- Break down the sounds of the word, and turn those
sounds into a picture.Let’s say that you’re trying
to learn the word polemic. First, break down its
syllables. It sounds like poleandlemon, so imag-
ine a lemon on the end of a pole. (You might break
it down differently, for instance, as poleandMick.
That’s fine, as long as you turn it into a picture!) - Imagine a picture for the meaning of the word.
Polemicmeans “a strong verbal or written attack,”
so you might visualize someone arguing loudly
with a politician at a debate. Try to picture some-
one you actually know, if possible, someone with
strong opinions. - Put the two pictures together into one.See the
debater hitting the politician with the lemon on the
end of the pole. The crazier the picture, the better! - Make your image come ALIVE.As you visualize
your picture, make it come ALIVE—active, link-
ing, illogical, vivid, andexaggerated.Here’s how:- Give the picture actionby making it move like a
wacky animated cartoon. - Make sure the picture linkstwo things: the
soundof the word and the meaningof the word. - Make the picture bizarre and illogicalso that it’s
more memorable. - Make it so vividthat you see it in 3-D, in color,
and in rich detail. - Work on exaggeratingthe picture so that the
meaning of the word “pops out.”
- Give the picture actionby making it move like a
Keep a Vocabulary Notebook
Keep a small notebook handy when you’re reading.
When you run across a new or interesting word, jot it
down so that you can look it up later and make a flash-
card for it using the system described below. Have a
good collegiate dictionary handy, too—one with a
pronunciation guide and etymology for each word.
Study with the College Hill Coaching
Flashcard System—10 Minutes a Day
Flashcards are enormously helpful for building
vocabulary, but only if you use them the right way. Get
in the habit of making and studying 30 to 40 flashcards
per weekof SAT words from this chapter, your practice
tests, or your reading. But don’t just make plain old
flashcards. College Hill flashcards are far more effective.
Each one looks like the figures at the top of this page.
When you’ve made a card for any word from the
lessons in this chapter, check it off the list. Keep your
cards handy in a plastic recipe box, and study them
daily for at least 10 minutes. Don’tjust study these
cards to memorize definitions by rote. Instead, shuffle
through the following seven study methods on a regu-
lar basis.
- Study Method 1.Your friend reads you the word,
and then you create a new sentence using that
word. The sentence must show that you under-
stand the meaning of the word. For instance, “The
boy was obsequious” doesn’t really show that you
know what obsequiousmeans. - Study Method 2.Your friend reads you the word,
and then you give its roots and, for each root, as
many words as you can that share that root. - Study Method 3.Your friend reads the definition
from the back of the card and gives you the first
letter of the word, and then you give the word. - Study Method 4.Your friend reads the word, and
then you describe three different situations in
which the word would be appropriate. - Study Method 5.Your friend reads the word, and
then you teach your friend any clever ALIVE
mnemonics you have created for the word. - Study Method 6.Your friend reads the sentence,
and then you give the definition of the word. - Study Method 7.Post a bunch of flashcards around
your room where you’ll see them every day. Think
of appropriate places to post them, such as narcis-
siston the mirror, lethargicon the bed, and so on.
CheckYour Understanding with the Review
Exercises
At the end of each vocabulary unit in this chapter is a
set of exercises to check your understanding of the
words you’ve studied. Do them faithfully at the end
of each seven-lesson unit. They provide great rein-
forcement and help you to see which words you may
need to go back and review.CHAPTER 3 / BUILDING AN IMPRESSIVE VOCABULARY 81
Back: Write the definition of the word, then,
in parentheses, the definition of any roots or
affixes. Beneath, write the first letter of the word.Front: Write a meaningful sentence using the
word. Write the word in CAPITALS and
underline any roots.