Friday, August 05, 2005

English observations

The other day I was sending an email in which I said I was "baffled". Then it occurred to me that "baffle" has more than one meaning - to quiet (as in "no, I won't be asking any more questions") or to puzzle (as in "yes, I will be asking many more questions").
Not so ambiguous was the small yet difficult boy on the bus tonight. When he refused to slide across to let his mother sit down, she lifted him across the seat. He protested loudly, she responded including asking him to quiet down, and he finished the exchange by calling her "you big pooh pooh". Now no-one can say that's not sending a good, clear message!

No comments: