Grade 9 Vocabulary Lists - Byram School District

Grade 9 Vocabulary 

List 1 

Word 

Part of 

Speech 

Definition Sample Sentence Your sentence 

worthy of respect because At family reunions our venerable 

venerable adjective of advanced age, dignity, 

etc. 

grandmother, now past eighty, is 

accorded great respect. 

puerile adjective 

Some seniors think it's fun to throw 

foolish for a grown person 

objects at passing cars, but I consider it 

to say or do; childish 

puerile. 

levity noun 

During the assembly George kept 

lack of proper seriousness; 

giggling; levity for which his teacher 

improper gaiety 

later scolded him. 

Her frugal attitude allowed her to save 

frugal adjective thrifty; not wasteful a good deal of money at the 

supermarket. 

Because of his bigoted remarks, the 

antipathy noun feeling of intense dislike speaker provoked the antipathy of the 

audience.


avocation noun 

a hobby; supplementary 

occupation 

one who poses as an 

charlatan noun 

expert in a skill or 

profession for which he is 

not qualified 

doughty adjective brave; strong and able 

elucidate verb to make clear; explain 

indolent adjective lazy 

Bird watching was an avocation that 

gave him many hours of pleasure. 

The Great Imposter is a movie about a 

charlatan who posed successfully as a 

surgeon. 

The doughty naval commander fought 

against very heavy odds. 

You may elucidate what happened after 

you relax for a while. 

He was indolent by nature but still 

blamed the heat wave for his inability 

to do work.


List 2 

Word 

ludicrous 

callow 

blithe 

nepotism 

malign 

Part of 

Speech 


causing laughter because His answer to the question was so 

adjective absurd or ridiculous; ludicrous that everyone burst out 

laughably absurd laughing. 

adjective 

He was surprised when his company 

young and inexperienced; 

hired a callow youth just out of college 

immature 

for the important new position. 

adjective merry; cheerful; happy 

Our neighbor is a blithe fellow who 

tells amusing stories. 

noun 

Whenever a President appoints a 

favoritism shown to 

relative to a government position, the 

relatives, especially in 

cry of nepotism is raised by the 

securing jobs 

opposing party. 

verb 

to speak evil of; to I cannot bear to hear you malign such 

slander 

a good man.


posthumous adjective 

heinous adjective 

clandestine adjective 

refute verb 

cursory adjective 

occurring after death; 

published after the 

author's death 

outrageously evil or 

wicked 

kept secret or hidden 

especially for some 

illegal purpose; secretive 

to disprove or 

demonstrate the falsity of 

something 

hasty, hurried or not 

thorough 

Only two of Emily Dickinson’s poems 

were published before she died; the 

rest were posthumous. 

The convict was severely punished for 

his heinous crime. 

The clandestine activities of the 

terrorist group were never discovered 

by the police. 

The district attorney summoned many 

witnesses to refute the testimony of the 

defendant. 

His cursory studying of the material 

could not give him a full understanding 

of the subject.


Word 

reticent 

travail 

opulence 

arduous 

paltry 

Part of 

Speech 

adjective 

noun 

noun 

adjective 

adjective 

List 3 


quiet, reserved, or Because she was so reticent, very few 

uncommunicative people got to know her well. 

His family found that the travail of 

hard work; exhausting 

serving ten years in a prison camp had 

labor; agony 

changed him greatly. 

wealth, luxury, or She was amazed at the opulence of her 

abundance. 

neighbors. 

Climbing the tree proved to be an 

difficult, strenuous, or 

arduous task but not a particularly 

hard to achieve 

dangerous one. 

I complained not because of the paltry 

practically worthless; 

three cents that I was overcharged but 

petty; trifling 

because of the principle of the thing.


abduct verb to carry off by force 

tractable adjective 

easily managed, taught, or 

controlled 

to do away with or 

obliterate verb destroy; to blot out 

completely 

prodigious adjective 

extraordinary in size or 

amount; enormous 

having or showing great 

haughty adjective 

pride in oneself and 

disdain, contempt, or 

scorn for others 

The kidnappers abducted the child 

from her home. 

