Gerundizing

In English, gerundizing is the process of adding ‘ing’ to the verb. When verbs are gerundized, they function as partly verbs and partly nouns. In other words, by adding ‘ing’ to any verb, the verb changes its function to be a partly noun and partly verb.

Functions of gerunds

1) As subjects of sentences

Gerunds or gerundized verbs when used as subjects of sentences often put at the beginning when focusing on activity as the subject of conversation.

Smoking is dangerous.

Reading EzineArticles is interesting.

Writing articles needs a lot of practice.

Playing tennis is good for your health, and good fun!

Learning a foreign language is not always difficult.

The shooting of the hunter was terrible.

Flying a plane can be dangerous.

The teaching of the doctrine is misleading the people.

Traveling is fun.

The introducing of the new software was clear enough to understand.

2) As an object of a verb

Gerunds here function as objects of verbs. In English there are certain verbs which are gerundized functioning as objects of verbs.

The following are verbs that are commonly followed by the gerund form: like, fancy, dislike, hate, love, abhor, disgust, stop, cease, continue, mind, admit, deny, advise, avoid, consider, delay, cancel, discuss, enjoy, finish, keep, postpone, suggest, recommend, regret, participate, risk, tolerate and go, etc.

Examples:

I like swimming. My sister fancies cooking. We dislike gossiping. I hate waiting especially for nothing. We love dancing. Anita abhors provoking. We disgust plagiarizing. Why do you stop trying? Indonesia decided to cease firing the Malaysian troops. We continue trying our best. Would you mind opening the door? We admit making mistakes. You deny stealing the money? We advise closing the site asap. Helen avoided meeting Pricila. Don’t ever delay doing things. They have discussed meeting in the next meeting. Do you enjoy surfing? Have you finished doing your project? Keep trying. Don’t postpone writing your thesis. We suggested/ recommended postponing the program. We regret being unable to come. We participated finalizing the proposal.We risk continuing the plant. Don’t tolerate ceating in any game. Harry avoided paying late fees on the account. Denny denied knowing anything about the corruption. I postponed making a decision until Monday. She regrets not studying French in college. Hanna enjoys listening to classical music. Jason admits spending too much money on toys. Let’s go swimming!

3) After certain expressions (can’t help, can’t resist, can’t bear, can’t stand, can’t stop, can’t persist)

Gerunds are used after the expressions such as can’t help, can’t resist, can’t bear, can’t stand, can’t stop, can’t persist,

Examples:

I can’t stop falling in love with English. Jenny can’t resist eating chocolate mints. His words can’t bear repeating. Terry can’t stand staying in Indonesia because it’s hot. I can’t stop wanting the woman..

4) Phrasal verbs with particle prepositions are Gerundized

Gerunds are used after phrasal verbs (verbs followed by particle prepositions), in other words, gerunds are used with phrasal verbs that end in prepositions. Phrasal verbs are verb phrases which are made up of two or more words, generally the verb plus one or two prepositions such as: think of, look into, call off, get over, figure out, look forward to, put off, take over, stop off, deal in, object to, ccount on, rely on, etc.

Examples:

Have you thought of moving to the country? Never put off doing things. The coach called off practicing for the day. Tom looked into finding a new job.She took a long time to get over losing her dog. I looked into buying a new computer. Sally succeeded in geting over losing weight. We look forward to meeting you again at ezinearticles.com. Why don’t you take over overseeing the project? Terry stopped off shopping for the family. We deal in distibuting gas in the country. We object to manipulating the data. The man just counts on collecting garbage to live his family. Don’t rely on using the dictionary for meanings.

5) As objects of prepositions

In English verbs are gerundized as objects of prepositions: in, on, at, for, by, of, off, from, into, out of, oppositte, etc. This means that whenever a verb follows a preposition, the gerund or ‘ing’ form of the verb is used. This is especially important for adjective + preposition combinations and phrasal verbs (shown above) which generally end in prepositions.

Examples:

In making a decision there are many things to consider. On checking the goods, we found something wrong with the goods. We need to discuss before we arrive at making up our mind. I am here for attending a writing workshop. By following the formula, we can make money fast. Instead of staying I’d rather go to theatre. We have just come from visiting the factory.

6) Certain Adjectives with certain prepositions take Gerunds

In English gerunds are used after certain adjectives with certain preposition combinations which include: afraid of, good/bad/poor, excellent for (in, at), interested in, different from, tired of, astonished/surprised at (by), sure about/of, capable of, slow in, similar to, to be/get accustomed to/used to, similar to, etc.

Examples:

I am afraid of waking up my father. Some of the cadets are bad at spelling words in English. You are good at speaking English. They are poor at pronouncing words in Indonesian. These vegetables are exccelent forimproving your health. I am interested in writing articles on music and sports. Are you afraid of climbing the mountain? The tour guide is tired of leading the tour. John is good at speaking Dutch. Sally was afraid of walking alone in the dark. They are capable of solving their complicated problem. We are used to/accustomed to working late at night.

7) As objects of possessive adjectives

Verbs are gerundized after possessive adjectives such as my, your, his, her, our, their, its, Mary’s, John’s, etc.

Examples:

Thank you for your coming. Do you like my coming to your office? I don’t mind his asking me about our business. We always hope his visiting to our site. We didn’t object to their interrupting us during the discussion. I expected Mary’s coming yesterday. John’s questioning may be right. I don’t understand its teaching us about the game.

8. As objects of objective pronouns

After objective pronouns such as me, you, him, her, them, her, him, us, it, Mary, Tom, etc. verbs are gerundized too.

I disagree with him suggesting such an idea. I like him coming over to my office. Do you like me coming to your office? I don’t mind him asking me about our business. I expected Mary coming yesterday. I don’t understand him behaving so rudely to us.

8) need, want, require+ Gerund

When verbs need, want and require are gerundized, they may have a passive infinitive meaning.

