QUESTION:
Levent from Turkey had the following the question: “I want to ask about the verb which you used in your podcast about the museums: “I can’t name all of the museums in this city.” I understand this verb “name.” I guess you mean that you don’t know the exact number of the all museums?”

ANSWER:
It’s not surprising that Levent isn’t clear on the meaning of the word “name.” In fact, as a verb, “name” has several meanings.

In the sentence Levent mentioned — “I can’t name all of the museums in this city.” — “name” means to identify by name, usually by saying it aloud.  When someone asks you to name something, they are asking you to provide a list aloud.  They are not asking you for a number, but rather, the names of each item on the list.  So, a conversation may go like this:
A:  “I’ve been to New York City a lot of times.  I know everything about that city.”
B:  “Okay, then, how many museums are in that city?”
A:  “I think there are 22.”
B:  “Okay, name them!”
A:  “I’m not sure I can name all of them.”

Another meaning of “name,” used as a verb, is to appoint or assign a job to someone.  You probably know the verb “hire,” which means for you, your company, or your organization to give someone a job.  We use “name” in a slightly different way, usually for a position that is important or that carries (includes) some level of honor.  For example, Jeff may be named by the President to be the new ambassador (most important political representative; diplomat) to Ireland.  Jeff is being hired for this job, that’s true, but the job is also an important position that is an honor to receive.

A third way we use “name” as a verb is to mean to specify an amount, a time, a place, a price, or another thing.  If the President offers Jeff the job as ambassador, Jeff may say, “I’ll accept the job only if you will give me a few things.”  Of course, President Obama will say, “Name it!,” meaning that Jeff should simply tell him what he wants and he’ll get those things.  Another example would be if you really wanted to buy your friend’s car, but she is reluctant (not completely willing) to sell it.  You may say to her, “Name your price and I’ll pay it.”

So, you can see that “name” has several meanings as a verb and the way to know the difference is by the context (situation; the words around it).  Thanks, Levent, for the question and I hope this is helpful.

~ Lucy

QUESTION:
Amaury from Colombia wants to know what “taking the moral high ground” means.

ANSWER:
“To take the moral high ground” means to keep one’s beliefs and to behave according to what is generally accepted as a high standard of good and correct behavior.  When we talk about “morality” (noun) or “moral” (adjective) behavior, we are talking about our principles (important beliefs) about what is right and wrong, and what is good or bad.  “High ground” is the term we use for a place or piece of land that is higher than the areas around it.  That’s where you want to be if there is a flood (too much water over land), so you can stay dry.  A person who has or takes the moral high ground in a debate or controversy is someone who has or wants to have the better moral position when compared to others involved, whether it’s in their own eyes (from their own point of view) or in the eyes of others.  If, for example, people at work are trying to curry favor (get someone to like them more by trying to please that person) with the boss by telling lies about their coworkers, you may want to take the moral high ground and not do the same thing, even if it means you will not gain the same advantage as your coworkers.

The opposite of taking the moral high ground is to sink to (someone’s) level.  “To sink” means to fall or to drop to a lower level.  “To sink to (someone’s) level” means to lower one’s standards so that one behaves in a way that is similar to another person who has lower standards.  For instance, if you’re in car race and one of the racers routinely (regularly) wins by paying off (giving money to someone so they’ll do or not do something) his competitors, you might say, “I won’t sink to his level to win.”

So people who take the moral high ground are people who won’t sink to the level of others.  We often think highly or well of people who take the moral high ground, especially if it means there is some sacrifice (giving up of something important) for them to do so.

Thanks, Amaury, for your question and I hope this is helpful.

~ Lucy

Over the weekend, Fayssal posted a joke to an older blog post about punctuation that I thought was amusing (funny and entertaining), but that most of you may not see.  I am reposting here it for that reason and because it clearly shows the importance of punctuation in determining the meaning of what we write.
…
An English professor wrote the words ”a woman without her man is nothing” on the chalkboard and asked his students to punctuate it correctly.

All of the males in the class wrote:
”A woman, without her man, is nothing.”

