Learn English Vocabulary - via Word of the Day

Eccentricity [ ek-suh'n-TRIS-i-tee ][ noun ]MEANING :1. a peculiarity or an oddity
2. idiosyncrasy or the quality of being strangely odd
3. a deviation from the normal or the expectedUSAGE EXAMPLE 1 :M. F. Hussain the famous artist is also noted for his eccentricity.

Wishing all our patrons a Happy New Year!

Execrable [ EK-si-kruh'-buh'l][ adjective ]MEANING :1. deplorable or utterly detestable
2. abhorrent or being accursed
3. extremely bad or inferiorUSAGE EXAMPLE 1 :After the execrable performance in the play his career as a stage performer was as good as over.

Entomology [ en-tuh;-MOL-uh'-jee ][ noun ]MEANING :1. the study of insects
2. the scientific study of insects
3. the branch of zoology dealing with insectsUSAGE EXAMPLE 1 :Each student was supposed to bring an insect in a glass jar for his or her project on entomology.

Ignominy [ IG-nuh'-min-ee, ig-NOM-uh'-nee ][ noun ]MEANING :1. great humiliation, dishonour or public contempt
2. a disgraceful character or act
3. shameful conductUSAGE EXAMPLE 1 :He had to bear the ignominy of a dishonourable discharge from the army.

Desiccate [ DES-i-keyt ][ adjective, intransitive verb, transitive verb ]MEANING :1. (tr. v.) to dry completely or thoroughly
2. (tr. v.) (of food) to remove moisture in order to preserve
3. (tr. v.) to make lifeless or dull
4. (intr. v.) to become dry
5.(adj.) dehydrated or dried
6. (adj.) wanting in spirit or animationUSAGE EXAMPLE 1 :The company would first desiccate the vegetable then grind it to a powder and finally pack the powdered vegetable in attractive containers for export to third world countries.

Construe [ v. kuh'n-STROO or, especially Brit., KON-stroo; n. KON-stroo ][ noun, intransitive verb, transitive verb ]MEANING :1. (tr. v.) to explain the meaning or intention of
2. (tr. v.) to interpret or deduce by inference
3. (tr. v.) to analyze the syntax of or to arrange syntactically words or phrases
4. (intr. v.) to be subject to grammatical analysis
5. (n.) an interpretation or translation
3.(n.) the act of explainingUSAGE EXAMPLE 1 :People construed that he was antisocial by the glowering look on his face.

Tessellated [ TES-uh'-ley-tid][ adjective ]MEANING :1. having the pattern of small squares or mosaic
2. having the appearance of or pertaining to mosaicUSAGE EXAMPLE 1 :The tessellated floor and scenic walls heighten the light-hearted setting of the children’s playroom.


Wishing all our patrons Merry Christmas!

Parsimonious [ pahr-suh’-MOH-nee-uh’ s ][ adjective ]MEANING :frugal, stingy, sparing or miserlyUSAGE EXAMPLE 1 :The parsimonious merchant was wealthy.

Tantamount [ TAN-tuh'-mount ][ adjective ]MEANING :equivalent in force, significance or effectUSAGE EXAMPLE 1 :The strike was tantamount to a declaration of war.

Poignancy [ POIN-yuh'n-see, POIN-uh'n ][ noun ]MEANING :1. the state of being very touching or profoundly moving
2. an emotional moment or eventUSAGE EXAMPLE 1 :Many viewers were moved to tears by the poignancy of the soap opera.

Cognate [ KOG-neyt ][ noun, adjective ]MEANING :1. (adj.) related by birth or descended from the same parentage
2. (adj.) descended from the same language
3. (adj.) similar or allied in nature or quality
4. (n.) a person or thing related by origin or by blood with another
3. (n.) a word in one language related to a word in another languageUSAGE EXAMPLE 1 :The pauper was actually a cognate of the prince that is why their features were so amazingly similar.

Chary [ CHAIR-ee ][ adjective ]MEANING :1. careful or cautious
2. shy or inhibited
3. choosy
4. sparing or not expending freelyUSAGE EXAMPLE 1 :The banks were chary of lending money to unproductive farmers.

Precepts [ PREE-sept ][ noun ]MEANING :1. a commandment
2. a procedure to be adhered to as a ruleUSAGE EXAMPLE 1 :The King expected all of his ministers to follow all the precepts laid down by him.

Pliant [ PLAHY-uh'nt ][ adjective ]MEANING :1. bendable
2. readily adaptable
3. agreeableUSAGE EXAMPLE 1 :The pliant rules were misused till a new court order closed in all of the loopholes.

Excoriate [ ik-skawr-ee-eyt, -skohr- ][ verb ]MEANING :to condemn, criticize harshlyUSAGE EXAMPLE 1 :The worst thing for a primary school teacher would be to excoriate a pupil and probably scar him for life.

Anneal [ uh'-NEEL ][ intransitive verb, transitive verb ]MEANING :1. (tr. v.) to subject to a process of heating and slow cooling thereby toughening and reducing brittleness
2. (tr. v.) to make harder
3. (intr. v.) to become hardenedUSAGE EXAMPLE 1 :The steel used to make the blade of a samurai sword is annealed in order to toughen it.

