Page 42 - WEBSTER Essential vocabulary

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A: SAT Words
athlete (ATH leet) n. someone trained in exercises, games, or contests requiring
physical strength, speed, skill, stamina, etc.
• It takes a trained athlete to perform on the parallel bars.
• Tammy proved her ability as an athlete when she ran the 100-meter sprint
in less than 11 seconds.
[athletic adj., athletically adv.]
attain (uh TAYN) vt. 1. to gain; accomplish; achieve; 2. to reach or come to;
arrive at
• Sherry worked very hard to attain a B+ average.
• It took Lillian and Bob the better part of two days’ worth of climbing to
attain the peak of Mount Hood.
[-ed, -ing, -able adj., -ability n.] [Syn. reach]
attention (uh TEN shn) n. 1. the act of keeping one’s mind on something or
the ability to do that; concentration; mental readiness for such concentration;
2. observation or notice; 3. care or consideration; 4. thoughtfulness for the needs
of others; courtesy; 5. the military command to come to erect posture
• Debbie had to pay attention to navigate the treacherous winding road.
• Mike’s attention wasn’t always on his work.
• Farah’s smile caught Todd’s attention.
• This matter will receive our immediate attention.
• Smart congressmen always pay careful attention to the needs of their
constituents.
• The sergeant barked the order to come to attention.
attitude (AT i tood) n. 1. the position or posture assumed by the body in con-
nection with an action, feeling, mood, etc.; 2. a manner of acting, thinking, or feel-
ing that shows one’s disposition, opinion, etc.; 3. one’s disposition, opinion, men-
tal set, etc.; 4. the position of an air- or spacecraft with respect to a given line or
plane, such as the horizon
• Victor assumed a humble attitude as he prayed.
• Phyllis made it clear that she was not impressed by Wilma’s haughty atti-
tude of self-righteousness.
• The coach was impressed by Joe’s positive attitude.
• The plane’s attitude changed as it banked 45° to port.
[attitudinal adj.] [Syn. posture]
attribute (at TRIB yoot for vt., AT rib YOOT for n.) vt. 1. to think of as belong-
ing to, produced by, resulting from, or originating in; assign; ascribe to; 2. assign as
a characteristic or quality —n. 1. a characteristic or quality of a person or thing; 2. a
thing in art or literature used as a symbol for a person, office, etc.
• Scholars attribute many sonnets to Shakespeare without having any real
evidence that he wrote them.
• The motion picture Gentle Ben attributes the quality of gentleness to a bear.
• The attribute of winged sandals is often used to represent the Greek god
Hermes, or Roman Mercury.
[-d, attributing, attributable adj., attribution n.] [Syn. ascribe, quality]