“It’s fairly obvious from your face that the interview didn’t go too well.”
“It was a disaster. Someone asked me a slew of questions which I couldn’t answer.”
“Slew of questions?”
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“The word ‘slew’ is frequently used in informal contexts in American English to mean a large number of things or people. For example, I saw a slew of senior citizens waiting in the doctor’s office.”
“Thanks to a slew of run outs, we lost the match by two runs.”
“That’s a pretty good example. I’m taking a slew of thrillers with me to Goa.”
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“You’re leaving for Goa tomorrow, aren’t you? Lucky you. That should help you forget about the interview. How far is the hotel from the beach?”
“Well, according to the brochure, the beach is just a stone’s throw from the hotel.”
“Just a stone’s throw from the hotel? What does it mean?”
“How far can you throw a stone?”
“Not very far, I’m afraid.”
“So, when you say that something is ‘just a stone’s throw’ from some place or a ‘stone’s throw away’ from some place, you mean that it isn’t very far away. Virat was standing just a stone’s throw away from us.”
“Hope you got a selfie with him. How about this example? The new mall they’re building is a stone’s throw away from my sister’s college.”
“Not the ideal place to build a mall. Most of the students...”
“What if the mall is four or five kilometres away from the college? Can I still say a...”
“You can say a stone’s throw away. After all, it’s only a relatively short distance away. People living in Pune might consider Mumbai a stone’s throw away, although it’s several hundred kilometres away. It all depends on how you look at it.”
Faulty beginning
“I think it’s about time you got a promotion. Even though you’ve worked for the company for five years, yet you’ve not been promoted. I don’t think it is...”
“How many times do I have to tell you? When you begin a sentence with ‘even though’ or ‘though’, you don’t add a ‘yet’ or a ‘but’. For example, even though Prema handed in her assignment late, the teacher didn’t get angry. You don’t...”
“I think I understand. How about this example? Though it was hot and humid on the day of the picnic, we still enjoyed ourselves.”
“Or you could say, it was hot and humid on the day of the picnic, but we still enjoyed ourselves.”
“You look like you could use some cheering up. Why don’t we for a walk and ...”
“I’ll be doing a lot of that in Goa. I’m sure all the long walks along the beach will go a long way in clearing the cobwebs.”
“Clearing the cobwebs? There won’t be cobwebs on the beach!”
“I’m saying that the walks will clear the cobwebs inside the mind. I’m using the expression figuratively to mean to feel refreshed and be mentally alert. It’s also possible to say ‘blow the cobwebs away’.”
“Early morning motor cycle rides will blow the cobwebs away.”
“Very good. Varun went for an evening jog to clear away the cobwebs.”
“In Goa, your slew of mystery novels should clear away the cobwebs.”
“Let’s hope they do!”
* * * * *
He’s barely on speaking terms with the English language. He makes George W. Bush look like Cicero. — George Will on Donald Trump
The author teaches at the English and Foreign Languages University, Hyderabad. upendrankye@gmail.com