Vocabulary Made Easy series: 10 English words you can learn and 5 questions to know how much you have grasped

Be it for competitive exams or in the professional sphere, having a good command over your vocabulary and communication skills can help individuals positively.

Be it for competitive exams or in the professional sphere, having a good command over your vocabulary and communication skills can help individuals positively.

Check out the words for the day and a small quiz to push yourself to improve your word power and language skills. (HT file)

Here's a way to improve your vocabulary and communication skills. Check out the words for the day and a small quiz to push yourself to improve your word power and language skills.

Abet (Verb)

Meaning: encourage or assist (someone) to do something wrong, in particular to commit a crime

Example: He was not guilty of murder but was guilty of aiding and abetting others

Blithe (Adjective)

Meaning: showing a casual and cheerful indifference considered to be callous or improper

Example: ‘Good shots and loose shots,’ was his blithe description

Augury (Noun)

Meaning: a sign of what will happen in the future; an omen.

Example: Amid the carnage and death, that unity is one augury of hope

Chicanery (Noun)

Meaning: the use of deception or subterfuge to achieve one's purpose

Example: Storylines packed with political chicanery

Castigate (Verb)

Meaning: reprimand (someone) severely

Example: He was castigated for not setting a good example

Attenuated (Adjective)

Meaning: having been reduced in force, effect, or value

Example: it appears likely that the courts will be given an attenuated role in the enforcement of these decisions

Blandishment (Noun)

Meaning: A flattering or pleasing statement or action used as a means of gently persuading someone to do something

Example: The blandishments of the travel brochure

Demure (Adjective)

Meaning: reserved, modest, and shy (typically used of a woman)

Example: I masked my true feelings with a demure smile

Effete (Adjective)

Meaning: affected and overly refined

Example: They saw us with our floppy fringes and effete mannerisms and went mental.

Eddy (Noun)

Meaning: a circular movement of water causing a small whirlpool

Example: Despite fierce ebb tides causing the river to swirl and eddy they maintained stationary.

Put your thinking cap on and try to answer the following questions to understand how much you have grasped.

1. German fox-hunters tended to be aristocratic, in his view _____________ and probably Anglophile. Which of the following words fits best in the sentence? (Effete, Eddy)
2. They are quiet, ______________ and soft-spoken. Which of the following words fits best in the sentence? (Demure, Blithe)
3. Can you think of some antonyms for the word Blandishment?
4. Can you think of some synonyms for the word Abet?
5. Can you think of some sentences using the words Castigate, Augury and Chicanery?

Watch out for this space for your weekly update on improving word power.

(Definitions and examples are from Oxford Languages)