2021

JARGON

form NCERT BOOKS (Suggested by TARUN SIR)

SAYAN CHATTERJEE
 Economics
The Association of South-East Asian Nations (ASEAN): It is a political, economic, and
cultural organisation of countries located in South-east Asia—Thailand, Indonesia,
Malaysia, Singapore, the Philippines, Brunei Darussalam, Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar and
Vietnam.
Balance of Payments (BOP): It is a statistical statement summarising all the external
transactions (receipts and payments) on current and capital account in which a country is
involved over a period of time, say, a year. As the BOP shows the total assets and
obligations over a time-period, it always balances.
Barriers to Entry: This refers to the factors which make it disadvantageous for new
entrants to enter an industry as compared with the firms already established within the
industry.
Better Compliance: Obeying or complying with the Government regulation. It is referred
to usually in case of payment of taxes and dues to the Government.
Bilateral Trade Agreements: The agreements relating to exchange of commodities or
services between two countries.
Brundtland Commission: A Commission established by United Nations Organisation in
1983 to study the world’s environmental problems and propose agenda for addressing
them. It came out with a report. The definition provided by the Commission for the term,
‘sustainable development’, is very popular and widely cited all over the world.
Budgetary Deficit: A situation when the government’s income and tax receipts fail to cover
its expenditures.
Bureau of Energy Efficiency (BEE): It is a government organisation that aims to develop
policies and strategies with a thrust on self-regulation and market principles. It promotes
energy conservation in different sectors of the economy and undertakes measures against
the wasteful uses of electricity.
Business Process Outsourcing (BPO): Outsourcing of business processes (activities
constituting a service) by companies to other companies. This term is frequently associated
with outsourcing of such activities (e.g., receiving and making calls on behalf of other
companies popularly known as call centres), by foreign companies to Indian companies in
the field of IT-enabled services.
Carrying Capacity: It is the measure of habitat to indefinitely sustain a population at a
particular density. A more technical definition for carrying capacity is the largest size of a
density-dependent population for which the population growth rate is zero. Hence, below
carrying capacity, populations will tend to increase, while they will decrease above carrying
capacity. Population size decreases above carrying capacity due to either reduced
survivorship (e.g., due to insufficient space or food) or reproductive success (e.g., due to
insufficient food, or behavioural interactions), or both. The carrying capacity of an
environment will vary for different species in different habitats, and can change over time
due to a variety factor, including trends in food availability, environmental conditions and
space.
Cascading Effect: When tax imposition leads to a disproportionate rise in prices, i.e., by an
extent more than the rise in the tax, it is known as cascading effect.
Cash Reserve Ratio (CRR): A proportion of the total deposits and reserves of the
commercial banks that is to be kept with the central bank (RBI) in liquid form. It is used as
a measure of control of RBI over the commercial banks. Casual Wage Labourer: A person
who is casually engaged in others’ farmer non-farm enterprises and, in return, receives
wages according to the terms of the daily or periodic work contract. Colonialism: The
practice of acquiring colonies by conquest or other means and making them dependent. It
also means extending power, control or rule by a country over the political and economic
life of areas outside its borders. The main feature of colonialism is exploitation.
Commercialisation of Agriculture: It implies production of crops for the market rather than
for self-consumption i.e., family consumption. During the British rule, the
commercialisation of agriculture acquired a different meaning—it became basically
commercialisation of crops. The British started offering higher price to farmers for
producing cash crops rather than for food crops. They used these cash crops as raw
materials for industries in Britain.
Communes: Known as people’s communes, or Renmin gong she in China, were formerly
the highest of three administrative levels in rural areas in the period from 1958 to 1982-
85, when they were replaced by townships. Communes, the largest collective units, were
divided in turn into production brigades and production teams. The communes had
governmental, political, and economic functions.
Consumption Basket: Group of goods and services consumed by a household. In order to
estimate the consumption pattern of people, statistical agencies identify such items. For
instance, NSSO has idented 19 groups of items in the consumption basket. Some of them
are (i) cereals (ii) pulses (iii) milk and milk products (iv) edible oil (v) vegetables (vi) fuel and
light and (vii) clothing.
Default: Failure to make repayment of the principal and interest on a debating. sovereign
debt (loan obtained by the government) to the lenders, say, international financial
institutions, on the scheduled date, causing loss of credibility as a debtor.
Deficit Financing: A situation where the expenditure of the government exceeds its
revenue.
Demographic Transition: It is a concept developed by demographer Frank Note stein in
1945 to describe the typical pattern of falling death and birth-rates in response to better
living conditions associated with economic development. Note stein identified three
phases of demographic transition, pre-industrial, developing and modern industrialised
societies. Later another phase, post-industrial was also included.
DE reservation: Allowing an individual or group of enterprises to produce goods and
services which were hitherto produced by a particular individual or group of enterprises.
In India, it refers to allowing large-scale industries to produce goods and services which
were produced only by the small-scale industries.
Devaluation: A fall in the exchange rate which reduces the value of a currency in terms of
other currencies.
Disinvestment: A deliberate sale of a part of the capital stock of a company to raise
resources and change the equity and/or management structure of a company.
Employers: Those self-employed workers who by and large, run their enterprises by hiring
labourers.
Enterprise: An undertaking owned and operated by an individual or by group of individuals
to produce and/or distribute goods and/or services mainly for the purpose of sale, whether
fully or partly.
Equities: Shares in the paid-up capital or stock of a company whose holders are considered
as owners of the company with voting rights and dividends in the profit.
Establishment: An enterprise which has got at least one hired worker for major part of the
period of operation in a year.
European Union: It is a union of twenty-five independent states founded to enhance
political, economic and social cooperation within the European continent. The member
countries of European Union are Austria, Belgium, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark,
Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania,
Luxembourg, Netherlands, Portugal, Spain, Sweden, United Kingdom, Malta, Poland,
Slovakia and Slovenia.
Export Duties: Taxes imposed on goods exported from a country.
Export Promotion: A set of measures (including fiscal and commercial support measures
and steps aimed at removal of trade barriers) taken by a government to promote the
export of goods with a view to achieve higher economic growth and accumulation of
foreign exchange earnings.
Export-Import Policy: The economic policies of the government relating toits exports and
imports.
Family labour/worker: A member who works without receiving wages in cash or in kind in
a farm, an industry, business or trade conducted by the members of the family.
Financial Institutions: Institutions that engage in mobilisation and allocation of savings.
They include commercial banks, cooperative banks, developmental banks and investment
institutions.
Fiscal Management: The use of taxation and government expenditure to regulate the
economic activities.
Fiscal Policy: All the planned actions of a government in mobilising financial resources for
meeting its expenditure and regulating the economic activities in a country.
Foreign Direct Investment: Investment of foreign assets into domestic structures,
equipment and organisations. It does not include foreign investment into the stock
markets. Foreign direct investment is thought to be more useful to a country than
investments in the equity of its companies because equity investments are potentially ‘hot
money’ which can leave at the first sign of trouble, whereas FDI is durable and generally
useful whether things go well or badly.
Foreign Exchange: Currency or bonds of another country.
Foreign Exchange Markets: A market in which currencies are bought and sold at rates of
exchange fixed now, for delivery at specified dates in the future.
Foreign Institutional Investment: Foreign investments which come in the form of stocks,
bonds, or other financial assets. This form of investment does not entail active
management or control over the firms or investors.
Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs): Banking and non-banking financial institutions of
foreign origin e.g., commercial banks, investment banks, mutual funds, pension funds or
other such institutional investors (as distinct from the domestic financial institutions
investing) whose investment in stocks and bonds in the country through stock markets
have significant influence.
Formal Sector Establishments: All the public sector establishments and those private
sector establishments which employ 10 or more hired workers.
G-20: A forum of countries that intents to promote global economic stability and
sustainable growth. This forum brings together finance ministers and central bank
governors from 19 countries: Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Canada, China, France, Germany,
India, Indonesia, Italy, Japan, The Republic of Korea, Mexico, Russia, Saudi Arabia, South
Africa, Turkey, The United Kingdom, The United States of America. The European Union is
also a member of G-20 and is represented by the President of the European Council and
by Head of the European Central Bank.
G-8: The Group of Eight (G-8) consists of Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the United
Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, the United States of America, and Russian
Federation. The hallmark of the G-8 is an annual economic and political summit meeting
of the heads of government with international officials, though there are numerous
subsidiary meetings and policy research. The Presidency of the group rotates every year.
For the year 2006 it was held by Russia.
Goods and Services Tax: It is a single indirect tax on the supply of goods and services. It
was introduced in July 2017 by abolishing a variety of taxes, such as sales tax and excise
that prevailed in India. Under GST, tax is imposed on the basis of value addition at each
stage of the movement of goods and services. Different slabs of tax rates, such as 0 per
cent, 5 percent, 12 per cent, 18 per cent and 28 per cent, are imposed on almost all goods
and services. This slab is same throughout the country.
Gratuity: An amount of money given by the employer to the employee at the time of
retirement for services rendered by the employee.
Gross Domestic Product: The total value of final goods and services produced within a
country’s borders in a year, regardless of ownership. Itis used as one of many indicators of
the standard of living in a country, but there are limitations with this view.
Gross Value Added: The sum of a country’s GDP and net of subsidies and taxes in the
economy (GVA = GDP + Subsidies – indirect taxes).
Household: A group of persons normally living together and taking food from a common
kitchen. The word ‘normally’ means that temporary visitors are excluded and those who
temporarily staying away are included.
Import Licensing: Permission required from the government to import goods into a
country.
Import Substitution: A policy of the state for development of economy in which import of
goods is generally substituted by domestic production (through import controls, tariffs and
other restrictions) with a view to encourage domestic industry on grounds of self-
sufficiency and domestic employment.
Infant Mortality Rate: It is the number of deaths of infants before reaching the age of one,
in a particular year, per 1,000 live births during that year.
Inflation: A sustained rise in the general price level.
Informal Sector Enterprises: Those private sector enterprises, which employ less than 10
workers on a regular basis.
Integration of Domestic Economy: A situation where the policies of government facilitate
free trade and investment with other countries making the domestic economy work
together with other economies in an efficient and mutually interdependent way.
Invisibles: Various items enter in the current account of the balance of payments, some of
which are not visible goods. Invisibles are mainly services, like tourism, transport by
shipping or by airways, and financial services such as insurance and banking. They also
include gifts sent abroad or received from abroad and private transfer of funds,
government grants and interests, profits and dividends.
Labour Laws: All the rules and regulations framed by the government to protect the
interests of the workers.
Land/Revenue Settlement: With the British acquiring territorial rights in different parts of
India, administration of territories was formulated on the basis of survey of land. It was
decided in the interests of government in terms of revenues to be collected from each
parcel of land in possession of either a riot (means peasant) or a mahal (revenue village)
or a zamindar (a proprietary land holder). Decision in each of these cases was meant for
the rights of the latter over land for the purposes of either ownership of land or rights to
cultivation. This system is known as land/revenue settlement. There were different land
settlements formulated in India. They are (i) system of permanent settlement, which is also
known as the zamindari system (ii) ryotwari system (a system of revenue settlement
entered into by the government with individual tenants) (iii) mahal Wari system (a system
of revenue settlement entered into by the government with a mahal).
Life Expectancy at Birth (years): The number of years a new born infant would live if
prevailing patterns of age-specific mortality rates at the time of birth were to stay the same
throughout the child’s life.
Maternal Mortality Rate: It is the relationship between the number of maternal deaths
due to childbearing by the number of live births or by the sum of live births and foetal
deaths in a given year.
Merchant Bankers: Banks or financial institutions, also known as investment bankers, that
specialise in advising the companies and managing their equity and debt requirement
(often referred to as portfolio management) through floatation and sale/purchase of
stocks and bonds.
Morbidity: It is the propensity to fall ill. It affects a person’s work by making him or her
temporarily disabled. Prolonged morbidity may lead to mortality. In our country, acute
respiratory infections and diarrhoea are two major causes of morbidity.
Mortality rate: The word ‘mortality’ comes from ‘mortal’ which originates from the Latin
word moors (meaning death). It is the annual number of deaths (from a disease or in
general) per 1,000 people. It is distinct from morbidity rate, which refers to the number of
people who have a disease compared to the total number of people in a population.
MRTP Act: An Act (Monopolies Restrictive Trade Practices Act) framed to prevent
monopolistic practices and regulate the conduct or business practices of firms that are not
in public interest.
Multilateral Trade Agreements: Trade agreements made by a country with more than two
nations to exchange goods and services.
National Product/Income: Total value of goods and services produced ina country plus
income from abroad.
Nationalisation: Transfer of ownership from private sector to public sector. This involves
takeover of companies owned by individuals or group of individuals by either state or
central government. In some contexts, it also involves transfer of ownership from state
government to central government.
New Economic Policy: A term used to describe the policies adopted in India since 1991.
Non-renewable Resources: Resources that cannot be renewed. They have a finite, even if
large, stock. Some examples are fossils fuels such as oil and coal and mineral resources—
iron, lead, aluminium, uranium.
On-tariff Barriers: All the restrictions on imports by a government in the form other than
taxes. They mainly include restrictions on quantity and quality of goods imported.
Opportunity Cost: It is defined with respect to a particular value or action and is equal to
the value of the foregone alternative choice or action.
Pension: A monthly payment to a worker who has retired from work.
Per Capita Income: Total national income of a country divided by its population in a specific
period.
Permit License Raj: A term used to denote the rules and regulations framed by the
government to start, run and operate an enterprise for production of goods and services
in India.
Planning Commission: An organisation set up by the Government of India. It is responsible
for making assessment of all resources of the country, augmenting deficient resources,
formulating plans for the most effective and balanced utilisation of resources and
determining priorities.
Poverty Line: The per capita expenditure on certain minimum needs of a person including
food intake of a daily average of 2,400 calories in rural areas and 2,100 calories in urban
areas.
Private Sector Establishments: All those establishments, which are owned and operated
by individuals or group of individuals.
Productivity: Output per unit of input employed. Increase in the efficiency on the part of
capital or labour leads to increase in productivity. This terms generally used to refer to
productivity increase in labour inputs.
Provident Fund: A savings fund in which both employer and employee contribute regularly
in the interest of the employee. It is maintained by the government and given to the
employee when he or she resigns or retires from work.
Public Sector Establishments: All those establishments which are owned and operated by
the government. They may be run either by local government, state government or by
central government independently or jointly.
Quantitative Restrictions: Restrictions in the form of total quantities or quotas imposed
on imports to reduce balance of payments (BOP) deficit and protect domestic industry.
Regular Salaried/Wage Employee: Persons who work in others’ farm or non-farm
enterprises and, in return, receive salary or wages on a regular basis (i.e., not on the basis
of daily or periodic renewal of work contract). They include not only persons getting time
wage but also persons receiving piece wage or salary and paid apprentices, both full time
and part-time.
Renewable Resources: Resources that can be renewed through natural processes if they
are used wisely. Forests, animals and fishes, if not over-exploited, get easily renewed.
Water is also in that category.
South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC): It is an association of eight
countries of South Asia — Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan, Sri Lanka
and Afghanistan. SAARC provides a platform for the peoples of South Asia to work together
in a spirit of friendship, trust and understanding. It aims to accelerate the process of
economic and social development in member countries.
Self-employed: Those who operate their own farm or non-farm enterprises or are engaged
independently in a profession or trade with one or a few partners. They have freedom to
decide how, where and when to produce and sell or carry out their operation. Their earning
is determined wholly or mainly by sales or profits from their enterprises.
Social Security: A government or privately established system of measures, which ensures
material security for the elderly, disabled, destitute, widows and children. It includes
pension, gratuity, provident fund, maternal benefits, health care etc.
Special Economic Zone (SEZ): It is a geographical region that has economic laws different
from a country’s typical economic laws. Usually, the goal is to increase foreign investment.
Special Economic Zones have been established in several countries, including the People’s
Republic of China, India, Jordan, Poland, Kazakhstan, the Philippines and Russia.
Stabilisation Measures: Fiscal and monetary measures adopted to control fluctuations in
the balance of payments and high rate of inflation.
State Electricity Boards (SEBs): These are part of the state administration that generate,
transmit and distribute electricity in different states.
Statutory Liquidity Ratio (SLR): A minimum proportion of the total deposits and reserves
to be maintained by the banks in liquid form as per the regulations of the central bank
(RBI). Maintenance of SLR, in addition to the Cash Reserve Ratio (CRR), is an obligation of
the banks.
Stock Exchange: A market in which the securities of governments and public companies
are traded. It provides the facilities for stock brokers to trade company stocks and other
securities.
Stock Market: An institution where stocks and shares are traded.
Structural Reform Policies: Long-term measures like liberalisation, deregulation and
privatisation aimed to improve the efficiency and competitiveness of the economy.
Tariff: A tax on imports, which can be levied either on physical units, e.g., Per tonne
(specific) or on value. Tariffs may be imposed for a variety of reasons including: to raise
government revenue, to protect domestic industry from subsidised or low-wage imports,
to boost domestic employment, or tease a deficit on the balance of payments. Apart from
the revenue that they raise tariffs achieve little good—they reduce the volume of trade
and increase the price of the imported commodity to consumers.
Tariff Barriers: All the restrictions on imports by a government in the form of taxes.
Trade Union: An organisation of workers formed for the purpose of addressing its
members’ interests in respect of wages, benefits, and working conditions.
Unemployment: A situation in which all those who, owing to lack of work, are not working
but either seek work through employment exchanges, intermediaries, friends or relatives
or by making applications to prospective employers or express their willingness or
availability for work under the prevailing condition of work and remunerations.
Urbanisation: Expansion of a metropolitan area, namely the proportion of total population
or area in urban localities or areas (cities and towns), or the increase of this proportion
over time. It can thus represent a level of urban population relative to total population of
the area, or the rate at which the urban proportion is increasing. Both can be expressed in
percentage terms, the rate of change expressed as a percentage per year, decade or period
between censuses.
Worker-Population Ratio: Total number of workers divided by the population. It is
expressed in percentage.
Analysis: Understanding and explaining an economic problem in terms of the various
causes behind it.

Assumed Mean: An approximate value in order to simplify calculation.

Attribute: A characteristic that is qualitative in nature. It cannot be measured.

Bimodal Distribution: A distribution which has two mode values.

Bivariate Distribution: Frequency distribution of two variables.

Census Method: A method of data collection, which requires that observations are taken
on all the individuals in a population.

Chronological Classification: Classification based on time.

Class Frequency: Number of observations in a class.
Class Interval: Difference between the upper and the lower-class limits.

Class Mark: Class midpoint.

Class Midpoint: Middle value of a class. It is the representative value of different

observations in a class. It is equal to (upper class limit + lower class limit)/2.

Classification: Arranging or organising similar things into groups or classes.

Consumer: One who buys goods for one’s own personal needs or for the needs of one’s
family or as a gift to someone.

Constant: A constant is also a quantity used to describe an attribute, but it will not change
during calculation or investigation.

Continuous Variable: A quantitative variable that can take any numerical value.

Cyclicity: Periodicity in data variation with time period of more than one year.

Decile: A partition value that divides the data into ten equal parts.

Discrete Variable: A quantitative variable that takes only certain values. It changes from
one value to another by finite “jumps”. The intermediate values between two adjacent
values are not taken by the variable.

Economics: Study of how people and society choose to employ scarce resources that could
have alternative uses in order to produce various commodities that satisfy their wants and
to distribute them for consumption among various persons and groups in society.

Employee: One who gets paid for a job or for working for another person.
Employer: One who pays another person to do or do some work.
Enumerator: A person who collects the data.
Exclusive Method: A method of classifying observations in which an observation equal to
either the upper-class limit or the lower-class limit of a class is not put in that class but is
put in the class above or below.
Frequency: The number of times an observation occurs in raw data. In a frequency
distribution it means the number of observations in a class.
Frequency Array: A classification of a discrete variable that shows different values of the
variable along with their corresponding frequencies.
Frequency Curve: The graph of a frequency distribution in which class frequencies on Y-
axis are plotted against the values of class marks on X-axis.
Frequency Distribution: A classification of a quantitative variable that shows how different
values of the variable are distributed in different classes along with their corresponding
class frequencies.
Inclusive Method: A method of classifying observations in which an observation equal to
the upper-class limit of a class as well as the lower-class limit is put in that class.
Informant: Individual/unit from whom the desired information is obtained.
Multi Modal Distribution: The distribution that has more than two modes.
Non-Sampling Error: It arises in data collection due to (i) sampling bias, (ii) non-response,
(iii) error in data acquisition.
Observation: A unit of raw data.
Percentiles: A value which divides the data into hundred equal parts so there are 99
percentiles in the data.
Policy: The measure to solve an economic problem.
Population: Population means all the individuals/units for whom the information has to
be sought.
Qualitative Classification: Classification based on quality. For example, classification of
people according to gender, marital status etc.
Qualitative Data: Information or data expressed in terms of qualities.
Quantitative Data: A (often large) set of numbers systematically arranged for conveying
specific information on a subject for better understanding or decision-making.
Questionnaire: A list of questions prepared by an investigator on the subject of enquiry.
The respondent is required to answer the questions.
Random Sampling: It is a method of sampling in which the representative set of informants
is selected in a way that every individual is given equal chance of being selected as an
informant.
Range: Difference between the maximum and the minimum values of a variable.
Relative Frequency: Frequency of a class as proportion or percentage of total frequency.
Sample Survey Method: A method, where observations are obtained on a representative
set of individuals (the sample), selected from the population.
Sampling Error: It is the numerical difference between the estimate from the sample and
the corresponding true value of the parameter from the population.
Scarcity: It means the lack of availability.
Seasonality: Periodicity in data variation with time period less than one year.
Seller: One who sells goods for profit.
Service Provider: One who provides a service to others for a payment.
Spatial Classification: Classification based on geographical location.
Statistics: The method of collecting, organising, presenting and analysing data to draw
meaningful conclusion. Further, it also means data.
Structured Questionnaire: Structured Questionnaire consists of “closed ended” questions,
for which alternative possible answers to choose from are provided.
Tally Marking: The counting of observations in a class using tally (/) marks. Tallies are
grouped in fives.
Time Series: Data arranged in chronological order or two variable data where one of the
variables is time.
Univariate Distribution: The frequency distribution of one variable.
Variable: A variable is a quantity used to measure an “attribute” (such as height, weight,
number etc.) of some thing or some persons, which can take different values in different
situations.
Weighted Average: The average is calculated by providing the different data points with
different weights.
Adam Smith (1723 – 1790): Regarded as the father of modern Economics. Author of
Wealth of Nations.
Aggregate monetary resources: Broad money without time deposits of post office savings
organisation (M3).
Automatic stabilisers: Under certain spending and tax rules, expenditures that
automatically increase or taxes that automatically decrease when economic conditions
worsen, therefore, stabilising the economy automatically.
Autonomous change: A change in the values of variables in a macroeconomic model
caused by a factor exogenous to the model.
Autonomous expenditure multiplier: The ratio of increase (or decrease) in aggregate
output or income to an increase (or decrease) in autonomous spending.
Balance of payments: A set of accounts that summarise a country’s transactions with the
rest of the world.
Balanced budget: A budget in which taxes are equal to government spending.
Balanced budget multiplier: The change in equilibrium output that results from a unit
increase or decrease in both taxes and government spending.
Bank rate: The rate of interest payable by commercial banks to RBI if they borrow money
from the latter in case of a shortage of reserves.
Barter exchange: Exchange of commodities without the mediation of money.
Base year: The year whose prices are used to calculate the real GDP.
Bonds: A paper bearing the promise of a stream of future monetary returns over a
specified period of time. Issued by firms or governments for borrowing money from the
public.
Broad money: Narrow money + time deposits held by commercial banks and post office
savings organisation.
Capital: Factor of production which has itself been produced and which is not generally
entirely consumed in the production process.
Capital gain/loss: Increase or decrease in the value of wealth of a bondholder due to an
appreciation or reduction in the price of her bonds in the bond market.
Capital goods: Goods which are bought not for meeting immediate need of the consumer
but for producing other goods.
Capitalist country or economy: A country in which most of the production is carried out
by capitalist firms.
Capitalist firms: These are firms with the following features (a) private ownership of means
of production (b) production for the market (c) sale and purchase of labour at a price which
is called the wage rate (d) continuous accumulation of capital.
Cash Reserve Ratio (CRR): The fraction of their deposits which the commercial banks are
required to keep with RBI.
Circular flow of income: The concept that the aggregate value of goods and services
produced in an economy is going around in a circular way. Either as factor payments, or as
expenditures on goods and services, or as the value of aggregate production.
Consumer durables: Consumption goods which do not get exhausted immediately but last
over a period of time are consumer durables.
Consumer Price Index (CPI): Percentage change in the weighted average price level. We
take the prices of a given basket of consumption goods.
Consumption goods: Goods which are consumed by the ultimate consumers or meet the
immediate need of the consumer are called consumption goods. It may include services as
well.
Corporate tax: Taxes imposed on the income made by the corporations (or private sector
firms).
Currency deposit ratio: The ratio of money held by the public in currency to that held as
deposits in commercial banks.
Deficit financing through central bank borrowing: Financing of budget deficit by the
government through borrowing money from the central bank. Leads to increase in money
supply in an economy and may result in inflation.
Depreciation: A decrease in the price of the domestic currency in terms of the foreign
currency under floating exchange rates. It corresponds to an increase in the exchange rate.
Depreciation: Wear and tear or depletion which capital stock undergoes over a period of
time.
Devaluation: The decrease in the price of domestic currency under pegged exchange rates
through official action.
Double coincidence of wants: A situation where two economic agents have
complementary demand for each other’s’ surplus production.
Economic agents or units’: Economic units or economic agents are those individuals or
institutions which take economic decisions.
Effective demand principle: If the supply of final goods is assumed to be infinitely elastic
at constant price over a short period of time, aggregate output is determined solely by the
value of aggregate demand. This is called effective demand principle.
Entrepreneurship: The task of organising, coordinating and risk-taking during production.
Ex ante consumption: The value of planned consumption.
Ex ante investment: The value of planned investment.
Ex ante: The planned value of a variable as opposed to its actual value.
Ex post: The actual or realised value of a variable as opposed to its planned value.
Expenditure method of calculating national income: Method of calculating the national
income by measuring the aggregate value of final expenditure for the goods and services
produced in an economy over a period of time.
Exports: Sale of goods and services by the domestic country to the rest of the world.
External sector: It refers to the economic transaction of the domestic country with the rest
of the world.
Externalities: Those benefits or harms accruing to another person, firm or any other entity
which occur because some person, firm or any other entity may be involved in an economic
activity. If someone is causing benefits or good externality to another, the latter does not
pay the former. If someone is inflicting harm or bad externality to another, the former does
not compensate the latter.
Fiat money: Money with no intrinsic value.
Final goods: Those goods which do not undergo any further transformation in the
production process.
Firms’: Economic units which carry out production of goods and services and employ
factors of production.
Fiscal policy: The policy of the government regarding the level of government spending
and transfers and the tax structure.
Fixed exchange rate: An exchange rate between the currencies of two or more countries
that is fixed at some level and adjusted only infrequently.
Flexible/floating exchange rate: An exchange rate determined by the forces of demand
and supply in the foreign exchange market without central bank intervention.
Flows: Variables which are defined over a period of time.
Foreign exchange: Foreign currency, all currencies other than the domestic currency of a
given country.
Foreign exchange reserves: Foreign assets held by the central bank of the country.
Four factors of production: Land, Labour, Capital and Entrepreneurship. Together these
help in the production of goods and services.
GDP Deflator: Ratio of nominal to real GDP.
Government expenditure multiplier: The numerical coefficient showing the size of the
increase in output resulting from each unit increase in government spending.
Government: The state, which maintains law and order in the country, imposes taxes and
fines, makes laws and promotes the economic wellbeing of the citizens.
Great Depression: The time period of 1930s (started with the stock market crashing New
York in 1929) which saw the output in the developed countries fall and unemployment rise
by huge amounts.
Gross Domestic Product (GDP): Aggregate value of goods and services produced within
the domestic territory of a country. It includes the replacement investment of the
depreciation of capital stock.
Gross fiscal deficit: The excess of total government expenditure over revenue receipts and
capital receipts that do not create debt.
Gross investment: Addition to capital stock which also includes replacement for the wear
and tear which the capital stock undergoes.
Gross National Product (GNP): GDP + Net Factor Income from Abroad. In other words, GNP
includes the aggregate income made by all citizens of the country, whereas GDP includes
incomes by foreigners within the domestic economy and excludes incomes earned by the
citizens in a foreign economy.
Gross primary deficit: The fiscal deficit minus interest payments.
High powered money: Money injected by the monetary authority in the economy. Consists
mainly of currency.
Households: The families or individuals who supply factors of production to the firms and
which buy the goods and services from the firms.
Imports: Purchase of goods and services by the domestic country to the rest of the world.
Income method of calculating national income: Method of calculating national income by
measuring the aggregate value of final factor payments made (= income) in an economy
over a period of time.
Interest: Payment for services which are provided by capital.
Intermediate goods: Goods which are used up during the process of production of other
goods.
Inventories: The unsold goods, unused raw materials or semi-finished goods which a firm
carries from a year to the next.
John Maynard Keynes (1883 – 1946): Arguably the founder of Macroeconomics as a
separate discipline.
Labour: Human physical effort used in production.
Land: Natural resources used in production – either fixed or consumed.
Legal tender: Money issued by the monetary authority or the government which cannot
be refused by anyone.
Lender of last resort: The function of the monetary authority of a country in which it
provides guarantee of solvency to commercial banks in a situation of liquidity crisis or bank
runs.
Liquidity trap: A situation of very low rate of interest in the economy where every
economic agent expects the interest rate to rise in future and consequently bond prices to
fall, causing capital loss. Everybody holds her wealth in money and speculative demand for
money is infinite.
Macroeconomic model: Presenting the simplified version of the functioning of a
macroeconomy through either analytical reasoning or mathematical, graphical
representation.
Managed floating: A system in which the central bank allows the exchange rate to be
determined by market forces but intervene at times to influence the rate.
Marginal propensity to consume: The ratio of additional consumption to additional
income.
Medium of exchange: The principal function of money for facilitating commodity
exchanges.
Money multiplier: The ratio of total money supply to the stock of high-powered money in
an economy.
Narrow money: Currency notes, coins and demand deposits held by the public in
commercial banks.
National disposable income: Net National Product at market prices + Other Current
Transfers from the rest of the World.
Net Domestic Product (NDP): Aggregate value of goods and services produced within the
domestic territory of a country which does not include the depreciation of capital stock.
Net interest payments made by households: Interest payment made by the households
to the firms – interest payments received by the households.
Net investment: Addition to capital stock; unlike gross investment, it does not include the
replacement for the depletion of capital stock.
Net National Product (NNP) (at market price): GNP – depreciation.
NNP (at factor cost) or National Income (NI): NNP at market price – (Indirect taxes –
Subsidies).
Nominal exchange rate: The number of units of domestic currency one must give-up to
get a unit of foreign currency; the price of foreign currency in terms of domestic currency.
Nominal (GDP): GDP evaluated at current market prices.
Non-tax payments: Payments made by households to the firms or the government as non-
tax obligations such as fines.
Open market operation: Purchase or sales of government securities by the central bank
from the general public in the bond market in a bid to increase or decrease the money
supply in the economy.
Paradox of thrift: As people become thriftier, they end up saving less or same as before in
aggregate.
Parametric shift: Shift of a graph due to a change in the value of a parameter.
Personal Disposable Income (PDI): PI – Personal tax payments – non-tax payments.
Personal Income (PI): NI – Undistributed profits – Net interest payments made by
households – Corporate tax + Transfer payments to the households from the government
and firms.
Personal tax payments: Taxes which are imposed on individuals, such as income tax.
Planned change in inventories: Change in the stock of inventories which has occurred in a
planned way.
Present value (of a bond): That amount of money which, if kept today in an interest
earning project, would generate the same income as the sum promised by a bond over its
lifetime.
Private income: Factor income from net domestic product accruing to the private sector +
National debt interest + Net factor income from abroad + Current transfers from
government + Other net transfers from the rest of the world.
Product method of calculating national income: Method of calculating the national
income by measuring the aggregate value of production taking place in an economy over
a period of time.
Profit: Payment for the services which are provided by entrepreneurship.
Public good: Goods or services that are collectively consumed; it is not possible to exclude
anyone from enjoying their benefits and one person’s consumption does not reduce that
available to others.
Purchasing power parity: A theory of international exchange which holds that the price of
similar goods in different countries is the same.
Real exchange rate: The relative price of foreign goods in terms of domestic goods.
Real GDP: GDP evaluated at a set of constant prices.
Rent: Payment for services which are provided by land (natural resources).
Reserve deposit ratio: The fraction of their total deposits which commercial banks keep as
reserves.
Revaluation: A decrease in the exchange rate in a pegged exchange rate system which
makes the foreign currency cheaper in terms of the domestic currency.
Revenue deficit: The excess of revenue expenditure over revenue receipts.
Ricardian equivalence: The theory that consumers are forward looking and anticipate that
government borrowing today will mean a tax increase in the future to repay the debt, and
will adjust consumption accordingly so that it will have the same effect on the economy as
a tax increase today.
Speculative demand: Demand for money as a store of wealth.
Statutory Liquidity Ratio (SLR): The fraction of their total demand and time deposits which
the commercial banks are required by RBI to invest in specified liquid assets.
Sterilisation: Intervention by the monetary authority of a country in the money market to
keep the money supply stable against exogenous or sometimes external shocks such as an
increase in foreign exchange inflow.
Stocks: Those variables which are defined at a point of time.
Store of value: Wealth can be stored in the form of money for future use. This function of
money is referred to as store of value.
Transaction demand: Demand for money for carrying out transactions.
Transfer payments to households from the government and firms: Transfer payments are
payments which are made without any counterpart of services received by the payer. For
examples, gifts, scholarships, pensions.
Undistributed profits: That part of profits earned by the private and government owned
firms which are not distributed among the factors of production.
Unemployment rate: This may be defined as the number of people who were unable to
find a job (though they were looking for jobs), as a ratio of total number of people who
were looking for jobs.
Unit of account: The role of money as a yardstick for measuring and comparing values of
different commodities.
Unplanned change in inventories: Change in the stock of inventories which has occurred
in an unexpected way.
Value added: Net contribution made by a firm in the process of production. It is defined
as, Value of production – Value of intermediate goods used.
Wage: Payment for the services which are rendered by labour.
Wholesale Price Index (WPI): Percentage change in the weighted average price level. We
take the prices of a given basket of goods which is traded in bulk.
Average cost: Total cost per unit of output.
Average fixed cost: Total fixed cost per unit of output.
Average product: Output per unit of the variable input.
Average revenue: Total revenue per unit of output.
Average variable cost: Total variable cost per unit of output.
Break-even point: is the point on the supply curve at which a firm earns normal profit.
Budget line: consists of all bundles which cost exactly equal to the consumer’s income.
Budget set: is the collection of all bundles that the consumer can buy with her income at
the prevailing market prices.
Constant returns to scale: are a property of production function that holds when a
proportional increase in all inputs results in an increase in output by the same proportion.
Cost function: For every level of output, it shows the minimum cost for the firm.
Decreasing returns to scale: is a property of production function that holds when a
proportional increase in all inputs results in an increase in output by less than the
proportion.
Demand curve: is a graphical representation of the demand function. It gives the quantity
demanded by the consumer at each price.
Demand function: A consumer’s demand function for a good gives the amount of the good
that the consumer chooses at different levels of its price when the other things remain
unchanged.
Duopoly: is a market with just two firms.
Equilibrium: is a situation where the plans of all consumers and firms in the market match.
Excess demand: If at a price market, demand exceeds market supply, it is said that excess
demand exists in the market at that price.
Excess supply: If at a price market, supply is greater than market demand, it is said that
there is excess supply in the market at that price.
Firm’s supply curve: shows the levels of output that a profit maximising firm will choose
to produce at different values of the market price.
Fixed input: An input which cannot be varied in the short run is called a fixed input.
Income effect: The change in the optimal quantity of a good when the purchasing power
changes consequent upon a change in the price of the good is called the income effect.
Increasing returns to scale: is a property of production function that holds when a
proportional increase in all inputs results in an increase in output by more than the
proportion.
Indifference curve: is the locus of all points among which the consumer is indifferent.
Inferior good: A good for which the demand decreases with increase in the income of the
consumer is called an inferior good.
Isoquant: is the set of all possible combinations of the two inputs that yield the same
maximum possible level of output.
Law of demand: If a consumer’s demand for a good move in the same direction as the
consumer’s income, the consumer’s demand for that good must be inversely related to the
price of the good.
Law of diminishing marginal product: If we keep increasing the employment of an input
with other inputs fixed then eventually a point will be reached after which the marginal
product of that input will start falling.
Law of variable proportions: The marginal product of a factor input initially rises with its
employment level when the level of employment of the input is low. But after reaching a
certain level of employment, it starts falling.
Long run: refers to a time period in which all factors of production can be varied.
Marginal cost: Change in total cost per unit of change in output.
Marginal product: Change in output per unit of change in the input when all other inputs
are held constant.
Marginal revenue: Change in total revenue per unit change in sale of output.
Marginal revenue product (MRP) of a factor: Marginal Revenue times Marginal Product
of the factor.
Market supply curve: shows the output levels that firms in the market produce in
aggregate corresponding to different values of the market price.
Monopolistic competition: is a market structure where there exit a very large number of
sellers selling differentiated but substitutable products.
Monopoly: A market structure in which there is a single seller and there are sufficient
restrictions to prevent any other seller from entering the market.
Monotonic preferences: A consumer’s preferences are monotonic if and only if between
any two bundles, the consumer prefers the bundle which has more of at least one of the
goods and no less of the other good as compared to the other bundle.
Normal good: A good for which the demand increases with increase in the income of the
consumer is called a normal good.
Normal profit: The profit level that is just enough to cover the explicit costs and
opportunity costs of the firm is called the normal profit.
Oligopoly: A market consisting of more than one (but few) sellers is called an oligopoly.
Opportunity cost: of some activity is the gain foregone from the second-best activity.
Perfect competition: A market environment wherein (i) all firms in the market produce the
same good and (ii) buyers and sellers are price-takers.
Price ceiling: The government-imposed upper limit on the price of a good or service is
called price ceiling.
Price elasticity of demand: for a good is defined as the percentage change in demand for
the good divided by the percentage change in its price.
Price elasticity of supply: is the percentage change in quantity supplied due to a one per
cent change in the market price of the good.
Price floor: The government-imposed lower limit on the price that may be charged for a
particular good or service is called price floor.
Price line: is a horizontal straight line that shows the relationship between market price
and a firm’s output level.
Production function: shows the maximum quantity of output that can be produced by
using different combinations of the inputs.
Profit: is the difference between a firm’s total revenue and its total cost of production.
Short run: refers to a time period in which some factors of production cannot be varied.
Shut down point: In the short run, it is the minimum point of AVC curve and in the long
run, it is the minimum point of LRAC curve.
Substitution effect: The change in the optimal quantity of a good when its price changes
and the consumer’s income is adjusted so that she can just buy the bundle that she was
buying before the price change is called the substitution effect.
Super-normal profit: Profit that a firm earns over and above the normal profit is called the
super-normal profit.
Total cost: is the sum of total fixed cost and total variable cost.
Total fixed cost: The cost that a firm incurs to employ fixed inputs is called the total fixed
cost.
Total physical product: Same as the total product.
Total product: If we vary a single input keeping all other inputs constant, then for different
levels of employment of that input we get different levels of output from the production
function. This relationship between the variable input and output is referred to as total
product.
Total return: Same as the total product.
Total revenue: is equal to the market price of the good multiplied by the quantity of the
good sold by a firm.
Total revenue curve: shows the relationship between firm’s total revenue and firm’s
output level.
Total variable cost: The cost that a firm incurs to employ variable inputs is called the total
variable cost.
Value of marginal product (VMP) of a factor: Price times Marginal Product of the factor.
Variable input: An input the amount of which can be varied.
 Polity
Apartheid: The official policy of racial separation and ill treatment of blacks followed by
the government of South Africa between 1948 and 1989.
Clause: A distinct section of a document.
Constituent Assembly: An assembly of people’s representatives that writes a constitution
for a country.
Constitution: Supreme law of a country, containing fundamental rules governing the
politics and society in a country.
Constitutional amendment: A change in the constitution made by the supreme legislative
body in a country.
Draft: A preliminary version of a legal document.
Philosophy: The most fundamental principles underlying one’s thoughts and actions.
Preamble: An introductory statement in a constitution which states the reasons and
guiding values of the constitution.
Treason: The offence of attempting to overthrow the government of the state to which
the offender owes allegiance.
Tryst: A meeting or meeting place that has been agreed upon.
Code of Conduct: A set of norms and guidelines to be followed by political parties and
contesting candidates during election time.
Constituency: Voters in a geographical area who elect a representative to the legislative
bodies.
Incumbent: The current holder of a political office. Usually, the choice for the voters in
elections is between the incumbent party or candidate and those who oppose them.
Level playing field: Condition in which all parties and candidates contesting in an election
have equal opportunities to appeal for votes and to carry out election campaign.
Rigging: Fraud and malpractices indulged by a party or candidate to increase its votes. It
includes stuffing ballot boxes by a few persons using the votes of others; recording multiple
votes by the same person; and bribing or coercing polling officers to favour a candidate.
Turnout: The percentage of eligible voters who cast their votes in an election.
Coalition government: A government formed by an alliance of two or more political
parties, usually when no single party enjoys majority support of the members in a
legislature.
Executive: A body of persons having authority to initiate major policies, make decisions
and implement them on the basis of the Constitution and laws of the country.
Government: A set of institutions that have the power to make, implement and interpret
laws so as to ensure an orderly life. In its broad sense, government administers and
supervises over citizens and resources of a country.
Judiciary: An institution empowered to administer justice and provide a mechanism for
the resolution of legal disputes. All the courts in the country are collectively referred to as
judiciary.
Legislature: An assembly of people’s representatives with the power to enact laws for a
country. In addition to enacting laws, legislatures have authority to raise taxes and adopt
the budget and other money bills.
Office Memorandum: A communication issued by an appropriate authority stating the
policy or decision of the government.
Political Institution: A set of procedures for regulating the conduct of government and
political life in the country.
Reservations: A policy that declares some positions in government employment and
educational institutions ‘reserved’ for people and communities who have been
discriminated against, are disadvantaged and backward.
State: Political association occupying a definite territory, having an organised government
and possessing power to make domestic and foreign policies. Governments may change,
but the state continues. In common speech, the terms country, nation and state are used
as synonyms.
Amnesty International: An international organisation of volunteers who campaign for
human rights. This organisation brings out independent reports on the violation of human
rights all over the world.
Claim: Demand for legal or moral entitlements a person makes on fellow citizens, society
or the government.
Covenant: Promise made by individuals, groups or countries to uphold a rule or principle.
It is legally binding on the signatories to the agreement or statement.
Dalit: A person who belongs to the castes which were considered low and not touchable
by others. Dalits are also known by other names such as the Scheduled Castes, Depressed
Classes etc.
Ethnic group: An ethnic group is a human population whose members usually identify with
each other on the basis of a common ancestry. People of an ethnic group are united by
cultural practices, religious beliefs and historical memories.
Traffic: Selling and buying of men, women or children for immoral purposes.
Summon: An order issued by a court asking a person to appear before it.
Writ: A formal document containing an order of the court to the government issued only
by High Court or the Supreme Court.
Ethnic: A social division based on shared culture. People belonging to the same ethnic
group believe in their common descent because of similarities of physical type or of culture
or both. They need not always have the same religion or nationality.
Majoritarianism: A belief that the majority community should be able to rule a country in
whichever way it wants, by disregarding the wishes and needs of the minority.
Civil war: A violent conflict between opposing groups within a country that becomes so
intense that it appears like a war.
Prudential: Based on prudence, or on careful calculation of gains and losses. Prudential
decisions are usually contrasted with decisions based purely on moral considerations.
Jurisdiction: The area over which someone has legal authority. The area may be defined in
terms of geographical boundaries or in terms of certain kinds of subjects.
Coalition government: A government formed by the coming together of at least two
political parties. Usually partners in a coalition form a political alliance and adopt a
common programme.
Civil Rights Movement in the USA (1954-1968): refers to a set of events and reform
movements aimed at abolishing legal racial discrimination against African-Americans. Led
by Martin Luther King Jr., this movement practiced non-violent methods of civil
disobedience against racially discriminatory laws and practices.
African-American: Afro-American, Black American, or Black are the terms used to refer
mainly to the descendants of Africans who were brought into America as slaves between
the 17th century and early 19th century.
The Black Power: movement emerged in 1966 and lasted till 1975, which was a more
militant anti-racist movement, advocating even violence if necessary to end racism in the
US.
Homogeneous society: A society that has similar kinds of people, especially where there
are no significant ethnic differences.
Migrant: Anybody who shifts from one region or country to another region within a
country or to another country, usually for work or other economic opportunities.
Sexual division of labour: A system in which all work inside the home is either done by the
women of the family, or organised by them through the domestic helpers.
Feminist: A woman or a man who believes in equal rights and opportunities for women
and men.
Patriarchy: Literally, rule by father, this concept is used to refer to a system that values
men more and gives them power over women.
Family laws: Those laws that deal with family related matters such as marriage, divorce,
adoption, inheritance, etc. In our country, different family laws apply to followers of
different religions.
Urbanisation: Shift of population from rural areas to urban areas. Occupational mobility:
Shift from one occupation to another, usually when a new generation takes up occupations
other than those practiced by their ancestors.
Caste hierarchy: A ladder like formation in which all the caste groups are placed from the
‘highest’ to the ‘lowest’ castes.
Maoists: Those communists who believe in the ideology of Mao, the leader of the Chinese
Revolution. They seek to overthrow the government through an armed revolution so as to
establish the rule of the peasants and workers.
Partisan: A person who is strongly committed to a party, group or faction. Partisanship is
marked by a tendency to take a side and inability to take a balanced view on an issue.
Ruling Party: Political party that runs government.
Defection: Changing party allegiance from the party on which a person got elected (to a
legislative body) to a different party.
Affidavit: A signed document submitted to an officer, where a person makes a sworn
statement regarding her personal information.

Social Science
Universal adult franchise: This is a very important aspect of democratic societies. It means
that all adult (those who are 18 and above) citizens have the right to vote irrespective of
their social or economic backgrounds.
Dignity: This refers to thinking of oneself and other persons as worthy of respect.
Constitution: This is a document that lays down the basic rules and regulations for people
and the government in the country to follow.
Civil Rights Movement: A movement that began in USA in 1950s in which African–
American people demanded equal rights and an end to racial discrimination.
Public: An activity or service that is meant for all people in the country and is mainly
organised by the government. This includes schools, hospitals, telephone services, etc.
People can demand these services and also raise questions about their non-functioning.
Private: An activity or service that is organised by an individual or company for their own
gain.
Medical tourists: This refers to foreigners who come to this country specifically for medical
treatment at hospitals that offer world–class facilities at a lower cost than what they would
have to pay in their own countries.
Communicable diseases: These are diseases that are spread from one person to another
in many ways such as through water, food, air, etc.
OPD: This is the short form for ‘Out Patient Department’. This is where people are first
brought in and treated in a hospital without being admitted to any special ward.
Ethics: Moral principles that influence a person’s behaviour.
Generic names: These are chemical names of the drugs. They help in identifying the
ingredients. They are globally recognised. For example, acetyl salicylic acid is the generic
name of Aspirin.
Constituency: A particular area from which all the voters living there choose their
representatives. This could be, for example, a panchayat ward or an area that chooses an
MLA.
Majority: This is a situation when more than half the number in a group supports a decision
or an idea. This is also called a simple majority.
Opposition: This refers to elected representatives who are not members of the ruling party
and who play the role of questioning government decisions and actions as well as raise
new issues for consideration in the Assembly.
Press Conference: A gathering of journalists from the media who are invited to hear about
and ask questions on a particular issue and are then expected to report on this to the larger
public.
Identity: Identity is a sense of self-awareness of who one is. Typically, a person can have
several identities. For example, a person can be a girl, a sister and a musician.
Double-burden: Literally means a double load. This term is commonly used to describe the
women’s work situation. It has emerged from a recognition that women typically labour
both inside the home (housework) and outside.
Care-giving: Care-giving refers to a range of tasks related to looking after and nurturing.
Besides physical tasks, they also involve a strong emotional aspect.
De-valued: When someone is not given due recognition for a task or job they have done,
they can feel de-valued. For example, if a boy has put in a lot of effort into making a special
birthday gift for his friend and this friend does not say anything about this, then the boy
may feel de-valued.
Stereotype: When we believe that people belonging to particular groups based on religion,
wealth, language are bound to have certain fixed characteristics or can only do a certain
type of work, we create a stereotype. For example, in this chapter, we saw how boys and
girls are made to take certain subjects not because he or she has an aptitude for it, but
because they are either boys or girls. Stereotypes prevent us from looking at people as
unique individuals.
Discrimination: When we do not treat people equally or with respect we are indulging in
discrimination. It happens when people or organisations act on their prejudices.
Discrimination usually takes place when we treat someone differently or make a
distinction.
Violation: When someone forcefully breaks the law or a rule or openly shows disrespect,
we can say that he or she has committed a violation.
Sexual harassment: This refers to physical or verbal behaviour that is of a sexual nature
and against the wishes of a woman.
Publish: This refers to news reports, articles, interviews, stories, etc., that are printed in
newspapers, magazines and books for a wide audience to read.
Censorship: This refers to the powers that government has to disallow media from
publishing or showing certain stories.
Broadcast: In this chapter this word is used to refer to a TV or radio programme that is
widely transmitted.
Public protest: When a large number of people come together and openly state their
opposition to some issue. Organising a rally, starting a signature campaign, blocking roads
etc. are some of the ways in which this is done.
Weekly market: These markets are not daily markets but are to be found at a particular
place on one or maybe two days of the week. These markets most often sell everything
that a household need ranging from vegetables to clothes to utensils.
Mall: This is an enclosed shopping space. This is usually a large building with many floors
that has shops, restaurants and, at times, even a cinema theatre. These shops most often
sell branded products.
Wholesale: This refers to buying and selling in large quantities. Most products, including
vegetables, fruits and flowers have special wholesale markets.
Chain of markets: A series of markets that are connected like links in a chain because
products pass from one market to another.
Ginning mill: A factory where seeds are removed from cotton bolls. The cotton is pressed
into bales to be sent for spinning into thread.
Exporter: A person who sells goods abroad.
Profit: The amount that is left or gained from earnings after deducting all the costs. If the
costs are more than the earnings, it would lead to a loss.
Arbitrary: When nothing is fixed and is instead left to one’s judgment or choice. This can
be used to refer to rules that are not fixed, or decisions that have no basis etc.
Ideal: A goal or a principle in its most excellent or perfect form.
Indian national movement: The Indian national movement emerged in nineteenth century
India and saw thousands of men and women coming together to fight British rule. This
culminated in India’s independence in 1947. You will learn about this in greater detail in
your history textbook this year.
Polity: A society that has an organised political structure. India is a democratic polity.
Sovereign: In the context of this chapter, it refers to an independent people.
Human Trafficking: The practice of the illegal buying and selling of different commodities
across national borders. In the context of Fundamental Rights discussed in this chapter, it
refers to illegal trade in human beings, particularly women and children.
Tyranny: The cruel and unjust use of power or authority.
Coercion: To force someone to do something. In the context of this chapter, it refers to the
force used by a legal authority like the State.
Freedom to interpret: The independence that all persons shall have to understand things
in their own way. In the context of this chapter, it refers to a person’s liberty to develop
their own understanding and meaning of the religion they practice.
Intervene: In the context of this chapter, it refers to the State’s efforts to influence a
particular matter in accordance with the principles of the Constitution.
Approval: To give one’s consent to and be favourable towards something. In the context
of this chapter, it refers both to the formal consent (through elected representatives) that
Parliament has as well as the fact that it needs to continue to enjoy the people’s trust.
Coalition: A temporary alliance of groups or parties. In this chapter, it refers to the alliance
formed by political parties after elections when no party has been able to get adequate
seats to form a clear majority.
Unresolved: Situations in which there are no easy solutions to problems.
Criticise: To find fault with or disapprove of a person or thing. In the context of this chapter,
it refers to citizens finding fault with the functioning of government.
Evolution: Process of development from a simple to a complex form and is often used to
discuss the development of a species of plants or animals. In the context of this chapter, it
refers to the way in which protecting women against domestic violence developed from
an urgently-felt need to a new law that can be enforced throughout the country.
Sedition: This applies to anything that the government might consider as stirring up
resistance or rebellion against it. In such cases, the government does not need absolute
evidence in order to arrest persons. Under the Sedition Act of 1870, the British had a very
broad interpretation of what constituted sedition, and what this meant was that they could
arrest and detain any person they wanted under this Act. The nationalists considered this
law arbitrary because persons were arrested for a variety of reasons that were seldom
clarified beforehand as well as because those arrested were often kept in jail without a
trial.
Repressive: To control severely in order to prevent free and natural development or
expression. In the context of this chapter, it refers to laws that brutally control persons and
often prevent them from exercising their Fundamental Rights including Right to Speech
and Assembly.
Acquit: This refers to the court declaring that a person is not guilty of the crime which
he/she was tried for by the court.
To Appeal: In the context of this chapter this refers to a petition filed before a higher court
to hear a case that has already been decided by a lower court.
Compensation: In the context of this chapter this refers to money given to make amends
for an injury or a loss.
Eviction: In the context of this chapter this refers to the removal of persons from land/
homes that they are currently living in.
Violation: In the context of this chapter, it refers both to the act of breaking a law as well
as to the breach or infringement of Fundamental Rights.
Accused: In the context of this chapter this refers to the person who is tried by a court for
a crime.
Cognizable: In the context of this chapter this refers to an offence for which the police may
arrest a person without the permission of the court.
Cross-examine: In the context of this chapter this refers to the questioning of a witness
who has already been examined by the opposing side in order to determine the veracity
of his/her testimony.
Detention: In the context of this chapter this refers to the act of being kept in illegal
custody by the police.
Impartial: The act of being fair or just and not favouring one side over another.
Offence: Any act that the law defines as a crime.
To be charged of a crime: This refers to the trial judge informing the accused, in writing,
of the offence for which he/she will face trial.
Witness: In the context of this chapter this refers to the person who is called upon in court
to provide a first-hand account of what he/she has seen, heard or knows.
Hierarchy: A graded system or arrangement of persons or things. Usually, persons at the
bottom of the hierarchy are those who have the least power. The caste system is a
hierarchical system and Dalits are considered to be at the lowest end.
Ghettoization: A ghetto is an area or locality that is populated largely by members of a
particular community. Ghettoization refers to the process that leads to such a situation.
This may occur due to various social, cultural and economic reasons. Fear or hostility may
also compel a community to group together as they feel more secure living amongst their
own. Often a ‘ghettoised’ community has few options of moving out, which may lead to
them becoming alienated from the rest of the society.
Mainstream: Literally this refers to the main current of a river or stream. In this chapter it
is used to refer to a cultural context in which the customs and practices that are followed
are those of the dominant community. In connection with this, mainstream is also used to
refer to those people or communities that are considered to be at the centre of a society,
i.e., often the powerful or dominant group.
Displaced: In the context of this chapter this refers to people who are forced or compelled
to move from their homes for big development projects including dams, mining etc.
Militarised: An area where the presence of the armed forces is considerable.
Malnourished: A person who does not get adequate nutrition or food.
Assertive: An assertive person or group is one that can express themselves and their views
strongly.
Confront: To come face to face or to challenge someone or something. In the context of
this chapter, this refers to groups challenging their marginalisation.
Dispossessed: To possess is to own something and to be dispossessed is to have to give up
ownership or to give up authority.
Ostracise: This means to exclude or banish an individual or a group. In the context of this
chapter, it refers to a social boycott of an individual and his family.
Morally reprehensible: This refers to an act that violates all norms of decency and dignity
that a society believes in. It usually refers to a hideous and repugnant act that goes against
all the values that a society has accepted.
Policy: A stated course of action that provides direction for the future, sets goals to be
achieved or lays out principles or guidelines to be followed and acted upon. In this chapter,
we have referred to government policies. But other institutions like schools, companies,
etc. also have policies.
Sanitation: Provision of facilities for the safe disposal of human urine and faeces. This is
done by construction of toilets and pipes to carry the sewerage and treatment of waste
water. This is necessary so as to avoid contamination.
Company: A company is a form of business set up by people or by the government. Those
that are promoted and owned by individuals or groups are called private companies. For
example, Tata Steel is a private company whereas Indian Oil is a company run by the
government.
Universal access: Universal access is achieved when everyone has physical access to a good
and can also afford it. For instance, a tap connection at home will allow physical access to
water, and if the price of water is low or is provided free, everyone will be able to afford
it.
Basic needs: Primary requirements of food, water, shelter, sanitation, healthcare and
education necessary for survival.
Consumer: An individual who buys goods for personal use and not for resale.
Producer: A person or organisation that produces goods for sale in the market. At times,
the producer keeps a part of the produce for his own use, like a farmer.
Investment: Money spent to purchase new machinery or buildings or training so as to be
able to increase/ modernise production in the future.
Workers’ unions: An association of workers. Workers’ unions are common in factories and
offices, but might be also found among other types of workers, say domestic workers’
unions. The leaders of the union bargain and negotiate with the employer on behalf of its
members. The issues include wages, work rules, rules governing hiring, firing and
promotion of workers, benefits and workplace safety.

