tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2546764570417440222.post3348605787027130553..comments2012-08-10T22:19:17.858+05:30Comments on Usage of English in India: Mock drillPetrichorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12161565026807061280noreply@blogger.comBlogger3125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2546764570417440222.post-77961583639033868002012-08-09T00:28:04.671+05:302012-08-09T00:28:04.671+05:30another example:
"repeat again" could me...another example:<br />"repeat again" could mean:<br />I repeated myself 10 minutes ago and I am again going to repeat myself.<br /><br />Concerning drills, consider:<br />practice drill<br />mock drill<br />rehearsal drill<br /><br />All are tautology, but perhaps it is like "really, really good" -- redundancy for emphasis.<br />Point: language events evolve for reasons -- not just from pure stupidity. To not understand that, is to not understand language.Sabio Lantzhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12963476276106907984noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2546764570417440222.post-10129393755208797962012-08-08T20:07:50.971+05:302012-08-08T20:07:50.971+05:30Sabio, thanks for your comments and nice to meet y...Sabio, thanks for your comments and nice to meet you too :-)<br /><br />I understand what you mean by differentiation and your examples do make sense. Nevertheless, "experience" is usually good enough; one need not say "past experience". Or perhaps "early experience" can be used instead. <br /><br />However I don't agree that such phrases are a way of showing emphasis. <br /><br />Coming to "mock drill", how is this different from "drill"?Petrichorhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12161565026807061280noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2546764570417440222.post-47559119332857892902012-08-07T16:27:14.049+05:302012-08-07T16:27:14.049+05:30I can see some reasons for the evolution of such p...I can see some reasons for the evolution of such phrases:<br /><br />1. <b> Differentiation</b> <br />(a) consider that there are many sorts of experiences - recent, immediate, past ...<br />(b) disasters vary: major disaster (tsunami), minor disaster (our neighborhood flooded)<br /><br />2. <b> Emphasis</b><br />Some languages use little words to show emphasis, "iku ze" [Japanese] "look, I'm leaving!" [English]. <br />Saying "repeat again" is away of saying "Look! I am repeating myself".<br /><br />Language is more than the logic of the "actual" meanings of the words -- words have many functions outside of meaning: tone, allusions, sounds and more. <br /><br />So, could you imagine ways "mock drill" could evolve to be more than just a silly tautology? I can.<br /><br />Like you, I love language. Nice to meet you.Sabio Lantzhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12963476276106907984noreply@blogger.com