Hippocratic vs. Hypocritical
Hippocratic = of or relating to Hippocrates.
- Hippocrates is considered one of the most outstanding figures in the history of medicine. He is often referred to as the “Father of Medicine”.
- Hippocratic oath – The oath written by Hippocrates is still held sacred by physicians. This is an oath to observe the medical code of ethical and professional behaviour, sworn by entrants to the medical profession.
Hypocritical – of a hypocrite; saying that you have particular moral beliefs but behaving in a way that shows these are not sincere.
Hypocrite = A person who puts on a false appearance of virtue or acts in contradiction to their stated beliefs or feelings.
- He’s a hypocrite. He’s lecturing other people on the environmental pollution and throws out his own litter and household garbage to the roadside.
- The Magazine could expose the fact that he was a liar and a hypocrite.
Nuptial vs. Nuptials
Nuptial (adjective) = of marriage or wedding.
- They have gone to buy the nuptial dresses for the bride.
- Nuptial happiness/day/promises/vows.
- Nuptial festivities.
- Moments of nuptial bliss.
Nuptials (noun) = wedding; marriage.
- They purchased costly dresses for their daughter’s nuptials.
- The nuptials between Jayakrishnan and Clara will be solemnised next week.
- She’s preoccupied with the planning of her nuptials.
- The royal nuptials are scheduled to take place on June 30.
Prepone or Advance?
Postpone(v) = put off until another time.
- The management decided to postpone the exams to the next month.
- The meeting was postponed for another week.
- The members feel it would be wrong to postpone such a crucial debate until some future date.
Advance(v) = move forward in time to make it earlier.
- The date of the meeting was advanced from 20th Dec to 5th Dec.
- They advanced the date of their daughter’s marriage to January in view of her University exams due in March.
[i.e., ‘advance’ is the opposite of ‘postpone’]
Unbelief vs. Disbelief?
Unbelief = lack of faith, state of not believing in God, religion.
- Living in an age of unbelief.
- He is in the darkness of unbelief.
Unbeliever = Person who doesn’t believe in God, religion, etc.
Disbelief = inability or refusal to accept that something is true or real; scepticism, doubt, amazement, astonishment.
- They stared at the Taj Mahal in disbelief.
- The world reacted with disbelief to the news of his death.
- She shook her head in disbelief.
- Her first reaction to winning the award was disbelief.
Discrimination vs. Positive discrimination?
Discrimination – the unjust or prejudicial treatment of different categories of people, esp., on the grounds of race, age or sex, etc.
- Is there racial discrimination in your country?
- It’s unfair to show discrimination against immigrants.
- People suffering from AIDS often experience social discrimination.
Positive discrimination – The act of giving advantage to those groups in society that are often treated unfairly because of their race, sex, religion, etc.
- Reservation of jobs for low-caste Indians within the country’s public sector is a form of positive discrimination.
- Reservation of seats for senior citizens and females in KSRTC is welcome positive discrimination.
- Giving housing loans to the BPL group at a reduced rate of interest is a positive discrimination.
Words of which adjective and adverb are the same
Fast:
- Sreesanth is a fast bowler. (adj.)
- She was driving too fast. (adv.)
Overnight:
- We made an overnight stay at a relative’s house. (adj.)
- Her business was an overnight success. (adj.)
- We stayed overnight at a relative’s house. (adv.)
Straight:
- Draw a straight line below the mark. (adj.)
- He went straight into the principal’s chamber. (adv.)
Late:
- The minister’s late arrival raised public protest. (adj.)
- The minister arrived late for the function. (adv.)
Outright:
- His request received an outright refusal. (adj.)
- His request was refused outright. (adv.)
Early:
- She ate an early supper since she had to travel by 7 O’ clock train. (adj.)
- I get up early in the morning. (adv.)
Upstairs:
- He’s upstairs cleaning up his bedroom. (adj.)
- He went upstairs to clean up his bedroom. (adv.)
Hard:
- This is a hard problem. (adj.)
- He is working very hard. (adv.)
Meat of four-footed animals vs. meat of birds
Meat of Animals:
- Cattle/cow – Beef
- Calf – Veal
- Sheep/Goat – Mutton
- Lamb – Lamb
- Pig – Pork/Ham/Bacon
- Deer – Venison
Note:
Lamb: A sheep in its first year. Its meat is also called lamb.
Calf: A young animal, esp., a domestic cow or bull in its first year.
Meat of Birds:
For birds, the same word is usually used for both the meat and the creature.
- Shall we have chicken or duck for dinner?
throw away vs. throwaway
Throw away = To get rid of something.
- We threw away the old newspaper.
Throwaway = designed to be used only once; something of small value.
- A throwaway ball pen.
- Throwaway cups and plates.
- Theirs is a throwaway culture. ( a way of life which gives little value to people and things)
Every body = each (dead) body.
- Every body was collected from the battlefield.
Everybody = everyone; each person.
- Everybody has to obey the rules without exception.
Can not – you have the freedom not to do something.
- You can not accept the charity offered.
(i.e., If you do not want it, you can decline the offer.)
Cannot is the opposite of can.
- You cannot violate the rules of the college.
Common place
- The common places in a city – airport, bus station, park, playground, etc.
Commonplace = 1) ordinary, average, cliched, unoriginal.
- Nowadays costly cars are increasingly commonplace.
- Theirs is a commonplace remark about modernity.
2) A boring remark that is used very often and does not have much meaning.
- We exchanged commonplaces about the weather during the tea-break.
As well vs. In addition
We use as well and in addition when we are adding information. As well is more informal than in addition.
Notice the position of these expressions. Usually, as well comes at the end of a sentence. And in addition comes at the beginning of the sentence.
As well:
- We look forward to seeing you and meeting your brother as well.
- The house is very spacious, and it’s very close to my parents as well.
- She likes to paint butterflies and gardens as well.
In addition:
- The flat is beautifully furnished. In addition, it is in a good location.
- Part-time English classes are offered. In addition, students can take classes in other languages.
- In addition to her apartment in Chennai, she has a villa in Mumbai.
Would have vs. could have?
Would have done: Here the implication is that the subject of the sentence(doer) was not in a position to do action due to things beyond their control.
- I would have helped him, but I was not having surplus cash with me.
(Here I was not able to help, I may have had the desire to help him). - She would have called me, but she didn’t have her mobile phone with her.
(She was not able to phone me as she didn’t have the mobile phone with her) - The police would have saved the victims, but they didn’t have a boat.
(Actually, the police were unable to save them due to lack of a boat)
Could have done: Here the subject of the sentence(doer) was very much in a position to do things, but they didn’t want to do or refused to do.
- I could have helped him, but he was a dishonest man.
(Here I was able to help, but I chose not to). - She could have called me, but she wasn’t on good terms with me.
(Here she was able to call me, but she didn’t want to). - The police could have saved the victims, but the victims refused to move from their homes.
(Here the police were able to save the victims, but the victims refused to move).