What is the difference between a ‘gossip’ and a ‘chatterbox’?
(J Vikram, Hyderabad)
Both words can be used to refer to someone who likes to talk. Of the two, ‘gossip’ has a negative connotation. When you say that someone is a gossip, you are suggesting that the person takes great delight in talking about the private lives of others — friends, relatives, celebrities, etc. The information he shares may or may not be true. The word is mostly used with teenagers and adults.
A ‘chatterbox’, on the other hand, is someone who takes great delight in talking. The subject matter in this case is usually very trivial; unlike the gossip, the focus is not always on the private life of an individual. The word is very frequently used with children.
*If you’d like to know what’s going on, talk to the neighbourhood gossip.
*Dinesh’s six year old son is a chatterbox.
What is the meaning and origin of the expression ‘call the shots’?
(K Madhu, Chennai)
When someone ‘calls the shots’, he decides what is to be done in a situation; he tells those around him what to do. Being in a position of authority, he makes all the major decisions. It is also possible to say ‘call the tune’; both expressions are used in informal contexts. Some believe it is Ravi Shastri and not Duncan Fletcher who is calling the shots.
*Why do you blame me? I wasn’t the person calling the shots.
As to the origin, there are several explanations. A few people believe that the expression comes from the world of movies; they argue that the ‘shot’ refers to the images captured on camera by a director. When making a film, it is the director who ‘calls the shots’. Others are of the opinion that the expression owes its origin to the game of billiards.
In this game, a player usually lets his opponent know which ball will be going into which pocket. Many believe that expression comes from target shooting. Like a billiards player, a good marksman lets the audience know in advance which target he will be aiming at.
What is the meaning of the expression ‘I was gutted’?
(Shyam Rao, Bengaluru)
People who cook non-vegetarian food, sometimes have to gut the animal before cooking it. When the word ‘gut’ is used as a verb, it means ‘to remove the intestines and other organs’ of the animal. Fish, for example, is gutted before it is cooked.
In British English, the word ‘gutted’ is used in informal contexts to mean to be extremely upset or disappointed about something. ‘Gutted’ was the word that de Villiers used when his team lost to New Zealand in the World Cup semi-final.
*The fans were gutted when Sachin was run out on 99.
Is it okay to say, ‘My wife hails from Coimbatore’?
(SV Ashok, Chennai)
In terms of grammar, there is nothing wrong with the sentence. When you say that your wife ‘hails from Coimbatore’, you mean that your wife is from Coimbatore. Native speakers of English do not use ‘hail’ as much as we Indians do; they consider it to be rather old fashioned. They would instead choose to say: She is from Coimbatore/She comes from Coimbatore/ Her hometown is Coimbatore.
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“Gossip is what nobody claims to like, but everybody enjoys.” — Joseph Conrad
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