inspire, soar, frighten, enumerate, dismiss: meanings and examples

Learn these 5 words from SAT Vocabulary Level 1 set 210. Each entry includes a definition, example sentence, pronunciation, and synonyms. Use the interactive cards above to practice them.

1. inspire · verb/ɪnˈspaɪr/

   to fill someone with the urge or ability to do or feel something

   Her passionate speech inspired many young activists to take action for climate change.

   Synonyms: encourage, motivate, uplift

   Origin: Middle English, from Old French 'inspirer', from Latin 'inspirare', meaning 'to breathe into, inspire'.

2. soar · verb/sɔr/

   to fly or rise high in the air

   As the sun set, the eagle began to soar gracefully above the mountains.

   Synonyms: fly, ascend, rise

   Origin: Middle English 'soren', from Old French 'sor', from Latin 'salire' meaning 'to leap or jump'

3. frighten · verb/ˈfraɪtən/

   to cause someone to feel fear or anxiety

   The sudden loud noise in the dark alley frightened her so much that she couldn’t move.

   Synonyms: scare, terrify, alarm

   Origin: Middle English 'frighten', from Old English 'fyrhtian', which means 'to scare'.

4. enumerate · verb/ɪˈnjuːməˌreɪt/

   to list items one by one

   In her presentation, she decided to enumerate the main benefits of the new policy to ensure everyone understood.

   Synonyms: itemize, list, specify

   Origin: from Latin 'enumerare', meaning 'to count out, list, enumerate', composed of 'e-' (out) and 'numerare' (to count)

5. dismiss · verb/dɪsˈmɪs/

   to decide that something is not worth considering or to remove someone from job or position

   The manager decided to dismiss the employee due to poor performance.

   Synonyms: disregard, reject, fire

   Origin: From Latin 'dimittere', meaning 'to send away', from 'dis-' meaning 'away' and 'mittere' meaning 'to send'.