All the females in the class wrote:
”A woman: without her, man is nothing.”
…

Here is another, perhaps more well-known, story that also illustrates (shows) the importance of punctuation.
…
A panda (see photo) walks into a café. He orders a sandwich, eats it, then takes out a gun and fires it (shoots it) at the other patrons (customers).

“Why?” asks the confused, surviving waiter, as the panda makes towards (walks towards) the exit. The panda produces a badly punctuated wildlife manual (information book about animals living in nature) and tosses it (gently throws it) over his shoulder.

“Well, I’m a panda,” he says, at the door. “Look it up” (look for the information in the book).

The waiter turns to the information on pandas in the manual and finds an explanation. “Panda. Large black-and-white bear-like animal, native to (comes originally from) China. Eats, shoots, and leaves.”
…

The poorly punctuated manual caused all of these problems for the panda and the people in the café.  My question to you is: What is the correct punctuation for the last sentence in the entry — “Eats, shoots, and leaves.”?

~ Lucy

shoots =
1) (verb) to fire a gun; to cause a bullet to leave a gun
2) (noun) bamboo shoots; the young part of a bamboo plant (see photo), eaten as a vegetable, especially in Asian food

leaves =
1) (verb) to depart; to remove oneself from a place
2) (noun) plural of leaf, the smaller green things that grow off of largest part of on a tree or plant

QUESTION:
Michael from Germany wants to know: “What is the right term for something you do beside your “main” job? This would be something you like to do, even love to do – in my case it is creating comic strips as an author. But like a lot of other creative work (like acting, painting, etc.), it is difficult to have financial success, earning enough money so you can live on it.”

ANSWER:
Many people work at a job to make money, but really love doing something else.  The job we do to make money we call our “day job,” even if we work at night.  This is your main job–the one that allows you pay your rent or mortgage (money paid on a home loan) and allows you to eat.

There is a very common expression people say related to day jobs:  “Don’t quit your day job.”  We often use this jokingly, to say that the other person doesn’t do something very well.  For example, if we are all at Jeff’s birthday party and I start to sing a song in Jeff’s honor (to show respect to Jeff), my friends would probably say to me:  “Don’t quit your day job!”  It’s a little insulting (rude), but it’s meant as a joke, and in my case, they would be right!

There are a few terms for things we do “on the side” (not as our main occupation or activity) because we like or love doing them.  If it’s done mainly or only for pleasure, then we usually call it a “hobby.”  We don’t expect to make money from it, but we enjoy doing it.

Let’s say (let’s take the example) of cleaning.  I might be a little strange and enjoy cleaning as my hobby.  Obviously I don’t get paid for cleaning my own house, or even cleaning my friends’ houses for fun.  If, however, I get a job as a janitor (person who cleans a school, office building, etc.) in addition to my day job, I would be moonlighting.  The term “moonlighting” is usually used to mean an additional job we get to make extra money, not to give ourselves enjoyment.  We also call this our “second job,” although we don’t call our main job our “first job.”

However, if you are doing something that requires more skill, such as creating comic strips or websites, and you make some money from it or intend to make money from it, that would probably be called your “sideline.”  So, if my day job is working at ESL Podcast and I moonlight as a janitor in the evenings, I may also have a sideline as a pianist (person who plays the piano) at a restaurant/bar on the weekends.

Thanks for your question Michael and I hope that’s helpful.

Do you moonlight?  Do you have a sideline?

~ Lucy

QUESTION:
Omid from Iran wants to know what “peer review” means when talking about scientific articles, and what the difference is between peer reviewed and non-peer reviewed articles.

ANSWER:
When we read about scientific research, we often hear the term “peer review.”  Peer review is the process of taking a piece of scientific research, usually in the form of an article, and sending it to knowledgeable people in the same field to get their advice on whether the research is sound (based on good research) and should be published (printed for others to read).  Peer review is often used by scientific journals, which are publications containing professional and/or research articles published regularly–monthly, quarterly (every three months), biannually (two times a year) or annually (each year).  Peer review is also used by conference (professional meeting) organizers to determine whether a presentation is appropriate for that conference and of a high quality.  In theory (the way it is supposed to work),  peer review makes sure that only good research is published or presented, so that it can gain the attention of other people in the field and/or the media (news organizations).

