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[Word Powers] Daily Words - September

This section covers few words with their pronunciation, meaning and usage in a sample sentence.

Updated on Oct 10th 2008

Yoke (yohk) (noun): Something that couples or binds together; a bond or tie; to join or to link A device for joining together a pair of draft animals, esp. oxen, usually consisting of a crosspiece with two bow-shaped pieces, each enclosing the head of an animal. We yoked together the logs by tying a string around them.

Zealous (zel-uhsl) (adjective): Fervent, filled with eagerness in pursuit of something. Ardently active, devoted, or diligent. If he were any more zealous about getting his promotion, he’d practically live at the office.

Furtive (furtiv) (Adj): Marked by quiet and caution and secrecy; backstairs You can no longer enjoy that puff in a furtive corner or in any other designated smoking zone of your office, from October 2. Indian Health Ministry, which will strictly enforce this ban on smoking from that date.

Placate (plekeyt) (verb): Cause to be more favorably inclined; gain the good will of EBay hopes new rule changes will placate sellers

Erudition (er-yoo-dish-uhn) (noun): Knowledge acquired by study, research, etc.; learning; scholarship. Erudition is present in a literary work when its author incorporates general knowledge and insights spanning many different fields. Dotage (dot·age) (noun): Senility A state or period of senile decay marked by decline of mental poise and alertness In his dotage, the old man bored us with long tales of events in his childhood
Diva (di-va) (Noun): Operatic singer Prima donna a usually glamorous and successful female performer or personality She wanted to be taken seriously as a musician, but instead became a jazz diva. Zephyr (zef-er) (noun): 1 A gentle, mild breeze 2 Any of various things of fine, light quality, as fabric, yarn, etc. If not for the zephyrs that were blowing and cooling us, our room would’ve been unbearably hot.
Wizened (wiz-uhnd; wee-zuhnd) (adjective): Withered; shriveled: a wizened old man; wizened feature. Vipin’s grandfather, Monish, had the most wizened countenance, full of leathery wrinkles.
Self-effacing (SELF-i-FEYS-ing) (adj): Not making yourself noticeable; not trying to get the attention of other people; modest; humble The captain was typically self-effacing when questioned about the team's successes, giving credit to the other players.
Inchoate (IN-koh-eyt) (adj): 1. Not yet completed or fully developed; rudimentary. 2. Just begun and lacking order We just have an inchoate mass of ideas on the subject. We still have a long way to go before we call it a well established theory.
Systema: Systema ("The System") is a Russian martial art. It is designed to be highly adaptive and practical, training using drills and sparring. It focuses mainly on controlling the six body levers (elbows, neck, knees, waist, ankles, and shoulders) through pressure point application, striking and weapon applications. In Russia, after Stalin's death, Systema became the style of fighting employed by some Special Military Operations Units for high risk missions in Spetsnaz, GRU (Russian army special forces).
Valedictorian (`validik'toreeun) (noun): The student with the best grades who delivers the valedictory at a graduation ceremony. The title of class valedictorian is common in educational institutions in the United States and Canada, while its equivalent in Australia, New Zealand, South Africa and Scotland is Dux.
Sarcophagus (sahr-kof-uh-guhs) (noun): 1. A stone coffin, esp. one bearing sculpture, inscriptions, etc., often displayed as a monument. 2. Greek Antiquity. a kind of stone thought to consume the flesh of corpses, used for coffins. The Ancient Egypt sarcophagus was usually the external layer of protection for a royal mummy, with several layers of coffins nested within.
Labyrinth (lab-uh-rinth) (noun): An intricate combination of paths or passages in which it is difficult to find one's way or to reach the exit. A maze of paths bordered by high hedges, as in a park or garden, for the amusement of those who search for a way out. The term labyrinth came to be applied to any unicursal maze, whether of a particular circular shape (illustration) or rendered as square.
Wistful (wist-fuhl) (adjective): Characterized by melancholy; longing; yearning Full of thought; eagerly attentive; meditative; musing; pensive; contemplative. Since her pet rabbit died, Shweta missed it terribly and sat around wistful all day long.
Winsome (win-suhm) (adjective): Sweetly or innocently charming; winning; engaging: a winsome smile. After such a long, frustrating day, I was grateful for Monish’s winsome attitude and childish nature.
Precocious (pri-koh-shuhs) (Adjective): Advanced in development Characterized by unusually early development or maturity, especially in mental aptitude. By her rather adult manner of discussing serious topics, the child demonstrated that she was precocious
Primp (prĭmp) (verb): Dress or groom oneself with care. She primps for hours before a dance.
Dope (dowp) (verb): Take drugs to improve one's athletic performance. Marion Jones, a former world champion, American track and field athlete, surrendered her five medals from the 2000 Summer Olympics after her alleged doping confession.
Hairpin Shot: In badminton, a shot made from very close to the net on which the shuttle rises just over the net and drops quickly on the other side. Often used to return a drop shot. Hairpin shot is so named because the flight path of the shuttle resembles an inverted hairpin. The techniques for hitting the hairpin net shot are about the same as a normal net shot. But because it is hit near to the ground, you need to slice or lift your racket a bit.
Pontiff (pon-tif) (noun): Any high or chief priest. A title of certain religious leaders. Pope Benedict XVI, the head of the Roman Catholic church is referred to as the Supreme Pontiff.
Rabbi (rab-ahy ) (noun): A title of respect for a Jewish scholar or teacher. A Jewish scholar qualified to rule on questions of Jewish law. A Rabbi mainly deals with the teachings and questions of Jewish law.
Hedging (hejing) (noun): 1. Any technique designed to reduce or eliminate financial risk; for example, taking two positions that will offset each other if prices change. 2. An intentionally noncommittal or ambiguous statement. If someone bulk-buys scotch whisky ahead of the budget in anticipation of a rise in excise Duty, he or she is hedging (provided the whisky is drunk - if it is bought to be on sold, then the buyer is speculating). [More Info] : http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hedge_(finance)
Arbitrage (aa(r) bi’ traazh) (noun): Also known as a "Riskless profit". A kind of hedged investment meant to capture slight differences in price; when there is a difference in the price of something on two different markets the arbitrageur simultaneously buys at the lower price and sells at the higher price. Here's an example of arbitrage: Say a domestic stock also trades on a foreign exchange in another country, where it hasn't adjusted for the constantly changing exchange rate. A trader purchases the stock where it is undervalued and short sells the stock where it is overvalued, thus profiting from the difference. Arbitrage is recommended for experienced investors only. [More Info] : http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arbitrage
Bankruptcy (bangkru’tsee) (noun): 1. A state of complete lack of some abstract property. Inability to discharge all your debts as they come due. A legal process intended to insure equality among the creditors of a corporation declared to be insolvent * Lehman Brothers, the fourth-largest US investment bank, has filed for bankruptcy protection, dealing a blow to the fragile global financial system. * It is said that the world is in a state of bankruptcy, that the world owes the world more than the world can pay. — Ralph Waldo Emerson. [More Info] : http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bankruptcy
Chapter - 11 (chapte(r) – i’levun) (noun): In Financial Terms a. The part of the U.S. Bankruptcy Code describing how a company or debtor can file for court protection. In the case of a corporation, reorganization occurs under the existing management. Before the introduction of Chapter 11, in cases of insolvency creditors had complete claim over owners, which often led to the collapse of a business that might otherwise have survived. Unless a court rules to the contrary, Chapter 11 enables the indebted owner to remain in control of the business. Creditors and owners can devise plans to restructure debt and arrange repayment schedules. [More Info] : http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chapter_11,_Title_11,_United_States_Code / http://www.anz.com/edna/dictionary.asp?action=content&content=chapter_11
Bangalored (bangalore-ed) (adjective): 1. Laid off due to outsourcing especially in India or Asia . Last month they bangalored our entire tech support department.
Amortize (am-er-tahyz, uh-mawr-tahyz) (verb): 4. To liquidate (a debt, such as a mortgage) by installment payments or payment into a sinking fund. 5. To write off an expenditure for (office equipment, for example) by prorating over a certain period. The value of the machinery is amortized over its estimated useful life.
Hypothecate (hi-poth-i-keyt) (verb): 1. To pledge to a creditor as security without delivering over; mortgage. 2. To pledge (property) as security or collateral for a debt without transfer of title or possession. Hypothecate is the act by which a person or entity theoretically transfer the property owned by him, without physically transferring them, to a lender of loan as security for repayment of the loan.
Insolvent (in-sol-vuhnt) (adj): 1. Insufficient to pay all debts; pertaining to bankrupt persons or bankruptcy. 2. Having liabilities in excess of a reasonable market value of assets held. Before an insolvent company or person gets involved in insolvency proceedings, it will likely be involved in more informal arrangements with creditors, such as making alternative payment arrangements.
Franchise (franchIz) (noun): An authorization to sell a company's goods or services in a particular place Interesting Facts:- v The franchising industry and businesses employs over 18 million people in the U.S. v Top franchise company- McDonalds
Shark Watcher: A firm specializing in the early detection of takeover activity. Such a firm, whose primary business is usually the solicitation of proxies for client corporations, monitors trading patterns in a client's stock and attempts to determine the identity of parties ''I WAS the first shark watcher,'' said Mr. Arnold Minsky is the founder and president of Corporate Studies Inc and continues “Everybody would rather buy than build. If you buy a plant that's already up and manufacturing, it's cheaper than building one and waiting two years for everything to come on line.''
Cornucopia (kor-nuh-KOH-pee-uh) (Noun): 1. The horn of plenty, from which fruits and flowers are represented as issuing. It is an emblem of abundance. 2. An overflowing supply; an abundance. The fruit-trade float was a huge colorful cornucopia spilling forth a bountiful harvest.
Corpulent (KOR-pyuh-luhnt) (Adjective): Very fat; obese. He grew ever more corpulent and suffered from "a variety of physical ailments aggravated by the greasy Tennessee food."
Savant (sa-vahnt, sav-uhnt) (noun): 1. A scholarly person. 2. Wise man, a person with great knowledge and ability. Matt Damon stars as Will Hunting in ‘Good Will Hunting’; a school janitor who also happens to be a savant with photographic memory and the ability to solve impossible math problems.
Serendipity (ser-uhn-dip-i-tee) (noun): Chance discovery of something important while actually searching for something else Luck, finding good things without looking for them Serendipity is that which Louis Pasteur felt favored "the prepared mind." In this category are the instances of a chance event that the ready mind recognizes as important and then explains to other scientists.
Transcend (tran-SEND) (verb): To go beyond, rise above or be more important or better than something, especially a limit. The best films are those which transcend national or cultural barriers.
Condescend (kon-duh-SEND) (verb): 1. To descend to the level of one considered inferior; lower oneself. I wonder if Michael will condescend to gambling? 2. To deal with people in a patronizingly superior manner. To treat someone as if you are better or more important than them. He explains things without condescending to his audience.
Temerity (te·mer·i·ty) (noun): Unreasonable, rash or foolhardy contempt of danger or opposition It is notorious temerity of the authorities in charge of the Titanic to venture into the Atlantic with far less lifeboats to accommodate all the people onboard, in case of an emergency.
Tenacious (tuh-ney-shuhs) (adjective): 1. Holding or tending to hold persistently to something, such as a point of view. 2. Holding together firmly; cohesive: a tenacious material. Marcus, the dog had such a tenacious grip on the bone that he refused Jack to snatch it from him.