10th Grade Vocabulary Worksheets

Press Print worksheet to match twelve argument words, such as concede and cogent, to their meanings.

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NameDateMade at homeroomtools.comDraw a line from each one on the left to its partner on the right.Vocabularyconcedecontendqualifycorroboraterhetoricethospathoslogoscogentspeciousanecdotetenableto limit a statement so that it isnot too broadto back up an account withfurther proofa short account of a real incidentto argue firmly that something isthe casepersuasion that leans on thespeaker's own authoritystrong enough to stand up toobjectionspersuasion that rests onreasoning and proofclear, well reasoned andconvincingto admit that an opposing point iscorrectpersuasion that stirs theaudience's feelingsthe craft of speaking or writing topersuadesounding right but actually false
NameDateMade at homeroomtools.comDraw a line from each one on the left to its partner on the right.VocabularyAnswer keyconcedecontendqualifycorroboraterhetoricethospathoslogoscogentspeciousanecdotetenableto limit a statement so that it isnot too broadto back up an account withfurther proofa short account of a real incidentto argue firmly that something isthe casepersuasion that leans on thespeaker's own authoritystrong enough to stand up toobjectionspersuasion that rests onreasoning and proofclear, well reasoned andconvincingto admit that an opposing point iscorrectpersuasion that stirs theaudience's feelingsthe craft of speaking or writing topersuadesounding right but actually false
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Argument words 12

  • anecdote A short account of a real incident. He opened with an anecdote about his first job.
  • cogent Clear, well reasoned and convincing. She made a cogent case for a later start time.
  • concede To admit that an opposing point is correct. I concede that the plan would cost more.
  • contend To argue firmly that something is the case. The authors contend that the town needs a second bridge.
  • corroborate To back up an account with further proof. A second witness can corroborate her story.
  • ethos Persuasion that leans on the speaker's own authority. A doctor citing her training relies on ethos.
  • logos Persuasion that rests on reasoning and proof. Statistics give the essay its logos.
  • pathos Persuasion that stirs the audience's feelings. The photo of the flooded street adds pathos.
  • qualify To limit a statement so that it is not too broad. Qualify the claim by adding in most cases.
  • rhetoric The craft of speaking or writing to persuade. The speech is a model of political rhetoric.
  • specious Sounding right but actually false. The ad makes a specious link between price and quality.
  • tenable Strong enough to stand up to objections. After the new data, the old theory was no longer tenable.
Show all 120 words (108 more)

Analysis words 12

  • ascertain To make sure of a fact by looking into it. Police are trying to ascertain the cause of the fire.
  • contextualize To place within the circumstances that give meaning. Contextualize the letter by noting the year it was sent.
  • delineate To describe or mark out with precision. The report delineates each team's duties.
  • dichotomy A division into two sharply opposed parts. The essay rejects the dichotomy of work and play.
  • elucidate To throw light on a point by explaining it. Footnotes elucidate the older terms.
  • extrapolate To extend known figures to estimate unknown ones. We can extrapolate next year's sales from this trend.
  • implicit Suggested without being said outright. There was an implicit warning in his tone.
  • juxtapose To set two things side by side to bring out a contrast. The film juxtaposes city noise with rural quiet.
  • paradigm A model of thinking that a field accepts. The discovery overturned the old paradigm.
  • postulate To put forward as a starting point for reasoning. Early thinkers postulated that matter was made of atoms.
  • ramification A consequence that branches out from a decision. One ramification of the law was higher rents.
  • scrutinize To inspect in minute detail. Auditors scrutinize every receipt.

Tone words 12

  • candid Frank, even when the truth is unwelcome. The coach was candid about our mistakes.
  • detached Standing apart, without personal feeling. The narrator's detached voice reports the events coldly.
  • earnest Serious in purpose and meaning what one says. He made an earnest effort to apologize.
  • flippant Too casual about a serious matter. A flippant remark made things worse.
  • indignant Angry at what seems unjust. Fans were indignant at the referee's call.
  • nostalgic Longing fondly for a past time. Old songs make him nostalgic.
  • ominous Hinting that trouble is on the way. An ominous rumble came from the hillside.
  • reverent Marked by solemn respect. The crowd fell into a reverent hush.
  • sardonic Mocking with bitterness and scorn. His sardonic reply silenced the table.
  • somber Dark, grave and sad in mood. The room was somber after the news.
  • wistful Quietly sad with longing. She cast a wistful look at the old house.
  • wry Humorous in a dry, slightly mocking way. She gave a wry smile at the mix-up.

Literary terms 12

  • allusion An indirect mention of something well known. The title is an allusion to a Greek myth.
  • anaphora The repeating of a word at the start of successive lines. We shall fight is the anaphora of the speech.
  • archetype A character pattern that recurs across cultures. The wise old mentor is an archetype.
  • catharsis A release of pent-up emotion through art. The final act brings catharsis.
  • denouement The closing part of a story, when the conflict is settled. In the denouement the letters are finally read.
  • diction The words an author selects, plain or ornate. Formal diction suits the judge's speech.
  • epiphany A sudden flash of understanding. In the last scene she has an epiphany about her past.
  • foil A character who, by being different, sets off the main one. The reckless brother is a foil to the cautious one.
  • hubris Excessive pride that brings about a downfall. The king's hubris blinds him to the warning.
  • oxymoron Two opposed terms put together on purpose for effect. Bittersweet is an oxymoron.
  • soliloquy A character's private thoughts, voiced with no one to hear. The prince's soliloquy reveals his doubt.
  • vernacular The everyday language of ordinary people in a region. The novel is written in the vernacular of the river towns.

Describing words 12

  • anomalous Departing from what is normal or expected. One anomalous reading spoiled the data set.
  • arduous Demanding great and tiring effort. The climb was long and arduous.
  • austere Plain and strict, without comfort. The monk's room was austere.
  • banal So commonplace that it is dull. The speech was full of banal advice.
  • ephemeral Gone almost as soon as it appears. Frost patterns are ephemeral on a sunny morning.
  • esoteric Understood only by a few with special knowledge. The lecture drifted into esoteric detail.
  • innocuous Not likely to hurt or offend. It seemed an innocuous question.
  • lucid Expressed so clearly that it is easy to follow. Her lucid summary helped everyone.
  • pervasive Spreading through every part of something. A pervasive smell of smoke hung in the hall.
  • salient Standing out as most worthy of notice. List the salient points of the article.
  • tenuous So slight or thin that it barely holds. The two cases have only a tenuous link.
  • ubiquitous So widespread that it turns up wherever one looks. Phones are ubiquitous in the city.

Action words 12

  • alleviate To make pain or hardship less severe. Shade helped alleviate the heat.
  • circumvent To find a way around a rule or barrier. Drivers circumvent the toll by taking back roads.
  • curtail To cut short or scale back. Rain curtailed the outdoor concert.
  • disseminate To spread information widely. Libraries disseminate research to the public.
  • emulate To try to match by imitating. Young players emulate the team captain.
  • exacerbate To make a bad situation worse. Shouting will only exacerbate the argument.
  • galvanize To shock into sudden activity. The report galvanized the town into action.
  • relinquish To hand over control or possession. She had to relinquish her seat on the board.
  • repudiate To reject as untrue or refuse to accept. The senator repudiated the rumor.
  • supplant To push out and replace something older. Streaming has supplanted the video store.
  • usurp To take a position of power without the right to it. The general tried to usurp the throne.
  • vacillate To waver between opinions. He continued to vacillate between the two colleges.

Character words 12

  • capricious Changing mood or mind without warning. A capricious boss rewrote the rules weekly.
  • conscientious Taking care to do a duty thoroughly. A conscientious nurse checked every chart.
  • diffident Hesitant from a lack of self-confidence. The diffident student rarely raised a hand.
  • duplicitous Saying one thing while doing another to deceive. A duplicitous agent sold secrets to both sides.
  • gregarious Fond of being in company. A gregarious host greeted every guest.
  • magnanimous Generous in forgiving a rival. The magnanimous winner praised her opponent.
  • obstinate Refusing to budge from a view or course. The obstinate mule would not cross the stream.
  • petulant Sulky and bad-tempered like a spoiled child. He gave a petulant shrug.
  • sagacious Having keen judgment. A sagacious editor spotted the flaw.
  • stoic Enduring hardship without complaint. She stayed stoic through the long recovery.
  • taciturn Saying very little by habit. The taciturn farmer answered with a nod.
  • unscrupulous Willing to act dishonestly to gain something. An unscrupulous dealer hid the car's faults.

Government and history words 12

  • bicameral Having two legislative chambers. The United States Congress is bicameral.
  • coup A sudden, illegal seizure of government. The army staged a coup at dawn.
  • federalism A system that splits power between nation and states. Federalism lets states set their own school rules.
  • filibuster The tactic of talking at great length to stall a decision. The filibuster ran past midnight.
  • gerrymander To redraw voting districts so one party gains. Critics said the map was drawn to gerrymander the state.
  • hegemony Dominance of one state or group over others. Rome held hegemony over the Mediterranean.
  • imperialism A policy of extending rule over foreign lands. Imperialism redrew the map of Africa in the 1880s.
  • incumbent The person who holds an office now. The incumbent is running for a second term.
  • nationalism Intense devotion to one's own nation. Nationalism grew across Europe in the 1800s.
  • reparations Payments made to make amends for harm done. The treaty required reparations after the war.
  • sovereignty A nation's full right to rule itself. The treaty recognized the nation's sovereignty.
  • totalitarian Exerting complete control over public and private life. A totalitarian state bans rival parties.

