Words of the day

Resumption  Noun meaning the start of something again after it has stopped. पुनरारंभ The president called for an immediate ceasefire and a resumption of negotiations between the two sides.   Foster Verb meaning to encourage the development or growth of ideas or feelings. प्रोत्साहित करना I'm trying to foster an interest in classical music in my children. They were discussing the best way to foster democracy and prosperity in the former communist countries.   Foster  Adjective meaning describes someone or something connected with the care of children, usually for a limited time, by someone who is not the child's legal parent.  पालन-पोषण करना A foster care/home/child/mother    Amid  Preposition meaning in the middle of or surrounded by; among  मध्य में On the floor, amid mounds of books, were two small envelopes. The new perfume was launched amidst a fanfare of publicity.    Clamour  Verb meaning to make a loud complaint or demand  जोरदार माँग करना,  गुहार करना The children were all clamouring for attention.   She clamours to go home as soon as she gets to school.

Relinquish  1.      Verb meaning to give up something such as a responsibility or claim 2.      Verb meaning to unwillingly stop holding or keeping something He has relinquished his claim to the throne. She relinquished control of the family investments to her son. She relinquished her hold/grip on the steering wheel.   Racism  Noun meaning the belief that people's qualities are influenced by their race and that the members of other races are not as good as the members of your own, or the resulting unfair treatment of members of other races The authorities are taking steps to combat/fight/tackle racism in schools. The report made it plain that institutional racism (= racism in all parts of an organization) is deep-rooted in this country.   Daffy  Adjective meaning strange or unusual, sometimes in a humorous way   Make a/ your mark (on sth) To have an important effect on something   Daniel didn't work here for very long, but he definitely made his mark on the place.

Slur  Noun meaning a remark that criticizes someone which is likely to have a harmful effect on their reputation. Her letter contained several outrageous slurs against/on her former colleagues. His comments cast a slur on the integrity of his employees.   Prudent  Adjective meaning avoiding risks and uncertainties; careful It's always prudent to read a contract properly before signing it.   Obstinate Adjective meaning 1. unreasonably determined, especially to act in a particular way and not to change at all, despite what anyone else says Describes a problem, situation or thing that is difficult to deal with, remove or defeat Invading troops met with obstinate resistance by guerilla forces. He can be very obstinate at times.   Pestle  Noun meaning a heavy stick made of clay, stone or metal, with a thick rounded end, which is used for crushing substances in a mortar (= a small strong bowl) by hitting or rubbing them. Crush the garlic into a paste using a pestle and mortar.

Manifesto  Noun meaning a written statement of the beliefs, aims and policies of an organization, especially a political party In their election manifesto, the Liberal Democrats proposed increasing taxes to pay for improvements in education.   Stash  Verb meaning to store or hide something, especially a large amount The stolen pictures were stashed (away) in a London warehouse.    Devise Verb meaning to invent a plan, system, object, etc., usually cleverly or using imagination. He's good at devising language games that you can play with students in class. The cartoon characters Snoopy and Charlie Brown were devised by Charles M. Schultz.   Illicit  Adjective meaning illegal or disapproved of by society. illicit drugs such as cocaine and cannabis the illicit trade in stolen vehicles an illicit love affair   Menace  Noun meaning something that is likely to cause harm. Drunk drivers are a menace to everyone. Dogs running loose are a public menace.    

Gauntlet  Noun meaning a long thick glove (= hand covering) , worn for protection   Duck out of sth  Phrasal verb used informal meaning to avoid doing something You can't duck out of your responsibilities.    Grouse  Verb meaning to complain angrily She's always grousing about how she's been treated by the management.   Heckle  Verb meaning to interrupt a public speech or performance with loud unfriendly statements or questions A few angry locals started heckling (the speaker).

Slate Noun meaning the group of people who are chosen by a particular party to take part in an election. The senator has not got a full slate of delegates in New York.   On the slate  Used in informal way when the price of food or drink that a regular customer buys is recorded so that they can pay for it at another time Could you put these drinks on the slate?    Ordain  Verb meaning (of God or someone in authority) to order something to happen. There is strong support here for the tough economic reforms ordained in the federal capital, Prague. The council, in its wisdom, has ordained that all the local libraries will close on Mondays.   Punitive  Adjective meaning formal intended as a punishment Used to describe costs which are so high they are difficult to pay, and which are often used to punish someone or limit their activities The UN has imposed punitive sanctions on the invading country..   The President has threatened to impose punitive import duties/tariffs on a range of foreign goods.

