Let’s explore ten vocabulary words from The Hindu on April 26, 2024, along with their meanings, alternate words, and usage:

1. Precarious (adjective)
   • Meaning: Not securely held or in position; dangerously unstable.
   • Alternate Words: Unstable, uncertain, risky.
   • Usage: The hiker found himself in a precarious situation on the narrow mountain ledge.
2. Inundate (verb)
   • Meaning: To overwhelm someone with things or people to be dealt with.
   • Alternate Words: Flood, deluge, swamp.
   • Usage: The newsroom was inundated with calls after the breaking story.
3. Ephemeral (adjective)
   • Meaning: Lasting for a very short time; transient.
   • Alternate Words: Fleeting, momentary, brief.
   • Usage: The beauty of cherry blossoms is ephemeral; they bloom for just a few weeks.
4. Ubiquitous (adjective)
   • Meaning: Present, appearing, or found everywhere.
   • Alternate Words: Omnipresent, widespread, pervasive.
   • Usage: Smartphones have become ubiquitous in modern society.
5. Voracious (adjective)
   • Meaning: Having an eager approach to consuming large amounts of something.
   • Alternate Words: Insatiable, ravenous, gluttonous.
   • Usage: The voracious reader finished three novels in a week.
6. Cacophony (noun)
   • Meaning: A harsh, discordant mixture of sounds.
   • Alternate Words: Noise, racket, clamor.
   • Usage: The construction site was filled with a cacophony of drills and machinery.
7. Sycophant (noun)
   • Meaning: A person who acts obsequiously toward someone important to gain advantage.
   • Alternate Words: Flatterer, toady, bootlicker.
   • Usage: The politician surrounded himself with sycophants who praised his every move.
8. Pernicious (adjective)
   • Meaning: Having a harmful effect, especially in a gradual or subtle way.
   • Alternate Words: Destructive, detrimental, insidious.
   • Usage: The pernicious influence of negative peer pressure affected the teenager’s behavior.
9. Serendipity (noun)
   • Meaning: The occurrence of events by chance in a happy or beneficial way.
   • Alternate Words: Fortuity, luck, providence.
   • Usage: Their meeting was a serendipitous moment that changed their lives.
10. Esoteric (adjective)
    • Meaning: Intended for or likely to be understood by only a small number of people with a specialized knowledge or interest.
    • Alternate Words: Abstruse, arcane, cryptic.
    • Usage: The professor’s lecture on quantum physics was esoteric and challenging.

Feel free to incorporate these words into your vocabulary practice! 📚