HEN'S NIGHT
Dear Dr English,
I would like to ask you a question. What does "hen night" mean?
Go
The phrase is used in the UK meaning as an evening when women go out together without male company. It is especially popular the evening before a woman's wedding. A similar evening for men is a called a stag night.
Susan was very excited about the hen night with her old classmates from college.
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WORD FOR RELIGIOUS PRACTICE
Dear Dr English,
What is the English word for "la mard"?
"S"
I'm afraid there is no special English word for the Moslem terminology, "la mard". You can use "to pray" since it is a general word for this religious practice.
In the evening everybody goes to the mosque to pray.
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WANT TO IMPROVE SPEAKING/LISTENING SKILLS
Dear Dr English,
My skills of reading and writing English are quite okay but for listening and speaking, I can just communicate, though very smoothly. That is because I do not have a chance to practise with foreigners so much. Can you advise?
Thanwa
In a Thai-speaking environment like Thailand, improving one's listening skill is not as much of a problem as speaking skills. You can listen to English news bulletin or movie soundtracks or radio programmes in English, but acquiring fluency in speaking English is a bit difficult, especially if you do not have any English-speaking person in your circle. However it is still possible to practise. Try spending your free time in an area where frequented by foreigners. You are bound to have some conversation with them even though it might only be giving them directions. You can also form a group of friends who want to improve their speaking/listening skills and have an English-speaking party regularly. It can be fun.
More information about improving listening skill can be found in this column in the November15, 2004 issue of The Nation at www.nationmultimedia.com/edu/backissue
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WANT TO READ OLD ISSUES
Dear Dr English,
It may not be a question directly related to your column but I found that the questions sent to you are interesting as they asked about what they found in Thai context. I would be happy to know if I can trace back to the previous questions. How?
Supranee
Your inquiry is very welcome. For readers who want to read our old issues through the Internet, you can log on to www.nationmultimedia.com/edu/backissue . Enjoy.
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