Tuesday

1) Gravitas: Seriousness , Dignity


If you have a pink shoe with pink socks and a pink purse with a pink cell phone, i cant take you seriously , no matter how much gravitas you have in your voice.

2) Glean : collect

From all that you have told me, i have gleaned that you are a die hard optimist

3)unprepossessing : unremarkable.
prepossess is attractive so this is a passe , usual.
The cake was anything but unprepossessing.

4) Malapropism : confusing similar words
When someone is down, offering an antidote instead of anecdote is a lovely malapropism.

5) Maladroit : clumsy
Mal= bad ... adroit= right handed which in olden days ment graceful in contrast to the left handed people.  so this word means a bad-righthanded perso which translates to them being clumsy.

3)redress: correct unfairness.
As he forgot her birthday twince in a row , he had to redress the issue with an impromptu trip to Italy. 

June30

As usual, there’s plenty to be worried about: the steady evaporation of full-time teaching positions, the overuse and abuse of adjunct professors, the slashing of public funding, the shrinkage of course offerings and majors in humanities disciplines, the increase of student debt, the peddling of technologies as magic bullets, the ubiquitous description of students as consumers.

adjunct: something added to other thing but not the essential to it
peddling: act of selling goods


What would these Fausts have given for such knowledge? 

Fausts: Someone who can do anything for knowledge

an alchemist of German legend who sold his soul to Mephistopheles in exchange for knowledge

They are apt to endorse the partition plan proposed by Stephen Jay Gould in his worst book, Rocks of Ages, according to which the proper concerns of science and religion belong to “non-overlapping magisteria.” Science gets the empirical universe; religion gets the questions of moral meaning and value.
Unfortunately, this entente unravels as soon as you begin to examine it. The moral worldview of any scientifically literate person—one who is not blinkered by fundamentalism—requires a radical break from religious conceptions of meaning and value.

entente: alignment
blinkered: parochial, spotted

http://www.newrepublic.com/article/114127/science-not-enemy-humanities

Monday it is !! ( from the article !! )

1. Hortatory : words or actions that are encouraging in tone  , especially in time of need..
Generals  speech was hortatory for the families of the soldiers.


2) perspicacious: shrewd or wise.
A perspicacious child is not fooled by pepsi mixed with water.

3) recondite : difficult for average person to understand.
Shakespeare's work can be termed as recondite.

4) Contumely: abuse , insult
The praises are high points of life , just as contumely might be the low ones.

5) splice : intertwining of two ends of something to create strongest possible attachment.
the spidey power are spliced with Peter Parker to give us Spider-man.
The couple will be spliced in pen coming January :P.

Hi!

I found a genetic anomaly in his blood sample.
Anomaly : not normal.

The judge gave an equivocal decision which was not biased to any of the two part.
equivocal: neutral, uncertain.

The lecture on physics given by the professor was completely lucid.
lucid: transparent, to the point, clear.

precipitate: to bring down.

The customer care executive  was able to assuage the angry customer.
assuage: to satisfy someone, to mollify someone, to pacify.

The theories that are mentioned showed their erudite beginnings.
erudite: profound knowledge.

 His prodigal habit lead his father to remove his name from his will.
prodigal: wasteful, spending resources recklessly.

Hi!

NASA announced that it would delay the launch of the mannned spacecraft until the radiation from the solar flares abated.

 abate: reduce

The appeals judge has abdicated his responsibility to review the findings of the high court.

abdicate: to give up a position, right or power.

For centuries, solar eclipses were regarded as serious abberations in natural order.

 aberrant: deviating from what is normal.

 A good judge must hold his or her in abeyance until all the facts in a case have been presented.

abeyance: temporary suppression or suspension.

 John Steinbeck's novel The grapes of Wrath protrays the abject poverty of many people during the Great Depression.

abject: miserable, pitiful

June 26

The old lady worked throughout the day, not for herself, but for posterity.

posterity: future generation

 Their eschatology is the Singularity, which predicts that machines will outstrip humans in the near future, and benevolently uplift (or simply upload) mere mortals to nerd Nirvana.

eschatology: science of what happens after death
outstrip: surpass


If the origins of Western civilization are linked to ancient Greece, the future of human existence is pegged to Silicon Valley

pegged: something (as a fact or issue) used as a support, pretext, or reason

punctilious , fastidious, persnickety:
If you are any of the above words then you are AAmir khan :D YOu like eveerything to be perfect.

bhoni ho gayi

"I say, uncle, is this all the grub great swells have? I'm awfully perkish!" "That's early tea, my boy," was the answer, with a smile. perkish: somewhat hungry. " ... I wouldn't mind if she weren't a prominent person of the kind that's always in some sort of garboil. That would mean more trouble, sooner or later.." garboil: confusion. No one was privy to the goings- on at the house in the droke, though there was plenty of speculation about the rituals being performed to rid Mrs. Gallery of the cross her husband had become. droke: a valley with steeply sloping sides. ..... a job, a prayer, a lesson, a little of each, a prayer got by rote in case of emergency before the soul resigns and bubbling up all arsy-varsy in the old head done with listening, there I am old, it doesn't take long... arsy-varsy : wrong end foremost; completely backward.

25th June 2014

1. butting heads

To hit or push against with the head or horns; ram.

2. To be at loggerheads
Idiom:

Engaged in a dispute: The question of car privileges put Sam and his parents at loggerheads

3. splin·ter  (splntr)

n.

1. A sharp, slender piece, as of wood, bone, glass, or metal, split or broken off from a main body.

2. A splinter group.

To split or break into sharp, slender pieces; form splinters. See Synonyms at break.

v.tr.

To cause to splinter.

4. Figment:

Something invented, made up, or fabricated: just a figment of the imagination.

a fantastic notion, invention, or fabrication:

figment (ˈfigmənt) : a figment of the/one's imagination

something one has imagined and which has no reality.

Some more words..

8. Unassailable: unable to be attacked, questioned, or defeated.

"an unassailable lead"

Michael Phelps is unassailable in swimming

June 24 - Sahil

1. makeshift: improvise

I invariably used the side of my college-id as a makeshift ruler, keeping the lines straight.

2. patent: obvious (secondary meaning)

His resume claimed that he held a patent, which was a patent lie.

3. patronizing: looks down, condescending

I now had more money than I had ever had before, and I began patronizing secondhand bookstores.

4.outstrip: defeat, surpass

No matter what they do, a competitive person always strives to outstrip others 

5. paradigm 

A paradigm is a way of looking at something.

7 words

1. cap·size

(of a boat) overturned in water

to flip. 

2. writ large (a phrase)

if something is another thing writ large, it is a clearer or stronger form of that thing Hollywood is American society writ large

clear and obvious.

"the unspoken question writ large upon Rose's face"

• in a stark or exaggerated form.
• "bribing people by way of tax allowances is the paternalistic state writ large"

made more obvious or prominent.

3. stellar

of or relating to star performer

outstanding, principal

She did a stellar job!

4. to bite the bullet

to make hard/tough decisions. For eg., the government decided to bite the bullet and increase the railway fares

5. slap·dash  (slpdsh)

adj.

Hasty and careless, as in execution: slapdash work.

adv.

In a reckless haphazard manner.

6. Pastiche: artistic work which is imitation of other's artistic work

pas·tiche

noun

1. 1.

   an artistic work in a style that imitates that of another work, artist, or period.

   "the operetta is a pastiche of 18th century styles"

verb

1. 1.

   imitate the style of (an artist or work).

   "Gauguin took himself to a Pacific island and pastiched the primitive art he found there"

"Instead, the memo turns out to be a slapdash pastiche of legal theories — some based on obscure interpretations of British and Israeli law — that was clearly tailored to the desired result. Perhaps the administration held out so long to avoid exposing the thin foundation on which it based such a momentous decision."

7. stash away - keep or lay aside for future use; "store grain for the winter"; "The bear stores fat for the period of hibernation when he doesn't eat"

Mr. X. stashed away all the money he got from bribes in his secret storehouse.

n m back on track

delineated : Describe or portray something , show exact position of something 

Using official data, Mr. Jaitley delineated the state of the dysfunctional economy. - The hindu 

Granary : a place to store grains 

 evocative: reminiscent , reminds of 

 Virat Kolhi 's game play is evocative of young Sachin Tendulkar

unduly : out of proportion , if someone is unduly mad at you it is out of proportion to what you did to tick them off

inter : bury in a grave or tomb 

if you loved your pet dearly, it seems right to inter him

Harry, Ron and Hermione interred Dobby the Elf 

halcyon:  calm , peaceful, happily tranquil 

ossify; become bony 

when the babay is born, his bones are weak, then they ossify ie become bony. The kneecap ossifies in the age 3-6. Figuratively it means to become hard. Old people have ossified the idea that young generation is heading for their doom 

cheese left out for long time is ossified, even rats wont touch it 

befuddle : to confuse 

The Matrix movie is bound to befuddle you. 

June 22.

Missed couple of days :(. But am back!

Today I am planning to write 3 'I''N' words which are a pain in neck. These are difficult GRE/GMAT words.

1. Iniquity : Immoral Character
Some would call Las Vegas a “den of iniquity,” implying that sinful or wicked behavior occurs there. Others would just call it a vacation. What do you think?

http://www.vocabulary.com/dictionary/stagnation#word=iniquity

2. Invidious: envious, offensive or defamatory
Some bouncers probably love theinvidious task of not letting good-looking people into their clubs.

3. Insidious: stealthly waiting for you
Cancer can be insidious, lurking in your body without your knowing it

http://www.vocabulary.com/articles/chooseyourwords/insidious-invidious/


And here comes Monday!

for the insults need to be sharp and shrouded

1) Bootlicker : someone who licks or butters up the rich people or the influential people to curry some personal favors.
calling them bootlicker may get you punched
call them : sycophant

2) Superpatriot 
this guy thinks everything he has, does, or breaths is far superior to everyone else. from his toothbrush to shoes to religion and political party.He will advertise his affiliations with no bars.  He will argue and justify it. and for him he is the best person with the best car , best fuel and fastest drive ever. And he wont hide it.
Lets call him a chauvinist 

3) worrier
 for this lady, she is always sick but the docs do not find the cause or the effect of it. The palpitations are cardiac arrest though the cardiogram doesnt agree. This lady will visit all doctors to get a confirmation of her looming death.
Lets call her :  hypochondriac

4) slave-driver
 if you have that friend who is sort of like Monica and you feel she needs to have german subtitles with every order she gives, ou have a slave driver. they will make u toe the line, dot the i's and cross the t's. Now callng Monica slave driver is making your life hell so the word is martinet

5)Fanatic
 with FIFA this person will talk FIFA, sleep eat breath it till it is absurd. His clothes, cups and towels are FIFA to the point that his days circle around it and you are sure he dreams it as well. this is single minded obsession to the point of being absurd. Now replace FIF
a with cricket, wife, kids, cars etc .. we have a fanatic or shall we say  monomaniac 

Oh Yes! I did it too :D

The mother-son duo were considered the real power center in the Indian government for the past decade, with Singh merely playing the role as their political puppet. This arrangement was ostensibly confirmed by Singh's own former spokesman recently, and this abdication to the Gandhis makes it more difficult to sympathize with the erstwhile prime minister.

Ostensibly: Apparantly
Abdication: Give up place of power
Erstwhile: Former


Not only can they successfully expunge ideas from the public sphere and purge those who dare to express these ideas and attitudes, they can also brainwash anyone who simply wants to function as a part of society.  

expunge: censor, wipe out


The Chinese saying sha ji jing hou puts it succinctly: killing the chicken to scare the monkey. Punishing an individual as an example to others again incites this policy of intimidation that can resound for lifetimes and even generations.

succintly: clearly, briefly, Conveying the message in one line.

june 19

1) fey : look of mystery, unworldliness or as if  the person has some super power
 Sentence : instead of calling her mother crazy she insisted on calling her fey or colorful. ( 44 charles street, Daniel steel novel )

2) effusion: unrestrained expression of emotion
verb: effuse
when mum cooks, our comments have to be effusion of praise alone !

3) sorrel : reddish brown horse, chestnut color
a very weird word which can denote
a) reddish brown horse
b) reddish brown color
 ( so the horse can be called sorrel and the ridding shoes can be described as sorrel )
c) a plant with sour juice can be called sorrel

4) oenophile : one who loves and appreciates wines
oenophiles see the wine, appreciate the color, smell, take a snif, then a sip then swish it around in mouth to take in the texture. finally when they get all the info they swallow it. It is fine wine for them , always.

Winos on other hand can have cheap wine , they might as well gulp it down

5) abstruse : difficult to penetrate or understand
Ayn Rand novel are known to be abstruse.

6) prostrate : overcome, rendered helpless or defenseless , life face down unable to move
the slaves prostrated before the king

Next 5

1. logophile: wordbuff, one who loves words
Sana is crazy because she thinks I am a logophile. Nevertheless, its a good word to know.

2.  construe: to perceive in a particular manner, interpret
In other words, Congress can go fly a kite as far as trying to control him in matters of National Defense, because he can "construe" the laws anyway he chooses, even construe them as null and void.  
--- (took it from the web)

3. expound: explain in detail
Even after Mr. Einstein expounded his theory of relativity, the audience could not make head or tail of it. 

4. admonitory: warning, cautionary advice
Uncle Sam delivered an admonitory speech explaining the risk involved in drunken driving 

5. petulant: continuously complaining, irritable childish behavior 

Kerry's public musing about Israel’s “illusionary” thinking on  

peace and prosperity sounded like the moaning of a petulant child: I want my nine-month

peace treaty, and I want it now!

18 june .. it begins !!

1) orotund : rich and full, relates to sounds
if i say your singing is orotund i mean it to be positive and encouraging ... if i call your speech orotund, it means i am saying it was pompous.. basically orotund means making an O shape with your mouth which is perfect when singing and pretentious when talking

2) bandied : bandy == discuss lightly , strike back and forth .. its supposed to be like brainstorming where we do not fixate on a particular idea and throw in new ones till we find something that fits
this is also related to hitting.. boxers bandy meaning hit back and forth before going for the kill .

3) evocative : something that serves as a way to bring something else to your mind.
like hearing the rainfall is evocative of a steaming cup of chai

4) floe: flat chunk of ice free floating in the ocean.. its supposed to be large or small, it is different than iceberg where depth is considered.

5) halcyon : days marked with peace and prosperity

6) qualm : a feel that you are doing something wrong .. uneasy feeling,

7) effusive : running water = gushing water= effusive water .
effusive female , burby, lively,  

8) elegiac : mournful or sad