The Hindu Editorial (Growth chill) – Jan 09, 2025

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The Hindu Editorial (​Growth chill) – Jan 09, 2025:

1. chill (noun) – relax; slowdown; weakening, lessening.
2. sputter (verb) – proceed unevenly/erratically/irregularly.
3. necessitate (verb) – call for, require, demand, entail, make necessary, warrant.
4. fiscal (adjective) – financial, budgetary.
5. National Statistical Office (NSO) (noun) – The Ministry of Statistics and the Department of Programme Implementation has two wings, one relating to Statistics and the other Programme Implementation. The Statistics Wing called the National Statistical Office (NSO) gives considerable importance to coverage and quality aspects of statistics released in the country. The statistics released are based on administrative sources, surveys and censuses conducted by the Center and State Governments and non-official sources and studies.
6. evidently (adverb) – apparently, ostensibly, supposedly, presumably, allegedly , seemingly.
7. sluggish (adjective) – slow, slow-moving, inactive, lethargic, unresponsive, dull.
8. trajectory (noun) – track/course, route, path, direction, approach.
9. Gross domestic product (GDP) (noun) – a measure of economic activity in a country. It is the total value of a country’s annual output of goods and service.
10. quarter (noun) – a period of three months (considered as one fourth of a year).
11. hit (verb) – affect badly, damage, ruin. 
12. public (adjective) – government.
13. capital spending/capital expenditure (CAPEX) (noun) – the money spent on the acquisition of assets like land, buildings, machinery, equipment, as well as investment in shares.
14. mar (verb) – spoil, damage, ruin, impair.
15. underwhelming (adjective) – unsatisfactory, not exciting, disappointing.
16. drag (down) (phrasal verb) – bring something to ta lower level.
17. project (verb) – predict, indicate, forecast, prognose, speculate, calculate (of future events or trends).
18. log (verb)  – achieve, attain; register, record.
19. pare (verb) – reduce, decrease, cut, lessen, lower something (in small increments).
20. predicate on/upon (phrasal verb) – base, be dependent, found, establish, premise.
21. bump-up (noun) – sudden increase/rise (of something).
22. offset (verb) – even up, counterbalance, equalize, neutralize; make amends for, compensate for.
23. sanguine (adjective) – optimistic, hopeful, confident, positive, cheerful (particularly in a difficult situation).
24. pace (noun) – speed, rate.
25. virtually (adverb) – practically, effectively, in effect, actually, in reality.
26. halve (verb) – reduce by half (50%).
27. relatively (adverb) – to a certain extent/degree; comparatively, somewhat, reasonably, satisfactorily.
28. better off (adjective) – in a fortunate or advantageous position.
29. momentum (noun) – the increase in the rate of growth of something; strength, impetus.
30. Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI) (noun) – Purchasing Managers’ Index or PMI is an economic indicator, which is derived after monthly surveys of different companies. The index shows trends in both the manufacturing and services sector. The index helps in determining whether the market conditions, as seen by purchasing managers, is expanding, contracting or staying the same. It is used to provide information regarding the current and future business conditions.
31. indices plural of index (noun) – an (economic) data figure reflecting something (e.g. price/quantity) compared with a standard or base value; pointer, indicator.
32. private consumption or consumption expenditure (noun) – the spending by households (consumers) on goods and services, excluding new housing.
33. rebound (verb) – recover, revive, rally, pick up, come back (in value of something after decline). 
34. lift-off (noun) – take off; ascent; soaring; a sudden rise/jump.
35. a tad (noun) – a very small amount; a little bit; to small degree extent; slightly, somewhat.
36. optimistic (adjective) – reassuring, favourable, encouraging, promising, positive, confident, hopeful.
37. inflation (noun) – simply meaning “cost of living”; increase of price level of goods & services and vice versa decrease of currency value.
38. ease (verb) – decrease, lessen, diminish, reduce, lower.
39. sought past tense of seek (verb) – try, aim, attempt.
40. slowdown (noun) – economic decline, recession, slump/depression.
41. monetary policy (noun) – monetary policy refers to the use of monetary instruments under the control of the central bank to regulate magnitudes such as interest rates, money supply, and availability of credit with a view to achieving the ultimate objective of economic policy mentioned in the Reserve Bank of India Act, 1934.
42. stance (noun) – point of view, viewpoint, position, policy, opinion.
43. macroprudential (adjective) – relating to regulations formulated to prevent financial institutions from taking risks.