Examples:

The flowers are dying so they need watering (They need to be watered). The floor is dirty so it requires cleaning (It requires to be cleaned). The deck wants painting (It wants to be painted).

9. no use and worth + Gerund

Gerunds are also used after such expressions as no use, no value, no essence, no ground, no excuse, no reason and (not) worth.

Examples:

There is no use crying over the spilt milk. It is (not) worth doing such an activity anymore, it’s useless. There is no ground complaining about the defeat. There is no excuse coming late again.

10. No+ Gerunds to make prohibitions in English.

In English when making prohibitions with “no”, gerunds are often used or the verbs are gerundized.

Examples:

No smoking (smoking is not allowed) No parking! No tresspassing! No provoking! No overtaking!

In summary, English verbs are gerundized by adding ‘ing’ to any verb, and the verbs gerundized change their functions to be partly nouns and partly verbs. Gerunds can function in English as subjects of sentences, as objects of verbs, of prepositions, of possessive objectives, of possessive adjectives, etc.

English is the second most widespread language today on our planet, behind Mandarin Chinese. Over 1.5 billion people speak, listen, read and write in English on a daily basis. But English has evolved dramatically over the last one thousand years. Today’s spelling of English words is a bit different from what English-speaking people read or wrote between the sixteenth century and the eighteenth century. Search documents that were printed or written in English, and you should notice a remarkable difference in the spelling of words. The primary differences between spelling in Early Modern English and Modern English are outlined below.

The letter “u” in Early Modern English became “v”. Several examples would be: liue, euer, fauor, clouer (live, ever, favor, clover). If the “u” started a word, it became a “v”, like vpon, vntil, vfuall (upon, until, usual).

Words with “vv” became “w”: povvder, flovver, tovver, vvither (power, flower, tower, wither).

Sometimes the letter “b” that started a word became “v”: benomous, benerate (venomous, venerate).

Almost all words that included “s” in the middle originally had been “f”: caftle, congrefs, mofte (castille, congress, most). The “f” resembled the “s” in classical Greek. This change made English words appear more distinguished.

“y” became “I”: dayly, forgyve, fayth, artycle (daily, forgive, faith, article).

Many of today’s words with a consonant as the last letter ended in “e”: kingdome, meeke, righteousnesse, muste.

Many words today were spelled with double letters, such as: Sonne, originall, cann, Batt (son, original, can, bat).

The first letter of most nouns became capital letters, beginning in the seventeenth century. Noun capitalization was borrowed from the German language, in which all nouns are capitalized. From the seventeenth to the eighteenth centuries, this was the rule for all printed English words. Several examples include: “He has a Methode for reading the Tytle of any Playe”, or “The Dog saw the Flouer and the Hatt”.

If you’re interested enough to examine the words in context, look up online and scan through pages of original copies of the King James Version of the Bible (1611), William Shakespeare’s poems and plays (1593 to 1613), even the Constitution of the United States (1776). Of course, a lot of other printed and written literature was produced, which have been carefully preserved in world-class libraries and can be searched on the Internet. You might be delightfully surprised at how today’s English words were once spelled.

What is a Zeugma? Zeugma is a rhetorical device where a single word is made to refer to two or more words in a sentence, often playing on the words’ literal and metaphorical meanings.

“Smiling with a crooked smile that did little to hide his crooked intentions and crooked teeth, he said ‘Trust me.'”

The verb ‘To hide’ controls two other words: intentions and teeth. But what is worthy of note in this zeugma is the juxtaposition of an abstract noun (intentions) to a concrete one (teeth).Observe how Cervantes uses the conjugated verb ‘triumphs’:

Now, however, sloth triumphs over diligence, idleness over work, vice over virtue, arrogance over valor, and theory over the practice of arms which lived and shone only in the Golden Age and in the time of the knights errant (Cervantes 465).

And the verb ‘found’:

I found her enchanted, transformed from a princess into a peasant, from beautiful to ugly, from an angel into a devil, from fragrant into foul-smelling, from well spoken into rustic, from serene into skittish, from light into darkness, and, finally from Dulcinea of Toboso into a lowborn farmgirl from Sayago (Cervantes 671).

With this simple device Cervantes adds delight and color to the narrative-by means of antithesis-at the same time that cultivates the reader’s attentiveness, forcing him to put two and two together to grasp the intended meaning.

Zeugma used in a humorous vein:

Lenox said, “Hog, the only thing you save is your breath when you eat.” After two unsuccessful marriages, I find myself keeping my guard up, along with my underpants (Grafton, C is for Corpse 15).

In Shakespeare’s The Merchant of Venice, we note Portia’s saucy speech: How oddly he is suited [outfitted]! I think he bought his doublet in Italy, his round hose in France, his bonnet in Germany, and his behavior everywhere. (Act I, scene ii, line 72-72).

Zeugma used to set the tone of a book, as in The Vicar of Wakefield:

From this motive, I had scarce taken orders a year before I began to think seriously of matrimony, and chose my wife as she did her wedding gown, not for a fine glossy surface, but such qualities as would wear well (Goldsmith 4).

Zeugma in Dialogue:

“Eliot, Michael’s untimely departure leaves us with a space both in our house and in our hearts” (Segal 112). “To our beloved new leader Jason Gilbert, ace racket-man and incomparable ass-man. May his shots in court drop as often as his shorts in bed” (Segal 143).

The governing word may be a noun as well as a verb, as we see in the following examples from Harper Lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird, where the controlling word is the noun ‘hand’:

“Calpurnia was something else again. She was all angles and bones; she was nearsighted; she squinted; her hand was wide as a bed slat and twice as hard (7)” and the controlling word is the verb ‘lost’ in the following example:

“Mrs. Radley had been beautiful until she married Mr. Radley and lost all her money. She also lost most of her teeth, her hair, and her right forefinger (Dill’s contribution) (39).”

From the above examples we infer that zeugmas may be employed to give the narration an air of lighthearted humor or banter. Just as the fool in Shakespearean dramas breaks the solemnity of the scene with parody and foolery, so does Cervantes in Don Quijote:

At this moment a gelder of hogs happened to arrive at the inn, and as he arrived he blew his reed pipe four or five times, which confirmed for Don Quixote that he was in a famous castle where they were entertaining him with music, and that the cod was trout, the bread soft and white, the prostitutes ladies, the innkeeper the castellan of the castle, and that his decision to sally forth had been a good one (Cervantes 29).

When a zeugma joins concrete and abstract nouns, the combinations can stir up the reader’s emotions. Tim O’Brien’s novel The Things They Carried is replete with this type of zeugmas:

As a hedge against bad times, however, Kiowa also carried his grandmother’s distrust of the white man, his grandfather’s old hunting hatchet (3). He carried a strobe light and the responsibility for the lives of his men (5). But Ted Lavender, who was scared, carried 34 rounds when he was shot and killed outside Than Khe, and he went down under an exceptional burden, more than 20 pounds of ammunition, plus the flak jacket and helmet and rations and water and toilet paper and tranquilizers and all the rest, plus the unweighed fear (6).

See how Gabriel Garcia Marquez creates atmospheric tension with the use of one governing verb, ‘listening’:

He got dressed by feel, listening in the dark to his brother’s calm breathing, the dry cough of his father in the next room, the asthma of the hens in the courtyard, the buzz of the mosquitoes, the beating of his heart, and the inordinate bustle of a world that he had not noticed until then, and he went out in the sleeping street (Garcia Marquez, One Hundred Years of Solitude 27).

We haven’t exhausted the topic, for there are other zeugma derivatives that depend on what slot of the sentence the zeugma is placed in; but their sophistication can cause ambiguity and confusion; therefore we do not recommend their use.

The scary thing about ignorance is that you don’t know you are ignorant about something until you are made aware of it. And at that point, not only do you realize you were ignorant, but now you are also ashamed and embarrassed, to make matters worse. While everyone is capable of making mistakes whether through ignorance or forgetfulness, I have found that there is no better way to learn something than through the humiliation of being caught in an error, no matter how inadvertent. While ignorance may be bliss, its ramifications are truly mortifying!

As marketing professionals, it is our job to mastermind brilliant ways to bring success to the clients we represent. A marketer’s tools include effective use of language, visuals and sounds, all of which should work together to create a memorable and powerful symbol of appeal.

Unfortunately, this is easier said than done, (should be “more easily said than done” but the original is an idiomatic expression and is acceptable in its cruder form). If a marketer suffers from a lack of knowledge about any of the components within his repertoire, the work he produces may suffer as well.

Grammatical errors seem to take predominance. Examples can be found both in written and spoken form, published and broadcast in news, commentary and advertising formats, as well as weather and traffic reports. No one seems immune these days and the more such errors proliferate through the media, the more the population seems to adopt them as proper form. Often these errors are difficult to trace, whether originating as gang-speak on the street or trickling down from the most reputable icons of our sources of cultural information.

One of the most prevalent of these errors involves the addition of the preposition “of” where it does not belong, as in “not too big ‘of’ a deal,” or “not too bad ‘of’ a ride,” which more correctly should be “not too big a deal” and “not too bad a ride.” I understand where the confusion comes from since it is correct to say “not too much of a problem.” Why is one correct and not the other? It is all based on whether the word before the word “of” is a noun or an adjective. If it is a noun, following it with the word “of” is correct. If it is an adjective, following it with the word “of” is incorrect. Here is a very helpful explanation from wiki.answers:

“The word ‘of’ only belongs with words like ‘much,’ so ‘too much of a problem’ would be correct, but ‘too big of a task’ should instead be ‘too big a task.’ This goes for most adjectives, for instance: ‘too blue a shirt’, ‘too tall a building’, ‘too deep an ocean’, etc.”

The word “much,” which can be an adjective, an adverb or a noun depending on the context, is used as a noun in this instance, according to Merriam Webster dictionary, unlike the words “big,” “blue,” “tall” and “deep” which are used as adjectives. A simple formula to apply for clarification could be:

Too (adjective) a (noun) or…

That (adjective) a (noun) or…

Quite (adjective) a (noun) or…

How (adjective) a (noun)…

…as in “too sassy an attitude” or “that high an elevation” or “quite boring a speech” or “how wonderful an occasion.” The consensus seems to be that interjection of the word “of” in this context seems to be indigenous to North America and is largely informal in use. If this is true, I predict that its current prevalence in language (particularly within the media), no matter how incorrect it may be, will eventually creep into our cultural lexicon to become the permanent rule as opposed to the exception – something I find disheartening after all the effort it takes to remember, understand and apply correct usage.

This reminds me of something my mother taught me many years ago which continues to make me feel like someone from a different planet when I still obey her today, though she’s been dead for more than twenty years. When the phone rings and I am asked, “Is Marilyn there?”, the proper response according to my mother and proper English usage is “This is she” or “I am she.” I am probably the only person on earth who feels compelled to reply in this way leaving the inquirer to think I am putting on airs to elevate my social status, when in fact I am only trying to avoid the guilt of motherly disobedience. The reason it is correct is that there must be agreement between “This” or “I” and “she,” all of which must be in the nominative case. If I were to say, “This is me” or “This is her,” the words “me” and “her” would be in the objective case and would not agree with the subject “This” in the nominative case. But I digress.

What really gets me is that when errors like this are so flagrantly repeated day after day, week after week, within radio traffic reports, for instance, no one of any authority makes an effort to correct them, comment about them, apologize for them or otherwise address them as incorrect. Am I the only one to notice these things?

And why is it important, anyway? Some people feel nitpicking about usage of the English language is pointless since the meaning is clear regardless of such minuscule aberrations. Anyone complaining about these seemingly archaic grammatical rules should “man up” and “get a life!” In today’s world, slang seems to be the universally acceptable format du jour.

