incur, cease, expire, discern, climb: meanings and examples

Learn these 5 words from SAT Vocabulary Level 1 set 171. Each entry includes a definition, example sentence, pronunciation, and synonyms. Use the interactive cards above to practice them.

1. incur · verb/ɪnˈkɜr/

   to become subject to something unpleasant or harmful

   If you ignore the warning signs, you may incur significant losses in your investment.

   Synonyms: bring upon oneself, come by

   Origin: from Latin 'incurrere', meaning 'to run into' or 'to fall into', formed by 'in-' and 'currere' meaning 'run'

2. cease · verb/siːs/

   to bring or come to an end

   The organization decided to cease operations after facing continuous financial losses.

   Synonyms: stop, terminate, conclude

   Origin: from Old French 'cesser', from Latin 'cessare' meaning 'to cease, delay, give up'

3. expire · verb/ɪkˈspaɪɚ/

   to come to an end or cease to be valid

   If you don't use your coupon before the end of the month, it will expire and no longer be valid.

   Synonyms: cease, terminate, conclude

   Origin: from Latin 'exspirare', meaning 'to breathe out' or 'to expire'

4. discern · verb/dɪˈsɜrn/

   to perceive or recognize things clearly

   With practice, he was able to discern subtle differences in taste that most people overlooked.

   Synonyms: detect, perceive, recognize

   Origin: Middle English discernen, from Old French discerner, from Latin discernere, meaning 'to separate, distinguish'.

5. climb · verb/klaɪm/

   to ascend or go up something

   They decided to climb the mountain early in the morning to avoid the heat of the day.

   Synonyms: scaled, ascended, mounted

   Origin: Middle English 'climbien', from Old English 'climban', of Germanic origin.