Editorials English Vocabulary Words Set 24

The following vocabulary words are taken from The Editorials of Newspapers like The Hindu, The Economist, Indian Express, etc. which are important for the upcoming exams. Add some more words to your English vocabulary list. 

1. Precipitous – dangerously high or steep.
   

   • Synonyms: abrupt, craggy, dizzying, sharp, arduous
   • Antonyms: calm, flat, kind, nice
   • Usage: You should think before you do precipitous stunts that endanger your life.

2. Abase – to reduce or lower, as in rank, office, reputation, or estimation; humble; degrade.
   

   • Synonyms: belittle, debase, degrade, demean, diminish, disgrace, dishonor
   • Antonyms: compliment, elevate, enhance, esteem, expand
   • Usage: I watched my colleagues abasing themselves before the board of trustees.

3. Espionage – the practice of spying or of using spies, typically by governments to obtain political and military information.
   

   • Synonyms: intelligence, reconnaissance, shadowing, tailing
     
   • Usage: Espionage is a secret way of finding out what your enemy doesn’t want you to know.

4. Absurdity – a state of flustered excitement or fear.
   

   • Synonyms: craziness, farce, folly, foolishness, insanity, silliness, stupidity
   • Antonyms: intelligence, judgment, seriousness, wisdom
   • Usage: To believe that the earth is flat is an absurdity.
     

5. Convulse – to shake violently; agitate.
   

   • Synonyms: shake up, torment, agitate, bother, disturb
   • Antonyms: calm, order, quiet, soothe
   • Usage: He convulsed hard five times.

6. Ticklish – difficult or tricky and requiring careful handling.
   

   • Synonyms: awkward, delicate, precarious, thorny, touchy, volatile
   • Antonyms: firm, stable, strong
     
   • Usage: Car makers are facing the ticklish problem of how to project products at new buyers.

7. Contrite – feeling or expressing remorse at the recognition that one has done wrong.
   

   • Synonyms: apologetic, humble, remorseful, repentant, attritional
   • Antonyms: hurtful, indifferent, mean, unrepentant
   • Usage: Show how contrite you are by writing an apology letter.

8. Abstruse – difficult to understand; obscure.
   

   • Synonyms: : esoteric, perplexing, enigmatic, complex, complicated
   • Antonyms: clear, concrete, lucid, obvious
   • Usage: Most of the medical research on the subject seems abstruse to the average man.
     

9. Hurl – throw or impel (someone or something) with great force.
   

   • Synonyms: fire, fling, heave, lob, sling, chuck
   • Antonyms: hold, keep, receive
     
   • Usage: Angered at this, his father hurled him into the sea.
     

10. Gambit – an act or remark that is calculated to gain an advantage, especially at the outset of a situation.
    

    • Synonyms: artifice, design, device, gimmick, jig, maneuver
    • Antonyms: frankness, honesty
    • Usage: Once again my brother got a free lunch by performing her gambit of leaving her purse at home.