One Word A Day

CAN YOU GIVE ME A HEADS UP
EXAMPLE SENTENCE :
CAN YOU GIVE ME A HEADS UP on what the weather is like there??

To those of you that have your nose, eyebrow or bellybutton pierced, and
I mean professionally, CAN YOU GIVE ME A HEADS UP on the pain?

DID YOU KNOW ?

heads up (chiefly American)
slang

- an advance warning

WORD ORIGIN

Before it was used in phrases like "Can you give me a heads up" or "I'll
give you heads up," this phrase was and still is used as a danger
warning. This likely originated in the construction industry where the
phrase is frequently used to warn workers of activities taking place
above them, so as to avoid injury from falling building materials like
bricks and pieces of wood.

The Random House Dictionary says "heads up" first appeared sometime
between 1940 and 1950. However, there are references to it in
periodicals as far back as 1914. It has several slightly different
contexts:

- to be alert and wide-awake. In this context, it is sometimes used an
adjective to describe a sports team that plays with a high level of
concentration (They played heads-up football today.)

- a type of display screen (heads-up display) used in aircraft that
shows images and information on the windscreen so that the pilot can
keep his/her "head up" in order to read the data while flying.

- an advance warning (The company issued a heads up about its financial
condition two days before publishing its annual report.)

This last is the most common usage meanwhile. It is used frequently in
business, in both e-mail and telephone communications, to either tell
someone that they will get advance warning or a piece of information
beforehand (I'll give you a heads up when the report is ready to be
printed) or to ask to be informed about something ahead of time (Can you
give me a heads up before you send out that report?).

It is synonymous with the expressions "Let me know" and "I'll let you
know."

SMUGGLE OWAD INTO TODAY'S CONVERSATION:

"Give me heads up when you plan to next visit, and I'll make sure I am
here to show you around."

WHAT ARE THE RAMIFICATIONS
EXAMPLE SENTENCE :

WHAT ARE THE RAMIFICATIONS for shorelines around the world if
predictions about rising sea levels due to global warming actually come
true?

WHAT ARE THE RAMIFICATIONS of the Church of England's decision to allow
women to become bishops

DID YOU KNOW ?

ramification
noun
- complex consequences of an action or event

(Compact Oxford English Dictionary)

WORD ORIGIN

Ramification can be traced to the Latin "ramus," meaning branch, which
is also related to the Latin "radix," or root (this is where we get the
word "radish"). The verb "ramify," which means to have complex
consequences, stems from the Middle Latin "ramificare" (ramus = branch +
facere = to make). Thus in all of its forms, ramification has to do with
"a development or consequence growing out of and sometimes complicating
a problem, plan, or statement."

(American Heritage Dictionary)

Ramification is also a term used in some fields of science to describe
"branching out." In medicine, it can refer to a small branch or offshoot
of a main channel such as an artery, vein or nerve for instance. In
botany, a ramification is a structure formed of branches or a
configuration of branching parts.

In mathematics, ramification is a geometric term for branching out such
as the square root function for complex numbers. In philosophy and the
field of artificial intelligence (especially knowledge based systems),
the so-called "ramification problem" is concerned with the indirect
consequences of an action.

SYNONYMS

consequence, development, bifurcation, branch, branching, breaking,
complication, consequence, division, excrescence, extension, forking,
offshoot, outgrowth, partition, radiation, result, sequel, subdividing,
subdivision, upshot

Phrases:
- What is the upshot of?
- What is the outgrowth of?
- What is the offshoot of?


"What are the ramifications of our strategy on production costs and
product delivery times?"

GRUMPY
EXAMPLE SENTENCE :

Children in Leeds say GRUMPY adults often make it difficult for them to
play outdoors: A national survey by the Children's Society has found
that youngsters are having their development stifled by intolerant
adults.

I'm not a dictator. It's just that I have a GRUMPY face.

- Augusto Pinochet, former dictator of Chile

DID YOU KNOW ?

grumpy
adjective
easily annoyed and complaining

(Cambridge Advanced Learner's Dictionary)

WORD ORIGIN

The origin of grumpy is unknown, but may be an extension of the 17th
century word "grum" which was used in the same sense. Or it may have
evolved from the obsolete phrase "humps and grumps," which referred to
complaining remarks.

Conventional wisdom holds that older men can be grumpy. Building on
this, a Hampshire pub came up with a brilliant idea. Irritated by the
concept of the "Happy Hour," the owners established a "Grumpy Hour." It
gives grumpy old men (or young for that matter) the chance to complain
about anything from the failure of the global markets to English
football. It became so popular that they created an official "Grumpy
Club."
(sources: BBC News)

SYNONYMS

surly, cantankerous, crabby, cross, crotchety, disgruntled, grouty,
irritable, moody, sullen, testy


"Don't expect a smile from him before noon, he's always grumpy in the
morning."

ITCHY FEET
EXAMPLE SENTENCE :
With the European Commission's mandate due to end about a year from now,
some of its members are getting ITCHY FEET as they worry about their own
political futures.
(The Irish Times)

"We were with the band in Nashville for three or four years and then
Jimi finally got ITCHY FEET."
(Billy Cox, who played with guitar legend Jimi Hendrix in the 60s)

DID YOU KNOW ?

itchy feet
idiom

- to want to travel or do something different

(Cambridge International Dictionary of Idioms)

WORD ORIGIN

The adjective itchy means to be restless, nervous or impatient. The verb
"itching" is frequently used to indicate when a person cannot wait to do
something (He is itching to go on vacation to Hawaii.) The noun "itch"
is also used in a similar sense of getting the urge to do something (He
got the itch to go to Spain.)

So if someone has "itchy feet", they are impatient about or get the urge
to go somewhere or do something different (He got itchy feet and decided
to go to Australia to work for a couple of years).

Itchy feet is also expressed as having "wanderlust" (from the German
wander = travel + lust = desire) or Klondike fever, a reference to the
gold rush along the Klondike River in Yukon Canada which attracted many
adventurers with itchy feet.

Jazz trumpeter, Herb Alpert, put a different twist on this expression
when he was asked about how a new album was being received: "The
reaction to this album has just been fabulous... and I've had offers to
perform from around the world and I'm tempted to do it. I've got itchy
lips."


"Some people like to stay in one place their whole life, but Ive always
had itchy feet."

PLAY FOR KEEPS
EXAMPLE SENTENCE :
Taiwanese companies, aggressive investors across East Asia, are PLAYING
FOR KEEPS in mainland China. They now extend far beyond the toy and shoe
producers that first went to China a decade ago for its cheap labor and
land. Now electronics manufacturers are arriving
(BusinessWeek magazine)

And judging from the features Microsoft has packed into the new box,
it's clear the company is PLAYING FOR KEEPS.
(www.cnn.money.com)

DID YOU KNOW ?

play for keeps
idiom
- to do something very seriously and not just for enjoyment


WORD ORIGIN

One of the definitions of the verb play is "to act or conduct oneself in
a specified way. It is used this way as a phrasal verb in many
different senses:

- play along (to cooperate or pretend to cooperate)

- play down (to minimise the importance of something)

- play up (to emphasise or publicise)

- play upon (to take advantage of anothers attitude or feelings)

Among other things, the verb "to keep means to retain possession of,
to support or to preserve something. This implies a continuous condition
or a permanent state. Thus in the expression "play for keeps, this
suggests an indefinitely long period of time, meaning something that
requires serious effort.

Keep is used in several idioms:

- keep a stiff upper lip (to be courageous in the face of adversity)

- keep (ones) nose clean (to stay out of trouble)

- keep an eye on something or someone (to watch over attentively)


"Even if it's just a game of tennis with friends, he still plays for
keeps."

