Sendiri Cari Pasal

I was reading an article over at TIME online, titled " Steve Jobs and the Lure of Alternative Healing" and came across this sentence:

"Mainstream medicine, with its greatly increased use of high-tech diagnostic testing and medication has, despite its considerable progress and successes over the past few decades, he said, in some ways bred its own rejection."

"...bred its own rejection" is a powerful quote which can be rewritten as "bred its own trouble" to convey the same meaning for the Malay phrase "sendiri cari pasal" -- a phrase I often find difficulties in translating.

Other expressions and words of note from the article and from browsing through TIME: unmet needs, medico-pharmaco-industrial complex; tried half as a joke, half with genuine hope; seems callous and remote, deluding ourselves, 5.6-magnitude earthquake rattles Oklahoma, death toll climbed pass 500, incessant flooding, cars sloshed through a flooded road; relentless rainfall has pummeled vast swaths of Thailand, swamping the country; the runoff has massed around Bangkok...

In Which He Eschews Talking Heads

Non-native speakers of English can benefit a lot by reading text in English, especially those written by native speakers of the language or those published by institutions where writing in good English is a necessity.

Being a journalist, I often find myself gravitating towards articles by Reuters, BBC, Guardian, New York Times and the likes and it often impresses me to read their highly descriptive articles that you can virtually picture or visualise the described situation. Take this sentence for instance: "...it was his first full documentary in which he eschewed talking heads."

"Talking heads" is not a new expression but when the sentence is read in its entirety, it conveys a visual representation of what the writer wants to say. The full sentence is produced below:

"For British director Asif Kapadia, it was his first full documentary in which he eschewed talking heads and focused instead on Senna — in the car, at the track, in feisty drivers’ meetings, surrounded by screaming fans or at home with family and friends in Brazil." [Source: Reuters]

Dereliction of Fiduciary Duty

I often wonder how many more new words should I put into my vocabulary chest so that I can write better and deliver a more precise meaning of the concept or train of thoughts I want to express. Maybe a few hundred more.

Three of the words must be dereliction, fiduciary and omnious which I come across countless of time -- the latest being today -- but have not really use them in any of my articles.

There's a saying that goes, "use a word twice and it will be yours forever." SO, here goes:

"Dereliction" is the act of willfully neglecting duties and principles. Its Malay equivalent is "sengaja mengabaikan tugas".

"Fiduciary" is the trust "entrusted" to someone, a legal or ethical relationship of confidence or trust between two or more parties, most commonly a fiduciary and a principal or "amanah" in Malay.

"Ominous" is a situation exhitibing the quality of being "omen", for instance "ominous chain of event." In Malay, ominous is "beralamat buruk".

English Words, Phrases and Expressions

I learn not a small measure of knowledge from reading this New York Times articles alone, titled "Obama, in His New Role, Calls for Stimulus Package". The article is a report from US President-elect Barack Obama's news conference.

1. "...approached the lectern. (I would have written "approached the rostrum" because I just came to know of the word "lectern" today)

2. "He smiled as he looked out at a large retinue assembled from around the world." (retinue -- a group of people who travel with someone important, eg a huge retinue of servants)

3. "... seen only in faraway shots as he dashed from the gym." (Non-native English speaker might have written "... as he hurried from the gym.")

4. "I didn’t want to get into a Nancy Reagan thing about, you know, doing any séances." (seance -- a meeting where people try to communicate with the spirits of dead people)

5. "careless and offhanded remark. (I should start using "offhanded remarks" in the translation of the Malay word "terlepas kata")

6. "...a warm conversation." (I should really learn to use the word "warm" other than in connection to the weather)

7. "an array of economic advisers." (another way of saying "a team of economic advisers")

8. "...offered no new specifics about what he intended to do to."

9. "But the stagecraft of the news conference, held after a closed-door meeting of Mr. Obama’s economic advisers, was intended to show that he was hard at work in search of solutions." (I just love the chemistry of the two concepts)

10. "The session carried the trappings of an official event, with eight American flags lined against blue drapes."

11. "...to get a brief respite after a 22-month campaign."

New Words, Use It Twice And It Is Yours

Well, some are not exactly new words to me. It's just that I seldom use them.

From the article "Obama surges ahead of McCain":

"...John McCain fumbled his response to a looming US economic cataclysm - one that threatened to match the financial catastrophe of the 1930s Great Depression."

1. Fumble:

• 
  
• grope: feel about uncertainly or blindly; "She groped for her glasses in the darkness of the bedroom"
• make one's way clumsily or blindly; "He fumbled towards the door"
• handle clumsily

2. Cataclysm:

• calamity: an event resulting in great loss and misfortune; "the whole city was affected by the irremediable calamity";
• "the earthquake was a ...

3. Catastrophe:

• calamity: an event resulting in great loss and misfortune; "the whole city was affected by the irremediable calamity"; "the earthquake was a ...
• a state of extreme (usually irremediable) ruin and misfortune; "lack of funds has resulted in a catastrophe for our school system"; "his policies were a disaster"
• a sudden violent change in the earth's surface

Translation: Pandai Berkata-Kata

Dia pandai berkata-kata: he has a glib tongue; he is a person who is so glib with his tongue.

Antonym -- Lidah kelu: tongue-tied, inarticulate, quiet.

Implacable, Impudent, Infamy

Implacable, impudent, infamy... these are among the 100 words, according to World-English, you should know to impress the examiner.

Here are the 100 English words you should know if you want to impress the examiner. See for yourself if you know the meaning of all of it.