Words of the Day: I. ‘Compounding this is the tide of nationalism and jingoism sweeping across the continent.’ 1. ‘Jingoism’ refers to the feelings and beliefs of people who think that their country is always right and who are in favor of aggressive acts against other countries. Let us look at another example to exemplify the meaning of the word. When the war began many people were caught up in a wave of jingoism. Chauvinism, nationalism, superpatriotism, etc. are the synonyms of the word. II. ‘Vladimir Putin’s recent utterances suggest that he may not be in any great hurry to relent.’ 2. ‘Relent’ means to agree to do or accept something that you have been resisting or opposing. Here’s another example to better understand the meaning of the word. Our application was initially refused, but the city relented in the end and the permit was issued. Apt synonyms of the word include blink, bow, budge, capitulate, concede, give in, etc. Resist is the antonym of the word. III. ‘Corporate living is an offshoot of city life as people from different regions, religions, culture, background and walks of life gather in the metropolis to eke out a living day in and day out.’ 3. The phrase to eke out a living means ‘to make (a living) or support (existence) laboriously’. For example - They managed to eke out a living by farming a small piece of land. This phrase should not be confused with the phrase ‘to eke something out’ which means to use something slowly or carefully because you only have a small amount of it. For example - There wasnt much food left, but we just managed to eke it out. IV. ‘By 1:30 p.m. the lockdown was lifted and the Harbour Bridge had reopened, but there were major traffic disruptions as several roads in and around Martin Place had been cordoned off.’ 4. In the given context, the noun ‘lockdown’ refers to a security measure taken during an emergency to prevent people from leaving or entering a building. For example - The school remains under lockdown due to police activity in the area. The word ‘lockdown’ is also used to refer to the confinement of prisoners to their cells for all or most of the day as a temporary security measure. 5. The noun ‘cordon’ means a line of people or objects that are placed around or in front of a person or place to keep people away. The phrase ‘cordoned off’ means to form a protective or restrictive cordon around. For example – The police cordoned off the area around the crime scene. A cordon can also mean some kind of ornament or adornment made out of ribbon or cord, usually worn by military folks to signify honor or rank.
Posted on: Thu, 18 Dec 2014 08:55:13 +0000
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