For peer review to work well, it is best to have “blind review,” which is when an article or written presentation is sent to reviewers without the name of the author(s) on it.  (Sometimes, other identifying information within the article is also taken out.) This way, reviewers can’t be influenced by the name of the author, his or her affiliation (organization that he or she is connected with), or any other factors not associated with the quality of the research and the article itself.

However, even blind review doesn’t always work the way it is supposed to.  Having been on journal editorial boards (the groups of people who determine the content of a publication) and having peer reviewed many articles (not to mention having had many of my own articles reviewed), it is sometimes quite easy to know who the author or authors are.  How?  First, if you are being sent an article to review, it means that you are active in this field. Sometimes sub-specialties (smaller areas of expertise) within a field is quite small, with only a small number of people doing research in it.  For this reason, it is easy to see from the topic of the article, the kind of research done, and/or the references (published articles, books, presentations, and other sources) that are cited (mentioned) who the author is or who his/her friends or colleagues are.  Second, people in the same field may have an ax to grind, meaning they have some bad feelings against someone or some point of view that influences their decision.  If the reviewer does not agree with the author’s conclusions, the reviewer may not like the article and advise the journal to reject (refuse) it, even if the research is done well and the article is written well.

So you can see that while peer review is widely used, it is far from a perfect system.  Still, it is considered the best method we have right now to cull (separate) good research from bad.  Keeping in mind the limitations of peer review and blind review, however, we can all be better consumers (readers; receivers) of scientific research.

~ Lucy

Last Monday was Labor Day, a federal (national) holiday that is celebrated on the first Monday in September. It is a day to remember, recognize, and celebrate workers. Most Americans see it as the unofficial (informal) ending of summer.  In fact, many elementary and secondary schools begin right after Labor Day.  Since many people have this day off from work, many see it as a day for rest and parties.

Last Monday, I had lunch at a casual restaurant and as I was leaving, the waiter said, “Happy Holiday.” I knew what he meant and appreciated his cheerful good wishes, but native speakers of American English usually don’t say “Happy Holiday.”

We say “Happy Holidays” (with an ‘s‘) in December and early January as a general and non-religious greeting to wish people a happy holiday season, which usually includes Hanukkah, Christmas, Kwanzaa, and New Year.  A lot of people still say “Merry Christmas,” even though the person they are speaking to may not celebrate Christmas.  More and more, to avoid this situation, people say “Happy Holidays,” which may be even more popular now than “Merry Christmas” as a general holiday greeting.  After Hanukkah, Christmas, and Kwanzaa have passed, people usually simply say “Happy New Year.”

So how do you wish someone a good holiday, if it’s not December, especially for many of the more minor holidays, such as Labor Day, Memorial Day, and President’s Day, and even the more popular ones, such as Halloween and Thanksgiving?  People almost always say “Happy + [name of holiday]“:  “Happy Labor Day,” “Happy President’s Day” (though people seldom (rarely; almost never) say this), “Happy Halloween,” and “Happy Thanksgiving.”  It is also very common for people to say, “Have a good/nice + [name of holiday],” such as “Have a good Labor Day” or “Have a nice Memorial Day.” And if someone says this to you, you can say in response: “Thanks. You, too.”

Keep in mind that “holiday” can also means “vacation.”  You may hear people say “Have a good holiday” if the days off from work or school coincides (occur at the same time) with a federal or state holiday.  However, if someone is taking a week off from work for their own purposes, then it is far more common to say, “Have a good/nice vacation.”

So I wish you a good holiday, whatever holiday you may be celebrating this month!

~ Lucy

We’ve had a few questions about punctuation, so I thought I would provide a list below of some of the most common ones used in standard writing.  It would take a long time to talk about the uses of each one.  Instead, I’ve provided an example of how they can be used in context (in an actual situation)  in the paragraphs below.

