ToBE #20 : How to cope up with an assault
This issue discusses two common mistakes - one in English and the other one, mostly in Tamil.
cope up : There is no such grouping of two words. It is always, 'cope' or 'cope with', never 'cope up'.
- I hope Svami is able to cope with the loss of his dog.
- For someone who landed in the U.S.A. just a week back, Mona is coping well.
- The minister launched a verbal assault on his opponent.
- The editorial was a scathing assault on the railway budget.
- Maximus was assaulted by muggers when he was returning home late.
posted by Sudarsan at 12:17 pm
3 Comments:
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Do you cringe when someone says "co-brother" (shadagar in Tamil)? Prepone??
Please tell me I am not alone in this world in believing that these are non-existent words !
I did get your response on co-brother/ co-son-in-law. The terms seem to be peculiar to Indian English, because the relationship of sons-in-law is not defined in other cultures (atleast Western). A non-Indian English speaker will have no clue what is meant by "co-son-in-law". Introducing the gentleman as one's wife's brother-in-law is probably more appropriate.
The other word I have a problem with is prepone, which is another made-up word. In the word "postpone", post is not a prefix unlike post-haste. "Pone" is also not a word. Prepone, therefore, is erroneous.
My two paise.
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