Someone like me who is paid to write a wide variety of business marketing items such as letters of introduction, ad copy, website content, press releases, etc., must do so as professionally as possible which includes adhering to proper grammatical usage of the English language. To do anything less than that would be a disservice to my clients who hire me because they cannot do it themselves. Therefore, it is my responsibility to know the rules of syntax thoroughly to be able to defend whatever I write.

But more importantly, having command of the English language in its proper form differentiates a writer or a speaker from those who do not, elevating one’s skills to a more sophisticated level and defining one’s style as eloquent, articulate and expert. Absence of grammatical errors is not something which normally attracts any attention. But subliminally, it evokes respect for what is being presented as authoritative, trustworthy and believable. Interject even a typographical error and suddenly the source of the document is suspect as a charlatan!

I find that if using proper grammar makes you feel pretentious as per my phone retort example above, there is always another way to express oneself and such an exercise actually improves your skills as a writer or speaker since you are constantly challenging yourself to be the best you can be. For instance, instead of struggling with the horrendous “This is she” reply, why not just say, “This is Marilyn” or “I am Marilyn”? Better yet, identify yourself upon answering the phone so there is no need to beg the question.

Need more proof of ignorance run rampant? Among the huge numbers of errors which include misuse of such words as it’s/its, utilization of double negatives, and many others, here are a few examples of common usage issues I encounter frequently in the media:

Of all the accidents reviewed, none were considered serious. (WRONG!)

Of all the accidents reviewed, none was considered serious. (RIGHT!)

Why? Because none implies “not one” which is singular and must be followed by a verb which agrees.

What about use of the Latin abbreviations: i.e. and e.g.? What do they mean, and when and how do you use them? The Latin abbreviation i.e. literally translates as id est which means “that is,” or, “in other words.” The Latin abbreviation e.g. literally translates as exempli gratia, which means “for example.” Therefore, i.e. is used to specify exactly what you mean while e.g. is used to merely provide some examples of what you mean. A comma always follows either abbreviation.

The lecture focused on war, i.e., World War I and World War II.

Soldiers injured during war was part of the discussion, e.g., spinal cord injuries, traumatic brain injuries, etc.

Often in songwriting, grammatical errors occur for the sake of rhyme or rhythm and is apologetically referred to as poetic license. (One example from Jim Morrison and the Doors: “Till the stars fall from the sky, for you and I” This comes to mind because of a common error with objects of the preposition.

With confidentiality as a concern, the investment advisor revealed financial losses only to my wife and I. (WRONG!)

With confidentiality as a concern, the investment advisor revealed financial losses only to my wife and me. (RIGHT!)

In discussions between Bob and I, we agree there is only one correct investment strategy. (WRONG!)

In discussions between Bob and me, we agree there is only one correct investment strategy. (RIGHT!)

Why? Prepositions are followed by the objective case.

And errors pertaining to disagreement of singulars and plurals are extremely common:

Those kind of things. (WRONG!)

That kind of thing or those kinds of things! (RIGHT!)

Errors using the words Fewer and Less: The following are correct examples.

We need fewer problems and less strife in the world.

With fewer hours to work, we accomplish less.

Less milk, fewer bowls of cereal.

But “I want to pay less taxes” is incorrect. While the intention is to convey the idea that you want to pay less money toward your taxes, and the correct “I want to pay fewer taxes” does not truly communicate that meaning, the way to say it correctly could be:

“I want to pay less in tax.” Or, just rephrase completely to say, “I pay thousands in taxes and I want to pay less!”

Errors with the words “Amount of” and “Number of” These examples are correct:

She drank a large amount of milk with her cake.

She passed a great number of lakes on her trip.

A large amount of oil has spilled in the gulf.

Often an additional error occurs in these instances with lack of agreement of verbs with preceding subject (singular or plural)

A large number of fishermen have been impacted. (WRONG!)

A large number…HAS been impacted. (RIGHT!)

Let’s look at the word “lay” which is so commonly misused everywhere. Conversationally, professionally, musically. Ah, yes. Back to the musical violations. Bob Dylan leads the way with “Lay, Lady, Lay” followed closely by Eric Clapton’s “Lay Down, Sally”

In Bob’s case, unless he is referring to laying eggs and Lady is a chicken, he’s way off base. Eric doesn’t have a prayer. He’s just dead wrong, as they say.

How do I remember what is correct? I don’t always but I am not too proud to do some research… in fact, a lot of research. Even though I’ve always had a very good memory for these things, what I remember most is what sounds correct because of my upbringing. My mother was obsessed with teaching me proper English perhaps because her mother only spoke Hungarian. So she hammered exercises like the following into my young brain, day in and day out. Maybe it was her pet peeve but I thank her for her tedium today. Of all the things my parents gave me as a child, I would have to say that their efforts to expose me to proper use of the English language was their greatest gift of all!

Lie, Lay, Lain; Lay, Laid, Laid

I lie down today.

I lay down after supper last night.

I have lain down after eating quite a bit lately.

The dog has been lying there for hours! Lie down, Fido!

Think: recline.

———————————-

I lay the book on the table.

I laid it on the table about an hour ago.

I have laid it on the table many times.

Just lay the book on the table, Melissa.

She is now laying the book on the table.

Think: put or place.

As a marketing professional, I have a natural interest in mainstream marketing. Lately, I have noticed a couple of grammatical infractions in radio advertising for extremely popular brands. Not that this is so uncommon, I just find it unfortunate because our culture, particularly the younger members of our population, mainline the media’s message through sound, often more than through print, ingesting such errors as acceptable forms of speech. While I can understand the use of less-than-perfect English to represent a fictitious character rather than a true person, (the way snarky Popeye had to eat “me spinach,” true to the sailor-man that he was), deliberately saying “This is one of them cases” when the word “those” could easily have sufficed makes no sense to me. Likewise, saying “It worked pretty good” instead of “…pretty well” may have been for the purpose of appealing to a more blue-collar market but hardly can be justified as responsible advertising if it is teaching our children to speak like street urchins.

