23 October 2026 | FREE Editorial PDF

Today’s Highlight: Today’s standout word is Largesse – it means generous giving of money or gifts, and it often appears in Banking and SSC reading passages. The SCO editorial is key for international relations and internal security, the FSSAI editorial is a handy read on health policy and food safety, and the Bengal editorial is useful for polity and governance questions.

Editorial 1: Peace for Progress: On the SCO, Regional Cooperation and Terror

Source: The Hindu

Vocabulary

1. Territorial
Synonym: Regional | Antonym: Global
Example: Both nations agreed to respect each other’s territorial limits.

2. Recruitment
Synonym: Enlistment | Antonym: Dismissal
Example: Recruitment of new volunteers begins in the first week of November.

3. Approached
Synonym: Tackled | Antonym: Avoided
Example: She approached the problem with patience and a clear plan.

4. Havens
Synonym: Sanctuaries | Antonym: Perils
Example: Quiet libraries are havens for students before exams.

5. Disputes
Synonym: Quarrels | Antonym: Agreements
Example: Border disputes were settled through patient talks between both sides.

6. Retaining
Synonym: Preserving | Antonym: Surrendering
Example: Retaining skilled staff saves a company time and money.

7. Significant
Synonym: Notable | Antonym: Trivial
Example: The budget made a significant change to school funding.

8. Cooperation
Synonym: Collaboration | Antonym: Rivalry
Example: Cooperation between the two banks sped up the loan process.

9. Limited
Synonym: Restricted | Antonym: Unlimited
Example: Seats for the workshop are limited to fifty people.

10. Advance
Synonym: Promote | Antonym: Hinder
Example: New roads will advance trade across the border region.

Idioms

1. Divorced from
Meaning: Cut off from something

Editorial 2: Bitter and Sweet: On FSSAI Draft Limits on Sugar in Infant Foods

Source: The Hindu

Vocabulary

1. Eliminate
Synonym: Remove | Antonym: Retain
Example: The new rule will eliminate added sugar from baby food.

2. Palatability
Synonym: Tastiness | Antonym: Unpleasantness
Example: Added sugar improves the palatability of many packaged snacks.

3. Mulling
Synonym: Pondering | Antonym: Ignoring
Example: The board is mulling a plan to open new branches.

4. Allowance
Synonym: Permission | Antonym: Prohibition
Example: The rule gave makers an allowance of twenty per cent.

5. Bulking
Synonym: Expanding | Antonym: Shrinking
Example: Bulking the soup with potatoes made it enough for everyone.

6. Infants
Synonym: Babies | Antonym: Adults
Example: Infants need frequent feeding and gentle care.

7. Sweetened
Synonym: Sugared | Antonym: Unsweetened
Example: Sweetened drinks can harm children’s teeth over time.

8. Flavours
Synonym: Tastes | Antonym: Blandness
Example: The shop sells ice cream in twelve flavours.

9. Defended
Synonym: Justified | Antonym: Attacked
Example: The company defended its decision before the angry shareholders.

10. Proposal
Synonym: Suggestion | Antonym: Rejection
Example: The committee rejected the proposal after a long discussion.

Idioms

1. A step in the right direction
Meaning: A good move forward

Editorial 3: A King Fit for a Shakespeare Play

Source: The Indian Express

Vocabulary

1. Chivalric
Synonym: Gallant | Antonym: Dishonourable
Example: The knight’s chivalric manners impressed everyone at court.

2. Anachronisms
Synonym: Incongruities | Antonym: Authenticities
Example: The film’s modern music was one of its many anachronisms.

3. Forthcoming
Synonym: Upcoming | Antonym: Past
Example: Details of the forthcoming exam were posted on the website.

4. Arguably
Synonym: Plausibly | Antonym: Undeniably
Example: She is arguably the best bowler in the squad.

5. Disguise
Synonym: Camouflage | Antonym: Reveal
Example: He wore a cap to disguise himself in the crowd.

6. Amazement
Synonym: Astonishment | Antonym: Indifference
Example: The crowd watched in amazement as the magician vanished.

