dictionary of terms terminology of various sciences
Absentee Voter: A person unable to be at the polls at election time.
Abracadabra: A magic formula,used in incantations.
Abulia: The state of mind characterized by lack of will or motivation and inability to take decisions.
Acarology: Branch of zoology dealing with ticks and mites.
Acid Rain: A phenomenon in which sulphuric acid and nitric acid are formed in the atmosphere due to the reaction of rain drops with atmospheric gases like sulphur dioxide and nitrogen dioxide.
Acrostic: A poem in which the first letters of each line taken in order to form a name or a sentence.
Acromegaly:Deformity caused by excessive secretion of growth hormone from anterior pituitary gland. It results in the enlargement of hands ,finger, feet, ears, nose ,etc.
Adipose: A layer of tissue beneath the skin and around kidneys which acts as insulation against cold and a storage of energy.
Advertorial: A journalistic term coined by combining the words advertisement and editorial. It denotes articles or features which are paid by advertiser. Usually items of this category are commercial in nature and have little news value.
Aerostatics: The branch of statics that deals with gases in equilibrium and with Gases and bodies in them.
Aestheticism: A movement in art and literature which gives precedence to aesthetic values over moral and other values of life.
Afrocentrism: Movement of American blacks projecting racial superiority of the Blacks Over the Whites.
Agent Orange: Military code name for a weed killer, sprayed by USA during the Vietnam War over the jungles and farm. Agent Orange is normally used to defoliate trees and shrubs and to kill weeds.
The steel drums that stored this chemical were marked with big orange stripes and hence the name originated.
Agnosticism: A term originated from the Greek word agnostos, which means 'Not knowing'. It is the belief that ultimate questions like the belief that ultimate answered. It reflects the view that reason and scientific method should be applied in finding the truth.
Agraphia: It is the loss of ability to write despite normal functioning of hand. This is Caused by the damage of cerebrum.
Ahura Mazda: The supreme God of Zoroastrians. Equal to Indian ‘Asura Mardhana’, which means slayer of Demons.
Akinesia: The loss of movement almost completely due to the loss power in a group of muscles.
Albinism: An abnormality caused by mutation of pigment controlling genes.albinos (person or animal affected with albinism) have abnormally white skin, light hair and pink eyes.
Alta Vista: popular free text search engine in the internet.
Alzheimers Disease: A disease affecting brain which results in loss of memory and other mental abilities.
Ambosia: A mystical substance believed to be eaten by Gods of Greek and Romen mythology. It is commonly believed that any one who eats ambrosia can become immortal.
Anabisis(resuscitation): Restoring to life from a deathlike confition.
Anachronism: Representing something as existing at other of another then is historical time.
Anegram: A word or phrase formed by transposing letters of another word or phrase.
Angina pectoris: Chest pain that strikes when the heart is starved of oxygen- rich blood.
Angioplasty: The method of treating steno sis or occlusion of a blood vessel or a heart valve by using a balloon into the constricted area.
Angstrom Unit: A unit of length equal to one hundred-millionth of a centimeter. It has now been replaced by the nanometer.
Anthropomorphism: Envisaging non-human objects, especially God as having physical and mental characteristics like those of human beings.
Anti-hero: A literary character with dominant negative qualities.
Antinovel: A work of fiction that rejects the conventional elements of a novel.
Antithesis: Placing together of sharply contrasting ideas. Eg. They died what we might live.
Aphorism: Terse, witty, pointed statement on a general principle.
Apartheid: The policy of racial segregation practiced in South Africa till the 1990’s.
Aphasia: The inability of a person to speak and write due to cerebral days- function.
Aphonia: Total loss of voice due to reasons like sudden emotional stress.
Aphrodisiac: Drugs or substances capable of increasing sexual excitement and performance.
Aqueduct: Artificial channel for carring water from one place to another.
Arable Farming: The cultivation of plants for food, fibres vegetable oils, etc. especially on field scale.
Arbitrate: Practice of switching short-term funds from one investment to another in order to obtain the best rerurn. aslo the act of buying at the lower price and reselling at the higher price.
Arboriculture: Cultivation of trees and vegetables.
Artificial Insemination: The tech- nique used to induce pregnancy in women who are unable to conceive naturally. The semen is inducted into the uterus not by sexual intercourse but though artificial means. This method was originally developed and extensively used to breed cattle with improved characteristics.
Artificial Intelligence: Computer program’s capable of taking decisions and actions similar to human intelligence.
Armageddon: As per the Bible, the site of the final battle between the nations that will end the word.
Aarya Samaj: A reformist movement founded in 1875 by Dayanand Saraswathi based on the slogan, “back to the Vedas”.
Asceticism: A religious practice of voluntary, sustained self discipline and denial of physical and psychological desires for sublime spiritual attainment. Those who practice this called ascetics.
Astigmatism: A visual defect in which both nearby and distant objects appear blurred. it is caused by an abnormal curvature of the cornea which usually affects both eyes.
Atavism: Theory according to which the characteristics of a remote ancestor can reappear in a person or plant ofter several intervening years.
Atlantic Charter: Principles agreed by British prime Minister Winston Churchill and US President franklin D Roosevelt in Placentia Bay Newfoundland in 1945 August when the second World War was raging Europe.
Aurora:A natural display of light in the form of arcs clouds, streaks, flickers and the like in the
Sky which is visible only in night.
