Synonyms: Adjectives Describing Emotional States - SSAT Upper Level Verbal

"Pensive" means thoughtful or reflective. The root wood, "pensare," means to consider.

"Voracious" is an adjective that means wanting or devouring great quantities of something, often food. So, we're looking for an adjective that has to do with food and specifically means extremely hungry. Three of the listed answer choices have to do with food: "edible" means able to be eaten, so it's not a synonym of "voracious." "Delicious" means pleasant to the taste, so it is also not a synonym of "voracious." "Ravenous," which means extremely hungry, is a synonym of "voracious," so it is the best answer choice.

"Placid" is an adjective that means not easily perturbed or excited when referring to a sentient living thing; it can also mean peaceful and calm, and is often used this way to describe bodies of water. While "dull" might seem like a good potential synonym for "placid," "dull" actually means boring or not sharp, so it doesn't mean the same thing that "placid" does. "Tranquil," however, means calm, and because it is the answer choice closest in meaning to "placid," it is the correct answer.

You may have seen the word tepid paired with the water in the past and assumed that it meant frigid (cold), stagnant (standing still), or Scalding (extremely hot), but the word actually means lukewarm or unenthusiastic.

"Morose" means ill-tempered, or "sullen."

"Aloof" means remote in manner, or "distant."

"Apathetic" means indifferent, emotionless, or "uninterested."

Keen means showing eagerness or enthusiasm.

Skeptical means having doubt.

Infuriated means made extremely angry, or enraged.

Contrite means remorseful and filled with the desire to repent.

Irate means very angry or furious.

If you are “aghast," you are horrified, so "horrified" is the correct answer. For clarification, "cerebral" means intelligent or brainy; "jubilant" means very happy; "scornful" means negative and insulting; and "ghostly" means spectral or like a phantom.

A “harrowing” experience is one that is scary and traumatizing. For clarification, something that is "traumatizing" causes the traumatized to feel lasting emotional shock.

"Vehement" means passionate or angry.

"Rue" is regret and contrition, but often with a slightly amusing tinge. "Dubious" means doubtful. "Spurious" means false or fictitious. "Wintry" is the adjective form or "winter" and is usually a synonym for cold and snowy. "Stingy" means miserly, cheap.

"Vociferous" means "clamorous," vocal, and vehement. "Imperturbable" is another word for unflappable, unable to be upset. "Lucid" means clear, and "gravid" means pregnant or swollen. "Effervescent" is bubbly.

"Salacious" means lewd, "libidinous," or obscene. This is an antonym for "proper" and "prudish." "Subdued" means somber, downcast. "Energetic" means high-spirited and full of energy.

"Hangdog" means shamefaced, "abashed," or "ashamed" and often describes a person's facial expression. "Broke" means temporarily or currently short on money, and "criminal" as an adjective means inclined to commit or having already committed crime. "Abject" means craven, miserable. "Indulgent" means lenient, generous, or softhearted.