The horse was tractable as long as he 

was going in the direction of the barn; 

otherwise he was unmanageable. 

He tried to obliterate from his memory 

any trace of that horrible day. 

Anyone who has orbited the Earth has 

performed a prodigious task. 

He seemed at first to be rather cold and 

haughty, but we came to realize that 

this was due mainly to his shyness.


List 4 

Word 

Part of 

Speech 


When one becomes engaged in an 

Evenness of mind or 

equanimity noun 

argument it is best to retain one’s 

temper; calmness; 

equanimity in order to keep the dispute 

composure 

from exploding into something bigger. 

exacerbate verb To irritate or make bitter; 

to make more violent 

The line of questions so exacerbated 

the witness that he refused to answer. 

gratuity noun 

A tip; payment for A gratuity of 10 to 15 percent of the 

service for which no bill check is customary in many 

is offered 

restaurants. 

Skeptical; doubtful; too 

incredulous adjective 

The teacher was incredulous when he 

extraordinary to be 

heard the amazing excuse. 

believed 

loquacious adjective 

The lawyer’s loquacious summation 

Talkative; chatty annoyed his client, who could see that 

the jury was losing attention.


reprehensible adjective 

Deserving blame; wrong 

stringent 

adjective 

Strict; rigid; exacting 

taciturn adjective Habitually silent; not 

given to conversation 

ubiquitous 

adjective 

Present everywhere 

vapid adjective Having lost its spirit or 

zest; spiritless 

The man did not find the action of his 

enemy as reprehensible as he thought 

he would. 

The Dean imposed a curfew of 7:00, 

the most stringent one in the history of 

the school. 

John Wayne often portrays taciturn 

characters in his movies. 

The ubiquitous pizza parlors seem to 

be feeding America. 

The guest speaker made one of the 

most vapid speeches the audience had 

ever heard.


List 5 

Word 

meticulous 

altruism 

(altruist) 

ameliorate 

rustic 

Part of 


Speech 

Overly or unduly careful 

adjective about small details; 

extremely careful 

Unselfish concern for the 

noun welfare of others; 

selflessness 

To improve or make 

verb 

better 

Characteristic of the 

country and country 

adjective 

people; simple and 

unsophisticated 

deride verb To make fun of; to scorn 

She was extremely meticulous about 

her clothes and spent hours dressing 

for a party. 

Altruism is a virtue that very few 

people possess. 

Despite the Mayor's best efforts, he 

could not ameliorate the situation in 

the ghetto. 

His rustic manners seemed out of place 

in the elegant setting of the hotel 

dining room. 

The teacher told the obnoxious student 

not to deride his fellow classmates.


diffident adjective 

ostracize verb 

truculent adjective 

vindicate verb 

pugnacious adjective 

Lacking self confidence; 

timid; shy 

To exclude someone from 

a social group by general 

consent 

Savage; cruel; fierce; 

warlike 

To clear of suspicion, as 

of a charge of 

wrongdoing 

Eager and ready to fight; 

quarrelsome 

We discovered that beneath his 

diffident Personality there was an 

active and inquiring mind. 

Although he was found innocent of 

treason, Aaron Burr was ostracized by 

society and left this country to live in 

England. 

The debate, which might have been 

very interesting, was marred by a 

truculent exchange of personal abuse. 

Since he has been fully vindicated by 

the investigation, he will resume his 

old position in the government. 

He became much less pugnacious after 

he picked fights with boys who gave 

him sound beatings.


Word 

Part of 

Speech 

List 6 


forbidding 

adjective 

looking dangerous, 

threatening, disagreeable, 

repellent 

The glow from the distant lighthouse 

cast a forbidding hue over the ocean. 

inane 

inure 

adjective foolish, silly, lacking 

sense or meaning 

to become accustomed to 

verb 

something, difficult, 

painful, etc. 

