Category word meaning

Meaning: The word bedazzle is used when the outstanding ability or striking appearance greatly impresses someone. It is also used to denote decorating or personalising clothing or accessories using beads, glitter, etc

Origin: The word, which has been in use since the 1590s, was first used to mean "blind by excess of light". It is arrived at by combining "be" with "dazzle”. Dazzle acquired the figurative sense of "overpower or excite admiration by brilliancy or showy display" from 1560s.

Usage: Bedazzled by our gadgets, we seem to have completely lost ourselves to these devices.

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Meaning: A noun, plaque refers to the bacterial accumulation on teeth. It also refers to a tablet in metal, marble or clay with writing on it, placed near a monument to commemorate a person or an event.

Origin: The term is borrowed from French plaque meaning plate or patch. It's derived from Dutch plac meaning "tablet" which in turn comes from plakken meaning "to stick or stain". It has been in use in English since the mid-19th Century.

Usage: The dentist said there is a severe build-up of plaque on my mom's teeth.

The artery walls have been narrowed by plaque.

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Meaning: A noun, the term foundling refers to a baby that has been abandoned or deserted by its parents and is found and cared for by others.

Origin: The term has its origins in Middle English fundelyng and is arrived at by combining 'found' (past participle of find') and the suffix-ling' meaning "small or immature." It's been in use since the 14th Century.

Usage: She is a foundling and has grown up in a home for abandoned children. The book narrates the touching story of an elderly woman adopting a foundling and giving her a bright future.

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Meaning: An adjective, "indomitable" means incapable of being subdued or defeated.

Origin: The word has its origin in late Latin, from the word indomitabilis which means untameable, from in (not) + Latin domitare (to tame). Its fust known usage was in 1634.

Usage: Despite the curveballs life threw at her, June had an indomitable spirit which helped her surmount the difficulties she encountered.

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Meaning: The word unprecedented denotes something that is never done or known before.

Origin: The word has been around since the 1620s and is in common use from around 1760. It is arrived at by combining ‘un’ with precedented. Precedented is the past-participle adjective from precedent and conveys the meaning "authorised by precedent, in accordance with established custom."

After steady usage through the 19th Century, the word's usage increased constantly through the 20th Century and its usage is now close to its peak.

Usage: The Australian women won an unprecedented sixth Women's T20 World Cup in 2023.

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It refers to the point at which something is realised or accomplished, often indicating the fulfilment or completion of a goal, plan, or desire.

Origin: The word originated from the Latin word "fruitio," which means "enjoyment" or "use." It entered the English language in the late 15th century.

Usage: After years of hard work and dedication, Sarah's dream of starting her own business finally came to fruition.

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Meaning: This is an adjective referring to what is characterised by much sitting and little physical exercise.

Origin: The origin of the word lies in the Latin verb sedere, which means 'to sit’. This root word produced two Latin adjectives: sedens, which is quite common in Latin and just means 'sitting', and sedentarius, which is rarer and has the more specific meaning of 'tending to sit around a lot’. These words found their way into English as sedent and sedentary respectively. However, sedent is used rarely while sedentary has come into its own as we find ourselves increasingly in need of a word that describes our tendency to sit down and stare at a screen all day.

Usage: We can ensure ours is not a sedentary job.

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Meaning: An adjective, adept means skilled or having a natural ability to do something that requires skill. It is usually followed by at. As a noun, it corresponds to an expert or a proficient person.

Origin: The term adept is derived from Latin adeptus meaning achieved. Adeptus is the past participle of adipisci which means 'obtain, attain. The word has been in use in English since the mid-17th Century.

Usage: He is adept at keeping his private life out of the media. He is an adept pianist.

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Meaning:  This is a formal word that refers to a learned person; especially someone with detailed knowledge about a particular subject. The word is also used to refer to a person affected with a developmental disorder who exhibits exceptional skill or brilliance in a particular subject or field.

Origin: Savant comes from the Latin sapere which means to be wise.

Usage: His sister is a computer savant, so he knows he can call her whenever he has technical issues.

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Meaning: The word bulldoze denotes clearing the ground or destroying buildings, trees in order to make an area flat with a bulldozer. It is also used when someone is forced to do something, even though they might not want to do it.

Origin: The word has been around since 1880 and is from an earlier noun, ‘bulldose’. The bull element in the word is likely to be connected to that in bull-whip and might even be directly from that word. The "ground clearing" meaning is from 1942.

Usage: The little greenery that was left in the city was bulldozed to make way for more high-rise buildings.

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Meaning: A noun, the word gambit means a calculated move or a move to gain an advantage.

Origin: The word is borrowed from Spanish word "gambito", which is borrowed from Italian "gambetto" which means the "act of tripping someone". The word was first used in 1656.

Usage: The thrilling opening gambit by the jester’s son had everyone at their wit's end because no suitor could surpass what he had just done.

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Meaning: This noun refers to a light food made from a mixture of beaten egg whites and other ingredients that is baked in the oven.

It can be either sweet or savoury.

Origin: This word has its origin in the French word soufflé, from the past participle of souffle, meaning "to puff up". This, in turn, is from Latin sufflare, from sub (meaning "up from under") + flare ("to blow").

Example: His chocolate soufflé is always incredibly delicious and light.

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(Pronounced tree-kuhl-ee)

Meaning: This adjective means dark and sticky, like treacle – a thick sweet syrup. Also, too pleasant or kind, or expressing feelings of love in a false way.

Origin: The word comes from treacle – a British term for molasses-originally "an antidote to poison", from the Greek root theriake, "antidote for poisonous wild animals". The sense of "molasses" is recorded from 1690s (the connection may be from the use of molasses as a laxative, or its use to disguise the bad taste of medicine). The use as "anything too sweet or sentimental" is from 1771.

Usage: The film is marked by a treacly sentiment.

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(Pronounced uhn.soo.see.uhns)

Meaning: A noun, insouciance refers to a feeling of careless indifference. It is a lack of concern shown by someone towards something they might be expected to take seriously

Origin: Originating from the French insouciant in the late 18th Century, the word is a combination of the negative prefix in– and soucier, meaning "to worry or disturb." Soucier in turn came from the Latin sollicitus meaning "anxious". The word "insouciance" has been part of the English language since the 1800s.

Usage: She entered the meeting hall with complete insouciance to the fact that she was late.

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(Pronounced vi-cin-i-ty)

Meaning: This word is often used as a synonym of neighbourhood meaning the area around or near a particular place. It can also mean the quality or state of being near or an approximate amount, extent, or degree.

Origin: Vicinity first appeared in English in the 16th Century. It comes from Latin vicus, meaning "row of houses" or “village,” by way of Latin vicinus, meaning neighbouring.

Usage: She lives in Los Angeles, or somewhere in that vicinity.

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(Pronounced as: o-ra-kyoo-ler)

Meaning: An adjective, "oracular” means resembling an oracle or of, relating to, or being an oracle.

Origin: The word is borrowed from the Latin word "oraculum" meaning a divine announcement or a prophetic declaration. Its first known use was in 1631.

Usage: The return of the gypsy to the king's court brought much cheer because if anything could save the king and the kingdom then it was the oracular pronouncements the gypsy would make.

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(pronounced duhm.fawnd.uhd

Meaning: The word dumbfounded is used to denote a sense of great astonishment or amazement.

Origin: The word has been in use from the 1680s and is the past participle adjective from dumbfound. The word dumbfound is arrived at by combining dumb with the ending from confound.

The word has steadily increased in usage in the last few decades and is enjoying its best popularity in the last 200 years.

Usage: The demonstration of the new gadget was so good that it left the gathered audience dumbfounded.

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(Pronounced ka luh koh)

Meaning: The noun refers to a plain woven cotton cloth printed with a figured pattern, usually on one side.

Origin: In use since the 16th Century, the word is derived from an alternative form of Calicut (modern Kozhikode), the name of the seaport on the Malabar coast of India where Europeans first obtained the fabric. In the U.S., the use extended to animal colourings suggestive of printed calicos in 1807, originally of horses, and of cats from 1882.

Usage: My grandma's tiny wooden box was wrapped in printed calico.

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(pronounced as buh.reft)

Meaning: The word bereft is used to imply being deprived of or lacking something. When used with a person, it corresponds to being sad and lonely, especially because of someone's death or departure.

Origin: The word has been around since late in the 14th Century. A past-participle adjective, bereft is derived from the verb bereave. Now slightly different in meaning, the past tense forms of bereave- bereaved and bereft – have co-existed since 14th Century.

After sliding down out of favour for over 100 years from around 1800, the word's usage has increased steadily from around 1950s.

Usage: Some desert landscapes are bereft of any human presence.

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(Pronounced hold.aut)

Meaning: A noun, holdout refers to a person, organisation, or country that continues to do something despite others trying to force them not to. It is used to describe someone who refuses to reach an agreement with others in a particular situation. In other words, it is an act of resisting something or refusing to give consent to an agreement.

Origin: The term "holdout" is said to have been attested from 1907 in the sense "keep back, withhold". It's a combination of the verb hold and the adverb out. Meanwhile, the phrase "hold out" meaning "resist pressure" has been in use since the late 16th Century.

Usage: It's time to shame holdouts who resist proposals to limit global warming.

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(Pronounced pre-co-cious)

Meaning: Precocious means having or showing mature qualities at an unusually early age. It can also mean exceptionally early in development or occurrence.

Origin: This word comes from combining the Latin prefix prae-, meaning ‘ahead of’ with the verb coquere, meaning to cook or to ripen. Together, they formed the adjective praecox, which meant early ripening. By the mid-1600s, English speakers had turned praecox into precocious and were using it especially to describe plants that produced blossoms before their leaves came out.

Usage:  She was a precocious child who could read before she started school.

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Meaning: A verb, portend means to give an omen or anticipatory sign of something.

Origin: The word is derived from the Latin word portendere which means to indicate, point out or foretell. The word was first used in the 15th century.

Usage: The gypsy was always welcome in the king's court, because her visions would portend the fate of his kingdom, and more so now than ever, when he was in his darkest hour.

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(Pronounced sa tiate)

Meaning: This is a formal word that means to satisfy a need or a desire.

Origin: Both satiate and sad are related to the Latin adjective satis, meaning enough. When we say our desire, thirst, curiosity, etc. has been satiated, we mean it has been fully satisfied or in other words 'have had enough’.

Usage: She finished the meal and sat back with a satiated sigh.

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(pronounced as in truh kuht)

Meaning: The word intricate is used as an adjective to describe the nature of being very complicated or detailed.

Origin:  The word has been around since early 15th Century. It is derived from Latin intricatus meaning entangled past participle of intricare to entangle perplex embarrass."

The usage of the word has been fairly even over the last 200 years or so, with minor ups and downs.

Usage: Human history is intricately woven with our views of the starry skies.

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Pronounced as: Ggruh-vay-men

 Meaning: A noun, "gravamen" means the significant part of a grievance or complaint.

Origin: The word traces its origin to the Latin word "gravare” meaning “to burden". Its first known use was in 1602. The word is generally used in legal contexts:

Usage: The gravamen of the complaint was that the malpractices by the minister's aides had pushed the kingdom and its residents into a state of deprivation of resources.

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It is pronounced law-znj.

Meaning: This noun refers to a small, flat sweet that you suck to make a cough or sore throat feel better. It also refers to a figure (such as diamond) with four equal sides and two acute and two obtuse angles.

Origin: This Middle English word is from the Old French losenge, probably derived from the base of Spanish losa, and Portuguese lousa, meaning 'slab’. This, in turn, is from the late Latin word lausiae, meaning ‘stone slabs’.

Usage: She popped an orange-coloured lozenge into her mouth.

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(Pronounced deh. luh.tech.ree.us)

Meaning: An adjective, "deleterious means harmful or damaging, often in an unexpected way.

