Stop cribbing!
Updated On: 09 June, 2009 08:07 AM IST | | Balaji Narasimhan
There are some accents you use that give you away in any language
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There are some accents you use that give you away in any language. In film form, this is perhaps best exemplified by Rex Harrison in the movie My Fair Lady, where the protagonist is able to deduce the area of origin of somebody who is speaking to him merely by analysing the accent of the speaker.
This is also possible with words. For instance, once I was speaking to a person whom I had just met and I used the word 'appa avaru' and he immediately shot back, 'have you been to Dharwad?' When I asked him in surprise how he knew, he said that people in Bangalore used 'appa' and not 'appa avaru' to refer to one's dad.
A common English word, which causes much confusion, is 'crib', which is generally used to imply that one is complaining. Even journalists, who are expected to know their language, use it quite often and I have seen a senior editor-level person belonging to a publication that prides itself upon its English use this word while addressing people from a podium.
This is also possible with words. For instance, once I was speaking to a person whom I had just met and I used the word 'appa avaru' and he immediately shot back, 'have you been to Dharwad?' When I asked him in surprise how he knew, he said that people in Bangalore used 'appa' and not 'appa avaru' to refer to one's dad.
A common English word, which causes much confusion, is 'crib', which is generally used to imply that one is complaining. Even journalists, who are expected to know their language, use it quite often and I have seen a senior editor-level person belonging to a publication that prides itself upon its English use this word while addressing people from a podium.
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WHAT IS YOUR COMPLAINT? While some people claim that the word prepone is wrong usage of English, it was used in the New York Times way back in 1913 Read Next Story Trending StoriesLatest Photos |
