Eng 7/ Anki Hagstrm

1. Different Languages, Different Worlds

(from Lewis, Richard D., When Cultures Collide)
Vocabulary :
p.8
idiosyncracy

strange or unusual personal habit

dunk

to dip into liquid

p. 9
with abandon

in a completely uncontrolled way

in origin

to begin with

emulate

to perform in the same way as

reluctance

unwillingness to do something

simulation
how to do something.

a model of a set of problems that can be used to teach someone

Cunning
tricking others

People good at planning to get what they want, especially by

on account of

because of; following

concept

thought; idea; principle

tenet

principle or belief held by a person or group, esp. one that forms

part of a larger system of beliefs

notion

idea or opinion in someones mind

formidable

very great and frightening, causing respect or anxiety

p. 10
insurmountable
cf. mount, mountain

Such a big problem it cant be dealt with successfully

in stark contrast

Something that doesnt fit in

blubber

fat from whales

perceive
cf. perception, I see

become conscious of or understand

be wary of
cf. beware of
snipe at
cf. sniper

not completely trusting something

exasperation

anger

p.11
unpalatable
cf. palate

unpleasant and difficult to accept

to make a nasty attack in words

constraint

something that controls what you do by keeping you within certain

limits

candour

the quality of being honest and telling the truth

notionally
cf. notion (see above)

theoretically, it only exists as an idea

ethical

morally good or right

excessive

too much,

to curry favour

to try to win attention by insincere means

preempt

to remove any reason for doing sthg. by taking action in advance

discard
cf. dissa

to get rid of something

regimented
too organized and controlled
cf. regiment, regemente
lenient

not as severe as expected

connotation
a commonly understood cultural or emotional association that
some word or phrase carries
p.13
momentous

of very great importance, esp. because of possible future effects

intertwined
reverberate

(about sounds) to echo repeatedly

p. 14
equated with
cf. equation

something considered to be equal to something else

integral part of

necessary part of

cleverness

ability to learn quickly

opinionated
discord
cf. accord

too sure of the rightness of ones opinion

to be conditioned by

to be dependent of something

pervasive

widespread

p. 15
groove

a track made by repeated movement

chasm

a big gap (between rocks)

tongue

dialect

philology

study of the nature and esp. development of words or language

poverty stricken

a place suffering from the effects of extreme poverty

finely wrought
cf. wreath

finely made or done (NB oldfashioned word, seldom used)

p. 16
causation
cf. cause

the process of causing something to happen

duration

the length of time something lasts

persist

to continue in a course of action firmly and perhaps unreasonably,

in spite of opposition and warning

all-embracing
cf. embrace

accepting towards everybody

p.17
assumption
cf. assume

something accepted as truth without question or proof

comprehend

to understand; to grasp

untampered-with
cf. tamper with

untouched/unspoiled

yardstick

a standard you can judge the value of something with

p. 18
implication

a possible later effect of an action

calibrate
cf. caliber

to check if a measurement unit is accurate

comport

to behave in the stated way (NB different : to behave)

hypothesis
proved
NB plural hypotheses

an explanation for something based on fact but that hasnt been

Audibility
cf. audition

What can be heard

presume

to take as true without direct proof but with some feeling of being
certain

erroneous
cf. error

something thats wrong or false

compound

consisting of two or more parts

p. 19
weighty issues
cf. weight

heavy issues/difficult problems

flippant

disrespectful about serious subjects, esp. when trying to be

amusing

humorous shafts

making an unfair joke on your cost,

deep slide

a major donwfall

stultify

to make stupid or dull in mind

convey

to express something so others understand you.

interlocutor

the counterpart in a conversation

dissect

to examine something in detail.