Origin: The term originated from the Greek deleterios meaning "noxious or destructive” via Medieval Latin deleterius. It is derived from deleter meaning "destroyer." It began to be used in English in the mid-17th Century.

Usage: Carbon emissions have a deleterious impact on our planet.

 It's important to sleep well as the lack of sleep can have a deleterious effect on the body.

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(Pronounced as: foy-bl)

Meaning: A noun, "foible" means a minor flaw or shortcoming in character or behaviour.

Origin: The word traces its origin to the French word "faible" meaning week and is borrowed from the Old French word "feble". Its first known use was in 1648.

Usage: As the day of coronation drew closer, she hoped that the crown would be hers for the taking, praying her father would care little for her foibles.

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(Pronounced maw kuhsh)

Meaning: This adjective means showing emotion or love in an awkward or silly way.

Origin: The word originates from the Middle English mawke, meaning "maggot”. Its earliest sense, used in the late 17th century but now obsolete, was synonymous with squeamish, but not long after that, mawkish was used to describe an unpleasant, nauseating, often sickeningly sweet flavour. The figurative sense of mawkish, used to describe things that are full of "sickly sweet" sentimentality, arose almost concurrently.

Usage: The actor's mawkish poem was boring and insincere.

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(Pronounced im por tune)

Meaning: This verb means to make repeated, forceful requests for something, usually in a way that is annoying.

Origin: Importune is derived from the Old French verb “importuner”, which came from the Latin words “importunus" and "importare" meaning to cause inconvenience.

Usage: The students importuned the professor to extend the deadline of the assignment.

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(pronounced duh leh muh)

Meaning: The word dilemma is used to refer to a situation in which a tough choice has to be made between two or more alteratives. It is especially used when the choices confronted with are equally undesirable.

Origin

The word has been around 1520s in rhetoric, from Late Latin dilemma from Greek dilemma meaning "a double proposition." It is arrived at by combing di (two) with lemma (premise, anything received or taken).

The meaning "choice between two undesirable alternatives" has been around since the 1580s.

After steady usage in the 19th Century, the word saw a spike in usage in the hundred or so years that followed and is currently enjoying a high with respect to the last 200 years.

Usage: The student faced an agonising dilemma and it seems like there is no correct choice.

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(Pronounced awb.vee.ayt)

Meaning: A verb, obviate means to eliminate a need for something or to prevent something from happening.

Origin: The term is derived from Late Latin obviat meaning "prevented", from the Latin verb obviare meaning "to withstand". The prefix "ob" means "to go against" and "via" means "way" in Latin. The term obviate has been in use in English since the late 16th Century.

Usage: The natural breeze in the evening is so good that it obviates the need to switch on the fan at home.

A parachute can be used to obviate disaster. The new medicine obviates the need for surgery.

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(Pronounced dau.ti)

Meaning: An adjective, doughty means brave, dauntless or intrepid. It is also used to describe someone who is unwilling to stop trying to achieve something. In other words, the term refers to fearless resolution.

Origin: Doughty is said to have a Germanic origin dyhtig, meaning "competent, strong". It came to be used in Middle English to mean "brave, valiant" from Old English dohtig, a variant of dyhtig.

Usage: She has been for decades a doughty campaigner for children's rights.

They have been stifled by their doughty opponents.

Despite her illness, her doughty spirit kept her going.

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(pronounced as faw.sl)

Meaning: The word fossil corresponds to the remains or impression of a prehistoric animal or plant that is embedded in rock and preserved in petrified form. In a humorous, and sometimes derogatory sense it can also be used to refer to a person or thing that is outdated or resistant to change

Origin: The word has been around since 1610s meaning "anything dug up”. It is derived from French fossile from Latin fossilis “dug up". The restricted noun sense of "geological remains of a plant or animal” that is most popular now has been around from 1736 Despite having some ups and downs, the word has been fairly popular over the last two centuries or so.

Usage: When she grows up, she wants to become a palaeontologist and study fossils.

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(Pronounced: im pla ca·ble)

Meaning: An adjective, implacable means not placable, that is not capable of being appeased, easily calmed or pacified.

Origin: The word is derived from the Latin word implacabilis which means unappeasable or irreconcilable. The word was first used in the 15th century.

Usage: For King Edward, the new friendship between the reigning powers of the neighbouring kingdoms loomed as an implacable threat to his crown.

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(pronounced as nig.ael)

Meaning:  The word niggle is used to denote things that cause slight but persistent annoyance, discomfort, or anxiety. It is also used to refer to criticising or annoying someone in a petty way.

Origin: The word, which is of uncertain origin, has been around since the 1590s. It is possibly from a Scandinavian source and compared with Norwegian nigla. The current sense of the word dates back to the late 18th Century.

Even though the word has been around for hundreds of years, it has grown hugely popular in terms of usage in the last few decades. This can perhaps be attributed to its usage in sports, as it is often employed to convey minor injuries of sportspersons.

Usage: Some players were rested for the tour as the selectors did not want to risk aggravating their niggles.

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(Pronounced teh-nyoo-uhs)

Meaning:  This adjective refers to what is weak and possibly does not exist.

Origin: In use since the 16th Century, it formed irregularly from the Latin word tenuis, meaning "thin, drawn out, meager, slim, slender' and figuratively referred to "trifling, insignificant, poor, low in rank". The correct form with respect to the Latin is tenuious. The figurative sense of "having slight importance, not substantial" is found from 1817 in English.

Example: They had a tenuous grip on reality.

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(Pronounced kan.uhn)

Meaning: A noun, canon refers to a generally accepted rule or principle by which something is judged. This 'canon' is spelt with one 'n' in the middle, whereas 'cannon' refers to a large artillery gun.

Origin: The term canon was derived from the Hebrew-Greek word kanon meaning "cane or measuring rod." It entered Old English from Old French or Late Latin canon meaning "church rule." The use of the word "canon" is said to have originated in reference to a set of Biblical texts regarded as scripture. The sense of the term as "a rule or principle" has been in use since the late 14th Century, and as a "standard of judging" since the 17th Century.

Usage: The recent actions by Russia violate all canons of international law, experts say.

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(Pronounced ret-ro-spect)

Meaning: Looking back on or thinking about past events

Origin: The first known use of this word was in 1601. It comes from a combination of the Latin roots 'retro'(which stands for back or backwards) and 'specere' (which means looking).

Example: We all learn things in retrospect.

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(Pronounced: conundrum)

Meaning: A noun, conundrum means a difficult problem. It also means a problem that has only a conjectural or hypothetical answer.

Origin: While the word was first used in 1645, the origin of the word is not known.

Usage: Ensuring water supply throughout the year in the kingdom was one of the biggest conundrums the king faced.

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(Pronounced stai.mee)

Meaning: As a verb, “stymie” means to hinder the progress of or to stop someone from doing something. As a noun, the term means a situation presenting such difficulties as to deter any attempt to deal with it.

Origin: Of uncertain origin, it perhaps came from the Scottish “stymie” meaning “person who cannot see well.” The word “stymie” entered English in the 19th Century as a noun referring to a golfing situation in which one players ball lies between another ball and the hole on the green, thereby blocking the line of play. Later, it came to be used as a verb in the present sense and also in non-golf contexts.

Usage: Faced with financial constraints, the company is putting a stymie on spending.

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(pronounced i.naw.gruhl)

Meaning: The word inaugural marks the beginning of an institution, activity, or period of office.

Origin: In use since the 1680s, the word is derived from French inaugural, which has been around since the 17th Century. The French word is from inaugurer “to inaugurate”, which is from Latin inaugurare, of the same meaning. The noun meaning “an inaugural address” has been in use from 1832.

Following a spike in usage from the 1850s to the 1900s, the usage of the word has remained fairly even.

Usage: The inaugural Women’s Premier League auction saw some of the top international women players end up with fat pay cheques.

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(Pronounced tsuk.ket.to.)

Meaning: This noun refers to a Roman Catholic cleric’s skullcap with different colours for different ranks – black for a priest, purple for a bishop, red for a cardinal, and white for the Pope.

Origin: This word has its origin in the Italian word zucca, meaning gourd, head, in reference to its shape. This is, in turn, from Late Latin cucutia, meaning gourd, probably from Latin cucurbita, meaning pumpkin or squash.

Example: The wind swept away the Pope’s zucchetto.

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Pronounced as: ga-muht

Meaning: A noun, "gamut" means an entire range or series

Origin: Its origin is considered to be a contraction of "gamma ut', a Latin expression in the Middle Ages for "the full range of notes in music," Its first known was in the 15th Century.

Usage: When it was time to perform for the first time on stage, she experienced an entire gamut of emotions.

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(Pronounced reverie)

Meaning: This noun refers to a state of having pleasant dream-like thoughts.

Origin: It comes from the Old French word "reverie" which means 'wildness" or "delirium."

Example: I was lost in reverie and did not realise my flight was boarding until it was almost too late.

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Pronounced as: fluh-res-uhns

Meaning: A noun. "florescence" means a state or period of flourishing

Origin: Its origin is from the Latin word "florescentia" meaning "blossoming." Its first known use was in 1793.

Usage: The 1960s was a period of florescence of art, music, and culture and it ushered in a significant change in the social spectrum.

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(pronounced splint uh)

Meaning: A noun, splinter refers to a small, sharp piece of wood, glass, or similar material that has broken off a larger piece, a fragment or a sliver. It can also be used as an adjective and a verb.

Origin: The term which has been in use in English since the early 14th Century, was borrowed from Middle Dutch splinter, splenter meaning "a sharp fragment of a material". Its adjective form was first recorded in 1935. Figuratively, the word can be used to describe something that separates in a violent way.

Usage: My little sister came crying with a splinter in her finger.

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(Pronounced mif)

Meaning: This noun refers to a slight annoyance or offence, often resulting from a minor disagreement or misunderstanding. It describes a feeling of being slightly put out or irritated.

Origin: The word miff originated in the early 18th Century and is believed to have derived from the Old English word "mifle," meaning to stammer or speak in a faltering manner. Over time, it evolved to connote a state of being displeased or offended.

Example: Jane was in a bit of a miff after her colleague criticised her presentation during the meeting.

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(Pronounced maa-vl.)

Meaning:  As a noun, it refers to a thing or person that is very surprising or causes a lot of admiration. As a verb, marvel means to show or experience great surprise or admiration.

Origin: As a noun, this Middle English word is derived from the Old French word merveille, in turn, from late Latin mirabilia, a neuter plural of the Latin word mirabilis, meaning ‘wonderful’. This is from mirari, meaning wonder at. The verb is from merveillen (of persons), meaning ‘to be filled with wonder’. This is from Old French merveillier, meaning ‘to wonder at, be astonished’, from the word merveille.

Example: I marvel at her knowledge and grasp of the subject.

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In order to educate and inspire ecologically responsible behaviour in young readers, Argentinian children's book publisher Pequeño Editor launched a project called Tree Book Tree in 2015. The books produced under the project were hand-stitched and printed with eco-friendly ink on recycled acid-free paper embedded with jacaranda tree seeds. The title produced, sold, and donated under the initiative was Mi Papá Estuvo en la Selva (that translates to My Dad Was in the Jungle, recommended for ages eight to 12). Each copy came with planting instructions and the plantable book was also put on display in bookstores, where the public could see it germinate. All books come from trees, and now there is one that will go back to being one.

Editorial director of the publishing house Pequeno Editor said on the project. "We think this book must be planted after it has been read many times, in such a way that every time a kid looks at that growing tree he will perfectly remember the story that gave birth to it."

This one-of-a-kind project inspired entrepreneurs such as Tom Willday to come up with willsow, the U.K's first plantable children's books publishing company that uses seed paper made out of recycled envelopes and vegetable-based ink to produce and print books featuring fruits and vegetables as protagonists.

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The term Afrofuturism was coined by culture critic Mark Dery in 1994 in his essay Black to the Future to point out the lack of black writers and black stories in science fiction. Dery described the term as a type of speculative fiction that treats African-American themes and addresses these individuals concerns in the context of the 20th Century techno-culture. This sub-genre of science fiction is one where black artists can tell stories of their limited past intertwined with their complicated present to come up with new ideas and reimagine a future which is divorced from the racial and cultural stereotypes that society perpetuates on them. This future is often more hopeful and includes themes such as liberation that have long been the core element of the black experience.

The works labelled Afrofuturism transverse the categories from literature, philosophy, and music to films and visual art. Some musicians who have incorporated Afrofuturism in their work aesthetically and sonically include Janelle Monáe and Sun Ra. In literature, Octavia E. Butler's groundbreaking book Kindred and Tomi Adeyemi's 2018 novel Children of Blood and Bone explore and merge African-American literature and mythology with themes that are relevant today. In cinema, the success of Marvel's Black Panther solidifies the entry of Afrofuturism on the big screen, giving young black boys and girls a chance to imagine themselves as superheroes.

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Essentially created as a counter of grimdark a sub-genre of fantasy fiction that emphasises the flaws in human nature and its capacity for cruelty (typified by books such as George RR Martin's A Song of Ice and Fire), the term hopepunk was coined in a 2017 Tumblr post by American author Alexandra Rowland. Her post went viral, and in 2019 hopepunk entered the Collins English Dictionary, which defined it as "a literary and artistic movement that celebrates the pursuit of positive aims in the face of adversity".

In the midst of the present political, economic and environmental uncertainties, it is easy to feel weary and hopeless. However, works that come under the literary genre of hopepunk motivate one to work towards creating a better world and believe in humankind's capability to bring about positive change. Here are a few books from this genre to lift your spirit: A Psalm for the Wild-Built by Becky Chambers, The Hobbit by J.R.R. Tolkien, and A Conspiracy of Truths by Alexandra Rowland.

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Global warming is changing horror movies, and the popularity of the up-and-coming horror subgenre eco-horror or ecological horror suggests that it is not likely to stop anytime soon. These movies are taking inspiration from humankind's fractured relationship with the environment to present scenarios where nature fights back against its two-legged inhabitant's misuse and exploitation of the planet's resources.

The first rumbling of eco-horror can be traced back to the mid-2000s, with disaster stories depicting nature itself as the monster threatening to wipe out all of humanity on Earth. The earliest example of this include release of climate disaster epics such as The Day After Tomorrow and documentaries  such as An Inconvenient Truth that shocked the general public's conscience. Since then we have seen more and more eco-war movies that aim at reminding us that we merely exist as an extension of nature and can never take complete control of it.

Some examples from the genre that represents the existential dread we feel about the irreversible damage we have done to the planet include books turned movies such as The Girl with All the Gifts, Annihilation, and Crawl.

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We play any sport to try and win, right? Not by everyone and not always. While you might be thinking about match fixing in sports, we are actually talking about tanking.

Tanking in sports corresponds to the practice by a team or an individual to intentionally do less than everything they can to win. The logic behind tanking usually revolves around future gains. While a team finishing last in some leagues (think basketball, American football) might get a first draft for a new player next season, individuals (think tennis, badminton) might be tanking in order to conserve energy in order to perform better in the next phase of the game. Tanking is mostly frowned upon by players, pundits, and fans and is even sometimes referred to as a disgraceful art and not sporting.

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If you've ever played chess, you will be aware that a player usually moves only a single piece. We say "usually because there is one time in chess when you can move two pieces in one move. Castling is that move.

Castling is a special move to protect the king on the board and activate the rook. During this move, the king moves two squares to the left or right and the rook moves directly to the other side of the king. Keep in mind that castling can be done only if neither the king nor the rook have made a move, and there are no pieces in the way. Castling cannot be done when in check, into check or through check.

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Football is the most popular sport in the world. Part of the charm lies in the fact that all that's usually needed to play it is a football, with even makeshift arrangements serving as goal posts when playing for fun. Additionally, the sport is very easy to understand as the rules are very simple…….. except the offside rule.

In simple terms, the offside rule mandates that an attacking player in the opposition half must have at least two opposition players, including the goalkeeper, between her and the opposition goal when a pass is played to her during a move.

Even though the rule has been around for over a century, it isn't easy to understand. The best way to get to grips with it is by watching it in action, for which you will get plenty of chances during the FIFA World Cup that begins on November 20.

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In cricket, a bowler can run out the non-striking batter in their delivery stride if that batter is backing up. This form of dismissal is informally referred to as Mankad, after Indian cricketer Vinoo Mankad, who effected it against Australia's Bill Brown in a Test match at Sydney in 1947

Even though this form of dismissal has been within the rules of cricket. it always invokes a debate around the spirit of the game when it happens. The bowler and the fielding side often bear the brunt, even though the onus is on the non-striker to stay their ground till the ball is delivered.

In order to make it less taboo, those in charge of the rules of the game moved the law on running out the non-striker this way from Unfair Play to Run Out. Effective from October 2022, Mankad is now a legitimate form of dismissal and is now classed as run out.

There was a lot of furore over India's Deepti Sharma effecting a run out of England's Charlie Dean at the non-striker's end during her delivery stride, as recently as September 2022.

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What are meaning, origin and usage of word ‘Palanquin’?

Meaning: This noun refers to a structure formerly used in East Asia for transporting one person. It consists of a box carried by four or six people by means of two long poles.

Origin: In use since the 16th Century. 1580s, it is from the Portuguese word palanquim, which is from the Malay and Javanese word palangki, meaning litter or sedan (enclosed seat used for transporting people). This, in tum, is from the Sanskrit word palyanka, meaning couch, litter, from the words 'pari (meaning around)+'ancati, (meaning it bends, curves), meaning, perhaps, that which bends around the body.

Example: "Palanquin Bearers" is a poem by Sarojini Naidu.

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Meaning: The word privy can be used as an adjective and as a noun. When used as an adjective, it means sharing in the knowledge of something private or secret. It is usually followed by the preposition "to". As a noun, it means a toilet located outside a house or building.

Origin: The term entered Middle English in the early 13th Century from Old French prive meaning "intimate or private place" which in turn came from Latin privatus meaning "private or personal."

Usage: Ram is not privy to the discussions of the top management. The farm house is a privy place for the writer to relax and think about his next plot.

Meaning: The word spree corresponds to a spell or sustained period of unrestrained activity of a particular kind.

Origin: The word has been doing the rounds since the start of the 19th Century. A word of uncertain origin, its earliest use was in Scottish dialect works. In British dramatist Samuel Foote's comedy "The Maid of Bath" (1794), the word appears as a Scottish dialect pronunciation of another word.

After steady usage for over a hundred years, the word started growing further in popularity in the second half of the 20th Century.

Usage: He went on a shopping spree immediately after his salary was credited to his account.

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Meaning: It is a verb that means to move or be shaped like waves.

Origin: This word is derived from unda which is Latin for wave.

Example: Beautiful rows of lavender undulated across the field.

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What are meaning, origin and usage of word ‘Motley’?

Pronunciation: maht-lee

Meaning: An adjective, motley means made up of many different people or things

Origin: The first known use of the word was in the 14th century. The word has its origin in Middle English, from mot, meaning speck or a tiny particle.

Usage: The police tried their best to barricade the motley crowd that had shuffled in at the scene of the accident.

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(Pronounced suhb.vuht)

Meaning: A verb, subvert refers to trying to destroy or ruin something such as an established government or political system in a sneaky way or overturning something from the foundation or base. In other words, “to subvert something” means “to destroy its power or influence.”

Origin: The term originates from the Latin root subvertere, meaning “to turn upside down or overthrow”; a combination of sub-“from below or under” and vertere “to turn”. It’s been in use in English since the late 14th Century.

Usage: Extradition acts as a deterrent against potential offenders who consider escape an easy way to subvert justice.

The rebel army is trying to subvert the government.

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(pronounced as ri,vai,tal,aiz)

Meaning: The word revitalize corresponds to imbuing something with new life and vitality.

Origin: The word, which has been around since the 1840s, is arrived at by combining re with vitalize. While the re denotes “back, again”, the vitalize is used to imply “giving life to”. The word vitalize has been around since the 1670s and is arrived at by giving vital the suffix ize.

The word grew steadily in popularity in the second half of the 20th Century and reached a peak around the turn of the century. While its usage has come down since then, it still enjoys considerable popularity.

Usage: Her introduction as a substitute revitalised the entire team to perform better.

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(pronounced aw-day-shuhs)

 Meaning: As an adjective it refers to someone who is very bold or daring.

Origin: It first appeared in English language in the mid-1500s. It was borrowed from the French adjective audacieux, which was derived from the noun audace (boldness). Audace can be traced to the Latin verb audere (“to dare”)

Usage: Audacious adventurers risked everything they had for a shot at glory.

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(pronounced jih-JOON)

Meaning: This adjective is a formal word often used as a synonym of juvenile to describe things (such as behaviours, attitudes, etc.) that are immature, childish, or simplistic. It can also mean uninteresting or boring.

Origin: This term comes to us from the word ‘jejunus’ which is Latin for hungry or meagre. When English speakers first used jejune back in the 1600s, they applied it in ways that mirrored the meaning of its Latin root. However, it is speculated that this word got its current meaning when people confused it with the look-alike French word jeune ‘which means young.

Usage: Monica made jejune remarks about life and art at the party.

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(pronounced as kri.tuhk)

Meaning: The word critic refers to a person who expresses an unfavourable opinion of something. It is also used to refer to a person who judges the merits of literary or artistic works, especially those who do it professionally.

Origin: The word, which was formerly spelt critick, has been around since the 1580s. It is derived from French critique, from Latin criticus, from Greek kritikos. The meaning of “one who judges merits of books, plays, etc.” is from around 1600. While the root words often have a meaning of “a judge,” the English word has always had the overtones of a “fault-finder.”

Usage:  She is the book critic for the school’s in-house magazine.

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(pronounced as le-o-nine)

Meaning: An adjective, leonine means relating to or resembling a lion.

Origin: The first-known use of the word was in the 14th Century. The word has its origin from the Latin word leoninus which means “pertaining to a lion.”

Usage: Running his fingers through his leonine head of curls, the musician said that the new single is a take on the glorious period of Woodstock.

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(Pronounced rah.bid)

Meaning:  Used as an adjective, rabid means extremely violent, furious, going to extreme lengths in expressing one’s opinion, or having a fanatical belief in something. It also means an animal affected with rabies, a viral disease.

Origin: The term rabid originates from Latin rabidus meaning “furious, frenzied”, from rabere meaning “to rave or be mad“. The word has been in use in English since the early 17th century in the sense “madly violent or furious.”

Usage: My friend was bitten by a rabid dog. The office building was attacked by hundreds of rabid supporters of the leader who lost the elections.

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Meaning: This noun refers to one who loves rain, or finds joy and peace of mind during rainy days.

Origin: The word pluviophile comes from the Latin word for rain ‘pluvial’ and phile, which denotes a person who has a fondness for a thing.

Usage: My mother is a pluviophile.

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Meaning: It refers to a gravy-based dish made with meat and/or vegetables and strong spices.

Origin: Its origin can be traced back to the late 16th Century from the Tamil word kari. Believed to be simply an anglicisation of that Tamil word, both words mean the same – a gravy-based dish.

Example: Rice makes an excellent complement to veg curry.

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Meaning: This adjective means completely harmless

Origin:  In use since the late 16th Century, it originates from the Latin word innocuous-meaning harmless, innocent, or inoffensive- and derived from in (not)+ nocuus (hurtful), in turn from nocere (to injure or harm).

 Example: She made an innocuous little joke about herself.

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Meaning: Solastalgia is a noun which refers to the pain experienced as a result of environmental destruction; a sort of homesickness felt when one’s still at home but one’s environment has changed. It is a new coinage developed to refer to environmentally induced distress.

Origin: The word “Solastalgia” is a neologism which combines the Latin solacium (“comfort, solace”) with the Greek algos “pain.” It was coined by Australian environmental philosopher Glenn Albrecht in 2005.

Usage: Climate change is one of the factors responsible for the solastalgia experienced by many.

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Meaning: The word reprieve corresponds to the cancellation or postponement of a punishment or an undesirable event.

Origin: The word has been around since the 1570s and is an alteration of Middle English repryen “take back to prison”, probably from French repris. The meaning “to suspend an impending execution” is from the 1590s, and the meaning probably evolved as being sent to prison was the alternative to execution. The spelling with –e- is from 1640s and is maybe an analogy of achieve.

After falling out of favour during the 20th Century, the word has regained momentum and popularity in this century.

Usage: The medicines provided the patient a temporary reprieve from pain.

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Meaning: An adjective, eclectic means comprising things from a variety of sources

Origin: Eclectic derives its origin from the Greek word eklektikos (meaning selective). The first usage of the word was applied to ancient philosophers who didn’t stick to one school of philosophy, rather, choosing doctrines from different schools of thought. Later, the word started to be used broadly.

 Usage: The new fashion line launched by the designer offers an eclectic range of couture.

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Meaning: It refers to any of the large rats of southern Asia, and to small insectivorous and herbivorous marsupial mammals of Australia, Tasmania, and New Guinea.

Origin: In use since the 18th Century, it originated from the Telugu word pandi-kokku, meaning pig-rat. Later the marsupials came to be known as bandicoots too, due to their resemblance to the large rats.

Example: We were sure it was a bandicoot that scurried off into our shed.

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(pronounced as ski.tl)

Meaning: The word skittle corresponds to a game played with wooden pins, usually nine in number, set up at the end of an alley to be bowled down with a wooden disc or ball. The pin used in the game of skittles is also referred to as a skittle.

When used as a verb, the word can imply knocking things over, like in the game of skittles.

Origin: The word has been around from the 1630s. It could probably be from a Scandinavian source and can be compared with Danish and Norwegian skyttel meaning “shuttle, child’s toy”. The Oxford English Dictionary, however, says there is no evidence of such a connection.

Usage: Her incisive swing bowling meant that their opposition were often skittled out for a low total.

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Meaning: Voluntary is an adjective used to describe something you do because you wish to, without being forced into it. Voluntary can also describe a service offered without expecting any payment.

Origin: The term voluntary’ comes from the Latin word voluntarius, which means “of one’s free will.” The Latin voluntas means ‘will or desire’. The first-ever use of the term “voluntary” in English can be traced back to the late 14th Century.

Usage: My mother does voluntary work in her spare time.

The organisation is run on voluntary contributions from people within the country.

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(pronounced mag-NAN-uh-mus)

Meaning: This adjective is a formal word that means having or showing a generous and kind nature.

Origin: It is a combination of two Latin words magnus that stands for great and animus that means soul or spirit. It entered the English language in mid-16th Century.

Usage: She was a woman capable of magnanimous gestures.

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Meaning: A verb, wheedle means to use words for flattery. It is done to persuade the other person to do something.

Origin: The first-known use of the word was in 1661, although the origin of the word is still not known.

Usage: The sales representative was so good that she could easily wheedle my brother into spending more money than he had intended to.

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Meaning: A verb, titivate means to make something attractive. It can be used for an object or for a person as well and refers to improving the appearance using small changes.

Origin: The word is believed to have been derived from the word tidy. It may have been formed using a combination of ‘tidy’ and ‘renovate’.

Usage: The minister announced his plans to titivate the rehabilitation centre at the meeting.

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Meaning: The word binge refers to a period of excessive indulgence in an activity, especially eating, drinking, and now watching content as well.

Origin: The word binge is noted in British writer Arthur Benoni Evans “Leicestershire Words, Phrases and Proverbs”, originally published in 1848. In this, the word is said to be a dialect verb for “to soak in water a wooden vessel, that would otherwise leak,” to make the wood swell. Evans adds that it was later extended locally to refer to excessive drinking (“soaking”).

 The sense of binge-eating started around World War 1, while binge-watching made its foray in 1996.

Usage: He binge-watched all the episodes of the series in the last three days.

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Meaning: This verb means to make to make amends: to provide or serve as reparation or compensation.

Origin: Atone has its roots in the idea of reconciliation and harmony. It grew out of the Middle English phrase ‘at on’ meaning ‘in harmony’. When atone joined modem English in the 16th century, it meant “to reconcile,” and suggested the restoration of a peaceful and harmonious state between people or groups. Today, this word specifically implies addressing the damage or disharmony caused by one’s own behaviour.

Usage: James tried to atone for the wrong doings of his youth by devoting his life to helping others.

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Meaning: A noun, abatement suggests reprieve or the act of reducing something, or making something unpleasant less intense. It may be used to refer to a reduction in penalties, a rebate or a respite in war.

Origin: The term comes from Anglo-Norman French, from Old French abatre meaning “fell, put an end to”. It entered English in the mid-14th Century.

Usage: The long war shows no sign of abatement.

 With no abatement in the bursting of firecrackers on Diwali night, the poor dogs in the neighbourhood kept howling.

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Meaning: This adjective refers to something very obvious and intentional, when it is a bad thing.

Origin: Coined in 1596 by English poet Edmund Spenser in “The Faerie Queen”. In the poem, the blatant beast is a thousand-tongued monster representing slander. Primarily alliterative, it is perhaps by Latin blatire, meaning “to babble”. It entered general use by 1650s as “noisy in an offensive and vulgar way”, and the sense of “obvious, glaringly conspicuous” is from 1889.

Usage: She turned her back on him in blatant disregard.

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Meaning: The word cornerstone corresponds to an important quality or feature on which a particular thing is based on or depends upon. It also denotes a stone that forms the base of a corner of a building, joining two walls.

 Origin: The word, also used as corner-stone, has been in use from late in the 13th Century. Originally used to refer to the “stone which lies at the corner of two walls and unites them,” it acquired the figurative sense of “that on which anything is founded.” The word is arrived at by combining the words ‘corner and ‘stone’.

In U.S. history, American politician Alexander H. Stephen’s Cornerstone speech that explains that Confederate constitution was given on March 21, 1861.

Even though the word has been around for centuries, it has risen in popularity again in the last 100 years or so.

Usage: Funds for the primary schooling system were the cornerstone of her budget proposal.

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Meaning: Row as a noun means a noisy quarrel or argument. When the term is used this way, it’s pronounced “rauv” which rhymes with “cow”.

Origin: Row in the sense of a noisy quarrel has been in use in English since the mid-18th Century. But the origin of this word taking on this meaning is said to be uncertain.

Usage: An ugly row broke out between the two players in front of the spectators.

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Meaning: This noun refers to a joyous song or hymn of praise, tribute, thanksgiving, or triumph.

Origin: This word comes from the Latin word paian which was a hymn of thanksgiving addressed to Apollo. The first known use of paean in the English language can be traced back to 1589.

Usage: His retirement party featured many paeans for his long years of service to the company.

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Meaning: This noun refers to one who prepares and sells compounds for medicinal purposes.

Origin: In use since the mid-14th Century, its origin goes back to the Old French word apotecaire, in turn, from Late Latin apothecarius, meaning “storekeeper”. This is from Latin apotheca, meaning “storehouse”, from Greek the word apotheke, literally “a place where things are put away”.

Usage: They fell ill and sought the assistance of the local apothecary.

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Meaning: A noun, sepulchre refers to a place of burial or tomb

Origin: The use of the word traces back to the beginning of the 13th century. The Anglo-French word was originally spelled sepulcre and has its roots in Latin.

Usage: Among the many discoveries made at the site, the archaeologists also found unique artefacts in the sepulchre of the kings.

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Meaning: The word meltdown is used to denote a disastrous collapse or breakdown. It is also used to refer to an accident in a nuclear reactor in which the fuel overheats and melts the reactor core or shielding.

Origin: The word meltdown was arrived at by bringing the words “melt” and “down” in the 1630s. The word was used to refer to “an act or the process of melting metal” by 1922. By 1956, it was also used in reference to the accidental melting of the core of a nuclear reactor. The metaphoric extension of the word to imply “breakdown in self-control” is attested since 1979.

Usage: The COVID-19 pandemic led to multiple major meltdowns in the global financial systems.

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Meaning: This adjective means disgusting or distasteful by reason of excess. It also means excessively sweet or sentimental.

Origin: Cloying derives from the verb cloy, which now means “to supply or indulge to excess”, but which once meant “to clog”, and earlier “to prick a horse with a nail in shoeing”. Cloy itself traces via Middle English to Anglo-French encloer (which also meant “to prick a horse with a nail in shoeing”) and ultimately to Latin clavus, meaning “nail”.

Usage: The sweet was rich and tasty without being cloying.

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Meaning: A noun, spiel is a fast speech. It is most often a speech that has been rehearsed well before and is used to convince someone to buy something or agree with something.

Origin: The word traces its origin to its German root, spielen. It is also used as a verb that means “to play music” which is the word’s original meaning if we go by its German root.

Usage: The morning was just breaking and the salesman was already there at our door, ready with his opening spiel.

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Meaning: Usher is used as a verb and a noun. As a verb, it means to show someone where they should go. As a noun, it refers to the person who guides people to their seats in a theatre. It also means to herald something when the term is followed by in.

Origin: The term usher comes from Latin ostiarius meaning doorman or guard posted at the entrance of a building, from ostium meaning ‘door’. It is said to have entered late Middle English (denoting a doorkeeper) from Anglo-Norman French usser, which in turn came from medieval Latin ustiarius.

Usage: When we showed our tickets, the usher helped us to find our seats in the dark in the cinema.

Beautiful cherry blossoms usher in spring.

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Meaning: This noun is used to refer to various rhythmic or repeated motions, activities, or patterns of sound. It can also be used to describe a falling inflexion of the voice.

Origin: This word comes from Middle English borrowed from Medieval Latin’s own cadentia which means rhythm in verse.

Usage: Stephanie relaxed at the beach, listening to the cadence of the surf.

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Meaning: This noun refers to a government in which power is held by a small group of people.

Origin: In use since the late 15th Century, it has its origin in the Greek work oligarkhia, from oligoi, meaning ‘few’, and arkhein, meaning ‘to rule’.

Usage: Citizens now start to wonder if their country is an oligarchy, after all.

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Meaning: Glutinous, used as an adjective, means sticky, gummy or having the properties of an adhesive.

Origin: The term glutinous comes from Old French glutineux or Latin glutinosus, which in turn derives from gluten meaning ‘glue’. The term has been in use since the late 15th Century

Usage: The report traces the origin of glutinous rice to Southeast Asia. The glutinous bun has a sweet chewy texture.

The sauce was glutinous.

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Meaning: The word mattress refers to a fabric case that is filled with soft, firm. or springy material, usually used for sleeping on. In an engineering sense, mattress can also denote a flat structure of concrete, brushwood, or other material, used for strengthening or support for embankments, foundations and other places.

Origin: The word has been in use from around 1300 and is derived from the French word materas. This in turn comes form Italian materasso and directly from Medieval Latin matracium borrowed from medieval Arabic al-matrah, meaning the “large cushion or rug for lying on”.

Usage: Using a firm mattress allows you to take some pressure off the spine when lying down.

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Meaning: The adjective refers to the tendency to intend or cause delay.

Origin: This word was first introduced in English language in the 15th Century and is derived from dilatus, a form of the multifaceted Latin verb ‘differre’ meaning postpone, delay, be unlike or distinct.

Usage: She tends to be dilatory in answering letters.

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Meaning: A noun, patina means the green film that forms on copper and bronze after their exposure to moist air. This occurs following long exposure.

