Filipina Writers' Resource

Euphemisms and Modern Writing

2008-08-02T22:59:00.000-07:00

Euphemisms tend to be redundant and circumvent the real meaning of words. In modern writing it may strike a reader as even funny. Euphemisms are not taken seriously anymore except maybe in very special situations. A euphemism is an inoffensive word or phrase used for one that may be offensive or come up as coarse to readers. The word euphemism comes from the Greek phrase meaning “the use of words of good repute.” A writer may think that the word hooker may be offensive and so substituted it with the word prostitute, a euphemism for the more direct term. In recent years many writers have done away with euphemisms and embraced directness in writing. If they mean die then they write the word die, if they mean toilet they don’t say comfort station. The trend now is some writers even embrace outspoken and rejoice in downright vulgar words and phrases, this is a device called parrhesia: instead of dying a writer may use the more colorful but offensive term “turning one’s toes up to the daisies.” Instead of food he may say grub and so on. Usually we find a lot of euphemisms in government newsletters and public speaking engagements to circumvent the real truth behind matters. We also find euphemisms in job titles. In these two instances euphemisms may apply, wink wink.

Here are some funny euphemisms, some of it are so widely used we didn’t know they were euphemisms!

Amenity center-village green, public toilet
Archivist-museum or library clerk
Cardiovascular accident-stroke
Casket-coffin
Collection correspondent-bill collector
Combustible fieldman- garbage collector
Comfort station-public toilets
Confrontation-heated argument
Motion discomfort-nausea
Unmentionables-underwear
Trial marriage-free love
Rotund-fat
Food preparation center-kitchen
Facial dew-sweat
Extrapolation-educated guess
Intoxicated-drunk
Indisposed-sick
Love child-illegitimate child
Devouring element-fire
Prevaricate-lie
Mistress-kept woman
Plant food-manure
Problem skin-acne
Memorial park-cemetery
Mortical surgeon-undertaker

From Babel to Bailiff: A Vocabulary Builder

2008-08-01T00:45:00.000-07:00

Babel
a. a smug, provincial member of the American middle class
b. a confusion of sounds or voices
c. a sudden large increase in the birthrate
Babushka
a. a woman’s triangular head scarf tied at the chin
b. and ancient empire of Mesapotamia
c. a plant having numerous white flowers
Baccalaureate
a. a card game in which the objective is to hold the numbers closest to nine
b. a person who holds a bachelor’s degree
c. a farewell address delivered to a graduating class
Baccarat
a. a. a card game in which the objective is to hold the numbers closest to nine.
b. a confusion of sounds or voices
c. a plant having numerous white flowers
Bacchanal
a. arduous
b. background
c. drunken celebration
Bacillus
a. clandestine
b. rod-shaped bacteria
c. antibiotic obtained from bacteria
Backhanded
a. oblique or roundabout
b. a subordinate position
c. to back off
Backlash
a. oblique or roundabout
b. a subordinate position
c. a hostile reaction
Backslide
a. to revert to sin or bad habits
b. in secret; privately
c. of inferior quality
Backstairs
a. clandestine
b. a knapsack
c. area behind the performing space in a theatre
Backswept
a. clandestine
b. a knapsack
c. angled backward
Backwater
a. an isolated place
b. a child
c. to extricate from trouble
Backwoods
a. an isolated place
b. a child
c. to extricate from trouble
Bad blood
a. enmity or bitterness between persons or groups
b. light playful banter
c. to frustrate
Badinage
a. enmity or bitterness between persons or groups
b. light playful banter
c. to frustrate
Baffle
a. enmity or bitterness between persons or groups
b. light playful banter
c. to frustrate
Bagatelle
a. a trifle
b. a gem cut in a narrow rectangle
c. a court attendant
Baguette
a. a trifle
b. a gem cut in a narrow rectangle
c. a court attendant
Bailiff
a. a trifle
b. a gem cut in a narrow rectangle
c. a court attendant

5 Kinds of Adverbs

2008-07-30T05:20:00.000-07:00

Adverbs are used to describe or to modify a verb, an adjective or another adverb. Imagine if John is walking, how would he be walking? Would he be walking fast or slow? Adverbs solve this dilemma, they describe and modify verbs. Adverbs can modify adjectives as well adjectives can never modify adverbs. An adverb may be a word or a combination of words. Adverbs usually end in –ly but this isn’t a guarantee that the said word is an adverb for example:

Joan is a lovely girl who lives in a friendly neighborhood.

