Proverb Origin Stories part 1

 

A proverb is a short sentence that people often quote, which gives advice or tells you something about life. (Απόφθεγμα ονομάζεται μία σύντομη πρόταση ή φράση, η οποία περιέχει συμβουλές ή κρίσεις από πρόσωπα αδιαμφισβήτητου κύρους και θεωρείται μία αιώνια αλήθεια.)

The study of Proverbs is called Paremiology and we can trace the origin of proverbs as far as the times of the great Philosopher Aristotle. But the authors of most of the proverbs are still unknown.

Today's proverb is  " A bad workman always blames his tools."

But how has this proverb come about?

Kumar and Ravi were two farmers who were neighbors. Both owned a pair of oxen (singular:ox/plural:oxen - βόδι/βόδια) each with which they plowed (άροτρο / οργώνω) their land. Kumar worked hard all day long in order to get a good yield (σοδειά / αποδίδω/ λυγίζω) and looked after his oxen very well since he knew that they were very important for his farming activity.

Ravi on the other hand was very lazy and a miser (τσιγκούνης / παραδόπιστος) who never fed his oxen properly but extracted maximum work from them and kept complaining that they were not doing a good job.

As a true friend Kumar advised and pointed out to Ravi that it was cruel to ill-treat (κακομεταχειρίζομαι) the animals which were helping him make a living. Ravi paid little heed to Kumar’s words. He soon bought a tractor to plow his land and chased the oxen away, since he no longer needed them. Taking pity on the poor animals Kumar took them under his wing (παίρνω κάτω απο την εποπτεία μου) although he could ill-afford to maintain them.

The monsoon (μουσώνας) soon arrived and it was time for cultivation. Kumar’s land was well plowed and ready for cultivation – thanks to his oxen. Ravi in his miserly fashion had not maintained his tractor well and it kept giving him trouble. As a result, he could not get his land ready for cultivation on time. He lamented and blamed it all on bad luck not realizing that it was he who was responsible for his miserable state. Ravi not only lost out on a good yield by his laziness but also spent more money than required to repair his tractor due to poor maintenance.

Despite having better equipment, Ravi was unable to get the best results, whereas Kumar was a good workman and hence (επομένως) was able to succeed with the limited resources that he had.

Video source:

How to Speak English Like a Native...Part 2

 The economy of language is a theory stating that fewer words lead to greater clarity. 

     This idea commonly crops up in education, but it also applies to translation, marketing, and branding.

       Most importantly, though, it works as an excellent tool to reach our nativeness goal. So, give it a try!

How to Speak English Like a Native...Part 1

    The economy of language is a theory stating that fewer words lead to greater clarity. 

     This idea commonly crops up in education, but it also applies to translation, marketing, and branding.

       Most importantly, though, it works as an excellent tool to reach our nativeness goal. So, give it a try!

Idioms No. 7

 

English idioms

English idioms, proverbs, and expressions are an important part of everyday English. They come up all the time in both written and spoken English. Because idioms don't always make sense literally, you'll need to familiarize yourself with the meaning and usage of each idiom.

English Idioms No.7

Idioms No. 6

 

English idioms

English idioms, proverbs, and expressions are an important part of everyday English. They come up all the time in both written and spoken English. Because idioms don't always make sense literally, you'll need to familiarize yourself with the meaning and usage of each idiom.

English Idioms No.6

Idioms No. 5

 

English idioms

English idioms, proverbs, and expressions are an important part of everyday English. They come up all the time in both written and spoken English. Because idioms don't always make sense literally, you'll need to familiarize yourself with the meaning and usage of each idiom.

English Idioms No.5

Idioms No. 4

English idioms

English idioms, proverbs, and expressions are an important part of everyday English. They come up all the time in both written and spoken English. Because idioms don't always make sense literally, you'll need to familiarize yourself with the meaning and usage of each idiom.

English Idioms No.4

Idioms No. 3

 

English idioms

English idioms, proverbs, and expressions are an important part of everyday English. They come up all the time in both written and spoken English. Because idioms don't always make sense literally, you'll need to familiarize yourself with the meaning and usage of each idiom.

English Idioms No.3

Idioms No. 2

 

English idioms

English idioms, proverbs, and expressions are an important part of everyday English. They come up all the time in both written and spoken English. Because idioms don't always make sense literally, you'll need to familiarize yourself with the meaning and usage of each idiom.

English Idioms No.2

Idioms No. 1

 

English idioms

English idioms, proverbs, and expressions are an important part of everyday English. They come up all the time in both written and spoken English. Because idioms don't always make sense literally, you'll need to familiarize yourself with the meaning and usage of each idiom.

English Idioms No.1

Portmanteau Words ( linguistic blend of words)

 What are "Pormanteau" words?

