Vocabulary College Prep Essentials — Set 2: Meanings flashcards
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The next 100 words of academic reading and writing, from cohort and criterion to variance and nomenclature: pronunciation, a precise definition and three example sentences, the most common use first.
Learn deck · part of Vocabulary Level 8 · College Prep Essentials · written against: Our own grade placement (VOCABULARY-PLAN.md): word frequency (wordfreq, CC BY-SA 4.0) and editorial review; no publisher's grade or word list is reproduced. Updated 2026-10-10.
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fidelity (n.) · fuh-DEL-uh-teekeeping faith with someone, a cause or a promise; how exactly a copy, translation or recording matches the originalCharacter & Behavior
Senators praised the judge's fidelity to the law over her own preferences.
Translators debate how much fidelity to the original a poem allows.
Researchers checked whether teachers followed the reading program with fidelity. -
detachment (n.) · dih-TACH-muhntemotional distance that keeps you uninvolved; part of an army split off from the main force and sent elsewhereFeelings & Attitudes
Reporters try to cover tragedies with professional detachment.
She described her childhood with an odd detachment, as if it were someone else's.
The general sent a small detachment ahead to scout the valley road. -
correspond (v.) · kor-uh-SPAHNDto line up with something, fit it, or count as its equal; to exchange letters or messages with someoneThinking & Knowing
The dots on the map correspond to cities with major universities.
The security footage and her account of the evening failed to correspond.
For years, the two scientists corresponded about their experiments.
Watch out: writing letters takes with (correspond with a friend); matching takes to or with. -
synonymous (adj.) · sih-NAHN-uh-muhscalling something else to mind because the two are so tightly linked; matching in meaning, either exactly or nearlySpeaking & Arguing
In the 1800s, Manchester became synonymous with the cotton industry.
The essay treats "freedom" and "liberty" as synonymous terms.
In everyday speech, "big" and "large" are nearly synonymous. -
repertoire (n.) · REP-ur-twarthe works a performer or group keeps ready for an audience; every skill and method a person can draw onActions & Effort
The orchestra added two new symphonies to its repertoire.
Toddlers rapidly expand their repertoire of words and gestures.
A good tutor keeps several ways of explaining fractions in their repertoire. -
cascade (n., v.) · kas-KAYDa domino effect, where one event sets off the next; a small waterfall dropping steeply; to pour down quicklyChange & Growth
One bank's failure set off a cascade of failures across the financial system.
Hikers paused to photograph the cascade tumbling over mossy rocks.
Rainwater cascaded down the stadium steps during the storm. -
residual (adj., n.) · rih-ZIJ-oo-uhlpresent as a leftover after the rest fades or is removed; in statistics, the gap between observed and predicted valuesSize & Amount
Residual pesticide on unwashed fruit worried the researchers.
Some patients still feel residual pain months after surgery.
The analyst plotted the residuals to see where the model fit poorly. -
dysfunction (n.) · dis-FUHNGK-shuhna failure of an organ, system or machine to work normally; harmful patterns that keep a group from working wellQuality & Judgment
Kidney dysfunction can cause fluid to build up in the body.
Years of gridlock left voters frustrated with the dysfunction in Congress.
The novel traces the dysfunction of a family that never discusses its problems. -
uphold (v.) · uhp-HOHLDto ensure a law, principle or standard stays in force; of a higher court, to confirm a lower court's decisionSociety & Power
Officers who uphold the law fairly earn the public's trust.
Students sign a pledge to uphold the university's honor code.
The appeals court upheld the lower court's ruling. -
lineage (n.) · LIN-ee-ijthe chain of ancestors behind a person, group or species; the history of where an idea came fromNature & Time
The family can trace its lineage to Portuguese fishermen who settled in Massachusetts.
Birds belong to a lineage of dinosaurs that survived the mass extinction.
The essay traces the lineage of modern democracy to ancient Athens.
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About these cards
Review status: Second-reader reviewed, with corrections applied.
Checked against:
- Senses, parts of speech and sense order checked against Merriam-Webster.com, the American Heritage Dictionary and the frequency-ordered Oxford, Longman and Cambridge learner's dictionaries; all definitions, notes and example sentences are original.
- Grade placement is our own, from wordfreq frequency data (CC BY-SA 4.0) and editorial review; no publisher's grade or word list is reproduced.
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