Word for Today

Xanadu(noun):
Meaning:An idyllic, exotic place of great luxury
Usage:
"Although bachelor Gates is building a 37,000-square-foot Xanadu, he maintains that wealth 'loses all power to motivate once you have enough to be comfortable.'" — Tony Chiu & Nick Gallo; If People Complain; People (New York); Oct 24, 1991.
Origin: After Xanadu, the region where a “stately pleasure dome” is located in the poem “Kubla Khan” by S. T. Samuel Taylor Coleridge

Difficult words from todays TOI editorial

I.zeitgeist(noun):
1.the general mood or quality of a particular period of history, as shown by the ideas, beliefs, etc. common at the time
2.the taste and outlook characteristic of a period or generation
Usage:
Critic told us that it had worked because it accurately captured the zeitgeist of the restless generation.(source 30th May TOI article "Love,sex,gotra..what's going on?" by Shobhaa De)

II.apostle(noun):
1.A person sent out on a special mission
2.Any of the twelve disciples sent out by Christ to teach the gospel
3.A person who strongly believes in a policy or an idea and tries to make other people believe in it:an apostle of free enterprise
Origin:Middle English, from Old English apostol and from Old French apostle, both from Late Latin apostolus, from Greek apostolos, messenger, from apostellein, to send off : apo-, apo- + stellein, to send; see stel- in Indo-European roots.
Usage:
The world millionaires had overnight converted into apostles of non violence and abandoned their T-bone steaks for goat's milk .(source TOI 30th May article "Bapu would have laughed at the Gandhi pen" by M J Akbar)

III.Crusade(noun):
1.a long and determined effort to achieve sth that you believe to be right or to stop sth that you believe to be wrong (SYN: Campaign)
Usage:
1.To lead a crusade against crime
2.Moral crusade
3.Gandhi was a great crusader-journalist (source TOI 30th May article "Bapu would have laughed at the Gandhi pen" by M J Akbar)

IV.Inveterate(adj.):
1.(of a person) always doing sth or enjoying sth, and unlikely to stop; habitual.
2.(of a bad feeling or habit) done or felt for a long time and unlikely to change; deep-rooted.
Usage
Gandhi was an Inveterate scribbler
An inveterate liar

Word for Today

Blithely(adv.):
Meaning:
1.showing a cheerful, carefree disposition; lighthearted
2.lacking due thought or consideration
Usage:
->blithely in a joyous manner,they shouted happily
->good looking chap blithely going into gotra terrain (source TOI 30th May article "Love,Sex,gotra... what's going on? by Shobhaa de)
Adj Form: Blithe

Word of the Day

Assiduous(adj):
1.Constant in application or attention, diligent
2.Hard-working, persevering
3.Unceasing, persistent

Usage:
1.An assiduous worker who strove for perfection
2.An assiduous researcher

Root:from Latin assiduus sitting down to (something), from assidēre to sit beside, from sedēre to sit

Word for Today

Esoteric(adj):
1.Difficult to understand; abstruse, Intended for or understood by only a particular group: an esoteric cult
2.Not publicly disclosed; confidential
3.Of rare, special, or unusual interest
Usage:
His software's success was based on an esoteric programming language.
Noun Form: esotericism

Word for Today

regnant (adj) :
1.Prevalent, widespread.
2.Reigning, ruling (usually used following the noun it modifies): a queen regnant.
3.Predominant
Usage :
1.The members of virtually every royal house, regnant or deposed, in Europe are related to Europe's most prospering crown, Britain's.
2.The mere fact that it was the regnant authority in the State of Louisiana at that time does not give validity or legality to its acts or its officers.

Noun form: regnancy