We were trying not to sound inane as 

we spoke to the art historian, but we 

really knew nothing about the subject. 

I never became inured to running in 

the early morning. 

anarchy 

noun 

the complete absence of 

government, political 

disorder or violence, 

disorder in any activity 

“If he gets up, we’ll all get up. It’ll be 

anarchy,” is a famous line from The 

Breakfast Club. 

enmity 

noun 

hostility, antagonism, 

hatred; the bitter feelings 

Many Americans cannot help but feel 

enmity toward Osama Bin Laden and 

of an enemy 

his terrorist network.


any office or position that 

sinecure 

noun 

brings profit or advantage 

No one would ever need to retire from 

without involving much 

a job that is a sinecure. 

work or responsibility 

tacit 

adjective 

not expressed or declared 

openly, but implied or 

understood 

Her nod was enough tacit approval for 

me to understand her message. 

inveigle 

verb 

to trick into doing 

something, to lead on 

The salesman had a reputation for 

inveigling his customers into buying 

with deception 

things they did not intend to buy. 

anachronism noun 

anything that is or seems 

to be out of its proper 

time in history 

avarice noun too great a desire to have 

wealth; greed for riches 

For a girl to call her boyfriend her 

“beau” is anachronistic in 2011. 

His avarice increased with age, until it 

became an uncontrollable obsession 

for wealth.


List 7 

Word 

Part of 

Speech 

condone verb 

hackneyed adjective 

imperative adjective 

mundane adjective 

placid adjective 


to excuse, forgive, or His behavior was so outrageous that I 

pardon; to overlook an cannot see how anyone could even try 

offense 

to condone it. 

made trite and 

His writing style is weakened by 

commonplace by overuse; repeated use of hackneyed phrases. 

stale 

required; absolutely It is imperative that you submit your 

necessary; compulsory application before May 1. 

Now that we have discussed all those 

worldly, (as distinguished 

profound philosophical problems, let's 

from heavenly); 

get down to the mundane job of 

commonplace 

preparing dinner. 

Although the scene was still placid, I 

calm; peaceful; 

knew that before long we were in for 

undisturbed 

some wild excitement.


not genuine or true; 

The document on which we had 

spurious 

adjective 

lacking in authenticity; 

intended to base our case turned out to 

fake 

be spurious--a crude counterfeit. 

marked by secrecy or 

Creeping stealthily, through the 

stealthy 

adjective 

concealment; furtive; sly 

underbrush, the soldiers approached 

their enemies. 

urbane 

adjective 

refined; polite and 

courteous in a smooth, 

polished way; suave 

I admired the urbane ease with which 

he handled the difficult situation. 

pariah 

noun 

a social outcast; one 

despised by society 

In Lord of the Flies, Piggy quickly 

became the pariah of the small society 

that formed on the island. 

to violate the sacredness 

Vandals had desecrated the church by 

desecrate 

verb 

of something; to profane; 

carving their initials on the large 

to treat as if not sacred 

wooden doors.


Word 

vociferous 

Part of 

Speech 

adjective 

euphemism noun 

List 8 


loud, noisy, or vehement 

in making one's feelings 

known 

a mild or pleasant 

expression substituted for 

one that is harsh or blunt 

dearth noun a scarcity or lack; too 

small a supply or shortage 

harbinger 

noun 

a person or thing that 

comes before to announce 

or give an indication of 

what is to follow 

The judge ordered the vociferous 

spectator to be thrown out of the 

courtroom 

Instead of calling Meredith "fat," he 

tactfully employed the euphemism 

"pleasingly plump." 

When the crops failed, there was a 

dearth of grain for flour, and bread 

prices skyrocketed. 

The first robin is a well-known 

harbinger of spring. The first vulture 

circling is a harbinger of something 

else. 