Autism: A behavioural pattern characterized by self isolation. It is commonly found in children who withdraw into themselves.
Automation: The use of electronic equipments, machines, computers etc. to perform tasks normally done by people.
Autopsy: Dissection and examination of a dead body to determine cause of death. also known as postmortem or necropsy.
Avant Garde: Literally advance group or movement that is innovative and marks a departure from existing norms.
Axiomatics: A scientific method used to arrive at logical deductions from accepted facts.
Ayatollah: A Shiite Muslim title. It means ‘Sign of God’ particularly associated with the Islamic Republic of Iran.
Balanced growth: a particular form of growth process of the economy in which all the main economic aggregates-national income, consumption, stock of capital, employment-grow at the same percentage rate over time.
Balled: A short narrative poem or a slow love song that tells a story in popular music adopted for reciting and singling.
Ballet: A European theatrical dance form with its own characteristic techniques like leaps and pirouetting on toes. It was created by Italian masters in France in the 15th century.
Bamboo Curtain: The controls and restrictions imposed by Mao Zedong in communist China to prevent its population from having exposure to the outside world, especially capitalist western Societies.
Bandung conference: A conference of afro-Asion leaders held in Bandung, Indonesia, to assert their identity independent of the big powers.
Bandwidth: The quantity of information that can be transmitted through a communication line. It decotes the capacity of the line, measured in bits per second.
Barbecue: Cooking of meat fish or vegetables in metal frame over an open fire. Originally it referred to the roasting of a whole pig, ox or other large animal over wood or charcoal fire in an open place.
Base period: The time period used as the base from which to calculate an index number or a growth rate.
Best generation: A group of young Americans, who, fed up with Western values turned to eastern religion for inspiration. They adopted a bohemian lifestyle and tried experimental literary forms.
Behaviourism: The study of men and animals on the premise that they have only patterns of behavior not minds.
Bench Marking: It is a management methodology based on the principle that an efficient practice in one industry should be applicable to other industries.
Benelux: An economic alliance formed in 1948 by three nations-Belgium Netherlands and luxembourg.
Beriberi: A disease caused by deficiency of thiamine (vitamin B ). It causes stiffness of lower limbs paralysis ,and pain and ultimately the victim becomes too sick to do anything.
Best boy: The charge-hand electrician working under the gaffer, who is the chief electrician in a film or TV production crew.
Bibliography: A list of books or articles about a subject or an author.
Big Bang: A theory explaining the origin of universe. According to this theory the universe originated from a sudden explosion of energy 10,000- 15,ooo million years ago and started expanding to all directions.
Blitzkrieg: (lightning war), a battle technique developed by Nazi generals.
Biodegradability: The capacity of a substance to decompose by bacterial or biological processes into nature friendly elements.
Bioethics: The study of the ethical problems arising from scientific advances.
Biometrics: The use of statistical and other mathematical methods of analysis on data pertaining to living organisms.
Biopsy: Microscopic diagnosis of a living being’s tissues to determine abnormal cell development or malignancy.
Bird of prey: Also known as raptor. any bird that hunts mammals and birds for food. Eagle, falcon, hawk and vulture are birds of prey.
Bisexual: The sexual attraction or sexual activity of a person to both the sexes.
Black Dragon Society: A secret society formed by Japanese politicians in 1901 with the idea of war against Russia. it wanted japan to conquer territories up to the river Amur (Black Dragon).
Black Economy: That part of a country’s economic activity which is not recorded in the national income accounts, although it does involve the production of goods and services.
Black Market: Secret sale of goods or currency violating governerment rules related to pricing, quota, rationing, prority, welfare etc.
Black Nationalism: A movement advocating the establishment of a separate black nation within the US.
Block Shirt: A member of any fascist organisastion with a black-shirted uniform.
Blockbuster: A film or a broadcast programme that becomes an extraordinary success with huge audience and high ratings.
Bloomsbury Group: A British group of artists of the 1920s and 1930s.
Bolshevism: Communist doctrine as adapted by Lenin for practical application in Russia.
Bonapartism: political system of military dictatorship by an individual, ostensibly based on popular appeal, with frequent use of plebiscite.
Bonsai: The art of growing decorative dwarf or miniature trees in trays, pots or containers. the Word bonsai means tray planted. originating in China in 10th C it was fully developed as a popular form of art and hobby in Japan.
Bottom line the: The most important fact in a situation.
Botulism: A kind of food poisoning caused by a toxin produced by the clostridium botulinum bacteria.
Bourse: Stock exchange. Originally the exchange of pairs or any other city of continentaleurope.
Boytox: A way to describe cosmetic surgery for men.
Brain Storming: A technique used for idea generation in which a team if persons put forward new ideas freely and spontaneously.
Brainwashing: The technique of changing a person’s ideas, beliefs and attitudes by force, ranging from physical torture to psychological pressure.
Brand Loyalty: Repeated purchase of a particular brand of product by the consumer. Usually It is the result of a right combination of quality and price.
Brutalism: A style of architecture. It uses stark, geometric lines.
Bullion: Gold, silver or other precious metal in bulk, ie. In the form of ingots or bars rather than in coin.
Caffeine: An odourless and slightly bitter organic alkaloid naturally found in coffee, tea, cocoa and cola nuts.Caffeine, when taken in small quantities , helps human metabolism. But when taken in large quantities it causes nervousness, loss of sleep, headache, digestive disorders etc.