Adroit [ uh'-DROIT ][ adjective ]MEANING :1. dextrous; agile
2. skilful; resourcefulUSAGE EXAMPLE 1 :His adroit debating skills helped our college secure the first rank in the debating competition.

Cacophonous [ kuh'-KOF-uh'-nuh's ][ adjective ]MEANING :1. having a harsh or discordant sound
2. having a strident or dissonant soundUSAGE EXAMPLE 1 :He asked his mother how she expected him to study in the cacophonous setting where his little brother was screaming for attention and grandpa was watching the television with the volume turned up to the maximum.

Malaise [ ma-LEYZ, -muh-; Fr. mA-LEZ ][ noun ]MEANING :1. a condition of general weakness
2. a vague feeling of uneasiness
3. a feeling of depression or discomfortUSAGE EXAMPLE 1 :The doctor said that the malaise could develop into pneumonia.

Imbecility [ im-buh'-SIL-i-tee ][ noun ]MEANING :1. stupidity or silliness
2. an instance of absurdity or incapability
3. foolishnessUSAGE EXAMPLE 1 :The staff at the shopping arcade complained about the imbecility of the new manager to the directors.

Vintner [ VINT-ner ][ noun ]MEANING :1. a winemaker or person who makes wine
2. a wine merchant or a person who sells wineUSAGE EXAMPLE 1 :He started off by selling home made wine now he is a vintner with a huge vineyard and a factory.

Warp [ wawrp ][ noun, intransitive verb, transitive verb ]MEANING :1. (tr. v.) to twist out of shape or bend
2. (tr. v.) to distort or falsify
3. (intr. v.) to become twisted or bent
4. (intr. v.) to become prejudiced
5. (n.) a bend, twist, or variation from
6. (n.) a biased judgement
7. (n.) the set of yarns crossed by and interlaced with the weft and which form the lengthwise threads in woven fabricUSAGE EXAMPLE 1 :The cruel practical jokes that he played on his friends stemmed from a sense of humour that had been warped.

Aberration [ ab-uh'-REY-shuh'n ][ noun ]MEANING :1. the act of turning away from the proper, normal, or expected course
2. the act of deviating from the truth
3. a lapse or temporary mental disorder
4. a defect in focusing causing a blurred imageUSAGE EXAMPLE 1 :He would have won the cross country race had it not been for the unfortunate aberration.

Jocose [ joh-KOHS ][ adjective ]MEANING :1. characterized by joking or humorous
2. playfulUSAGE EXAMPLE 1 :Everyone at the party was amused by his jocose behaviour.

Parry [ PAR-ee ][ noun, intransitive verb, transitive verb ]MEANING :1. (tr. v.) to avert, turn aside or ward off
2. (tr. v.) to evade or dodge
3. (intr. v.) to block or ward off
4. (n.) a defensive movement in sword fencing or the instance of turning aside a trust in sword fencingUSAGE EXAMPLE 1 :He parried the thrust as his opponent lunged forward.

Circumlocution [ sur-kuh'm-loh-KYOO-shuh'n ][ noun ]MEANING :1. an indirect or roundabout manner of speaking
2. the use of more words than necessary to express an idea
3. a roundabout or evasive expressionUSAGE EXAMPLE 1 :During the inquiry the director indulged in circumlocution rather than admit that it was the implementation of his idea that caused the company to incur a loss.

Inequity [ in-EK-wi-tee ][ noun ]MEANING :1. bias or lack of equity
2. favouritism
3. an act or instance of injustice or unfairnessUSAGE EXAMPLE 1 :The Maharashtra Housing and Area Development Authority stated that there was no inequity involved in the allotment of flats to applicants.

Bizarre [ bih-ZAHR  ]                 [ adjective ]                 MEANING :                 1. far-fetched or strikingly unconventional     2. odd, weird, eccentric or outrageously strange     3. having a markedly unusual general character                 USAGE EXAMPLE 1 :
                He won the story telling competition as his tale was the most bizarre.

Incisive [ in-SAHY-siv  ]                 [adjective]                 MEANING:                 1. (adj.) penetrating, cutting or biting     2. (adj.) clear, sharp or very distinct     3. (adj.) pertaining to the incisors or adapted for cutting USAGE EXAMPLE 1:
                He spoke in such an incisive manner that no one had any difficulty in understanding him.

Hyperbole [ hahy-PUR-buh'-lee  ]                 [noun]                 MEANING:                 1. an intentional exaggeration that is quite obvious     2. a figure of speech or an extravagant statement which is not intended to be taken literally     3. a figure of speech in which exaggeration is used for emphasis USAGE EXAMPLE 1:
                The professor made liberal use of hyperbole to illustrate his point.

Pinion [PIN-yuh'n]                 [noun, transitive verb ]                 MEANING :             1. (n.) a cogwheel or gear with teeth, used with or connecting with a rack or larger gear 2. (n.) the wing of a bird or its flight feathers 3. (n.) the terminal segment of a bird's wing 4. (tr. v.) to bind or cut off the terminal segment of the bird's wing 5. (tr. v.) to restrain by binding or to shackle   USAGE EXAMPLE 1:  The mechanic got the old grinding mill to start working by replacing the pinion and ring gear and overhauling the entire machinery.