IMPEDE has just made its debut as a member of our list of One Hit Wonder words. It means to make an action or process more difficult by slowing, blocking, or hindering it. The posts on our Substack platform are designed to prevent IMPEDE and other SAT words from hindering your goal of earning a high Reading and Writing SAT score!
Needless to say, SAT test writers did not use one of their own difficult vocabulary in context questions as a way of illustrating IMPEDE. Instead, they pointed out that automobile repair shops now use very sophisticated information systems designed to help technicians identify what’s wrong with a car. But wait! A poorly designed system can IMPEDE or slow down and thus hinder the process of repairing a car.
IMPEDE – to slow down, block, and thus make an action more difficult; hinder
APUSH BONUS EXAMPLE
Prior to the Civil War, thousands of enslaved African Americans used the Underground Railroad to escape to freedom in the North. Disturbed by the growing number of successful escapes, Southern slaveholders pushed Congress to pass the Fugitive Slave Act of 1850. The federal law made it a crime to assist runaway slaves. The law IMPEDED the escape effort by adding great risk, fear, and legal consequences to the network of safe houses and abolitionists helping freedom seekers.