Calisthenics: The systematic exercises for attaining strength and gracefulness.
Calligraphy: The art of beautiful and decorative handwriting.
Camouflage: The art and tactics of hiding military equipment and troops from an enemy.
Campanology: It is the art of ringing church bells.
Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament(CND): it was an organisation established in Britain in 1958 to mobilize public opinion against nuclear weapons.
Capitation Fee: Money arbitrarily collected by professional colleges and self financing educational institutions for admitting students to their courses.
Carbon Dioxide Snow: Solid carbon dioxide used as a refrigerant.
Carpology: The science of fruits and seeds.
Cartography: The science of mapping geographical areas in a flat surface as per scale.
Catalyst: Substance that increases the rate of a chemical reaction.
Catharsis: Psychological term describing the way iIn which psychotherapy helps a person to release pent up feelings. and emotions. It also means emotional purging and purification brought about by the experience of pity and fear, as in a tragic drama.
Catchment Area: Area from which water is collected by a river and is tributaries.
Catch phrase: A phrase in popular use, like one associated with a show-business personality.
Cat’s Eyes: Safety device to help drivers to see the road.
Caucus: In US caucus is an open meeting of party policy makers, who take crucial decisions of a political party. But in India caucus means an inner group engaged in behind the scene operations within a political party.
Censure Motion: A motion moved against the government in general censuring any of its policy or particularly against a minister or ministers.
Chaos theory: Branch of mathematics which attempts to describe chaotic systems whose behavior is difficult to predict.
Chain Letter: A letter circulated among people by being copied and sent to others who do the same.
Chain Reaction: Any sequence of events each of which has an effect on the following.
Checks and Balances: A constitutional system In democracies as a safeguard from possible misuse of power.
Chemotherapy: The use of anti-cancer (cytotoxic) drugs to destroy cancer cells (including leukaemias and lymphomas). The world means ‘drug treatment’.
Chikungunya: It is a rare form of viral fever caused by the ‘alpha virus’ transmitted to human by the bite of infected mosquitoes. The term Chikungunya is derived from ‘machine’ meaning’ that which bends up’ in reference to the stooped posture developed as a result of the arthritic symptom of the disease.
Chipco Movement: A popular environment movement in India started by Sunderial Bah gun in 1972. Chip co is a Hindi-Garhwali word meaning embrace.
Churchill: In common cigar parlance, a Cuban Havana cigar measuring 178mm. by 18.65mm. Named after iconic British wartime leader Churchill.
Circumcision: The practice of removing the foreskin of male genital organ. In some societies it is done in females also, in which all or part of the external sex organ is cut off.
Clearing House: Any institution that settles mutual indebtedness between a number of organizations.
Cleopatra’s Needle: Either of two ancient Egyptian obelisks in London and in New York. These were gifts from the ruler of Egypt (1878) to England the USA.
Client state: A country that is economically or politically dependent on a more powerful state.
Cliffhanger: In a competition, a situation in which the outcome is uncertain until the very end.
Closed User Group (CUG): A group of persons with access to communication and information facilities that are not available to non members of the group. Eg. Free CUG calls provided by some mobile phone companies.
Cloudburst: A sudden violent rainstorm falling for a short period of time limited to a small area. it is usually associated with thunderstorms.
Cockroach Factor: A term used to denote high degree of environmental adaptability and survival.
Coeducation: System of teaching male and female students together in the same class or school.
Collateral: Money or property which is used as a guarantee that someone will repay a loan.
Colonnade: A series of trees placed at regular intervals.
Colour Blindness: Inability to differentiate all colures apart. This is also known as deltoids.
Communication Gap: A situation in the process of communication when no meaningful exchange of ideas or information takes place. This may be due to the physical or mental differences between the parties involved in the communication.
Concentration Camp: A place where ‘political enemies’ are imprisoned usually without trial. The term was first used by Britain for the prison camps set during the Boer war around 1900. Those setup by Nazi Germany in which an estimated 7 to 8 million prisoners were kept, were notorious.
Consumer’s Sovereignty: This is said to exist when resources are allocated in line with consumer’s preference as opposed to say, state direction.
Conveyor belt: A continuously moving strip of rubber or metal which is used in factories for moving objects along.
Countertenor: A man who sings with a high voice that is similar to a low female singing voice..
Coup d’état: An attempt to get rid of the president or the Government of a country.
Convergence of Media: Technology in which multiple media come together to form a single media with the advantages and features of all of them.
Credit: Granting the use or possession of goods and services without immediate payment.
Crew cut: A close-cropped man’s haircut.
Cryogenics: The science dealing with the production, control and application of very low temperatures.
Crystal therapy: A method of treatment which uses precious and semiprecious stones.
Culture Shock: The feeling of psychological alienation and shock when human beings are separated and transplanted to a totally different environment.
Cup Tie: An elimination match in a sporting contest played for a cup.
Curtain Raiser: Journalistic term to denote background stories and features of a forth coming event published in order to create enthusiasm.
Cybernetics: The study of communication and control in machines and animals. Nor bet Weiner, an American mathematician introduced the term cybernetics in 1984.
Dactylology: The technique of communication by signs made with the fingers. It is generally used the deaf.
Dactylographic: The study of fingerprints for the purpose of identification.
Dalit: A generic term denoting the backward and oppressed classes coming in the official category of Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes. dalit Punters, a militant organisation of “untouchables” formed in Bombay in 1970’s.
Darwinism: A theory of natural evolution developed by Charles Darwin according to which “Nature selects those best adapted to the environment and allows them to survive and transmit their personalities to their descendants”.
Database: Database is a collection of documents or records of identical characteristics. The user can search and retrieve documents from the database.
Dear Money: High rates of Interest. A “dear money policy’ carried out by a monetary authority would be one of restricting the money supply in the interest of reducing inflation.
Death-rate: The number of deaths occurring in any year for every 1000 of the population.
Decibel: The unit by which the loudness of sound is measured. the sound which is barely audible t human ears is taken as the base for measuring any other sound. The noise level of aircraft engine is 120 db. Sounds a above 130 Db is very painful to ears.
Dengue: A disease caused by a virus carried by mosquitoes. Symptoms of this disease Aare fever, headache, muscle pain, joint pain, running nose sore throat, skin rash. It is also known as breakbone fever.
Devaluation: the reduction of the official rate at which one currency is exchanged for another.
Dewey Decimal System: A system of classification used in libraries for storing and retrieval of books. In this a common class num-ber is allotted to all books under one subject and then sub categories are created under that number. Melvil Dewey, an American Librarian devised this system in the late 19th c.
Diaspora: Literally Diaspora means dispersion. It originally refers to the predicament of Jaws since the mass exodus in 586 BC following the conquest of their kingdom by babylon. Now it is used to denote any people so dispersed at any part of the world.
Diplopia (double vision): perception of two images of an object usually caused by eye-muscle paralysis.
Dirge: A mournful song or poem for the dead.
Disposable Income: Personal income including transfer payment after all direct taxes have been deducted.
Dollar pegging: Fixing a currency’s value based on dollar.
Donor Site: Area from which tissue is collected during surgical procedure such as for a graft.
Dossier: Set or bundle of documents relating to a particular person or happening.
Double Jeopardy: Subjection of an accused person to repeated trial for the same offence. In India, no person can be prosecuted and punished for the same offence more than once.
Drug Holiday: A medical term denoting the discontinuance of a drug for a limited period of time for evaluating the effect or side effect.
Dry Dock : A dock in which a ship can lie out of water for repairing the parts below its waterline.
Dry Farming: The process of growing crops in semi arid regions without irrigation and sufficient rainfall.
Dumping: The sale of a commodity on a foreign market at a price below marginal cost.
Dumpster diving: The practice of searching garbage bins for salvageable food and other items.
Duodecimo: A sheet of paper folded into 12 leaves. It is written as ‘12mo’.
Dwarfism: Abnormal smallness, the common cause of which is lack of food.
Economic Value Added(EVA): It measures the profit that a company earns over the cost of capital Companies use this financial metric to evaluate the economic value they are generating for a given amount of capital employment.
Eczema: Inflammation of skin with redness, soreness, itching and discharge of serous fluids.
Edutainment: Media programmers or contents which are a blend of education and entertainment intended to educate the users while entertaining.
Ekistics: the science of human settlements, including town and country planning.
E layer: a dense layer of ions in the E region of the ionosphere at an altitude of about 100km, capable of reflecting radio waves. Also called Heaviside layer.
Elegy: A poem usually reflecting death, especially death of a friend. ‘Elegy Written in a Country churchyard’ by Thomas Grey is a world famous elegy.
Embalming: A chemical process by which dead bodies are preserved.
Embossing: The process by which a raised design is stamped or pressed on the surface of materials like metal, leather, wood paper etc.
Encyclical: Letter from a Christian leader particularly the pope, which is intended for distribution among churches.
Epigram: A short witty poem or pointed saying characterized by compression, polish, balance and clarity.
Epilogue: Concluding section of a book, play, film, television programmed etc usually as a comment on what has happened
Epiphany: A Christian festival held on January 6 , in memory of the coming of Magi to the Infant Jesus at Bethlehem.
Epitaph Memorial inscription on a tombstone or other monument to the dead.
E-publishing: Production and distribution of different media products in digital format.
Eschatology: The study of death, destiny.
Estate duty: A tax payable on a person’s property at his death and before it passes into the hands of others.
Ethnology: A branch of anthropology that deals with the origin, distribution and distinguishing characteristics of the race of mankind.
Etymology: The study of the origin and development of words.
Eugenics: The study of the production of better offspring by the careful selection of parents.
Eulogy: A writing or speech in praise of a person.
Euphemism: Polite or inoffensive way of saying something unpleasant. Eg- unmentionables for underclothes. Father in law’s house for jail. Working women for prostitute.
Euthanasia: The practice of painlessly killing people who have incurable or painful diseases or disabilities Also known as mercy killing it is done when the incurably lll people ask a doctor or relative to put him to death.
Euthenics: the science of improving the human species through control of environmental factors.
Falconry: A sport item popular in Gulf countries in which natural predators like falcons, hawks send eagles are specially trained to kill prey nd return to the gloved wrists of owners.
Fibre Optics: A branch of physics that utilizes a fine glass or plastic fibre with refraction properties that allow light to pass around curves and without loss of intensity.
Filibustering: Practice by which a minority in a legislature uses nonstop proposed bill. Members of the minority make long speeches and propose useless motions. The US senate has a tradition of this unlimited debate.
Floor Crossing: Changing one’s allegiance from one party to another, especially in legislatures. the expression originated in the context that in most of the legislatures the ruling party and opposition sit facing each other in the floor of the house.
Flow Chart: A diagram which shows the sequence of steps to be followed for solving a particular problem, usually in algorithm.
Flying saucer: Another name of Unidentified Flying objects (UFO) which is believed to be used by beings from other planets to visit earth.
Fox fire: The luminescence of decaying wood and plant remains, caused by various fungi.
Francophobe: A person who hates France and its people.
Fraternal Twins: Twins that are the result of simultaneous fertilization of two ova by two sperms.
Free lunch: Something that costs nothing. the expression comes from the old practice of offering free lunches to those who bought drinks. This is often used in negative constructions.
Freedom of the Seas: The doctrine that ships of any nation may travel through international waters unhampered.
Fresh gale: a wind whose speed is 39 to 46 miles per hour.
Freudian slip: A slip of the tongue or pen that seems to reveal a person’s real character.
Fringe benefits: Rewards for employment and above the wager paid. e.g. goods at a discount, subsidized meals, arrangements, etc.
Frost Bite: It affects any part of body, especially toes, nose, ears, and fingers below the temperature of -32 Degrees. Symptoms include pins and needle sensations followed by complete numbness. The skin seems white , cold and hard and later it becomes black.
Fuzzy Logic: Logic, similar to human reasoning, applied in computer programming.
Gangrene: It is the death of tissue due to loss of blood supply. The affected skin and tissue becomes black.
Genesiology: The science of generation.
Geo-medicine: The branch of medicine dealing with the influence of climate and environmental conditions on health.
Gerontology: The study of old age, its phenomena, diseases, etc.
Ghost Writer: The real author of stories or books that bear name of someone else.
Giffen Goods: Goods which do not obey the law of demand, viz., that less is bought as price rises.
Global Warming: An increase over a period of the average temperature of earth’s atmosphere and oceans. The greenhouse effect is attributed the main reason for his phenomenon. Average global temperature since the late 19th century is taken (plus or minus) for assessing the effect of global warming.
Glottochronology: The study of the history of language.
Gold ETF: Gold exchange trended funds are instruments that trade like shares and are backed by physical gold holdings.
Googol: The number written as 1 followed by 100 zeroes, or 10
Great Leap Forward: In 1958, this movement was initiated in China to speed up economic progress. the ‘communes’ under the Great Leap were a failure.
Greenhouse Effect: The phenomenon of heat building up in earth’s atmosphere.
Ground Crew: People responsible for the repair and maintenance of an aircraft.
Guerrilla War: A type of warfare practiced by irregular forces employing unorthodox military tactics fight against established civil and military forces.
Guillotine: A machine with knife-blade used for beheading. This machine was adopted during the French revolution, named after Joseph Ignace Guillotine. In Legislatures guillotine means the drastic method of curtailing debate.
Gulag: A forced Labor camp or prison, especially for political prisoners.
Gunpowder Plot: The plot of 1605 to blow up king James I of England and the Houses of parliament. the plot failed.
Haiku: A poetic form in Japanese literature.
Hard News: A current news story having significant Impact, usually related to politics, economics, disaster etc. it is straight and serious news content with little ‘Flesh and spice’.
Heliotherapy: The sun cure.
Hermaphrodites: The condition of having both male and female reproductive organs.
Hermeneutics: Study of the general principles of biblical interpretation.
High Seas: The water lying outside the territorial waters of any stats.
Hippocratic Oath: An ethical code assumed to be developed by Greek physician Hippocrates. this moral code governs the professional conduct of medical practioners all over the world.
Holocaust: Mass killing of Jews by Jews by the
Nazi regime during WWII; widespread destruction of human life.
Holy Grail: The cup that Jesus Christ used at the Lat Supper.
Home Front: The civilian population of a country at war.
Hologram: A three dimensional photographic image extensively used for creating watermark and identifying stamps in security documents and products.
Hospice: Nursing home that specializes in the care of people who are dying.
Hundred Days: The period between Napoleon’s arrival in Paris after escaping from exile on Elba and the return of Louis XVII to pairs.
Huntington’s Disease: A severe hereditary disease affecting the nervous system , named after George Huntington An American Doctor.
Hyperbole: Exaggerated statement used for emphasis.
Hypochondria: Morbid anxiety about health or imaginary illness.
Iconography: Teaching with aid of pictures and models.
Iconoclast : One who destroys Icons and statues.
Ex: Mahammad of Gazani an Afghanistan king who invaded on India 17 times, plundered temples and destructed Idols.
Idolatry: Worship of idol as if it were god. Idolatry is a most common form of worship in Hinduism whereas Islam and Christianity prohibit it.
Igloo: The shelter of Eskimo built by snow, earth or stone.
Impeachment: Accusation and prosecution of the Head of the state or high public officials on serious charges like treason, wrongdoing, crime, scandal, violation of constitution etc.
Inactive money (Idle money): That portion of the total stock of money or money supply (currency plus bank deposits) in existence at any one time which is not being used to finance current transactions or being lent out on the money market.
Inbreeding: Mating between closely related individuals. also, self fertilization in plants.