Disarray Noun meaning the state of being confused and having no organization or of being untidy. Ever since the oil crisis, the industry has been in (a state of) disarray. The news had thrown his plans into disarray. Her clothes were in disarray (= were untidy).   Quell Verb meaning to stop something, especially by using force. Police in riot gear were called in to quell the disturbances/unrest . This latest setback will have done nothing to quell the growing doubts about the future of the club.   Dissent Noun meaning strong difference of opinion on a particular subject; disagreement, especially about an official suggestion or plan or a popular belief. When the time came to approve the proposal, there were one or two voices of dissent.     Inadvertently  Adverb meaning not intentionally He inadvertently deleted the file.

Slew Verb meaning to turn or be turned round suddenly and awkwardly Noun meaning a large amount or number The car hit a patch of ice and slewed around violently. He slewed the van to the left to avoid the dog. Mr Savino has been charged with three murders as well as a whole  slew of other crimes.    Disgruntled Adjective meaning unhappy, annoyed and disappointed about something  A disgruntled former employee is being blamed for the explosion. The players were disgruntled with the umpire.   Chant Verb meaning to repeat or sing a word or phrase continuously, or to sing a religious prayer or song to a simple tune The crowd were chanting the name of their football team. Demonstrators chanted anti-government slogans in the square. We could hear the monks chanting.   Vow Verb meaning to make a determined decision or promise to do something The guerillas vowed (that) they would overthrow the government. After the awful meals we had last Christmas, I vowed to do more of the cooking myself.    

Arduous  Adjective meaning difficult, needing a lot of effort and energy. An arduous climb/task/journey   Synergy  Noun meaning the combined power of a group of things when they are working together which is greater than the total power achieved by each working separately. Team work at its best results in a synergy that can be very productive.   Reiterate  Verb meaning to say something again, once or several times. The government has reiterated its refusal to compromise with terrorists. She reiterated that she had never seen him before.   Assassination Noun meaning  the murder of someone famous or important. An assassination attempt.   The assassination of the opposition leader.

Blooper  Noun meaning a funny mistake made by an actor during the making of a film or television programme and usually removed before the film or programme is shown.   Enfranchise Verb meaning to give a person or group of people the right to vote in elections Women in Britain were first enfranchised in 1918.    Insipid  Adjective meaning not having a strong taste or character, or having no interest or energy A pale insipid wine. He's an insipid old bore. Why anyone buys music with such insipid lyrics is a mystery.   Punitive  1. Adjective meaning formal intended as a punishment. 2. Used to describe costs which are so high they are difficult to pay, and which are often used to punish someone or limit their activities. Punitive action   The UN has imposed punitive sanctions on the invading country.

Avail  Noun meaning use, purpose, advantage, or profit. We tried to persuade her not to resign, but to no avail (= did not succeed) . My attempts to improve the situation were of little/no avail.    Amnesty 1.       Noun meaning a decision by a government that allows political prisoners to be free. 2.       a fixed period of time during which people are not punished for committing a particular crime. Most political prisoners were freed under the terms of the amnesty. People who hand in illegal weapons will not be prosecuted during the amnesty. The government refused to declare an amnesty for people who had not paid the disputed tax.   Muck  1. Noun meaning dirt or solid animal waste. 2. Something you consider very unpleasant or very low quality. You're treading muck into the carpet with your dirty shoes! I'm not eating that muck! The immigrants were treated like muck (= treated badly, as if they were not important).   Where there's muck there's brass. UK saying Phase used to said to mean that a lot of money can be made from business activities which are dirty or unpleasant    Fierce  1. Adjective meaning physically violent and frightening 2. Strong and powerful 3. Showing strong feeling or energetic activity 4. informal difficult Two men were shot during fierce fighting last weekend. Fierce winds/seas prevented the race from taking place. There is fierce competition to join the Special Branch.   The chemistry exam was fierce!

Sack  1. Verb meaning to remove someone from a job, usually because they have done something wrong or badly, or sometimes as a way of saving the cost of employing them 2. To steal all the valuable things from a building, town, etc., and possibly destroy the building or town, usually during a war He got sacked from his last job. The invaders sacked every village they passed on their route.   Sack out  Phrasal verb meaning to go to bed It's late - I'm going to sack out.    Crescendo  1. Noun meaning a gradual increase in loudness, or the moment when a noise or piece of music is at its loudest 2. An increase in excitement, danger or action The music reached a crescendo. There has been a rising crescendo of violence in the region.   Tenable  Adjective meaning (of an opinion or position) able to be defended successfully or held for a particular period of time His theory is no longer tenable in light of the recent discoveries.   The university fellowship is tenable for (= lasts for) three years.

Catch sb red-handed To discover someone while they are in the act of doing something bad or illegal He was caught red-handed taking money from the till.   (At) full stretch When you are working as hard as possible and could not manage to do any more The emergency services are working at full stretch today to cope with the accident.   Kith and kin People you are connected with, especially by family relationships   Be (down) in black and white To be written down I couldn't believe it was true, but there it was, in black and white.   Chaotic   Adjective meaning in a state of chaos The house is a bit chaotic at the moment - we've got all these extra people staying and we're still decorating. He's a chaotic sort of a person - always trying to do twenty things at once.   Chaos Noun meaning a state of total confusion with no order Snow and ice have caused chaos on the roads. Ever since our secretary walked out, the office has been in a state of total/utter chaos.   We muddled up the name labels and chaos ensued (= resulted).