He is usually even-tempered, but he 

irate adjective 

angry, wrathful, incensed becomes irate when he encounters 

rudeness.


pinnacle noun the highest point, peak; 

culmination 

At the very pinnacle of success, he 

enjoyed wealth, admiration from 

others, and widespread affection. 

recalcitrant adjective 

stubbornly disobedient or 

rebellious; hard to handle; 

unruly 

We cannot allow one recalcitrant 

student to disrupt the work of the entire 

class. 

squalid 

nebulous 

adjective dirty from neglect; 

wretched 

adjective unclear; vague; cloudy, 

misty 

Jakob Riis photographed the awful 

living conditions in the squalid 

tenements of New York. 

His ideas were so nebulous that no one 

could agree or disagree with him. 

decry 

verb 

to speak out against 

strongly and openly; to 

The graduation speaker decried the 

tendency of too many Americans to 

denounce 

seek wealth before all else.


List 9 

Word 

Part of 

Speech 


extol verb to praise highly; to laud 

The speaker extolled the doctor for his 

great contributions to mankind. 

that which seems to be 

innate adjective 

with someone from birth; 

existing naturally rather 

than acquired 

a perplexing or seemingly 

enigma noun unexplainable matter or 

person 

a continuing and bitter 

rancor noun hate or ill will; deep spite 

and malice. 

a violent verbal attack; 

invective noun strong criticism, insult 

curses, etc. 

His good taste and courtesy are not the 

result of training but rather are innate. 

The many aspects of his changing 

personality make Tom an enigma to me. 

Unfortunately, the debate between them 

was marked by personal rancor rather 

than honest discussion of the issues. 

It is possible to wage a hard-hitting 

political campaign without resorting to 

the use of invectives.


acumen noun 

obdurate adjective 

pragmatic adjective 

audacious adjective 

banal adjective 

keenness and quickness in 

understanding and dealing 

with a situation; 

shrewdness 

not easily moved to pity 

or sympathy; hardhearted, 

stubborn or 

obstinate 

practical; concerned with 

actual, everyday things 

rather than with theory or 

speculation 

fearlessly daring; bold; 

arrogantly insolent 

common, unoriginal, 

drearily predictable 

In the 19th century, many fortunes were 

made by men with great business 

acumen. 

In spite of all our efforts to persuade 

him, he remained obdurate. 

Rather than listening to the politicians 

explain the theories of poverty, he had 

the pragmatic problem of getting food 

on the table. 

In this time of crisis, we need 

imaginative, bold and even audacious 

leadership. 

The lecturer’s banal comments bored 

the audience to tears.


List 10 

Word 

Part of 

Speech 

culpable adjective 

ignominious adjective 

ostentatious adjective 

vicissitudes noun 

alacrity noun 


Responsible for doing Anyone who took any part in the 

something wrong; conspiracy was considered equally 

deserving blame; guilty culpable. 

Deserving disgrace or The traitor spent the last years of his 

shame; dishonorable; life in ignominious exile. 

despicable 

showing off boastfully; The man displayed his expensive new 

boastful 

suit in a very ostentatious manner. 

changes in fortune; ups 

You must learn to face the many 

and downs in 

vicissitudes of life. 

circumstances 

Since Bob needed a job to pay for his 

cheerful willingness or 

college expenses, he accepted with 

eagerness 

alacrity the offer.


decadent 

garrulous 

in a state of decline or 

adjective 

decay; deteriorating 

adjective Talkative 

When people lose interest in literature, 

it's a sign that the society is becoming 

decadent. 

The garrulous cab driver kept up a 

steady stream of chatter. 

temerity 

noun 

Reckless, boldness; 

foolish disregard for 

danger 

In 1941, Japanese militarists had the 

temerity to risk the future of their 

country on the wild gamble of a 

knockout blow on Pearl Harbor. 

eclectic 

adjective 

composed of materials 

gained from many 

sources, systems, etc. 

