Relax, Refresh your English knowledge 60
291`. What do you call someone who goes to someone’s party without being invited?
Are you planning on doing this anytime soon? When you walk into someone’s party or any event without being invited, you become a ‘gatecrasher’. Such people are said to ‘crash’ the party. *We ran out of food because there were too many gatecrashers.
292. What is the difference between ‘call for’ and ‘call upon’?
When you ‘call on’ or ‘call upon’ someone, you pay a visit to the person. Unlike ‘drop in on’, when you ‘call on’ someone, you usually make an appointment. You let the person know in advance that you are coming. Of the two, ‘call upon’ is considered to be formal. *While he was in Delhi, the former Prime Minister called upon the President.
*Is it okay if we call on your neighbours this evening? When you ‘call for’ someone or something, you usually shout for the person or thing. This is just one of the meanings of this phrasal verb. *Maya stood in front of her house and kept calling for her dog.=
293. Is it okay to say ‘complete novice’?
First, let’s deal with the pronunciation of ‘novice’. The ‘o’ is like the ‘o’ in ‘hot’, ‘pot’, and ‘got’, and the ‘i’ is like ‘i’ the ‘it’, ‘bit’, and ‘kit’. The final ‘ce’ sounds like the ‘s’ in ‘sit’, ‘sip’, and ‘sun’. The word is pronounced ‘NO-vis’ with the stress on the first syllable. When you say that someone is a novice, you mean that the person is a beginner; he has no real experience. It is common to hear native speakers of English referring to someone as being a ‘complete novice’. Careful users of the language frown upon this. *When it comes to tennis, Vijaya is a complete novice.
294. What is the meaning of the expression ‘elephant in the room’?
If an elephant were standing in your room, it would be impossible to ignore it. When you say that a problem is an elephant in the room, you mean it is a very serious problem that everyone is aware of, but chooses to ignore. People try not to talk about it. Another expression which has the same meaning is ‘gorilla in the room’. *Corruption. The elephant in the room that no politician is willing to talk about. ****** “A fool and her money are soon courted.” — Helen Rowland
295. “How was your trip to Hyderabad?” “The Chief Minister seems to have brought in auto rickshaw drivers from Chennai.” “What makes you say that?” “Many of them are rude like the auto drivers here. And getting them to use the meter is like pulling teeth.” “What do you mean by pulling teeth?”
“When you say that something was like pulling teeth, you mean that it was very difficult to do. Getting information from people who work in government offices is like pulling teeth.” “Getting my cousin to clean his room is like pulling teeth. How does that sound?” “That was a good example”. “Do you think the auto rickshaw problem in Hyderabad will be solved?” “You must be joking. Politicians in our country are interested in making money and promoting their children. They are not interested in the problems of the common man.” “You have a point there.” “Tell me, how did your cousin do in last week’s tournament?” “She did quite well, actually. Once again, she lost in the final.” “Always a bridesmaid and never a bride, eh?” “What are you talking about?” “When you say that someone is always a bridesmaid and never a bride, you mean that the person never fulfils her ambition.” “She is probably always very close to achieving it, but never really succeeds.” “Exactly! As a result, the person never becomes the centre of attention.” “The person is never the winner; always the runner up.” “My cousin is a wonderful actor. But unfortunately, she’s always a bridesmaid, and never a bride.” “I didn’t know your cousin was an actor. Which film...” “That was just an example. By the way, my friends and I are planning to see a movie tomorrow. Would you like to come along?” “Not a bad idea. I haven’t been to the theatre in a month of Sundays.” “A month of Sundays? Does it mean it’s been a month since you...” “When you say you haven’t done something in a month of Sundays, it means you haven’t done it in a long time.” “I see. How about this example? I haven’t seen my cousin in a month of Sundays.” “Sounds good”. “I haven’t talked to my friend Vijay in a month of Sundays.” “That’s strange.”
A collection from the Open Page Supplement of The Hindu Newspaper
Courtesy: Sri Upendra, the writer of the above
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