‘leave something up in the air’ / ‘leave something hanging in the air’.

When you leave some matter up in the air, you leave it undecided.
Example: My father can’t take decisions very quickly. He leaves matters up in the air for months. It drives my mother crazy.
‘Leave something hanging in the air’.

‘Leave something hanging in the air’ has the same meaning as `leave something up in the air’.
Examples:  My boss, on the other hand, likes people to take quick decisions. Employees are discouraged from leaving something hanging in the air *  Take a decision now. I don’t want you to leave it hanging in the air .

Source: S. Upendran, The Hindu ‘Know Your English’ Series, January 30, 2006

`gripe about something to someone’

When you `gripe about something to someone’ you complain constantly in an annoying sort of way.

Examples: “Your neighbour gripes about the kids in your building all the time.” * ”Geetha is always griping to me about the lack of civic sense in our country.” * ”Don’t gripe to me about it. Tell the principal how you feel about the matter.” * ”If Saurav hadn’t griped about the coach to the media, he would have remained the captain of the Indian team.”

Source: S. Upendran, The Hindu ‘Know Your English’ Series, January 30, 2006.

What is the meaning and origin of `touch wood’?

When after making a remark, you say `touch wood’, you are hoping that the good fortune that you have had so far continues. The expression has the same meaning as `knock on wood’.

*Our wicket keeper hasn’t dropped a single catch all summer. Touch wood. *The second hand scooter I bought recently hasn’t given me any trouble. Knock on wood.

There are several explanations as to the origin of this expression. According to some scholars, it comes from an old superstitious belief that knocking on a tree (wood) helped to drive away evil spirits. Another explanation is that `touch wood’ was the name of a tag game that children played. The aim of the game was to run after your opponents and catch them. But if an individual was touching a tree (wood), then he was safe; he couldn’t be `captured’.

Source: The Hindu ‘Know Your English’ Series, January 23, 2006

When an individual has no vision in one eye, you say that he is blind in one eye. A person can be ‘blind to something’, but not ‘blind to one eye’.

‘blind to something’
When you say that someone is ‘blind to something’ what you mean is that he is unable or unwilling to accept the truth. The person does not see what is obvious to most other people.

*For some reason, Thiru is completely blind to his Principal’s faults.

Source: The Hindu ‘Know Your English’ Series, January 23, 2006

What is the difference between `He is my best friend’ and `He is a close friend’?

It is possible for you to have several `close’ friends. When you say, `He is my best friend’, it suggests that he is the individual who is the closest to you; it’s this person with whom your share your most intimate thoughts.

Source: The Hindu ‘Know Your English’ Series, January 23, 2006

What is the meaning of `et al’?

First, let’s deal with the pronunciation. The `et’ is like the `et’ in `set’, `bet’, and `pet’; the `a’ in `al’ is like the `a’ in `ant’, `apple’, and `hat’. The main stress is on `al’.

`Et al’ comes from Latin and it is the abbreviated form of `et alia’ meaning other people or other things.
The expression is used after a name or a list of names to indicate that others are also involved. It is normally used to refer to books and articles written by more than one person.

*For your next class, I would like you to read the article written by Balagopal et al.

Source: The Hindu ‘Know Your English’ Series, January 23, 2006

How is the word `hegemony’ pronounced?

The `e’ in the first syllable and the `y’ in the final syllable are like `i’ in `hit’, `bit’, and `pit’. The `gem’ in the second is pronounced like the word `gem’. The `o’ is like the `a’ in `china’ and the main stress is on the second syllable. This is one way of pronouncing the word.

`Hegemony’ is a formal word and is used to refer to a situation in which one group has more control or power than others.

Source: The Hindu ‘Know Your English’ Series, January 23, 2006