The statesman did no believe in only 

one political philosophy, but rather 

took a more eclectic view of world 

affairs. 

anathema 

noun 

a thing or person 

accursed or damned; a 

thing or person greatly 

detested; a formal curse 

After almost 200 years, the name of 

Benedict Arnold is still anathema to 

Americans.


List 11 

Word 

Part of 

Speech 

magnanimous adjective 

misanthrope noun 

parsimonious adjective 

pundit noun 

officious adjective 


noble in mind; high-souled; 

Churchill emphasized that we should be 

generous in overlooking 

firm in war, defiant in defeat, and 

injury or insult; rising 

magnanimous in victory. 

above pettiness or 

meanness 

Because of his hateful stares and habitual 

a person who hates or 

silence, the man had the reputation of 

mistrusts all people 

being a misanthrope. 

He had become so accustomed to a 

unreasonably cheap or 

parsimonious way of living that he denied 

stingy 

himself even the simplest comforts. 

a person who has or During the week of the Super Bowl, many 

professes to have great so-called pundits are always telling you 

learning; actual or selfprofessed 

in advance which team will win the game. 

authority 

offering unnecessary or To disguise the fact that he was 

unwanted advice or performing no useful function, he 

services; meddlesome, developed an officious manner of 

especially in an 

intruding into everyone else’s work


overbearing way 

intrepid 

adjective 

bold; fearless; dauntless; 

very brave 

All honors should go to the intrepid and 

highly trained men who are exploring 

outer space. 

lugubrious 

adjective 

very sad or mournful, 

especially in a way that 

seems exaggerated or 

ridiculous 

His lugubrious expression was intended 

to suggest that he, more than anyone else, 

understood the sadness of the occasion. 

intended for or understood 

by only a chosen few 

The lecture was too esoteric to be 

esoteric 

adjective 

beyond the knowledge and 

appreciated by most people in the 

understanding of most 

audience. 

people 

imperious 

adjective 

arrogant; haughty; seeking 

to dominate; overbearing 

He is so inflated with the sense of his own 

importance that he adopts an imperious 

manner toward his subordinates. 

distressing to the feelings; 

Who can remain unmoved by the 

poignant 

adjective 

touching; appealing to the 

poignant scene in which Sidney Carton 

emotions; affecting 

sacrifices his life for the woman he loves.


List 12 

Word 

repugnant 

tacit 

vicarious 

prevaricate 

Part of 


Speech 

distasteful; offensive; I find his horrible manners utterly 

adjective 

repulsive 

repugnant. 

Since mother raised no objection to my 

adjective implied but not expressed idea, I assumed that I had her tacit 

consent to go ahead with the plan. 

involving sympathetic 

participation by a 

Having been too frail to participate in 

person in the experiences 

competitive sports, he took vicarious 

of another; experienced 

adjective 

pleasure in his younger brother's 

or endured or enjoyed 

football heroics. 

through imaginative 

participation in the 

experiences of another 

Although you may be tempted to 

to evade or conceal the 

prevaricate, in the long run it will be 

verb truth; to deviate from 

better off if you own up to what you 

the truth; to lie 

did.


supercilious adjective 

contemptuously proud; 

haughty; disdainful 

enervate verb 

to weaken; to deprive of 

force 

plethora noun 

an excess; an 

overabundance 

an original that serves as 

a model on which later 

prototype noun stages are based or 

judged; an early and 

typical example 

askew adverb to one side; crookedly 

abrogate verb 

to cancel or repeal by 

authority; to annul 

In spite of his supercilious attitude, I 

refuse to concede that he is our social 

superior. 

The long stretch of hot, humid weather 

enervated all of us. 

The boy has a plethora of energy and 

inventiveness, which he sometimes 

directs into mischief. 

Salinger's brilliant Catcher in the Rye 

has served as the prototype for many 

novels about confused teenagers. 

In my efforts to straighten the picture, 

I knocked the lampshade askew. 

Since the treaty had proved 

unworkable, the two nations decided to 

abrogate it.


