The following vocabulary words are taken from The Hindu Editorials which are important for the upcoming exams. Add some more words to your English vocabulary list.
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Ambush – a surprise attack by people lying in wait in a concealed position.
- Synonyms: ambuscade, camouflage, waylaying, deception
- Antonyms: frankness, honesty
- Usage: 12 personnel were killed in an ambush by Maoists in Sukma district.
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Contraband – imported or exported illegally, either in defiance of a total ban or without payment of duty.
- Synonyms: proscribed, verboten, bootleg, interdicted
- Antonyms: legal, lawful, allowed
- Usage: Customs has seized contraband valued over Rs1.16 crore in 24 instances of smuggling reported at the at the international airport
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Impregnable – (of a fortified position) unable to be captured or broken into.
- Synonyms: fortified, impenetrable, indestructible, invincible, invulnerable
- Antonyms: breakable, destructible
- Usage: The right of the people of Kashmir to a plebiscite is an inherent right
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Quip – a witty remark.
- Synonyms: banter, gag, gibe, pleasantry, badinage, drollery
- Antonyms: flattery, praise, seriousness
- Usage: President quickly apologised for his quip on “The Tonight Show”
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Rectitude – morally correct behaviour or thinking.
- Synonyms: righteousness, goodness, honourableness, integrity
- Antonyms: corruption, deceit, dishonesty, immorality
- Usage: The necessity of moral rectitude was itself an incentive.
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Servile – having or showing an excessive willingness to serve or please others.
- Synonyms: obsequious, sycophantic, subservient, fawning, ingratiating,
- Antonyms: aggressive, dominant
- Usage: Even though Michelle was no longer a maid, she still felt servile when she was in a room with wealthy people.
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Rancor – bitterness or resentfulness, especially when long standing.
- Synonyms: malice, malevolence, malignancy, animosity, antipathy, enmity
- Antonyms: friendliness, good will, sympathy
- Usage: He spoke without rancor.
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Presage – be a sign or warning of (an imminent event, typically an unwelcome one).
- Synonyms: portend, augur, foreshadow, apprehension
- Antonyms: demonstrate, determine, warrant
- Usage: The heavy clouds above the moorland presaged snow
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Reprisal – the action or practice of using force, short of war, against another nation, to secure redress of a grievance.
- Synonyms: retaliation, retribution, vengeance, counterblow, requital
- Antonyms: forgiveness, pardon, kindness, sympathy
- Usage: Even in the most extreme circumstances, back and forth reprisal is generally not the best way to resolve conflict.
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Raze – completely destroy
- Synonyms: bulldoze, demolish, dynamite, expunge, extirpate
- Antonyms: construct, restore, raise
- Usage: The commercial builder has plans to raze the buildings and develop the area into a series of strip malls.
ty :)))))))))))))