VULNERABLE
EXAMPLE SENTENCE :

A terrorism expert warns that UK airports are still VULNERABLE, one year
on from the attack on Glasgow Airport...
(BBC News)

"When we were children, we used to think that when we were grown-up we
would no longer be VULNERABLE. But to grow up is to accept
vulnerability... To be alive is to be vulnerable.
(Madeleine L'Engle, American author)

DID YOU KNOW ?

vulnerable
adjective

able to be easily physically, emotionally, or mentally hurt,
influenced or attacked

noun

vulnerability

(Cambridge Advanced Learners Dictionary)

WORD ORIGIN

1605, from the Lower Latin vulnerabilis "wounding," from Latin vulnerare
"to wound," from vulnus (gen. vulneris) "wound," perhaps related to
vellere "pluck, to tear." (Online Etymology Dictionary)

The great movie director Alfred Hitchcock was a master at showing how
vulnerable human beings can be. In his most famous scene from the 1960
classic Psycho, actress Janet Leigh is attacked with a knife while
taking a shower. She even stopped taking showers after the movie. "And
not because of the shooting of it," she later explained. "It was
watching it. It never occurred to me how truly vulnerable we are. But
that's what Hitchcock did. A shower. A bird. All these things that are
absolutely ordinary, he made extraordinary."

Shortly after the film's release, Hitchcock received a letter from a man
complaining that, since she had seen the movie, his wife had been
terrified to shower or bathe. What remedy, he wondered, could the
director suggest. "Sir," Hitchcock replied, "have you ever considered
sending your wife to the dry cleaners?''

(source: www.anecdotes.com)

SYNONYMS

(vulnerable)

accessible, assailable, defenceless, exposed, liable, naked, on the
line, on the spot, out on a limb, prone to, ready, sensitive, sitting
duck, sucker, susceptible, tender, thin-skinned, unguarded, unprotected,
unsafe, weak, wide open

(vulnerability)

exposure, liability, openness, susceptibility


"In today's economic climate companies are especially vulnerable to
attack by stronger competitors."

BALLOT
EXAMPLE SENTENCE :
The statement also called on the Burmese military government to allow
all political actors to participate in a free, fair and credible BALLOT.
(BBC News)

"The BALLOT is stronger than the bullet.
(Abraham Lincoln, 16th president of the United States)

DID YOU KNOW ?
ballot
noun
a system or occasion of secret voting

(Cambridge Advanced Learners Dictionary)

- a slip or sheet of paper, cardboard, or the like, on which a voter
marks his or her vote

(Random House Unabridged Dictionary)

WORD ORIGIN

In British and U.S. English, ballot describes the system or process of
voting. In U.S. English, among other things a ballot is the piece of
paper on which a vote is placed. Submitting the vote to have it counted
is called "casting the ballot. In British English a physical ballot is
called the "ballot paper.

During government elections, so-called postal ballots (U.S. absentee
ballot) are used if the voter is unable to come to the polling station.

Ballot is used in several other senses all of which have to do with
voting:

- voting in general, or a round of voting: Our candidate was defeated on
the third ballot.

- the list of candidates to be voted on: They succeeded in getting her
name placed on the ballot.

- the right to vote: They gained the ballot after years of struggle.

- the whole number of votes cast or recorded: Officials counted the
ballots all through the night.

- a system or the practice of drawing lots: The person who is to go
first will be chosen by ballot.

Ballot stems from the Italian "ballotta, a diminutive form of ball,
which was a small ball used to register a vote. The ball was dropped
into a box or container as a means of voting secretly. When yes and no
votes were recorded with different colours, the negative was often
indicated by black. This gave rise to the term "blackball, meaning to
exclude someone from membership by a negative vote.

(sources: Random House Unabridged Dictionary, Websters II New College
Dictionary)

SYNONYMS

(voting)
election, franchise, plebiscite, poll, polling, referendum, slate,
tally, ticket

(political candidates)
choice, lineup, slate, ticket


"Let's hold a ballot to decide who should take over the new position."

IN A QUANDARY
EXAMPLE SENTENCE :
A sharp slowdown in the economy has many employers reconsidering their
hiring plans for the coming year. Many are IN A QUANDARY, not knowing
whether the slowdown is temporary or just the start of an extended slump
that would make hiring unwise.
(www.npr.com)

The band is IN A QUANDARY at the moment as to where to take their music
and Neil is right when he suggests the music would be good for TV
soundtracks.
(BBC News)

DID YOU KNOW ?
in a quandary
noun phrase
to be in a situation in which it is difficult to decide what to do
(Collins Essential English Dictionary)

WORD ORIGIN

Some etymology experts believe quandary stems from the French phrase
qu'en dirai je? (what shall I say of it?). Others suggest it may have
originated from an Italian word sign. It may also be a Latinism based on
the Latin quando, meaning "when". Still other sources such as the 1913
Websters Dictionary claim quandary comes from the Old English wandreth,
meaning adversity, perplexity and further from a similar word in
Icelandic meaning difficulty.

