English Corner

It is only since the mid-19th century that we have been clutching at straws. Even more recently, the ‘grasp at straws’ version has become commonplace, especially in the USA. Prior to that, desperate people would ‘catch at a straw’. That usage of ‘catch’ was commonly used in medieval England, by which was meant ‘obtain/achieve’; for example, John Wycliffe used it in his 1382 translation of the Bible into English, in 1 Timothy 6:12: Stryve thou a good strif of feith, catche everlastyng lyf By the 17th century, in the King…

This was the very first “English Corner” that appeared in the 3rd October 2008 issue of AWOL, and is republished here as both a nod to the past and part of our pre-launch testing. The image is a new addition. An expression with several origin stories, but its meaning is to pay attention to details. This expression has often been translated as “mind your manners” or “mind your pleases and thank yous.” It is possible that the expression is an abbreviated term for minding one’s manners as well, shortening pleases…

As this is the first English Corner to appear in the Hua Hin Citizen Journal, we thought it quite appropriate to give a brief history and etymology of the phrase that was the name of our printed predecessor, along with the thought process and the other possibility that was considered back in the heady days of 2008. So lets begin with the origin and actual meaning of the first similar phrase, Absent Without Leave; ‘Leave’ simply means permission, although rarely used in that way now. The earliest reference found with…