Period [ . ]
Question mark [ ? ]
Exclamation point [ ! ]
Comma [ , ]
Quotation mark [ "  " ]
Colon [ : ]
Semi-colon [ ; ]
Parentheses [ (  ) ]
Ellipsis [ ... ]
…

Using punctuation helps readers better understand what we write. It would be very difficult to read this paragraph without any punctuation at all, don’t you think? There are several American writers who don’t like to use punctuation when they write, and when I see some of their writings, I say to myself, “Wow, this is hard to understand!” Their writings include: books, essays, short stories, and poetry.

Style is important; comprehension is important, too.  My brother likes to write emails without punctuation and I think they are difficult to understand.  (Of course I would never tell him that to his face! The last time I gave him advice, well…)
…

You’ll notice that although I used one kind of punctuation in a sentence, another type may have worked just as well.  Punctuation, like our choice of words, is often arbitrary (made for no definite reason).

Traditionally, people put two spaces after punctuation at the end of a sentence.  In the days of the typewriter, it was easier to see where a sentence ended and another began with two spaces separating each one.  Today, that’s changing.  With fonts that show more clearly the end of sentences, people are beginning to use just one space at the end of sentences.  For this reason, you will see it both ways.

~ Lucy

QUESTION:
A listener, Carles, had the following question: “I’d like to know the meaning of the word “jeopardy”. I’ve heard this word in some television shows about police and crime investigation. I think this word means “to put something or somebody in danger” but in what context can I use it? Can I use this word in everyday speech or only as police jargon?”

ANSWER:
Carles is right that “to put someone/something in jeopardy” means to put someone or something in danger.  It is often used in TV shows and movies because people are often “in jeopardy” or in danger.  We can say:
- “The baby’s parents put her in jeopardy when they left her alone for hours.”
- “Testifying (giving evidence in a legal case) about major criminals in court sometimes put witnesses (people who saw, heard, or know something) in jeopardy.”

In court or on TV shows about the law, you may also hear the term “double jeopardy.”  Double refers to two things that are the same or very similar.  Double jeopardy occurs when the court system tries to prosecute (put on trial) the same person twice for the same crime.  This is not legal in the United States.  For example, if I am arrested (officially taken by the police for committing (doing) a crime) and go to court and I am found not guilty (not having committed the crime), then I cannot later be arrested again and brought to court for the same crime, even if the police has more or better evidence against me.  This is why I am still free and why  the police tries to make sure they have enough evidence to convict (to have a person found guilty) before they arrest someone for a crime.

Although “jeopardy” is used a lot by the police and in talking about the law, we can also use it in daily life.  Because it is associated (connected) with the law and the police, we use it more for official or formal situations, but not always.  Here are some examples of how it can be used:
- “If you don’t stop drinking (alcohol) at work, you’re in jeopardy of losing your job.”
- “We’re in jeopardy of losing our house if we don’t pay our monthly payments on time.”
- “The teacher left dangerous equipment for the students to play on, putting the children’s safety in jeopardy.”

There is also a long-running (been showing for a long time) TV show called “Jeopardy!”, which was first shown on American television in 1964. It’s a quiz show, where contestants (players) answer questions about history, literature, the arts, popular culture, sports, and more, competing to win money.  The questions are often very difficult and only people who know a lot about these topics do well.  I hope one day to see our own Dr. Jeff McQuillan on the show, since he’s one of the smartest people I know.  He would no doubt do well and win a lot of money.  Maybe he’d share.

Thanks, Carles, for your question and I hope this helps.

~ Lucy

QUESTION:
A listener, Yarek, asked this question: “In one of your podcasts (ESL Podcast 499 – Marrying a Gold Digger) you talk about boy toys. Can you use this term for  girls, too? If not, what do you say?”

ANSWER:
In ESL Podcast 499, we defined “boy toy” as a young, attractive man whom an older, wealthier (with more money) woman dates for fun or for a short period of time, without being very serious about the relationship.  This term, or “girl toy,” are not used for women.  There is no direct equivalent (something that is exactly the same for some other person or situation) for women.