Infomercial: Advertisements in visual media which are blend of information and commercial
Infotainment: Programmes in visual media that are informative but presented in an entertaining manner.
Innuendo: Indirect or subtle implication, usually unpleasant. Eg. I will be delighted to attend his funeral.
Irony: Saying one thing but meaning the opposite.
Ishihara Test: A method for testing color blindness.
Jim Crow: A black person. Segregating and suppressing black people (derogatory) .
Jingle mail: Sending back the keys to the mortgage company when the occupants can no longer make payments on their home.
Juggernaut: Jagannath. The Idol of Lord Krishna at the temple of Puri, Orissa, is dragged in procession in an enormous chariot at the annual car festival. It is now used to mean a large, powerful and overwhelming force or institution.
Kamikaze: A type of Japanese pilots and aircrafts used for suicide missions during World War. II. The kamikaze pilots were specially trained to dive aircrafts loaded with explosives to targets.
Karaoke: recorded music of popular songs without the singer’s voice or vocals . people use karaoke cds or Vcds to accompany their own performance of a song. in Japanese karaoke is an empty orchestra.
Kawasaki Disease: A type of disease commonly affecting children below 2 years. It is named after Tomisaku Kawasaki, who first described it.
Keratectomy: The surgical removal of a part or all of Tthe cornea.
Kharif: In India and Pakistan, a crop harvested at the end of autumn.
Kitchen police: Soldiers detailed to assist the cooks in an army kitchen.
Koi:an ornamental fish which has gained popularity across Asia.
Kulak: The Zamindar class in Russia.
Kwashiorkor: Severe protein deficiency in children under five years.
Laissez – faire: The Principle of nonintervention of government in economic affairs.
Lamaism: Buddhism Practiced in Tibet and Mongolia. It is also known as Tibetan Buddhism.
Lampoon: A piece of writing. Poem, drawing Etc. Which criticises satirically or in an amusing way a famous person or an organisation.
Light Year: Distance travelled by light in one Year -9.7607 million million k.m.
Osuction: Lip Removal of the abnormal deposition of fat in a particular area of the body.
Lobbying: The practice of influencing the members of legislatures by frequently visiting their lobby and by bribery, promise of reward, intimidation or other dishonest means.
Lynching: Torture killing of victims by a violent mob.
Machiavellian: Using clever and dishonest methods to deceive people in order to weild or maintain power or authority.
Mafia: A criminal organisation that began as a secret society in13th century Sicily. Landowners employed the mafia to manage their estates. It became incredibly powerful and practically ruled Sicily. In the 20th century it was taken to US by migrants, and is known as Coas Nostra.
Mail Merge: The process of linking a document or letter with a required data file in such a way that different people will get letters with appropriate details.
Malapropism: Wrong use of one word instead of another word because they sound similar to each other. It derives its name from a character Mrs. Malapropos in Sheridan’s “Rivals”. She misused words which sounded alike.
Mandamus: Mandamus means ‘We Command You’. IT is a writ of a most extensive nature, issued by Supreme Court or High Courts to enforce performance of public duties.
Manicure: Cosmetic care and treatment of hands and finger nails, which involves cutting and sometimes painting of nails and softening of skin.
Marasmus: severe deficiency of protein, carbohydrate and different way creating some peculiarity of his own.
Middle distance: The space between the foreground and the background in a picture.
Minamata Disease: Disease caused by mercury poisoning. Minimata is a city in Japan where a chemical plant had been dumping organic mercury for years. this toxic metal gradually get into the food chain caused terrible paralytical diseases and genetic disorders in the Local people.
Momnesia: A pattern of mental confusion and forgetfulness that characterizes a mother’s first year after giving birth.
Mongolism: A congenital defect (also called Down’s syndrome) in which a child is mentally retarded and has slanted eyes, a broad short face, weak muscles and stubby fingers.
Moratorium: Temporarily stopping of an activity or postponement of the time for payment of debts or financial obligations.
Mother’s Day: The second Sunday of May in USA when mothers are remembered.
Mountain dew: Illegally distilled spirits.
Mustard gas: Dichlorodiethyl sulphide-an oily liquid that has been used as a ‘war gas.’
Mycology: The study of fungi and fungus diseases.
Myopia: A visual defect in which a person can see nearby objects clearly. But distant vision is blurred. It is also called shortsightedness.
Myrmecology: The study of ants.
Mysticism: Attainment of knowledge beyond sensory perception and the unification of mind with the ultimate truth.
Nanotechnology: The science which aims to create molecule based computer chips and other devices that are thousands of times smaller than the existing technologies.
Nativity play: a play which tells the story of Jesus Christ.
Natural Gas: Gas found underground. it is used as a fuel.
Natural Wastage: Reducing the number of workers by not replacing those who leave the organisation.
Netiquette: The etiquette rules applicable to message posted in online services especially in internet news groups. it helps to maintain civility and adherence to electronic rules relevant to mail communication in the internet.
Netizen: A new term coined by linking the terms Internet and Citizen. in the modern age of information technology, any citizen who regularly uses the internet can be called a Netizen.
Newspeak: Use of deceptive talk by government officials and others in order to influence public opinion.
Ninja loans: No Income, No job No Assets.
Nomophobia: The fear of being out of mobile phone contract.
Nonebrity: A person who enjoys celebrity status despite having done nothing to merit it.
