Indeed. My favorite along these lines is "run for election" vs. "stand for election"! Pukka Sahibs are fine with standing every once in a while, but running? That's for the peasants. Might as well get someone else to do it for you.
As nouns the difference between vote and ballot is that vote is a formalized choice on matters of administration or other democratic activities while ballot is a paper or card used to cast a vote. As verbs the difference between vote and ballot is that vote is to cast a vote; to assert a formalized choice in an election while ballot is to vote or decide by ballot. Isn't that an interesting distinction? Note to @sokanasanah: With the dress code followed by the MLAs in South India, they can never run for election.
Make & take both break me result is ache. Working knowledge of language at times challenging. An interviewer about to finish with a candidate, claiming to possess working knowledge of Hindi asked to call in the peon in Hindi standing outside the room. Candidate could see the peon outside and loudly said “yaye peon Idhar aav.” The peon came in. Pleased with response, interviewer asked the candidate now, to instruct peon to go out. The candidate went outside the room and from entrance shouted, “yaye peon Idhar aav” . Thanks and Regards. God is here, there & everywhere.
Words That Are Their Own Opposites 1. Sanction (via French, from Latin sanctio(n-), from sancire ‘ratify,’) can mean "give official permission or approval for (an action)" or conversely, "impose a penalty on." 2. Oversight is the noun form of two verbs with contrary meanings, “oversee” and “overlook.” Oversee, from Old English ofersēon ("look at from above") means "supervise" (medieval Latin for the same thing: super-, "over" plus videre, "to see.") Overlook usually means the opposite: "to fail to see or observe; to pass over without noticing; to disregard, ignore." 3. Left can mean either remaining or departed. If the gentlemen have withdrawn to the drawing room for after-dinner cigars, who’s left? (The gentlemen have left and the ladies are left.) 4. Dust, along with the next two words, is a noun turned into a verb meaning either to add or to remove the thing in question. Only the context will tell you which it is. When you dust are you applying dust or removing it? It depends whether you’re dusting the crops or the furniture. 5. Seed can also go either way. If you seed the lawn you add seeds, but if you seed a tomato you remove them. 6 Trim as a verb predates the noun, but it can also mean either adding or taking away. Arising from an Old English word meaning "to make firm or strong; to settle, arrange," trim came to mean "to prepare, make ready." Depending on who or what was being readied, it could mean either of two contradictory things: "to decorate something with ribbons, laces, or the like to give it a finished appearance" or "to cut off the outgrowths or irregularities of." And the context doesn’t always make it clear. If you’re trimming the tree are you using tinsel or a chain saw? 7. Resign works as a contronym in writing. This time we have homographs, but not homophones. Resign, meaning "to quit," is spelled the same as resign, meaning "to sign up again," but it’s pronounced differently. 8. Fast can mean "moving rapidly," as in running fast, or "fixed, unmoving," as in holding fast. If colors are fast they will not run. The meaning "firm, steadfast" came first; the adverb took on the sense "strongly, vigorously," which evolved into "quickly," a meaning that spread to the adjective. 9. Off means "deactivated," as in to turn off, but also "activated," as in the alarm went off. 10. Help means "assist," unless you can’t help doing something, when it means "prevent." 11.. Continue usually means to persist in doing something, but as a legal term it means stop a proceeding temporarily. 12. Out can mean "visible" or "invisible." For example, “It’s a good thing the full moon was out when the lights went out.” 13. Out of means "outside" or "inside": “I hardly get out of the house because I work out of my home.”