Origin: The origin of the word dates back to the 17th century. Italians started using the word patina to refer to the green film that formed on the surface of copper. It was a reference to Latin, where patina means “a shallow dish”. Come the 18th century and English speakers also started using the word. Over time, it was used to refer to things that have become beautiful with age as well.

Usage: Though I didn’t take care of the heirloom my mother passed on, the patina that developed on it has added an old-world charm to it.

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Meaning: The word obliterate refers to utterly destroying something or wiping it out without a trace. The word is also used to imply making something invisible or indistinct by covering or concealing it.

 Origin: The word has been there from around 1600 and is derived from Latin obliteratus, past participle of obliterare. After slipping in popularity from the 1850s to the 1950s, the word now sees steady usage.

Usage: The stunning views were suddenly obliterated by the fog.

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Meaning: This verb means to confuse.

Origin: No one is completely sure where the word flummox comes from, but Charles Dickens was aware of it and used it in his 1837 novel The Pickwick Papers. It became quite common in both British and American English by the end of the 19th Century. One theory expressed by some etymologists is that it was influenced by flummock, a word of English dialectical origin used to refer to a clumsy person

Usage: This actor gets easily flummoxed by any changes in the script.

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(pronounced sol. i. tri, soli. tary, sol. it. ary)

Meaning: Solitary refers to the state of being alone. In other words, it means “existing alone without companions”. The term can be used to describe a person, place, or a thing.

Origin: This adjective meaning “alone, living alone” has been in use in English since the mid-14th Century. The term is borrowed from Old French solitaire, from Latin solitarius “lonely, isolated,” from solitas “loneliness, solitude.”

Usage: After my mom’s demise, my dad leads a pretty solitary life.

He seems to have completely lost his sense of humour.

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Meaning: A noun lycanthropy means the delusion that one has become a wolf.

Origin: The word lycanthropy comes from the Greek words ‘ lykos’ and ‘anthropos’. The Greek root word is lykanthropos, meaning “wolf-man.” While lykos means “wolf’, anthropos means “human being.”

Usage: His new novel centres around a native American tribe which is cursed with lycanthropy.

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Meaning: This adjective refers to strikingly out of the ordinary such as odd, extravagant, or eccentric in style or mode, or involving sensational contrasts or incongruities.

Origin: In use since the 1640s, it is derived from the French word bizarre, meaning odd, fantastic, in turn, from the Italian word bizarro, meaning irascible, tending to quick flashes of anger. The sense in Italian evolved to unpredictable, eccentric, then strange, weird, in which sense it was taken into French and then English.

Usage: His behavior was bizarre.

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Meaning: This noun refers to an island consisting of a strip or ring of coral around a central lagoon.

Origin: In use since the 1620s, atoll is said to have been derived from the Malayalam word atolu, meaning reef, which, in turn, is said to be from adal, meaning closing, uniting, etc. The original use was in reference to the Maldives, and the word was popularised in its present form by naturalist Charles Darwin’s writings.

Usage:  She’s exploring the atoll and taking samples of the marine life there.

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Meaning: A verb, brandish means to wave or shake something aggressively in a threatening manner.

Origin: The earliest usage dates back to the 14th century. The word has a Germanic origin. It is a descendant of the Middle English word ‘braundisshen’ which traces its root to the Anglo-French ‘brant, a Germanic word meaning ‘sword’.

Usage: The crowd went silent as the Prince brandished his sword.

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Meaning: The word “privy” can be used as an adjective and a noun. When used as an adjective, it means sharing in the knowledge of something private or secret. It is usually followed by the preposition “to”. As a noun, it means a toilet located in a shed outside a house or building.

Origin: The term entered Middle English in the early 13th Century from Old French prive meaning “intimate or private place” which in turn came from Latin privatus meaning “private or personal.”

Usage: Ram is not privy to the discussions of the top management.

The farm house is a privy place for the writer to relax and think about his next plot.

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Meaning: The word relief corresponds to a feeling of reassurance and relaxation following release from anxiety or distress. It can also be used to denote financial or practical assistance given to those in special need or difficulty.

Origin: The word has been around since the 14th Century and is derived from Anglo-French relif from Old French relief. The meaning “aid to impoverished persons” is attested from around 1400 and from 19th Century it especially specified assistance from governments.

Apart from a brief spike in usage in the first half of the 20th Century, the usage of this word has remained stable over the last 200 years or so.

Usage: The classroom heaved a collective sigh of relief when the teacher announced that the test would be held later.

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Meaning: This noun refers to the quality or state of being faithful to someone, such as a spouse, or something, such as one’s country. Fidelity can also refer to accuracy in details. When applied to electronic devices, fidelity is the degree to which those devices accurately reproduce something, such as sound or images.

Origin: This word came to English by the way of French in the 15th Century and is derived from the Latin root Fidelis which means faithful, loyal or trustworthy. While fidelity was originally exclusively about loyalty, it has for centuries also been used to refer to accuracy.

Usage:  The movie takes full advantage of the film medium while maintaining fidelity to the book.

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Meaning: The word synthetic is used as an adjective as well as a noun. It means artificial, unnatural, or man-made. It is also used to describe a person who is insincere or not genuine. As a noun, it means anything made artificially by chemical synthesis.

Origin: The word is said to have been in use in English since the 17th Century. It is derived from French synthétique or modern Latin syntheticus, which in turn came from the Greek word sunthetikos meaning “skilled in putting together, based on “tithenai” meaning “to place together”.

Usage:

• The bag is made of synthetic leather.
• He exudes synthetic compassion, so he cannot be taken seriously.
• It is an organic farm that does not permit use of pesticides or synthetic fertilizers.

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Meaning: This adjective is used to describe someone as excessively particular, difficult to please or fussy.

Origin: This word came about in the 19th Century as an alteration of finical’ which means choosy or demanding.

Usage: The finicky student got upset when her teacher switched the organised schedule.

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Meaning: This adjective is a British slang for very tired. It also means broken or too old to use.

Origin: Knackered is derived from the past participle of knacker, a slang term meaning “to kill” as well as “to tire, exhaust, or wear out.” The origins of the verb knacker are uncertain, but the word is perhaps related to an older noun knacker, which originally referred to a harness-maker, and later referred to a buyer of animals no longer able to do farm work.

Usage: I’m never too knackered to go out with friends.

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Meaning: Predilection is used as a noun which refers to an established preference for something. It implies a strong liking deriving from one’s experience. For instance, if someone has a predilection for something, they like it a lot.

Origin: It is borrowed from French predilection, which in turn comes from the Latin word ‘praedilect’ meaning ‘preferred, from ‘prae’ in advance + ‘diligere’ to select. The term has been in use since the mid-18th Century in English.

Usage:

• She has had a predilection for Thai food ever since she started travelling abroad.
• I have a predilection for ice cream.
• There are two ways to live, by working hard or by taking freebies. They seem to have some predilection for the latter.

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Meaning: The word quirk refers to a particular aspect of a person’s character. On occasions, the word is also used for entities, and not just individuals.

Origin:  Even though quirk has been in use since the 1560s, it remains a word of unknown origin. Some believe that it is perhaps originally a technical term for a flourish or twist in weaving. The word has been used from around 1600 to imply the sense of peculiarity.

The 1830s saw a sudden jump in the number of times the word was used, only to fall to its previous levels as quickly as it had risen. A more gradual increase over nearly 150 years has now seen it reach those heady heights again.

Usage: You have to get used to other people’s quirks when you are working with them on an everyday basis.

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Meaning: A noun, zeitgeist means the general mood, quality or cultural climate that is representative of an era.

Origin: Zeitgeist derives its origin from German, combining the terms ‘Geist’ (spirit) and Zeit (time or historical period). Thus it means the spirit of an era.

Usage: The Woodstock was a poignant moment in history and also represented the zeitgeist of the 1960s America.

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Meaning: The word ovation corresponds to a sustained and enthusiastic show of appreciation from a gathered audience, especially in the form of applause.

Origin: The Roman historical sense of the word denotes a processional entrance into Rome by a victorious commander, which is of a lesser honour than a triumph. The word has been around since the 1530s in the Roman historical sense and is from French ovation or directly from Latin ovationem. The figurative sense of an audience bursting into enthusiastic applause is attested by 1831.

Usage: The student received a standing ovation when she completed her speech on the subject of compassion.

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Meaning: Soporific is used as an adjective as well as a noun. It refers to something that tends to induce drowsiness or sleep.

Origin: Soporific comes from Latin sopor meaning “deep sleep” and fic, an adjective forming suffix meaning “making or producing”. That root is related to somnus, the Latin word for “sleep.” Remember words such as “somnambulism” and “insomnia” also have their roots in somnus. The term soporific has been in use in English since the mid-17th Century.

Usage: The motion of the bus has a soporific effect on some commuters.

A glass of warm milk at bedtime is considered a soporific as it induces sleep

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Meaning: This verb means to make someone or something neater or more attractive. It is a fancy way of saying smarten up or spruce up.

Origin: This word entered the English language in the early 19th Century and is said to have been derived by combining the terms tidy and renovate.

Usage: Her morning routine includes a few minutes spent titivating in front of the mirror.

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Meaning: This noun refers to a round, flat hat made of soft material.

Origin: This cap was originally worn by Basque (a European ethnic group) peasants. Since 1827 it has been referred to as a fashionable accessory, and is derived from the French word beret, which, in turn, is from an older French word berret, meaning cap. It is pronounced beh-ray.

Usage: She wore a beret, set slightly off-centre.

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Meaning: The word volition denotes the faculty of using one’s own will or the power to make your own decisions.

Origin: The word has been around from 1610s-early in the 17th Century. It is derived from French volition (16th Century), from Medieval Latin volitionem, noun of action from Latin stem volo, meaning “I wish”.

After steadily sliding out of favour for a little over 150 years, the usage of the word has slightly increased in the last couple of decades.

Usage:  The player decided to step down from the position of captaincy of his own volition.

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Meaning: This noun refers to the presentation of informative or educational material in an entertaining style. It includes television programmes, movies, books, etc., and is intended primarily for schoolchildren though it can address any age group.

Origin: Edutainment is a portmanteau word combining education and entertainment. It was coined in 1975, and has been in use since.

Usage:  The channel serves as a unique form of edutainment for the community around the world.

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Meaning: An adjective. laconic means brevity, that is using fewer words in speech or writing to convey something.

Origin: In southern Greece, there was an ancient country called Laconia. Its capital was Sparta. The Spartans were known for the terseness and brevity of their speech. Laconic has its root in the Greek word Laknikos, which means ‘native of Laconia’. The word thus recalls the Spartan terse, concise nature.

Usage: Despite the reporters bombarding the minister with a slew of questions, he gave them only laconic replies.

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Meaning: Used as a verb, aver corresponds to declaring, maintaining or claiming something to be true. In other words, asserting something in a convincing manner.

Origin: The term aver comes from Old French averer which in turn is based on Latin ad meaning “cause to be” and verus meaning “true”. The word came to be used in English in the late 14th century in the sense “declare something to be true.” And this meaning of the word continues to remain today.

Usage: Even though the country is in an economic crisis, its leader avers that the country is doing well. John avers that there will be chaos if he loses the game.

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Meaning: This noun refers to a joyous song or hymn of praise, tribute, thanksgiving, or triumph.

Origin:  This word comes from the Latin word paian which was a hymn of thanksgiving addressed to Apollo. The first known use of paean in the English language can be traced back to 1589.

Usage: His retirement party featured many paeans for his long years of service to the company.

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Meaning: Remission refers to pardon, cancellation (of a penalty or something else), or a reduction in the duration of a sentence imposed. In medical parlance, it means a temporary decrease in the severity of disease or disappearance of signs and symptoms of disease.

Origin: The term remission is derived from Old French remission meaning “forgiveness of sins”. This in turn comes from Latin remissio or remittere meaning “send back, relax or let go” from re- “back” + mittere “to send.” The term has been in use in English since the late 14th Century. The medical sense of “temporary respite from disease has been recorded from the early 1600s. From the 18th Century, the term’s sense of “abatement of punishment has been in popular use.