Numerology: The study of numbers, study of the date and year of one’s birth to determine their influence on one’s future life.
Nystagmus: Persistent involuntary movements of the eyes.
Obesity: The condition of being over- weight due to excess accumulation of fat in the body.
Oenology: the study of wines. orange Day (Orangeman’s Day): July 12, a public holiday in N. Ireland. Protestants celebrate it as the anniversary of the battles of the Boyne and of Aughrim, Both in the 17th century.
Origami: The art of folding paper into different patterns and decorative objects. It was originated in China but later flourished and became a popular art form in Japan.
Origami is a building in Infosys Banglore campus designed by Japanese Architects. Origami = Folded Paper
Orthography: The art of correct spelling
Osteomalacia: Softening of the bones because of a deficiency of vitamin D or of calcium.
Outsourcing: The system of contracting information technology related jobs like translation, transcription, digitization, data conversion, software development, call centre services etc to outside agencies. the work may be done by agencies within the country or outside.
Oxford movement: A movement within the Church of England that sought to link the Anglican Church more closely to the Roman catholic Church. Originated at Oxford University in 1833.
Pacemaker: An electrical device powered by a battery, used by people with certain heart diseases which prevent the heart from beating regularly. the pacemaker sends out electrical impulses which give a regular heartbeat.
Paedophilia: sexual desire of an adult usually a male, towards a child.
Palindrome: Word or group of words that reads the same backwards as forwards. The longest word among palindromes is 'able was I ere I saw Elba'
* A nut for a jar of tuna
Malayalam: Refer level, madam etc. are also palindromes.
Patent Log ( also called screw log, taffrail log): instrument that helps measure the speed of and distance travelled by a vessel.
Pedicure: Cosmetic care and treatment of feet which involves cutting and sometimes painting of nails and softening skin.
Penology: Study of punishment and of prison management.
Per capita income: The total income of a ground divided by the number of people in the group. Per Head Income.
Personal property: (Legal) Temporary or movable property as distinguished from real property:
PG: (Parental Guidance) Film rating equivalent to the former ‘A’ rating.
Post Graduation.
PH: (potential of Hydrogen ) a standard measure of alkalinity or acidity of any fluid.
What are the Ph values of Blood and Water ?
Read More
Phthisiology: The scientific study of tuberculosis.
Physiognomy: The art of judging character from physical appearance, especially that of face.
Pieta: painting or sculpture showing the dead Christ in the lap of the Virgin Mary.
Platonic: Relationship or emotion which is very affectionate but not sexual.
Plagiarism: The act of of illegally copying and using another person’s writings, ideas, inventions etc. and presenting it as one’s own.
Plismoll mark: A set of lines on the hull of a merchant ship to indicate the depth to which it may be loaded. also called ‘load line’. The M.P. Samuel plismoll supported the Merchant Shipping Act.
Poison pill: a measure to prevent the take over of a corporation by making the acquisition too expensive.
Pomology: The science that deals which fruits and fruit growing.
Portfolio: The collection of securities held by an investor.
Primary Colours: The colors from which all other colours are made up. These are blue yellow and red.
RGB Colours RGB Moniter.
Pseudonym: A name which a person such as a writer uses instead of their real name especially on their work.
(b) Traitor, ie, a person who helps the enemy that has taken control of his country.
Rabi: A crop harvested in India and Pakistan at the beginning of spring.
Ramser Convention: An international treaty for the conservation and sustainable utilization of wetlands.
Recession: A downturn in the business cycle characterized by two successive quarters of negative rates of growth in the real GNP.
Recortadores Bullfight: Bullfight in which the men try to dodge bulls without cape or sword. The animals are not killed in this ancient tradition.
Rehydration Therapy: A type of treatment for deny drat ion by giving fluids with salt and glucose.
Renal Failure: The reduction of ability of the kidneys to filter waste from the blood and excrete those in urine.
Rhesus (Rh) Factor: A complex substance present on the surface of red blood cells in most people,. People with the Rh factor are described as Rh-positive and those without Rh-negative.
Robotics: The study of artificial intelligence and robot construction.
Salpingectomy: The surgical removal of a Fallopian tube.
Sanskritisation: Process in which people of a lower cast change their customs, rituals, ideology and way of life in the direction of the high class.
Schizophrenia: A severe form of psychosis characterized by mental disorders and behavioural eccentricities like introversion, disassociation, inability to distinguish reality from unreality, delusions etc.
Selenology: The scientific study of moon, its nature, origin movements, etc.
Semeiology: The study of signs or sign language.
‘Shangri La’
Dialogue: Annual dialogue in Singapore on Asian security, sponsored by the International institute of Strategic studies, London.
Shibboleth: A practice of identifying the members of a community or a clan and their social and regional origin.
Silent Majority: A group , held to represent , the majority of a population, that doesn’t normally express its views but is taken to support the status quo.
Silicon Valley: Santa Clara Valley region of Northern California in USA. This area became popular worldwide due to its high concentration of microprocessor technology based industries and institutions.
Sin Bin: A place for players, to wait at the side of a playing area where they have been sent off temporarily for breaking some rules.
Sixth sense: a power of perception thought of as a sense in addition to the five senses. It is intuitive power.
Social networking: Using Web sites such as Face book.
