Q1.
What are some of the words in your local language that you use to describe the weather? Hot, cold, warm, chilly, crisp, pleasant, and so on, are commonly used terms in English.
Answer
Make a list for your own language, and next to each word write what element of the weather it describes — temperature, rain, wind or humidity. That is what turns the list into geography instead of vocabulary.
Sample answer:
| Language | Words for the weather | Element it describes |
|---|---|---|
| Hindi | गर्म, ठंडा, सुहावना, उमस भरा, ठिठुरन, झमाझम, बूँदाबाँदी, लू | temperature, humidity, rain, wind |
| Tamil | வெயில் (veyil, blazing sun), குளிர் (kulir, cold), ஈரப்பதம் (eerappatham, humidity) | temperature, humidity |
| Bengali | গরম (garam), ঠান্ডা (thanda), ভ্যাপসা (bhyapsa, muggy), ঝড় (jhor, storm) | temperature, humidity, wind |
| Marathi | ऊन, गारवा, दमट, रिमझिम, वादळ | temperature, humidity, rain, wind |
Try this: Many Indian languages have a separate word for a very particular kind of weather — loo for the hot dusty summer wind of north India, umas for sticky pre-monsoon air, rimjhim for a gentle steady drizzle. Collect three such words that English needs a whole phrase to translate.
Why it happens: A language grows the words its speakers need. Places that get four months of rain have many words for rain; places that get a long dry summer have many words for heat.