“Haven’t seen you in a while. Come on in!”
“You always keep saying ‘come on in’. Tell me, is there a difference between ‘come on in’ and ‘come in’?”
“In terms of meaning, not much really. In both cases, you’re asking the person...”
“You’re asking the person to come inside. You’re asking him to enter the...”
“That’s right! ‘Come on in’ is mostly used in informal contexts. It suggests that you’re being very friendly, and that you’re very happy to see the individual.”
“In other words, it’s normally used to show warmth.”
“I guess you could say that. ‘Come in’, on the other hand, can be used as a request for somebody to enter or as an order. An angry boss is likely to say ‘come in’ rather than ‘come on in’.”
“I don’t have a boss. But when we go to the Principal’s office, he usually says, ‘Come in’. What does your new boss say? Does she...”
“She’s a bit of an oddball, actually. She never...”
“Oddball? Does it mean someone who is odd or peculiar?”
“Yes, that’s right! The word is normally used in informal contexts to refer to someone who is strange or unusual. The person comes across as being an eccentric. In school, everyone thought I was an oddball.”
“Why only in school? Many people think you’re an oddball even now! How about this example? At the wedding, the family oddballs got together and had a blast.”
“Sounds good. The word can also be used as an adjective. People avoid Naveen because of his oddball ideas and behaviour.”
“The players didn’t know what to make of Harish’s oddball coaching methods.”
“That’s understandable, I guess. Harish is an oddball. So,...”
“What’s not understandable, however, is that you seem to have bought another tennis racquet. How much did this one cost?”
“Not much, actually. I really lucked out this time. The racquet was....”
“Lucked out? Does the expression even exist?”
“Of course, it does. It’s mostly used in informal contexts in American English. When you say that you ‘lucked out’, you mean that you got really lucky.”
“So you’re saying that you were lucky to get the racquet at a ridiculously low price.”
“That’s right!”
“How about this example? Seema hadn’t studied for the Physics test. She lucked out because the teacher decided to put off the test.”
“Sounds good. Federer really lucked out in his match against Wawrinka.”
“You may be right. Revathi lucked out when she found an excellent apartment opposite to her office building. She is...”
“How many times do I have to tell you? It’s not ‘opposite to something’ but ‘opposite something’. The supermarket is opposite the bank.”
“Yes, you’ve told me many times. But a lot of my friends always say ‘opposite to’. So I keep saying the same thing. The restaurant opposite the station is really good.”
“That sounds a lot better. Hang this painting on the wall opposite the door.”
“Why don’t we hang your new racquet, instead?”
****
It’s freezing and snowing in New York – we need global warming. — Donald Trump
Email: upendrankye@gmail.com
Published - January 29, 2017 05:00 pm IST