The noun quandary has two meanings:

- an unpleasant or trying situation which is difficult to get out of

- a state of uncertainty, especially when facing a choice between
equally unfavourable options

"In a quandary" has several interesting synonymous expressions such as
Catch-22, between a rock and a hard place (see OWAD archive) and in a
pickle. This alludes to the pickling liquid made from brines and vinegar
which is used to preserve food, and presumably to the imagined
difficulty of being stuck in such. The phrase was known in Dutch by 1561
- in de pekel zitten - meaning to be in a pickle.

Shakespeare appears to be the first to use this expression in his play,
The Tempest from 1611:

TRINCULO:
I have been in such a pickle since I saw you last...

A modern Shakespeare could say:
I have been in a quandary since I saw you last...
(sources: The Phrase Finder)


"The new job offer in Paris has put me in a quandary because I would
have to leave my all my friends in Frankfurt."

TO RUN SOMETHING BY (SOME OTHER PERSON)

EXAMPLE SENTENCE :
Just to check my theory, I RAN IT BY a well-known airport security
expert. When he heard my scenario, he immediately asked not to be named,
because he didn't want to be on the record saying a method of to get
around airport security might work. But he's pretty sure it would.
(www.slate.com)

As far as the webmail issue goes, I RAN IT BY the programming team and
they will implement the changes that were suggested
(www.chat.freeola.com)

DID YOU KNOW ?
to run something by (some other person)
idiom
- to show someone something, or tell them about it in order to get their
opinion
(Cambridge Dictionary of American Idioms)

WORD ORIGIN

When used as a verb, "run" is one of the most versatile words in the
English language. The American Heritage Dictionary lists more than 30
definitions for both the intransitive form (an action verb that does not
take an object) and the transitive form (requires both a subject and one
or more objects).

In the expression "can I run that by you" run is used in the sense of
passing something along to someone for their opinion.

There are numerous usages of the word "run" in Emglish phrases and
expressions. Here are just a few more useful in everyday conversation:

- I'm going to run into town for groceries. Can you run me into town? =
to make a short or quick trip

- He is running in the Berlin Marathon. She is running for mayor. = to
take part in a sports race or an election for a political office -

- The ferry between Dover and Calais runs several times a day. = to
travel back and forth

- The sizes run from small to extra large. = to occupy a certain range

- His taste in motorcars runs to the very expensive. = to tend or
incline

- We ran into trouble once we crossed the border. = to move into
difficult circumstances.

SYNONYMOUS PHRASES

Would you take a look at this? Can I get your thoughts on this? I'd like
to get your opinion on this.


"Can I run that by you before we send it out to be printed?"

SMORGASBORD
EXAMPLE SENTENCE :
The festival opened with several keynote speakers offering brief
summaries of their big ideas; a kind of SMORGASBORD for the brain.
(BBC News)

The shoes are something of an athletic SMORGASBORD that lets the wearer
mix and match the various parts of the shoe, from uppers to insoles to
the studs that dig into the ground to improve traction.
(BusinessWeek magazine)

DID YOU KNOW ?

smorgasbord
noun
a wide variety of something

- a mixture of many different hot and cold Scandinavian dishes which are
arranged so that you can serve yourself

WORD ORIGIN

The Swedish word Smrgasbord is a compound noun made up of the words
Smrgs (sandwich) and Bord (table). In turn, Smrgas consists of the
words Smr (butter) and Gas (literally goose, but in its old meaning,
it's the churned butter floating on the skimmed milk).

According to the Swedish linguist, Catharina Grnbaum, Gas referred to
pieces of butter that formed and floated to the surface of cream when it
was churned. These pieces resembled fat geese swimming to the surface.
Such pieces were just the right size to be placed and flattened out on
bread. Smrgas then came to mean butter and bread together.