Soft-currency: A currency whose exchange rate is tending to fall because of persistent balance of payments deficits or because of the building up of speculative selling of the currency in expectation of a change in its exchange rate.
Soft Diet: Easily digestible solid diet having minimum residue.
Soft-loan: A loan bearing either no rate of interest or an interest rate which is below the true cost of the capital lent.
Solar Eclipse: Blotting out of the Sun by the Moon, to that moon is directly between the Earth and the Sun.
Sonnet: A poem of 14 lines, arranged in a particular pattern of rhyme, each line having normally 10 syllables.
Sovereign Wealth Fund: An investment fund owned by a Government.
Specie Points: The limits between which the exchange rate between two currencies on the gold standard fluctuates.
Spoonerism: Involuntary transposition of sounds of spoken words such as “snowing leopard” for loving shepherd.”
Spurious medicines: In India both counterfeit and fake drugs are described as spurious medicines. Counterfeit medicine has no active ingredient, or it may be an expired drug. a fake drug may not resemble the original in any way.
Stagflation: Stagnant growth and rising inflation.
Stolport: An airport designed for STOL (short take off and landing) aircraft
St. Bernard’s Dog: A type of big dog with broad head and large feet, orange-brown and white in look. it was originally used to find and rescue travelers trapped in mountain snow in the St. Bernard passes in the Alps.
St. Vitus’s Dance: A type of nervous disorder that causes rapid involuntary movements of limbs or facial muscles.
Straight Time; The number of working hours fixed as a standard for a given work period.
Sulphonamides: A group of drugs, which when they were introduced in the 1930’s provided the first effective treatment for a number of bacterial diseases.
Tall Poppy Syndrome: A malicious tendency to tarnish those who are successful in life.
Tautology: The unnecessary and often unintentional use of two words to express the same meaning.
Tax Avoidance: Arranging one’s financial affairs within the law so as to minimize taxation liabilities.
Tax Evasion: Failing to meet actual tax liabilities.
Televangelism: The preaching of evangelism on television for religious propagation or raising money for religious purposes.
Tennis elbow: A condition caused by inflammation around the epicondyle on the outer side of the elbow which results in pain and tenderness.
Thalidomide: A drug which was earlier used to help people relax or sleep, which was later found to cause geneic deformities. it creates damage to babies inside the womb by stopping the development of their arms and legs, when it is taken by their mothers.
Tomboy: a girl who dresses like a boy, and likes physical activities that boys usually indulge in.
Tongue-twister: a phrase or sentence that is intended to be difficult to say, especially when repeated quickly.
Topiary: The art of cutting and trimming of bushes into attractive and ornamental shapes like animals and birds.
Toxicology: The scientific study of the nature and effects of poisons, their detection and treatment.
Truck System: System in which wages are paid in goods or kind rather than money.
Tug-of-love: a situation in which one of the separated parents of a child takes care of the child, and the other parent claims the right to keep the child.
Type A Personality: The state of mind and behavior characterized by excessive drive, competitiveness, sence of time urgency, impatience, unrealistic ambition, etc.
Ugly Duckling: A person or thing thought to be worthless at the first instance but later turns to be outstandingly beautiful or highly valued.
Urban Mining: Reclaiming precious metals from old electronic equipment.
URL: It is a universally accepted system foll-owed in naming a website in the Internet. URL is the abbreviation of Uniform Resource Locator.
Velcro: Trade name for a fabric fastener invented by Georges de Mistral. These are two nylon strips, one covered with the hooks and other with loops into which the hooks fit when the two are pressed together.
Vernacular Press: Also called Language Press, it denotes media products like newspapers and magazines published in a native language. it is derogatory term first used by the British to differentiate the English newspapers and magazines from those of Indian languages which they considered inferior.
Verruca: Medical term for a wart, a small growth formed on the skin and caused by a virus.
Victimless Crime: A statutory crime such as gambling or prostitution.
Video Conferencing: Technology in which video audio, and computer signals from different locations are linked in such a way that different people can see and interact at the same time, as if in a conference room.
VTOL (vertical take-off and landing) : A fixed-wing aero plane that can take off and land without using a runway.
Voice-over: A piece of narration in a broadcast not accompanied by an image of the speaker.
Watermark: A design applied to paper when it is made. It can be seen by holding the paper up to the light. Currency notes and postage stamps carry a watermark to prevent forgery.
Westerlies: The chief winds blowing between 30 and 70 digress latitude.
Wolf syndrome: A disorder with symptoms of mental retardation, hypotona, cleft lip and coloboma.
WWW: World Wide Web.
Xanadu: A concept first visualized by Theodor Holm Nelson to integrate all the library collections and databases worldwide into a single digital system.
Yellow Journalism: That type of journalism which is sensational, scandalous, slanderous and scurrilous. the term derived from a popular comic strip, the Yellow Kid’.
Yom Kippur: IT is a Jewish holiday-the day when sins are confessed and expiated and man and God are reconciled.
You-Tube Divorce: An acrimonious break-up where a spouse even airs her former partner’s dirty laundry on the video-sharing portal.
Zeugma: Using the same word, in different senses, to govern two or more other words. Eg. He took his leave and my umbrella.
Zero Hour: The time set for the beginning of an attack
or other military operation; any crucial or decisive moment.
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Terminology Bank
Dictionary of Scientific Historical Legal Terms
Terms for best understanding