However, people often use the term “gold digger,” also mentioned in ESL Podcast 499, for a person who tries to be in a relationship with or marries another person for money.  This term can be used for a man or a woman.  Another term, “arm candy,” is sometimes used to refer to an attractive person who goes with someone to a public event, mainly so that this person can show off (display for other people to see) and gain status (how other people think of you socially or professionally) by being with a beautiful or handsome person.  Sometimes, the “arm candy” is not romantically involved with that person and sometimes they are.  If you see a famous singer or movie star with a lot of models (people who are paid to wear clothes and other things for display or for photographs) with them, these models may be arm candy.  For example, Jeff never goes to a party without 10 women as arm candy.

If Jeff divorces (legally ends his marriage with) his wife and marries one of these models, he may have wanted a “trophy wife.” A trophy is an object, often made of metal or stone, that is used as a prize for winning a contest or for rewarding success (see picture).  A trophy wife or a trophy husband (possible, but rarely used), then, is a wife or husband who is a symbol, or something to show other people, of your success or status.

All of these terms — “boy toy,” “gold digger,” “arm candy,” and “trophy wife” — are derogatory or insulting.  By using one of these, you are saying that the relationship is not based on caring or love, but instead, based on one’s looks (appearance) or money.

Thanks for the questions, Yarek, and I hope this is useful.

~ Lucy

I don’t know what you thought when you saw that title. In fact, I’m not sure what I thought when I saw it for the first time. But since the article is about jazz, one of my favorite kinds of music, and it was written by Garr Reynolds, a writer I enjoy, I clicked on the link and read it.

Usually the word naked means without clothes. But the writer isn’t writing about naked musicians! He uses this familiar word in a different way to say something about jazz.  I’ll show you what he said, but before I do, let me tell you a little about jazz.

Jazz is a kind of music that began around 1900 in the southern part of the U.S. The earliest jazz musicians were African Americans. Today, jazz is popular around the world. In traditional jazz, each song is a kind of musical conversation. During the song, the musicians listen to each other, and each one adds musical ideas to the conversation. Each time they perform a song, the conversation is different. When jazz musicians add something to the musical conversation, they improvise, which means to compose (invent or make up) while they are playing or singing. This is the most important characteristic, or part, of traditional jazz.

You can listen to a very good example of improvisation in this recording of The Thrill is Gone by B.B. King. He sings in the first part of the song, but from the middle to the end, there is a wonderful, mostly quiet, conversation between King, who plays the guitar, and the piano. Occasionally, you can hear a second guitar adding to the conversation. If you listen carefully, you’ll hear them “speak” to and “answer” each other and keep the conversation going.

Now, let’s return to jazz and naked communication. Here’s what Reynolds writes in his article:

Jazz is one of the purest (most complete; not mixed with anything else) forms of self-expression. We need more jazz in this world. Jazz is also the epitome (the best example) of naked communication. The legendary (famous because of great ability) jazz musician Don Cherry said that “music is one of the arts that make a person completely naked.” … This is especially true for jazz.

Reynolds describes a CD – Lucky by Molly Johnson – he received as a gift. After he listened to it, he wrote that Johnson’s interpretation of (the way she sang) the song Summertime is a lovely example of naked communication. And then, he adds a list of words to help us understand what he meant.

According to Reynolds, naked communication is:

• honest (not trying to show off, or make other people think you’re special or important)
• transparent (nothing hidden, for example, she shows how she feels)
• raw (natural and strong)
• emotional (full of feeling)
• beautifully simple (not decorated; without extra things)
• rich (full of interesting ideas or facts) and meaningful (full of expression; full of meaning or purpose)

Now here’s a video of Johnson performing Summertime. When you listen to it, do you see or hear the words Reynolds used?

What do you think? Was Reynolds right? Does it make sense to use naked this way? By the way, did you notice the jazz conversation between the other two musicians when Johnson wasn’t singing?

I think Reynolds’ description is very good. And I think she’s very good. In fact, as soon as I finish writing this, I’m going to order the CD!

~ Warren Ediger – English tutor and coach; creator of Successful English, where English learners can learn how to make English a permanent part of their lives.

* In the title, Jazz – The Ultimate in Naked Communication, ultimate means the best example of naked communication.