Fundamental English had a champion in the type of John Wayne, the well-known American film372829

Fundamental English had a champion in the form of John Wayne, the famous American film star who died in 1979. He was an unlikely English instructor but he was an educated and accomplished man. Nevertheless, as a movie star of a specific form he could not afford to let too many individuals know that.

His function within the films, the no-nonsense independent macho man (often a cowboy), became his function in real life too. He was the primary individual I heard utilizing the phrase 'a ten-dollar word.' In his dealings with British journalists he might not often resist the temptation to mock their accents and he pounced on any phrase he considered to be too elegant, calling it 'a ten-dollar word.'

It was a public 'face', of course. In his youth he was a student at the College of Southern California and he was undeniably a effectively-read man. This all-America frontier hero couldn't afford to be known as any type of intellectual. His 'ignorant' act has significance for us as students or academics of English: we should always avoid ten-dollar phrases until we're about sixty years previous or have an airport named after us (as he has - Orange County, California).

Based on studies, examples of words that might provoke him had been 'endeavor' instead of 'attempt', 'gratuity' instead of 'tip', 'wherewithal' instead of 'money', 'avocation' as an alternative of 'interest' and most English words with a French flavor. I did not agree with lots of his political beliefs however I think he has some extent here, particularly for college students who're learning English as their second language. We must use plain phrases if we want folks to know us.

Maybe John Wayne didn't know it, but he was in settlement with the great knowledgeable on British English, Sir Ernest Gowers, whose guide 'Complete Plain Words' (1954) is considered to be the 'bible' of English phrase use. Sir Ernest wrote: 'this e book is wholly involved with... the selection and association of phrases in such a way as to get an concept as precisely as possible out of one thoughts into another.'

Unfortunately, for a lot of college students this advice reaches additional down the value scale to what I'd name 5 and even two-dollar words. For instance, the verb 'to enter' will appear in your English dictionary. But for normal conversational use we are saying 'to come back in', as in 'Could I come in?' reasonably than 'May I enter?' which typically simply sounds foreign or facetious.

Equally with 'individuals' because the plural of 'particular person' - it seems correct to the scholar however often it is not (until you are a policeman giving proof). Common individuals say 'folks'. Unfortunately for the student, 'persons' is, of course, completely correct in the grammatical sense - I, you, he, she etc., phrases that the scholar maybe hears each day. So their confusion is understandable.

How can you avoid the over-elegant use? Nicely, hearken to good English. Also, learn all the entries for the phrase in your dictionary, not just the primary one. This may enable you to to seek out the true meaning and it will provide you with a feel for words.

There's a secret in all this for us - one which John Wayne, American, knew very well. In case you study any language as a second or international language, you will eventually have a much bigger vocabulary - and extra correct hebrew  grammar - than many of your native-born listeners. As lecturers or advanced foreign students we should be like the movie stars; we must not discuss 'over the heads' of our listeners.

Lastly, by no means try to use words like 'obloquy' or 'interstitially' (which most likely sound quite affordable in some languages). These are hundred-greenback phrases and John Wayne would probably have gotten out his six-weapons if he'd heard them. And if he did, I would not have known as the sheriff to avoid wasting you.