Lovely and friendly are not adverbs, they are adjectives. There are 5 types of adverbs.

Adverbs of manner- these adverbs tell us how something is performed and usually ends in –ly.

Consider:
Jane walked briskly towards John
Sebastian played the piano expertly.
Joan answered the question smugly.
The waiter served the food quickly.
Jason drove the car furiously.

Adverbs of place- these adverbs tell us where something happened.

Consider:
The adults are arguing upstairs.
Don’t throw garbage out of the window.
Wilma is standing at the end of the garden.
Charisse is going out the door.
May is waiting at the corner of the street.

Adverbs of Frequency- these adverbs tell us how often an action takes place.

Consider:

The birds usually migrate here every summer.
I sometimes have lucky strike,
Joan often went to Italy for the summer.
Catherine has never been a fan of Lakers.
Becky has always wanted to own a bunny.

Adverbs of Time- these adverbs tell us when something happened. Example are afterwards, later, now, soon, yesterday.

Consider:

I am going to buy a Louis Vuitton bag on Monday.
I’ve been to the movies today.
I am going to school next week.
It will eventually fall in place.

Adverbs of Purpose- Adverbs of purpose tell us the intention, aim, goal or objective. It usually starts with to.

Consider:

Jane sings to keep the crowd happy.
Eric goes to the gym to lose weight.
Her parents work hard to send her to school.
The actress did silly things to be famous.
The mother bought the doll to reward her daughter for her efforts.

From Abase to Abstemious: A Vocabulary Builder

2008-07-26T07:50:00.000-07:00

Do you know the following words? Are you familiar with them? Which meaning matches the words below?

Abase
Abattoir
Abdicate
Abduct
Abet
Abeyance
Abject
Abjure
Ablation
Ablution
Abnegation
Abominate
Abound
Abracadabra
Abrasive
Abrogate
Abscond
Absinthe
Absolution
Abstemious

-a washing or cleansing of the body especially in a ritual manner
-to leave secretly and hide, often to avoid the law
-gibberish
-to encourage or assist especially in wrongdoing
-to humble or degrade
-to renounce under oath
-to relinquish power or responsibility formally
-exercising self-restraint in appetites or behavior.
-to detest thoroughly, abhor
-slaughterhouse
-kidnap
-suspension
-despicable or miserable
-amputation of a body part or reduction, as by melting
-self-denial
-to be fully supplied
-harsh or irritating in manner
-to abolish or annul especially by authority
-a strong bitter liqueur
-the formal remission of sin imparted by a priest, as in the sacrament of penance

5 Kinds of Adjectives

2008-07-24T03:15:00.000-07:00

Have you ever seen a rainbow and admired how it looks? All the beautiful and translucent colors in a perfectly blue sky is indeed a sight to behold. Imagine if you have seen a rainbow and you wanted to tell your friends about it. How would you begin to describe it? What words will you be using? This is where the adjectives come in. Adjectives add color and vibrancy to our language much like the rainbow itself. Adjectives are words used to describe or modify nouns and pronouns. There are five kinds of adjectives:

Descriptive adjectives- describe nouns and pronouns; they give color, shape, size, quality etc. to the noun.

Consider:
The rainbow is colorful against the blue sky.
The movie has a dark theme.
The movie is unfit for children.
Celia is a very talented fashion designer.
Money can be the root of all evil.
The joker likes the combination of purple and green.

