Primary English had a champion in the type of John Wayne, the famous American movie5451876

Primary English had a champion within the form of John Wayne, the well-known American film star who died in 1979. He was an unlikely English instructor however he was an educated and achieved man. Nevertheless, as a movie star of a particular type he couldn't afford to let too many people know that.

His position in the films, the no-nonsense independent macho man (usually a cowboy), grew to become his role in real life too. He was the first particular person I heard utilizing the phrase 'a ten-dollar word.' In his dealings with British journalists he might rarely resist the temptation to mock their accents and he pounced on any word 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 scholar at the College of Southern California and he was undeniably a nicely-read man. This all-America frontier hero could not afford to be often called any kind of intellectual. His 'ignorant' act has significance for us as college students or teachers of English: we should always avoid ten-dollar words until we're about sixty years old or have an airport named after us (as he has - Orange County, California).

According to reports, examples of words that might provoke him were 'endeavor' instead of 'attempt', 'gratuity' instead of 'tip', 'wherewithal' instead of 'cash', 'avocation' as a substitute of 'interest' and most English words with a French flavor. I did not agree with many of his political beliefs but I feel he has a degree here, particularly for college kids who are studying English as their second language. We should use plain words if we would like individuals to grasp us.

Possibly John Wayne did not realize it, but he was in settlement with the good professional on British English, Sir Ernest Gowers, whose e-book 'Complete Plain Phrases' (1954) is considered to be the 'bible' of English phrase use. Sir Ernest wrote: 'this e-book is wholly concerned with... the choice and association of words in such a approach as to get an idea as exactly as doable out of one thoughts into another.'

Sadly, for a lot of college students this advice reaches additional down the value scale to what I might call five and even two-greenback words. For instance, the verb 'to enter' will seem in your English dictionary. But for normal conversational use we say 'to come back in', as in 'May I are available in?' slightly than 'Might I enter?' which typically just sounds foreign or facetious.

Similarly with 'persons' as the plural of 'individual' - it seems right to the coed however usually it is not (until you're a policeman giving proof). Regular individuals say 'individuals'. Sadly for the coed, 'individuals' is, after all, perfectly correct in the grammatical sense - I, you, he, she etc., words that the student maybe hears every day. So their confusion is understandable.

How will you keep away from the over-elegant use? Properly, listen to good English. Also, read all the entries for the phrase in your dictionary, not just the first one. It will aid you to seek out the true that means and it offers you a really feel for words.

There's a secret in all this for us - one which John Wayne, American, knew very well. In the event you study any language as a second or foreign language, you'll ultimately have an even bigger vocabulary - and extra correct will speak  grammar - than many of your native-born listeners. As lecturers or superior international students we have to be just like the film stars; we must not speak 'over the heads' of our listeners.

Lastly, never attempt to use phrases like 'obloquy' or 'interstitially' (which most likely sound fairly reasonable in some languages). These are hundred-dollar words and John Wayne would most likely have got out his six-guns if he'd heard them. And if he did, I wouldn't have known as the sheriff to avoid wasting you.