Fealty and Foible

Fealty

Definition: (noun) The fidelity owed by a vassal to his feudal lord.

Synonyms: allegiance

Usage: There was a common head, chieftain, or sovereign, whose authority extended over the whole nation…and numerous trains of inferior vassals or retainers, who occupied and cultivated that land upon the tenure of fealty or obedience, to the persons of whom they held it.



Foible

Definition: (noun) A minor weakness or failing of character.

Synonyms: idiosyncrasy, mannerism

Usage: My foible was patriotism; I was ruined by the baneful habit of trying to serve my country.

Source: www.thefreedictionary.com

Malaysia No.1 in English in Asia

Malaysia boleh! Although there's much (deserved) grumbling about our national English standards, it happens that we're actually in the first spot for English proficiency in the Asia region for countries where English is not the mother tongue.

Seoul (The Korea Herald/ANN) - South Korea ranked third out of Asian nations according to an English Proficiency Index announced on March 30 by Education First, a global education center. Go here for the full rankings.

Korea, with an overall ranking of 13th, overtook Japan (at 14th) and Taiwan at (25th).

From 2007 to 2009, Education First conducted online English tests on 2.3 million working adults all from over the world. English proficiency was tested in four categories - grammar, vocabulary, reading and listening.

Among Asian countries, Korea's 54.19 points followed only Malaysia (9th) with 55.54 points and Hong Kong (12th) with 54.44 points. Koreans' English proficiency can be considered relatively high considering that Korea's official language is not English. Malaysia and Hong Kong, however, use English as one of their official languages.

The overall English proficiency of an average Korean adult also rated "above average." South Korea placed among the top tier nations by ranking 13 out of 44 non-native countries.

English education is important in Korea, Education First says, citing Korea's efforts to promote early English education in public schools and the emphasis on English education in private education.

In Asia's case, the gap between nations in English proficiency was largely affected by the level of political stability and economic power of the country as well as the educational zeal of the people. Overall English ability was highest in Northern European countries such as Norway, the Netherlands and Denmark, with Sweden and Finland following closely behind.

In places where the public education system is relatively weak, the English proficiency of the people also rated poorly. Argentina, ranking 16th in total, scored highest among Central and South American nations with 53.49 points.

-MSN News Regional

Mahathir says Lee wanted to be Malaysian PM

Former Malaysian premier Mahathir Mohamad said in a book published Tuesday that Singapore's Lee Kuan Yew was unhappy with his "municipal role" at the helm of the city-state, and harboured ambitions to lead Malaysia.

In his latest broadside against Singapore's founding father, Mahathir, Malaysian premier from 1981 to 2003, said his bitter rival had wanted to take over Malaysia when the island-state was part of the Malaysian federation.

Singapore, Sabah and Sarawak merged with peninsula Malaysia to create the federation of Malaysia in 1963, but Singapore was ejected in 1965, following racial clashes and political and economic differences.

Lee remained Singaporean prime minister until 1990.

"Lee saw Malaysia as his chance to dominate a substantial nation and become its prime minister," Mahathir said in his 809-page "A Doctor In The House: The Memoirs of Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad", which hit bookshelves Tuesday.

"The Singapore of the early 1960s was too small for him and his ambitions.

"Malaysia was a real country, not a city-state and to become Prime Minister of Malaysia would satisfy his ambitions, especially for power and a more than municipal role," he wrote.

Mahathir said he had often clashed with Lee when Singapore was part of Malaysia, adding that Lee was "condescending" when addressing parliament.

"Lee and I had a civil relationship, but it was never a friendship," he said, adding that Lee had labelled him a Malay 'ultra' -- or extremist -- although he himself was one.

"Lee did not see himself as an extremist... when in commenting upon Malay poverty and its causes, he remarked that 'it is not the Malays themselves who are backward, just their culture.'"

A sleepy backwater trading port upon separation in 1965, Lee transformed Singapore into an economic powerhouse.

Its economy grew at 14.7 percent in 2010, doubling Malaysia's 7.2 percent.

Official figures show Singapore's GDP per capita had increased from 512 dollars in 1965 to 36,537 dollars in 2009, while Malaysia's GDP per capita lagged behind on 335 dollars in 1965 to 6,975 in 2009.

The two former leaders had failed to resolve rows over the price of the water that Malaysia supplies to resource-scarce Singapore and access for the city-state's military to Malaysian airspace.

Mahathir stepped down in 2003, at a time when relations between the two neighbours were at a low. Ties have improved since Najib Razak took over from Mahathir's successor Abdullah Ahmad Badawi in 2009.

- Agence France-Presse

A bird in the hand is worth two in the bush

A bird in the hand is worth two in the bush meaning it's better to have a small real advantage than the possibility of a greater one.

This proverb refers back to medieval falconry where a bird in the hand (the falcon) was a valuable asset and certainly worth more than two in the bush (the prey).

The first citation of the expression in print in its currently used form is found in John Ray's A Hand-book of Proverbs, 1670, which he lists it as:

A [also 'one'] bird in the hand is worth two in the bush

By how much the phrase predates Ray's publishing isn't clear, as variants of it were known for centuries before 1670. The earliest English version of the proverb is from the Bible and was translated into English in Wycliffe's version in 1382, although Latin texts have it from the 13th century:

Ecclesiastes IX - A living dog is better than a dead lion.

Alternatives that explicitly mention birds in hand come later. The earliest of those is in Hugh Rhodes' The Boke of Nurture or Schoole of Good Maners, circa 1530:

"A byrd in hand - is worth ten flye at large."

John Heywood, the 16th century collector of proverbs, recorded another version in his ambitiously titled A dialogue conteinyng the nomber in effect of all the prouerbes in the Englishe tongue, 1546:

"Better one byrde in hande than ten in the wood."

The Bird in Hand was adopted as a pub name in England in the Middle Ages and many of these still survive.

The term bird in hand must have been known in the USA by 1734, as that is the date when a small town in Pennsylvania was founded with that name.

Source: www.phrases.org.uk

Any Way and Anyway

Any way means by a choice of methods while anyway is an adverb meaning "regardless."

Examples:

Any way you slice it, we have to get out of here and we have to take him with us.

We're going to do it anyway!

Anyway also used to continue or resume the thread of a story or account example:

Anyway, we finally found a plumber who could come right over.

Source: The Wrong Word Dictionary (Dave Dowling, Ar-Risalah Product 2009), dictionary.reference.com

A cat may look at a king

A cat may look at a king is an English proverb, meaning an inferior isn't completely restricted in what they may do in the presence of a superior.

source: www.phrases.org.uk

Idiom

Idiom is an expression, word or phrase that has a figurative meaning that is comprehended in regard to a common use of that expression that is separate from the literal meaning or definition of the words of which it is made.

Example of idioms:

Dark horse: unexpected winner.

Kick the bucket: die.

Keep one's distance: be reserved.

Pull a long face: look serious.

Gain the ear: get favourable hearing.

An old flame: an old passion.