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July 24&25, 2004 procure (pra KYUR) The verb procure means to obtain something, often with some difficulty, effort or expense. The noun form is procurement. One of the 11 women returned to Thailand after spending five months behind bars in Bahrain for working as a prostitute has been charge with procuring women for the country's illicit sex industry. The letter claimed to be proof of Iraq's efforts to procure uranium from Niger was later shown to be a forgery. The alliance is developing a global procurement system for vaccines. There is a clear need for many manufacturers to rethink their procurement procedures. July 23, 2004 strapped The adjective strapped means to have little or not enough of something, especially money. Minin incidents, often causing heavy casualties, are frequent in Ukraine's cash-strapped mines, where security conditions are usually poor. Central government aid was being rushed to local governments strapped by the expense of fighting this summer's wildfires. Financially-strapped city governments need help paying for the expensive equipment. Government agencies have been instructed to conserve energy, especially in the power-strapped regions of the West Coast. July 22, 2004 weary (WEER i) The adjective weary means to be very tired or to have lost your enthusiasm for something. Armstrong said he had backed the fight against banned substances but was weary of allegations against him. She was very weak and weary. The Sydney airport was packed with weary athletes and tourists who were setting out for the long journey home. Austrians were growing weary of high taxes and high government debt. July 21, 2004 thatched The adjective thatched refers to a house or roof is made of thatch (straw or reeds). Authorities ordered the closure of hundreds of schools with flammable thatched roofs in a southern Indian state after 90 children died last week in a school fire, officials said yesterday. Like everyone else, the chief sat in the thatched meeting hall and discussed community problems. The road swung through thatched villages and over peaceful lowland streams. We made our Leo's home, a thatched hut on stilts. July 20, 2004 pork barrel The noun pork barrel refers to local projects that are given a lot of government money in order to win votes. Pork barrel is often used as an adjective as well. Critics accused the prime minister of pork-barrel politics and said he was using the national budget for electioneering purposes. The party chief assured the congressmen that they would receive their pork barrel. Even if one accepts that pork-barrel spending is OK, this ill-considered project deserves nothing. MPs who become ministers must resign from parliament in order to reduce the scope for pork-barrel politics. July 19, 2004 repel (ra PEL) The verb repel means to push back or away or to fight off an attack and drive attack away. Repel can also mean to cause a feeling of disgust or dislike. Something which repels is a repellent. Starlink has a gene inserted to help repel a destructive pest which feeds on young corn plants. Demonstrators temporarily filled the pitch, but they were repelled and play continued. Surfboards fitted with electronic shark repellents are being testing and well be available by year-end, its manufacturers say. She felt repelled by the thought of eating meat. Click here to see our words in the news for the previous week. Return to our home page |© The Post Publishing Public Co., Ltd. All rights reserved 2004 | Last modified: July 23, 2004