compulsory · CSS study notes

O / P-1 — Obdurate to Paucity (50 words)

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Letter O and the start of P: 50 words, from Obdurate to Paucity.

1. OBDURATE (adj.)

Urdu: ضدی، سخت دل
Meaning: stubbornly refusing to change one's opinion
Synonyms: stubborn, obstinate, intransigent, unyielding, inflexible
Antonyms: flexible, amenable, compliant, yielding
Use: The obdurate official refused every appeal.

2. OBFUSCATE (v.)

Urdu: مبہم بنانا، الجھانا
Meaning: to make unclear or unintelligible
Synonyms: obscure, confuse, cloud, muddle, blur
Antonyms: clarify, elucidate, explain, simplify
Use: Officials obfuscated the facts with jargon.

3. OBLIQUE (adj.)

Urdu: ترچھا؛ بالواسطہ، گول مول
Meaning: slanting; indirect
Synonyms: slanting, diagonal, indirect, roundabout, veiled
Antonyms: straight, direct, explicit, frank
Use: He made an oblique reference to the scandal.

4. OBLITERATE (v.)

Urdu: مٹا دینا
Meaning: to destroy utterly
Synonyms: destroy, erase, annihilate, wipe out, raze
Antonyms: preserve, create, build
Use: The flood obliterated the old bridge.
🔁 CSS 2010, 2019

5. OBLIVIOUS (adj.)

Urdu: بے خبر، غافل
Meaning: not aware
Synonyms: unaware, heedless, unmindful, ignorant
Antonyms: conscious, aware, alert
Use: He was oblivious to the danger.
🔁 CSS 2026

6. OBNOXIOUS (adj.)

Urdu: ناگوار، قابلِ نفرت
Meaning: extremely unpleasant
Synonyms: offensive, unpleasant, objectionable, odious, repulsive
Antonyms: pleasant, agreeable, delightful, charming
Use: His obnoxious behaviour ruined the party.
🔁 CSS 2026 (option)

7. OBSCURE (adj./v.)

Urdu: مبہم؛ گمنام؛ چھپانا
Meaning: not well known; unclear; to hide
Synonyms: unclear, vague, unknown, cryptic; conceal
Antonyms: clear, famous, obvious; reveal
Use: Clouds obscured the moon.
🔁 CSS 2009

8. OBSEQUIOUS (adj.)

Urdu: حد سے زیادہ خوشامدی، چاپلوس
Meaning: excessively eager to please or obey
Synonyms: servile, sycophantic, fawning, ingratiating, submissive
Antonyms: assertive, independent, domineering, rude
Use: The obsequious clerk bowed to every officer.

9. OBSOLETE (adj.)

Urdu: متروک، فرسودہ
Meaning: no longer used or produced
Synonyms: outdated, outmoded, antiquated, defunct, archaic
Antonyms: current, modern, new, contemporary
Use: Fax machines are nearly obsolete.

10. OBSTINATE (adj.)

Urdu: ضدی، ہٹ دھرم
Meaning: stubbornly refusing to change
Synonyms: stubborn, obdurate, headstrong, intransigent, adamant
Antonyms: flexible, compliant, amenable
Use: The obstinate child refused to eat.

11. OBTUSE (adj.)

Urdu: کند ذہن؛ (زاویہ) منفرجہ
Meaning: slow to understand; (angle) more than 90°
Synonyms: stupid, slow, dense, dull, imperceptive
Antonyms: sharp, clever, perceptive, astute
Use: He was too obtuse to see the joke.

12. OBVIATE (v.)

Urdu: ضرورت ختم کرنا، ٹال دینا
Meaning: to remove a need or difficulty
Synonyms: prevent, avert, preclude, eliminate, forestall
Antonyms: necessitate, require, cause
Use: Online filing obviates the need to visit the office.

13. OCCULT (adj./n.)

Urdu: پراسرار، جادو ٹونے سے متعلق
Meaning: supernatural; hidden
Synonyms: mystical, supernatural, secret, arcane
Antonyms: known, natural, open
Use: The house was linked to occult rituals.
🔁 CSS 2017

14. ODIOUS (adj.)

Urdu: مکروہ، قابلِ نفرت
Meaning: extremely unpleasant; repulsive
Synonyms: revolting, hateful, repugnant, abhorrent
Antonyms: pleasing, delightful, charming
Use: Honour killing is an odious practice.
🔁 CSS 2009

15. OFFICIOUS (adj.)

Urdu: خواہ مخواہ دخل دینے والا، حاکمانہ
Meaning: assertive of authority in an annoying, domineering way
Synonyms: bossy, meddlesome, interfering, self-important, pushy
Antonyms: unassuming, modest, retiring, easy-going
Use: An officious guard stopped us at every gate.

16. OMINOUS (adj.)

Urdu: منحوس، برے شگون والا
Meaning: giving the impression that something bad will happen
Synonyms: threatening, menacing, sinister, foreboding, portentous
Antonyms: auspicious, promising, encouraging
Use: Ominous clouds gathered over the city.

