Manmohan Singh’s 1991 Budget: the day that changed India forever – The Hindu (July 24, 2016)
Today, July 24, 2016, marks 25 years of liberalisation. The economic reforms kick-started in 1991 brought about expansion of the services sector helped largely by a liberalised investment and trade regime. They also increased consumer choices and reduced poverty significantly. For further reading, visit “The Hindu”.
Word List:
Sparing the poor (The Hindu’s Editorial published on July 25, 1991).
- Accentuate (verb) – highlight, underline, focus attention on.
- Unenviable (adjective) – difficult, painful, unpleasant, disagreeable.
- Unsustainable (adjective) – not maintainable, undependable.
- Precariously (adverb) – insecurely; unsafely, weakly, unsteadily, uncertainly, dependently.
- Advocate (noun) – upholder, supporter, campaigner, promoter.
- Get down to (phrasal verb) – begin, start, make a start on, give attention to.
- Prune (verb) – reduce, cut, cut down; minimize.
- Mercy (noun) – blessing, boon, favour.
- Unscrupulous (adjective) – unprincipled, unethical, immoral, not honest, not fair.
- Impost (noun) – tax, compulsory payment.
- Unconscionable (adjective) – excessive, unwarranted, unreasonable, unfair.
- On the face of it (phrase) – ostensibly, at first glance, on the surface; apparently, seemingly, evidently.
- Imperative (noun) – important /essential / necessary duty/thing.
- Stigma (noun) – negative belief/mark, a mark of disgrace, dishonour, a mark of discredit.
- Entail (verb) – necessitate, make necessary, require; cause, bring about, produce.
- Amnesty (noun) – official pardon, reprieve; forgiveness, dispensation, remission; release, freedom, liberty.
- Mitigate (verb) – alleviate, reduce, diminish, lessen; extenuating, exonerative, justifying.
- Dampen (verb) – lessen, decrease, reduce, moderate, make less strong.
- Affluent (adjective) – wealthy, rich.
- Retard (verb) – hold back, slow down, decelerate; hinder, hamper, obstruct.
- Rationalise (verb) – streamline, make more efficient, reorganize, modernize.
- Heed (verb) – pay attention to, take notice of, listen to.
- Compelling (adjective) – irresistible, forceful, powerful, strong.
- Impulse (noun) – impetus, stimulus; signal, message.
Twenty five years ago this day (The Hindu’s Lead article published on July 24, 2016).
- Bland (adjective) – uninteresting, dull, boring; unexciting, unimaginative.
- Usher in (verb) – herald, mark the start of, signal, announce; start, begin, initiate.
- Radical (adjective) – thorough, complete, total, entire, sweeping.
- Bonfire (noun) – a large fire to burn rubbish in the outdoor/open area (joyfully to celebrate something).
- Acrimonious (adjective) – angry & bitter, harsh, sharp.
- Tepid (adjective) – unenthusiastic, lukewarm, half-hearted,uninterested.
- Embark upon (verb) – begin, start, commence, undertake.
- Detrimental (adjective) – harmful, damaging, dangerous, unhealthy, bad.
- Manifesto (noun) – policy statement, proclamation, pronouncement.
- Bear (verb) – support, carry, hold up, brace.
- Imprint (noun) – impression, mark, impact, influence.
- Imprimatur (noun) – authoritative approval, official license/approval.
- Paradigm shift (noun) – a fundamental and important change with new ideas/thinking/ways.
- Dwindle (verb) – diminish, decrease, reduce; decline, degenerate.
- Measly (adjective) – very small.
- Aphorism (noun) – a concise statement, a short phrase (by an expert).
- Momentous (adjective) – important, significant, historic, vital.
- Customary (adjective) – usual, traditional, conventional; routine.
- Bouquet (noun) – compliment, commendation; praise, applause.
- Brickbat (noun) – comment, critical remark.
- Unnerve (verb) – demoralize, discourage, dishearten.
- Barring (preposition) – except for, apart from, excluding.
- Hedgehog (noun) – a person who thinks / knows one big thing.
- Fox (noun) – a person who thinks / knows many things.
- Crafty (adjective) – cunning, artful, sharp, scheming, calculating.
- Relevance (noun) – applicability, bearing, connection, pertinence.
Tracking progress in numbers (The Hindu’s informative article published on July 24, 2016).
- Decisive (adjective) – determined, firm, intent, purposeful; critical, crucial.
- Plummet (verb) – fall steeply/sharply, plunge, tumble.
- Burgeon (verb) – grow/increase rapidly, boom; flourish, prosper.
- Deceleration (noun) – decrease in speed/rate.
Note:
- Click each one of the words above for their definition, more synonyms, pronunciation, example sentences, phrases, derivatives, origin and etc from http://www.oxforddictionaries.com/ .
- Definitions (elementary level) & Synonyms provided for the words above are my personal work and not that of Oxford University Press.