Know Your English (May 2001)

Know your English

What is the meaning of ``snail mail''?

Are you into computers? Do you access the Internet frequently? Do you send e-mail every day? If you do, then like me, you too are probably amazed at the speed at which communication takes place these days. You can send mail to someone in America and get a reply in a matter of hours/minutes. Earlier, it used to take at least a couple of weeks to get a reply. The word ``snail mail'' refers to the regular mail - letters that we write to our friends and relations and put in a letterbox. Letters that normally take a couple of days to reach their destination - sometimes never reach at all! As you may have probably guessed, this word was coined by some computer buff.

Source:
The Hindu daily, Tuesday, May 22, 2001

0 comments:

Commodus

The son of Marcus Aurelius, Lucius Aurelius Commodus Antoninus was a Roman emperor who ruled from 180 to 192 CE—a period some historians view as the beginning of the empire's decline. Though his reign was relatively peaceful, Commodus was a tyrant who spent lavishly on gladiatorial combats, persecuted the Senate, and even renamed Rome after himself. He fancied himself a gladiator, frequently battling both men and animals, and considered himself the reincarnation of what mythical hero? More... Discuss

Article of the Day provided by The Free Dictionary

This Day in History

Liberian President William R. Tolbert Is Killed in Military Coup (1980)

Liberia was founded in the 1820s by former slaves from the US, and tensions between the Americo-Liberian minority and the indigenous majority have persisted since that time. On April 12, 1980, a group of soldiers led by Samuel Kanyon Doe stormed the executive mansion, killing Americo-Liberian President William R. Tolbert and 27 other government leaders. Doe, a member of the ethnic Krahn tribe, then declared himself president. How had a rice scandal seriously undermined Tolbert? More... Discuss

This Day in History provided by The Free Dictionary

Today's Birthday

Herbert Jeffrey "Herbie" Hancock (1940)

Hancock is a jazz and funk pianist, composer, and bandleader who emerged as part of Miles Davis's group in the mid-1960s. An early adopter of electronic instruments, he became involved with funk and disco in the 70s, while continuing to tour with jazz groups, such as that of Wynton Marsalis. He won an Academy Award for his original score of the 1986 film 'Round Midnight and has won 14 Grammys, including "Album of the Year" for a work that paid tribute to what fellow musician? More... Discuss

Today's Birthday provided by The Free Dictionary

In the News

In the News provided by The Free Dictionary

Quote of the Day

Clock, n.: A machine of great moral value to man, allaying his concern for the future by reminding him what a lot of time remains to him.
Ambrose Bierce
(1842-1914) Discuss

Quote of the Day provided by The Free Library

Spelling Bee