Vocabulary from Newspaper Wordlist: 12 June, 2020

Over the last couple of years, the English section of the competitive exams has given good surprises. You must have encountered one or more new types of questions in almost every exam you appear for. Many of these questions exclusively check your vocabulary skills. So, apart from enhancing your reading, writing and speaking skills, a sound grip on vocabulary helps you score better in examinations. 

Reading is one of the best ways to boost your vocabulary. As you read a piece of writing, you come across new words which you might not have come across before. So, we must always try to inculcate a habit of reading.

Keeping this vision in mind, we bring to you the series, ‘Shape up your Vocabulary from Newspaper Wordlist’. The articles in this series fulfil your daily intake of English words. The series tries to feature words from an article, with their meanings, contextual usage, pronunciation, synonyms, antonyms, proper use in sentences, etc. Given below is an important editorial from the newspaper ‘The Hindu’. Read it, understand the context and go through the meanings of words to boost up your learning.

Happy Reading!

Look back in relief: On the migrant labour crisis

Important Words from the Article

1. Word: Triviality (लघु/ मामूली)

• Pronunciation: triv-ee-al-i-tee/ट्रिवीऐलटी 
• Part of Speech: Noun
• Meaning: 
  a. something that is not important
  b. commonplace; ordinary
• Synonyms: insignificance, silliness, frivolity
• Antonyms: importance, crucialness, significance
• Usage in a sentence: I'm a busy man - don't bother me with trivialities.

2. Word: Introspection (अन्तरावलोकन)

• Pronunciation: in-truh-spek-shuhn/इन्ट्रोस्पेक्शन
• Part of Speech: Noun
• Meaning:
  a. observation or examination of one's own mental and emotional state, mental processes, etc.
  b. the act of looking within oneself
  c. the tendency or disposition to self examine oneself
• Synonyms: self examination, reflection, meditation
• Usage in a sentence: His defeat in the world championship led to a long period of gloomy introspection.

3. Word: Ameliorate (सुधारना/उन्नति करना)

• Pronunciation: uh-meel-yuh-reyt/अमील्यरैट
• Part of Speech: Verb
• Meaning: 
  a. to make something or become better, more bearable, or more satisfactory
  b. to make a bad or unpleasant situation better
• Synonyms: improve, upgrade, amend, enhance
• Antonyms: aggravate, deteriorate, worsen
• Usage in a sentence: Foreign aid is badly needed to ameliorate the effects of the drought.

 4. Word: Myriad (असंख्य)

• Pronunciation: mir-ee-uhd/मिरीअड
• Part of Speech: Noun, Adjective
• Meaning: 
  a. a very great or indefinitely great number of persons or things (Noun)
  b. of an indefinitely great number; innumerable (Adjective)
• Synonyms: countless, innumerable, infinite, multitude
• Antonyms: limited, measurable, countable
• Usage in a sentence: They offered no solution for all our myriad problems.

5. Word: Ferocity (निठुरता/निर्दयता)

• Pronunciation: fuh-ros-i-tee/फरासिटी
• Part of Speech: Noun
• Meaning:
  a. the state of being frightening and violent
• Synonyms: fury, violence, brutality
• Antonyms: gentleness, friendliness, benevolence
• Usage in a sentence: I'd never been in an alpine storm of such ferocity.
  
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6. Word: Bull­headed (हठीला)

• Pronunciation: boo l-hed-id/बुल्हेडिड
• Part of Speech: Adjective
• Meaning: 
  a. very determined to do what you want to do, especially without considering other people's feelings
  b. obstinately opinionated, especially in refusing to consider alternatives; stubborn
• Synonyms: stubborn, obstinate, headstrong
• Antonyms: compliant, responsive, rational, adaptable
• Usage in a sentence: I've been kind of bullheaded all my life.

7. Word: Chasten (संयत करना)

• Pronunciation: chey-suhn/चैसन
• Part of Speech: Verb
• Meaning: 
  a. to inflict suffering upon for purposes of moral improvement; chastise
  b. to restrain; subdue
• Synonyms: punish, castigate, penalize
• Antonyms: boost, help, honor
• Usage in a sentence: He was chastened by the defeat and determined to work harder.

8. Word: Paucity (अभाव)

• Pronunciation: paw-si-tee/पॉसिटी
• Part of Speech: Noun
• Meaning: 
  a. the fact that there is too little of something
  b. the condition of having very little or not enough of something
• Synonyms: lack, dearth, scarcity, shortage
• Antonyms: plethora, abundance, opulence, adequacy
• Usage in a sentence: There is a paucity of information on the ingredients of many cosmetics.

9. Word: Linger (विलंबित करना)

• Pronunciation: ling-ger/लिंगअर
• Part of Speech: Verb
• Meaning: 
  a. to remain or stay on in a place longer than is usual or expected, as if from reluctance to leave
  b. to remain alive; continue or persist, although gradually dying, ceasing, disappearing, etc
  c. to dwell in contemplation, thought, or enjoyment
  d. to be tardy in action; delay; dawdle
  e. to walk slowly; saunter along
• Synonyms: delay, stay longer, persist, lag
• Antonyms: rush, hurry, hasten, speed up
• Usage in a sentence: We went to small cafes where we could linger over cappuccino.

10. Word: Tribulation (दारूण दुःख)

• Pronunciation:  trib-yuh-ley-shuhn/ट्रिब्यलैशन
• Part of Speech: Noun
• Meaning: 
  a. grievous trouble; severe trial or suffering
  b. an instance of this; an affliction, trouble, etc
• Synonyms: misery, trouble, hardship, distress 
• Antonyms: joy, blessing, comfort
• Usage in a sentence: Does singing about the trials and tribulations of love inevitably make one a torch singer?

'Writer's Corner'

Based on the description of the words, we have some practice questions for you. Answer these questions in the comments section. Our team will review them at the earliest!

Exercise 1. Make your own Sentences.

Here are some of the words from the above article. Try to frame sentences from them in your own words and share them with us in the comments section!

• Myriad
• Triviality
• Introspection
• Tribulation
• Linger

Exercise 2: Match the columns.

Share your answers in the comment section. 

More from us:

For practice, attempt the quiz based on this daily wordlist from the link below to enhance your exam preparation: Vocabulary Quiz, Click here to attempt!

You can also check the wordlist articles for the previous days from the link below: Shape Up your Vocabulary from Newspaper Wordlist

That was your Vocabulary dose for the day. 

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