Often clients complain if I add a hyphen where it belongs when they send me a slogan to use verbatim. I regard it as my duty to explain why I added the hyphen but give them the option of omitting it if that is their preference. After all, how many years did we listen to the defiantly improper, Madison-Avenue-produced branding: “Winston tastes good like a cigarette should”?

So, while it may be acceptable in some contexts to regard proper grammar flippantly, doing so on a professional level may result in a blow to your reputation, doubt about your expertise, and ultimately loss of business. If you compromise the language knowingly, that’s one thing. But if you do so out of ignorance, you do so at your own risk.

Most people correct run-on sentences by using commas, periods and semicolons. However, there is another avenue available for those willing to work at it. Most of the time, it’s the type of solution that will net you the best text possible.

Using Coordination To Correct Run-On Sentences

With two main clauses that come with equal importance, coordinating them should fix the problem easily. To do this, simply add a comma and a coordinating conjunction (i.e. and, but, or, nor, so) between the two main clauses.

For example, the run-on sentence “My friend lost the fight he gave that opponent the beating of his life” can be corrected in this manner as “My friend lost the fight, but he gave that opponent the beating of his life.”

Using Subordination To Correct Run-On Sentences

When the two main clauses aren’t equally important, you can subordinate one of them, turning it to either an adjective clause or an adverb clause. To do this, simply take the second clause and use it to illustrate a point in the first.

For example, the run-on sentence “Last night I bought a Kindle it’s an eBook reader from Amazon” can be rewritten as “Last night I bought a Kindle, which is an eBook reader from Amazon,” turning the second clause into an adjective phrase.

Being Wary

As always, be wary of run-on sentences in your writing. They’re a very easy transgression to commit, especially when you’re drafting. Many of the best English software correctors can catch them, but do make a manual pass as well, just to be sure.

Do the poor actually get poorer? Rhetorical question I must say, because it seems to me like the catchphrase “the rich get richer and the poor get poorer“, frequently used in discussing economic inequality, is said just to satisfy the laws of writing rhymes. A poor man is poor. Take anything more away from him, then he is dead. So what state would probably be worse to receive the comparative suffix “er”?

Just as the north and south poles never meet, the catchphrase emphasizes the divergent relationship between the rich and the poor. But there exists ONLY one commonality; “God makes them all”. He makes the rich, to LOVE and GIVE to the poor and makes the poor to HUMBLY RECEIVE from the rich. Thereby fostering a relationship, between them, that can only converge, survive and blossom in an atmosphere of LOVE and HUMILITY.

During a ‘poverty and the poor’ discussion, Confucius said: “In a country well governed, poverty is something to be ashamed of and in a country badly governed; wealth is something to be ashamed of“. Since a country is made up of a large group of persons, we can say: “To a person well informed, poverty is something to be ashamed of and to a person badly informed; wealth is something to be ashamed of”. Information empowers and that power is all it takes to make wealth. Give all the wealth in the world to a man that lacks information (knowledge), you are only wasting precious time and resources fuelling his poverty. Poverty is a mindset; not a “pocket-set” and we must graduate from the low level of thinking that has made us believe that poverty is a state of not having money to spend; not being able to afford or get what you want. Delineating poverty that way is like defining a noun as a name of any person, animal, place or thing. This was true to a level, but we grew up and more was expected from us. I remember how a teacher asked me in secondary school to define a noun and when I gallantly delivered the above definition thinking I had done justice to the question, she replied “that was very good for primary school, now give us a definition that proves you are now in a secondary school”. I slowly and shamefully took my seat, not having any idea what to say to prove to her that I was smarter than a fifth grader. I looked around to see if any other hands were raised to answer the question but there was NONE. Then it occurred to me, that life is in stages and everything advances as we grow, including definitions. The more reason a 7th edition dictionary supersedes the 6th because the definitions have been improved and new words have been added. Now poverty is a state of lacking not just money, but also the mental power to process and make effective use of available information. And a noun is not just a person’s name, or that of an animal, place or thing, but also a word or group of words that represents an activity, a quality or an idea, which may also be used as the subject or object of a verb. Going by the above definition, then a country is a Noun that represents the activities of the rulers, maybe “leaders” (as the case may be), and that of the people, as well as their qualities and ideas, which help us to decide who is the subject and/or the object of those activities.

Now let us break down the above definition using Nigeria as an example. We are all, through the media, familiar with the activities of the leaders and people of Nigeria, so I will not bore you with them again. I only want us to establish a relationship (if any) between these activities and their proportion to the qualities and ideas of the parties involved.

Ideas start as “thoughts”. Write down the vision (in Words); make it plain upon tables, that he who sees it may “RUN” with it. To run with your ideas is to act on them (action). And a compilation of a group of the same or sometimes different actions describes your Activities. When we critically study the trend of a man’s regular activities, both the seen and the hidden, we can tell what material he is made up of i.e. his Qualities. Simply put, in Ralph Waldo Emerson’s words: “Watch your thoughts, they become words. Choose your words, they become actions. Understand your actions, they become habits. Study your habits, they become character. Develop your character, it becomes your destiny” i.e. thoughts (ideas) = words = actions = habits (activities) = character (qualities) = destiny. If we pick a present Nigerian Leader, for example, and reverse the above equation, starting from character, putting into considerations that any given process involves “TIME” and we add a time frame of say 10 years to each of these milestones, then his character (qualities) at the age of 65 depends on his habits (regular activities) at the age of 55, and those habits depend on his actions at the age of 45, and those actions depend on his words at the age of 35, and those words are a direct result of his thoughts (ideas) at the age of 25. Unequivocally proven, this is an indication that the qualities of our leaders today (who are mostly between the ages of 55 – 65) are as a result of their ideas when they were still youths (an average youth being between ages 20 – 30). Therefore, the answers to the question “what are the qualities of an average Nigerian leader?” are latent in the answers to the fundamental question “what are the ideas of an average Nigerian youth?” and the answers to the latter question determines the activities that lead to the former.

