Chapter 7 A Visit to Cambridge
1. Accessory- not essential, but extra, though decorative
2. Amusing- causing laughter and providing entertainment
3. Anguish- severe mental or physical pain or suffering
4. Astrophysicist- scholar of astrophysics – branch of physics dealing with stars,
planets, etc
5. Buoyant- intensely active and vibrant
6. Chronically- in a persistent and recurring way
7. Claustrophobic- very small and suffocating (‘Claustrophobia’ is abnormal fear
of being in an enclosed space)
8. Cliche´- phrase or idea used so often that it loses its meaning
9. Disembodied- separated from the body
10. Exhilaration- a feeling of happiness, excitement or elation
11. Gleefully- very happily
12. Incandescence- inner glow or light
13. Inflection- rise and fall of the voice in speaking
14. Metaphor- a thing regarded as representative or symbolic of something else.
15. Patronise- to be kind or helpful to someone, but to talk to them as if they are
inferior
16. Propelled- drive or push something forward (here, it means come)
17. Rumbling- a continuous deep, resonant sound (probably of the wheels, here)
18. Sentimental- prompted by feelings of tenderness or nostalgia
19. Slump- sit, lean, or fall heavily and limply.
20. Synthesiser- an electronic musical instrument, typically operated by a
keyboard, producing a wide variety of sounds by generating and combining
signals of different frequencies
21. Torso- upper part of the body
22. Wasted- weak or emaciated
Chapter 8 A Short Monsoon Diary
1. Admonishes- warn or reprimand someone firmly
2. Attics- a space or room inside or partly inside the roof of a building.
3. Blankets- covers
4. Bloodletting- losing blood (decades ago, leeches were used to remove blood
from a patient’s body)
5. Blunders- act clumsily
6. Bobbing-make a sudden move so as to appear or disappear
7. Burrows- a hole or tunnel dug by a small animal, especially a rabbit, as a
dwelling
8. Caress- touch gently
9. Chopping up- to cut something into small pieces
10. Chuchundars- hindi word for shrew
11. Cobra lily- common name of several plants
12. Conceal- not allow to be seen; hide
13. Contrive- manage to do something
14. Corrugated- (of a material or surface) shaped into a series of parallel ridges
and grooves so as to give added rigidity and strength
15. Creeper- any plant that grows along the ground, around another plant, or up a
wall by means of extending stems or branches
16. Crevices- narrow openings or cracks in rock or wall
17. Dearth- a scarcity or lack of something
18. Disconsolately- unhappily
19. Drainpipe- a pipe for carrying off rainwater or liquid refuse from a building
20. Drenched- wet thoroughly; soak
21. Drongos- a song bird with a stout bill
22. Drumming- falling noisily
23. Ferns- a flowerless plant with feathery green leaves
24. Flitting- move swiftly and lightly
25. Heralded- announced or brought the news of
26. Hushed- very quiet and still
27. Imprecations- curses
28. Insectivorous- (of an animal) feeding on insects, worms and other
invertebrates
29. Landour- a small cantonment town touching Mussoorie
30. Leeches- an aquatic or terrestrial annelid worm with suckers at both ends.
Many species are bloodsucking parasites
31. Lush- (of vegetation, especially grass) growing luxuriantly
32. Melancholy- very sad (the mist is called melancholy because it makes people
feel melancholy)
33. Menace- be a threat or possible danger to
34. Mist (noun)- a cloud of tiny water droplets suspended in the atmosphere at or
near the earth’s surface that limits visibility (to a lesser extent than fog;
strictly, with visibility remaining above 1 km)
35. Mist (verb)- cover or become covered with mist
36. Ravine- valley
37. Rears- grow or cultivate (plants)
38. Scarlet minivets- bright red bird like a cuckoo
39. Shrew- a small insectivorous mammal resembling a mouse, with a long
pointed snout and tiny eyes
40. Snapping up- to take someone or something quickly or eagerly
41. Squatted- sat (here)
42. Suffused- gradually spread through or over
43. Swish- move with a hissing or rushing sound
44. Thrush- a small or medium-sized songbird, typically having brown back,
spotted breast and loud song
Chapter 6 The Fight
1. Acquiesce- accept quietly
2. Adversary- opponent/ enemy
3. Assaillant- the person who attacks; (here) enemy/ adversary
4. Astonished- greatly surprised or impressed; amazed
5. At each other’s throats- fighting
6. Bony- (of a person or part of the body) so thin that the bones can be seen
7. Cascading- coming down (like a waterfall)
8. Clawing- scratching (here)
9. Cluster- a group of similar things positioned closely together
10. Conceded- admitted
11. Dashed- destroyed (hopes or expectations)