Proper adjectives- are adjectives that derive from proper nouns

Consider:
Ilyanna longs for the American dream; so she decided to become a nurse.
Jose Rizal is indeed a Filipino patriot.
Is that Peruvian dish tasty?
The ambassador speaks with a heavy Russian accent.
Tom’s Siberian Husky loves chasing cars.

Limiting adjectives- they set a limit through the ff:

Cardinal numbers- one, two, three
Ordinal numbers- first, second, third, fourth….
Articles- A, an, the…..pertains to one item only.

Consider:
An apple a day keeps the doctor away.
The quick brown fox jumped over the lazy dog.
He is the man to beat.
Fifty tables aren’t enough for the huge party.
She is the seventh of twelve children.
This is the fourth time she has changed jobs.

Indefinite Pronouns used as adjectives: many, several, few, some, most

Consider:
There were many people at the stadium
Only several people went to her party.
There were a few people who voted for him.
Some people are satisfied with the simple things in life.
Most people would not opt for a vegetarian diet.

Possessive pronouns used as adjective: my his, hers, ours, theirs

Consider:
This is my own book.
His expensive watch was stolen.
The house and lot on Instruccion Street is hers.
The dream of landing a job is finally ours to have.
Don’t forget that half of the pizza is theirs.

Call for Filipina Writers

2008-07-21T02:43:00.000-07:00

Refer to:
http://www.racewire.org/archives/2008/07/call_for_filipina_writers_1.html

The 3 Types of Verbs

2008-07-19T22:05:00.000-07:00

Which part of a sentence has the most exciting role? The doers of action of course: the verbs. Verbs show the passing of action from one situation to the next. Without verbs our language will have no movement, it will be static and boring. Verbs are the action words and are vitally important in a language. Merriam-Webster defines verbs as “a word that expresses an act, occurrence, or state of being” while Wikipedia it is defined as “In syntax, a verb is a word (part of speech) that usually denotes an action (bring, read), an occurrence (decompose, glitter), or a state of being (exist, stand). Depending on the language, a verb may vary in form according to many factors, possibly including its tense, aspect, mood and voice. It may also agree with the person, gender, and/or number of some of its arguments (subject, object, etc.)” and some define a verb as, “A verb or compound verb asserts something about the subject of the sentence and express actions, events, or states of being. The verb or compound verb is the critical element of the predicate of a sentence”.
There are three types of verbs: the linking verbs, the transitive verbs, and the intransitve verbs.
The Linking verbs do not express action, it is used to join subject and predicate. They link the subject to a predicate to add additional information about the subject.

Consider:
Celia is a shopaholic.
They are good people.
Juan and Luis are friends.
Melissa and Juan are lovers.
Paintings is a vocation like nunnery.
People with passion are never lonely.

However it is important to note that there is such a thing as Oblique linkers which function like linking verbs because they do not have a direct object. In oblique linkers you cannot see the action. Examples of these oblique linkers are: seem, look, taste, smell, sound, become.

Consider:
This plant seems edible.
Hmmm, that pochero looks good.
She became snotty after she got rich.
That sounds like a good deal to me.
The neighbor’s cooking smells delicious.

The next type of verbs is the transitive verbs, they are the action words and the action is always followed by a direct object. Transitive verbs cannot exist alone; it needs a direct object to complete its meaning without a direct object the meaning is incomplete. Transitive verbs are the easiest to identify.

Consider:
The shelf can hold all of mother’s pots.
The committee named Don Juan employee of the year.
The city mayor of Quezon City gave presents to the poor yesterday.
Clara Cruz has written a novel about love and loss.
The teacher scolded the boy for forgetting his assignment.
The English teacher loves his profession very much.
Mrs. Ocampo baked a very tasty roast chicken.
Dr. Mendez will be traveling to Mindoro to do a medical mission.

The last type of verbs is the Intransitive verbs. Here they do not need a direct object to complete their meaning. To determine whether a verb is transitive or intransitive consider if the action is being received in some way by a noun.

Consider:
Jenny writes legibly.
The losing candidate complained bitterly.
Jenny writes songs.

5 Classifications of Pronouns

2008-07-18T02:32:00.000-07:00

How would sentences sound like if there were no Pronouns? If we had to keep on repeating nouns in sentences over and over again. It would be dreadfully repetitive and would give us an earache in the long run. Thankfully there are Pronouns to substitute for nouns in sentences. The consideration when using pronouns are gender, number and case. The classifications of pronouns are the following:

The first classification is the personal pronouns. Personal pronoun refers to persons of nouns. It has what you call the first person: the one speaking, the second person the one spoken to and the third person the one spoken of. The singular Subjective case pronouns are I, you, he, she, it and the plural subjective pronouns are we, you, they.

Consider: We like drinking tea.
I like these because I have good taste.
We like you because they like you too.
He is like that every single day.

The Objective Case pronouns in singular form are me, you, him, her, it and the plural is us, you, and them.

Consider: It is her birthday tomorrow
It’s him.
You are not like them.
She is not like me.

The Possessive case singular nouns are my, his, hers, its. The Possessive case plural nouns are ours, ourselves, your, yourself and theirs.

Consider: The chocolates are ours.
You have to love yourself before you can love others.
The delicious pomegranates are theirs.
The teddy bear is his.
We must pray ourselves before we ask it from others.

The second classification is the demonstrative pronouns. Singular form: this, that and plural form: these, those.

Consider: Betty donated those for the victims of typhoon Frank while Eric gave these.
This is really more amazing than that.
Those are not for sale.
That was really an amazing experience we had yesterday.

Another classification is the indefinite Pronouns. These do not refer to exact number of nouns and do not have a specific number. The Indefinite Pronouns are: Another, Anyone, Anybody, Anything, Everyone, Everybody, Everything, Nothing, Each, Either No One, Neither, Nobody, One, Someone, Somebody, Something, Both, Few, Many, Several, All, Most, None, Some

Consider: All of them knew that anybody can do it.
Several employees went on strike.
Both of them have a few words to say.
Most bloggers would like revenue for their blog.
Only a few can sustain a professional blog like mine.

The fourth one is the relative pronouns and they are used to introduce dependent clause or subordinate clauses. The relative pronouns are: Who, Whom, Whoever, And Whomever, Which, That, Whichever.

Consider: The man who is in black jacket is a criminal.
Students that fail to submit the proper requirements will fail.
Alice knows whoever sings better Paula or she will win the contest.
She knows that whichever way they do it, it will work.

The fifth and last one a re the interrogative pronouns, they are used to introduce questions. The interrogative pronouns are: what, which, who, whom, and whose

Consider: Whose is that?
Which is which?
What is that?
Whose ball pen is this?

Jobs: Writing gigs in Manila (homebased and officebased) as of July 15, 2008

2008-07-15T13:08:00.000-07:00

WRITERS for websites - fulltime job (Alabang)
Reply to: mailto:job-755230461@craigslist.org?subject=WRITERS%20for%20websites%20-%20fulltime%20job%20(Alabang)Date: 2008-07-15, 8:41AM PHT
Our American Director will be in town to conduct marathon interviews starting July 16 for: WEB CONTENT WRITERS - Fluent in written english To be assured of an interview slot, please send your detailed resume with picture ASAP. Accepted applicants will be offered above average compensation package and benefits. These are long term full-time regular jobs with monthly-paid salaries. Employment starts immediately. Please call 0917-865-9050 for immediate interview schedule of the American Director.
Location: Alabang
Compensation: industry high
Principals only. Recruiters, please don't contact this job poster.
Please, no phone calls about this job!
Please do not contact job poster about other services, products or commercial interests.

HOME BASED TRANSCRIPTIONISTS needed to help with overflows (PH only)
Reply to: mailto:job-755300274@craigslist.org?subject=HOME%20BASED%20TRANSCRIPTIONISTS%20needed%20to%20help%20with%20overflows%20(PH%20only)Date: 2008-07-15, 9:41AM PHT
I am an independent contractor seeking help from EXPERIENCED TRANSCRIPTIONISTS for my work overflow. Work load may vary from week to week. Must have: 1. At least 2 years relevant experience in transcribing verbatim, medical, corporate, and legal transcripts. 2. Excellent command in English usage and grammar. 3. At least 45 WPM. 4. Can deliver at least 1-hour work everyday in 12 hours or less. 5. Can deliver client-ready transcripts (minimal errors). 6. PayPal (preferred), BPI (not Family Bank) or Globe GCash account. 7. Foot pedal and broadband connection. I need someone who is deadline oriented and great with details. For those interested and has prior experience, please send RESUME (COPY/PASTE), DO NOT ATTACH. No need for a cover letter. Qualified applicants will be given a test to check your accuracy. Thank you very much and hope to hear from you soon!
Location: PH only
Compensation: $10-$12/audio hour
Telecommuting is ok.
This is a part-time job.
Principals only. Recruiters, please don't contact this job poster.
Please, no phone calls about this job!
Please do not contact job poster about other services, products or commercial interests

Dissertation Writer Needed! (Anywhere)
Reply to: mailto:gigs-756797584@craigslist.org?subject=Dissertation%20Writer%20Needed!%20(Anywhere)Date: 2008-07-16, 11:45AM PHT
Hi, I'm looking for someone who has experience writing thesis papers and who can do so within a few days. To learn more about this project, send your e-mail today. Thank you.
Location: Anywhere
it's NOT ok to contact this poster with services or other commercial interests
Compensation: TBD

English Editor / Proof Reader of Academic Material
Reply to: mailto:job-755567325@craigslist.org?subject=English%20Editor%20/%20Proof%20Reader%20of%20Academic%20MaterialDate: 2008-07-15, 3:29PM PHT
English editor wanted to correct student essays/reports and various documents. Must have reliable Internet connection. Must submit material in timely fashion. Pay negotiable. Please send CV to ethinkglobal@gmail.com for editing test
Compensation: Negotiable
Telecommuting is ok.
Principals only. Recruiters, please don't contact this job poster.
Please, no phone calls about this job!
Please do not contact job poster about other services, products or commercial interests.

For more writing jobs homebased and fulltime/partime go to http://manila.craigslist.com.ph/

The 7 Uses of Nouns

2008-07-15T09:28:00.000-07:00

This time the case of nouns refers to where nouns are located in a sentence. To put it simply case of nouns refers to how nouns are used in a sentence.

A noun can be used as a subject of the sentence; it is either the doer of the action or the main topic such as in the following. Can you identify the noun used as subject?

The students played tennis yesterday.
The teacher gave a quiz.
Daffodils are her favorite flowers
Love is divine
Cinderella is not ready for the ball.

A noun can be used as a direct object. It is the recipient of the action. Can you identify the noun used as direct object?

The students played tennis yesterday.
The teacher gave a quiz.
He copied from her.
James discovered a treasure in their backyard
My mother always serves bibingka and puto bumbong on Christmas day.
For people who have day jobs, traffic causes considerable frustration.

A noun also functions as an indirect object. It answers the “to whom” question of the verb. Can you identify the noun used as indirect object?

The city mayor gave the citizens of Manila Christmas presents yesterday.
If you like we can give Jane a new job.
Elmo sent Oscar a jacket.
Will you give Salma the painting?
Did Hansel give Gretel the engagement ring?
Can you write the saleslady a check for the Louis Vuitton bag?

A noun also serves as an object complement. The object complement names the direct object. Can you identify the object complement?

The family named their pet dog, “Blackie”.

The noun can also be used as a subject complement which comes after the linking verb. To identify linking verbs they are a form of the verb TO BE: IS, WAS, AM, ARE, WERE, BEEN. Can you identify the subject complement?

Richard is an engineer.
I am his queen.
We were good friends
Jane was his girlfriend.
Eric is a genius.

