Relax, Refresh your English knowledge 159
What is the meaning and origin of `white paper'?
We often read in newspapers that the government has issued a white paper on some matter. A `white paper' is an official report, in which the government outlines its policy on an issue of current concern. The report is usually not very bulky, and it is made available to the public. Such a report began to be called `white paper' because it was bound in paper of that colour. A couple of weeks ago, a judge said that corrupt individuals must be hanged from lamp posts. Since there are some people of questionable reputation in Parliament, it would be interesting to see if the government brings out a white paper regarding this matter.
What is the opposite of `feminist'?
A feminist, in simplistic terms, is someone who advocates equal rights for women. A man who believes that men should have the same rights as women is called a `hominist'. This is not a new word. George Bernard Shaw coined it in 1903 in his preface to `Man and Superman'. Another word that is commonly used now is `masculinist'.
Is it OK to say, `It was a good movie indeed'?
We often hear sentences like this. People who are fond of grammar, however, would frown at such a sentence. They would argue that the sentence would have been grammatically acceptable if the word `indeed' had come immediately after the verb `was' - `It was indeed a good movie'. Similarly, it is OK to say, `The behaviour of the students was indeed bad', but not `The behaviour of the students was bad indeed.' If you wish to have `indeed' at the end of these sentences, then you need to put the word `very' in front of the adjective good/bad. *It was a very good movie indeed. *The behaviour of the students was very bad indeed. "The only `ism' that Hollywood believes in is plagiarism." — Dorothy Parker
A collection from the Open Page Supplement of The Hindu Newspaper
Courtesy: Sri Upendra, the writer of the above
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