Recently while at a cafe, I heard a young man use the expression ‘to cover one’s ass’ in his conversation with his friend:
A: She is trying to find fault with me though I haven’t done anything wrong. I don’t know what to do.
B: You should cover your ass. Otherwise, you’ll be in trouble.
A: What do you mean?
B: You should take steps to put an end to it. You shouldn’t give a room for her or anyone to blame you.
The expression ‘to close one’s ass’ is a North American slang and it means to take measures to prevent oneself from blame, harm, etc. It is not a common expression in any part of India. The person B who used it must have come across the expression while watching a movie, reading a novel or talking to someone. Can we use such slang expressions in our day to day conversations? The answer is ‘NO’. Why? Slang, by definition, is an informal expression used by a particular group of people in a particular place in a particular context. So, a slang term that originated in a place in North America used in a city in India, may not be understood by the target audience and may lead to misinterpretation of the term and thus create confusion. According to Bethany K Dumas and Jonathan Lighter, a slang expression is ‘a taboo term in ordinary discourse with people of a higher social status or greater responsibility’. Some American slang expressions have become acceptable idiomatic expressions and are widely used in different parts of the world. They are very easily understood. Here are examples of such slang terms.
1. Your colleague is a pain in the neck (annoying).
2. Are we going to have booze (alcohol) at the party?
3. It is very difficult to make her understand the concept. She is such a dope (stupid person).
E-meet: A few days ago, I received an email from an American which said: Nice to e-meet you. The word ‘e-meet’, used as a verb, means to meet someone virtually as on a chat on social networks or via email. Though the word is not found in the standard dictionaries, the online Urban Dictionary (www.urbandictionary.com) says that the primary meaning of the term ‘e-meet’ is, ‘the initial electronic correspondence between strangers’.
• It is a pleasure to e-meet you.
• These days it is easy to e-meet people and become friends.
• The day John e-met Mary they fell in love with each other.
To keep someone in the loop: A reader from Vijayawada has sent this query: What is the opposite of the expression ‘to keep someone in the dark’?
The expression ‘to keep someone in the dark’ means to deliberately not tell something to someone or to keep someone uninformed about something. For example: He has a plan to keep you in the dark. You should be alert.
The opposite of the expression is ‘to keep someone in the loop’. It means to provide a person with all the details of something you are planning to do and consider them in the decision-making process. Look at this example:
• Attached to this email is a list of workshops/presentations she has done in India. You could directly get in touch with Janet via her e-mail to work out the details of the program, but please keep me in the loop.
— rayanal@yahoo.co.uk