10 English words used only by Indians

1. Mother Promise

For ages, you have always used this word without even knowing if it was a legit word, haven't you? So we decided to burst your bubble! While the word 'promise' features in the Oxford Dictionary, there's no mention of 'mother promise'. Surprised? Wondering how 'mother promise' came into being. It's the literal English translation of 'ma kasam' or 'aai shapath'. The next time you want to stand by something you really mean, try using just 'promise'. You don't really need to drag your mother into everything, do you?

2. Cousin sister and cousin brother

According to the Oxford Dictionary a 'cousin' is a child of one's uncle or aunt. And Grammar Nazis would insist that the word 'cousin' does not need to be followed with words like 'sister' or 'brother'. Did you know that 'cousin sister or cousin brother' are words used only in India. The right way is just to say 'cousin'. Wondering how you'd get to know their gender. Well, that's what names are for, aren't they?

3. Good name

When Indians meet strangers, why do they ask the question, 'What's you GOOD NAME?' Every parent or grandparent who has named the child, does it with a GOOD intention. So there's nothing bad about a name. The next time you meet a stranger, you could say 'What's your name?'

4. Revert back

Now this one's tricky! Because that's what you have been writing in e-mails, haven't you? Well according to The Free Dictionary 'revert' means 'to reply to someone'. Why use 'revert back' when you can just say 'revert'?

5. Rubber

In India the 'eraser' is also called 'rubber'! But in the rest of the world, 'rubber' is a slang for 'condom'. Now it makes sense why your relatives and friends in foreign countries complain that people there burst out laughing when they ask for a 'rubber' instead of an 'eraser'.

6. Picture

When was the last time you mentioned that you were going to 'watch a 'picture'?' No one really knows when 'picture' became synonymous with 'films' or 'movies' in India. According to the Oxford Dictionary, 'picture' means a drawing or painting. You could say 'I am going out to watch a movie or film'.

7. Mention not

Isn't it funny that every time someone thanks an Indian, they quickly turn around and say 'mention not'. We are still scratching our heads wondering how the word originated and what it means. There are plenty of ways you can accept someone's thanks. You can use any of the following:

You're welcome.

It's my pleasure.

That's alright.

No problem.

8. Pass out

How is it that every Indian graduating from college is passing out? Confused? Let's tell you the difference. When you are really drunk and become unconscious, you 'pass out'. But when you refer to a successful completion of a course or training, you use the word 'graduate'.

9. Cheatercock

We all have used this word in our childhood. Once, twice, thrice…we have lost count of the number of times we called someone a 'cheatercock'! But ever wondered what does the word mean? We are still wondering! According to the Oxford Dictionary, cheater is a person who acts dishonestly in order to gain advantage. Won't it be sufficient if we just said 'cheater'?

10. Would be

How would you introduce your fiance?

Amit: Hello uncle.

Uncle: Hello Amit.

Amit: Uncle, I would like to introduce you to my 'would be'.

Unfortunately Amit doesn't know that 'would be' means nothing. If you want to introduce your to-be bride then simply use 'fiance'. How easy is that

Mahesh Bhatt

10 Painfully Obvious Truths that Everyone Forgets Too Soon!

You know how you can hear something a hundred times in a hundred different ways before it finally gets through to you? The ten truths listed below fall firmly into that category – life lessons that many of us likely learned years ago, and have been reminded of ever since, but for whatever reason, haven’t fully grasped.

1. THE AVERAGE HUMAN LIFE IS RELATIVELY SHORT

We know deep down that life is short, and that death will happen to all of us eventually, and yet we are infinitely surprised when it happens to someone we know.

LIVE your life TODAY! Don’t ignore death, but don’t be afraid of it either. Be afraid of a life you never lived because you were too afraid to take action. Death is not the greatest loss in life. The greatest loss is what dies inside you while you’re still alive. Be bold. Be courageous. Be scared to death, and then take the next step anyway.

2. YOU LIVE THE LIFE YOU CREATE FOR YOURSELF

Your life is yours alone. Others can try to persuade you, but they can’t decide for you. They can walk with you, but not in your shoes. So make sure the path you decide to walk aligns with your own intuition and desires, and don’t be scared to switch paths or pave a new one when it makes sense.

Even if you have no idea where you’re going to land, be brave enough to step up to the edge of the unknown, and listen to your heart.

3. BEING BUSY DOES NOT MEAN BEING PRODUCTIVE

Though being busy can make us feel more alive than anything else for a moment, the sensation is not sustainable long term. We will inevitably, whether tomorrow or on our deathbed, come to wish that we spent less time in the buzz of busyness and more time actually living a purposeful life.

4. SOME KIND OF FAILURE ALWAYS OCCURS BEFORE SUCCESS

Most mistakes are unavoidable. Learn to forgive yourself. It’s not a problem to make them. It’s only a problem if you never learn from them.

Just because it’s not happening now, doesn’t mean it never will. Sometimes things have to go very wrong before they can be right.

5. THINKING AND DOING ARE TWO VERY DIFFERENT THINGS

Success never comes to look for you while you wait around thinking about it. Ask yourself what’s really important and then have the courage to build your life around your answer.

And remember, if you wait until you feel 100% ready to begin, you’ll likely be waiting the rest of your life.

6. YOU DON’T HAVE TO WAIT FOR AN APOLOGY TO FORGIVE

Life gets much easier when you learn to accept all the apologies you never got. The key is to be thankful for every experience – positive or negative. Forgiveness is a promise – one you want to keep. When you forgive someone you are making a promise not to hold the unchangeable past against your present self.

7. SOME PEOPLE ARE SIMPLY THE WRONG MATCH FOR YOU

You will only ever be as great as the people you surround yourself with, so be brave enough to let go of those who keep bringing you down. There are so many “right people” for you, who energize you and inspire you to be your best self. It makes no sense to force it with people who are the wrong match for you.

8. IT’S NOT OTHER PEOPLE’S JOB TO LOVE YOU; IT’S YOURS

It’s important to be nice to others, but it’s even more important to be nice to yourself. You really have to love yourself to get anything done in this world. Yes, let someone love you and let that someone be YOU.

9. WHAT YOU OWN IS NOT WHO YOU ARE

You have to create your own culture. Find the strength to fill your time with meaningful experiences. The space and time you are occupying at this very moment is LIFE. Too often we’re told that we’re not important, we’re just peripheral to what is. And it’s sad, because someday you’ll wake up and realize you’ve been tricked.

10. EVERYTHING CHANGES, EVERY SECOND

Embrace change and realize it happens for a reason. It won’t always be obvious at first, but in the end it will be worth it.

Life doesn’t stop for anybody. It moves rapidly and rushes from calm to chaos in a matter of seconds, and happens like this to people every day. It’s likely happening to someone nearby right now.

However good or bad a situation is now, it will change. That’s the one thing you can count on. So when life is good, enjoy it. Don’t go looking for something better every second. Happiness never comes to those who don’t appreciate what they have while they have it.

Mahesh Bhatt