Teacher by more names!

Beginning today, with just about a week to go for Teachers' Day celebrations - we will come up with words that describe these wonderful souls who impact our lives for good, and irrevocably so. 
We begin with this word - Pedagogue. Well, pedagogue is just another word for an instructor or a dogmatic teacher. Pronounced as 'ped -uh-gawg' it has its origins in Greek (paidagogos) and Latin (paedagogus). One can use it in sentences such as: I was so delighted to meet up with my favourite English pedagogue at the mall today. 

Discord and lack of harmony

India lost in the ICC Champions Trophy and before a detailed analysis could be done on the factors leading to the defeat came the revelations of a discord between the Indian cricket captain and the coach. The discord reached to such levels that the coach, Anil Kumble, had to give up being a coach and move on. 

Discord is our Word-of-the-week. And it is a typical 'double-clue' variety for the Smart-Vocab Challenger followers. While in the context above 'discord' refers to a lack of agreement or harmony between two sides - 'discord' also reflects harsh confused mingling of sound.

Monsoons, don't play truant!

There are instances when a word or an expression is borrowed from its popular usage and used for a situation that's completely unrelated to its conventional usage. And this often makes the new expression intriguing and the language richer. 

Conventionally the word 'truant' is used to describe a person, often a student, who is absent without leave. We had a newspaper headline this week that screamed: Farmers still upset at monsoon playing truant last year. 

Truant is our Word-this-Week.

Hope the monsoons don't play truant this year!

To Woo X

Government of the south Indian state of Andhra Pradesh is all set to woo Google to bring in the project X - previously known as Google X, to its shores. The Andhra Pradesh CM indicated this after visiting Google's X facility in United States. X is known for Google's driver-less cars, glasses project and the use of stratosphere balloons to give internet access to remote, inhospitable areas.  

'Woo' is our Word-of-the-Week. Woo means to invite, to seek favour, affection or love or to court.  

Tonsured Heads For A Song

A MP being banned on flights caused a raucous Parliament last fortnight. This week the raucous is about the accomplished and popular singer - Sonu Nigam.

His comments on the social media stirred up a huge debate on use of loud-speakers in residential areas. And amidst the chaos, the singer went ahead and got his head tonsured as a symbol of standing-up to his critics. 

Tonsure is our Word-0f-the-Week. Tonsure is the act of shaving of the head or the act of being shaven where a part or the complete head is left bare. 

The Raucous House

Last fortnight saw a few raucous sessions in the Indian Parliament with members raising the issue of Air India having put one MP on the 'no-fly' list. This was followed by other airlines following suit. 

Our Word of the Week is 'raucous'.
Raucous means disorderly or rowdy. 

Depredations and an era of darkness

Shashi Tharoor's passionate speech at the Oxford Union last year went viral on social media such as YouTube and Facebook. His new book An Era of Darkness deals with the depredations of the British, while they ruled on India, in more detail.  

An act or instance of plundering or robbery is referred to as depredation. 

And 'depredation' is our SVC Word-of-the-Week.

The Ruckus at DU

Everyone seems to be having an opinion on what happened at the Delhi University. And almost everyone has some insight, some hearsay, some prognosis to offer on the ruckus at a college under the Delhi University. 

'Ruckus' is our word this week. A heated controversy, a disturbance often leading to an uproar is referred to as ruckus. 

Lead with Gusto

Virat Kohli was handed over the reins of the Indian cricket team across all formats and he led the team with aplomb. Typicial of Virat, he leads the side with gusto. Now that has a rub off affect on the rest of the team and lifts everyone's morale leading to superb performances. 

Our word of this week is 'gusto'. Zest or vigourous enjoyment while performing an action is gusto. Someone who relishes his or her job or task that's either assigned to or opted for is likely to do with gusto.

The Patriarch is Fading

Most political parties in India lean on one or two notable figures who have heralded these parties for long. And more often and not - the notable figures find it difficult to let go the reins of the political outfits they have so painstakingly built. In the most populated state in India, where elections are soon due, we are witnessing a power tussle between the old and the young. There is a belief that the patriarch perhaps has outlived his utility.

 

Patriarch is our first word of 2017. Patriarch is the male head of a family or a tribe or a person considered the head or founder of an order or class or, as in this case, a political outfit.