"Simon's Saga," Vocabulary from Episode 17

Philip Geer's "Simon's Saga" includes 820 SAT-level words and gives students an entertaining glimpse into college life.

Here are links to our lists for the novel: Episode 1, Episode 2, Episode 3, Episode 4, Episode 5, Episode 6, Episode 7, Episode 8, Episode 9, Episode 10, Episode 11, Episode 12, Episode 13, Episode 14, Episode 15, Episode 16, Episode 17, Episode 18, Episode 19, Episode 20, Episode 21, Episode 22, Episode 23, Episode 24, Episode 25, Episode 26, Episode 27, Episode 28, Episode 29, Episode 30, Episode 31, Episode 32, Episode 33, Episode 34, Episode 35, Episode 36, Episode 37
25 words 542 learners

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Full list of words from this list:

words only definitions & notes
  1. clandestine
    conducted with or marked by hidden aims or methods
    She felt like a glamorous spy on some clandestine operation.
  2. pervasive
    spreading or spread throughout
    She remembered Professor McCleod in her media studies class telling them how the media is so powerful and pervasive in American society that it shapes our images of ourselves, our desires, even our fantasies.
  3. clamber
    climb awkwardly, as if by scrambling
    Jaz watched as she clambered onto the roof.
  4. circumvent
    beat through cleverness and wit
    Somebody must have changed the access code, but I circumvented the photodiode and rerouted the circuit by plugging in a parallel port transponder.
  5. contemporary
    belonging to the present time
    They had been done by a contemporary Greek sculptor who seemed determined to portray every god and goddess in the Greek pantheon, as well as the famous human beings.
  6. pantheon
    all the gods of a religion
    They had been done by a contemporary Greek sculptor who seemed determined to portray every god and goddess in the Greek pantheon, as well as the famous human beings.
  7. imposing
    impressive in appearance
    The sculptures are so imposing.
  8. beguiling
    highly attractive and able to arouse hope or desire
    “You look gorgeous, Christine. A work of art. Truly beguiling. A complete knockout.”
  9. vogue
    the popular taste at a given time
    “It’s in vogue now,” she said.
  10. niche
    a small concavity
    Christine, realizing that she was to be Nausikaa, stood in the niche behind the sign that Jaz had made.
  11. sensual
    marked by the appetites and passions of the body
    And she looked so sensual.
  12. assail
    attack someone physically or emotionally
    Then a doubt assailed her.
  13. tableau
    any dramatic scene
    Anyway, what a sensational way to introduce him to Christine—their own little tableau.
  14. macabre
    shockingly repellent; inspiring horror
    But personally I find it a little spooky—kind of macabre.
  15. render
    give an interpretation of
    Like I always say, you can’t beat the Greeks for sculpture—they were masters at rendering the human form.
  16. scrutinize
    examine carefully for accuracy
    Several pieces in particular he scrutinized for several minutes.
  17. benevolent
    showing or motivated by sympathy and understanding
    And Athena, that most noble and benevolent of goddesses.
  18. poignant
    keenly distressing to the mind or feelings
    It was so poignant.
  19. repress
    conceal or hide
    She had always known he was; he just repressed it, buried it deep inside himself, under all those ideas.
  20. virtuoso
    someone who is dazzlingly skilled in any field
    Whoever the artist was, he or she was a virtuoso.
  21. entreat
    ask for or request earnestly
    It reminds me of Odysseus in the Odyssey meeting the beautiful nymph Nausikaa by the river, entreating her to help him, after he emerged naked and encrusted with ocean spray from his arduous ocean voyage.
  22. arduous
    characterized by effort to the point of exhaustion
    It reminds me of Odysseus in the Odyssey meeting the beautiful nymph Nausikaa by the river, entreating her to help him, after he emerged naked and encrusted with ocean spray from his arduous ocean voyage.
  23. importune
    beg persistently and urgently
    As it had to Odysseus so many years ago, the thought of grasping the girl’s knees to importune her came into Axel’s mind.
  24. potency
    capacity to produce strong physiological or chemical effects
    The immediacy, the potency, of great art!
  25. respire
    draw air into, and expel out of, the lungs
    It so stimulated the imagination that you fancied you could hear this wonderful creature respiring.
Created on Mon Aug 18 21:07:45 EDT 2014 (updated Tue Aug 19 15:13:23 EDT 2014)

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