History
Travelling: Going or being transported from place to place.
Manuscript: The original copy of a book or article before it is printed.
Inscription: A piece of writing written or cut on or in something, especially as a record of
an achievement or in order to honour someone.
Archaeology: The study of the buildings, graves, tools, and other objects that belonged to
people who lived in the past, in order to learn about their culture and society.
Historian: Someone who studies or writes about events in history.
Source: The place something comes from or starts at, or the cause of something.
Decipherment: Reading untidy or careless writing.
Hunter-gatherer: Hunter-gatherers were people who lived by hunting and collecting food
rather than by farming. There are still groups of hunter-gatherers living in some parts of
the world.
Site: A place where something is, was, or will be built, or where something happened, is
happening, or will happen.
Habitation: Habitation is the activity of living somewhere.
Factory: A building or set of buildings where large amounts of goods are made using
machines.
Palaeolithic: Relating to or denoting the early phase of the Stone Age, lasting about 2.5
million years, when primitive stone implements were used.
Mesolithic: Relating to or denoting the middle part of the Stone Age, between the
Palaeolithic and Neolithic.
Microliths: a small Mesolithic flint tool which was made from a blade and formed part of
hafted tools.
Domestication: The process of bringing animals or plants under human control in order to
provide food, power, or company.
Farmers: Someone who owns or takes care of a farm.
Herders: A person who takes care of a large group of animals of the same type
Neolithic: The Neolithic period of history began around 10,000 BC, when humans began to
make stone tools, grow their food, and live-in permanent communities.
Burials: The act of putting a dead body into the ground, or the ceremony connected with
this.
Citadel: A strong castle in or near a city, where people can shelter from danger, especially
during a war.
Ruler: A person exercising government or dominion.
Scribe: A person who copies out documents, especially one employed to do this before
printing was invented.
Craftsperson: Someone who makes beautiful or practical objects using their hands
Seal: A device or substance that is used to join two things together so as to prevent them
from coming apart or to prevent anything from passing between them.
Specialist: Someone whose training, education, or experience makes them an expert in a
particular subject.
Raw material: The basic material from which a product is made.
Plough: a large farming tool with blades that digs the soil in fields so that seeds can be
planted.
Irrigation: The process of bringing water to land through a system of pipes, ditches etc in
order to make crops grow.
Veda: Any of the four collections forming the earliest body of Indian scripture, consisting
of the Rig Veda, Sama Veda, Yajur Veda, and Atharva Veda, which codified the ideas and
practices of Vedic religion and laid down the basis of classical Hinduism. They were
probably composed between 1500 and 700 BC, and contain hymns, philosophy, and
guidance on ritual.
Hymn: A religious song or poem of praise to God or a god.
Chariot: In ancient times, chariots were fast-moving vehicles with two wheels that were
pulled by horses.
Slave: Someone who belongs by law to another person as their property and has to obey
them and work for them.
Megalith: A large stone, sometimes forming part of a group or circle, thought to have been
important to people in the Stone Age for social or religious reasons.
Skeletal: Of or like a skeleton
Varna: Any of the four Hindu castes; Brahman, Kshatriya, Vaisya, or Sudra.
Fortification: Strong walls, towers, etc. that are built to protect a place.
Transplantation: The act of moving something from one place to another.
Democracy: the belief in freedom and equality between people, or a system of
government based on this belief, in which power is either held by elected representatives
or directly by the people themselves.
Prakrit: Any of the ancient or medieval vernacular dialects of northern and central India
that existed alongside or were derived from Sanskrit.
Upanishad: Each of a series of Hindu sacred treatises written in Sanskrit c.800–200 BC,
expounding the Vedas in predominantly mystical and monistic terms.
Atman: The spiritual life principle of the universe, especially when regarded as immanent
in the individual's real self.
Ahimsa: A concept of non-injury, compassion, and non-violence that is practised in Indian
religions, especially Jainism.
Sangha: The Buddhist monastic order, including monks, nuns, and novices.
Bhikkhu: A Buddhist monk or devotee.
Vihara: A Buddhist temple or monastery.
Monastery: A building or buildings occupied by a community of monks living under
religious vows.
Ashrama: Any of the four stages of an ideal life, ascending from the status of pupil to the
total renunciation of the world.
Empire: A number of countries ruled by one person or government.
Province: one of the areas that a country or empire is divided into as part of the
organization of its government, which often has some control over its own laws.
Dhamma: the nature of reality regarded as a universal truth taught by the Buddha; the
teaching of Buddhism.
Messenger: someone who takes a message or documents from one person to another.
Sangam: A confluence of rivers, especially that of the Ganges and Jumna at Allahabad.
Trader: A person who buys and sells goods, currency, or shares.
Route: A way or course taken in getting from a starting point to a destination.
Mahayana: One of the two major traditions of Buddhism, now practised especially in
China, Tibet, Japan, and Korea. The tradition emerged around the 1st century AD and is
typically concerned with personal spiritual practice and the ideal of the bodhisattva.
Theravada: The more conservative of the two major traditions of Buddhism (the other
being Mahayana), which developed from Hinayana Buddhism. It is practised mainly in Sri
Lanka, Burma (Myanmar), Thailand, Cambodia, and Laos.
Bodhisattva: (in Mahayana Buddhism) a person who is able to reach nirvana but delays
doing so through compassion for suffering beings.
Pilgrim: a person who makes a journey, often a long and difficult one, to a special place for
religious reasons.
Bhakti: Devotional worship directed to one supreme deity, usually Vishnu (especially in his
incarnations as Rama and Krishna) or Shiva, by whose grace salvation may be attained by
all regardless of sex, caste, or class. It is followed by the majority of Hindus today.
Genealogy: (the study of) the history of the past and present members of a family or
families.
Stupa: A dome-shaped building erected as a Buddhist shrine.
Painting: a picture made using paint.
Epic: A long poem, typically one derived from ancient oral tradition, narrating the deeds
and adventures of heroic or legendary figures or the past history of a nation.
Purana: any of a class of Sanskrit writings not included in the Vedas, characteristically
recounting the birth and deeds of Hindu gods and the creation, destruction, or recreation
of the universe.
Jati: A caste or subcaste.
Region: An area, especially part of a country or the world having definable characteristics
but not always fixed boundaries.
Periodisation: The act of dividing a period of time into shorter periods, or one of these
divisions.
Garrison: A group of soldiers living in and defending a particular place.
Mongols: The Mongols were an Asian people who, led by Genghis Khan and Kublai Khan,
took control of large areas of China and Central Asia in the 12th and 13th centuries A. D.
Mughal: A member of the Muslim dynasty of Indian emperors established by Baber in
1526.
Jagir: A grant of the public revenues of a district in northern India or Pakistan to a person
with power to collect and enjoy them and to administer the government in the district.
Primogeniture: the legal right of an eldest son to get his father’s property after his father
dies.
Coparcenary: A form of joint ownership of property, esp. joint heirship.
Zamindar: A landowner, especially one who leases his land to tenant farmers.
Urbanisation: the process by which more and more people leave the countryside to live in
cities.
Emporium: A large retail store selling a wide variety of goods.
Black Town: The predominantly black section of a city.
Paik: To strike hard and repeatedly.
Census: The process of officially counting something, especially a country’s population, and
recording various facts.
Sufi: A member of an Islamic religious group that tries to become united with God by living
a simple life and by praying and meditating.
Classical: Traditional in style or form, or based on methods developed over a long period
of time, and considered to be of lasting value.
Miniature: A thing that is much smaller than normal, especially a small replica or model.
Pir: A Muslim spiritual guide or saint in India or Pakistan.
Dialect: the form of a language that is spoken in one area with grammar, words and
pronunciation that may be different from other forms of the same language.
Misl: Each of the twelve confederacies of Sikhs in the 18th and 19th centuries, originally
organized primarily for military purposes, but subsequently as an administrative division
of the Punjab.
Faujdari: A criminal court.