17. OMNIPOTENT (adj.)

Urdu: قادرِ مطلق
Meaning: having unlimited power
Synonyms: all-powerful, almighty, supreme, invincible
Antonyms: powerless, weak, impotent
Use: Allah is omnipotent.

18. OMNISCIENT (adj.)

Urdu: عالمُ الغیب، ہر بات جاننے والا
Meaning: knowing everything
Synonyms: all-knowing, all-seeing, all-wise
Antonyms: ignorant, unaware
Use: The story has an omniscient narrator.
🔁 CSS 2023

19. ONEROUS (adj.)

Urdu: گراں، دشوار
Meaning: involving heavy effort
Synonyms: burdensome, arduous, taxing, heavy
Antonyms: easy, effortless, light
Use: The IMF set onerous conditions.
🔁 CSS 2011

20. OPAQUE (adj.)

Urdu: غیر شفاف؛ مبہم
Meaning: not able to be seen through; hard to understand
Synonyms: non-transparent, cloudy, obscure, unclear, impenetrable
Antonyms: transparent, clear, lucid, obvious
Use: The contract process remains opaque.

21. OPPORTUNE (adj.)

Urdu: موزوں وقت پر، بروقت
Meaning: well-chosen or particularly favourable in timing
Synonyms: timely, convenient, favourable, apt, auspicious
Antonyms: inopportune, untimely, inconvenient
Use: This is an opportune moment to invest.
🔁 CSS 2010 (apropos)

22. OPPROBRIUM (n.)

Urdu: رسوائی، سخت مذمت
Meaning: harsh public criticism; disgrace
Synonyms: disgrace, shame, condemnation, censure, infamy
Antonyms: praise, honour, acclaim, approval
Use: The decision drew international opprobrium.

23. OPTIMUM (adj./n.)

Urdu: بہترین، موزوں ترین
Meaning: most favourable or best
Synonyms: best, ideal, optimal, perfect, peak
Antonyms: worst, least, minimum
Use: Farmers need optimum water for wheat.

24. OPULENT (adj.)

Urdu: دولت مند، شاہانہ
Meaning: ostentatiously rich and luxurious
Synonyms: luxurious, lavish, sumptuous, wealthy
Antonyms: poor, squalid, spartan
Use: The opulent palace had marble floors.
🔁 CSS 2012

25. ORNATE (adj.)

Urdu: آراستہ، مزین
Meaning: elaborately decorated
Synonyms: elaborate, decorated, fancy, baroque, florid
Antonyms: plain, spartan, simple, austere
Use: The Wazir Khan Mosque has ornate tiles.
🔁 CSS 2014

26. ORTHODOX (adj.)

Urdu: روایتی، قدامت پسند
Meaning: conforming to traditional beliefs
Synonyms: conventional, traditional, conservative, accepted, standard
Antonyms: unorthodox, heterodox, radical, unconventional
Use: He took an orthodox approach to economics.

27. OSCILLATE (v.)

Urdu: جھولنا، ڈانواں ڈول ہونا
Meaning: to move back and forth; to waver
Synonyms: swing, fluctuate, vacillate, waver, sway
Antonyms: remain steady, stabilise, decide
Use: Public opinion oscillated between hope and despair.

28. OSTENSIBLE (adj.)

Urdu: ظاہری، دکھاوے کا
Meaning: stated as true but perhaps not so
Synonyms: apparent, outward, supposed, professed, seeming
Antonyms: real, actual, genuine, true
Use: The ostensible reason for the visit was trade.

29. OSTENTATIOUS (adj.)

Urdu: نمائشی، دکھاوے والا
Meaning: designed to impress through display
Synonyms: showy, flashy, flamboyant, pretentious, gaudy
Antonyms: modest, understated, simple, restrained
Use: Ostentatious weddings waste money.

30. OSTRACIZE (v.)

Urdu: معاشرتی بائیکاٹ کرنا، برادری سے نکالنا
Meaning: to exclude from a society or group
Synonyms: exclude, shun, banish, boycott, cold-shoulder
Antonyms: include, welcome, accept, embrace
Use: The family was ostracized for marrying outside the clan.

31. OUTLANDISH (adj.)

Urdu: انوکھا، عجیب و غریب
Meaning: bizarre or unfamiliar
Synonyms: bizarre, strange, weird, eccentric, preposterous
Antonyms: ordinary, normal, conventional, familiar
Use: He wore an outlandish costume.

32. OVERT (adj.)

Urdu: علانیہ، کھلا
Meaning: done openly, not secret
Synonyms: open, obvious, public, visible, blatant
Antonyms: covert, hidden, secret, clandestine
Use: There was overt hostility between the leaders.

33. OVERWROUGHT (adj.)

Urdu: حد سے زیادہ پریشان؛ پرتصنع
Meaning: in a state of nervous agitation; overly elaborate
Synonyms: agitated, distraught, frantic, overexcited; ornate
Antonyms: calm, composed, relaxed; simple
Use: The overwrought parents waited outside the ICU.