Smrgasbord refers to a Scandinavian meal that is served buffet style.
It is typically a holiday or celebratory feast at which the family and
guests can take whatever they fancy from a range of dishes laid out for
their choice. In a restaurant, the term refers to a buffet-style table
laid out with many small dishes from which, for a fixed amount of money,
one is allowed to choose as many as one wishes.

Thus in English smorgasbord is used in a figurative sense to describe a
large variety of something.
(adapted from Wikipedia)

SYNONYMS

buffett, collection, combination, goulash, hash, hodgepodge, jumble,
medley, mlange, miscellany, mishmash, mixed bag, patchwork, potpourri


"There was a smorgasbord of ideas presented at the meeting today."

BLACK ICE

EXAMPLE SENTENCE :

Motorists in southeast New South Wales are being warned of the dangers
of BLACK ICE after several heavy frosts in recent days
(ABC Regional Online, Australia)

Nick Grainger, from Humberside fire service, said: "Road conditions were
truly dangerous with BLACK ICE."
(BBC News

DID YOU KNOW ?
black ice
noun phrase
- a dangerous type of ice on roads which is so thin that it
cannot be seen by a driver

WORD ORIGIN

Black ice, also known as "glare ice" or "clear ice," refers to a thin
coating of ice on a surface, usually a roadway. While not truly black,
it is transparent, allowing the black asphalt roadway to be seen through
it, hence the term. It is unusually slick compared to other forms of
roadway ice.

Black ice is transparent because it contains relatively little trapped
air in the form of bubbles. In addition, it often is interleaved with
wet road, which is identical in appearance. For this reason it is
especially hazardous when driving or walking because it is both hard to
see and unexpectedly slick. Riding a bicycle on black ice is a risky
adventure as well.

Bridges and overpasses can be especially dangerous. Black ice forms
first on bridges and overpasses because air can circulate both above and
below the surface of the elevated roadway, causing the pavement
temperature to drop more rapidly. This is often indicated with "Bridge
May Be Icy" warning signs.
(adapted from Wikipedia)


"Be careful driving in fog because it can sometimes create black ice."

PUBLIC VIEWING
EXAMPLE SENTENCE :
Organizers had thought that hundreds of thousands of fans would pack
PUBLIC VIEWING sites in Austria and Switzerland to watch the European
football championships. It turns out they were wrong.
(BBC News)

Edwards Air Force Base is planning to open its PUBLIC VIEWING area on
the east shore of Rogers Dry Lake Thursday and Friday for persons
wishing to watch a potential landing of Space Shuttle Discovery.
(www.nasa.gov)

DID YOU KNOW ?
public viewing
noun phrase
- a place where the general public can watch a large event, usually
broadcast on a large outdoor screen

WORD ORIGIN

Before the advent of television and gigantic screens, the phrase public
viewing usually referred to an event in which the public was permitted
to view the body of an important person after their death. Presidents,
high government officials, church leaders such as the Pope, and also
Hollywood stars and other celebrities are often laid to rest in a casket
that is placed in a "public viewing" area to allow the general public to
"pay their last respects."

Public viewing is now additionally used as a general term to describe
the organization of a location and activities where the public can
gather to watch an important event.

Such events typically take place outdoors and involve the live broadcast
of key sports or entertainment events on giant screens. The expression
gained prominence in Europe when Germany hosted the 2006 Football World
Cup. Nearly every European country organized public viewing, some of
which were held at famous sites such as the Republic Square in Berlin.

"The big game is tonight and we're going to a public viewing. Would you
like to join us?"

STEAMROLL
EXAMPLE SENTENCE :
The Internet is STEAMROLLING its way into all of our lives and that's
the way we like it. Right? Wrong. A quarter of the population do not
intend to go online...
(BBC News)

''It reminded me of when I was 19 years old and STEAMROLLED over Andre
Agassi. I was steamrolled today by him. The only time he showed any
nerves was in the last game of the match.''
- former tennis star Pete Sampras

DID YOU KNOW ?
steamroll
verb

-to overwhelm or suppress ruthlessly; crush

-to smooth or level (a road) with a steamroller

(intransitive verb)

- to move or proceed with overwhelming or crushing force

(American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language)

---
WORD ORIGIN

The verb steamroll stems from the noun "steamroller," which is:

- a steam-driven machine equipped with a heavy roller for smoothing road
surfaces.
- a similar machine with an internal-combustion engine

A steamroller is a particular form of road roller, a type of heavy
construction machinery used for levelling surfaces. Steamrollers are
large steam-powered vehicles with a heavy cylinder or drum in place of
the front wheels and smooth rear wheels. Steamrollers are generally used
in paving roads or airfields, to flatten out the surface. In many parts
of the world, the term steamroller is still used to refer to a road
roller, regardless of the method of propulsion.

Steamroller is also used in the figurative sense to mean "a ruthless or
irresistible force or power." It is often used in this sense when
describing athletic competitions, as noted in the quote from Pete
Sampras.

It can also describe a military operation (The Russian forces
steamrolled into Georgia). On the other end of the scale, one person can
steamroll another in a romantic way (He was steamrolled by her beauty
and charm).

---
"We steamrolled the proposal through the committee and got the approval
to go ahead with the project."

SYCOPHANT
EXAMPLE SENTENCE :
Putin launched Russia Today, a 24-hour, state-controlled English
language television station that acts less as a news agency than as a
SYCOPHANT with a British accent.
(Esquire magazine)

After the interview, she concluded that Mugabe was profoundly out of
touch, surrounded by SYCOPHANTS too scared to tell him the truth about
the dire state of Zimbabwe.
(The Guardian)

DID YOU KNOW ?
sycophant (adjective = sycophantic)
noun

- a person who praises people in authority in a way that is not sincere,
usually in order to get some advantage from them

WORD ORIGIN

Sycophant comes from the Latin sycophanta and the Greek sykophantes,
originally meaning "one who shows the fig" (sykon = fig + phanein = to
show). Showing the fig was a vulgar gesture made by sticking the thumb
between two fingers. It is a display that vaguely resembles a fig, which
itself is symbolic of a certain part of the female anatomy.

As one story has it, prominent politicians in ancient Greece thought
they should not be seen displaying such a gesture, but privately they
urged their followers to taunt their opponents by using it. Other
sources believe the origin has to do with someone who informed against
another for exporting figs, which was illegal. Or it referred to someone
who stole the fruit of sacred fig trees. The sense of a mean, servile
flatterer was first recorded in English in 1575.

Literature is full of sycophants. In the fairy tale "The Emperor's New
Clothes" by Hans Christian Andersen, the two swindlers posing as tailors
convince His Highness that he looks superb in a suit that doesn't even
exist. Of course, the two sycophants are helped by the fact that the
emperor is both extremely vain and a twit. And in J.R. Tolkien's Lord of
the Rings, the hideous Gollum is at times a slimer with an over-pleasing
manner that masks his real goal of doing anything to retrieve the Ring.

---
SYNONYMS
toady, brownnoser, lackey, apple-polisher, bootlicker, fawner,
groveller, adulator, flatterer, slave, parasite, sponger, hanger-on,
flunky, stooge, yes-man

---

"Most senior managers attract their share of sycophants."

CON MAN
EXAMPLE SENTENCE :
A CON MAN who tricked investors out of more than 2.7m has been ordered
to hand it back.
(Northamptonshire Evening Telegraph, UK)

An Internet CONMAN has been jailed after his victims launched an online
manhunt in an attempt to catch him.
(The Argus.co.uk)

DID YOU KNOW ?
con man (also written conman)
noun phrase

- a person who deceives other people by making them believe something
false or making them give money away

con
noun

- a trick to get someone's money, or make them do what you want

con
verb

- to make someone believe something false, usually so that they will
give you their money or possessions

WORD ORIGIN

Con man is short for the American expression "confidence man," a term
that dates back to the mid 19th century. It describes someone who makes
others give away money or other possessions as an expression of
CONfidence (confidence comes from the Latin confidere, meaning faith or
trust).

