PHRASE-SAURUS: Improve Your Word Power

PHRASE-SAURUS

Learn New Phrases

CATCH 22
Meaning : A difficult circumstance from which there is no escape.
Origin: Comes from the novel by Joseph Hellen in which the main character feigns madness in order to avoid dangerous combat. Name of the novel is Catch-22.

STEAL SOMEONE’S THUNDER
Meaning : Winning praise for oneself by pre- empting someone else’s attempt to impress.
Origin: John Dennis who worked in theatre invented a machine producing thunder sounds but people did not like it. But later he went to see the play Macbeth and saw them using the same machine he had invented.

WHITE ELEPHANT
Meaning: A possession that is useless or that is expensive to dispose of.
Origin: From the story Kings of Siam where they gifted a lot of animal to the countries they disliked and didn’t know what to do with them.

RED HERRING
Meaning: Something that misleads or distracts from the main issue.
Origin: There is no such fish as the Red herring but long ago people used to use smoked herring to train hounds and divert them from the correct route.

HANGING BY A THREAD
Meaning: Being at risk.
Origin: King Dionysius held a banquet for Damocles , a courtier of ancient Syracuse. King Dionysius was annoyed with Damocles constant flattery of his king. He invited him to a banquet , where Damocles was seated under a sword suspended by a single hair. It symbolized his tenuous position in the court.

FEATHER IN YOUR CAP
Meaning: A feather on the cap is recognised as a badge of honour.
Origin: Earlier the hunters who killed a bird would mark their achievement by wearing a feather plucked from it as a symbol of pride.

From the Global Times AMITY

SPOOKY TALES

Is scaring people out of their wits as scary as appearing for an examination ? A friendly ghost shares his ever spooky experience with GT. Read at your own risk.

Young ghost are not allowed to go the town alone, you see. I decided to choose the children's daycare down the alley as my terror-story. So in the dead of the night, I snooped out of the house and stole into the daycare.

As the dawn set in, I had everything set up with a number of scare – Electronic gadgets and was ready to have some terrifying fun with the kids. After a few hours, a bunch of kids came in. As they came near the door, it swung open all by itself making a creepy sound. They were surprise but, Alas! They didn’t seem scared. As they went to the reading room, a boy looked up at the books and decided to read the one on the top shelf. I flew to the book and dropped the book on the boy’s upturned head. Ouch! he said, I said to myself, Finally!

They will be screaming their heads off. But, the boy instead of shouting , exclaimed “Hey Guys! I guess the librarian has even installed a voice activated system or something."

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LOVE ALMIGHTY

Love is known to transcend barriers of nationality to bind humanity together.Here are how love gods are known in some countries.

Yue Lao: Known as the God of marriage and love in Chinese mythology, Yue Lao appears at night and unites couples with a silken cord.

Hathoris: She is an ancient Egyptian Goddess who personifies the principles of joys , feminine love and motherhood. Hathoris also increased the joy and music in Egypt.

Aphrodite: Popularly known as the Greek Goddess of love and beauty.

Cupid: Known as Roman God of desire , love and affection , he is seen as the icon of love. This love God is shown shooting an arrow to inspire love.

Frigga: Frigga is considered the Goddess of fertility and marriage .

Parvati: The consort of Hindu God Shiva, Parvati is known as Goddess of love and devotion.

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TRIALS IN A TRIAL ROOM

Who could have ever thought of life as a shopping spree at our favourite mall and its agonies and conflicts reflecting back at us in the trial room.

Trial rooms.

I hate trial rooms

I love shopping.

But I hate trial rooms.

Although trial rooms were invented exclusively to assit shopping,

I feel the two are contradictory !

We here are informed that, Not all the joys of the world are meant for everyone. So perhaps it’s better and wiser to appreciate what we have. Things often do not turn out as we expect them to. Relationships turn faulty, let us down and delicate glass of trust shatters. I wish there were trial rooms to try out everything in my real life too!
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Redefining Love

LOVE...

When love is in the air there is no place for despair. In the lives of young and aging, it ushers tonnes of good cheer. To spread love, first love thyself, as you are the manifestation of God himself.