ABC OF TEST OF ORALS QUESTIONS

In public examinations conducted by WAEC, NECO and JAMB, there is always a section where examination candidates will be tested on speech sounds (vowels and consonants), stress and rhymes. Understanding 44 sounds of English, stress patterns of words and the compendium of Rhymes in English must be studied.

 

WHAT DO I NEED TO KNOW ABOUT TEST OF ORALS QUESTIONS?

Answering Test of Orals questions correctly depends on good mastering of speech sounds, proper mastering of word stress and familiarity with rhymes in English. To answer Test of Orals questions correctly, the steps below could be followed:

. Study the vowel sounds

. Study the consonants sounds

. Study the stress patterns 

. Read up books on Rhymes

 

HOW DO THEY SET THE QUESTIONS?

1. From the words lettered A to D, choose the word that contains the given phonetic symbol. 

Note: Here, a phonetic symbol will be provided and one has to underline, from options A to D, the word that has the speech sound in transcription/pronunciation.

EXAMPLE:

QUESTION

From the words lettered A to D, choose the word that contains the given phonetic symbol.

 

/e/

 

A. season

B. keeper

C. break

D. breakfast

 

The word 'breakfast' contains the short vowel sound /e/. The digraph 'ea' in the word attract the sound. The digraph "ea" makes the diphthong /eɪ/ in 'break', but the sound changes in "breakfast".

 

2. From the words lettered A to D, choose the word that has the same vowel sound as the one represented by the underlined letter(s).

Note: Here, a letter or more letters will be underlined, and one has to look for, from options A to D, the word that makes the same sound.

 

QUESTION

From the words lettered A to D, choose the word that has the same vowel sound as the one represented by the underlined letter(s).

 

zealous

 

A. keyboard 

B. friend

C. meager

D. reason

 

The word friend has the same short vowel sound /e/ the underlined letters in zealous have. The underlined letters attract the same sound letter 'e' in "egg" attracts. 

   

3. From the words lettered A to D, choose the word that has the same consonant sound as the one represented by the underlined letter(s).

Note: Here, the target is to underline any word that gives the same sound the underlined letter(s) make.

 

QUESTION

From the words lettered A to D, choose the word that has the same consonant sound as the one represented by the underlined letter(s).

 

union

 

A. youth

B. dollar

C. umbrella

D. luck

 

The word youth attracts the same sound the letter 'u' in union attracts. Many a time, the letters 'u' and 'y' attract the same sound as they do in University and Yellow.

 

4. From the words lettered A to D, choose the word that is appropriately stressed. This part of Test of Orals focuses on word stress. The other way they ask question under stress is to construct a sentence with one word in upper case. The word will be written in upper case for emphasis. The emphasized word is expected to come in another form in the sentences lettered A to D.

 

QUESTION

From the words lettered A to D, choose the word that is appropriately stressed.

A. lu-CRA-tive

B. LU-cra-tive

C. lu-cra-TIVE

D. lu-CRA-TIVE

 

The correction is B. LU-cra-tive because the word has its stress on the first syllable "LU". 

In order to effortlessly answer questions on stress, some rules of stress shall be shared below:

RULES OF STRESS

1. Nouns mostly attract stress on the first syllable. e.g ACtor, CAlendar, PAper, SEcretary, TEStimony, SAMson etc.

2. Two syllable verbs mostly have their stress on the second syllable. e.g reVERSE, rePENT, adVISE, reMOVE, deTECT etc.

Note: A verb that could be used as noun could attracts have stress on the first syllable. e.g CAPture, PICture etc.

  

3. Words that end with -ate, -al, -gy, -ty, -cy and -phy attract stress on ante-penultimate syllable (third-last syllable). e.g 

a. -ate: parTIcipate, aMIliorate, anTIcipate, DEcorate etc.

b. -gy: biOlogy, geOlogy, anthroPOlogy,gyneCOlogy etc.   

c. -ty: connecTIvity, acTIvity, producTIvity etc.

d. -phy: geOgraphy, phoTOgraphy, phiLOsophy etc.

e. -cy: exPECtancy, efFIciency etc.

f. -al: PRINcipal, TECHnical etc.

4. Words that end with -ive, -ion and -ic attract stress on penultimate syllable. e.g proDUCtive, ecoNOmic, draMAtic, amBItion etc.

5. Many compound words attract on the first syllable. e.g SUNflower, BRIDEgroom, CLASSroom etc

6. The words that end with -ism have their primary stress on the syllable it is without the suffix -ism. e.g FAvourism.

The word 'FAvour' has its stress on the first syllable 'FA', and it still does not change even when the suffix -ism is added.  

