Relax, Refresh your English knowledge 122
529. How is the word "carte blanche" pronounced?
The first word is pronounced like the word "cart"; the "a" in "blanche" is like the "o" in "lot", "got", and "pot". The final "che" is pronounced like the "sh" in "ship", "sheep", and "sheet". When you give someone "carte blanche" you are giving the individual the authority or unrestricted freedom to do whatever he thinks is right. It has the same meaning as "blank check". *Lavanya was given carte blanche with the remodelling of the house. *The captain was not given carte blanche to choose the players he wanted. "Carte blanche" comes from French and it literally means, "white card". The term was first used in the military. When two armies fought and one of them surrendered unconditionally, the commander of the losing army was made to sign on a blank sheet of paper. The commander of the victorious army would then proceed to write whatever he wanted; he dictated his own terms. By signing the blank paper, the losing commander was giving the victorious army the freedom to dictate the terms of surrender.
529. How is the word "carte blanche" pronounced?
The first word is pronounced like the word "cart"; the "a" in "blanche" is like the "o" in "lot", "got", and "pot". The final "che" is pronounced like the "sh" in "ship", "sheep", and "sheet". When you give someone "carte blanche" you are giving the individual the authority or unrestricted freedom to do whatever he thinks is right. It has the same meaning as "blank check". *Lavanya was given carte blanche with the remodelling of the house. *The captain was not given carte blanche to choose the players he wanted. "Carte blanche" comes from French and it literally means, "white card". The term was first used in the military. When two armies fought and one of them surrendered unconditionally, the commander of the losing army was made to sign on a blank sheet of paper. The commander of the victorious army would then proceed to write whatever he wanted; he dictated his own terms. By signing the blank paper, the losing commander was giving the victorious army the freedom to dictate the terms of surrender.
530. What is the difference between "graceful" and "gracious"?
The word "graceful" is normally used to refer to a person's movement; the individual moves in a way that is attractive to watch. *The young dancer moved gracefully across the stage. *For someone who was terribly overweight, Eshwar was surprisingly graceful. The word can also be used to talk about an object which is pleasing to looking at. *He had a graceful little cottage in the countryside. "Gracious", on the other hand, refers to people who are pleasant and polite. It is considered formal. *Janaki is the gracious lady you met last week.
531. Should "lest" be followed by "would" or "should"?
"Lest" is a considered a formal word and is normally used with "should". When you do something lest something bad should happen, you do it to prevent the bad thing from happening. The word means "for fear that" or "in order that". Here are a few examples. *Hamsa was afraid to say anything lest her boss should scream at her. *Uma refused to run away lest the police should think that she had committed the crime.
A collection from the Open Page Supplement of The Hindu Newspaper
Courtesy: Sri Upendra, the writer of the above
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