Usage:

• The prisoner was granted remission of sentence on account of his good behaviour.
• Parents heaved a sigh of relief when the school announced a remission of tuition fee.
• Seven cancer patients are in remission

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Meaning: Cataclysm means a sudden large-scale violent political or social upheaval, catastrophe or devastation. When an event causes great suffering or misfortune, it can be referred to as a cataclysm.

Origin: The term cataclysm originally referred to the biblical Noah’s flood. It is derived from the French word cataclysme, via Latin from Greek kataklusmos meaning ‘deluge, from a combination of kata- ‘down’ and kluzein ‘to wash’. It has been in use in English since the early 17th Century.

Usage: The film turns the spotlight on the cataclysm of the Hiroshima bombing.

Try to read about the cataclysm that killed the dinosaurs about 66 million years ago. 

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Meaning: The word capitalize refers to writing the letter of the alphabet as a capital or to write the first letter of the word as a capital. It is also used to denote providing companies with capital. When we use it as “capitalize on something” then it corresponds to taking the chance to gain advantages from it.

Origin: The word has been around since 1764 to mean “write or print in capital letters”. The sense of “converting assets to capital” is recorded from 1868. The word is formed by adding the suffix ize to capital.

Usage: She capitalized on her experiences and the knowledge she possesses to land that job.

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Meaning: This adjective means attracting or seeking to attract attention, admiration, or envy.

Origin: This word is derived from the Latin verb ‘ostentare’ which means to display.

Usage: His ostentatious displays of knowledge were often less than charming.

Meaning: This adjective means not likely to get worried, nervous, or angry even in difficult situations.

Origin: The first known use of unflappable was in 1954, and it comes from a combination of un (“not”) + flap (“to upset, stir’) + -able. Here’s a trivia: Former British PM Harold Macmillan apparently had a reputation for being unflappable!

Example: There’s a warm heart beneath her unflappable exterior.

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Meaning: Morass, used as a noun, means a tract of low-lying wet, soggy ground. Figuratively, it means a complicated or confused situation, anything that makes progress difficult. It is similar to quagmire.

Origin: The term morass is said to have entered English in the 1650s. It is derived from Dutch moeras meaning “marsh”, which in turn comes from the Old French word, maresc meaning “marsh.” In its earliest uses, morass was just a synonym of swamp. In course of time, say around the mid-19th Century, it acquired a figurative sense, beginning to refer to a murky situation that makes navigation difficult like a literal quagmire.

Usage: He rode the horse through the morass and up the slope.

She was caught in a morass of lies and falsehood.

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Meaning: This adjective refers to showing great care, attention, and effort. If you are assiduous in your actions, it is implied that you are in it for the long haul, or that you can “sit with” a task or challenge for a considerable time.

Origin: This word is derived from the Latin verb assidere, meaning “to sit beside.”

Usage: They were assiduous in their search for all the latest facts and figures.

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Meaning: This noun refers to the practice of responding to a difficult question or problem by raising another difficult question or problem, in order to move attention away from the original question.

Origin: The term whataboutery is a portmanteau of what and about. According to lexicographer Ben Zimmer, the term originated in the United Kingdom and Ireland in the 1970s.

Usage: The default move in his situation is deflecting blame with whataboutery.

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Meaning: Used as a verb, shortchange means giving someone less money than what is due in a transaction. It also means depriving someone of something for which they paid, or treating someone unfairly by giving them less than they deserve.

Origin: This word has been in use since 1903. It is derived from short (adjective) + change (noun).

Usage: I was shortchanged at the restaurant.

The fans were shortchanged as they were robbed of what could have been a fitting finale to a gripping Test series.

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Meaning: The word plague typically signifies a contagious bacterial disease characterized by fever and delirium. It can also denote an unusually large number of insects or animals infesting a place and damaging it. The word also corresponds to a thing causing trouble or irritation.

 Origin: The word has been around since late in the 14th Century. It is derived from the Old French plage, from Late Latin plaga meaning “slaughter, destruction”. It has been used for “an epidemic that causes many deaths” from the 1540s and specifically for the bubonic plague from around 1600. The weakened meaning of “anything annoying” has been in use from around 1600. The modern spelling follows French, which had plague from 15th Century.

Usage: Despite having been plagued by repeated injuries over the years, she got back in shape and competed at the highest level.

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Meaning: The word raucous denotes making or constituting a disturbingly harsh and loud noise.

Origin:  The word, which has been around since 1769, is derived from the Latin word raucus for hoarse. The echoic base of this word is also the base for Sanskit rayati, meaning “barks and ravati, meaning “roars”

Following a steady increase in usage in the first half of the 20th Century, there was a brief blip before its usage soared to its current highs

Usage:  The game between these two schools always witnesses raucous crowds.

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Meaning: The word sheen denotes smooth shine, brightness and soft lustre. While it is predominantly used for surfaces that can exhibit these qualities, it is also used in other contexts.

Origin: The first attested use of the word is from Shakespeare’s “Hamlet” in 1602. It is derived from the Old English word scene, sciene meaning beautiful, bright, brilliant, which is from the Proto-Germanic skauniz meaning conspicuous.

The word sheen is also used these days to correspond to “a film of oil on water. This usage has been around only from the 1970s.

Usage:  His haughty demeanour at the end of the show took some sheen off his splendid performance.

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Meaning: This verb means to claim or assume something (such as an idea or theory) is true especially for the purposes of starting a discussion.

Origin: This word is derived from the Latin postulare which means ‘to ask for or ‘request.

Example: It was the Greek astronomer, Ptolemy, who postulated that the earth was at the centre of the universe.

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Meaning: This word is an adjective, and refers to anything smelling strongly of something or having qualities (especially smells) that make you think of something else.

Origin: Said to have been in use in English since the 14th and 15th Centuries, is has its origins in the Latin word redolens, the present participle of redolere, meaning to emit odour.

Example: The air around was redolent with the scent of frangipani.

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Meaning: This noun refers to a person who has succeeded in business or industry and has become very rich and powerful.

Origin: In use since the 19th Century, it is a title given by foreigners to the shogun of Japan. Shogun was the hereditary commander-in-chief in feudal Japan. Tycoon has its origins in the Japanese word taikun, meaning “great lord or prince”.

Example: The tycoon is on the verge of bankruptcy.

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Meaning: This noun refers to a small wheel to support heavy weights.

Origin: The word in use since the 16th Century is assumed to have been derived from the Middle English words trendle to refer to “wheel, suspended hoop”, which, in turn, is from the Old English word trendel, meaning “ring, disk”. It is also perhaps derived partly from the Old French word trondeler, meaning “to roll down, fall down”.

Usage: I simply loved the low-level trundle bed on the e-commerce site.

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Meaning: The word scarce is used to denote that something is insufficient for the demand and is used especially for food, money and other such resources.

Origin: The word, which has been around since 1300, is derived from Old French scars meaning “scanty”, which according to the Oxford English Dictionary is from Vulgar Latin In the past two centuries, the usage of the word has been decreasing and it is currently at its lowest in this period.

Usage:  With jobs so scarce in the market, many young graduates are finding it hard to get their careers started.

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Meaning: The word anguish can be used both as a noun and as a verb. While the noun form of the word can be used to mean mental or physical pain or suffering, the verb form denotes being extremely distressed about something.

Origin:  The noun form of the word has been in use from around 1200. It is derived from Old French anguisse, angoisse meaning “choking sensation, distress, anxiety which is from Latin angustia for “tightness, narrowness”. The verb form, meanwhile, has been around since the mid 14th Century. Even though the word has been around for centuries, its usage saw a steady decline from 1800 till around the 1950s. While its usage was steady from then till about the turn of the century, it has again seen an increase in usage since then.

Usage: The COVID-19 pandemic has left several families in anguish worldwide.

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Meaning: This adjective means not readily investigated, interpreted, or understood.

Origin: This word is derived from the Latin adjective ‘inscrutabilis’ which can be traced back to the verb scrutari, meaning “to search or examine”. This word was first used in the English language in 15th Century.

Usage: He stood silent and inscrutable.

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Meaning: This noun refers to a strong, coarse, loosely woven material made from jute or hemp for bagging and sacking.

Origin: In use since the early 18th Century, gunny has its origin in the Sanskrit word “goni”, meaning sack.

Usage: These gunny bags are huge and sturdy.

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Meaning: The word strobe corresponds to a light or lamp that flashes on and off quickly.

Origin: Strobe is arrived by shortening the word stroboscope. It has been used as the shortened form of strobe light from 1949 and as an adjective from 1942. Stroboscope is an instrument for studying light using periodic motion. In use from 1896, it is arrived at by adding the suffix scope to the Greek word strobos meaning “a twisting, act of whirling”.

Usage: Strobe beacons were used in NASA’s final Mercury mission to see if tracking was possible by astronauts.

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Meaning: The word twitch is used both as a verb and as a noun. The verb form corresponds to give or cause to give a short, sudden jerking or convulsive movement. The noun form meanwhile, denotes a short, sudden jerking or convulsive movement.

Origin:  The verb form of the word has been around since the late 12th Century. The word is derived from to-twic-chen, meaning “pull apart with a quick jerk, which is related to Old English twiccian meaning “to pluck, gather, catch hold of.” which in turn has a Proto-Germanic root. The noun form of the word has been in existence from the 1520s. The word, which has seen steady usage through the centuries, saw an increased usage this century. The frequency of usage has been especially pronounced in the last decade or so, nearly doubling from before. This can be attributed to the popular American video live streaming service that shares the same name.

Usage:  She tried to suppress her smile but felt a twitch in the comer of her mouth.

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Meaning:  As a verb to teem with something is to be full of or swarming with it.

Origin: This word is derived from the Old English ‘timan’, which originally meant to bring forth offspring’ or ‘to give birth to’ in the late 16th Century.

Usage: The river teems with fish.

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Meaning: Pronounced taw-tee-uh, this noun refers to a type of thin, round Mexican bread made from maize or wheat flour.

Origin: This Spanish word from the 17th Century has its origins in the Spanish words “torta”, meaning cake and “-illa”, a diminutive suffix derived from the Latin word “ella”.

Usage: The sweet aroma of sugared tortilla filled our room.

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Meaning: This intransitive verb refers to talking foolishly or nonsensically.

Origin: In use since 1868, the word blither is a variant of blether – meaning “talk nonsense” – a northern British and Scottish word, with origins in the word blather, with the same meaning.

Example: So blither if you like, she said softly.

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 A zoonosis (zoonotic disease or zoonoses -plural) is an infectious disease that is transmitted between species from animals to humans (or from humans to animals). Tiny pathogens that are not visible to the naked eye, can jump from animals to humans causing diseases. With each passing year, World Zoonoses Day, which falls on July 6, gains more relevance. What causes zoonotic diseases? Can they lead to pandemics if left unchecked? Let’s find out…

It was the 1800s. When nine-year-old Joseph Meister was mauled and bit by a dog in 1805. His parents were distraught, for, he had been bitten by a rabid dog. It was a time when rabies spelt a certain terrible death.

In desperation, on the advice of their doctor, Meister’s parents approached a local scientist who was working on a rabies vaccine. He was none other than Louis Pasteur. When young Meister was bought in, the French chemist saw an opportunity to use a human test subject. He had already tested his vaccine on dogs and seen positive results. After consulting fellow scientists, Alfred Vulpian and Jacques-Joseph Grancher, on July 6, 1885, Pasteur administered the vaccine. To everyone’s surprise, the youngster made a full recovery. It is to commemorate Pasteur’s successful administration of the first rabies vaccine that July 6 is celebrated as World Zoonoses Day.