conductive to

something that leads to another thing

earthy

direct, perhaps impolite; dealing with the body, not the mind

endearment
cf. dear

a word or phrase that you use to show that you love someone

diminutive
cf. diminish

very small

expansive
cf. expand

friendly and willing to talk; large and splendid

p. 20
transition
a change from one form to another, or the process itself
cf. trans(as in : transatlantic, transcontinental)
Agonise
cf. agony

experiencing extreme suffering

vagueness
cf. vague

Unclear/something that is described unclearly

impeccable

free from fault or blame; flawless

a battery of

a number of things of a similar type

honorific expression

an expression that combines a quality of respect, being proud and

honesty

cf. honour
platitudinous

stating something thats true but has lost all meaning because it has
been said so many times before

cf. platitude
emerge

to appear by coming out from a concealed place

preoccupation

something that takes up ones attention

p. 21
victimise
cf. victime

to cause someone to suffer unfairly

bawdy

containing humorous remarks about sex

aphorism

a true or wise saying or principle expressed in a few words

proverb

a short well-known, supposedly wise, saying, usually in simple

language (e.g. Dont count your chickens before they are hatched;
Dont put all your eggs in one basket)

parable

a short simple story which teaches a moral lesson

moderately

neither small nor large but in between

slapstick

simple and often violent comedy (e.g. Laurel and Hardy)

p. 22
punchline
cf. punch

the last part of a joke that explains what makes it funny

converse
cf. conversation

to talk to someone

racy

full of life and perhaps dealing with sex

confiding
cf. confidence

trustful

barbed
(as in : barbed wire)

having a sharp point that curves backwards

Feigned

to pretend to feel something

p. 23
resort to

to make use of; to turn to (often sthg. bad) for help

compartmentalised
cf. compartment

separated

consternation

great shock and worry or fear

laden with

loaded with/carrying a lot of things

deadlock

a situation in which agreement cant be reached because neither

side will change its demands

anathema

something that one regards with strong dislike and disapproval

(orirignally something considered bad from a Christian point of
view)

p. 24
scorn

strong and sometimes angry disrespect towards a person or thing

that is regarded as worthless; contempt

Expressions
p. 1
if it doesnt rock the boat

If it doesnt disturb the peace/order

p.9
given the size of the world

regarding how big the world is

bears little similarity to

Is very different to

p. 11
at their disposal

That something is available to them

are economical with the truth

Dont always tell everything (of the truth)

only in Australia is a spade called a spade

truth about things.
as circumstances require

That only Australia people speak the

as it is needed.

p. 14
do not quarrel with this assertion

Do not argue against this statement

at the end of the day

After all

p. 16
without even raising a sweat

With no effort

p. 17
a case in point

an example that shows that what you are saying is true

or helps to explain it.

up to a point

Up to a certain

p. 19
anything but

used to mean the opposite of a stated quality

p. 20
to strike a balance between ......... and ........
p. 24
any allowances we can make

To find something that suits both needs

Any efforts we can make

Questions
p. 8
What is the difference between manner and mannerism ?
Manner is the way something is done, while mannerism is something with their body that a
person does repeatedly that they might not realize they are doing.
p. 14
How does a person act when he or she is playing the devils advocate ? Explain.
When someone takes a position he or she doesnt necessarily agree with for the sake of the
debate.
p. 15
What is meant by a kaleidoscopic flux in this case?
Overwhelming chaotic state of information
p. 17
Explain the words assume, deduce and consider and the differences between them.

Consider is when you spend time thinking about a possibility, deduce means to reach an
answer from known facts and assume means to accept something without proof. The
difference is whether you spend time thinking about if its true or not.
p. 18
The German language is a [...] no-nonsense entity ? What does the author mean by this ?
That the German language doesnt have things that exist apart from the rest of the language.
p. 21
Explain the words sarcasm, satire and parody and the differences between them.
Sarcasm means that you use remarks to clearly mean they opposite of what youre saying to
criticize something in a humorous way. A way of criticizing people or their ideas by writing
acting in their style. Parody means that you make some qualities of an original work so much
more remarkable that it becomes humorous.
The difference is that in parody you make mark of certain details that you exaggerate, in satire
you use their style write a different message that criticizes them and in sarcasm you say the
exact same thing as you opponent just in a different style where its obvious you mean the
opposite.
What is meant by the national rinse ?
Something that is particular for a certain nation
p. 23
Any clever nuances or tongue-in-cheek utterances will leave them floundering.
Translate into ordinary English.
Any smart small changes or humorous things someone says will make them unable to decide
how to act next
p. 24
There is no one metaphysical pool of human thought. Explain.
There is no part about philosophy that covers human thought. He means that people really
havent thought about how we think and why people from different cultures think differently.