Daily editorial vocabulary · 22 October 2026
The Hindu editorial vocabulary, 22 October 2026
10 words from today's editorial, with the meaning they have in that sentence. Select any word on this page to see how ftak explains it.
1.at bay (phrase)
kept at a distance so it can't cause harm
“…he promised to keep extremist political forces at bay…”
Similar: in check, away
2.rejuvenate (verb)
to bring new energy and strength back to something
“…rejuvenate economic growth…”
Similar: revive, revitalise
3.abysmally (adverb)
extremely badly; shockingly
“…whose approval rating is at an abysmally low 15%…”
Similar: dreadfully, appallingly
4.battered (verb)
hit hard again and again, here by problems rather than blows
“…a country battered by economic woes…”
Similar: pounded, ravaged
5.surging (adjective)
growing quickly and powerfully
“…violent riots and a surging far right…”
Similar: rising, swelling
6.heavy-handed (adjective)
using more force or strictness than needed
“…its heavy-handed response…”
Similar: harsh, high-handed
7.snowball (verb)
to grow fast and get out of control
“…helped the student protest snowball into an anti-government movement…”
Similar: escalate, mushroom
8.precarious (adjective)
unstable and likely to get worse
“…the precarious situation France is in today…”
Similar: shaky, insecure
9.ballooned (verb)
grew very fast in size or amount
“…growth remained sluggish while public debt ballooned…”
Similar: swelled, soared
10.blunt (verb)
to weaken something or make it less effective
“…he called snap elections to blunt the far-right momentum…”
Similar: weaken, dampen
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