44. prudential (adjective) – showing care and forethought, especially in business.
45. measure (noun) – action, step, procedure.
46. central bank (noun) – the banking regulator of a county’s banking system. (e.g. The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) is the central bank of India).
47. cramped (adjective) – restricted, confined, constricted; tight, small, inadequate.
48. household (noun) – family, house.
49. projection (noun) – prediction, indication, forecast, prognosis, speculation, calculation (of future events or trends).
50. gross fixed capital formation (GFCF) (noun) – (formerly gross domestic investment) Gross fixed capital formation is essentially a net investment. It is a component of the Expenditure method of calculating GDP. To be more precise Gross fixed capital formation measures the net increase in fixed capital.
51. slip (verb) – decrease, slide, drop, decline, slump, tumble, plunge, plummet.
52. contingent (adjective) – subject to, based on, conditional on, dependent on, determined by, controlled by.
53. unlikely (adjective) – not likely, doubtful, improbable, questionable, debatable.
54. of course (phrase) – certainly, definitely, by all means.
55. largely (adverb) – mostly, mainly, generally.
56. conjure up (phrasal verb) – to bring something (a thought, memory, feeling, idea, picture or etc.) in someone’s mind; to make something appear, often as if by magic; arouse, bring up, call down/forth, evoke, invoke; imagine, visualize, envision, envisage, picture.
57. downside (noun as modifier) – disadvantage, drawback, shortcoming, flip side, negative.
58. Nomura (noun) – it is a global financial services group (based in Tokyo, Japan) with an integrated network spanning approximately 30 countries and regions. By connecting markets East & West, they service the needs of individuals, institutions, corporates and governments through our three business divisions: Wealth Management, Investment Management and Wholesale (Global Markets and Investment Banking).
59. for instance (phrase) – for example.
60. in the grip of (phrase) – to be dominated/affected by (something unpleasant/undesirable).
61. cyclical (adjective) – periodical, recurrent, repeated, regular, sporadic, occasional, infrequent, periodic.
62. reckon (verb) – forecast, predict, estimate, calculate, expect; consider, view, regard as.
63. end up (phrasal verb) – finish up, turn up, come/appear, find oneself (to a particular course of action in the end).
64. imply (verb) – indicate, point to, signify, signal, suggest .
65. flat-lined (adjective) – remaining static (fail to increase/improve).
66. outlook (noun) – prospects, chances, possibilities, expectations, future.
67. shroud (verb) – cover or hide something; conceal, envelop, veil, screen, cloak, curtain, obscure
68. uncertainty (noun) – unpredictability, unreliability, riskiness/precariousness.
69. spring (noun) – spring season. other seasons are summer, autumn (fall), winter.
70. lag (verb) – delay, fall behind, fail to keep up with, take one’s time, move slowly.
71. inaction (noun) – inactivity, passivity, apathy, negligence, disregard.
72. incremental (adjective) – gradual, step-by-step, phased, peicemeal.
73. tinker (with) (verb) – try to improve/repair something, particularly by making small changes in a casual way; try to mend, adjust slightly, experiment with; work amateurishly/unskillfully on, fiddle with, play with
74. tailor (verb) – customize, adapt, adjust, modify, change.
75. mark (noun) – point, level, stage.
76. entail (verb) – call for, require, demand, necessitate, make necessary, warrant.
77. hard call (noun) – a tough call, a difficult choice.
78. slash (verb) – cut, reduce, lower greatly.
79. so be it (phrase) – it means to accept a situation as it is (that nothing can be done to change it).
80. pine for (phrasal verb) – miss someone a lot and long for the return of them (him/her); miss something very much and wish for the return of it.
81. rate cut (noun) – a decision by a central bank (like RBI in India) to reduce its main interest rate to the banks (like SBI, ICICI & etc in India) when these commercial banks get money from the central bank. Once this rate goes down, the banks are in a position to give loans at lower interest rates to individuals and the industry.
82. suffice (verb) – be enough, be sufficient, be adequate.

Note : 

1. 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/.

2. Definitions (elementary level) & Synonyms provided for the words above are my personal work and not that of Oxford University Press. Tentative definitions/meanings are provided for study purposes only and they may vary in a different context.  

3. This word list is for personal use only. Reproduction in any format and/or Commercial use of it is/are strictly prohibited.

The Hindu Editorial (Growth chill) – Jan 09, 2025: