FROM OUR READERS
In our previous issue, Khun Phetcharin Jirajaruwong wrote to ask about expressing the "Mom Rajawong" in English. I suggested that she use MR. But Khun Tony has a different opinion, he wrote:
Dear Dr English,
Correct me if I'm wrong, but I think that Khun Phetcharin is asking for the title and not the initials of Mom Rajawong. It could perhaps be expressed as Lord or Sir, as in the British system, so could it be Lord Kukrit Pramoj or Sir Kukrit Pramoj. These titles are bestowed by either the King or the Queen, and in the case of Thailand it will be His Majesty the King who bestows this title.
Tony
Thank you very much for your kind comment. I do agree that MR are initials, but I do not think using Lord or Sir for Mom Rajawong is appropriate. But to clear this matter up I contacted the Office of His Majesty's Principal Private Secretary and the officer there confirmed that the English title for Mom Rajawong is "Mom Rajawong" or MR as initials.
Also in another issue, Khun Maew-7579 asked for the meanings of many words, including "opulent", which I defined as "very wealthy". Another reader, Khun Roy Fenn, has a different opinion on the definition of the word. He wrote:
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AND ...
Dear Dr English,
You ought to check on the word "opulence" again. Your definition is not very good and the example you give is wrong. Opulent generally is used to refer to "things" (ie. not people, or personal attributes) and means: appears to be luxurious, grand, expensive, and so on.
I am a native English speaker and I've NEVER heard of anyone being described as opulent. I've heard and read of houses, boats and jets and hotels, etc. being described as opulent, but never an individual (as per your example of an opulent father).
Yours sincerely,
Roy Fenn
I really appreciate your comments and explanation. After receiving your mail, I consulted two dictionaries. The first, the Merriam-Webster Dictionary, gives definitions of opulent as follows:
exhibiting or characterised by opulence as
a: having a large estate or property: wealthy e.g. hoping to marry an opulent widow
b: amply or plentifully provided or fashioned often to the point of ostentation e.g. living in opulent comfort"
The second dictionary, Collins Cobuild English Language Dictionary, defines opulent as
"1. Someone who is opulent is very wealthy, eg... the privileges of an opulent society.
2. Something that is opulent looks as if it costs a lot of money, especially because it is very richly decorated, eg... the magnificently opulent marble altar ... opulent furnishings."
My definition for opulent is not wrong, and neither is yours. As much as I would like to provide explanations for every word or question in full detail, due to limited space I cannot always do so.
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