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August 7&8, 2004 scant The adjective scant means there is too little or something or not enough of something as there should be. Scant can also be used to indicant something is very small. The government had paid little attention to human rights and given scant attention to public participation in its projects. The authorities reported having only scant details about what was occurring in the troubled province. During the long recession property developers had scant opportunity to embark on new projects. The consumer price index, excluding food and energy, rose a scant 0.1% during the period. August 6, 2004 irregularity (i reg ya LAIR a ti) The noun irregularity refers to something that is refers to an action or activity that is dishonest or not following normal rules. Irregularity can also refer to something which has something which is not smooth or straight. The Public Health Ministry will look into irregularities in multi-million-baht construction projects at four state hospitals left unfinished by Tri Union Co. The Election Commission agreed to conduct an investigation into voting irregularities after the villagers complained. Senior executive deny any irregularity and insist that the land leases were made at fair market prices. Galileo discovered the surface irregularities on the moon. August 5, 2004 demolish (da MA lish) The verb demolish means to destroy something completely or tear something down. You can demolish physical objects or ideas. In the sports pages, demolish usually means to badly defeat an opponent. About 200 raiders, armed with guns and knives, demolished all 250 vending stalls at a market in a housing estate in Saphan Sung district early yesterday. The floods have demolished almost one-fifth of the country's only highway that links the north with the south. They are taking on the difficult task of demolishing the Che Guevara legend as it was created and nurtured over the decades by the Cuban regime. The Browns demolished Pittsburgh 51-0 in the season opener. August 4, 2004 keep tabs on The idiomatic phrase to keep tabs on means to watch or follow someone or something very closely in order to know what is happening so that things can be kept under control. The army is keeping tabs on some students of Rajabhat University's Yala campus suspected of links to the Muslim separatist insurgency network in the deep South. As Daewoo's executive managing director in China, Park keeps close tabs on its spreading investments. She kept tabs on the outside world with a small battery-powered radio. The sometimes chaotic situation in the Middle East required that companies keep tabs on oil movements at all times. August 3, 2004 consensus (kun SEN sus) The noun consensus refers to a general agreement among a group of people. Top World Trade Organisation officials from a wide range of countries enthusiastic about the deal approved by a consensus of the 147-nation body shortly after midnight. There was a firm consensus among medical experts that the drug's risks outweighed its benefits. Administration officials have not yet reached a consensus about what the federal government could do to help the state. There was little that could be done in the absence of a consensus between the two sides. August 2, 2004 contemporary (kun TEM pa rar i) The adjective contemporary refers to things modern and which related to the present time. We are introducing a new contemporary look, designed to add visual energy to the newspaper. The contemporary art sale netted over $40 million. The latest offering is big city brasseries is Spicy, a large contemporary restaurant featuring scantily-clad waitresses and overly friendly and misinformed waiters. They started out in 1994 with the idea of creating buildings that were high on style - classic contemporary design - but not gimmicky. 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: August 9, 2004