7. Victories
Synonym: Triumphs | Antonym: Defeats
Example: The team’s victories lifted the mood of the whole town.

8. Solitude
Synonym: Isolation | Antonym: Company
Example: He enjoys the solitude of early morning walks.

9. Sorrow
Synonym: Grief | Antonym: Joy
Example: Sorrow filled the village after the sudden accident.

10. Debate
Synonym: Discussion | Antonym: Agreement
Example: The class held a debate on school uniforms.

Idioms

1. Weigh in on
Meaning: Give an opinion

Editorial 4: Five Months On, Bengal Waits for Government to Govern, Not Oppose

Source: The Indian Express

Vocabulary

1. Largesse
Synonym: Generosity | Antonym: Stinginess
Example: The festival depends on the largesse of local donors.

2. Vandalism
Synonym: Wrecking | Antonym: Preservation
Example: Vandalism of the school walls angered the residents.

3. Miscreants
Synonym: Wrongdoers | Antonym: Innocents
Example: Police promised to catch the miscreants within the week.

4. Devout
Synonym: Pious | Antonym: Irreverent
Example: The devout pilgrims walked barefoot to the temple.

5. Argumentative
Synonym: Quarrelsome | Antonym: Agreeable
Example: His argumentative nature made family dinners rather tense.

6. Fellowship
Synonym: Camaraderie | Antonym: Hostility
Example: The camp built strong fellowship among the young volunteers.

7. Paraded
Synonym: Marched | Antonym: Hid
Example: The winners were paraded through the town on an open bus.

8. Paramilitary
Synonym: Militia | Antonym: Civilian
Example: Paramilitary forces were sent to keep order in the district.

9. Intellectual
Synonym: Scholarly | Antonym: Unlearned
Example: The college hosts an intellectual debate every spring.

10. Failings
Synonym: Shortcomings | Antonym: Strengths
Example: The report listed several failings in the hospital’s safety checks.

Idioms

1. Get down to
Meaning: Begin working seriously

Test Yourself – 5 Questions

Q1. Identify the correctly spelt word among the options below.

(A) Teritorial
(B) Territorial
(C) Territoreal
(D) Terrirorial
(E) Territorail

Answer: B

Meaning: The correctly spelt word is ‘Territorial’, meaning relating to the land or area that a country controls.
Logic: ‘territor’ plus ‘ial’.
Elimination: the remaining options change, drop or swap letters.

Q2. The new rule will ELIMINATE added sugar from baby food. Select the option that is the closest synonym of the word given in capitals as used in the passage.

(A) Retain
(B) Preserve
(C) Keep
(D) Remove
(E) Maintain

Answer: D

Meaning: Eliminate means to remove something completely.
Logic: ‘Remove’ is its closest synonym.
Elimination: Retain, Preserve, Keep and Maintain are opposite in sense.

Q3. Identify the correctly spelt word among the options below.

(A) Recruitement
(B) Recrutment
(C) Recruitment
(D) Reqruitment
(E) Recruitmant

Answer: C

Meaning: The correctly spelt word is ‘Recruitment’, meaning the process of finding and enlisting new members.
Logic: ‘recruit’ plus ‘ment’.
Elimination: the remaining options change, drop or swap letters.

Q4. Identify the correctly spelt word among the options below.

(A) Palatability
(B) Palatibility
(C) Pallatability
(D) Palatabilty
(E) Palatibilty

Answer: A

Meaning: The correctly spelt word is ‘Palatability’, meaning how pleasant a food tastes.
Logic: ‘palat’ plus ‘ability’.
Elimination: the remaining options change, drop or swap letters.

Q5. She ______ the problem with patience and a clear plan. Select the option that best fits the blank in the sentence.

(A) knitted
(B) whistled
(C) drowned
(D) painted
(E) approached

Answer: E

Meaning: approached means dealt with a matter in a particular way.
Logic: dealing with a problem in a certain manner is approaching it.
Elimination: knitted, whistled, drowned and painted do not fit the sentence.

Quick Recap – Today’s Words

Territorial (Regional) | Recruitment (Enlistment) | Approached (Tackled) | Havens (Sanctuaries) | Disputes (Quarrels) | Retaining (Preserving) | Significant (Notable) | Cooperation (Collaboration) | Limited (Restricted) | Advance (Promote) | Eliminate (Remove) | Palatability (Tastiness) | Mulling (Pondering) | Allowance (Permission) | Bulking (Expanding) | Infants (Babies) | Sweetened (Sugared) | Flavours (Tastes) | Defended (Justified) | Proposal (Suggestion) | Chivalric (Gallant) | Anachronisms (Incongruities) | Forthcoming (Upcoming) | Arguably (Plausibly) | Disguise (Camouflage) | Amazement (Astonishment) | Victories (Triumphs) | Solitude (Isolation) | Sorrow (Grief) | Debate (Discussion) | Largesse (Generosity) | Vandalism (Wrecking) | Miscreants (Wrongdoers) | Devout (Pious) | Argumentative (Quarrelsome) | Fellowship (Camaraderie) | Paraded (Marched) | Paramilitary (Militia) | Intellectual (Scholarly) | Failings (Shortcomings)

Idioms: Divorced from, A step in the right direction, Weigh in on, Get down to