What really matters is communication and the way you convey your thoughts to the world. I do agree that English is necessary to make an impact today but do we really need to exaggerate its importance so much?Why, if you are dumb then can you not express? So, keeping aside the views and comments of the people who have related English language with standard and status, go on with whatever you know. Of course learning it better won't harm you but if you don't want to then no need to. There are too many converters and translators to help you survive without English! Source: Quora
The 17 Tight-Slap-phrases was in a Hindustan Times piece by: Sonal Kalra Hindustan Times Starting today, I’ve decided to cleanse myself of verbal nonsense. My dedication to the cause is such that I’ve spent quite a while compiling the following OTS (One-tight-slap) phrases ... and how I, or some of those who’ve written about these on the Net react to them. Slap me if you find me dishing out these from now on …. only after you allow me to do the same with you. 1 What’s up?: Ha! All ‘cool’ dudes greeting everyone by saying ‘Whassup’, please come here. Tell me what the hell you want the other person to answer. What could possibly be up? The ceiling? The sky? Vaise, tell me one thing. Am I a pervert or does this question sound a bit obscene to anyone else too? 2 How do you do?: I have the same problem with this one too. How do I do what? For God’s sake, this doesn’t even seem like a grammatically complete or correct sentence. And yeah, obscene, again. Oh lord! 3 To be honest: I use this one a lot. Well, not anymore. If you say ‘to be honest’ before saying something, are you suggesting that you are normally dishonest in other things you say? 4 You know what I mean: Yes, I do Einstein. But that won’t keep you from saying it anyway, will it? 5 It is what it is: Wah, wah. Yeh hui nah intelligent baat. It is=It is. You are a mathematician, Sir. Respect. 6 I thought to myself: Hmm … could you have thought to ‘someone else’? Would you like the lead role in the next Ramsay Brothers’ film if you have those kind of powers? Consider, please. 7 I’m afraid I can’t: Bachche, it’s okay if you can’t. What are you afraid of? Koi maarega kya? 8 Are you coming, or what?: What, what, what? What was the need to add ‘or what’ here? Are you crazy or what? 9 What’s done is done: Are you the same guy who says ‘It is what it is’? You better be, I don’t want to kill two people. 10 You can’t have your cake and eat it too: Well, this is supposed to be a famous saying. My foot. If it’s my cake, of course I’ll eat it. What else am I supposed to do with it? Try stopping me. 11 I’m only human: Achha ji? And what are others, vermins who’ve come attached to humans as free gifts? 12 This is my only choice: Dimaag theek hai? The definition of choice is to have an alternative. If you have none, say ‘I have no choice’. There’s nothing like only choice. 13 Take care of your personal belongings: As opposed to what … my impersonal belongings? Oh, you mean something I stole from the fellow passenger? Don’t worry, I consider it very personal now. 14 Bring to the table: This rubbish gets said a lot in corporate meetings. Trust me, I can swear on Chaddha ji’s head that nothing ever gets brought to the table. Not even coffee. Also, when they say ‘he’s on board’… nobody is. I’ve checked very carefully. 15 Barking up the wrong tree: Believe me, barking up the right tree gets no different result. Total. Unadulterated. Nonsense. 16 First things first: Please, it hurts to even joke about this one. Have you heard of a word called ‘Obviously’? 17 I saw it with ‘my own’ eyes: Oh ****. Amulet found Sonal Kalra easily bothered. She needs to take some meds, and chill. OTOH, it is hard to tell what could bother people. I (Amulet) added an 18th. Add more as you come up with phrases that bother you. 18: "Trust me" -- Used-car salesmen, and the President of the United States throw this about in their speech. When you hear it, give yourself a tight slap and wake up.
19) "Bite the bullet" - I thought bullets are intended to fire out of the Gun/Revolver/Riffle. What I am supposed to do by consuming the ammunition? 20) "Are you kidding me?" - That is purely driven by your mindset. No one can do it unless you are determined to be a child. 21) "I am all ears" - I can clearly see you are much more than your ears. I see only two of them on either side of you like for any other human being. 22) "Hold your horses" - I don't own a horse. Have you heard of the term "wait a minute?" 23) "I hear you" - Whenever I talked, I was always under the impression that you were hearing me. That is implied to me even without saying it. 24) "You can say that again" - Why? You didn't hear when I said the first time? 25) "You are telling me" - If you are in front of me and no one is around, it means I am telling you something. Why do you have to confirm it? Have you heard of the term, "I know what you mean"?
Viswa, surely you jest? There's an interesting difference between the clichés Ms. Karla is railing at and the idioms that seem to get your goat. For example, here is an interesting exposition on the possible origins of "bite the bullet". It is acceptable idiomatic usage, clichéd though it is. "Hold your horses" (meaning don't let them run away from you, stay in control) is not all that different from "hang up the phone" - note that there's a whole generation of teenagers who have no idea what that might mean. "I am all ears" - I like this one! For words that come from the heart, I am all ears. #s 20, 24 and 25 are American. "Are you kidding me?" is an expression of disbelief - they know/suspect you're not. Both "you can say that again" and "you're telling me" imply emphatic agreement. ... and so on. These are quite colorful colloquialisms, overused though they are!
