"Simon's Saga," Vocabulary from Episode 33

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 323 learners

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Full list of words from this list:

words only definitions & notes
  1. enhance
    increase
    These changes have greatly enhanced your intuition and your ability to understand and empathize with others of your kind.
  2. faculty
    an inherent cognitive or perceptual power of the mind
    They have also awakened your dormant telepathic faculties.
  3. nascent
    being born or beginning
    To allow your nascent abilities in this area to develop, they had to be protected from the Observer.
  4. engrossed
    giving or marked by complete attention to
    “We must have gotten really engrossed in our discussion,” Jaz said.
  5. expeditiously
    with efficiency; in an efficient manner
    “I mean, I feel there is a definite threat that must be countered expeditiously and decisively.”
  6. decisive
    characterized by resoluteness and firmness
    “I mean, I feel there is a definite threat that must be countered expeditiously and decisively.”
  7. resolute
    firm in purpose or belief
    “You seem so certain—so resolute.”
  8. sacrosanct
    treated as if holy and kept free from violation or criticism
    Your hunches are sacrosanct. If you’re that sure something is true, it’s true.
  9. imminent
    close in time; about to occur
    He must convince all these big shots that the threat is imminent, and that immediate, drastic steps must be taken.
  10. tutelary
    providing protective supervision
    “You’d better hope you have a guardian angel, or some sort of tutelary spirit, shielding your Seminar from observers,” Xela said.
  11. tyro
    someone new to a field or activity
    “I am very happy to announce, however, that I have made excellent progress in developing my latent telepathic abilities over the last few months. I must say, I am no longer a tyro.”
  12. augment
    grow or intensify
    My family has a long line of psychics, clairvoyants, and yogis. I just augmented it with some modern science.
  13. keynote
    the principal theme in a speech or literary work
    See him as getting things off to a wonderful start with that speech. Setting the keynote. Saying exactly the right things in precisely the right way to motivate people.
  14. extemporaneous
    with little or no preparation or forethought
    “I heard that you’re very good at extemporaneous speaking.”
  15. apex
    the highest point of something
    “And all those groupies chasing after him at the apex of the power hierarchy,” Xela said.
  16. hierarchy
    a series of ordered groupings within a system
    “And all those groupies chasing after him at the apex of the power hierarchy,” Xela said.
  17. gamut
    a complete extent or range
    We’ve brought together all their expertise representing the gamut of human knowledge: politics, economics, law, business, science.
  18. bedevil
    treat cruelly
    We want to find ways to end poverty, war, racism, all the social ills that have bedeviled humanity for so long.
  19. exploit
    use or manipulate to one's advantage
    Announce to the Seminar that key people in the world are being controlled telepathically by aliens, messing everything up, siphoning off vast wealth, exploiting our species and our planet—and that we’d better get hopping to put a stop to it?
  20. neutralize
    oppose and mitigate the effects of by contrary actions
    We find the central controlling agency and neutralize it.
  21. complacent
    contented to a fault with oneself or one's actions
    It’s just a hunch, but these guys seem a little complacent. I don’t think they’re sitting around worrying, expecting Earth to counterattack any time soon.
  22. indigenous
    originating where it is found
    Just sit on this planet forever, sucking practically everything out of it and its indigenous inhabitants.
  23. annihilate
    kill in large numbers
    We find them and try to destroy them. If we take them by surprise and annihilate them, great.
  24. avenge
    take action in return for a perceived wrong
    “I’ve always liked the sheriffs in those Westerns. Kind of like avenging angels.”
  25. procrastinate
    waste time or postpone doing what one should be doing
    Yeah, I’ve procrastinated a long time about doing Miss Bridget’s assignment.
Created on Tue Aug 19 09:12:34 EDT 2014 (updated Tue Aug 19 17:20:56 EDT 2014)

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