Well interestingly enough a "Pormanteau" literally means a large travelling bag, typically made of stiff leather and opening into two equal parts: 

Based on the fact that it opens in TWO equal parts, a "Pormanteau" word is a blend of two different words. A shining example is the word "smog" (=νέφος) that derives from the words "smoke" and "fog". Several others: 

• moped = motor + pedal (=μοτοποδήλατο = μοτέρ + πεντάλ)

• modem = modulator + demodulator

• motel = motor + hotel (=modem = διαμορφωτής + αποδιαμορφωτής)

• dumbfound = dumb + confound (=dumbfound = χαζή + σύγχυση)

• bash = bang + smash (= βίαιο χτύπημα = πάταγος+σπάσιμο)

• hassle = haggle + tussle (= ταλαιπωρία = παζάρι + αναστάτωση)

• web + seminar = webinar (web + σεμινάριο = διαδικτυακό σεμινάριο)

• brother + romance = bromance (αδελφός + ρομαντισμός = στενή φιλία μεταξύ ανδρών)

• friend + enemy = frenemy (=φίλος + εχθρός = λυκοφίλος)

• hungry + angry = hangry (πεινασμένος + θυμωμένος = εκνευρισμένος λόγω έλλειψης φαγητού)

The video below offers a light-hearted look at how a few well-known portmanteaus have gotten their start.

Lastly, some MARKETING poRTMANTEAUS :

Listicle = is an informal term for an article made up of a series of facts, tips, quotations, or examples organized around a particular theme.

Webinar = an online seminar that turns a presentation into a real-time conversation from anywhere in the world.

Digerati = the elite of digitalization, social media, content marketing, computer industry and online communities.

Edutainment = A combination of entertainment with education: any type of entertainment aimed at entertaining and being educative

Subvertising =  is the practice of making spoofs or parodies of corporate and political advertisements.

Webcast = a media presentation distributed over the Internet using streaming media technology to distribute a single content source to many simultaneous listeners/viewers.

Netiquette = the rules of etiquette that apply when communicating over the Internet 

Advertorial = An advertorial is an advertisement in the form of editorial content. 

House: Renovation / Decoration part 1

Many people renovate their houses to keep up with fashions and trends. Here are some useful English words and phrases to describe this. When a red-colored word appears it corresponds with an according picture.

Decorating

give something a lick / a coat of paint = paint walls

hang / put up wallpaper = to attach new paper to the walls

fit / put up blinds or curtains = cover the windows either with curtains (fabric hanging across the window) or blinds (strips of plastic or fabric that cover the window)

throw out / replace the old light fittings = change the lights

go for a (name of fashion) effect = recreate a particular look

put the finishing touches to = complete the decoration with the final details

Renovation

have an extension = build on to the existing house to provide more rooms

put in a conservatory (*1) / a fitted kitchen / a new bathroom = to install a conservatory (room between the back of the house and the garden), a fitted kitchen (where the units are connected, rather than being single pieces) or a new bathroom

convert the loft (have a loft conversion) = convert the attic into a liveable room

turn the dining room into a spare bedroom = convert a room into one with a different purpose

knock down a wall = demolish a wall

knock through from the kitchen = demolish the wall from the kitchen into another room

build a patio (*2) = build a paved area around part or the whole of the house

rewire the house = put in new electrical wiring

install central heating / solar panels = put in a new heating system

re-plaster (*3) the ceiling = take off the old plaster (covering the bricks) and replace it with new

re-tile (*4) the bathroom = put new tiles on the floor and walls

(*1)

(*2)

(*3)

(*4)

Other useful expressions

diy = Do it Yourself (doing maintenance and building works in your house)

be handy around the house = to be practical and able to do jobs in the house

draw up plans = to make technical plans before you do building or renovation work

get planning / building permission = to get authorisation from the town hall to do work on your house

Cleaning vocabulary

Everyday / weekly cleaning

Tidy up your house, by putting away things in their right places. Use a soft, dry cloth (a duster (*1)) to remove the dust from furniture. Then use the vacuum cleaner (*2) (or hoover) to hoover the floors, rugs and carpets. Use different hoover attachments for different types of hoovering (i.e. one for the floors, another for the furniture, etc.)

If you have wooden or tiled floors, you can also sweep these with a broom (*3). For smaller areas, use a dustpan (*4) and brush to sweep up dirt, dust, or broken glass, for example.

Every so often, you can clean the floors with water. For this, you can use a long-handled mop and bucket (for the water.) If you have wooden floors, you can also wax them (a sort of protective liquid that will make them shine.)

If a surface is particularly dirty, you might have to scrub it with a scrubbing brush (a wooden brush with stiff bristles) or scour (*5) it (with a tough scouring cloth) to get rid of the marks or stains.

Disinfect the toilet with toilet duck (*6) (a special cleaning product that contains bleach.)

Use window cleaner to clean your windows, and oven cleaner to clean your oven. Use furniture polish (a type of wax) to clean and protect wooden furniture.

(*1)

(*2)

(*3)

(*4)

(*5)

(*6)

Spring-cleaning

Many people spring clean their houses When winter seems to be finally over. Spring-cleaning is a thorough clean, from top to bottom! Here are some words to describe this:

Polish your silver (such as silver cutlery) with silver polish.

Declutter (*1) = get rid of extra things you don’t need.

Wash soft furnishings (take down the curtains, or take off furniture covers).

Touch up the paintwork (paint the places where the paint has come off, or where there are dirty marks.)

Get into all the corners of your house, and clean them thoroughly – i.e. behind heavy furniture where you wouldn’t normally clean.

Get rid of any mould (*2) on the walls, or on bathroom tiles, for example.

Clean high up or difficult areas to reach. Remove cobwebs (spiders’ nests.)

(*1)

(*2)

For any audiophiles out there, you may also take a look at the following renovation - vocabulary video: