Relax, Refresh your English knowledge 137
574. What is the difference between `speak English' and `speak in English'?
When you ask someone to `speak in English', what you want him to do is to use the English language. Perhaps he is speaking in a language that you don't understand, and therefore you want him to talk to you in English. This is the language that you want him to use on this particular occasion. When you say that he `speaks English', what you mean is that the individual knows and has the ability to use the language. In India, for example, many of us can speak two or more languages, and depending on the context we choose to speak in a particular language. *The CEO speaks five languages. At the press conference, he spoke in English.
575. What does `pari passu' mean?
First, let's deal with the pronunciation. The `a' in `pari' is like `a' in `ask', `task', and `answer'; the following `i' is pronounced like the `ee' in `fee', `bee', and `knee'. The `a' in `passu' is like the `a' in `act', `fact' and `bat'; and the following `u' is like the `oo' in `cool', `pool', and `fool'. The main stress is on the first syllable of `passu'. This is a Latin expression which literally means `with equal footing'. When you say that two things are `pari passu', you mean that they are travelling at the same pace, and hence are side by side. The expression is also used to mean, `without partiality'. *According to this report, inflation and interest rates increased pari passu last year.
576. Which is correct? `He's a teacher of English' or `He's an English teacher'?
Grammatically both are correct, but their meanings are somewhat different. When you say that someone is a teacher of English what you mean is that the subject the individual teaches is English. The sentence, `He is an English teacher' is rather ambiguous. It could mean that the man teaches English. It could also mean that the teacher is English — in other words, the teacher is an Englishman.
A collection from the Open Page Supplement of The Hindu Newspaper
Courtesy: Sri Upendra, the writer of the above
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