DETRIMENTAL is a very negative word that means causing harm or damage. DETRIMENTAL more than lived up to its name on the August 22, 2026 SAT. It appeared as a tempting but WRONG answer in two hotly disputed vocabulary in context questions. Let’s take a look!
The now infamous “oil shock” question described the “merely NOMINAL” impact of a sudden rise in oil prices from May 1979 to January 1980. Assuming that the rising price of oil must be economically harmful, many students selected DETRIMENTAL. But a careful reading of the passage supports NOMINAL as the most logical and precise answer.
The disputed AMENABLE vs PERTINENT question also included DETRIMENTAL as a tempting wrong answer. The passage described research indicating that copper-contaminated soil may be especially AMENABLE to decontamination by plants. Whew – DETRIMENTAL definitely seemed like a possible choice. Afterall, the passage did seem to have a negative tone. But once again, DETRIMENTAL proved to be an incorrect choice.
Both of these difficult questions could easily reappear on the upcoming September, October, and November SATs. Remember, for DETRIMENTAL to be the correct answer the passage must provide clear supporting evidence that something is directly causing harm and damage.
DETRIMENTAL – causing harm or damage