The archaeological team made a substantial discovery, unearthing a collection of bronze tools that dated back over three thousand years.
考古队取得了重大发现，出土了一批可追溯至三千多年前的青铜工具。
Traditional adobe construction techniques use sun-dried mud bricks that provide substantial thermal mass, allowing interior temperatures to stay cool during hot days and retain warmth through cool nights; this passive temperature regulation reduces the need for mechanical heating and cooling in many desert climates.
From a Central Ideas and Details question · Information and Ideas
A transportation planner claims that adding a dedicated bus lane on a congested avenue would significantly reduce average commute times for bus riders without substantially slowing car traffic.
From a Command of Evidence: Textual question · Information and Ideas
Sustainability consultant Rafael Duarte notes that extensive glass facades, while visually striking, are significantly less energy-efficient than more traditional wall materials, requiring substantially more heating and cooling to maintain comfortable interior temperatures.
From a Cross-Text Connections question · Craft and Structure
Which choice best defines “substantial”?
B — Large, important; real. “substantial” means large, important; real.
Which word means “large, important; real”?
B — substantial. “substantial” means large, important; real.
substantial — large, important; real. In Chinese: 大量的，重大的.
substantial is pronounced /səbˈstænʃl/.
The archaeological team made a substantial discovery, unearthing a collection of bronze tools that dated back over three thousand years. (考古队取得了重大发现，出土了一批可追溯至三千多年前的青铜工具。)
considerable, significant, ample — all close in meaning to substantial (large, important; real).
insignificant, meager — each the opposite of substantial (large, important; real).
Yes. substantial is on the SAT Prep Easy list — mid-frequency academic words that do get tested. The Digital SAT does not test vocabulary in isolation; words like this one are tested through Words in Context questions, where you choose the word that completes a passage most logically and precisely.
sub(below)+stance(stand)+ial.