Playwright

Today’s Words: playwright

Pronunciation: /pleIraIt/

Part of Speech: noun

Meaning: a person who writes plays

Usage: Her mother was a playwright.

Synonym:  scriptwriter

General Note: Don’t make the mistake of calling a person that writes plays a playwriter. You should rather say a playwright.

Gratis

Today’s Word: gratis

Pronunciation: /ˈgrætιs/

Part of Speech: adverb

Meaning: free of charge

Usage: She gave it to me gratis

Synonym: free

General Note: Gratis is an adverb, and it can also be used as an adjective.

As an adverb: She gave it to me gratis.

As an adjective: She gave me a gratis copy of the book.

The ins and outs

Today’s Idiom: the ins and outs

Meaning: all the details

Usage: She has been doing the job for decades; she knows the ins and outs of the job.

Wrong Usage: She has been doing the job for decades; she knows the in and out of the job.

General Note: It is not the in and out. It is rather the ins and outs. In and out are pluralized.

Compunction

Today’s Word: compunction

Pronunciation: /kəmˈpʌkʃn/

Part of Speech: noun

Meaning: a guilty or remorseful feeling about something

 Synonyms: remorse, guilt

General Note: Compunction is an uncountable noun in British English. For example:

She felt no compunction about leaking the secret.

It could be a countable noun in American English. For example:

She felt no compunctions about leaking the secret.

Also, the preposition that goes with compunction is about but not for. For example: She felt no compunction about running away from home.

Where there’s life

Today’s Idiom: where there’s life, (there’s hope)

Meaning: don’t give up hope in any bad situation you may find yourself because there is a chance that it will improve

General Note: Most people usually wrongly say when there’s life, there’s hope. It is not when but where. When is an adverb of time while where is an adverb of place. Where, in this saying, represents any bad situation.

Again, it’s correct if you don’t complete it and stop at saying ‘where there’s life....’

On the market

Today’s Idiom: on the market

Meaning: available to be bought

Usage: These new products are now on the market.

Wrong Usage: These new products are now in the market.

General Note: In the market doesn’t mean that something is available to be bought. To be in the market for something means you are interested in buying that thing. For example:

1.      I’m not in the market for a new mobile phone. (Not interested in buying a new mobile phone.)

2.      She is in the market for a new car. (Interested in buying a new car.)

A trouble shared.

Today’s Idiom: a trouble shared is a trouble halved

Meaning: when you tell people that can help you about the problem you are passing through, the problem are made less serious

Usage: Don’t die in silence; a trouble shared is a trouble halved.

Wrong Usage: Don’t die in silence; a problem shared is half solved.

General Note: It’s trouble but not problem. Don’t replace …a trouble halved with …half solved.