Basic Details
Word: Mahabaleshwar
Part of Speech: Proper noun
Meaning: Mahabaleshwar is a hill station in the Western Ghats in Satara district, Maharashtra, known for its cool climate, viewpoints and strawberry farms.
Word origin: From Sanskrit, 'god of great strength', a name of Lord Shiva; the town is named after its Mahabaleshwar temple.
How to Spell Mahabaleshwar
Syllables: Ma - ha - ba - lesh - war
Tricky part: It is a long name with four a's. The sh comes just before war, and the e sits in the le of lesh.
Watch out for: Mahabaleswar, Mahableshwar, Mahabaleshawar
Memory tip: Break it into its Sanskrit parts: maha (great) + bal (strength) + eshwar (lord). Spell each part and join them.
Usage Examples
Example 1: We went boating on Venna Lake during our trip to Mahabaleshwar.
Example 2: Mahabaleshwar gets very heavy rain in the monsoon.
Example 3: My cousins in Pune drive to Mahabaleshwar most winters.
Fun Fact
The Krishna river begins near Mahabaleshwar, and the town was once the summer capital of the Bombay Presidency under British rule.
Practise the CREST Way
Spell-o-Spell
Only one word in the list is spelt correctly. Choose the meaning of that word.
1. valey 2. Mahabaleshwar 3. escarpmant 4. plateu
a) a long, steep slope at the edge of high ground
b) a raised area of fairly flat land
c) a hill station in the Western Ghats of Maharashtra
d) low land between hills or mountains
Show answer
c) a hill station in the Western Ghats of Maharashtra. Look for the errors: plateau needs au, escarpment ends in ment and valley has two l's and ey. Mahabaleshwar has none.
Word Cookie
Fill in the missing letters:
Mahab_le_hwar
a) a, s
b) a, c
c) e, c
d) e, s
Show answer
a) a, s. Think maha + bal + eshwar: the first blank is the a of bal and the second is the s of sh.
Mingle-Mangle
Unjumble the word in the sentence and choose it:
We bought fresh strawberries at a farm near awlhemaasbhra.
a) Maharashtra
b) Mahabaleshwar
c) Mahabalipuram
d) Matheran
Show answer
b) Mahabaleshwar. The jumble has a w and an l, which Maharashtra and Matheran lack, and no p or u, so it cannot be Mahabalipuram.
Multiple Choice Questions
1. In which state is Mahabaleshwar?
a) Maharashtra
b) Kerala
c) Rajasthan
d) Himachal Pradesh
Show answer
a) Maharashtra
2. Mahabaleshwar is especially known for growing ____.
a) saffron
b) tea
c) apples
d) strawberries
Show answer
d) strawberries
