“Did you and Sridhar go for breakfast on Sunday?”
“We couldn’t. He had some work. So, we went out for dinner, instead. Saw his new apartment. It’s amazing!”
“It certainly is! And being a fussy individual, he makes sure the place stays neat as a pin.”
“Neat as a pin? Does it mean that everything is in order?”
“That’s right! It’s an expression frequently used in American English to mean clean and tidy. Here’s an example. Look at the mess you’ve made in the kitchen. I’ll give you an hour to make sure that it’s neat as a pin again.”
“Sridhar is very well organised. Even his bookshelves were neat as a pin.”
“That sounds like Sridhar, all right! It’s also possible to say ‘as neat as a new pin’. Another expression that is sometimes used is ‘clean as a new pin’. Rahul spent a couple of hours cleaning his old car. When he’d finished, it was as clean or neat as a new pin.”
“The two girls took time getting dressed for the event. When they emerged from their room, they were both clean as a new pin. Do you know what the origin of the expression is?”
“There’s a question mark about that! Nobody is really sure about the origin. Some people believe that the pin in the expression refers to a safety pin.”
“That makes sense! A new safety pin looks really nice! It’s shiny and ….”
“True, but many others believe that the pin refers to the fancy ornamental hairpin that women used to wear to keep their hair in place.”
“I see. Are you planning to take a break and go somewhere during the summer?”
“I most certainly do! Plan to take a week off during May and spend some time in my village.”
“Your village? What will you do there? Won’t you get bored?”
“Of course, not! I always find it relaxing. Sleep a lot, eat great food, ramble in the fields, play…”
“Ramble in the fields? Why would you want to do that? Doesn’t ramble mean to talk in a confused way? You keep jumping from one topic to another and the listener has no clue as to what it is you’re trying to say.”
“Yes, you’re right! That is one of the meanings of the word ramble. You can ramble in your speech. The Vice Chancellor rambled for half an hour and put everyone to sleep.”
“I enjoy talking to Sujatha because unlike her brother, she doesn’t ramble.”
“You’re absolutely right! The word ‘ramble’, however, can be used to refer to one’s style of walking as well. When you ramble in the countryside, you walk for pleasure. You walk around aimlessly for a long time without having a destination in mind.”
“In other words, you’re walking for pleasure. You’re enjoying the outdoors.”
“I guess you could say that. Here’s an example. Every weekend, we spend a couple of hours rambling through the woods.”
“The children enjoyed rambling along the river bank.”
“Rambling along the wet paddy fields is not my sister’s idea of fun.”
“That’s pretty understandable, I guess. She doesn’t like to get dirty. Always wants to be neat as a pin!”
upendrankye@gmail.com
