Relax, Refresh your English knowledge 76
371. How is the word ‘subterfuge’ pronounced?
The first syllable rhymes with the words ‘cub’, ‘tub’, and ‘hub’. The following ‘er’ sounds like the ‘a’ in ‘china’, and the final syllable rhymes with the word ‘huge’. The word is pronounced ‘SUB-te-fyuuj’ with the stress on the first syllable. When you trick someone or employ dishonest means in order to achieve your goal, you are making use of subterfuge. Very often, the deception is employed to hide one’s real intentions. The word literally means ‘escape secretly’; it comes from the Latin ‘subter’ meaning ‘secretly’ and ‘fugere’ meaning ‘to flee’. I don’t care how you get the information. Obtain it by subterfuge if you have to. Everyone knew the minister wasn’t sick at all. It was only a subterfuge.
372. Is it okay to say ‘prepare the vegetables’?
I understand this is an expression commonly found in recipe books. When you ask someone to prepare the vegetables, what you would like the person to do is to wash them, clean them, peel them, and cut them. In other words, the person ensures that the vegetables are ready to be used. Maya, you’ll have to prepare the potatoes. I want you to peel them and then cut them into thin slices. *** “Every generation imagines itself to be more intelligent than the one that went before it, and wiser than the one that comes after it.” — George Orwell
373. How is the word ‘masquerade’ pronounced?
The first syllable is pronounced like the word ‘mask’, and the ‘ue’ in the second syllable is like the ‘a’ in ‘china’. The final syllable sounds like the word ‘raid’. The word is pronounced ‘mask-e-RAID’ with the stress on the final syllable. Some people drop the vowel in the second syllable, and pronounce the word ‘maskRAID’. The word comes from the Italian ‘mascarata’ meaning ‘a ball at which masks are worn’. People generally wear a mask when they wish to hide their identity. When you masquerade as being someone else, you are pretending to be someone that you are not. *Terrorists masquerading as policemen managed to enter the Minister’s house. The word can also be used to mean ‘to put on a show’ or to cover up; you act in a way which prevents others from knowing the truth about something unpleasant.
*For the sake of her parents, Gayathri kept up a masquerade of being happily married.
374. What is the meaning of ‘mollycoddle’?
The expression can be used both as a noun and a verb. When you ‘coddle’ someone, you go out of your way to protect the person; you are being overly protective. ‘Molly’, I understand, was traditionally a nickname for ‘Mary’. The expression ‘mollycoddle’ is often used contemptuously to refer to a man whom you think is rather weak and ineffectual; the individual, in your opinion, is effeminate. When used as a verb, it means to overprotect or pamper someone. *The new principal believes that students should be mollycoddled.
375. Does the word ‘daymare’ exist?
Yes, it does. In fact, the word has been in use for several hundred years now; the well-known author, Charles Dickens, used ‘daymare’ in his novel ‘David Copperfield’. A ‘daymare’ is like a nightmare except that it takes place during the day time. The anxiety attacks that we sometimes have when we are wide awake can be called ‘daymares’. The pressure that we feel on the chest when we have a nightmare is usually present during a daymare as well. *She has a daymare every day around noon.
A collection from the Open Page Supplement of The Hindu Newspaper
Courtesy: Sri Upendra, the writer of the above
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