by Liz Walter
Back in March, I wrote a post about phrases containing the word ‘time’: https://dictionaryblog.cambridge.org/2018/03/07/having-the-time-of-your-life-phrases-with-time/. Today, I’m going to look at another set of phrases connected with time, all of which contain the word ‘day’.
skip-gen trip noun [C]
/ˈskɪp.dʒen.trɪp/
a holiday taken by grandparents and their grandchildren, or by other family members two generations apart
Travel advisors are now seeing requests for “skip-gen” trips, where grandparents take grandchildren on epic holidays, leaving parents behind … Why now? As the baby boomers retire, two of their top priorities are family and travel. Skip-gen trips combine the two, and allow milestones to be marked, even if parents can’t take time off.
[www.independent.co.uk, 22 August 2017]
last-chance tourism noun [U]
UK /ˌlæst.tʃɑːns.ˈtʊə.rɪ.zᵊm/ US /ˌlæst.tʃæns.ˈtʊr.ɪ.zᵊm/
visiting parts of the world that are endangered and so may no longer exist as a travel destination in the future
Call it the climate change effect. As travel experts look to the new year, they say last-chance tourism will emerge as one of the biggest trends fueling wanderlust. From millennials visiting pristine countries like New Zealand to spending time in the Arctic, visiting endangered destinations will continue to thrive in 2018.
[www.forbes.com, 28 December 2017]
globo noun [C]
UK /ˈgləʊ.bəʊ/ US /ˈgloʊ.boʊ/
someone who lives or spends a lot of time in several different parts of the world
Globos are global citizens for whom home is anywhere, from the African Plain to the corner bedroom at Soho House, New York … Globo couples such as George and (French, English and Arabic speaking) Amal Clooney … fit in as easily at the White House as they do a British shooting party.
[www.telegraph.co.uk, 2 December 2017]
Last month we focused on idioms that included various parts of the body. This week, we look at idioms featuring the most productive part – the head! As ever, we only cover phrases that are frequent and current.
If there is a problem and you bury your head in the sand, you behave as if there is no problem because you do not want to deal with it: This is an environmental catastrophe and we’re just burying our heads in the sand. Someone or something that is head and shoulders above other people or things is very much better than them: There’s no comparison with the other teams – they’re head and shoulders above them. If you keep your head down, you deliberately try to avoid making someone angry, usually by saying little and keeping busy: He’s in a bad mood this morning. I’m just keeping my head down. A discussion that goes over your head is too difficult for you to understand: I must say, parts of the talk went over my head.
a-commerce noun [U]
UK /eɪ.ˈkɒm.ɜːs/ US /eɪ.ˈkɑː.mɝːs/
the business of buying and selling goods using technologies such as augmented reality so that purchasers can see items in their real-life context before they buy them
Let’s then welcome … A-Commerce, which will soon replace the E-Commerce term. Through AR, retailers can now offer a more interactive and personal experience that will shift the way we shop forever. Of course, brick-and-mortar stores won’t disappear just yet. But for sure we are coming closer to see that happen one day.
[medium.com, 26 December 2017]
techlash noun [C]
/ˈtek.læʃ/
a backlash (a strong feeling among a group of people in reaction to a change or recent events) against technology
Daniel Franklin, executive editor at The Economist and editor of “The World in 2018”, told CNBC in an interview that he believed one particular theme to watch out for in 2018 would likely be an impending “techlash.” Over the coming months, lawmakers across the world will likely turn on tech behemoths such as Facebook, Google and Amazon, Franklin said.
[www.cnbc.com, 1 January 2018]
Industry 4.0 noun [U]
UK /ˈɪn.də.stri.fɔː.pɔɪnt.ˈzɪə.rəʊ/ US /ˈɪn.də.stri.fɔːr.pɔɪnt.ˈzɪr.oʊ/
the processes involved in producing goods for sale in which technologies such as artificial intelligence and the Internet of Things play an important part
All revolutions are disruptive, and Industry 4.0 is no exception. It poses risks, but offers tremendous opportunity: for new products and services, better ways to serve customers, new types of jobs, and wholly new business models.
[www2.deloitte.com, 22 January 2018]
by Liz Walter
Pronunciation is one of the hardest things to master in English. Today I’m going to look at the letter ‘o’ and concentrate on some common pronunciation errors.
Most students have no problem with the short vowel sound /ɒ/ found in British English in words such as hot, boss and across. (Americans pronounce this as a longer sound /ɑː/.) Students also generally understand how adding an ‘e’ to the end of a word leads to a longer sound /əʊ/ (UK) /oʊ/ (US), for instance hop/hope, not/note.
Continue reading “Love, work and police: pronouncing the letter ‘o’.”
forest bath noun [C]
UK /ˈfɒr.ɪst.ˌbɑːθ/ US /ˈfɔːr.ɪst.ˌbæθ/
an activity similar to meditation that involves sitting in a forest and focusing on your surroundings
I asked myself: who are the world’s most intense commuters and what do they do about it? The answer is, of course, the Japanese, and their solution is to take a forest bath. Shin-rin yoku was developed by the Forest Agency Of Japan in the 1980s as a “simple practice for enhancing health”.