34. PACIFY (v.)

Urdu: تسلی دینا، ٹھنڈا کرنا
Meaning: to calm someone's anger or agitation
Synonyms: placate, calm, appease, mollify, soothe
Antonyms: provoke, enrage, anger, agitate
Use: The mother tried to pacify the crying baby.

35. PALATABLE (adj.)

Urdu: مزیدار؛ قابلِ قبول
Meaning: pleasant to taste; acceptable
Synonyms: tasty, appetising, acceptable, agreeable, satisfactory
Antonyms: unpalatable, distasteful, unacceptable
Use: The reforms must be made palatable to voters.

36. PALLIATE (v.)

Urdu: تخفیف کرنا
Meaning: to make less severe without removing the cause
Synonyms: alleviate, mitigate, ease, relieve
Antonyms: aggravate, worsen
Use: Subsidies palliate, but don't cure, inflation.
🔁 CSS 2023-S

37. PALLID (adj.)

Urdu: زرد، پیلا؛ بے رونق
Meaning: pale, typically from poor health; lacking vigour
Synonyms: pale, wan, ashen, colourless, insipid
Antonyms: rosy, ruddy, healthy, lively
Use: The patient looked pallid after surgery.

38. PANACEA (n.)

Urdu: ہر مرض کی دوا
Meaning: a cure for all problems
Synonyms: cure-all, elixir, universal remedy
Antonyms: bane, affliction
Use: Privatisation is no panacea.
🔁 CSS 2023-S, 2026

39. PANDEMONIUM (n.)

Urdu: ہنگامہ، افراتفری
Meaning: wild and noisy disorder
Synonyms: chaos, uproar, bedlam, tumult
Antonyms: calm, order, peace, quietude
Use: Pandemonium broke out when the stage collapsed.
🔁 CSS 2020

40. PARADIGM (n.)

Urdu: نمونہ، فکری ڈھانچہ
Meaning: a typical example or model; a framework of ideas
Synonyms: model, pattern, example, framework, standard
Antonyms: anomaly, exception, deviation
Use: The internet caused a paradigm shift in education.

41. PARADOX (n.)

Urdu: متضاد بیان، تناقض
Meaning: a seemingly contradictory statement that may be true
Synonyms: contradiction, anomaly, inconsistency, puzzle, enigma
Antonyms: consistency, truism, axiom
Use: It is a paradox that a rich land has poor people.

42. PARAGON (n.)

Urdu: مثالی نمونہ، کامل مثال
Meaning: a model of excellence
Synonyms: model, epitome, exemplar, ideal, paradigm
Antonyms: failure, disgrace, travesty
Use: Edhi was a paragon of selflessness.

43. PARAMOUNT (adj.)

Urdu: سب سے اہم، اولین
Meaning: more important than anything else
Synonyms: supreme, foremost, chief, primary, principal
Antonyms: minor, secondary, trivial, lesser
Use: National security is of paramount importance.

44. PARCHED (adj.)

Urdu: خشک، پیاسا، جھلسا ہوا
Meaning: dried out with heat; very thirsty
Synonyms: dry, arid, scorched, thirsty, desiccated
Antonyms: wet, moist, verdant, lush
Use: The parched land cracked in the heat.
🔁 CSS 2012

45. PARIAH (n.)

Urdu: اچھوت، معاشرے سے نکالا ہوا
Meaning: an outcast
Synonyms: outcast, exile, leper, persona non grata, reject
Antonyms: favourite, idol, hero, insider
Use: The regime became an international pariah.

46. PAROCHIAL (adj.)

Urdu: تنگ نظر، مقامی سوچ والا
Meaning: having a narrow, local outlook
Synonyms: narrow-minded, provincial, insular, parish-pump, petty
Antonyms: broad-minded, cosmopolitan, worldly, global
Use: Parochial politics ignores national interest.

47. PARODY (n./v.)

Urdu: نقالی، مزاحیہ تقلید
Meaning: an imitation for comic effect
Synonyms: satire, spoof, caricature, lampoon, send-up
Antonyms: original, tribute, homage
Use: The show aired a parody of the budget speech.

48. PARSIMONIOUS (adj.)

Urdu: کنجوس، بخیل
Meaning: very unwilling to spend money
Synonyms: stingy, miserly, mean, tight-fisted, penny-pinching
Antonyms: generous, lavish, extravagant, munificent
Use: The parsimonious landlord never repaired the roof.

49. PARTISAN (adj./n.)

Urdu: جانبدار، حمایتی
Meaning: prejudiced in favour of a party; a strong supporter
Synonyms: biased, one-sided, factional, partial; supporter
Antonyms: impartial, neutral, bipartisan, unbiased
Use: Partisan media deepen polarisation.

50. PAUCITY (n.)

Urdu: قلت، کمی
Meaning: a scarcity of something
Synonyms: scarcity, dearth, shortage, lack, insufficiency
Antonyms: abundance, plenty, surplus, profusion
Use: A paucity of funds delayed the project.