Yesterday’s Children are Today’s Youths; Today’s Youths are Tomorrow’s Leaders. Yesterday’s Youths are Today’s Leaders; Today’s Leaders are Tomorrow’s Godfathers. NIGERIAN YOUTHS!!! What are your thoughts? What ideas do you have for yourself, your immediate environment and in turn, the entire Nation? King David was never clueless. Even as a child, he had a sound character and saved his people. David Adegboyega, in his book ‘Sound Character: A Maxim for Successful Future’, said: “building your character traits is not an overnight business“. AGod-fearing, responsible and people-oriented leader is not made overnight, his formation begins from his vision as a youth. A youth that bribed his lecturers through school to graduate will automatically mismanage the Nation’s funds if he becomes the leader. A youth that cannot keep his word today cannot build a Nation tomorrow. Bad character traits could be as simple as throwing dirt out of your car on the highway, disobeying traffic and queuing rules. You want 5Million Naira but how has your immediate environment benefitted from the little 500Naira in your hand? You want to be the Governor of your State, so that every indigene can live in skyscraper. But tell me, what sacrifices did you make as a class governor in your department? He who is not faithful in little cannot be faithful in much. These things are seeds. Plant discontentment and greed as today’s youth and reap corruption and embezzlement as tomorrow’s leader. Today’s leaders may be indifferent to a paradigm shift but I believe that there is a speck of hope in the Nigerian Youth that decides to hearken to and obey the Clarion Call. I got so emotional the first time I heard over 2,600 Nigerian youths sing the National Anthem at the NYSC orientation camp during my service year. I was so moved by the harmony of the voices, male and female entwined. I said in my heart, if every single person on this ground took his or her rightful place as a Nation Builder, the story would probably have changed. We may complain that those who call us the leaders of tomorrow deny us the chance to take the “seats” but that is not an excuse rather, a challenge to get more equipped and prepared for the enormous tasks that lie ahead. Whether anyone likes it or not, some of us will find opportunities knocking on our doors soon. And the opportunity not prepared for will be misused. But then I charge you, do not wait for “opportunities” to come and knock, go break the rock and create the one you want to take.

This Nation has suffered so much for too long in the hands of “accidental heroes”. Oh God of creation, direct our course (wondering if it is still noble), guide our leaders right and just in case that is too late, then please help our youth the truth to know that the poor do not have to get poorer even when the rich get richer, that the smart do not have to think too hard till he loses his mind, and the dumb do not have to get paid for not thinking at all. Some have more food than appetite while others have more appetite than food. Artists use lies to paint the truth with a brush and our “rulers” use truth to paint lies, on which they have a crush. Parents watch as discontentment sits with their child and from his youth, greed rocks him to manhood. A bad parent begets a bad child, a bad child becomes a bad youth and a terrible youth turns out to be a horrible leader. A Sound Character is all it takes. You have it now, you have it ALL. According to a Chinese proverb “Distance tests a horse’s strength. Time reveals a person’s character“. THE LEADER YOU WANT TO SEE IS THE YOUTH YOU HAVE TO BE.

Radius [rey-dee-uhs] – noun (plural -di-i). 1. a straight line extending from the center of a circle or sphere to the circumference or surface: The radius of a circle is half the diameter. 2. a rounded corner or edge on a machined, injection moulded or cast piece of metal or plastic.

The humble radius is an all-important factor of your product design, arguably as (or even more) important than the straight edge or plane. The radius must be calculated when designing for rounding corners, hole width, inside and outside wall radii, not to mention any curved plane. Every surface that is not dead straight will have been designed using a radius. Here is a run-down of radius use when designing your product to be sent for injection moulding.

• Corners. Sharp corners are a bad idea in product design. Straight 90 degree angles can lead to a high concentration of stress in one small area (especially on the inside corner of an angled wall). It is very important to smooth out your corners using a consistent radius. The typically accepted formula holds that the outside radius should be 1.5 times the wall thickness and the inside should be 0.5 times the wall thickness. For instance, if your wall thickness is 6mm and you have two walls that meet at a 90 degree angle, your corners will need to be rounded. The outside radius will be 9mm, whilst the inside radius will be 3 mm.
• Fillet radius. A fillet radius is a radius that smooths the connection between two parts, similar to the function of an inside radius for a corner. This has the same advantage – reducing stress – and may be complemented by a rib. A fillet radius may be used for attaching a boss to a plane or a rib to a wall. A fillet radius should be applied wherever two planes meet to create an angle, whether sharp or obtuse.
• If your product design concept involves a curved plane of any kind, a radius should be applied to ensure a consistent and aesthetically pleasing design. In the same way that you would use a ruler to draw a straight line, you must use a radius to draw a curved line.

Applying radii to your design has many benefits. A radius allows the plastic to flow much more smoothly than a corner would. If a mould were to be created with sharp corners there is less of a guarantee that the entire mould would be filled, leaving gaps and a messy edge. A radius can handle stress a lot better than a corner or edge. An inside edge is nothing more than the starting place for a crack; it is where all the stress will be concentrated should your part be subjected to any amount of pressure, Finally and simply, rounded corners typically look better that sharp angles.

Courage — Noun; conscious self-sacrifice in pursuit of something greater than one’s own self-interest.

People are basically goal-oriented, seeking to satisfy wants and needs. But when pain or fear or any trigger of avoidance intrude, it is difficult to follow desire with action — even if the goal is very important, the action critical and the rewards great. At these times, we need Courage. Courage is a learned thing, not borne into us but developed over time.