Nouns also functions as appositives; a noun that is placed after a subject. Can you identify the appositive?

His hobby, swimming, is a good exercise.
Jane’s passion, painting, is good for her mental well being.
Barkley, the beastly dog that loves to bark, wants more food.

Nouns plus prepositions are very tricky but nouns also functions as objects of the preposition. To lessen the hassles try to familiarize yourself with these list of prepositions: about, behind, from, on, toward, above, below, in, on, top, of, under, across, beneath, in, front, of, onto, underneath, after, beside, inside, out, of, until, against, between, instead, of, outside, up, along, by, into, over, upon, among, down, like, past, with, around, during, near, since, within, at, except, of, through, without, before, for, off, to. Can you identify the object of the preposition?

The young boy was scolded for drinking beer.
The cat went outside of the house.
Emily stood by the window
Danica invited everyone except Oyo
She was left without a friend.
Scarlet sat beside Rhett Butler.
She sold the paintings for a hundred dollars.

A Review of Nouns also known as Nominals I

2008-07-14T23:15:00.000-07:00

How would you imagine the English Language without nouns? It would be impossible. Nouns or nominals are the backbone of the English language they are the naming words for all we hear, smell, touch, taste and feel. It names concrete things and ideas. All languages would have nouns in the parts of speech. Without nouns there would be no civilization. We would be like castaways without bridges to carry our ideas from one point to the next.

There are two categories of nouns the common nouns and the proper nouns. The Common nouns refer to a general class of persons, places and things, events or ideas. An example of this would be: doctor, man, girl, street, province, country, ballpen, eraser, pencil. The other category are what you call proper nouns, or more specific names for people, places and things like Dr. Jose Rizal, Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo, Juan Luna, Barack Obama, Mongol Pencils, Pilot Ballpen, Prang Watercolors, Google search engine. Things like that.

Nouns can be classified in five ways: the first are called the concrete nouns. These are nouns that can be perceived by the senses, they are tangible things. The second are the abstract nouns, it’s a little tricky but they are recognizable: love, sincerity, excellence, happiness, despair courage. What do they have in common? They all pertain to Qualities, conditions, actions and ideas. The third one is the mass nouns, they cannot be counted but they can be measured like water, rice, coffee, blood. They come in volume. Now the fourth are the Collective nouns. These are the nouns that refer to a group of persons, animals, things and ideas taken as one unit. Examples would be: herd, class, and fleet, a school of fish, team, committee, group, family, and choir. The fifth one is the count nouns: chairs, pencils, cups, saucers, radios, are all examples of count nouns and can be modified by a numeral and occur in both singular and plural form

There are some consideration when dealing with nouns such as gender and number. Gender is a quality of noun by which sex is distinguished: masculine denotes the male sex, feminine the female sex, common either male or female and neuter no sex. Examples would be stallion, mare and horse is the common gender. With Peacock and peahen, you don’t say: I saw a female peacock at the zoo. It’s peahen. It’s the same with cat a female cat is a pussycat and a male cat is a tomcat. In number it simply refers to the singular and plurality of nouns. Foreign words those especially taken from French influence have tricky plural and singular forms. Example: datum refers to a single item of information and data to several items. Another common mistake is paraphernalia the plural is paraphernaliae, same with medium-media, stratum-strata, and aquarium-aquaria. It should also be noted that some nouns are always plural in form like pants, scissors, socks, slippers and you never say I’m going to wear my sunglass instead: I’m going to wear my sunglasses. Some nouns have plural form but singular meaning such as ethics, politics, statistics, measles and news. Some nouns have no plural form such as information instead we say pieces of information. Furniture, jewelry, fish are also some examples. With compound nouns such as editor-in-chief, brother-in-law and attorney-at-law, we form their plural in the most important part so it becomes editors-in-chief, brothers-in-law and attorneys-at-law. Passerby is single the plural is passersby.
Next: Case of Nouns and how to identify a noun