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December 13 & 14, 2003 baffle (BAF ul) The verb baffle means to cause to be completely unable to understand or explain something, i.e., to be totally confused. The adjective form is baffling. Deputy Prime Minister Chavalit Yongchaiyudh says he's baffled by the absence of influential figures in Suphan Buri, Chon Buri and Nakhon Sawan. He was upset that it happened and baffled by how it could happen. His analysis would baffle westerners, but it seemed perfectly logical to his young Muslim students. The pace of the epidemic and the pattern of its spread continue to baffle investigators. December 12, 2003 whittle (WHIT ul) The basic meaning of the verb whittle is to carve a piece of wood by cutting pieces off it. But whittle can also mean to slowly cut down and reduce something in size or importance. Human rights are at risk in Thailand, despite the provisions of the constitution, because the impartiality of independent agencies is being whittled away, Democrat deputy leader Abhisit Vejjajiva warned yesterday. The man was whittling the last touches of an axe-handle he had made from a stick of birch. The President wants his information whittled down to one-page messages. The investment group wants to whittle its fund list from 44 to 33. December 11, 2003 genocide (GEN a sayd) The noun genocide refers to the murder of a whole race or group of people. A United Nations team which arrived in Cambodia yesterday is reportedly facing a challenging week as it sets out to lay the technical groundwork for a genocide tribunal to try surviving Khmer rouge leaders. Allies leaders accused the Serbs of conducting genocide against the Albanian population. He pleaded innocent to charges of genocide and crimes against humanity. December 10, 2003 hammer out The phrasal verb hammer out means to produce an agreement or a treaty after long and difficult discussions. The United States, Japan and South Korea have reportedly hammered out a joint draft statement to be adopted at six-nation talks aimed at curbing North Korea's nuclear ambitions. The agreement was hammered out after a week of negotiations that often seemed on the verge of collapse. The former president repeatedly rejected the peace plan hammered out in Rambouillet earlier in the year. Clinton personally spent days hammering out the details of the agreement. December 9, 2003 stigmatise (STIG ma tize) The verb stigmatise means to cause someone to be unfairly regarded as bad or having something to be ashamed of. The commission's fact-finding panel said families and relatives were blacklisted and stigmatised as a result. They argued that labels would unfairly stigmatise the genetically-modified products. Experts complained that the plan would stigmatise the poor. It is a delicate matter because they don't want gays to be stigmatised. December 8, 2003 sketchy (SKET chi) The adjective sketchy means to be incomplete and lacking in details. In a sketchy outline of its proposal, North Korea's official media on Monday said it would include a demand for a change in Washington's "hostile policy" towards North Korea. Police reports are sketchy about what happened next. The details on most of the victims were still sketchy. The information is still sketchy and until we can get accurate numbers, no action can be taken. Click here to see our words in the news for the previous week. Return to our home page | Comments to Terry F. at terryfrd@ksc15.th.com | |© The Post Publishing Public Co., Ltd. All rights reserved 2003 | Last modified: December 15, 2003