Geography
Technology: It is the application of latest knowledge and skill in doing or making things.
Stock of Resource: It is the number of resources available for use.
Sustainable Development: Carefully utilising resources so that besides meeting the
requirements of the present, also takes care of future generations.
Patent: It means the exclusive right over any idea or invention.
Weathering: The breaking up and decay of exposed rocks, by temperature changes, frost
action, plants, animals and human activity.
Biosphere reserves: Series of protected areas linked through a global network, intended
to demonstrate the relationship between conservation and development.
National Park: A natural area designated to protect the ecological integrity of one or more
ecosystems for the present and the future generations.
Smelting: It is the process in which metals are extracted from their ores by heating beyond
the melting point.
Life expectancy: It is the number of years that an average person can expect to live.
Immigration: When a person enters a new country.
Emigration: When a person leaves a country.
Adolescence: Adolescence is a period in which a person is no longer a child and not yet an
adult. Such persons are grouped in the age group of 10 to 19 years.
Alluvial plain: A level tract of land made up of alluvium or fine rock material brought down
by a river.
Base population: The total population of an area at the beginning of a given time period.
Biome: Plant communities occurring in distinct groups in areas having similar climatic
conditions.
Birth rate: The number of live births for every 1000 persons in a year.
Depression: In meteorology; it denotes an area of relatively low atmospheric pressure,
which is found mainly in temperate regions. In geology, it refers to a hollow sunken area
of the earth’s surface.
Death rate: The number of deaths per 1000 persons in year.
Density of population: The average number of persons per unit area, such as a square
kilometre.
Dependency ratio: The ratio of people of dependent age (below 15 and above 60 years) to
people of economically active ages (15-59 years).
Ecosystem: A system which comprises the physical environment and the organisms living
therein.
Environment: Surroundings or the conditions under which a person or thing exists and
develops his or its character. It covers both physical and cultural elements.
Fault: A linear break in rocks of the earth’s crust along which there has been displacement
in a horizontal, vertical or oblique direction.
Fauna: The animal life of a given area.
Flora: The total vegetation or plant cover of a region.
Fold: A bend in the rock strata resulting from compression of an area of
the earth’s crust.
Geosyncline: A narrow, shallow, elongated basin with a sinking bottom in which a
considerable thickness of sediments was deposited by the rivers coming from Angara and
Gondwanaland.
Glacier: A mass of snow and ice that moves slowly under the influence of gravity along a
confined course away from its place of accumulation.
Growth rate of population: The growth rate of population indicates the rate at which the
population is growing. In estimating the growth rate, the increase in population is
compared with the base population. It can be measured annually or over a decade.
Indian mainland: It refers to the contiguous stretch of landmass from Jammu and Kashmir
to Kanyakumari and from Gujarat to Arunachal Pradesh.
Indian Standard Time: The local time along the Standard Meridian of India (82°30'E).
Inland drainage: A drainage system in which the waters of the rivers do not reach the
oceans but fall into an inland sea or lake.
Igneous rocks: Rocks formed as a result of solidification of magma either below the earth’s
surface or above it.
Lagoon: A salt-water lake separated from the sea by the sandbars and spits.
Lake: A body of water that lies in a hollow in the earth’s surface and is entirely surrounded
by land.
Lithospheric plates: large segments of the earth’s crust composed of continental and
oceanic lithospheric parts, floating above the asthenosphere.
Life expectancy: The average number of years one is expected to live.
Local time: The time of a place determined by the midday sun is called the local time.
Metamorphic rocks: Deformation and alteration of pre-existing igneous and sedimentary
rocks as a result of changes in physical and chemical conditions due to intense heat or
pressure.
Migration: Movement of people from one place to another. Internal migration means
movement of people within a country and external migration means movement of people
between countries. When people come to a country from another country, it is called
immigration and when they leave that country, it is called emigration.
Million plus cities: Cities with a population of more than one million or 10 lakh.
Monsoon: A complete reversal of winds over a large area leading to a change of seasons.
Mountain: An upward projected features of the earth’s surface that rises to high altitude
and usually possesses steep slopes.
National Park: A reserved area for preserving its natural vegetation, wildlife and the
natural environment.
Plain: An extensive area of flat or gently undulating land.
Plateau: An extensive elevated area of relatively flat land.
Plate tectonics: The scientific concept that explains the movements of the crustal plates.
Relief: The differences in elevation or the physical outline of the land surface or ocean
floor.
Subsidence: In meteorology, it is the downward movement of the air. In geology, it refers
to the sinking of a portion of the earth’s surface.
Sedimentary rocks: Rocks composed of sediments and generally having a layered
structure.
Sex-ratio: Sex-ratio is defined as the number of females per thousand males.
Subcontinent: A big landmass, which stands out as a distinct geographical unit from the
rest of the continent.
Tectonic: Forces originating within the earth and responsible for bringing widespread
changes in the landform features.
Young mountains: The fold mountains formed during the most recent major phase of
folding in the earth’s crust.
Anticline: A fold in sedimentary strata that resembles an arch.
Gross Domestic Product: It is a monetary measure of the value of goods and services
produced within a natural economy at a given period of time. Normally it is one year.
Geologist: A scientist who studies the composition, structure and history of the earth.
Geothermal Gradient: The gradual increase in temperature with depth in the crust. The
average is 30°C per kilometre in the upper crust.
Humus: Dead and decayed organic matter adds to the fertility of the top soil. Igneous
Rocks: Rocks which have solidified from molten magma.
Manganese Nodules: A type of sediment scattered on the ocean floor, consisting mainly
of manganese and iron, and usually containing small amounts of copper, nickel and cobalt.
Metamorphic Rocks: Rocks which were originally igneous or sedimentary, but have
changed in character and appearance.
Oil Trap: A geological structure that allows for significant amounts of oil and gas to
accumulate.
Rock: A consolidated mixture of minerals.
Sedimentary Rocks: Rocks which have been deposited as beds and layers of sediments.

