Saturday, January 6, 2001
W O R D  P O W E R


Confusing words Forbidding and foreboding:

Forbidding: Threatening and also cold and discouraging.

— The tourists were warned not to walk near the forbidding coastline.

Foreboding: A strong feeling that danger or trouble is approaching.

— She had a sense of foreboding that her family would be attacked by terrorists.

Gourmet and gourmand:

Gourmand: A person who eats greedily or heartily.

— A gourmand is prone to obesity.

 


Gourmet: A person who is an expert in fine food, wine etc.

— Being a gourmet, he helped us in buying some good quality wines.

Illusion and delusion:

Delusion: A false impression which is fixed in one's mind. (It may also be a symptom of madness)

— The patient suffered from a delusion that he was the prime minister.

Illusion: A false impression or belief which is only temporary and can be replaced by a true impression.

— He is under the illusion that she still loves him.

Amend and emend:

Amend: To change something slightly in order to correct an error or make an improvement in it.

— They have amended the law which bars women from joining the army.

Emend: To correct errors in a book or any piece of writing, especially before printing.

— He has to emend these passages by tomorrow.

Assume and presume:

Both the words mean to accept a fact without complete proof, but assume is less certain while presume implies that there is some evidence for the fact.

I assume that everyone will come for the party.

I presume that the ten passengers who are missing, are dead.

Augur and auger:

Auger: A carpenter's tool for boring holes.

— His auger was stolen from the workshop..

Augur: A sign of some thing that may happen in the future, to foretell something.

— Your brilliant performance augurs well for your career.

Looking back

The Seventh Heaven of Delight means a state of bliss and ecstasy. The allusion refers to the seventh and the highest heaven which is believed to be abode of God and the most exalted angels.

To go to Jericho was used by those who wanted to use a statement milder than 'go to hell'. There was a Jericho house, in Hertfordshire, which Queen Elizabeth used as a place for a sort of house-arrest of courtiers who were to be punished.

Ponder

Impossible is a word to be found in the dictionaries of fools. — Napolean

Scorecard
1c, 2a, 3e, 4b, 5d.

— Illa Vij


Discover

Omni means all; everywhere.

Match the following:

          A                                               B

1. Omnibus                       a. Having immense or limitless power

2. Omnipotent                   b. Knowing everything.

3. Omnipresent                  c. A large book containing many books

4. Omniscient                    d. Eating all types of foods

5. Omnivorous                   e. Present everywhere