List 13 

Word 

Part of 

Speech 

bequeath 

verb 

laud 

verb 

crass adjective 

complacent adjective 

tribulation noun 


My father bequeathed to his children a 

to leave to another in a little money and the glorious example 

will; to hand down of a life well spent in the service of his 

country. 

At the testimonial dinner, he was 

to praise highly 

lauded by community leaders for his 

service to the school. 

His attempts to argue about a subject 

grossly stupid or dull; 

far beyond his depth seemed only to 

coarse 

reveal his crass ignorance and conceit. 

He had the complacent attitude of a 

smug; self satisfied; 

man who considers himself superior to 

pleased with oneself 

the "common herd." 

The tribulations which he suffered and 

great misery or distress; 

overcame have made him a wiser, 

great trouble 

more compassionate person.


cajole 

verb 

to coax or persuade with 

insincere or false 

words; to wheedle 

Using rather far-fetched promises, I 

finally 

cajoled her into accompanying us to 

the fair 

mental distress due to 

When he did not receive an invitation, 

chagrin 

noun 

disappointment or 

he tried unsuccessfully to conceal his 

humiliation 

deep-seated chagrin. 

docile 

adjective 

easily taught; responsive; 

tractable 

Since I expected him to be unruly, I 

was pleasantly surprised by his gentle, 

docile behavior. 

vacillate 

verb 

to waver in mind or 

opinion 

When you have considered all the 

factors carefully and have decided 

what is right, act without vacillating. 

sage 

adjective 

marked by wisdom and 

good judgment 

His sage advice has helped thousands 

of people deal with their problems.


List 14 

Word 

Part of 

Speech 


dupe verb to deceive 

Only an inexperienced and naive 

person could be duped into investing 

money in such a hairbrained scheme. 

acme noun highest point; pinnacle 

Election to the Presidency was the 

acme of his long and brilliant career. 

deter verb 

to restrain or discourage Once he had decided where his duty 

from action through fear lay, nothing could deter him. 

homily noun 

a sermon; a discourse 

Instead of those high-flown homilies, 

emphasizing moral 

we need some good practical plans. 

principles 

epicure noun 

one who cultivates refined 

tastes, especially in eating 

and drinking 

The store specializes in delicacies that 

will please even the most demanding 

epicures.


surfeit noun excessive amount 

itinerant adjective 

traveling from place to 

place 

cache noun a hiding place 

incite verb to instigate; to spur on 

to bring to a state of peace 

appease verb 

or quiet; to satisfy by 

making concessions or 

giving in to 

I have had my surfeit of excuses and 

evasions; I want action! 

Peter became an itinerant folk singer, 

traveling to college campuses all over 

the land. 

The conspirators had set up a cache of 

firearms in the old farmhouse. 

Only intolerable living conditions could 

have incited the peasants to rebellion. 

The tyrant can be appeased only by 

absolute submission to his will.


List 15 

Word 

Part of 

Speech 

impetuous adjective 

perfidy noun 

hovel noun 

advent noun 


Because he is impetuous by nature, 

impulsive; done hastily or 

John often has cause to regret his rash 

rashly 

actions. 

Because he betrayed our country, 

treachery; breach of trust 

Benedict Arnold's name has become a 

or faith 

symbol of perfidy in American history. 

It is shocking that the families of the 

a dirty, wretched dwelling 

migratory workers had to live in such 

place 

hovels. 

coming into view or The advent of winter brings thoughts of 

being; arrival 

sleds, ice-skates, and skis.


indigent adjective needy; poor 

effrontery noun 

impudence; shameless 

boldness 

rectify verb to correct; to set right 

amass verb 

to accumulate; to gather 

together 

The purpose of this new program is to 

help those indigent people who can't 

help themselves. 

How does he have the effrontery to ask 

me for help when he ignored my 

requests during my time of need. 

It is good to rectify a mistake; it is 

better not to make it in the first place. 

By saving systematically over the years, 

he amassed a large fortune.

Grade 9 Vocabulary Lists - Byram School District

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