Anticipate Verb meaning to imagine or expect that something will happen, sometimes taking action in preparation for it happening  We don't anticipate any trouble. We had one or two difficulties along the way that we didn't anticipate. Are you anticipating a lot of people at the party tonight?   Nag Verb meaning to criticize or complain often in an annoying way If she'd only stop nagging at me, I might actually help. I'm always nagging him about his diet.   Break the ice To make people who have not met before feel more relaxed with each other Someone suggested that we play a party game to break the ice.   Burn the midnight oil To work late into the night   Stoop to sth Phrasal verb meaning to lower your moral standards by doing something which is unpleasant, dishonest or unfair. I don't believe she would ever stoop to bribery or blackmail.   He was amazed that a reputable firm would stoop to selling the names of their clients to other companies.

Shoo-in Noun meaning someone who is certain to win an election or a competition He's a shoo-in for the White House. Manchester United's a shoo-in to win the title this season.   I owe you (one) informal Said to thank someone for helping you and as a way of saying that you will do something for them in the future. Thanks for the help, Bill - I owe you one.   Moribund Adjective meaning (especially of an organization or business) not active or successful. How can the Trade Department be revived from its present moribund state?   Drubbing Noun meaning a beating or serious defeat, especially in a sports competition.   Nottingham Forest got/received/took a severe drubbing at the hands of Manchester United.

Mar    Verb meaning to spoil something, making it less perfect or less enjoyable   Sadly, the text is marred by careless errors. It was a really nice day, marred only by a little argument in the car on the way home. I hope the fact that Louise isn't coming won't mar your enjoyment of the evening.   Get on sb's nerves To annoy someone a lot We really got on each other's nerves when we were living together. Please stop making that noise! It really gets on my nerves.   Buzz off 1. Phrasal verb informal  to go away 2. If someone says buzz off to another person, they are telling them to go away in a rude way I've got some stuff to do at home, so I'm going to buzz off now. Buzz off, I'm busy!   Atrocity   Noun meaning when someone does something extremely violent and shocking They're on trial for committing atrocities against the civilian population.   These people are guilty of acts of great atrocity (= cruelty) .

Foe Noun meaning an enemy The two countries have united against their common foe. They were bitter foes for many years. Foes of the government will be delighting in its current difficulties.   Hurly-burly Noun meaning noisy activity We got tired of the hurly-burly of city life, so we moved to the country.   Goof   Verb meaning to make a silly mistake If Tom hadn't goofed and missed that shot, we'd have won the game. She goofed her lines (= said the words in the play wrong).   Subvert Verb meaning to try to destroy or damage something, especially an established political system The rebel army is attempting to subvert the government. Our best intentions are sometimes subverted by our natural tendency to selfishness.

Rout Verb meaning  to defeat an enemy completely and force them to run away The Russian chess team have routed all the rest.   Rout sb out Phrasal verb meaning to make someone come out of the place where they are His wife had to rout him out of the crowd.   Scurry Verb meaning to move quickly, with small short steps The mouse scurried across the floor. The noise of the explosion sent the villagers scurry ing back into their homes.   Claw sth back 1. Phrasal verb  to get possession of something again with difficulty 2. Mainly UK If the government, for example, claws back money, it takes money back in one way that it has already given in another way The airline is beginning to claw back some of the business it lost after the bomb explosion.   We got a government grant for setting up our business, but they clawed it all back again in taxes.

Chasm Noun meaning a very deep narrow opening in rock, ice or the ground Formal a very large difference between two opinions or groups of people They leaned over the rails and peered down into the dizzying chasm below. There is still a vast economic chasm between developed and developing countries.   Prompt sb to do sth To make someone decide to say or do something What prompted you to say that? I don't know what prompted him to leave.   Mend Verb meaning to repair something that is broken or damaged Could you mend this hole in my shirt? I've left my watch at the jeweller's to be mended.   Placate   Verb meaning to stop someone from feeling angry   Outraged minority groups will not be placated by promises of future improvements. 

Unequivocal Adjective meaning total, or expressed in a clear and certain way The Prime Minister, he said, had the party's unequivocal support. The church has been unequivocal in its condemnation of the violence.   Incite   Verb meaning to encourage someone to do or feel something unpleasant or violent She incited racial hatred by distributing anti-Semitic leaflets. She was expelled for inciting her classmates to rebel against their teachers.     Coercion   Noun meaning the use of force to persuade someone to do something which they are unwilling to do He claimed the police had used coercion, threats and promises to illegally obtain the statement.