12. Dissolved- subside uncontrollably into (an expression of strong feelings);
break into
13. Dive- plunge head first into water with one’s arms raised over one’s head
14. Dizzy- having or involving a sensation of spinning around and losing one’s
balance
15. Emerged- move out of or away from something and become visible
16. Encounter- unexpectedly be faced with or experience (something hostile or
difficult)
17. Exhaustion- tiredness/ fatigue
18. Feat- clever act; special skill
19. Ferocity- fierceness (suggesting anger/ cruelty)
20. Frenzied- violent
21. Gasping- catch one’s breath with an open mouth; owing to pain or
astonishment
22. Glistened- shine with a sparkling light
23. Gushing- exaggeratedly enthusiastic
24. Heaving- produce (a sigh)
25. Hissing- to make a long ‘s’ sound
26. Hostile- showing or feeling opposition or dislike; unfriendly
27. Hostility- ill will/ enmity
28. Impasse- (also pronounced ampass) deadlock; place or position from which
there is no way out
29. Impulse- a sudden strong and unreflective urge or desire to act
30. Interminably- endlessly
31. Leapt- jumped
32. Limpid- (of a liquid) completely clear and transparent
33. Limpid- clear
34. Listless- lacking energy or enthusiasm
35. Muster- (here) use; collect or gather
36. Outwit- deceive by greater ingenuity
37. Parched- hot and dry
38. Penetrated- gone through/ into
39. Plunge- jump
40. Proclaimed- announce officially; make something clear
41. Quench- cool (his body)
42. Sal trees- a North Indian tree that yields hard, durable timber and dammar
resin
43. Scowled- looked angrily
44. Seer- same as ser, a unit of weight used previously in India. A ser, a little less
than a litre, was one-fortieth of a maund
45. Solace- comfort or consolation in a time of great distress or sadness
46. Sore- (of a part of one’s body) painful or aching
47. Spluttering- speaking quickly/ confusedly
48. Spouting- send out (liquid) forcibly in a stream
49. Staggered- felt weak/unsteady (due to the blow)
50. Stripped- without clothes
51. Strode- (past of stride) walk with long decisive steps in a specified direction
52. Supple- bending and moving easily and gracefully; flexible
53. Swaying-moving from side to side
54. Taken aback- surprised
55. Thickset- stout/ solidly built
56. Torrent- rushing stream (of water)
57. Translucency- clarity (possible to see through)
58. Treading water- keeping oneself upright in deep water by moving the feet
59. Tremendous- great
60. Trickle- weak or thin flow of water
61. WW
62. Unflinching- (without blinking) looking straight at each other
63. Vigour- strength
64. Vividly- in a way that produces powerful feelings or strong, clear images in the
mind
65. Wallowed- rolled about (in mud or dirty water)
66. Wandered- walk or move in a leisurely or aimless way
Chapter 8 Jalebis
1. Assault- attack
2. Ayat-al-kursi- title of a verse in the Holy Quran
3. Bismillah- in the name of God (words spoken before starting something)
4. Blabbering- talking confusedly
5. Cane- walking stick
6. Chabutara- platform
7. Chachajaan- Uncle (often used as a respectful form of address to a man
around the same age as one’s father)
8. Chaprasi- peon
9. Choo- sound of ‘blowing over the bag’ (to ward off evil)
10. Clamour- loud noise
11. Clenched- (of the fingers or hand) closed into a tight ball
12. Clutched- grasp (something) tightly
13. Coiled up- to curl oneself or something into a small, compact position.
14. Crouching- sitting (as if hiding)
15. Dashed- run somewhere in great hurry.
16. Devour- eat (food) quickly
17. Farishta- angel
18. Followed my nose- go straight ahead
19. Gali- narrow lane
20. Gobbled- eat (something) hurriedly and noisily
21. Halwai- sweetmeat seller
22. Id- the festival of Eid
23. Jalebis- syrupy Indian sweet
24. Jalebi-wielding hand- the hand that held jalebis
25. Kadhao- large, open pot for cooking/boiling
26. Khanak-khanak- sound of jingling of coins
27. Kissa khatam, paisa hazam- end of story (literally: story ends, money
disappears)
28. Mob- a large crowd of people
29. Mound- a large pile or quantity of something
30. Persuasion- coaxing
31. Prestige- respect
32. Qayamat- Judgement day
33. Racket- uproar/ loud noise
34. Rupiyas- rupees
35. Saheb- a word of Arabic origin meaning “companion”
36. Shriek- utter a high-pitched piercing sound or words, especially as an
expression of terror, pain, or excitement; scream
37. Strangle- squeeze or constrict
38. Summoned- sent for/ called
39. Surats- verses from the Holy Quran
40. Tonga- two-wheeled, horse-drawn vehicle
41. Treasury- wealth
42. Virtuous- good and noble
43. Wazu- ablution (washing face, hands and feet before praying)
44. Wretched- terrible
45. Wriggled- twist and turn with quick writhing movements
