Thread: Which is right?

Hello. One of this sentences is right. And another not.
Which are incorrect and why? The problem in word usage.

1. One of the things I enjoy most about the piccolo is its knelling sounds that remind me of a hard summer rain on a tin roof.

2. After waiting several hours for the jury to deliberate, the defendant was even more roiled when the judge told the jury to go home and reconvene in the morning.

3. The Jones were only too happy to admit that they had saved the day by mulcting the Chamber of Commerce for $1000

4. Mrs. Malloy was so honored that the president had condescended to read her story at their meeting that she could not find the words to express her appreciation.

5. The surgeon meted the blood circulation temporarily while he repaired the rupture.

First, be aware that these sentences contain words that native speakers simply don't use. Some are archaic, some are specialized, some are just downright obscure. Even fans of crossword puzzles wouldn't encounter "mulcting" very often. Luckily, I have a leg up. I was a Latin student.



1. One of the things I enjoy most about the piccolo is its knelling sounds that remind me of a hard summer rain on a tin roof.

Fine. A little odd. A "knelling" sound is more like the ringing of a bell. That doesn't really match up with "rain on a tin roof" very well, so in THAT sense, it might be wrong. We have an expression: "death knell". It's something that signals the finish of something (like old church bells signaled a funeral by ringing a bell). We might say: "Casting Pauley Shore in that movie was its death knell" (ie: it was the first indication it was a failure).


2. After waiting several hours for the jury to deliberate, the defendant was even more roiled when the judge told the jury to go home and reconvene in the morning.

Fine. The word "roil" means to churn (like the sea). Thus, it also means "to agitate or be agitated". Clearly, the defendant would be agitated in this scenario.

3. The Jones were only too happy to admit that they had saved the day by mulcting the Chamber of Commerce for $1000

To "mulct" means to "cheat" or "swindle" -- so this sentence is probably wrong. But -- I don't know. Maybe under the right circumstances someone cheating the Chamber of Commerce out of $1000 is "saving the day". But that's kind of a stretch.

4. Mrs. Malloy was so honored that the president had condescended to read her story at their meeting that she could not find the words to express her appreciation.

This is a hard call too. Generally, "condescending" has a bad connotation. It means that someone is holding themselves superior to you. They are coming down to your level. But, face facts: a president agreeing to read your story IS condescending to your level. Moreover, it is a stock expression. An old expression, but there nonetheless. People really wouldn't say it today except in the most formal situations. Probably because the general use of the word -- the one that carries an air of superiority -- overrides the antiquated meaning.

5. The surgeon meted the blood circulation temporarily while he repaired the rupture.

This is PROBABLY wrong. To "mete" something means to "measure" it. Maybe there is medical slang I'm unaware of and this is common usage among doctors and nurses. It sounds odd to my ear, though. It's possible that it is being used in the sense of "regulate" ... but I suspect most doctors would just say "regulate".

HTH

mete, always fun to research the web:

JN 6:54 Therfor Jhesus seith to hem, Treuli, treuli, Y seie to you, but ye eten the fleisch of mannus sone, and drenken his blood, ye schulen not haue lijf in you.
JN 6:55 He that etith my fleisch, and drynkith my blood, hath euerlastynge lijf, and Y schal ayen reise hym in the laste dai.
JN 6:56 For my fleisch is veri mete, and my blood is very drynk.
( http://www.biblekeeper.com/Wycliffe-nt/john_6.php )

So it *maybe* it is medical jargon after all!!! =:^)

Огромное спасибо! Все понятно. Не знаю, какой уровень английского должен быть у человека, чтобы отвечать на такие вопросы. Но, надеюсь, достигну.

chaika, это похоже на русский "превед медвед"

Originally Posted by RavinDave

HTH

I already saw this contraction in some post by chaika and asked what it meant but didn't get a reply.
Maybe this time I'll have more luck

Originally Posted by Vadim84

Originally Posted by RavinDave

HTH

I already saw this contraction in some post by chaika and asked what it meant but didn't get a reply.
Maybe this time I'll have more luck

HTH = Hope This Helps

Hi Julienovich

Be aware that "to knell", "to roil", "to mulct" and "to mete" are definitely not words you would use in everyday speech. To be honest, two of them I didn't even know. (thanks for explaining, Dave )

I would have no problem with "to condescend" being used in everyday speech, although it would almost always be used sharply, or ironically.
It's more common in the form "condescending", as in for example: "I don't like Mr.X , he is a condescending b@@@d..."

Originally Posted by BabaYaga

I would have no problem with "to condescend" being used in everyday speech, although it would almost always be used sharply, or ironically.
It's more common in the form "condescending", as in for example: "I don't like Mr.X , he is a condescending b@@@d..."

The tricky thing about "condescend" is that people (at least at one time) used it in a self-deprecating manner. It's a subtle thing that's really hard to explain. Some oriental cultures do this quite a bit. Let me give you a concrete example from the movie version of "The Good Earth" (a classic book about China). It even uses the word "condescend"!!!

Man: Ah, my ignorant daughter.
Wang: A beautiful girl
Man: She has such a wretched appearance.
Wang: But your daughter is far too good for my son.
Man: You would never condescend to such a marriage.
Wang: I couldn’t presume to look so high. It’s impossible, just impossible… but it might be done.
Man: Indeed, if you would be so good as to consider it in due time.
Wang: I shall think of it night and day.

You see? Each man is playing a coy game, putting himself down in order to compliment the other.

So ... if you and I are at a party and I ask if you'd condescend to play a song on the piano, I am praising you INDIRECTLY by saying I'm not really worthy to hear it and you'd be lowering yourself. Do I really believe that? Of course not. If we were really that far apart socially, we wouldn't be at the same party. It's just a nice way to boost someone's ego.

(Am I making sense?)

The Joneses

"The Jones" would mean it is Mr. and Mrs. Jone

Originally Posted by RavinDave

(Am I making sense?)

Yep, totally.

Originally Posted by Julienovich

Hello. One of these sentences is right. And another is not.
Which are incorrect and why? The problem in word usage.

Originally Posted by TATY

The Joneses

"The Jones" would mean it is Mr. and Mrs. Jone

Good one Matey! I was going to post on that myself but then suddenly I realised that even I was not sure of the correct form. We actually had a discussion here about it and could not agree.

basurero, thanks

всегда пожалуйста!