Do you enjoy being in 'crowdy' places? What is the plural of 'aircraft' and 'cattle'? Is it 'media are' or 'media is'? Do you have a 'soft spot' or a 'soft corner' for someone? Is it okay to say Tendulkar is the 'bestest' batsmen India has produced? Are you 'good at' or 'good in' cricket? Were you a 'topper' or 'ranker' in school? Why do software engineers want us to 'revert back ' to them? Do you pay 'in cash' or 'by cash'? Does your house have a big backside?
Grammar and Usage, the third volume in the Know Your English series, is a practical reference guide that provides answers to such questions. The selections included in the book highlight some of the common errors that we Indians make when we use English.
Like the first and second volumes – Idioms and their Stories and Words Frequently Confused – this book is based on Upendran’s popular weekly column, Know Your English, published in The Hindu. It contains a selection of over 650 entries, each dealing with an aspect of grammar/usage. Explanations have been provided in simple, jargon-free language.
S Upendran has been writing the column, Know Your English, since 1992. He is Professor in the Department of Materials Development at the English and Foreign Languages University, Hyderabad. The selections in this book are those that featured since 1992.
5 x 20 = 100 A hundred years About/Around About 7 o’clock/Around 7 o’clock/7-ish Abroad/Overseas Absorbed Access Accommodation According to his opinion According to me Acting pricey Adage Advice Affiliated Afraid Aid Ailments Ain’t Aircraft Alcohol All All in all All kinds/sorts/types of Almost Along with Alongside Always Always ‘And’ at the beginning of a sentence Angry Announce Anxious Any Anyone Anyways Anywhere Apart from/Aside from Appeal Appointed Approach Approve/Approve of Around/At/By 10 o’clock As well as As/Like Ask about/after At arm’s length At/In Audience Aunty Avail Avoid presentations Await Back answer Backbencher Backside Backward/Backwards Baffled by/with Baggage/Luggage Balcony Banging Banian Basically Bath Beach Bed tea Beef Been there, done that Behalf Believe you me Bested Bestest Bit Bite Bite someone’s head off Bless you Boarding and lodging Bogie/Coach Bon voyage Both Both/Each Bouquet Brand new Bread/Toast Breakfasted Breaking my head Burst crackers Bus stand Bussed Busybody But then By heart By/Near By the bye/By the by Call at/on Can/Could/May I? Cardboard Catch/Get hold of Catch on Cattle Cent per cent Chalk piece Chaste Cheatercock Chewing gum Child’s play Chit (In) Church/(In the) Church Clean bowled Clean chit Close down/Close up Close proximity Co-brother-in-law/Co-brother Co-son-in-law/Co-daughter-in-law Coffee/Tea Cognizant of/about Colour/Coloured Combat Come in/on in Come to mind Command over Commence Commentate Commit an accident Competent enough Comprise Concerned officer/Officer concerned Condition Confident on/of Congratulate Congratulations Cook Cool drink Cooling glasses Cope Couple has/have Couple of Cover Cribbing Criterion Crowdy Cured Cut Dagger look Damage Data Day scholar Dead certain Decision Definite article Dependent Depromoted Describe Description about/of Desk Dessert Deter Dickey Die Diet Difficulty Dinner/Lunch is on me Dirty linen Disagree Disapprove Discourage Diseases Disorientated Dispose Disrepair Divorce Do Do one thing Do someone down/in Doesn’t suffer fools gladly Donkey’s work Doomed Downstairs Dream about/of Dress Dress for/to Dress up/Get dressed Drive someone round the bend Drunk/Drunken Each and every Each is/are, has/have Each other/Themselves Easy come, easy go Eating/Sitting on someone’s head Education Elder Emphasise Enamoured of/about Enclosed herewith Engaged Enter Entertainment Equipment Esquire Et al. Etc. European Eve teasing Even so/Even though Every Everyone Evidence Exam (give or take) Exam (in/on) Exchange with/for Explain Eyewash Fact Fair something out Fairly/Rather Family Family way Farm Fascinated Fashionably late Fatal Favour Favourite Feared killed/Killed Fees Fiction FIR Forbid Forenoon Fractions Free time Frightfully good/nice Fruit Full-hand shirt Furniture Garbage Gave out Get down Get into/on Get off of Give someone a buzz Glass pane Go ballistic Go bananas Going to be 60 Gone down Gone for a toss Gone off Gonna Good evening/Good night Good morning Good name Good self Gotten Government Grateful/Thankful Great deal of Guarantee Guys Hail Half pant/Half pants Hanged Happen on someone Happy anniversary/Happy returns of the day Hardly/Scarcely/Seldom Has/Has got Has its moments Have you/Have you got? Hazard a guess He/Him Headbath Headquarters Headweight Heart Heart of hearts Heartfelt congratulations Here Herself High/Low regard High time Him/Her or They/Them History sheeter Home Home Home Homely Homework, housework, work Hope Horn Hospital Hostelite Hotel Hour House How come? How do you do/How are you? How ever Humble/Generous to a fault Humour me Hungry I dare say I/Me/Myself I/Me Ice/Iced tea If If only If you will/would Ignorant about/of I’m afraid Impersonate In the meanwhile Indeed Independent Inferior/Superior Inform Information Ink Intention Interview Invest Irregardless Issue It’s your funeral Jargon Jealous Jeans, pants, trousers, shorts Jewellery Join Jolly good Jokes Just as good Kind Laid down with Late/The late Lay/Lie down Leather hunt Leave (n) Leave Leave Left and right Lest (To) Let Level best Lightning, thunder Lip service Listen Live on/in Living/Staying Livestock (For a) Long time Long time, no see Look/Looking forward to Luck Luck out Machinery Majority of (The) Majority Majorly Make a practice of Man of his word Many/Many a Marry May we/Shall we May/Might May/Might MBBS/MP/NGO/SC/ST Meals Me/I am Me neither/either Me too Media Medical hall Meet Mention Mention not Midday Middle age Midnight Mind Mind blowing Mistake Monday through/to Friday Monday More number of More More than one person is/are Mothers-in-law, mother-in-laws MP Mr. or Mr? Mrs Mrs. & Mr. Rao or Mr. & Mrs. Rao Much regards Must not/Mustn’t My bad My Mrs Myself Name Native place Nearly as good Neck to neck Needful Needn’t/Didn’t need Needless to say Neither nor Neither of News Next Next week/The next week NGO Nice and quiet Nice to meet you/Nice meeting you No doubt/Without (a) doubt No ifs and buts No great shakes No love lost between them No mention No sooner than Nobody None (of) No-nonsense Nook and corner Nose cut Not Nothing but Nothing but Nothing to write home about Novice Now and again/then Number (A good) Number of On par with/On a par with On the anvil On/Off the lights/fan/AC Once for all, once and for all One One of Only Onned/offed Operate (surgery) Opinion Opposite Opposition Out of station Outskirts Over Over a meal Overseas Overspeeding Pack my luggage Pair of Parapet wall Part from/with Pass out Pay in/by cash Peon Percent/Per cent Percent Percentage Pete’s sake Petrol bunk Pin drop silence Pity Place Please come/do come Police is/are Police station/Fire station Position Prefer Premises Prepare the vegetables Prepone Presently Pressure Prevent Printer’s devil Prison Progress Prohibit Promise Property Protested against/Protest Purse Pushing 70 Put in one’s papers Put something past someone Put up Putting up a play Quarters Questions Quite Quite impossible Quite so Ranker Rather good Read/Did read Reading Reason why Receive Rectify Refrain Regard Regardless Regret Relieved Remanded in/to Repeat again Research Residence Respite Retiring room Return back Revert back Reverted Rich/Poor Rude to/with Rules Run after/into Run into rough weather Run that by me again Running forty Same Same difference SC/ST Scenery School Scorn at Screamingly Search for someone/Search someone Search me See him/Be seeing him See you on Saturday/See you Saturday Selection Set Shall we Shall/Will She Shift Shocked at/by Shoebite Shot Should Shout at/to Sic Simply Sit an exam Smell Snap out of it So far, till now Soft corner/spot Some house Sorry Soup Speak to/with Spelling Sponsorer Spoonfuls/Spoonsful Staff Stand corrected Stand first Stands cancelled Stepney Stinking Student life Stupidest Suffering Summer Summer time Sunday is longer than Monday Surrounded Swim Take a call on Take (a) rest Talk at/to Talking terms Take leave of someone Team Telephoned Tense Tension Terminated Terribly Test Thank you Thank you Thanks, but no thanks The VC/The VC herself Then and there Think out of the box Third-class fellow Three-day State visit Thrice Throw Throw in/into Tiffin carrier Till/Until/To Time immemorial Timepass Timings To some place Told Tomorrow week Too clever by half Too close to call Topper Traffic Transportation Tread on/upon Trespass Twenty miles/rupees is/are Two-wheeler/Three-wheeler Under scanner Undertrial Underwear Unfriend Unique University Up to/Until Vacancies Vexed Viz Vocabulary Walk in/into Walkable distance Walking papers Want/Would like Ward Wash my hands Waste not, want not Weary of/with Week Weekends Weeks: in/for Weightage Welcome address Well versed What can I do you for? What have you been up to? What on earth? What’s eating/bugging you? What’s your take on? What/That Wheatish Whereabouts White money Whom/Who Will/Would Winningest With a view to With regards Wonder(ed) Won’t/Willn’t Work Worst comes to the worst Would-be wife Wrong/Right side of 30/40/50 Year Years Yellow Yes/Yeah Yesterday You/Yourself