Conducive: meaning and SAT practice

Conducive (adjective) means: Making something likely to happen or succeed.

Conducive in a sentence

A quiet environment is conducive to studying effectively.

Similar: favorable, helpful, beneficial, advantageous, suitable. Opposite: unfavorable, detrimental, harmful.

SAT-style practice: what does “conducive” most nearly mean?

A quiet environment is conducive to studying effectively.

As used in the sentence, “conducive” most nearly means

  1. favorable
  2. sarcastic
  3. blatant
  4. cursory
Show the answer

Answer: A. “conducive” means: Making something likely to happen or succeed. “favorable” is the closest match in this sentence. The other choices are real SAT-level words, but none of them carries that meaning here.

On the digital SAT this is the “Words in Context” skill, about 7 of the 54 Reading and Writing questions. The test asks what a word means as used in the passage, so a word’s most common meaning is not always the answer. More of these, with full explanations, are on SAT Words in Context practice questions.

  • salutary: Producing a good or beneficial effect on health or well-being.
  • perspicuous: Clear and easy to understand; expressed in a way that is transparent.
  • churlish: Rude and unfriendly in manner or behavior.
  • choleric: Quick to anger; easily irritated or bad-tempered.
  • recondite: Difficult to understand; requiring specialized knowledge or deep study.
  • scintillating: Brilliantly clever, witty, or sparkling with light and energy.

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