The Hindu Editorial (​Winter is behind) – Dec 22, 2025

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The Hindu Editorial (Winter is behind) – Dec 22, 2025:

1. equation (noun) – the situation (or) the problem, the quandary, the predicament.
2. acrimonious (adjective) – angry, bitter, harsh, sharp, cutting, spiteful, vicious, nasty, poisonous, venomous, hate-filled, ill-natured (in language or tone while arguing). 
3. build upon (phrasal verb) –  develop, expand on, enhance, elaborate, improve
4. sitting (noun) – session.
5. legislative (adjective) – parliamentary, policy-making, law making; relating to legislation.
6. grandstanding (noun) – a way of speaking or acting to get attention from the spectators (people) and then influencing them.
7. mark (verb) – observe, recognize, honour, celebrate, salute, commemorate, remember.
8. Bill (noun) – A Bill is a draft statute that becomes law after it is passed by both the Houses of Parliament and assented to by the President. All legislative proposals are brought before Parliament in the forms of Bills (or) draft statute/law, proposed legislation, proposal (presented to parliament/congress/council for discussion).
9. repeal (verb) – invalidate, reverse, cancel, nullify, revoke.
10. outdated (adjective) – archaic, antique, ancient, out of date, outmoded, old-fashioned.
11. foreign direct investment (FDI) (noun) – Investment from one country into another (normally by companies rather than governments) that involves establishing operations or acquiring tangible assets, including stakes in other businesses.
12. facilitate (verb) – make easy, make possible, enable, assist, help/aid.
13. liability (noun) – responsibility, accountability, answerability, burden, drawback, inconvenience, impediment.
14. flagship (noun as modifier) – the biggest, the best, the most important (event/programme).
15. welfare (noun) – a government program that provides (financial) assistance to individuals and families in need; social security, government/state benefit, public assistance.
16. consternation (noun) – a sudden and unexpected feeling of worry/anxiety that causes confusion; dismay, disquiet, surprise, shock.
17. point to (verb) – indicate, signify, suggest, denote.
18. provision (noun) – clause, (legal) term, stipulation, requirement, condition.
19. legislation (noun) – law, regulation, act, statute, bill.
20. The Sabka Bima Sabki Raksha (Amendment of Insurance Laws) Bill, 2025 (noun) – it was introduced in Lok Sabha on December 16, 2025. It seeks to amend the Insurance Act, 1938, the Life Insurance Corporation Act, 1956, and the Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority Act, 1999.
21. The Viksit Bharat—Guarantee for Rozgar and Ajeevika Mission (Gramin) (VB—G RAM G) Bill, 2025 (noun) – it was introduced in Lok Sabha on December 16, 2025. It seeks to replace the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act, 2005 (MGNREGA). This the rural employment guarantee Bill became an Act on December 21 with the assent of the President.
22. assent (noun) – approval, agreement, acceptance, consent, concurrence.
23. unanimous (adjective) – in complete agreement/accord, with one voice, concordant/united.
24. resolution (noun) – motion, proposal, ruling.
25. resolution (noun) – a resolution is one of the most important procedural devices to raise discussion in the House/Assembly on a matter of general interest; decision (or) declaration (by all members of the Assembly, it usually requires a simple majority (50 percent of all votes plus one) to pass.
26. commemorate (verb) – observe, recognize, honour, celebrate, salute, mark, remember.
27. rather than (phrase) – instead of.
28. patriotic (adjective) – relating to the feeling of love, devotion, and a sense of attachment to a country; nationalistic, nationalist, country-loving
29. credentials (noun) – identities, qualities; achievement, experience, knowledge.
30. heated (adjective) – intense, fiery, vehement, fierce, furious, angry, agitated, excited, frenzied.
31. open-minded (adjective) – just, fair, equitable, fair-minded, honest, upright; liberal, broad-minded,  permissive, tolerant, easy-going.
32. line (noun) – an area of activity.
33. address (verb) – tackle, deal with, attend to, try to sort out.
34. credibility (noun) – trustworthiness, reliability, integrity, reputation; believability, faithfulness.
35. closed-minded (adjective) – narrow-minded, intolerant, bigoted, prejudiced, dogmatic, inflexible, stubborn, hidebound.
36. integrity (noun) – righteousness, uprightness, morality, probity, honesty, fairness.
37. parliamentary democracy (noun) – a system of government in which citizens elect representatives to a legislative parliament to make the necessary laws and decisions for the country.
38. democracy (noun) – a system of government in which power is vested in the people, who rule either directly or through fairly & freely elected representatives.
39. sought past tense of seek (verb) – try, aim, attempt.
40. public health crisis (noun) – also called public health emergency;  a complex or difficult situation that affects health systems in one or more geographic areas.
41. rush through (phrasal verb) –  to do something very quickly, often leaving out/bypassing important steps or details, to finish it faster than normal.
42. House committees/Parliamentary committees (noun) – The parliamentary (standing & select) committees; They do close examination and investigation of government policies, actions and spending.
43. Parliamentary Standing Committee/Parliamentary panel (noun) – it is a committee (consisting of Members of Parliament) constituted usually on an annual basis to enable detailed consideration/discussion on all bills (all proposed laws).
44. Parliamentary select committee (noun) – ‘parliamentary select committee’ can be formed for a specific purpose, for instance, to deliberate 
45. Question Hour (noun) – Question Hour is the liveliest hour in Parliament and it is taken up from 1100hrs to 1200 hrs in every sitting. It is during this one hour that Members of Parliament ask questions of ministers and hold them accountable for the functioning of their ministries. The questions that MPs ask are designed to elicit (bring out) information and trigger suitable action by ministries.
46. zero hour (noun) – the opportunity for MPs to raise national issues without an advance notice became available at 12 pm and could last for an hour until the House adjourned for lunch. This led to the hour being popularly referred to as Zero Hour and the issues being raised during this time as Zero Hour submissions. During this time, members raise issues pertinent to their constituents and of wider public interest.
47. productive (adjective) – positive, useful, constructive, beneficial, practical, helpful, effective, valuable.
48. acknowledge (verb) – accept, recognize, realize.
49. representative (noun) – a member of a legislature (parliament/legislative assembly); lawmaker, legislator.
50. customary (adjective) – traditional, standard, conventional, usual.
51. Lok Sabha Speaker (noun) – the presiding officer and the highest authority of the Lok Sabha, the lower house of the Parliament of India. The current Speaker of the Lok Sabha (India’s lower house of Parliament) is Shri Om Birla, serving since June 2019.
52. Chair (noun) – Chairman; the person in charge. The vice president of India (currently, Shri C. P. Radhakrishnan) is the ex-officio chairman of the Rajya Sabha, who presides over its sessions.
53. led to past & past participle of lead to (verb) – cause, result in, bring on, bring about, give rise to.
54. pleasant (adjective) – friendly, agreeable, amiable, affable, polite, engaging.
55. exchange (noun) – conversation, dialogue, discussion, talk, meeting.

Note : 

1. Click each one of the words above for their definition, more synonyms, pronunciation, example sentences, phrases, derivatives, origin and etc. from http://www.oxforddictionaries.com/.

2. Definitions (elementary level) & Synonyms provided for the words above are my personal work and not that of Oxford University Press. Tentative definitions/meanings are provided for study purposes only and they may vary in a different context.  

3. This word list is for personal use only. Reproduction in any format and/or Commercial use of it is/are strictly prohibited.

The Hindu Editorial (Winter is behind) – Dec 22, 2025: