
Latent Neutral	adjective	Present but not yet visible, active, or developed	"The researcher's early notebooks revealed a latent talent for chemistry that would not fully emerge for another decade."
Rectify Positive	verb	To correct something that is wrong	"The city council moved quickly to rectify the zoning error before construction could begin."
Sporadic Neutral	adjective	Occurring occasionally or at irregular intervals	"Despite sporadic outbreaks of protest throughout the decade, the movement never fully coalesced into a unified campaign."
Undermine Negative	verb	To gradually weaken or damage something	"Leaked internal memos threatened to undermine public confidence in the agency's safety inspections."

Look-Alike Words

Commonly Confused · Similar Meaning

Elicit

To draw out a reaction or response, often through careful prompting.

Incite

To deliberately stir someone into action, often toward conflict.

Tip: Elicit is usually gentle and reveals what's already there. Incite is stronger and pushes someone toward action.

Opposite Charge · Contrast Pair

Facilitate

To make a process easier or help it move forward smoothly.

Hinder

To slow down or get in the way of progress.

Tip: Facilitate helps something happen. Hinder gets in the way of it happening.

Commonly Confused · Similar Function

Latent

Present under the surface, not yet visible or active.

Sporadic

Happening occasionally, without a regular pattern.

Tip: Latent describes something hidden but constantly there. Sporadic describes something that comes and goes irregularly.

Vocabulary Video

Watch - SAT Vocabulary Ep.8

Practice Quiz

SAT Vocab Ep.8 - Practice Quiz

Question 1 of 13

As the flood waters finally began to __________, residents were allowed to return to check their homes.

Question 2 of 13

With __________ precision, the chef plated all twelve dishes in under two minutes.

Question 3 of 13

The teacher's open-ended question was designed to __________ a range of opinions from the class.

Question 4 of 13

The new bridge was built to __________ trade between the two neighboring towns.

Question 5 of 13

Thick fog along the coast __________ the search-and-rescue team's efforts for most of the morning.

Question 6 of 13

Prosecutors argued that the speech was intended to __________ violence at the rally.

Question 7 of 13

Beneath his calm exterior, the coach carried a __________ intensity that surfaced only during big games.

Question 8 of 13

After the billing error was discovered, the company issued a refund to __________ the situation.

Question 9 of 13

Attendance at the weekly meetings had become __________, with some weeks drawing a crowd and others almost empty.

Question 10 of 13

Rumors about the coach's decisions began to __________ team morale just before the playoffs.

Question 11 of 13

Look-Alike Check: A protest organizer who deliberately provokes a confrontation with police is best described as inciting the crowd, rather than simply __________ a reaction.

Question 12 of 13

Look-Alike Check: A translator who slows down a negotiation by mistranslating key terms is __________ the discussion, not facilitating it.

Question 13 of 13

Look-Alike Check: A volcano that has shown no activity for centuries but could still erupt is best described as __________, rather than sporadically active.

out of 13 correct

Full explanations for every question appear below after you check your answers.

Answer Key & Explanations

1Abate. Flood waters becoming less intense until residents could safely return is exactly what abate describes.

2Deft. Plating twelve dishes skillfully and quickly in under two minutes is exactly what deft describes.

3Elicit. An open-ended question designed to draw out a range of opinions is exactly what elicit means.

4Facilitate. A bridge built specifically to make trade between two towns easier is exactly what facilitate describes.

5Hindered. Thick fog creating difficulty for a rescue team's efforts is exactly what hinder means.

6Incite. A speech intended to forcefully stir a crowd toward violence is exactly what incite describes.

7Latent. An intensity present under a calm exterior, surfacing only in big games, is exactly what latent describes.

8Rectify. Issuing a refund specifically to correct a billing error is exactly what rectify means.

9Sporadic. Attendance that varies unpredictably from week to week, with no regular pattern, is exactly what sporadic describes.

10Undermine. Rumors gradually weakening team morale right before the playoffs is exactly what undermine describes.

11Eliciting. Deliberately provoking a confrontation is inciting the crowd, a stronger push toward action than simply eliciting a reaction.

12Hindering. Slowing down a negotiation through mistranslation is hindering it, the opposite of facilitating.

13Latent. A volcano capable of erupting after centuries of no activity is latent, present but not yet active, not simply sporadic.

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