Team-BHP - A YetiGuide® : How To Post In Proper English

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Originally Posted by dailydriver (Post 4463388)

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From Vellore, I'm planning a visit to the Mysore zoo, stay overnight there and then proceed to Masinagudi.

Does the there in the sentence refer to the Mysore zoo?

There is also the minor nitpick that from Vellore, one would plan a visit to Vellore zoo.

Anyway, getting back to regularly scheduled headline puns:

https://odishatv.in/odisha/how-multi...-odisha-322490

I feel the following lines in scroll.in could have been phrased better - to remove ambiguity.

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Born in 1941 in Bengaluru, 78-year-old Khan made his debut as an actor in Chetan Anand’s Haqeeqat (1964).

* * * * *

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Originally Posted by binand (Post 4464043)

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How Multi-Crore Sapling Scam Took Root In Odisha

Good one. Striking at the very root of the matter!

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Originally Posted by dailydriver (Post 4464553)

I feel the following lines in scroll.in could have been phrased better - to remove ambiguity.

* * * * *

Good one. Striking at the very root of the matter!

Original: Born in 1941 in Bengaluru, 78-year-old Khan made his debut as an actor in Chetan Anand’s Haqeeqat (1964).

What do your people think about these alternatives:

Khan was born in 1941 in Bengaluru, and made his acting debut in 1964 in the Chetan Anand-directed Hindi war film Haqeeqat.

Khan was born in 1941 in Bengaluru, and debuted as an actor in 1964 in the Chetan Anand-directed Hindi war film Haqeeqat.

Khan was born in 1941 in Bengaluru, and debuted as an actor in 1964 in Haqeeqat – a Chetan Anand-directed Hindi war film.

Khan, born in 1941 in Bengaluru, debuted as an actor in 1964 in the Chetan Anand-directed Hindi war film Haqeeqat.

Bengaluru-born Khan debuted as an actor in 1964 in the Chetan Anand-directed Hindi war film Haqeeqat at the age of 23.

Bengaluru-born Khan debuted as an actor in 1964 in the film Haqeeqat at the age of 23.

Bengaluru-born Khan debuted as an actor in the 1964 film Haqeeqat at the age of 23.

Bengaluru-born Khan debuted as an actor in the film Haqeeqat (1964) at the age of 23.

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Originally Posted by anupmathur (Post 4469950)

That (in bold) should be shouldn't. :)

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Originally Posted by binand (Post 4469981)

The pedantically correct option is "Headlines ought to carry a bit more clarity, oughtn't they?".

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Originally Posted by Thad E Ginathom (Post 4469989)

Binand got in first. Must post faster!

I got caught on the wrong foot; in my own backyard :).

Thank you gentlemen, for reminding that a man standing even remotely close to a glass house 'must/should/ought' not (to) dare fling even a pebble at others :D.

That being dealt with, any comments on the actual headline itself?

Generally The Hindu Sunday Magazine articles are well researched ones. But this one is full of bloopers

https://www.thehindu.com/society/the...le25080661.ece

It starts with (in print version - they corrected it online)

"As the evening sun begins its descent into the Bay of Bengal off Chennai's coast, Subash and Bishwamitra Shougrakpam sit on the promenade of Chennai's Elliot’s Beach, whiling away what remains of a muggy day"

So the Sun sets in the east for the writer.

Another one

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Ironically, while the rest of the population sees them all as uniformly ‘Northeastern’ — when it isn’t pejoratively branding them ‘chinkis’ or ignorantly identifying them as Chinese or Nepali — the migrants themselves share little in common with each other.

“Most of the locals simply say we are from the Northeast. But we are not the same,” says Shougrakpam. “We are all very different. We look similar, but I cannot tell if someone is from Manipur just by looking at them.”

From what is written here in the previous para - the last sentence either should read "Even I cannot tell..." or "I can tell someone is from Manipur just by looking at them"

Here the reader will totally miss what the article wants to convey

And the last few paragraphs goes like this

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But Shougrakpam represents a small minority of migrants who choose to add a third layer to the two identities already thrust upon them. “My friends and family talk about going back, but I like it here. I’d like to stay,” he says

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Asked if he sees Chennai as home, he says, “It doesn’t matter how much I feel at home here, I can never say I am from here. People will look at my face and not accept me.”

Wouldn't have felt like a volte-face if the author had given a hint regarding the same

In terms of the quality of the article there many points to pick on, but they don't belong to this thread

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Originally Posted by dailydriver (Post 4469998)

That being dealt with, any comments on the actual headline itself?

:)

I'd say just flipping two words around ('police shoot dead driver' -> 'police shoot driver dead') would make it clear they weren't fending off a zombie invasion, while still keeping the headline from becoming too wordy or losing any information.

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Originally Posted by arunphilip (Post 4470004)

flipping two words... would make it clear they weren't fending off a zombie invasion

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Originally Posted by Thad E Ginathom (Post 4470022)

Headlines are exempt from grammar, but they should, at least, say what they mean!

Agree with both of you.

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Two places where one should not look for good English: The Hindu and The BBC

So says the man from the land of the BBC who, incidentally, was offered a tuition class in English by an affiliate of the other news group, a few days ago. :D.

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Originally Posted by mallumowgli (Post 4470003)

But this one is full of bloopers

I can only refer you to Thad's previously quoted opinion :Frustrati.

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Originally Posted by arunphilip (Post 4470033)

Doubly frustrating when - during my childhood - we were referred to both these sources as a means of improving our language skills.

I do not think Thad actually meant that. It could have been more of a sarcastic rather than a serious statement. But I am on a loose footing here :D.

The Indian newspaper in question is celebrating 140 years of its existence. Every day, its Letters to the Editor column features a missive (sic) or two recalling how the paper shaped the writers' thoughts and how it helped them learn and fine tune their own language skills.

I must confess that I too have been a beneficiary.

However, as the last few pages of this very thread demonstrate, the quality of the printed word has taken a dip in the recent past. But that is a trait that stands true for all mainstream newspapers and not just of this one.