Know Your English (April 2001)

Know your English

``SORRY TO have kept you waiting. I hope you weren't bored.''

``Not at all. I was thumbing through this old magazine. And I must say....''
``....thumbing through an old magazine! What do you mean by that?''
``When you thumb through a magazine, book or newspaper, you go through it very quickly.''
``In other words, you don't read it carefully.''
``That's right! Here's an example. I thumbed through your physics textbook. I must say that it is very well written.''
``Very well written. Good grief! It's probably the most boring book ever written. Don't ruin my mood by talking about physics. How about this example? Aruna thumbed through her address book and came up with Sandeep's telephone number.''
``That's an excellent example. By the way, you can also say `leafed through'. It means the same thing as `thumbed through'. For example....''
``....while the wife was getting dressed, the husband leafed through the newspaper.''
``The examiner leafed through the dissertation.''
``Did your Chairman thumb through your proposal?''
``Apparently he didn't leaf through the proposal. His P.A. told me that he went over it very carefully.''
``And?''
``And what?''
``What did the Chairman think of it?''
``He gave it the thumbs up.''
``I am not interested in what soft drink your Chairman offered you. I want to know...''
``....soft drink? What are you talking about?''
``You said that the Chairman gave you Thumbs Up.''
``I didn't say that! I said that the Chairman gave my proposal the thumbs up. Grow up, will you?''
``Gave your proposal the thumbs up? Does it mean what I think it means?''
``I have no clue what you think it means. When you give something the `thumbs up', you approve of it.''
``I see. How about this example? When Laxman asked his father if he could start building on their new site, his father gave him the thumbs up.''
``Sounds great. After I received the thumbs up from my boss, I threw a big party at the Silver Plate. I invited all my friends.''
``You didn't invite me.''
``That's because you are not my friend! Any way, did the President of your association get in touch with the Municipal authorities?''
``Yes, the poor man spent nearly five hours there. The good news is, our proposal to widen the roads was given the thumbs up by the local ....''
``....really? That's wonderful news. By the way, it is also possible to say `to get the thumbs up from someone'. For example, we got the thumbs up from the local authorities to widen the roads.''
``We got the thumbs up from our parents to see Crouching Tiger and Hidden Dragon.''
``After seeing the movie Castaway, Rohan gave it the thumbs up.''
``Meaning that he approved of it?''
``Exactly! He said that it was really good.''
``I see. Tell me, does the expression `thumbs down' mean the exact opposite of `thumbs up'?''
``That's correct. When you give something the `thumbs down' you do not approve of it. For example, the Chairman gave Chandrasekhar's proposal the thumbs down.''
``When I proposed that we spend the summer in Kodaikanal, my father gave it the thumbs down.''
``The Union's new proposal, that wages be increased ten per cent across the board, was given the thumbs down by the Management.''
``I read about it in the newspapers. With the Union on strike what have you guys been doing?''
``Oh, we've been twiddling our thumbs.''
``Twiddling your thumbs! Does it mean sitting around and doing nothing?''
``I guess you could say that. When you twiddle your thumbs, you sit around playing with your fingers.''
``Playing with one's fingers. Not a very interesting way of spending one's time.''
``Don't sit around twiddling your thumbs. Go and prepare for your physics exam.''
``For a minute there, you sounded like my mother. How about this example? While my mother went in for her annual check up, I waited outside twiddling my thumbs.''
``Why didn't you leaf through some of the old magazines that are usually lying around?''
``There were no magazines to leaf through.''
``That's strange. You usually find a lot of old magazines in ....''
``....you know what I am going to become when I grow up?''
``You probably want to become another Sachin Tendulkar.''
``A lot of people want to become that. I don't have the talent. I think I'll become a surgeon. Surgeons make a lot of money, I hear.''
``You, a surgeon! No way. You are all thumbs.''
``All thumbs! What does....''
``.....look it up in the dictionary.''

*****
``Suicide is the most sincere form of self-criticism.'' - Anon


Source:
The Hindu daily, Tuesday, April 24, 2001