Learn English Vocabulary - via Word of the Day

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Showing posts from June, 2013

Vernal

By Shamli Seth - June 30, 2013

Vernal [ VUR-nl ] [ adjective ] MEANING : 1. pertaining to, suggestive of or occurring in spring 2. youthful and fresh USAGE EXAMPLE 1 : Some vernal flowers have five petals. USAGE EXAMPLE 2 : The 119 extant species include sweet vernal grass.

Iridescent

By Shamli Seth - June 29, 2013

Iridescent [ ir-i-DES-uh’ nt ] [ noun, adjective ] MEANING : 1. (adj.) colourful and lustrous like a rainbow 2. (n.) material or cloth that displays lustrous colours like a rainbow USAGE EXAMPLE 1 : The iridescent painting was eye-catching. USAGE EXAMPLE 2 : An elephant hawk-moth's beautiful deep pink wings, edged in iridescent green, would put even the brightest of butterflies to shame.

Expatiate

By Shamli Seth - June 28, 2013

Expatiate [ ik-SPEY-shee-eyt ] [ intransitive verb ] MEANING : 1. to roam about or wander freely 2. to elaborate or explain in detail USAGE EXAMPLE 1 : The guests expatiated around the country side. USAGE EXAMPLE 2 : In other words, or variable words if you prefer, expatiated the Management Expert, you can't step into the same river twice.

Forte

By Shamli Seth - June 27, 2013

Forte [ fawrt, fohrt, FAWR-tey ] [ noun, adjective, adverb ] MEANING : 1. (n.) an area or field in which one excels, accomplishes a lot or which one finds as one's strong point 2. (n.) the strongest part of the blade of a sword which is between the middle and the hilt 3. (n.) a chord, note or passage played loudly and forcefully 4. (adj.) forceful or loud 5. (adv.) loudly or in a forceful way or manner USAGE EXAMPLE 1 : Astronomy was his forte. USAGE EXAMPLE 2 : With visualization as Manish's forte, Manish styles for various Indian glossies and also designs clothes for Indian celebrities.

Enunciate

By Shamli Seth - June 26, 2013

Enunciate [ i-NUHN-see-eyt ] [ intransitive verb, transitive verb ] MEANING : 1. (tr.v.) to announce, state or proclaim 2. (tr.v.) to articulate or pronounce 3. (intr.v.) to articulately pronounce words USAGE EXAMPLE 1 : He enunciated each word clearly so that everyone understood what he was saying. USAGE EXAMPLE 2 : The genesis for the clip, he said, came from his daughter's ability to enunciate well at an early age.

Morbid

By Shamli Seth - June 24, 2013

Morbid [ MAWR-bid ] [ adjective ] MEANING : 1. excessively gloomy and susceptible to unwholesome and ill feelings and thoughts 2. pertaining to or suggestive of a disease 3. gruesome, ghastly, horrible or grisly USAGE EXAMPLE 1 : The morbid story was made into a movie. USAGE EXAMPLE 2 : Meet some of the M.O.s decide the powers that be at the War Office must have a morbid sense of humour to have put this lot together.

Lull

By Shamli Seth - June 23, 2013

Lull [ luhl ] [ noun, intransitive verb, transitive verb ] MEANING : 1. (n.) a period of temporary calm 2. (tr.v.) to soothe, relax and put to sleep 3. (intr.v.) to calm or quiet down USAGE EXAMPLE 1 : There was a lull in the atmosphere. USAGE EXAMPLE 2 : The game is far better suited to television, because it adheres to a tighter schedule and lacks the middle-over lull, but it may not be as popular with fans wanting a full day's play.

Frenzied

By Shamli Seth - June 22, 2013

Frenzied [ FREN-zeed ] [ adjective ] MEANING : 1. marked by wild enthusiasm or excitement 2. violent, frantic, agitated or wild USAGE EXAMPLE 1 : There was a frenzied rush to buy the new book. USAGE EXAMPLE 2 : The meditative time will soothe your frenzied brain, while the caffeine will give you just enough of a kick start to get through the rest of your day.

Holocaust

By Shamli Seth - June 21, 2013

Holocaust [ HOL-uh'-kawst, HOH-luh'- ] [ noun ] MEANING : 1. an offering or sacrifice that is completely consumed by fire 2. a massive destruction caused esp. by fire 3. a large-scale slaughter 4. the systematic, large-scale slaughter of the Jews by Nazis during World War II USAGE EXAMPLE 1 : The holocaust was predicted by the astrologist. USAGE EXAMPLE 2 : The Holocaust was the Nazis' assault on the Jews between 1933 and 1945 in which six million Jews were murdered.

Curator

By Shamli Seth - June 20, 2013

Curator [ kyoo'-REY-ter, KYOO' R-ey- ; KYOO' R-uh-ter ] [ noun ] MEANING : 1. a manager, superintendent or a person in charge 2. on who is a legal guardian of a person who is a minor, lunatic or is incompetent in some other way to take care of his/her property USAGE EXAMPLE 1 : The curator of the museum was a respected man. USAGE EXAMPLE 2 : A curator checks artifacts at the Iraq National Museum in Baghdad on March 17, 2008.

