Language Your Mind!

Punita G. Singh

punitaontoast@gmail.com

ENGLISH AROUND THE WORLD

In a Mumbai restaurant:OPEN SEVEN DAYS A WEEK, AND WEEKENDS TOO.

Cocktail lounge, Norway:LADIES ARE REQUESTED NOT TO HAVE CHILDREN IN THE BAR.

In a Nairobi restaurant:CUSTOMERS WHO FIND OUR WAITERS RUDE OUGHT TO SEE THE MANAGER.

English – oh English

Irregularities

Peculiarities

English – oh English

Singular PluralMan Men

Pan ?

Mouse Mice

House ?

Box Boxes

Ox ?

English – oh English

PronunciationFoot Boot

But Put

So Do

Read Read

Lead Lead

Play on verbs

Mind your language

Language your mind

Nouns can be verbs

Verbs can be adjectives

Past tense rules

Where did all these languages come from?

Where did all these languages come from?

Where did modern English come from?

Languages live

Borrowings

Adaptations

Transformation

Evolution

You know more than you know

Making implicit knowledge explicit

Transfer of knowledge across context

Logical inference, induction and extrapolation

Awareness of similarities

Recognition of cognates

Sprechen Sie Deutsch?

Sprechen Sie Deutsch?

BlutFeder GartenHund Haar Machen Milch Mutter SchuhWasser

bird covering

Sprechen Sie Deutsch?

BlutFeder GartenHund Haar Machen Milch Mutter SchuhWasser

bird covering

red body fluidbird coveringgardencanine animalhead fluffcreate somethingwhite baby foodfemale parentShoebasic liquid

Parlez-vous Français?

Parlez-vous Français? absence absorption accent accident accusation action addition admiration adolescent agriculture applicable attention avenue

banquet boutique bouquetbuffetcigarette clarification classification commercial communicationcostume couple cottagecrime culture

Every word has a history

Etymology: the study of word originsLanguage from lingua = tongueGlossary, Dictionary, Polyglot

Idiom from id = itself / own / particular

Interesting word historiesScrupulous Shampoo

Inglish boley-toh …

Indian contributions to the English language:

avatar, bazaar, brahmin, bungalow, cashmere, chutney, chakkar, cummerbund, curry, divan, guru, jodhpurs, karma, khaki, mantra, mogul, nirvana, pariah, pundit, pukka, pyjamas, sahib, sherbet, thug, verandah, yoga

Inglish boley-toh …

and less obvious ones:

bandana, bandicoot, bangle, Blighty, candy, caravan, catamaran, cheroot, chintz, cot, cushy, dinghy, dungaree, ginger, godown, juggernaut, kedgeree, mulligatawny, punch, shampoo, toddy

It’s Greek to meAnd Latin too

Telephone

Telescope

Television

Telepathy

Telecast

Telecommute

Telegraph

One and Many

Mono

Uni

Poly

Multi

Same and Different

Homo

Hetero

Above, below, through and beyond

Thesaurus

Treasury / storehouse

SynonymsA rose by any other nym?

In other words: Brilliant Bright Lively

Talkative Quiet Calm

Quid pro quoLink the expression on the left to the correct meaning on the right

a) sine qua nonb) ipso factoc) glasnostd) Zeitgeiste) hoi polloif) non sequitirg) caveat emptorh) gaffei) et al.j) fait accompli

1) openness2) spirit of the times3) buyer beware4) and others 5) the common people6) accomplished fact7) illogical conclusion8) by that very fact9) blunder10) Something essential

Linguistic devices

Rhyme and rhythm

Triples

Alliteration

Puns / word play

Visual words

Vivid descriptions

Metaphors, similes, analogies

Figuratively speaking

Metaphor– A is BSimile– A is like BAnalogy– A is to B what C is to D

Figuratively speaking

Metaphor– She is sunshine on a dreary day

Simile– She is like sunshine on a dreary day

Analogy– She is as bright and warm as sunshine is on a

dreary day

Figuratively speaking

LANGUAGE ZOO!

The early bird catches the worm

It’s a bear market these days

Ants in your pants!

As the crow flies

LANGUAGE ZOO!

BEARSNAILBIRDBLACKBOOKCAT’SDONKEYEAGLEGUINEAHORSERATWHITECROCODILECASH

COWPIGPOWERHUGBRAINEYEWHISKERSTEARELEPHANTRACEWORKSHEEPWORMMAIL

Metaphorically speaking