Important English Vocabulary from “The Economist”-(Day-5):
Dear Readers, to score good marks in English Section first and for most thing is you need to develop your reading skills, while reading a passage you need to highlight the tough words in it and you should know the correct meaning for those words. This will help you understand the passage clearly and also you can learn more new words, it means also you can develop your vocabulary. To help you in this part we have provided a passage along with meaning, synonyms and usages of hard words in the passage, make use of it.
Foreign investors snap up London’s iconic buildings
LONDON’S skyline has altered a lot in the last 30 years. While it can’t match Manhattan or Chicago, there are quite a few trophy buildings that can be seen from this columnist’s office window (for the moment*). The British sense of humour means these offices often acquire their own nicknames, regardless of the developer’s intentions—the Cheesegrater or the Gherkin, for example.
And the buildings also tend to get snapped up by foreign investors. The latest to go is the “Walkie Talkie” at 20, Fenchurch Street which has been bought by Lee Kum Kee, a Hong Kong food company, for £1.3bn, the highest amount ever paid for a British building. Presumably the company, best known for its oyster sauce, is not planning to transfer production to the site; this is a punt on the London property market.
Ironically, it was only a year ago that many British property funds had to suspend trading in the wake of the Brexit vote. But the medium-term effect of the vote was to drive down the value of the pound and attract bargain-hunters armed with foreign currencies. The Cheesegrater was bought in March this year.
It remains to be seen whether this is a good long-term bet; Japanese investors splurged on American and British properties in the 1980s and 1990s and had a mixed record. Brexit means that some banks are moving some staff overseas (mostly to Frankfurt); on the other hand, Amazon is expanding its London presence. The bigger threat to London property may come from domestic politics, rather than Brexit; a Jeremy Corbyn-led government with plans for higher taxes on profits, executive salaries and even compulsory property purchases might scare away expat investors. Lee Kum Kee could yet be left with sauce on its face.
Source: The Economist
1). Acquire (Verb)
Definition: buy or obtain (an asset or object) for oneself.
Synonyms: obtain, come by, come to have, get, receive, gain
Usage: She acquired a collection of fine art prints
2). Intentions (Noun)
Definition: a thing intended; an aim or plan.
Synonyms: aim, purpose, objective, goal
Usage: She was full of good intentions.
3). Presumably (Adverb)
Definition: used to convey that what is asserted is very likely though not known for certain.
Synonyms: I assume, I expect, I believe, I presume, I take it, I suppose
Usage: It was not yet ten o’clock, so presumably the boys were still at the pub.
4). Punt (Verb)
Definition: travel or convey in a punt.
Usage: In summer you can enjoy punting along the river.
5). Ironically (Adverb)
Definition: used in reference to a paradoxical, unexpected, or coincidental situation.
Usage: ironically, the rescue craft which saved her was the boat she was helping to pay for.
6). Splurged (Verb)
Definition: spend (money) freely or extravagantly
Usage: I’d splurged about Rs. 2,500 on clothes.
7). Expat is the short for Expatriate (Adj)
Definition: denoting or relating to a person living outside their native country.
Synonyms: emigrant, living abroad, working abroad, non-native
Usage: expatriate workers.
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