"Simon's Saga," Vocabulary from Episode 18

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 580 learners

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Full list of words from this list:

words only definitions & notes
  1. advent
    arrival that has been awaited
    THE ADVENT OF XELA
  2. entail
    impose, involve, or imply as a necessary result
    Being Simon’s devoted girlfriend sometimes entailed somewhat undignified activities, such as surreptitious observation of his extracurricular activities.
  3. covert
    secret or hidden
    From her position in the restaurant in a booth not far from theirs, Jaz could covertly observe Simon and the girl without their noticing her.
  4. innate
    present at birth but not necessarily hereditary
    As usual with Simon, she had to be discreet—let him flirt with other girls because this behavior seemed to be innate in him and thus practically inevitable.
  5. inevitable
    incapable of being avoided or prevented
    As usual with Simon, she had to be discreet—let him flirt with other girls because this behavior seemed to be innate in him and thus practically inevitable.
  6. incorrigible
    impervious to correction by punishment
    Simon was, Jaz reflected, an incorrigible flirt.
  7. inimitable
    matchless
    Ah, yes, because she knew very well that Simon was, in his own inimitable words, “irresistibly attractive to girls, couldn’t help himself, and swore to have only platonic relationships with other young women.”
  8. platonic
    free from physical desire
    Ah, yes, because she knew very well that Simon was, in his own inimitable words, “irresistibly attractive to girls, couldn’t help himself, and swore to have only platonic relationships with other young women.”
  9. virile
    characterized by energy and vigor
    Women simply found Simon incredibly virile and exciting.
  10. naivete
    lack of sophistication or worldliness
    And the thing was, his very openness—his naivete almost—made him all the more endearing.
  11. rapport
    a relationship of mutual understanding between people
    And he had this remarkable ability to establish a rapport with anyone.
  12. regale
    occupy in an agreeable, entertaining or pleasant fashion
    Once she had seen him regale a group of nuns with his stories.
  13. enthralled
    filled with wonder and delight
    They had been enthralled by his tales, laughing like schoolgirls.
  14. staid
    characterized by dignity and propriety
    Even the staid “Mom nun” (as Simon called her) had been beside herself with laughter.
  15. uncanny
    surpassing the ordinary or normal
    Yes, Simon had an uncanny knack for making people feel happy.
  16. elated
    exultantly proud and joyful; in high spirits
    She seems almost elated, Jaz thought.
  17. ethnic
    distinctive of the ways of living of a group of people
    “Pretty exotic, too. What is it, ethnic or something?”
  18. veracious
    habitually speaking the truth
    I can’t lie about Jaz, but then again, I don’t have to be completely veracious either.
  19. unsullied
    free from blemishes
    A beautiful, unsullied soul.
  20. seraphic
    having a sweet nature befitting an angel
    He searched for a word to describe her; “seraphic” was the word he finally decided on.
  21. sublime
    worthy of adoration or reverence
    The statue of Artemis he had seen in the art museum came into his mind—noble and sublime, yet infinitely alluring—the exemplar of the feminine.
  22. exemplar
    a person or thing to be imitated; ideal model
    The statue of Artemis he had seen in the art museum came into his mind—noble and sublime, yet infinitely alluring—the exemplar of the feminine.
  23. elaborate
    add details to clarify an idea
    Simon didn’t really want to elaborate, but somehow he felt he should.
  24. transcendental
    existing outside of or not in accordance with nature
    It went against Simon’s nature to tell a sublimely, angelically, transcendentally gorgeous girl who had shown even a modicum of interest in him that he had a steady girlfriend.
  25. modicum
    a small or moderate or token amount
    It went against Simon’s nature to tell a sublimely, angelically, transcendentally gorgeous girl who had shown even a modicum of interest in him that he had a steady girlfriend.
Created on Mon Aug 18 21:14:30 EDT 2014 (updated Tue Aug 19 15:20:11 EDT 2014)

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