Good literature can be found in any form of art such as books, poetry or even entertainment media. Literature may not be as flourished in entertainment media as in other mediums but one cannot overlook the impact it has on its viewers. From The Dick Van Dyke Show to the latest Stranger Things, the TV world has been coming up with some amazing series which showcase the effective use of language and writer’s ability to build a literary world. Sopranos, Mad men, Breaking Bad, Friends, The Big Bang theory, Suits are just a few examples. These shows have served as bridges for audiences to understand the nuances of the language and its effects on society and also how personally it affects the people. Some dialogues have become part of the cultural phenomenon and live on for the generations to come. In this article, we are going to look at one such show where language has a great value and will certainly help you to shape your vocabulary skills.
i) HBO’s Succession.
Succession is a comedy drama television series which is created by Jesse Armstrong. The show premiered on HBO in 2018. The show revolves around the patriarch Logon Roy, the owner of Waster Royco, which is a global media and entertainment company. The show focuses on the dysfunctional royal family in their effort to take control of the giant company. It has spawned up to 29 episodes divided in 3 seasons. Each episode roughly has 50 to 70 minutes of run time. Critically acclaimed for its writing and the way the story has been developed throughout the episodes, the show has been hailed as one of the best in recent times right from its premiere. Due to the show’s setting and character behavior, we have got some interesting dialogues and words. Here in this article, we are going to share some wonderful vocabulary words used in the series hoping you would find the words interesting and use them in your daily life.
1. Principles (Noun)
Meaning: The values one upholds to him/herself or for some entity
Sentence: My Father established this company with his own principles and everyone has to adhere to it.
2.Incompetent (Adjective)
Meaning: Deemed to be unable to handle a task or work
Sentence: My Company doesn’t have a place for incompetent workers.
3.Bellend (Noun)
Meaning: A person who is categorized as annoying
Sentence: I can’t bear the sight of that bellend customer.
4.Instigator (Noun)
Meaning: The one who starts a phenomenon
Sentence: We always select Ravi as the instigator for our new schemes.
5.Gaslighting (Verb)
Meaning: Persuading someone to do something for one’s own sake
Sentence: Celin gaslighted me to buy those stocks but now I have lost all my money.
6.Poignant (Adjective)
Meaning: A moment that makes someone remember something , mostly sad or painful
Sentence:- My Grandfather’s death was a poignant moment that made me lose all my money in the market.
7.Menacing (Adjective)
Meaning: A thing or a person whose appearance threatens or creates fear
Sentence: Our Boss has a menacing personality which sends chills down our spine whenever he walks into the room.
8. Majestic (Adjective)
Meaning: Something which looks grand and immensely beautiful
Sentence: Her majestic charm is what made us all believe in her ideas during the presentation.
9. Pusillanimous (Adjective)
Meaning: Being cowardly or showing no signs of being courageous
Sentence: Your pusillanimous attitude will not help you survive in this corporate world.
10. Choreographed (Verb)
Meaning: Arranging something, a work or an event
Sentence: The sellout of the company is carefully choreographed by the son of our Executive Director.
11. Scapegoat (Noun)
Meaning: A person who is blamed for every wrong doing.
Sentence: I don’t want to be a scapegoat for the sins he has done.
12.Confront (Verb)
Meaning: Show our discomfort, anger, frustration to a person.
Sentence: Our employees have confronted the police about the harassment.
13. Manipulate (Verb)
Meaning: To convince someone to do something without their knowledge
Sentence: Keith has managed to manipulate our boss to get a salary raise.
14. Conglomerate (Noun)
Meaning: A single company or franchise which owns multiple businesses
Sentence: The entire TATA conglomerate is the brain child of Jamsetji Tata.
15. Patriarch (Noun)
Meaning: A male head of the family or an organization
Sentence: Indian business empires are mostly driven by patriarchs.
16.Testimony (Noun)
Meaning: Presenting yourself at court and providing information about what you know.
Sentence: We all gave our testimony against our team leader for his inappropriate behavior.
17. Propensity (Noun)
Meaning: The tendency to behave in one particular way
Sentence: Our company’s propensity for discipline is what brought us the profits in this quarter.
18. Scathing (Adjective)
Meaning: Being critical, harsh, rude.
Sentence: The scathing reviews for the new product launched by our company made us lose a lot of money.
19. Bear Hug (Noun)
Meaning: A tight emotional hug between two people
Sentence: For the first time, I saw a boss giving a bear hug to his employees.
20. Perspicacious (Adjective)
Meaning: Having great comprehensive insights and ideas or a vision
Sentence: Sundar Pichai’s perspicacious administration has led Google into new horizons.
About the Author
Abhinav has finished his graduation in Civil Engineering only to realise that writing is also as analytical as Structural Analysis. From finding hidden references in movies to writing them in his stories, which may one day triumph as Gandalf in Lord of the Rings, he is all about the culture of Pop Culture. He considers music as therapy and storytelling as catharsis. You can write to Abhinav at his email address: abhinavsriramoju@gmail.com