Tuesday, October 5, 2010

Danger!!!




English can be confusing but sometimes it can also be dangerous.
We learn that the prefix "in~" makes a word
the opposite of its regular meaning.
For example "insecure" "insensitive" & "inexperienced".
The word "inflammable" however has the same meaning
as the word "flammable" (they both mean to burn easily).
WHY???
Well "inflammable" was the original word
(derived from inflame) so the "in~" in this case does not apply.
People thought this was a bit too confusing
and started using the word "flammable" instead.
So now we use both!
Just remember
FLAMMABLE & INFLAMMABLE
have exactly the same meaning.
Take care

2 comments:

  1. Wow! I might burn myself or die if I misunderstood the meaning of inflammable. Do you know other examples?

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  2. Yes, Masa I also did not understand this word until now! :)

    ReplyDelete