Epitome

By Shamli Seth - June 19, 2013

Epitome [ i-PIT-uh'-mee ] [ noun ] MEANING : 1. a brief account, summary or abstract 2. an example, representative or one that exemplifies the qualities of a group or class USAGE EXAMPLE 1 : He was the epitome of what a gentleman should be. USAGE EXAMPLE 2 : He is a man typical of the times, the epitome of how the world works today.

Epilogue

By Shamli Seth - June 18, 2013

Epilogue [ EP-uh'-lawg, -log ] [ noun ] MEANING : 1. a speech or poem recited at the conclusion of a play 2. one who delivers the speech or poem at the end of a play 3. a short section appended to the conclusion of a piece of literary work like a novel USAGE EXAMPLE 1 : The epilogue was set nearly nineteen years in the future. USAGE EXAMPLE 2 : This victory is an epilogue in the first half of the season.

Gaunt

By Shamli Seth - June 17, 2013

Gaunt [ gawnt ] [ adjective ] MEANING : 1. thin, bony, haggard or emaciated 2. desolate, barren, grim or bleak USAGE EXAMPLE 1 : He had a gaunt face with a pale complexion. USAGE EXAMPLE 2 : What remains is the immensity of the sky, gaunt slopes scrubby with thistles and wild grasses, the roar of glacial torrents in dark ravines, and the powerful pull of the first gods ever feared by men.

Cuisine

By Shamli Seth - June 14, 2013

Cuisine [ kwi-ZEEN ] [ noun ] MEANING : 1. a manner, style or quality of preparing or cooking food 2. food that has been prepared USAGE EXAMPLE 1 : The choice of cuisine was unique. USAGE EXAMPLE 2 : In the tradition of Julia Child, another impressive voice for French cuisine wants to help home cooks pull off great food.

Medley

By Shamli Seth - June 13, 2013

Medley [ MED-lee ] [ noun, adjective ] MEANING : 1. (n.) heterogeneous mixture, hodgepodge or a jumbled assortment 2. (n.) a mixture of songs obtained from varied sources and played together in continuum 3. (n.) mingled, jumbled or mixed USAGE EXAMPLE 1 : The medley required work before it could be presented before an audience. USAGE EXAMPLE 2 : The scenery, especially in the north, is considered the most spectacular in South Africa, a sublime medley of rugged peaks, scarps, pinnacles, forest, waterfalls and rivers.

Ensconce

By Shamli Seth - June 12, 2013

Ensconce [ en-SKONS ] [ transitive verb ] MEANING : 1. to conceal, hide or secure snugly 2. to settle or place in a snug or comfortable manner USAGE EXAMPLE 1 : She was ensconced in a snug tweed jacket. USAGE EXAMPLE 2 : Appropriately enough, Brother Claus spent much of his life ensconced in an Alpine cave in solitary reflection.

Amorphous

By Shamli Seth - June 11, 2013

Amorphous [ uh'-MAWR-fuh's ] [ adjective ] MEANING : 1. having no definite form or specific shape 2. of no particular type USAGE EXAMPLE 1 : Everything had burned to the ground and all that was left was some amorphous objects in the ashes. USAGE EXAMPLE 2 : It's a rather amorphous discussion, in which the politicians can raise almost anything which takes their fancy.

Diabolical

By Shamli Seth - June 10, 2013

Diabolical [ dahy-uh'-BOL-ik- kal ] [ adjective ] MEANING : 1. satanic or pertaining to the devil 2. outrageously cruel or wicked 3. fiendish or befitting a devil USAGE EXAMPLE 1 : They feared that once the evil lords put their diabolical plan into action there would be no escape. USAGE EXAMPLE 2 : The widow of a man who fell victim to a super-bug that has claimed 17 lives at a Norfolk hospital yesterday described his death as ""diabolical"".

Amiss

By Shamli Seth - June 07, 2013

Amiss [ uh'-MIS ] [ adjective, adverb ] MEANING : 1. (adj.) out of order, faulty, improper or imperfect 2. (adv.) wrongly, faultily, imperfectly or in a mistaken manner USAGE EXAMPLE 1 : The amiss setting of the cutlery angered her. USAGE EXAMPLE 2 : There were ample warnings that something was amiss, a long time before the banks collapsed.

Jejune

By Shamli Seth - June 06, 2013

Jejune [ ji-JOON ] [ adjective ] MEANING : 1. lacking interest or importance; dull 2. having little or no nutritive value 3. childish; immature USAGE EXAMPLE 1 : The jejune novel did not hold my interest. USAGE EXAMPLE 2 : Will audiences follow him, cheering the implicit detonation of America's institutions? Or will they find it all a bit ... jejune?

Defray

By Shamli Seth - June 05, 2013

Defray [ di-FREY ] [ transitive verb ] MEANING : to pay, take care of or bear all the expenses USAGE EXAMPLE 1 : He defrayed the hospital costs in spite of having limited funds. USAGE EXAMPLE 2 : Today, several middle-class Punekars staying in joint families are taking the opportunity to purchase a house for the future and leasing them out to partially defray the home loan equated monthly instalments (EMIs).

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