Page 134 - WEBSTER Essential vocabulary

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G – H: SAT Words
hindrance (HIN drins) n. 1. the act of preventing; 2. obstacle; impediment; 125
obstruction
• Hindrance of the bill’s coming to a vote was the intended purpose of the
senator’s filibuster.
• A Jersey Barrier is a deliberate hindrance to keep traffic moving in opposite
directions from crashing into one another.
• Being a woman was a considerable hindrance to Jennifer’s attempt to join
the men’s baseball team.
[Syn. obstacle]
hostility (hahs TIL i tee) n. 1. a feeling of antagonism, ill will, unfriendliness,
etc.; enmity; 2. hostile acts; an expression of enmity or ill will
• A general feeling of hostility toward Japan permeated America after the
attack on Pearl Harbor.
• Hostility between members of rival gangs has made it difficult to live in
some parts of certain U.S. cities.
• Hostility of the people toward the regime was the ultimate cause of the
storming of the Bastille that began the French Revolution.
[Syn. enmity]
humanity (yoo MAN i tee) n. 1. human nature; the act or quality of being of
the species Homo sapien; 2. (pl.) human qualities, especially the desirable ones; 3.
kindness, caring, mercy, sympathy, etc.; 4. mankind; people; 5. (pl.) the branches of
learning dealing with social sciences
• All humanity is confined to the surface of the earth.
• Studying the humanities usually results in a Bachelor of Arts degree.
• In times of stress or hardship, it falls on all of us to display our humanity to
one another.
• A natural disaster on any part of this planet impacts all humanity.
[humanities pl.]
humorous (YOO mer uhs) adj. funny; amusing; comical; showing humor
• If one did not take a humorous view of life’s happenings, he or she would
be doomed to constant tears.
• Being humorous for a living is a difficult task that very few people manage
to accomplish.
• Sebastian, who is two years old, thinks that rolling the sleeping dog off the
sofa is humorous.
[Syn. witty, droll, funny]
hypocrite (HIP uh krit) n. someone who pretends to be pious, virtuous, etc.
without really being so; one who feigns being what he or she is not; a fake; pre-
tender; sham
• Although Lloyd makes a big show of his piety at church on Sundays, he is
really a hypocrite because he drinks, cusses, and chases loose women the
rest of the week.
• Used-car salespersons have a well-deserved reputation for being hypocrites,
guaranteeing you the world until you’ve signed the contract, then not tak-
ing your phone calls.
[hypocritical adj., hypocritically adv.]