The human-animal connect

So, what is zoonosis? It is an infectious disease that plagues humans, and is usually caused by pathogens that jump from an animal to humans, like, rabies, for instance. The first infected human transmits the infectious agent to at least one other human, who then infects others. The pathogen can be a virus, parasite, bacterium, or prion

Black death

Diseases like the Ebola that wreaked havoc in some parts of Africa, and Nipah that led to health concerns in Kerala in 2018, are examples of zoonoses. While in the early 20th century. HIV was a zoonotic disease, it has now mutated into a human-only disease. Often, many zoonotic viruses recombine with human strains of the flu and can cause pandemics. The 2009 swine flu and the Spanish flu of 1918 are instances of this. An earlier occurrence of this is the plague or the Black Death that ravaged Afro-Eurasia between 1346 to 1353, peaking in Europe from 1347 to1351. Said to have spread from rodents to humans by the bite of infected fleas, it became a searing pandemic, leaving thousands dead in its wake.

Monkey pox

Monkey pox is an ongoing instance of zoonotic disease spread. While the first case in humans was identified in the Democratic Republic of Congo in 1970, earlier this year, it began making an appearance in non-endemic countries too. It is avoidable by restricting contact with infected people or animals, disinfecting frequently touched surfaces, wearing a mask, and sticking to high standards of hygiene.

Major causes

The emergence of such diseases began with the domestication of animals. Simply put, zoonotic transmission can occur when there is a contact with animals or consumption of animals or their products.

According to a United Nations Environment Programme and International Livestock Research Institute report, environmental causes such as climate change. wildlife exploitation and unsustainable agriculture are the prime reasons for the rise in such diseases. Contact with infected farm animals can lead to disease in farmers or others that come in contact with them. For instance, close interaction with infected cattle can lead to anthrax infection. In many cases, different types of food that come from animals can face zoonotic contamination, including seafood, eggs, meat, diary, and so on.

Did you know?

• Sixty percent of all human infectious diseases are considered zoonoses
• One of the largest zoonoses-related threats is food insecurity, due to livestock loss from antimicrobial resistance and disease.
• Eighty percent of agents, that are deemed to have a potential for use in bioterrorism, are zoonotic pathogens. The World Organization for Animal Health encourages strong health monitoring systems for proper surveillance and prevention of zoonotic pathogens from being used as weapons.
• The concentrated effort to study human-animal-environmental interactions is a field known as One Health
• Rinderpest, also known as also cattle plague or steppe murrain was declared as eradicated in 2011.

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The word insipid corresponds to lacking flavour and being weak or tasteless. It can also be used to denote lacking interest or vigour.

Origin:  The word, which has been in usage since 1610s, comes from French insipide, from Latin inspidus meaning tasteless.

The figurative meaning of being uninteresting or dull was first recorded in English in the 1640s, probably from Medieval Latin. The word saw a rapid decline in usage in the 19th Century, but has maintained that level since then.

Usage: Despite an insipid performance in first half of the play, the children more than made up in the second half to make it an enjoyable show overall.

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Meaning: The word cauldron corresponds to a large metal pot with a lid and a handle that is used for cooking over an open fire. Cauldron can also denote a situation that is characterised by instability and strong emotions

Origin: The word has been around since 1300 and is derived from Anglo-French caudrun, Old North French caudern from augmentative of Late Latin caldaria meaning “cooking pot from Latin calidarium used for “hot bath”, from calidus meaning warm, hot. The 1 was inserted in 15th Century in imitation of Latin.

The word which has been in constant usage through the centuries, has enjoyed a burst of popularity in the recent decades.

Usage:  The Santiago Bernabeu Stadium was a cauldron of emotions when Real Madrid welcomed Manchester City for the second leg of their Champions League semi-final in 2022.

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Meaning: A confidant is someone to whom secrets can be entrusted, and especially a very close friend.

Origin: This word comes from the Italian confidente, meaning ‘having trust in’ which in turn is derived from Latin ‘confidere’ meaning to put one’s trust in, have confidence in.

Usage: He has since become a close friend and confidant.

Meaning: The noun refers to a device that sends out a radio signal to show the position of something such as a ship, aircraft, etc. It also refers to a good example that gives people hope or encouragement.

Origin: It is said to have originated from the Old English word beacen, meaning “sign, portent, lighthouse”, which, in turn, is from the West Germanic word baukna, meaning “beacon, signal”.

Usage: The blink of beacon could be seen for miles. Her words were a beacon of hope for all of us.

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Meaning: Used commonly in Asia, this noun is used to refer to a warehouse.

Origin: The word appears to have several origins, including from the Portuguese word gudao and Malay word gudang, both referring to a warehouse. Interestingly, it has an Indian connection too. Godown is said to have originated from the Tamil word kidangu, again referring to a warehouse.

Usage: We waited in front of the old godown fro three hours.

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Meaning: This verb means to reach the highest point or to reach the end or final result of something.

Origin: When a star or other heavenly body culminates, it reaches its highest point above the horizon from the vantage point of an observer on the ground. Culminate was drawn from Medieval Latin ‘culminare, meaning ‘to crown,’specifically for this astronomical application. Its ultimate root is Latin ‘culmen’, meaning top.

Usage:  The festivities will culminate with a spectacular display of fireworks.

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Meaning: The word prospect denotes the possibility or likelihood of some future event occurring. It can also refer to a person regarded as likely to succeed.

Origin: The word, which has been around since early in the 15th Century, is derived from the Latin word prospectus meaning “distant view, look out. The sense of “person or thing considered promising” is much more recent and has been in use since 1922.

Even though the word has been around for a long time, it has continued to enjoy popularity in the last 200 years or so.

Usage: The prospects of the two new candidates in the election are looking good after their latest round of campaigning.

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Meaning: An appendage is something that is joined to or connected with something larger or more important.

Origin: The word is a combination of append + age. Append has been in use since the late 14th Century to mean “to belong to as a possession or right, from Old French word apendr. A word-forming element in nouns of act process, function, condition, etc., age is derived from the Old French word -age.

Example: The elephant’s trunk is a unique form of appendage.

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Meaning: This adjective refers to getting pleasure from food and drink of high quality.

Origin: Around since the late 14th Century, it means “follower of the philosophical system of Epicurus”, from Old French Epicurien, or from epicure +-ian. From 1570s, as “one devoted to pleasure”. As an adjective, attested from 1580s in the philosophical sense and 1640s with the meaning “pleasure-loving”

Usage: An epicurean banquet of exquisitely prepared food.

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Meaning: The word respite refers to a short period of rest or relief from something that is difficult or unpleasant.

Origin: The word has been around since the mid-13th Century and is derived from Old French respit, from Latin respectus.

While the usage of the word reduced in the 20th Century, it has picked up since then and is enjoying decent popularity these days.

Usage: A packed schedule with plenty of deliveries implies that even short respites are a rarity for most delivery partners.

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Meaning: The word dexterity corresponds to skilfully doing something. It is especially used to denote the skilful usage of hands to carry out a task.

Origin: The word has been around since the 16th Century, maybe as early as the 1520s. It is derived from the French word dexterite, from Latin dexteritatem meaning “readiness, skilfulness”. Even though the word has been around for over 500 years now, its popularity has been tapering. Its usage steadily declined from 1800s onwards, but has stabilised over the last century.

Usage: Introducing infants to blocks helps them improve their manual dexterity.

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Meaning: This noun has two meanings. It refers to the climbing plant that grapes grow on, and also to an informal way in which information is shared in a group of people.

Origin: In use since the 14th Century to refer to the grape plant, from the Old French word vigne meaning vine, vineyard. Used to refer to rumour since the 19th Century, from the use of “grapevine telegraph” as “secret source of information and rumor in the American Civil War.

Usage: Grapevine has it that she’s quit her job.

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Meaning: This adjective is used to describe a person as “chatty” or “excessively talkative”.

 Origin: This word is derived from the Latin root garrire, which means to chatter, talk rapidly.

Usage: Annie’s garrulous and outgoing nature is a stark contrast to her brothers more retiring demeanor.

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Meaning: The word deadlock corresponds to a situation, especially one involving two opposing parties, where no progress can be made.

Origin: The word has been in use from 1779 to refer to a “complete standstill”. It is arrived at by combining the words “dead”, in its emphatic use, and “lock”. The first attested use of the word “deadlock” is in a play called “The Critic’, written by Irish satirist, politician, playwright and poet Richard Brinsley Sheridan.

Usage: It looked like the two sides would finish in a deadlock before she scored a brilliant goal to hand her side the victory.

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Meaning: This adjective means having or showing very strong and sincere feelings about something

Origin: This mid-14th century word is from the Latin word ferventem meaning “boiling, hot, glowing”, and to figuratively mean “violent, impetuous, furious”. The figurative sense of “impassioned” is first attested in the 15th Century.

Usage: She was a fervent supporter of feminism.

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Meaning: This nouns refers to a programme (as of music or talk) made available in a digital format for automatic download over the Internet.

Origin: Coined in 2004, the word podcast is a portmanteau-constructed from two different words. It combines pod from iPod (a brand of portable media player) and cast from broadcast. The term “podcasting” was first suggested by The Guardian columnist and BBC joumalist Ben Hammersley. in an article for The Guardian newspaper.

Usage: The weekly podcast on feminism was powerful and eye-opening.

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Meaning: The word scrappy corresponds to something that consists of disorganised. untidy, or incomplete parts. It has an informal usage in North America, where it implies being determined, argumentative, or pugnacious.

Origin: The word scrappy has been in use since 1837 and is arrived at by combining the word ‘scrap with the suffix y. The word scrap has been in use since late in the 14th Century and was initially used to refer to a piece of food remaining after a meal After stagnating in terms of usage for nearly 100 years, the word has grown in popularity in this century.

Usage: It might have been a scrappy goal, but it proved to be the difference between the two sides.

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Meaning: Predilection refers to an established preference or a special liking for something. It implies a strong liking deriving from one’s experience. For instance, if someone has a predilection for something, they like it a lot.

Origin: It is borrowed from French predilection, which in turn comes from the Latin word praedilect meaning ‘preferred’, from prae ‘in advance + diligere ‘to select’. The term has been in use since the mid-18th Century.

Usage: She has had a predilection for Thai food ever since she started travelling abroad.

I have a predilection for ice cream.

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Meaning: The word synthetic is used both as an adjective and as a noun. It means artificial, unnatural, or man-made. It is also used to describe a person who is insincere or not genuine. As a noun, it means anything made artificially by chemical synthesis.

Origin: The word is said to have been in use since the 17th Century. It is derived from French synthetique or modern Latin syntheticus, which in turn came from the Greek word sunthetikos meaning “skilled in putting together”, based on “tithenai” meaning “to place together.

Usage: The bag is made of synthetic leather. He exudes synthetic compassion, so he cannot be taken seriously.

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Meaning : This adjective is used to describe things that are extremely costly, rich, luxurious, or magnificent.

Origin: This word appeared in English in the 15th Century. It is derived from the Latin noun ‘sumptus’ which means expense.

Usage :  The hotel’s most sumptuous suite overlooks the lush gardens and includes a marble bathroom with a spa.

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Meaning : The word gutted is used to convey the sense of being severely disappointed or upset when used as an adjective.

It can also be used as a verb to denote removing the intestines or other internal organs from an animal before cooking it.

This meaning has also led to the meaning of removing or destroying completely the internal parts of some structure, like a building.

Origin : The meaning “abdomen, belly” is associated with gut (the verb form gutted is past tense of gut) from late in the 14th Century. The sense of “inside contents of anything” is from 1570s. The figurative use “plunder the contents of’ is by 1680s.

Usage : Australia’s Test skipper Pat Cummins said he was “gutted” to be ruled out just hours before the second Ashes Test against England.

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Meaning: This noun refers to a character ising word or a phrase that accompanies, or occurs in place of, the name of a person or thing.