Science
Ingredients: one of the parts of something successful.
Edible: food that is edible is safe or good enough to eat.
Nectar: A sugary fluid secreted within flowers to encourage pollination by insects and
other animals, collected by bees to make into honey.
Sprouted seeds: To grow, spring up, or come forth as or as if a sprout
Herbivore: An animal that eats only plants.
Carnivore: An animal that eats meat.
Omnivore: An animal that is naturally able to eat both plants and meat.
Balanced diet: A combination of the correct types and amounts of food.
Beriberi: A disease caused by a lack of vitamin B1, which affects the nerves and causes pain
and weakness and sometimes heart failure.
Carbohydrates: One of several substances, such as sugar or starch, that provide the body
with energy, or foods containing these substances such as bread, potatoes, pasta, and rice.
Energy: the power and ability to be physically and mentally active.
Fats: Having a lot of flesh on the body.
Minerals: A valuable or useful chemical substance that is formed naturally in the ground.
Nutrients: Any substance that plants or animals need in order to live and grow.
Proteins: one of the many substances found in food such as meat, cheese, fish, or eggs,
that is necessary for the body to grow and be strong.
Roughage: Fibre that helps food and waste to pass through your body.
Scurvy: An illness of the body tissues that is caused by not having enough vitamin C.
Starch: A white substance that exists in large amounts in potatoes and particular grains
such as rice.
Vitamins: Any of a group of natural substances that are necessary in small amounts for the
growth and good health of the body.
Fibre: Any of the thread-like parts that form plant or artificial material and can be made
into cloth.
Knitting: The activity or process of knitting things.
Spinning: A brand name for a form of exercise that is done inside a building on a machine
like a bicycle that you ride very fast without moving forward.
Weaving: To make cloth by crossing long threads over and under each other on a machine
called a loom.
Yarn: Thread used for making cloth or for knitting.
Insoluble: An insoluble substance does not dissolve and disappear when you put it into
liquid.
Lustre: The brightness that a shiny surface has.
Opaque: Not able to be seen through; not transparent.
Rough: Having an uneven or irregular surface; not smooth or level.
Soluble: Able to be dissolved to form a solution.
Translucent: If an object or a substance is translucent, it is almost transparent, allowing
some light through it in an attractive way.
Transparent: Allowing light to pass through so that objects behind can be distinctly seen.
Churning: To mix milk or cream in a special container in order to make butter.
Condensation: The drops of water that appear on cold windows or other surfaces, as a
result of hot air or steam becoming cool.
Decantation: To draw off (a liquid) without disturbing the sediment or the lower liquid
layers.
Filtration: The process of removing solid parts that are not wanted from a liquid or gas by
passing it through a filter.
Handpicking: If someone is handpicked, they are very carefully chosen by someone in
authority for a particular purpose or a particular job.
Saturated solution: A saturated solution is a solution in which there is so much solute that
if there was any more, it would not dissolve.
Sedimentation: A natural process in which rock is formed from small pieces of sand, stone,
etc. that have been left by water, ice, or wind.
Sieving: A tool consisting of a wood, plastic, or metal frame with a wire or plastic net
attached to it. You use it either to separate solids from a liquid, or you rub larger solids
through it to make them smaller.
Solution: A liquid mixture in which the minor component (the solute) is uniformly
distributed within the major component (the solvent).
Threshing: The process of separating grain from corn or other crops.
Winnowing: To reduce a large number of people or things to a much smaller number by
judging their quality.
Contraction: The shortening and thickening of a functioning muscle or muscle fibber.
Evaporation: The process of a liquid changing to a gas, especially by heating.
Expansion: Something that results from an act of expanding.
Melting: Becoming liquefied by heat.
Conduct: To act as a medium for conveying or transmitting.
Creepers: A plant that grows along the ground, or up walls or trees.
Fibrous roots: A root (as in most grasses) that has no prominent central axis and that
branches in all directions.
Herbs: A type of plant whose leaves are used in cooking to give flavour to particular dishes
or in making medicine.
Lamina: A layer or thin sheet of tissue.
Lateral roots: Root of or relating to the side.
Midrib: The main vein of a leaf, running down the centre of the blade.
Ovule: The part of the ovary of seed plants that contains the female germ cell and after
fertilization becomes the seed.
Petal: Each of the segments of the corolla of a flower, which are modified leaves and are
typically coloured.
Petiole: The stalk by which a leaf is attached to the rest of the plant.
Photosynthesis: The process by which a plant uses carbon dioxide from the air, water from
the ground, and the energy from the light of the sun to produce its own food and oxygen.
Pistil: The female reproductive part of a flower, consisting of one carpel or a group of
carpels joined together.
Sepal: One of the parts forming the outer part of a flower that surround the petals and are
usually small and green.
Shrubs: A large plant with a rounded shape formed from many small branches growing
either directly from the ground or from a hard stem, grown in gardens.
Stamen: The male part of a flower, consisting of a thin stem that holds an anther.
Taproot: A thick main root found in some plants, such as the carrot, that stores food and
grows straight down vertically.
Transpiration: The process of losing water through the surface or skin of a body or a plant.
Ball and socket joint: A bony joint, such as the hip joint, in which a rounded head fits into
a rounded cavity, allowing a wide range of movement.
Bristles: A short stiff hair.
Cartilage: Cartilage is a strong, flexible substance in your body, especially around your
joints and in your nose.
Cavity: A hole, or an empty space between two surfaces.
Gait of animals: a particular way of walking.
Hinge joint: A joint, such as the knee or elbow, which moves only in one plane.
Rib cage: The bones that curve around the chest and protect organs such as the lungs and
heart.
Streamlined: Improved or made simpler.
Adaptation: The process in which a living thing changes slightly over time to be able to
continue to exist in a particular environment, or a change like this.
Excretion: To get rid of material such as solid waste or urine from the body.
Habitat: The natural environment in which an animal or plant usually lives.
Reproduction: The process of having babies, producing young, or producing new plants.
Respiration: The action of breathing.
Stimulus: Something that causes growth or activity.
Periodic motion: Any motion that recurs in identical forms at equal intervals of time.
Rectilinear motion: A linear motion in which the direction of the velocity remains constant
and the path is a straight line.
SI units: An international system of measurements that is based on particular metric units,
including metres, kilograms, and litres.
Luminous: Producing or reflecting bright light, especially in the dark.
Opaque: Preventing light from travelling through, and therefore not transparent or
translucent.
Translucent: If an object or a substance is translucent, it is almost transparent, allowing
some light through it in an attractive way.
Transparent: If a substance or object is transparent, you can see through it very clearly.
Conductors: A conductor is a substance that heat or electricity can pass through or along.
Electric circuit: A complete path through which an electric current can flow.
Filament: A thin wire, especially one that lights up inside an electric light bulb.
Insulators: A material or covering that electricity, heat, or sound cannot go through.
Switch: A small device, usually pushed up or down with your finger, that controls and turns
on or off an electric current.
Terminals: A place where electricity enters or leaves a piece of electrical equipment.
Magnetite: A black isometric mineral of the spinel group that is an oxide of iron and an
important iron ore.
Condensation: The drops of water that appear on cold windows or other surfaces, as a
result of hot air or steam becoming cool.
Drought: A long period when there is little or no rain.
Hail: Pellets of frozen rain which fall in showers from cumulonimbus clouds.
Rainwater harvesting: Collecting rainwater.
Water vapour: Water in the form of a gas resulting from heating water or ice.
Water cycle: The way that water is taken up from the sea, rivers, soil, etc. and then comes
back down as rain or snow.
Atmosphere: A mixture of gases that surrounds any planet.
Landfill: The process of getting rid of large amounts of rubbish by burying it, or a place
where rubbish is buried.
Compost: Decaying plant material that is added to soil to improve its quality.
Vermicomposting: The use of earthworms to convert organic waste into fertilizer.
Autotrophic: Relating to a living thing that can make its own food from simple chemical
substances such as carbon dioxide.
Chlorophyll: The green substance in plants, that allows them to use the energy from the
sun.
Heterotrophs: A living thing that gets its food from other plants or animals.
Host: An animal or plant on or in which a parasite or commensal organism lives.
Insectivorous: An animal or plant that eats insects.
Nutrient: Any substance that plants or animals need in order to live and grow.
Nutrition: The substances that you take into your body as food and the way that they
influence your health.
Parasite: An animal or plant that lives on or in another animal or plant of a different type
and feeds from it.
Saprotrophs: Any organism, esp. a fungus or bacterium, that lives and feeds on dead
organic matter.
Stomata: An artificial permanent opening especially in the abdominal wall made in surgical
procedures.
Absorption: The process of taking something into another substance.
Amino acid: A simple organic compound containing both a carboxyl (—COOH) and an
amino (—NH₂) group.
Amoeba: A very small, simple organism consisting of only one cell.
Assimilation: The process of becoming a part, or making someone become a part, of a
group, country, society, etc.
Bile: The bitter, yellow liquid produced by the liver that helps to digest fat.
Buccal cavity: A hole, relating to the inside of the mouth, especially the cheek.
Canine: Canine teeth or canines are pointed teeth near the front of the mouth of humans
and of some animals.
Cellulose: The main substance in the cell walls of plants, also used in making paper,
artificial threads and cloth, and plastics.
Egestion: The process of removing undigested waste material from the body by excretion.
Fatty acid: An acid found in fats and oils in animals and plants.
Food vacuole: A cavity surrounding ingested food particles in some protozoans.
Gall bladder: The small sac-shaped organ beneath the liver, in which bile is stored after
secretion by the liver and before release into the intestine.
Glycerol: A thick, sweet, colourless liquid that has many industrial and medical uses, for
example to make food taste sweet and in treatments for the skin.
Incisor: One of the sharp teeth at the front of the mouth that cut food when you bite into
it.
Ingestion: The process of absorbing nutrients or medications into the body by eating or
drinking them.
Liver: A large organ in the body that cleans the blood and produces bile, or this organ from
an animal used as meat.
Milk teeth: A baby tooth.
Molar: one of the large teeth at the back of the mouth in humans and some other animals
used for crushing and chewing food.
Oesophagus: The tube in the body that takes food from the mouth to the stomach.
Pancreas: The small organ in your body that produces substances that help your stomach
to process food.
Premolar: A tooth situated between the canine and the molar teeth. An adult human
normally has eight, two in each jaw on each side.
Pseudopodia: A temporary protrusion of the surface of an amoeboid cell for movement
and feeding.
Rumen: The first stomach of a ruminant, which receives food or cud from the oesophagus,
partly digests it with the aid of bacteria, and passes it to the reticulum.
Ruminant: a type of animal that brings up food from its stomach and chews it again, for
example a cow, sheep, or deer.
Rumination: If an animal ruminates, it brings food back from its stomach into its mouth
and chews it a second time.
Salivary glands: One of the glands that produce saliva and release it into the mouth.
Villi: One of a large number of small parts that stick out from the inner wall of the small
intestine.
Saliva: The liquid produced in your mouth to keep the mouth wet and to help to prepare
food to be digested.
Cocoon: The covering made of soft, smooth threads that surrounds and protects particular
insects during the pupa stage as they develop into adult form.
Fleece: The thick covering of wool on an animal, especially a sheep, or this covering used
to make a piece of clothing.
Reeling: A part like a hair that grows on a plant.
Silk moth: A large moth with a caterpillar that spins a protective silken cocoon.
Silkworm: The commercially bred caterpillar of the domesticated silk moth (Bombyx mori),
which spins a silk cocoon that is processed to yield silk fibre.
Sorting: A group set up on the basis of any characteristic in common.
Sericulture: The production of silk and the rearing of silkworms for this purpose.
Shearing: The process of cutting the wool from sheep.
Conduction: The process by which heat or electricity goes through a substance.
Convection: The flow of heat through a gas or a liquid.
Land breeze: A breeze blowing towards the sea from the land, especially at night, owing
to the relative warmth of the sea.
Radiation: A form of energy that comes from a nuclear reaction and that can be very
dangerous to health.
Sea breeze: A light, cool wind blowing from the sea onto the land.
Acid: Any of various usually liquid substances that can react with and sometimes dissolve
other materials.
Acidic: Containing acid.
Base: A substance capable of reacting with an acid to form a salt and water, or (more
broadly) of accepting or neutralizing hydrogen ions.
Basic: Having the properties of a base, or containing a base; having a pH above 7.
Indicator: A compound that changes colour at a specific pH value or in the presence of a
particular substance, and can be used to monitor acidity, alkalinity, or the progress of a
reaction.
Neutral: Neither acid nor alkaline; having a pH of about 7.
Neutralisation: The action of stopping something from having an effect.
Salt: Any chemical compound formed from the reaction of an acid with a base, with all or
part of the hydrogen of the acid replaced by a metal or other cation.
Chemical reaction: A process in which the structure of atoms or molecules that make up a
substance are changed.
Crystallisation: The process of turning into crystals.
Galvanisation: The act or process of galvanizing.
Rusting: A reddish-brown substance that forms on the surface of iron and steel as a result
of reacting with air and water.
Adaptation: The ability that animals and plants have to change and make themselves
especially suitable for living in a particular environment.
Climate: The general weather conditions usually found in a particular place.
Humidity: A measurement of how much water there is in the air.
Tropical rainforest: Thick forest that grows in hot parts of the world.
Migration: The process of animals travelling to a different place, usually when the season
changes.
Anemometer: A device that measures the speed and force of wind.
Thunderstorms: A storm with thunder and lightning and usually heavy rain.
Clayey: The human body as distinguished from the spirit.
Humus: Dark earth made of organic material such as decayed leaves and plants.
Loamy: Denoting or relating to a fertile soil of clay and sand containing humus.
Percolation: The process of a liquid moving slowly through a substance that has very small
holes in it.
Moisture: A liquid such as water in the form of very small drops, either in the air, in a
substance, or on a surface.
Sandy: Covered with sand or containing sand.
Water retention: The continued use of water, existence, or possession of water.
Aerobic respiration: A chemical process in which energy is produced in the body from food
by using oxygen.
Anaerobic respiration: A chemical process in which energy is produced in the body from
food by using oxygen.
Cellular respiration: The metabolic process in living organisms by which oxygen is
combined with carbon in a cell to form carbon dioxide and generate energy.
Diaphragm: The muscle that separates the chest from the lower part of the body.
Exhalation: The action of sending air out of your lungs.
Gills: The organ through which fish and other water creatures breathe.
Lungs: Either of the two organs in the chest with which people and some animals breathe.
Inhalation: The action of breathing air, smoke, or gas into your lungs.
Spiracles: In an insect or spider, one of the small holes that allow air in and out through
the surface of the body.
Tracheae: The tube in the body that carries air from the throat to the lungs.
Ribs: A bone that curves round from your back to your chest.
Ammonia: A poisonous gas with a strong unpleasant smell, or the gas dissolved in water.
It is used in products used for cleaning things.
Artery: One of the thick tubes that carry blood from the heart to other parts of the body.
Capillary: A very thin tube, especially one of the smaller tubes that carry blood around the
body.
Dialysis: The separation of particles in a liquid on the basis of differences in their ability to
pass through a membrane.
Excretion: To get rid of material such as solid waste or urine from the body.
Excretory system: A system relating to or concerned with excretion.
Haemoglobin: A substance in red blood cells that combines with and carries oxygen around
the body, and gives blood its red colour.
Phloem: The type of plant tissue that transports food from the leaves to the other parts of
the plant.
Plasma: He pale yellow liquid that forms 55% of human blood and contains the blood cells.
Platelets: A very small cell in the blood that makes it thicker and more solid in order to
stop bleeding caused by an injury.
Pulse: The regular beating of the heart, especially when it is felt at the wrist or side of the
neck.
Red blood cell: Any of the cells that carry oxygen around the body.
Root hair: A thin part like a hair that grows from the roots of plants and takes in water and
food.
Stethoscope: A piece of medical equipment that doctors use to listen to your heart and
lungs.
Sweat: The clear, salty liquid that you pass through your skin.
Tissue: A group of connected cells in an animal or plant that are similar to each other, have
the same purpose, and form the stated part of the animal or plant.
Urea: A substance found in urine and also made from ammonia, used in fertilizers, animal
feed, and in the plastics industry.
Ureter: A tube on each side of the body that takes urine from the kidney to the bladder.
Urethra: The tube in most mammals that carries urine from the bladder out of the body.
In males it also carries semen.
Uric acid: An almost insoluble compound which is a breakdown product of nitrogenous
metabolism. It is the main excretory product in birds, reptiles, and insects.
Urinary bladder: A distensible membranous sac in which the urine excreted from the
kidneys is stored.
Vein: A tube that carries blood to the heart from the other parts of the body.
White blood cell: A cell in the blood that has no red colour and is involved in the fight
against infection.
Xylem: The vascular tissue in plants which conducts water and dissolved nutrients upwards
from the root and also helps to form the woody element in the stem.
Asexual reproduction: A method of producing new young plants or animals from a single
plant or animal and without separate male and female cells joining together.
Budding: Beginning to develop or show signs of future success in a particular area.
Embryo: An animal that is developing either in its mother's womb or in an egg, or a plant
that is developing in a seed.
Fertilisation: The action of spreading a natural or chemical substance on land or plants, in
order to make the plants grow well.
Fragmentation: A process in which an organism breaks into different parts, with each part
growing into a complete new organism.
Gametes: A cell connected with sexual reproduction, either a male sperm or a female egg.
Hypha: Each of the branching filaments that make up the mycelium of a fungus.
Ovule: The part of the ovary of seed plants that contains the female germ cell and after
fertilization becomes the seed.
Pollen grain: One of the granular microspores that occur in pollen and give rise to the male
gametophyte of a seed plant.
Pollen tube: A hollow tube which develops from a pollen grain when deposited on the
stigma of a flower. It penetrates the style and conveys the male gametes to the ovule.
Pollination: The transfer of pollen to a stigma, ovule, flower, or plant to allow fertilization.
Sexual reproduction: The method of producing plants, animals, and people in which a male
seed or sperm cell and a female egg join.
Spore: A reproductive cell produced by some plants and simple organisms such as ferns
and mushrooms.
Sporangium: (in ferns and lower plants) a receptacle in which asexual spores are formed.
Zygote: The cell that is formed when a female reproductive cell and a male reproductive
cell join.
Oscillation: Regular variation in magnitude or position about a central point, especially of
an electric current or voltage.
Simple pendulum: A theoretical or ideal pendulum, consisting of a single point that has
mass but no extent, is suspended by a massless inextensible rod, and moves without
friction.
Circuit diagram: A plan of an electrical or electronic circuit.
Electric bell: A bell operated by electricity, typically having a hammer operated by a
solenoid which makes a rapid succession of hits as a result of a make-and-break contact on
the solenoid.
Electromagnet: A soft metal core made into a magnet by the passage of electric current
through a coil surrounding it.
