Journalism of Courage
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Amitabh Ranjan
A former journalist, Amitabh Ranjan teaches at Patna Women's College.
More From Amitabh Ranjan
Wordly Wise | Jamming with some J-wordsSubscriber Only
August 05, 2023 14:06 IST
Junta, jocund, jalopy: the provocation this week is the letter ‘J’. Let’s have some fun as we go on our weekly word hunting adventure.
Sun, Aug 06, 2023
Wordly Wise | Greek and Roman gods we often invoke to jazz up our languageSubscriber Only
July 29, 2023 14:21 IST
Christopher Nolan’s latest blockbuster ‘Oppenheimer’ is based on a book called ‘American Prometheus’ by Kai Bird and Martin J Sherwin. Prometheus is a figure from Greek mythology, whose name is used in the English language to describe those who are daringly innovative.
Sun, Jul 30, 2023
Wordly Wise: Some Moon talk ahead of Chandrayaan 3’s lunar rendezvousSubscriber Only
July 22, 2023 13:27 IST
This week, we discuss some words that are related to the moon and India’s mission to it – Chandrayaan 3. Apogee, mascon, mare: How many of these words do you know?
Sun, Jul 23, 2023
Wordly Wise | Clairvoyant, paranoid, mordant: Some words from Milan Kundera’s many obituariesSubscriber Only
July 15, 2023 12:20 IST
Milan Kundera was a Czech-French novelist often considered the greatest 20th century writer not to win a Nobel Prize for his work. Best known for his novel, ‘The Unbearable Lightness of Being’, Kundera passed away earlier this week at the age of 94.
Sun, Jul 16, 2023
A look at the German legacy of war lexiconSubscriber Only
July 08, 2023 13:36 IST
A large number of war words in English, starting with the build-up of World War I, have German etymology. We look at some of them.
Mon, Jul 10, 2023
Zeitgeist, diesel, glitch – How you are using German words without even knowingSubscriber Only
July 01, 2023 08:00 IST
German lends to the English language more words than you may realise. We take you through some, today.
Sun, Jul 02, 2023
As a former POTUS goes on criminal trial, do not let these legal terms Trump youSubscriber Only
June 24, 2023 19:13 IST
With Donald Trump becoming the second American president to be taken custody by the authorities on criminal charges, here is an effort to decipher at least 10 legal terms that you are sure to encounter in the process.
Sun, Jun 25, 2023
Balkanization, Shanghaied, Bangalored… are you familiar with these toponyms?Subscriber Only
June 17, 2023 16:41 IST
Toponyms are words derived from the name of a place or geographical location.
Sat, Jun 17, 2023
The buzz about words: You are a genius if you can spell some of these correctlySubscriber Only
June 10, 2023 14:06 IST
After the conclusion of the 2023 Scripps National Spelling Bee earlier this month, this week's Wordly Wise looks at the winning words from the past five editions.
Sat, Jun 10, 2023
From coal mines to English vocabulary: How a tiny bird became a lifeline for minersSubscriber Only
June 03, 2023 15:24 IST
With the coming of the Industrial Revolution, coal mines became deeper and deeper to meet the growing demand of fuel for industrial machinery. We explain how canaries became indispensable lifelines in the risky profession, eventually lending their name to a popular English idiom.
Sun, Jun 04, 2023
Holocaust horror and its haunting lexiconSubscriber Only
May 27, 2023 17:46 IST
During the Holocaust, Nazi Germany committed untold atrocities on people it considered to be a threat to "racial purity'', especially Jews, killing at least six million Jewish men, women and children in concentration and extermination camps.
Sun, May 28, 2023
Words of hate: The language of racial discrimination lawsSubscriber Only
May 20, 2023 18:45 IST
Do you know how the words apartheid, ghetto, and 'separate development' originated?
Sun, May 21, 2023
The laugh language and what makes it lethalSubscriber Only
May 13, 2023 15:13 IST
Satire, parody, burlesque, lampoon and pasquinade: discussing what lies in a comedian's quiver which makes the powers that be quiver.
Sun, May 14, 2023
Word and play: Here are some popular idioms that come from the world of sportsSubscriber Only
May 06, 2023 17:41 IST
Next time life throws a curve ball at you, or you have to take a rain check from tempting plans, you will at least know where these phrases come from, and why.
Sun, May 07, 2023
The Bard lives on in our language, and how!Subscriber Only
April 29, 2023 19:23 IST
Shakespeare wrote about one-tenth of the most quotable quotations ever written or spoken in English. Here are 10 of them. The title of the play appears within brackets and is followed by the meaning and a sentence.
Sun, Apr 30, 2023
In chess season, putting Armageddon, gambit, mouse-slip in black and whiteSubscriber Only
April 22, 2023 15:08 IST
Here are some terms related to Chess. Not an exhaustive list, it will still help those who are inclined to decipher the game in black and white.
Sun, Apr 23, 2023
Much about the Mini, Quant’s lasting legacy for the fashion worldSubscriber Only
April 15, 2023 19:49 IST
The miniskirt, the archetypal 1960s garment, symbolised at once the exuberance of the baby-boom teenagers and the sexual permissiveness the decade has come to be associated with. The decade also saw the rise of some specific words. Here are a few.
Sun, Apr 16, 2023
Flower children of the Swinging Sixties: A maverick generation that inspired a new lexiconSubscriber Only
April 08, 2023 17:36 IST
You have heard of baby boomers and hippies. Do you know who they were and how they got these names?
Sat, Apr 08, 2023
Pack it like ’em: Some boxing metaphors that will add punch to your languageSubscriber Only
April 01, 2023 12:41 IST
From palooka to rope-a-dope, boxing has provided the English language with many metaphors. After Indian women's historic performance at the IBA Women’s World Boxing Championship, a look at how the sport has influenced our lexicon.
Sun, Apr 02, 2023
Are words like sophomore and nemesis all Greek to you? Here’s what they meanSubscriber Only
March 25, 2023 18:08 IST
The Greek legacy is indeed copious and without it, the English language will lose much of its sheen. Here are some popular words and expressions borrowed from it, often spotted in news reports and headlines.
Sun, Mar 26, 2023
My brother, do you know naatu? Also, do you know the many words English owes to Indian languages?Subscriber Only
March 18, 2023 18:19 IST
On the Oscars night last Sunday, when 'Naatu Naatu' and 'The Elephant Whisperers' made history, it was a reiteration of India’s soft power on a global stage. For many Indian speakers of the English language, a journey to the roots of some commonly used English words will be a revelation.
Sun, Mar 19, 2023
Mikveh, requiescat: Do you know these words that appeared in the news this week?Subscriber Only
March 11, 2023 14:11 IST
While browsing through news and views on digital platforms and newspapers this week, we spotted words such as 'joie de vivre' and 'requiem'. Here's what they mean, and how they are used in the English language.
Sun, Mar 12, 2023
Malapropism, spoonerism, Roald Dahl’s prose has all this and more. Do you know what they mean?Subscriber Only
March 04, 2023 18:36 IST
Some of the devices Roald Dahl used profusely are onomatopoeia, alliterative phonaesthesia, and reduplication. Let’s try to understand what they mean.
Sun, Mar 05, 2023
Amid Roald Dahl rewrite controversy, a look into some wonderful Dahlisms, and his unique language, gobblefunkSubscriber Only
February 25, 2023 16:08 IST
Language experts say Roald Dahl built his vocabulary by using established patterns of word formation and sound symbolism, so that readers could make sense of the word even if they were encountering it for the first time.
Sat, Feb 25, 2023
Holy cow! How this gentle creature features in the English languageSubscriber Only
February 18, 2023 17:24 IST
From sacred cow to cash cow to cowing someone down, here are the many cow-related phrases in English, and how they came into being.
Sun, Feb 19, 2023
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