Sunday 29 June 2008

Ramifications

- My colleague has started behaving in an unusual way-
said my friend, Brussels Girl;
- she bought a copy of The Economist and starting underlining good words and expressions.
- uh... I do that... I admitted sheepishly*
- No but she hates The Economist - replied BG. - Only... last week, I used the word 'ramifications' at work and I think it caught her off-guard. What's more, the other day she used 'ramifications' too.
- Oh. I replied. - I'm not sure that I've ever used the word 'ramifications' actually: not even in casual conversation.

Now I'm starting to worry about my own use of English. Maybe I should try and drop in a few ramifications at unexpected moments.

At breakfast: 'If I were to eat a croissant with jam instead of Weetabix, what do suppose would be the the potential digestive ramifications?'

Crossing the road: 'In contact with that lorry I foresee significant bodily ramifications!'

On the cafe terrace: 'One more gin and tonic and tomorrow morning will be coloured by serious ramifications'...

Uxbridge English dictionary definition: 'Ramifications: i) fortifications involving a battering ram. ii) cardinal sin for sheep.'

Must think of some more good words... any ideas??


*Also Le Point, Repubblica and the bilingual airport magazines you get at Krakow Balice.

7 comments:

Anonymous said...

OMG, she becomes a snobish yuppie...

Darth Sida said...

Fast faves:
= 'discombobulate' and 'bamboozle'
= 'mithridatize' (only 1 Polish dic has this verb)
= use 'nigh' (then 'near' as compartative and 'next' as superlative) e.g. a girl nigh door
= 'hamstring' (insist on having the irregular past forms around you)

Btw, I think 'hamstringing' and 'ramification' are brethrenly.

Anonymous said...

You may be suffering from 'English detachment syndrome' a well-known weirdness that happens to people who've been in Poland for too long and then return to the UK. You know you have it when English people look at you funny and say "why are you talking like that?" It's a result of speaking constrained English free of idioms and such-like to Polish people. Fascination with the word 'ramifications' is a classic symptom.

Anonymous said...

Oh, and by the way "quarter life crises"? Exactly how long are you planning on living?

Anonymous said...

… or even 'crisis.' See it's happening to me now. The potential ramifications are horrifying.

Darth Sida said...

Island,
you say potential, I say potato. Then again, consider changing 'horrifying' into something more, eh, consternating.

Btw, Mike Oldfield had voiced out his Crises when 29.

pinolona said...

Yeah you're right, I need to change the blurb. I was hoping if I used the phrase 'quarter-life crisis' I'd get more hits...

anonymous - I'm from Sevenoaks it was just a matter of time...