Fuse: A safety device consisting of a strip of wire that melts and breaks an electric circuit
if the current exceeds a safe level.
Prism: A transparent glass or plastic object that separates white light that passes through
it into different colours.
Spherical mirror: A mirror with a surface that is either concave or convex and forms a
portion of a true sphere.
Aquifer: A body of permeable rock which can contain or transmit groundwater.
Depletion: Reduction in the number or quantity of something.
Drip irrigation: A type of irrigation that helps save water and is preferred on soils with low
water retention capacity.
Groundwater: Water held underground in the soil or in pores and crevices in rock.
Infiltration: Permeation of a liquid into something by filtration.
Recharge: Restore electrical energy in (a battery or a battery-operated device) by
connecting it to a power supply.
Water harvesting: The capture and storage of water, especially rainwater or grey water,
for later agricultural, industrial, or domestic use.
Water table: The level below which the ground is saturated with water.
Canopy: The uppermost branches of the trees in a forest, forming a more or less
continuous layer of foliage.
Crown: The highest part.
Decomposers: An organism such as a bacterium or fungus that makes dead plant and
animal material decay.
Soil erosion: The process by which soil is gradually removed by the rain, wind, or sea.
Understorey: A lower tier of shrubs and small trees under the main canopy of forest trees.
Deforestation: The action of clearing a wide area of trees.
Humus: The organic component of soil, formed by the decomposition of leaves and other
plant material by soil microorganisms.
Regeneration: The action or process of regenerating polymer fibres.
Aeration: The addition of a gas to a liquid.
Biogas: Gaseous fuel, especially methane, produced by the fermentation of organic
matter.
Contaminant: A polluting or poisonous substance that makes something impure.
Sanitation: Conditions relating to public health, especially the provision of clean drinking
water and adequate sewage disposal.
Sewage: Waste water and excrement conveyed in sewers.
Sewer: An underground conduit for carrying off drainage water and waste matter.
Sewerage: The provision of drainage by sewers.
Sludge: Thick, soft, wet mud or a similar viscous mixture of liquid and solid components,
especially the product of an industrial or refining process.
Animal Husbandry: The science of breeding and caring for farm animals.
Crop: A cultivated plant that is grown on a large scale commercially, especially a cereal,
fruit, or vegetable.
Fertiliser: A chemical or natural substance added to soil or land to increase its fertility.
Granaries: An area where a lot of grain is grown.
Harvesting: He activity of picking and collecting crops, or of collecting plants, animals, or
fish to eat.
Irrigation: To supply land with water so that crops and plants will grow.
Kharif: (in South Asia) the autumn crop sown at the beginning of the summer rains.
Manure: Animal dung used for fertilizing land.
Plough: A large farming implement with one or more blades fixed in a frame, drawn over
soil to turn it over and cut furrows in preparation for the planting of seeds.
Rabi: (in South Asia) the grain crop sown in September and reaped in the spring.
Silo: A tall tower or pit on a farm used to store grain.
Sowing: To put seeds in or on the ground so that plants will grow.
Threshing: The process of separating grain from corn or other crops.
Weeds: A plant that grows easily and is usually found in places where you do not want it.
Weedicide: A chemical weedkiller.
Winnowing: To remove the outer cover from grain.
Algae: Very simple, usually small plants that grow in or near water and do not have
ordinary leaves or roots.
Antibiotics: A medicine or chemical that can destroy harmful bacteria in the body or limit
their growth.
Antibodies: A protein produced in the blood that fights diseases by attacking and killing
harmful bacteria, viruses, etc.
Bacteria: A member of a large group of unicellular microorganisms which have cell walls
but lack organelles and an organized nucleus, including some that can cause disease.
Carrier: A molecule that transfers a specified molecule or ion within the body, especially
across a cell membrane.
Communicable Diseases: An infectious disease (such as cholera, hepatitis, influenza,
malaria, measles, or tuberculosis) that is transmissible by contact with infected individuals
or their bodily discharges or fluids (such as respiratory droplets, blood, or semen), by
contact with contaminated surfaces or objects, by ingestion of contaminated food or
water, or by direct or indirect contact with disease vectors (such as mosquitoes, fleas, or
mice).
Fermentation: The chemical breakdown of a substance by bacteria, yeasts, or other
microorganisms, typically involving effervescence and the giving off of heat.
Fungi: Any of a group of spore-producing organisms feeding on organic matter, including
moulds, yeast, mushrooms, and toadstools.
Lactobacillus: A rod-shaped bacterium which produces lactic acid from the fermentation
of carbohydrates.
Microorganism: A microscopic organism, especially a bacterium, virus, or fungus.
Nitrogen Cycle: The series of processes by which nitrogen and its compounds are
interconverted in the environment and in living organisms, including nitrogen fixation and
decomposition.
Nitrogen Fixation: The chemical processes by which atmospheric nitrogen is assimilated
into organic compounds, especially by certain microorganisms as part of the nitrogen cycle.
Pasteurisation: The partial sterilization of a product, such as milk or wine, to make it safe
for consumption and improve its keeping quality.
Pathogen: A bacterium, virus, or other microorganism that can cause disease.
Preservation: The action of preserving something.
Protozoa: A single-celled microscopic animal of a group of phyla of the kingdom Protista,
such as an amoeba, flagellate, ciliate, or sporozoan; a protozoan.
Rhizobium: A nitrogen-fixing bacterium that is common in the soil, especially in the root
nodules of leguminous plants.
Vaccine: A substance put into the body, usually by injection, in order to provide protection
against a disease.
Virus: An infective agent that typically consists of a nucleic acid molecule in a protein coat,
is too small to be seen by light microscopy, and is able to multiply only within the living
cells of a host.
Yeast: A microscopic fungus consisting of single oval cells that reproduce by budding, and
capable of converting sugar into alcohol and carbon dioxide.
Acrylic: A substance made by a chemical process, used for making many different things,
for example fibres for cloth and paint.
Nylon: An artificial substance used specially to make clothes, ropes, and brushes.
Plastic: An artificial substance that can be shaped when soft into many different forms and
has many different uses.
Polyester: A synthetic resin in which the polymer units are linked by ester groups, used
chiefly to make synthetic textile fibres.
Polymer: A chemical substance consisting of large molecules made from many smaller and
simpler molecules.
Polythene: A tough, light flexible synthetic resin made by polymerizing ethylene, chiefly
used for plastic bags, food containers, and other packaging.
Rayon: A textile fibre or fabric made from regenerated cellulose (viscose).
Synthetic Fibres: Synthetic products are made from artificial substances, often copying a
natural product.
Terylene: An artificial textile fibre made from a polyester, used to make light, crease-
resistant clothing, bed linen, and sails.
Thermoplastics: Thermoplastic materials are types of plastic which become soft when they
are heated and hard when they cool down.
Thermosetting Plastics: Denoting substances (especially synthetic resins) which set
permanently when heated.
Atom: The smallest unit of any substance. It consists of a nucleus made of protons and
neutrons with electrons travelling around it.
Ductility: The ability of a metal to be easily bent or stretched.
Elements: An important basic part of something complicated, for example a system or
plan.
Hardness: The quality or condition of being hard.
Malleability: The ability to be easily changed into a new shape.
Metalloids: A chemical element such as silicon that is not a metal but that has some of the
qualities that a metal has.
Non-Metals: A chemical element (such as boron, carbon, or nitrogen) that lacks the
characteristics of a metal.
Sonorous: A sound that is sonorous is deep and strong in a pleasant way.
Coal Gas: A mixture of gases (chiefly hydrogen, methane, and carbon monoxide) obtained
by the destructive distillation of coal and formerly used for lighting and heating.
Coal Tar: A thick black liquid produced by distilling bituminous coal, containing benzene,
naphthalene, phenols, aniline, and many other organic chemicals.
Coke: A solid fuel made by heating coal in the absence of air so that the volatile
components are driven off.
Fossil Fuel: A natural fuel such as coal or gas, formed in the geological past from the
remains of living organisms.
Petroleum: A liquid mixture of hydrocarbons which is present in suitable rock strata and
can be extracted and refined to produce fuels including petrol, paraffin, and diesel oil; oil.
Acid Rain: rain containing a high level of acid that can damage the environment. It is caused
by pollution in the air.
Calorific Value: The heat produced by the combustion of a unit weight of a fuel.
Combustion: Rapid chemical combination of a substance with oxygen, involving the
production of heat and light.
Explosion: A violent expansion in which energy is transmitted outwards as a shock wave.
Ignition Temperature: The lowest temperature at which a combustible substance when
heated (as in a bath of molten metal) takes fire in air and continues to burn.
Biodiversity: The variety of plant and animal life in the world or in a particular habitat, a
high level of which is usually considered to be important and desirable.
Biosphere Reserve: A protected area set aside for conservation purposes and to act as a
site for ecological and environmental monitoring and research.
Desertification: The process by which fertile land becomes desert, typically as a result of
drought, deforestation, or inappropriate agriculture.
Ecosystem: A biological community of interacting organisms and their physical
environment.
Endangered Species: A species of animal or plant that is seriously at risk of extinction.
Extinct: An extinct animal, plant, or language no longer exists.
Fauna: The animals of a particular region, habitat, or geological period.
Flora: The plants of a particular region, habitat, or geological period.
National Park: An area of countryside, or occasionally sea or fresh water, protected by the
state for the enjoyment of the general public or the preservation of wildlife.
Red Data Book: A book giving details of threatened animals or plants, especially in a
particular country or region.
Reforestation: The process of replanting an area with trees.
Sanctuary: A nature reserve.
Cell: The smallest structural and functional unit of an organism, which is typically
microscopic and consists of cytoplasm and a nucleus enclosed in a membrane.
Cell Membrane: The semipermeable membrane surrounding the cytoplasm of a cell.
Cell Wall: A rigid layer of polysaccharides lying outside the plasma membrane of the cells
of plants, fungi, and bacteria. In the algae and higher plants, it consists mainly of cellulose.
Chloroplast: A plastid in green plant cells which contains chlorophyll and in which
photosynthesis takes place.
Chromosome: A threadlike structure of nucleic acids and protein found in the nucleus of
most living cells, carrying genetic information in the form of genes.
Cytoplasm: The material or protoplasm within a living cell, excluding the nucleus.
Eukaryotes: An organism that consists of a cell or cells whose genetic material is DNA held
within a distinct nucleus.
Gene: (in informal use) a unit of heredity which is transferred from a parent to offspring
and is held to determine some characteristic of the offspring.
Multicellular: (of an organism or part) having or consisting of many cells.
Nuclear Membrane: (Chiefly with distinguishing word) either of the two lipid bilayers that
make up the nuclear envelope.
Nucleolus: A small dense spherical structure in the nucleus of a cell during interphase.
Nucleus: A dense organelle present in most eukaryotic cells, typically a single rounded
structure bounded by a double membrane, containing the genetic material.
Organ: A part of an organism which is typically self-contained and has a specific vital
function.
Organelles: Any structure, such as a nucleus or a chloroplast, that has a particular purpose
inside a living cell.
Plasma Membrane: A microscopic membrane of lipids and proteins which forms the
external boundary of the cytoplasm of a cell or encloses a vacuole, and regulates the
passage of molecules in and out of the cytoplasm.
Plastid: Any of a class of small organelles in the cytoplasm of plant cells, containing pigment
or food.
Prokaryotes: A type of organism that has only one cell and does not have a nucleus, for
example a bacterium.
Pseudopodia: A temporary protrusion of the surface of an amoeboid cell for movement
and feeding.
Tissue: The substance that animal and plant cells are made of.
Unicellular: (of protozoans, certain algae, spores, etc.) consisting of a single cell.
Vacuole: A space or vesicle within the cytoplasm of a cell, enclosed by a membrane and
typically containing fluid.
Binary Fission: The process by which organisms with only one cell create new organisms
by dividing.
Budding: (of a plant) having or developing buds.
Embryo: The part of a seed which develops into a plant, consisting (in the mature embryo
of a higher plant) of a plumule, a radicle, and one or two cotyledons.
Fertilisation: The action or process of fertilizing an egg or a female animal or plant,
involving the fusion of male and female gametes to form a zygote.
Foetus: An unborn or unhatched offspring of a mammal, in particular an unborn human
more than eight weeks after conception.
Metamorphosis: (in an insect or amphibian) the process of transformation from an
immature form to an adult form in two or more distinct stages.
Oviparous Animals: (of an animal) producing young by means of eggs which are hatched
after they have been laid by the parent, as in birds.
Sperms: A sex cell produced by a man or male animal.
Viviparous Animals: (of an animal) bringing forth live young which have developed inside
the body of the parent.
Adam’s Apple: A projection at the front of the neck formed by the thyroid cartilage of the
larynx, often prominent in men.
Adolescence: The period following the onset of puberty during which a young person
develops from a child into an adult.
Adrenalin: A hormone secreted by the adrenal glands that increases rates of blood
circulation, breathing, and carbohydrate metabolism and prepares muscles for exertion.
Balanced Diet: A diet consisting of a variety of different types of food and providing
adequate amounts of the nutrients necessary for good health.
Endocrine Glands: An organ in your body that produces hormones that go directly into
your blood or into your lymph vessels.
Estrogen: Any of a group of steroid hormones which promote the development and
maintenance of female characteristics of the body. Such hormones are also produced
artificially for use in oral contraceptives or to treat menopausal and menstrual disorders.
Hormones: A chemical substance produced in animals and plants that controls things such
as growth and sexual development.
Insulin: A hormone produced in the pancreas by the islets of Langerhans, which regulates
the amount of glucose in the blood. The lack of insulin causes a form of diabetes.
Larynx: The hollow muscular organ forming an air passage to the lungs and holding the
vocal cords in humans and other mammals; the voice box.
Pituitary Gland: The major endocrine gland, a pea-sized body attached to the base of the
brain that is important in controlling growth and development and the functioning of the
other endocrine glands.
Puberty: The period during which adolescents reach sexual maturity and become capable
of reproduction.
Sex Chromosomes: A chromosome that controls what sex an organism will be.
Testosterone: A steroid hormone that stimulates development of male secondary sexual
characteristics, produced mainly in the testes, but also in the ovaries and adrenal cortex.
Thyroxine: The main hormone produced by the thyroid gland, acting to increase metabolic
rate and so regulating growth and development.
Voice Box: An organ that contains the muscles that move to create the voice.
Atmospheric Pressure: The force with which the atmosphere presses down on the surface
of the earth.
Electrostatic Force: A force relating to stationary electric charges or fields as opposed to
electric currents.
Force: Physical, especially violent, strength, or power.
Friction: The resistance that one surface or object encounters when moving over another.
Gravitational Force: A force relating to gravity or gravitation.
Gravity: The force that attracts a body towards the centre of the earth, or towards any
other physical body having mass.
Pressure: Continuous physical force exerted on or against an object by something in
contact with it.
Ball Bearing: A bearing in which the parts are separated by a ring of small freely rotating
metal balls which reduce friction.
Friction: The resistance that one surface or object encounters when moving over another.
Interlocking: Firmly joined together, especially by one part fitting into another.
Lubricants: A substance that you use to lubricate something.
Amplitude: The maximum extent of a vibration or oscillation, measured from the position
of equilibrium.
Eardrum: The membrane of the middle ear, which vibrates in response to sound waves;
the tympanic membrane.
Frequency: The rate at which something occurs over a particular period of time or in a
given sample.
Hertz (Hz): The SI unit of frequency, equal to one cycle per second.
Larynx: The hollow muscular organ forming an air passage to the lungs and holding the
vocal cords in humans and other mammals; the voice box.
Oscillation: Regular variation in magnitude or position about a central point, especially of
an electric current or voltage.
Pitch: The quality of a sound governed by the rate of vibrations producing it; the degree of
highness or lowness of a tone.
Electrode: A conductor through which electricity enters or leaves an object, substance, or
region.
Electroplating: The process of coating a metal object with chromium, silver, or another
metal by electrolytic deposition.
Led: Cause (a person or animal) to go with one by holding them by the hand, a halter, a
rope, etc. while moving forward.
Crust: A hardened layer, coating, or deposit on the surface of something soft.
Discharge: Release or neutralize the electric charge of (an electric field, battery, or other
object).
Electroscope: An instrument for detecting and measuring electricity, especially as an
indication of the ionization of air by radioactivity.
Lightning Conductor: A metal rod or wire fixed to an exposed part of a building or other
tall structure to divert lightning harmlessly into the ground.
Seismograph: An instrument that measures and records details of earthquakes, such as
force and duration.
Thunder: A loud rumbling or crashing noise heard after a lightning flash due to the
expansion of rapidly heated air.
Thunderstorm: A storm with thunder and lightning and typically also heavy rain or hail.
Tremor: A slight shaking movement in a person's body, especially because of nervousness
or excitement.
Angle Of Incidence: The angle which an incident line or ray makes with a perpendicular to
the surface at the point of incidence.
Angle Of Reflection: The angle made by a reflected ray with a perpendicular to the
reflecting surface.
Blind Spot: The point of entry of the optic nerve on the retina, insensitive to light.
Braille: A form of written language for blind people, in which characters are represented
by patterns of raised dots that are felt with the fingertips.
Cornea: The transparent layer forming the front of the eye.
Incident Rays: In physics, a ray of light that hits a surface.
Iris: An adjustable diaphragm of thin overlapping plates for regulating the size of a central
hole, especially for the admission of light to a lens.
Pupil: The dark circular opening in the centre of the iris of the eye, which varies in size to
regulate the amount of light reaching the retina.
Reflected Rays: A ray (beam of light) that is reflected from a surface.
Retina: The area at the back of the eye that receives light and sends pictures of what the
eye sees to the brain.
Rods: A type of cell in the retina (part at the back of the eye) that helps you to see when
there is not much light.
Asteroids: One of many large rocks that circle the sun.
Cassiopeia: A constellation near the north celestial pole, recognizable by the conspicuous
‘W’ pattern of its brightest stars.
Celestial Objects: Something in space, such as a star or planet.
Comets: A comet is a bright object with a long tail that travels around the sun.
Constellations: A constellation is a group of stars which form a pattern and have a name.
Light Year: A light year is the distance that light travels in a year.
Meteorites: A piece of rock or other matter from space that has landed on earth.
Meteors: A meteor is a piece of rock or metal that burns very brightly when it enters the
earth's atmosphere from space.
Orion: A conspicuous constellation (the Hunter), said to represent a hunter holding a club
and shield. It lies on the celestial equator and contains many bright stars, including Rigel,
Betelgeuse, and a line of three that form Orion's Belt.
Pole Star: A fairly bright star located within one degree of the celestial north pole, in the
constellation Ursa Minor. It is a triple star, the bright component of which is a cepheid
variable.
Remote Sensing: The scanning of the earth by satellite or high-flying aircraft in order to
obtain information about it.
Ursa Major: One of the largest and most prominent northern constellations (the Great
Bear). The seven brightest stars form a familiar formation variously called the Plough, Big
Dipper, or Charles's Wain, and include the Pointers.
Chemical Contamination: To make something less pure or make it poisonous by chemical.
Pollutants: A substance that pollutes.