Cracking India

Cracking India Glossary

Oblong (adj.)

deviating from a square, circular, or spherical form by elongation in one dimension

Adenoidal (adj.)

describing someone who snores, or speaks nasally; a mouth-breather

Inexorable (adj.)

Relentless, unstoppable

Furlong (noun)

a unit of distance equal to 220 yards

Pram (noun)

British word for a baby carriage

Ayah (noun)

Hindustani word meaning “nanny”

Calipers (noun)

devices that allow people with motor disabilities—including those with polio—to walk

Covetous (adj.)

having a desire for the wealth or possessions of others; greedy and envious

Globule (noun)

a small globe or ball, usually made of liquid

Impish (adj.)

mischievous, acting like an imp

Indolent (adj.)

lazy or slow

Doleful (adj.)

sad, cheerless, full of grief

Jan

Hindustani word for "soul" or "life," often a term of endearment

Dhurrie (noun)

a heavy cotton rug from India

Sahib

Hindustanin word for "sir" or "master"; it was often used during colonial times in India to refer to a European of status or boss or superior

Abjure (verb)

to renounce (by making an oath), reject, or avoid

Raj

Hindustani word for "rule" or "government"; used most frequently to describe British rule over India as a colony

Discordant (adj.)

disagreeing, quarrelsome

Solicitous (adj.)

full of concern or fear; meticulous; full of desire, eager

Raconteur (noun)

a skilled storyteller

Vermilion (adj.)

a bright reddish-orange color

chilblain (noun)

a swelling or soreness caused by exposure to cold

charpoy (noun)

a kind of bed used in India

organdy (noun)

a thin, transparent kind of fabric

memsahib

a white foreign woman living in India, typically of high social status or the wife of a British official

histrionics (plural noun)

a deliberate display of emotion, particularly to sway other people

Palloo (noun)

the loose end of a sari worn draped over the shoulder (typically spelled "pallu")

glib (adj.)

offhand; informal, nonchalant; superficial; smooth (in talking)

Tonga (noun)

a kind of two-wheeled horse-drawn carriage common in India

supercilious (adj.)

haughty, patronizing, stuck-up

dhoti (noun)

a type of local dress, a long piece of fabric wrapped around the lower part of the body

bodhi (noun)

a tuft of hair left at the back of a shaven head to designate the caste a Hindu man belongs to

Dungarwadi

the big round wall in which Zoroastrians leave the bodies of those in their community who die. It is known in English as the "Tower of Silence"