Google Groups no longer supports new Usenet posts or subscriptions. Historical content remains viewable.
Dismiss

Equivalent English words

545 views
Skip to first unread message

Venkatachalam Aruna

unread,
May 17, 1992, 3:32:28 PM5/17/92
to
Hi Netters,
I think the following are the equivalent words in English for the
terms used in tamil ilakkanam. Can anybody confirm these and if
possible add more to the list?

uruvagam - metaphor
uyarvu navirchi - hyperbole
silAdai - pun
adukkuth thodar - palilogy ( or palillogy)
vanjap pugazhchi - irony
uvamai - analogy

Is there any equivalent term in tamil for OXYMORON?

Cheers,
Venkat

--
---------------------------------------------------------
Look to this day
For yesterday is but a dream,
And tomorrow is only a vision,
But today, well lived
Makes every yesterday a dream of happiness
And every tomorrow a vision of hope.
Look well,therefore to this day.
- A sanskrit adage
---------------------------------------------------------
Venkatachalam Aruna
Dept. of civil Engg.,Univ. Of Houston,
Houston,Tx
Bellnet: (713)-923-7773(h) & (713)-743-4250(w)
Internet: ven...@jetson.uh.edu
ven...@menudo.uh.edu
ar...@tree.egr.uh.edu (NeXT mails okay)
---------------------------------------------------------

Bala Ramalingam

unread,
May 18, 1992, 11:36:47 AM5/18/92
to
In the posting of May 17, '92, Venkat writes,

>Hi Netters,
>I think the following are the equivalent words in English for the
>terms used in tamil ilakkanam. Can anybody confirm these and if
>possible add more to the list?

>uruvagam - metaphor
>uyarvu navirchi - hyperbole
>silAdai - pun
>adukkuth thodar - palilogy ( or palillogy)
>vanjap pugazhchi - irony

In my opinion, vanjap pugazhchi and irony are not equivalents. Irony
is more general a word whereas vanja.. is used in only one sense - in
apparently praising a person when actually wanting to do exactly the
opposite. Irony is not associated just with praise. In fact,I think
that ,even in the context of praise, 'subtle sarcasm' is a better
equivalent than irony. Somehow, it occurs to me that irony is not
'intentional' whereas vanja.. is.

Any comments?

- Bala

Venkatachalam Aruna

unread,
May 18, 1992, 2:34:55 PM5/18/92
to

I think vanjap pugazhchi means "pugazhtalai pole pazhiththalum,
pazhiththalai pole pugazhthalum".[ Praising for criticism and
criticizing for praise]. Am I right? In that case IRONY seems
to be the correct word.
From webster:
iro ny \' -re-ne also ' (-e)r-ne \
[L ironia, fr. Gk eiro nia, fr. eiro n dissembler]
(1502)
2a: the use of words to express something other than and esp. the opposite
of the literal meaning

Cheers,
Venkat

>
> Any comments?
>
> - Bala
--

0 new messages