“Whether you be man or woman you will never do anything in this world without courage. It is the greatest quality of the mind next to honor.” — James Allen

We too often think of courage in modern life requiring unique heroism or call to duty on a grand scale, such as in situations of rescue and war. Of course, in war humans sometimes fight because they are embarrassed not to. For courage to be authentic, one must encounter fear and prove superior to the fear through right action.

Fear of what? Most directly, physical courage exists in the face of bodily harm or death. In other words, physical courage is demonstrated by acting regardless of fear for one’s life or livelihood. We need a different kind of courage than physical courage on a daily basis. Leadership character requires moral courage: to become a better leader; to stand up for what is right when we stand alone; to do what is right despite disapproval or negative peer pressure; or to take risks in our quest to achieve what is important. These take Courage — without it we go nowhere, accomplish little, lack meaning and regret much. Courage is the primer for any other virtue.

“Courage is not simply one of the virtues, but the form of every virtue at the testing point.” — C.S. Lewis

Courage to act in our own story

The opportunity to develop Courage occurs in the mundane story of our daily living where even tiny seeds of fear exist, where the danger is loss of integrity. In business and in our everyday life, Courage is rarely impulsive but results from self-conditioning — a history of calculated bold moves based on firm convictions. The best leaders develop courage consciously, deliberately, over time, and it shows in their actions. A leader’s story is a story of courage.

“People who become good leaders have a greater than average willingness to make bold moves, but they strengthen their chances of success — and avoid career suicide — through careful deliberation and preparation. Business courage is not so much a visionary leader’s inborn characteristic as a skill acquired through decision-making processes that improve with practice.” — Kathleen K. Reardon, Courage as a Skill, Harvard Business Review, January 2007.

Virtue at a cost

Courage is not the only virtue. Courage begins things: it is a precursor for Faith, Love, Change, Persistence, Authenticity, Trust, Service and every other value. C. S. Lewis once said that the virtue of courage is a prerequisite for the practice of all other virtues. In other words, one is virtuous only when virtue has a cost, a price we are fearful to pay.

Without courage we do not get started on what is important; we do not take right action; we live in fear of the consequences of virtue. Every day we face decisions that begin, interrupt or sustain our courage-life pattern. Courage is your cupid’s arrow for everything you really want to have, to do, to create, or to become, no matter how mundane or how wonderful the rewards.

Courage can only exist through virtuous action. Another kind of courage is shown in a bad cause because it does not intend a moral effect and demonstrates vice over virtue. [Think of the 9/11 hijackers or any act of terrorism] More than any other human trait, courage seems to be quite capable to serve wrongdoing.

U.S. Senator John McCain said that “without courage we are corruptible.” Without courage we may be admirers but not champions of virtue and character. There are times when we recognize something needs to be done, and yet we know that if we step up to right action, we will pay a heavy personal price. Courage is the virtue that makes us willing to pay that price; cowardice makes us say, “The price is too high; I will not pay it. It is too hard. I will seek the easier, less costly choice.”

Remorse makes a dreadful companion. Anyone can learn to live with pain. Anyone can learn to live with fear, embarrassment, ridicule and separation. We can learn from failure. Yet nothing will divert your gaze into a mirror more quickly than shame. Remorse for inaction and regret for wrong action is more difficult to overcome; the cure for both is Courage. Courage leads to right action. Right action requires courage. It takes courage to admit a mistake, still more to make amends. No matter what the consequence of noble Courage, it is never worse than the discovery that you are less than you pretend to be.

“Life is either a daring adventure, or nothing.” — Helen Keller

Reflections to inspire personal growth in Courage (with your learning partner)

How would your life be different if you had more courage? What can you do daily to increase your courage? What is your personal code of ethics; what must you change to demonstrate them more fully? Find an accountability partner or hire a coach to help to help you develop your courage and take these actions:

• What are some examples of Courage that I could demonstrate in my daily life at home and at work?
• Courage is the form of every other virtue at the testing point. Courage requires a test of conviction. How would my life be different if, beginning today, I took the test daily?
• What does the phrase mean, “Without courage we are corruptible?”
• Think of a specific issue you face or a goal you want to achieve. What would be your cause and cost? What are the real or perceived risks? What might be keeping you from taking action?
• Can you think of a time when you risked your own self-interest for something greater? What was it? How did you feel then? How has it shaped you?
• The next opportunity I have to risk self-interest for something greater, will I recognize it? Will I be ready? How I you know?
• Who do I “pretend” to be? What specific right actions will put me on the narrow path of integrity?
• Is my remorse for non-action greater than my fear of consequence for action?

Since English is my second language, I am very careful when I write my phrases, clauses, and sentences. In a good deal of my writing I use ‘Verbals.’ Because I strive to make my prose strong and athletic, I want to share what I have learned about this subject.

If a reader finds the following sentence opener:

Zigzagging and weaving around…

Without even mentioning a subject, the author shapes an image in the reader’s mind, who has no choice but to race ahead to see what it is that is moving in such fashion. The participal-forms of verbs ending in -ing (zigzagging and weaving) not only reflect movement, but also create an expectation, and an incentive to satisfy curiosity. And that is what all authors strive for; that is, to keep the reader busy, curious, guessing what falls next.

Scott Fitzgerald in a letter to his daughter quoted a verse from Keat’s poem Eve of Saint Agnes, to point out how verb-participals move and carry the sentence:

The hare limped trembling through the frozen grass.

Participial-forms also end in -ed and -t, or -en (in some irregular verbs).

When one hears an imperative, one pays attention, as in when one hears: “Don’t do that!” Even when the command is subdue and conversational, the reader pays attention, as when Herman Melville draws the reader to his monumental Moby Dick with the imperative: “Call me Ishmael.”

Verbs and verbals pack and unleash a unique type energy that other parts of speech don’t; that is why master writers learn and master their use. Have you ever wondered what makes for racy, galloping, breathless writing? The answer is: expressing yourself with verbs and verbals.