[Sunday Times, 1 October 2017]
sound healing noun [U]
/ˈsaʊnd.ˌhiː.lɪŋ/
a type of meditation that involves listening to the human voice and different objects that produce sound
In an increasingly stressful world, sound healing is on the verge of joining yoga and meditation in mainstream consciousness. It’s not just about achieving a deeper state of sleep, either … In effect, it’s much like meditation, except instead of regulated breathing, the path to betterment is guided by sound.
[www.wweek.com, 2 January 2018]
gong bath noun [C]
UK /ˈgɒŋ.bɑːθ/ US /ˈgɑːŋ.bæθ/
a type of meditation session in which the therapist plays one or more types of gong (a round piece of metal that is hung in a frame and hit with a stick to produce a sound)
I first zoned out to a gong bath a decade ago in a North London yoga studio. I’d turned up for the yoga but ended up blissed out to the sound vibrations and keen for another hit. Back then one or two people a year were learning to play the gong and carry out sacred healing ceremonies … now it’s more like 70 or 80.
[The Guardian, 15 January 2018]
Getting used to things is a part of life. We all deal with situations, tasks or tools that are new to us. At first, they may seem difficult or strange. With time or practice, they become familiar and normal. In this blog, we look at the language for expressing this idea.
Starting with single words, if you familiarize yourself with something that you don’t know about, you intentionally learn about it, usually to prepare for something: I need to familiarize myself with the new software. If you acclimatize, you become familiar with different weather or surroundings so that you are able to deal with them: More time will be needed for the troops to acclimatize to the desert conditions.
Continue reading “Getting the hang of it (Words and phrases for getting used to things)”
nanokicking noun [U]
UK /ˈnæn.əʊ.ˌkɪk.ɪŋ/ US /ˈnæn.oʊ.ˌkɪk.ɪŋ/
a process that transforms a body’s stem cells into bone
Nanokicking subjects cells to ultra-precise, nanoscale vibrations while they are suspended inside collagen gels. The process of nanokicking turns the cells in the gels into a ‘bone putty’ that has potential to be used to heal bone fractures and fill bone where there is a gap.
[University of Glasgow News, 12 September 2017]
e-skin noun [C, U]
/’i:.skɪn/
a thin material, or a garment made from this material, that contains sensors and can monitor motion and bodily functions such as heart rate and breathing
CES demos showed the e-skin used for simple gaming, but with further development Xenoma believe it could also be used for fitness coaching and healthcare as well. Sadly, you’re unlikely to be suiting up any time soon. The only way to get hold of an e-skin right now is to purchase a full developer’s kit, which will set you back a cool $5,000.
[blog.vodafone.co.uk, 12 January 2018]
living tattoo noun [C]
/ˌlɪv.ɪŋ.tætˈuː/
a type of tattoo made from special ink that reacts to changes in the environment
The researchers say these living tattoos could be used as a wearable device to sense pollutants in the air or track changes in the temperature. Developed by MIT engineers, the tattoo was “printed” layer-by-layer on a patch before being adhered to the skin.
[www.irishnews.com, 6 December 2017]
by Liz Walter
Last month I wrote about ways of talking about people or animals that are young. This post looks at a related set: words for things that are new or modern.
Firstly, if we want to emphasize that something is very new, we say it is brand new: She bought herself a brand new sports car. This phrase means that something has just been made, but the thing itself does not necessarily have to be modern.
Continue reading “Breaking the mould: words and phrases for things that are new or modern.”
haem noun [U]
/hi:m/
an organic molecule found in plants that can be used in vegetarian and vegan cooking to mimic the red colour of meat
Silicon Valley start-up Impossible Foods has launched a plant-based burger using the sci-fi-sounding gene-edited ingredient. Haem makes the patty ‘bleed’ and imparts iron-filled meatiness. It’s considered the best meat-free burger, bar none.
[Good Food Magazine, January 2018]
sunion noun [C]
/ˈsʌn.jən/
a type of onion that does not make your eyes water when you slice or chop it
With typical onions, these compounds, which form sulphuric acid when they come into contact with the water in your eyes, remain stable or increase during storage. But with sunions the levels actually decrease over time, resulting in an onion variety that becomes sweeter, milder, and tearless.
[www.independent.co.uk, 10 January 2018]
crossushi noun [U, C]
UK /krəʊ.ˈsuː.ʃi/ US /kroʊ.ˈsuː.ʃi/
a croissant with sushi inside it
Full disclosure, in case you couldn’t already tell, I am one of those croissant purists. I prefer to stick to a non-stuffed pastry — unless chocolate is involved — that showers flakes, not salmon, onto my lap. But, the “crossushi” was not created for me. It was created for adventurous eaters who care more for creativity and possibilities of what can be.
[www.bustle.com, 2 January 2018]