The world has seen its share of con men such as Victor Lustig, a
Czech-born man who moved to Paris and "sold" the Eiffel Tower to a scrap
metal dealer. Lustig convinced the dealer that the city of Paris could
no longer afford to maintain the famous tower and had contracted him to
find a buyer for the metal. After the dealer discovered he had been
"conned," he decided not to tell the authorities because he was so
embarrassed.

George Parker was one the most famous con men in America. He made a
living selling New York City landmarks to unsuspecting tourists. Apart
from the Statue of Liberty, his favourite object was the Brooklyn
Bridge, which he is reported to have sold on average two times a week.
He convinced the buyers they could make money by controlling access.

The police would occasionally have to remove the buyers from the bridge
after they had set up toll barriers to collect money from motorcar
drivers. Parker's adventures passed into popular culture, leading to
phrases such as "and if you believe that, I have a bridge to sell you",
a way of expressing a belief that someone is nave.

(sources: The List Universe)

---
SYNONYMS

con artist, confidence man, chiseller, defrauder, grifter, scammer,
swindler, gouger

---

"Big cities like New York are well known for having a con man on every
street corner."

KEEP YOUR SHIRT ON
EXAMPLE SENTENCE :

"Just KEEP YOUR SHIRT ON, and tell me where you got that amortization
amendment."
(former U.S. Senator George W. Norris talking to a fellow senator)

Calm down! The train doesn't leave for another 20 minutes, so just keep
your shirt on.

DID YOU KNOW ?
Keep your shirt on!
idiom
- a slightly impolite way of telling someone who is angry to try to be
calm and patient.

WORD ORIGIN

In the western film classic Big Country, tough guy Charlton Heston
challenges city gentleman Gregory Peck to a fight in the middle of the
prairie. Before they start, Heston takes off his shirt to reveal his
muscles. Peck, being the refined man that he is, keeps his shirt on.
This is a good illustration of where we get the expression "keep your
shirt on." Heston is the one who is angry and can't wait to fight. Peck
on the other hand is calm and cool.

Figuratively speaking, there are several other things you can do with a
shirt:

Lose your shirt/Put your shirt on something - to risk all your money on
something because you are sure you will win

Would give you the shirt off their back - if someone would give you the
shirt off their back, they are extremely generous

A stuffed shirt - someone, especially a man, who behaves in a formal,
old-fashioned way and thinks they are very important

A hair shirt - if someone wears a hair shirt, they choose to make their
life unpleasant by not having or experiencing anything that gives them
pleasure

SYNONYMS

Chill out! Take it easy! Stay cool! Hold your horses! Relax!


"Keep your shirt on, will you? I have to finish this report before we
go."

VANGUARD
EXAMPLE SENTENCE :
"Women in the VANGUARD of change in Iran."
- BBC News Headline

"The guerrilla band is an armed nucleus, the fighting VANGUARD of the
people. It draws its great force from the mass of the people
themselves."
- Che Guevara

DID YOU KNOW ?
vanguard
noun

- a group of people who lead the development of new ideas, or a leading
position in the development of something

- the part of an army or navy that leads an attack on an enemy


WORD ORIGIN

Vanguard stems from the Old French "avant-garde," which in military
terms means the advance guard or the unit of an army that attacks an
enemy first.

Vanguard can refer to a group of people who are active in the creation
of innovations and new concepts such as in technology or the arts (She
was a vanguard in the pop culture scene in New York). It can also
describe someone or something that is at the position of greatest
importance or advancement (The school is at the vanguard of the new
education movement).

The great American writer Ernest Hemingway was considered one of the
vanguards of bilingual language in novels through his use of Spanish
words. He was also a vanguard in the military sense of the word.
Hemingway covered both the Spanish Civil War and World War II as a war
correspondent and was in the vanguard of the troops that liberated Paris
in 1944. As the story goes, Hemingway stopped by the house of Picasso in
order to pay his respects. He unfortunately found the artist was out. He
left behind a wooden crate as a gift, on which he inscribed "To Picasso,
from Hemingway." When the crate was opened, they discovered it was full
of hand grenades.

SYNONYMS

avant-garde, cutting edge, forefront, front, lead, leading edge,
spearhead

---

"Being in the vanguard has risks, but also gives first-mover advantage."

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