Let’s define the Verbals:

Verbals are verb forms that are used not as verbs, but as:

Nouns: The General was fired for retreating. [Where ‘retreating’ is a gerund noun].

Subjects: To cook was an annoyance. [Where ‘To cook’ is an infinitive acting as subject].

Adjectives: Flying planes may be dangerous. [Where ‘flying’ is an adjective that modifies ‘planes.’].

Adverbs: The Senator had no reason to lie. [Where ‘to lie’ is an infinitive functioning as an adverb].

That verbals are powerful as sentence openers there’s no doubt. Yet, many writers –even successful writers– prefer to sprinkle their writing with proper adjectives and adverbs; for example: Undoubtedly, the weak General was fired for being cowardly.

Let’s admit that the verb, in the English language, is king; and like in the game of Chess all others pieces (including the queen), though important and powerful, they are so only in relation to the king.

Careless writers employ the verb ‘to be’ continuously, which is a sign of weak writing. So, to make your writing strong, follow this simple guideline: prefer verbals and strong verbs; avoid weak verbs. And even when using ‘to be’ as a copula, find a way to buttress it with verbals.

Scott Fitzgerald made an entry in a notebook, which shows his preoccupation –or obsession, one might say– with verbs: Forgotten is forgiven.

Verbals come in different forms and they are all effective because they include a verb form. So strong are these verbals that master writers use them not only to open sentences, but also to open paragraphs-even books.

Public transportation is big in Japan. You’ll probably need to catch a bus at some point. So, you will want to ask questions such as, “is this bus bound for Tokyo?” You’ll probably also need to tell people things such as, “I need to get off the train at Nagano station.” Phrases and questions such these are the key to getting around in Japan. This Newbie Japanese article is here to help you! You will learn how to ask and answer questions about where you are trying to go. Ask, kono basu wa Tokyo-iki desu, (“Is this bus bound for Tokyo?”) and similar questions in Japanese. This Newbie Japanese article is the key to getting where you are headed in Japan!

Vocabulary: In this article, you’ll learn the following words and phrases:

chizu – “map”

jikan – “time”

Ogenki desu ka – “How are you?”

koe – “voice”

yuki – “bound for”

noru – “to get on (a train), to take (a train)” (class 1 verb)

oriru – “to get off” (class 2 verb)

Kawanakajima – “a name of a place”

basu – “bus”

Grammar: In this article, you’ll learn the following words and phrases:

Useful Vocabulary and Phrases

Chizu ga arimasu ka?

The sentence pattern [person] wa [noun] ga arimasu corresponds with “[person] has [noun]” in English.

Sentence Pattern

Affirmative Sentences:

1. Chizu ga arimasu.
2. *Jikan ga arimasu.
3. *Okane ga arimasu.
4. *Yotei ga arimasu.

Definitions:

1. *jikan – “time”
2. *okane – “money”
3. *yotei – “schedule”

Negative Sentences:

1. Chizu ga arimasen.
2. Jikan ga arimasen.
3. Okane ga arimasen.
4. Yotei ga arimasen.

Question Sentences:

1. Chizu ga arimasuka?
2. Jikan ga arimasuka?
3. Okane ga arimasuka?
4. Yotei ga arimasuka?

*We can replace the particle ga with the particle wa in negative or yes/no question sentences.

Nagano-iki or Nagano-yuki

When -iki or -yuki follows the name of a place, -iki or -yuki works as a suffix, and we use either [place]+ iki or [place] + yuki to express the final destination.

Example:

1. Tokyo-iki or Tokyo-yuki
   “bound for Tokyo”
2. Tokyo-yuki no densha.
   “a train bound for Tokyo”
3. Kono basu wa Tokyo-iki desu?
   “Is this bus bound for Tokyo?”
4. Iie, Nagano-eki yuki desu.
   “No, it’s bound for Nagano station.”

Today’s Target Phrases:

Nagano-iki (no basu) ni noru. / “Take the bus bound for Nagano.”

Kawanakajima de (basu o) oriru. / “Get off (the bus) at Kawanakajima.”

Please review the following vocabulary and usage:

1. Nagano-iki – “bound for Nagano”
2. no – “possessive particle”
3. ni – “particle indicating direction or movement”
4. noru – “to ride, to take”
5. Kawanakajima – “a name of a place”
6. de – “particle indicating the place of an action” (“at” or “in”)
7. oriru – “to get off, to get out”

Noru and Oriru

Noru means “to ride.” We mark the transportation one takes with the particle ni. The masu form (polite form) of the verb is orimasu.

Sentence Pattern:

Subject / Wa / Transportation / Ni / To Ride

Watashi / wa / basu / ni / norimasu.

Shizuka-san / wa / densha / ni / norimasu.

Rorii-san / wa / takushii / ni / noru.

Mizuki-san / wa / chika-tetsu / ni / noru.

Oriru means “to get off.” We mark the transportation with the particle o. The masu form of the verb is orimasu.

Sentence Pattern:

Subject / Wa / Transportation / O / To Get Off, Out

Watashi / wa / asu o / orimasu.

Shizuka-san / wa / densha / o / norimasu.

Rorii-san / wa / takushii / o / oriru.

Mizuki-san / wa / chika-tetsu / o / oriru.

Examples:

1. (Watashi wa) basu ni norimasu.
   “I’m going to take the bus.” or “I take the bus.”
2. (Watashi wa) basu o orimasu.
   “I’m going to get off the bus.” or “I get off the bus.”
3. Tokyo-eki de Shinkan-sen ni norimasu.
   “I’m going to take a bullet train at Tokyo station.”or “I get on a bullet train at Tokyo station.”
4. Nagano-eki de Shinkan-sen o orimasu.
   “I’m going to get off the bullet train at Nagano station.” or “I get off the bullet train at Nagano station.”