Origin: Its origin can be traced back to the Greek word ‘epitithenai’ which means to ‘put on’ or ‘to add’.

Usage: Richard the First is frequently referred to by the epithet “Lionheart.”

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Meaning : This noun refers to a liquid used for washing hair, or for washing particular objects or materials.

Origin: The word has its origin in India. It arrived in English in the 18th Century, and derives from the Hindi word champo, meaning to squeeze, knead, or massage.

Usage: The shampoo she uses smells heavenly.

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Meaning: Predilection is used as a noun which refers to an established preference or a special liking for something. It implies a strong liking deriving from one’s experience. For instance, if someone has a predilection for something, they like it a lot.

Origin: It is borrowed from French predilection, which in turn comes from the Latin word praedilect meaning ‘preferred. from prae in advance + diligere to select. The term has been in use since the mid-18th Century.

Usage: She has had a predilection for Thai food ever since she started travelling abroad.

 I have a predilection for ice cream.

There are two ways to live, by working hard or by taking freebies. They seem to have some predilection for the latter.

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Meaning: The word synthetic is used both as an adjective and as a noun. It means artificial, unnatural, or man-made. It is also used to describe a person who is insincere or not genuine. As a noun, it means anything made artificially by chemical synthesis.

Origin: The word is said to have been in use since the 17th Century. It is derived from French synthétique or modern Latin syntheticus, which in turn came from the Greek word sunthetikos meaning “skilled in putting together, based on “tithenai” meaning “to place together.

Usage: The bag is made of synthetic leather.

 He exudes synthetic compassion, so he cannot be taken seriously.

It is an organic farm that does not use pesticides or synthetic fertilizers.

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Meaning : The word fiasco denotes a complete failure, especially one that is ludicrous or humiliating.

Origin : Attested usage of the word as a theatre slang to denote “a failure in performance can be traced back to 1855. By 1862, the word had acquired the general sense of “any failure or flop

The word comes via the 19th Century French phrase faire fiasco meaning turn out a failure, from Italian far fiasco denoting suffer a complete breakdown in performance” Literally it means “make a bottle” from fiasco “bottle” from Late Latin fiasco meaning “bottle”.

 Since the advent of the word in the 1850s, it has steadily grown in popularity. The number of mentions of the word fiasco, in fact peaked recently in the 21st Century and continues to be close to the peak.

Usage : The students quick thinking averted a fiasco on stage.

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Meaning : This is a noun, and refers to an international sports competition-for people with physical disabilities – that happens every four years immediately after the Olympics.

Origin : The word Paralympics derives from the Greek preposition para (beside or alongside) and the noun Olympics. Its meaning is that it runs parallel to the Olympics, and illustrates how the two movements exist side-by-side.

Usage : She has won her 11th gold medal at this years Paralympics.

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Meaning : Vitamin is a countable noun. Vitamins are organic substances found in foods and they are essential to keep our body healthy. They are also available in synthetic forms. Deficiencies of vitamins can lead to specific disorders.

Origin : The term vitamin has been in use since the early 20th Century. It was originally vitamine, coined by Polish biochemist Casimir Funk in 1912. It was derived from the Latin vita meaning life and English amine, as vitamins were originally thought to contain amino acids. Subsequently, the last ‘e’ got dropped from the word.

Usage : Always try to have a diet rich in vitamins.

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Meaning: Tepid is used as an adjective. It means “not very warm or lukewarm” when it concerns a liquid. For example, you can say, “The tea I had was tepid.” The term is also used to convey people’s lack of enthusiasm towards something.

Origin: The term came from the Latin tepidus, also an adjective meaning “lukewarm”. Tepidus in turn came from the Latin term tepere, a verb meaning “to be warm”.

Usage: The tomato soup served at the restaurant was tepid and watery.

The film received a tepid response from the audience.

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Meaning: This adjective means having no match or equal.

Origin: It is a combination of two French words ‘non’ meaning not and pareil which itself comes from the Latin ‘par, which means equal.

Usage : He is a nonpareil storyteller.

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Meaning: Antithetical means directly opposed. mutually incompatible or exact opposite. It is used as an adjective usually followed by “to”.

Origin: The term entered English in the late 16th Century from Greek antithetikos meaning “contrasting” from antithetos ‘opposed, from antitithenai ‘set against (anti against + tithenai to place).

Usage: He has a viewpoint that is antithetical to what his friends have.

What he practises is antithetical to what he preaches.

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Meaning : This adjective refers to the aspect of travelling around to different places, usually due to work in more than one place.

Origin : From Old French word perypatetique, and directly from the Medieval Latin word peripateticus, meaning “pertaining to the disciples or philosophy of Aristotle”. Aristotle’s custom was to teach while strolling through the Lyceum, a school in Athens. Also from Greek peripatetikos, meaning “given to walking about” (especially while teaching), which derives from the word peripatein “walk up and down, walk about.

Example: She was a peripatetic architect-professor for most of her life.

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Meaning : The word veritable is used for emphasis, often to qualify a metaphor. It can be used to describe something as another, more exciting, unusual or interesting thing.

Origin :  The word, which has been around since early in the 15th Century, has Anglo-French and Old French roots. The word veritable, meaning “true, real, truthful, valid”, is formed by combining verite with able. The word is believed to have probably been lost in the middle of the 17th Century. only to be re-borrowed or revived some time in the 1830s.

Usage :  If you talk about cryptocurrencies to her, you will find that she is a veritable mine of information on the subject.

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Meaning : This English noun refers to the quality or state of being mild or gentle toward others.

Origin: The first-known use of this word can be traced back to 1548. It is derived from the Old French word ‘lenite’ or the Latin word ‘lenitat which means ‘gentleness”.

Example : Without a bit of lenity, the prosecutor announced his plan to seek the death penalty.

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Meaning: Expedient means convenient or immediately advantageous although possibly improper, that is with no regard for ethics. It is used as an adjective and as a noun. As a noun, it corresponds to something such as a method, measure or a strategy adopted to achieve a particular end.

Origin: The term entered Late Middle English in the 14th Century from the Latin verb expedire meaning “advantageous, fit for a purpose.” The noun meaning “something adopted in an exigency so as to achieve a desired result has been in use since the 1650s.

Usage: When something goes wrong, it is expedient to blame it on the leadership.

They considered it expedient not to pay the builder until he finished the work.

The latest announcement looks like a political expedient.

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Meaning : Torpor is a state of physical/mental inactivity or lethargy. Torpor appears to be an involuntary state that one enters into as the conditions dictate. The term can also refer to the time a hibernator spends at low body temperature, lasting days to weeks.

Origin: The term is a noun and it comes from the Latin torpere meaning “be numb, inactive or sluggish”. Its first-known use was in the 13th Century Middle English when it referred to intellectual lethargy. The term resurfaced in the early 17th Century to refer to both mental and physical sluggishness.

Usage :  1. Many animals survive extremely cold nights through torpor.

2. After over-eating at the function, I reached home and fell into a torpor.

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Meaning: This words refers to the quality or state of being happy.

Origin: This word is derived from the Latin word felicitas meaning luck, good fortune. It is also used as a form of the Latin name Felicitas, taken from the name of the Ancient Roman goddess Fortuna. The first known use of this word can be traced back to the 14th Century.

Usage : I was overcome with felicity when my nephew was born.

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Meaning : This word is a noun and refers to the method and practice of teaching, especially as an academic subject or theoretical concept.

Origin: The word is used as the science of teaching since the 1580s. It has its origins in the French word pedagogie, tracing its root to the Latin word paedagogia and the Greek words paidagogia meaning “education, attendance on boys” and paidagogos meaning “teacher”.

 Usage: It was a brilliant picturebook on art pedagogy.

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Meaning: Used as a verb, ignite means to set fire to something or to spark off something such as a debate. In a figurative sense, ignite refers to inspiring intense feelings or emotions.

Origin: The term ignite comes from the Late Latin word ignire meaning “set on fire”, which in turn is derived from Latin ignis “fire”. It is said to have made its first appearance in English in the 1660s.

Usage: The recent forest fire was ignited by lightning. She is a teacher who is known to ignite in her students a passion for literature.

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Meaning : The word veteran is used to refer to a person who has had a long experience in a particular field. It is also used to denote an ex-member of the armed forces.

Origin : The word, which has been around since 1500, is from French veteran, from Latin veteranus, meaning “old, aged, that has been long in use”.

The general use of the word to refer to someone who has seen long service in any office or position is attested from the 1590s.

Usage : Having spent her entire lifetime in the field, she is certainly a veteran when it comes to teaching.

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Meaning : The word slump can be used to refer to sitting, leaning or falling heavily and limply. It can also denote undergoing a sudden severe or prolonged fall in value, price or amount. It can also be used for any substantial failure or decline.

Origin : The word has been around since the 1670s. It is probably from a Scandinavian source such as Norwegian and Danish slumpe “fall upon”, Swedish slumpa. The economic sense of the word has been recorded since 1888.

Usage : With defeats in the first two games of the 2021 T20 World Cup, India slumped to a group stage exit.

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Meaning : The noun refers to a policy of extending a country’s power and influence through colonisation, use of military force, or other means.

Origin: The word originated from the Latin word imperium, which means supreme power, or simply “rule”. In the general sense of “one country’s rule over another, the word was first recorded in 1878. Back in 1826, it was used to refer to “advocacy of empire, devotion to imperial interests, in a Napoleonic context, and also of Rome and of British foreign policy.

Usage :  America’s longest war has ended in abject shame and humiliation for U.S. imperialism, 20 years after the invasion of Afghanistan.

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Meaning: This transition verb refers to decorating something or beautifying an object.

Origin: Both embellish and the French word ‘bel’ (meaning beautiful) originate from the same Latin root bellus. The first known use of this word can be traced back to the 14th Century.

Usage : Grandma likes to embellish her knitting by hiding secret messages in the pattern.

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Meaning: Calibre means the level of someone’s intelligence or the standard of something, especially when it is high. It also indicates the diameter of a gun barrel or tube. It is used as a noun.

 Origin: The term comes from the French calibre meaning “social standing or importance”, from Italian calibro, from Arabic qalib “a mould for casting” which in turn was based on the Greek kalapous “a shoemaker’s last. The earliest sense of the word in English meant “degree of merit or importance”. Over time it came to indicate “one’s intellectual capacity.” The term is said to have been in use since the mid 16th Century.

 Usage:

• He was very much impressed by the high calibre of his interns.

• The organisation cannot afford to lose a woman of her calibre.

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Meaning: Sacrilege means violation of what is considered sacred. It is an act of treating something important without respect. In other words, it means being disrespectful to something people admire or revere.

Origin: Sacrilege came into English from the Latin sacrilegium which in turn came from sacrilegus meaning “stealer of sacred things” from the Latin roots sacer meaning “sacred” and legere meaning “to steal or take possession of’.

Usage:

• It is sacrilege to propose a road tunnel near the ancient monument.

• Sending a guest away without food is sacrilege in my house.

• The damage done to the painting in the name of restoration is sacrilege. Activity: Use the word in a sentence of your own.

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Meaning : The noun refers to a magical spirit, originally in traditional stories from Arab, who does or provides whatever the person who controls it asks.

Origin: This mid-17th Century word is said to have originated from the French word génie, deriving from Latin genius, meaning guardian deity. It was used in the current sense by the 18th-Century French translators of The Arabian Nights’ Entertainments, because of its resemblance in form and sense to the Arabic word jinni – the singular of jinn, referring to demons. spirits, angels.

Usage :  She rubbed the lamp and waited for a genie.

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Meaning: This verb is used to make an indirect reference

Origin: It comes from the Latin word alludere, which means ‘to play with,’ and shares the root of Latin ludere (to play) with other English words, such as ludicrous and delude. One of the former meanings of allude was to engage in wordplay’ but this meaning is now long obsolete.

Usage : Mrs. Simons alluded to some health problems, without being specific.

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