Set 123 · Study 1 / 5

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suborn

verb/səˈbɔrn/

definition

to persuade someone to commit an unlawful act, typically by bribery

example

The criminal mastermind attempted to suborn a public official to facilitate the illegal deal.

synonyms
instigateinducebribe
word origin — The word 'suborn' comes from the Latin 'subornare', meaning 'to secretly furnish, to incite or induce.' It combines 'sub-', meaning 'under,' and 'ornare', meaning 'to equip or furnish.'

SAT Vocabulary Level 3 — Set 123

Set 123 of SAT Vocabulary Level 3 covers 5 words: suborn, recollect, ruminate, detest, strew. Each entry below includes its definition, an example sentence, and synonyms — practice them with the interactive cards above.

  1. suborn · verb/səˈbɔrn/

    to persuade someone to commit an unlawful act, typically by bribery

    The criminal mastermind attempted to suborn a public official to facilitate the illegal deal.

    Synonyms: instigate, induce, bribe

    Origin: The word 'suborn' comes from the Latin 'subornare', meaning 'to secretly furnish, to incite or induce.' It combines 'sub-', meaning 'under,' and 'ornare', meaning 'to equip or furnish.'

  2. recollect · verb/ˌrɛkəˈlɛkt/

    to bring back to mind or remember something

    As I walked through my childhood home, I began to recollect the many happy memories I had spent there.

    Synonyms: remember, recall, retrieve

    Origin: from Latin 'recollectus', past participle of 'recolligere', meaning 'to gather together again' (re- 'again' + colligere 'to collect')

  3. ruminate · verb/ˈruː.məˌneɪt/

    to think deeply about something

    After receiving feedback on her project, she decided to ruminate over the suggestions before making any changes.

    Synonyms: contemplate, ponder, reflect

    Origin: From Latin 'ruminari', meaning 'to chew over' or 'to think over', derived from 'rumen', meaning 'gullet' or 'throat'.

  4. detest · verb/dɪˈtɛst/

    to feel intense dislike or hatred for someone or something

    I detest waiting in long lines at the grocery store.

    Synonyms: loathe, abhor, despise

    Origin: From Latin 'detestari', meaning 'to denounce or curse', composed of 'de-' (down, away) and 'testari' (to bear witness).

  5. strew · verb/struː/

    to scatter or spread things untidily over a surface

    After the party, they decided to strew the leftover confetti all over the floor, creating a colorful mess.

    Synonyms: scatter, disperse, toss

    Origin: Old English 'streowan' meaning 'to scatter or spread about'; related to the Proto-Germanic 'streuwan' and Proto-Indo-European 'strew-', meaning 'to spread or disperse'.