Improve Your English – 195 [Archives:2003/656/Education]

Dr. Ramakanta Sahu
I. What to Say
Situations and Expressions (55):
Emotional Reactions (IV)

The human spirit is very delicate and sensitive. Shakespeare marvels at the profundity, depth and variety of the vistas of human spirit, his emotions and passions in Hamlet's soliloquy: “What a piece of work is man! How noble in reason! How infinite in faculties…” One wonders at the diversity of human emotions and the nuances of passionate responses he gives in a wide variety of situations. Let look at some more of these reactions.

– He has a spite (grudge, feeling of ill will) against me.
– His attitude is marked by malice (ill will, desire to harm others) to one and all.
– After the exam is over, students have a spree (lively, merry time).
– He takes everything in his stride (to accept and deal with easily).
– Everyone likes him for his sprightliness (gaiety and liveliness)
– The children were gay (cheerful, merry, happy) at the thought of the coming holiday.
– His railtery (friendly joking at some one's weakness, teasing) provoked a full-throated/ hilarious/uproarious laughter.
– Everybody has a feeling of repulsion (feeling of dislike) for his uncouth personality and obnoxious manners.
– The onlookers could hardly control their tears to witness the heart-rending sight of the mass burial of the crash victims.
– The vigilance officers were stupefied (surprised very much) at the sight of so much gold.
– She recoiled (drew back suddenly in fear or dislike) at the sight of the snake.
– People are aghast (suddenly filled with surprise, fear, wonder, shock) at the thought of another war.
– Everyone dreads him as he his aggressive (ready to quarrel; threatening) and is ready to fight.
– Don't be agitated (anxious, worried) over such trifles.
– I decided to be a teacher and have no regrets (feel sorry about).
– People greeted the leader with frenzied shouts of joy (full of uncontrolled excitement).
– He was bewitched (has a magic effect) by her amorous (expressing love) looks.
– The relatives bewailed (expressed deep sorrow for) his premature death.
– Please don't provoke (make a person angry or bad tempered) me into saying something rash.
– She gave me a shy (nervous) smile.
– He shunned (avoided) seeing other people.
– The uninteresting work has a stultifying (stupid or dull in mind) effect on him.
– My heart is full to see my children well-established in life.
– He was between two horns of dilemma (undecided) whether to choose medicine or engineering as a career.

II. How to say it correctly
Correct errors, if any, in the following sentences.
1. She has a few money
2. I go to the school to study
3. My friend works in Ministry of Education
4. Who built Taj Mahal?
5. It is a good sheet of paper to write on it

Suggested answers to last week's questions
1. He gave me a piece of advice.
Note: ' advice' is an uncount noun.
2. Give me water to drink.
3. I spent four weeks in hospital.
4. He laughed at me.
5. I have to make them read correctly.

III. Increase your word power
(A) How to express it in one word
1. Something that may be very dangerous to life.
2. A written official order to kill someone.
3. A conscious or unconscious desire for the death of oneself.
4. To lower in quality or in the opinion of others.
5. A meting where an argument or a question is talked about by at least two people, each expressing a different opinion.

Suggested answers to last week's questions
1. Useless people or things: dead wood (n.)
2. An action or event that destroys someone or something: death blow (n.)
3. A list of the names of dead people whose deaths have something in common, such as time, place, or manner: death roll (n.)
4. A human skull representing death: death's head (n.)
5. The number of people who died in a particular way: death-toll (n.)

B) Foreign phrases
Give the English equivalents of the following phrases
1. festschrift 2. genre 3. ghazel 4. grotesque 5. hamartia

Answers to last week's questions
1. epitome (Gk. 'cutting short'): An abridgement or summary. A long scientific treatise or historical work compressed into a single book.
2. manifesto (Lat. 'manufestus' meaning 'struck by hand): A public declaration, usually of political, religious, philosophical or literary principles and beliefs.
3. manuscript (Lat. 'codex manu scriptus' meaning 'a book written by hand').
4. maxim (Lat. Propositio maxima meaning 'a greatest theme'): A proposition consists of a pithy, succint statement which contains a precept or a general truth about human nature.
5. hybrid (Lat. half breed): A word formed from a stem or word in one language plus a suffix or prefix from another.
e.g. 'television' (Gk+Lat) 'gullible' (Eng. +Lat.).

C) Word commonly confused
Bring out the meaning differences in the following pairs of words
1. national, notional 2. data, date 3. respectable, respectful 4. sensual, sensuous 5. trail, trial

Suggested answers to last week's questions
1. bauble (n.) (pretty, bright and pleasing ornament of little value): Wealth and social status are only baubbles.
bubble (n.) (hollow ball of liquid containing air or gas): Bubbles are formed on a boiling liquid
2. bawdy (adj) (talk obscene): He has plenty of bawdy jokes.
body (n) (the whole physical structure of a man or animal): Man's body may be imprisoned, but his spirit is free.
3. bane (n) (a cause of bad things): Liquor is the bane of his life.
boon (n) (something favorable): Travel abroad proved to be a boon for his health.
4. behave (vi & refl) (to act): Behave yourself!
behove (vt) (proper): It behoves you to apologize to him.
5. bid (vt & i) (command, tell): My teacher bade me to come in.
bide (vt) (wait for the right moment): He is biding his time.

D) Idioms and phrases
Use the following phrases in sentences
1. apparent to
2. apart from
3. if anywhere
4. like anything
5. if anything

Suggested answers to last week's questions
1. ask for (to behave so as to cause something bad): He is in deep trouble, but he asked for it.
2. as against (used to introduce a comparison with something rather different): The net profit of the industry amounted to $50,000 as against $20,000 last year.
3. article of faith (great conviction): Non-violence was the article of faith of Gandhiji.
4. arrive at (reach a place at the end of a journey): They arrived at the destination safe and sound.
5. in arrangement with (something agreed upon): The Inter college elocution contest was organized by the College of Education in arrangement with the University.

IV. Grammar and Composition
I) Grammar (vocabulary)
What names do we give to the following professionals?
1. A person who makes bread.
2. An expert in chemistry.
3. Plays the violin
4. Teaches
5. Advises people on legal matters.
6. Plays a musical instrument.
7. Goes up in a spacecraft.
8. Prepares meals for a living.
9. Designs buildings
10. Flies an airplane.
11. Looks after the sick.

Suggested answers to last week's questions
1. A car isn't really necessary in Sana'a; you can easily do without one.
2. He kept putting off going to the dentist until in the end one of his teeth fell out.
3. Your behavior is terrible. I'm not going to put up with it for a minute longer.
4. The weather doesn't look too good, so you'd better put on a rain coat.

V) Composition: Paragraph writing
Expand the idea contained in the maxim:
28: IT IS BETTER TO LIGHT ONE CANDLE THAN TO CURSE THE DARKNESS

Last week's topic

27: A BIRD IN THE HAND IS WORTH TWO IN THE BUSH
The statement implies a contrast between the immediate practical gain and the distant probable profit. It is wiser and more practical to avail oneself of whatever comes one's way at the present moment than run after a mirage. One can never be certain about what one may achieve in the unseen future since future is highly uncertain and, as it is said, 'there's many a slip between the cup and the lip'. It is rather more pragmatic to make the best of what ever is available now, and then relentlessly strive for the future achievement. Hence the saying contains a pristine truth.

V. Pearls from the Holy Quran
“Put thy trust in Allah
For Allah loves those
Who put their trust (in Him)
S3:A159

VI. Words of Wisdom
“Great is the power of habit.”
)Cicero
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