Science words 12

  • biodiversity The range of different species living in a region. Rain forests have great biodiversity.
  • catalyst A substance that hastens a reaction yet is not consumed. The lab added a catalyst to speed up the reaction.
  • empirical Resting on what has been observed or measured. The claim lacks empirical support.
  • equilibrium A state in which opposing processes balance. The reaction reached equilibrium within minutes.
  • homeostasis An organism's ability to hold its inner state stable. Sweating is part of homeostasis.
  • inertia A body's resistance to any change in its motion. Inertia keeps the puck sliding.
  • ion An atom, or a few bonded atoms, with a net electric charge. A sodium ion has a positive charge.
  • isotope One of an element's atoms that differs in neutron count. Carbon-14 is an isotope of carbon.
  • mitosis The splitting of a cell nucleus into two matching copies. Mitosis lets skin replace worn cells.
  • molecule The smallest bit of a substance that is still that substance. A water molecule has three atoms.
  • osmosis The seeping of water through a partly porous membrane. Water crossed the membrane by osmosis.
  • velocity How fast and in which direction something moves. The velocity is 20 meters per second north.

Easily confused pairs 12

  • affect To act on something and bring about a change. Lack of sleep can affect your mood.
  • complement A thing that rounds out or pairs well with another. The sauce is a fine complement to the fish.
  • compliment A remark of praise. She paid him a compliment on his essay.
  • discreet Careful to avoid drawing attention. Please be discreet about the surprise.
  • discrete Separate and individually distinct. The course has four discrete units.
  • effect A change that a cause produces. The new rule had an immediate effect.
  • elicit To call forth a reply or a reaction. The question failed to elicit an answer.
  • eminent Standing out as distinguished in a profession. An eminent historian gave the lecture.
  • illicit Forbidden by law or by rules. The police seized the illicit goods.
  • imminent About to happen at any moment. Dark clouds showed that rain was imminent.
  • precede To come before in time or order. A short speech will precede the awards.
  • proceed To go ahead or carry on. Proceed to the next question.

How this list was compiled: Word list chosen for this site on 2026-10-02; the grade is our suggestion and the list follows no published program, exam or standard. Each meaning is written in our own words and was checked that day against the entry for the word in Wiktionary, the free dictionary (https://en.wiktionary.org/), whose text is under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike license: it gives a sense the entry lists, in shorter words. The example sentence after each meaning is our own. No list was copied from a test-preparation book or an exam. Facts named in the examples (Congress has two chambers, carbon-14 is an isotope of carbon, a water molecule has three atoms, sodium forms ions, the partition of Africa in the 1880s, Rome's hold over the Mediterranean) were read on 2026-10-02 in the articles on each subject at https://en.wikipedia.org/. Licence: own work

How it works

These 10th grade vocabulary worksheets, written for grades 9 and 10, set twelve words on the left against their meanings, shuffled, on the right. Ten sets run from argument and tone words to science words.

Read the full guide

Ten sets of twelve

Set opens on Argument words, such as concede, corroborate and specious. The others are Analysis words, Tone words, Literary terms, Describing words, Action words, Character words, Government and history words, Science words and Easily confused pairs.

Pairs that are easy to confuse

The last set puts affect beside effect, elicit beside illicit, eminent beside imminent, complement beside compliment, discreet beside discrete and precede beside proceed. Each word has its own meaning, so the twelve still match one to one.

Words from your own text

The box above the sheet takes one pair a line, word = meaning: hubris = pride that leads to a fall. The sheet then carries your pairs.

  • Below the sheet, the full list gives every word a sentence: The two cases have only a tenuous link.
  • Nothing here is taken from an exam or a test-preparation book. The grade is our suggestion.

Questions and answers

What vocabulary words should a 10th grader know?

No list is official. Ours suggests words a ninth or tenth grader meets in essays, literature, history and science, such as rhetoric, extrapolate, allusion, ubiquitous, sovereignty and equilibrium. Your own words can replace them.

Do these work as 9th grade vocabulary worksheets?

Yes. The list is written for grades 9 and 10 together. Choose All of them in Set for a sheet that draws twelve words from the whole list.

Does the sheet print with an answer key?

Yes, as its last page. To print without the key, open More options and uncheck Add an answer key as the last page.

Where do the definitions come from?

Each is our own wording, compared with the senses Wiktionary gives for the word on 2 October 2026. A word with several senses gets one of them, the one a high school class is likely to need.

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