 Note: Many words do not obey the rules of stress. For instance, the word 'guitar' is a noun that ought to be stressed on the first syllable. The word 'guiTAR' has its stress on the second syllable. The word 'lucrative' also does not obey the rule that guides the words that end with -ive.

7 COMMON GRAMMAR MISTAKES CHURCHES MAKE

 Although, it is absolutely wrong to pay full attention to grammatical errors from a pastor or a leader in a church during service; but, the important and positive effect of grammatical correctness of pastors/leaders' messages cannot be overdramatized. Nowadays young Christians care for grammatical accuracy of a preacher's messages, too. As a matter of fact, a right message could be wrongly delivered if the dictions that surrounded the expression/message is inaccurate. 

There are many grammar mistakes in churches that should be eschewed - But, seven of the mistakes shall be discussed here. The itemized expressions below are grammatically incorrect.

1. SHARE THE GRACE

2. CHAPTER 5 VERSE 1 TO 10

3. PRAY THE PRAYER

4. NIGHT VIGIL

5. PROMISE LAND

6. BOW DOWN YOUR HEAD FOR PRAYERS

7. GOD WILL HEAR YOUR PRAYER

Acceptability of an expression is also based on its obedience to the rules of concord and the grammar rules. The above common mistakes in churches shall be explained below, with the rationale behind each correction.

1. SAY GRACE (Not 'share the grace')

A grace is a short prayer people say at the end of a service in a church. Although, people say it before they tuck in a meal - to thank God for the food. It is written nowhere in any English lexicon, neither is it written in scriptures as 'share the grace'. Since it is a short prayer, you say it and not share. 

2. CHAPTER 5 VERSES 1 TO 10 (Not 'verse') 

If one pays attention patiently to the expression, the error in it is obvious enough to easily spot on. Supposed you are reading the book of Matthew chapter 5, and you want to read from 1 and stop at 10 - then, you are reading 10 verseS. It means, 1 is a verse, 2 is another verse... 10 is the last verse. All together, you're reading 10 verseS. Now you should understand that, it should be 'Matthew chapter 5 verseS 1 to 10. 

3. SAY (THE) PRAYER (Not 'pray the prayer')

All Christians say some words to God on a daily/weekly/monthly basis - sometimes, they give thanks or ask for help. What they say to God is a prayer. A prayer is said to God. If prayer must be included in this expression, the right diction to deploy should be 'say' and not 'pray'. I always say my prayer before going to bed (Not 'I always pray my prayer...')

4. VIGIL (Not 'Night vigil')

Every church often set a day or days apart for a special prayer. Although, it could be in the daybreak or at night - but, the very period of time people stay awake at night to say their special prayers is referred to as a 'vigil'. Since 'vigil' is define as a period of time during the night when people stay awake in order to pray, the word 'night' should not appear again. I was at the vigil last week (Not 'I was at the night vigil last week')

5. PROMISED LAND (Not 'promise Land')

Optimistically, everybody wants to be in a place where happiness and safety is guaranteed. Many aforetime prophets and the saints were able to make it to the Promised Land. The land is not just being promised, it has been promised before now. So, it is scripturally and grammatically accepted as 'Promised Land'.  Everybody is heading to the Promised Land (Not '...heading to the promise Land'). Last but not least, Promised Land is a noun. 

6. BOW YOUR HEAD FOR PRAYERS (Not 'bow down your head for prayers')

There are different positions one could be for prayers. One could lie on the floor, kneel, or stand to pray. One of the common and easy positions is bowing of a head to say prayers. When a head is bowed, it goes forwards and downwards. If the truth be told, a bowed head is always downward and never in a raised position. So, the expression will be adjudged to be grammatically incorrect if the word 'down' is added. In the definition of BOW, there is DOWN already. Therefore, the word 'down' should not be repeated again. Bow your head (Not 'bow down your head')

7. GOD WILL ANSWER YOUR PRAYER (Not 'God will hear your prayer')

There is no time that God does not hear what people say. The fact that God has not answer your prayer yet, does not mean He is deaf. He hears everyone, but He answers His. Sinner's prayer might not be answered, but the saint will definitely be heard. God hears people every time, but He answers at the right time. In the same breath, it is unscriptural and ungrammatical to say 'If God hears my prayer, I will buy that car'. The acceptable way to express that is, 'if God answers my prayer, I will buy that car'.

 Note: Church is not a place where grammar is fully the target; it is a place where God is to be focused on. Nevertheless, every leader in all churches should endeavor to speak right. 

10 USEFUL TIPS TO IMPROVE YOUR SPOKEN ENGLISH

 In many countries, English is everyday language speakers chose as a language of communication. Many speakers are good at it, and other speakers are poor at the speaking of English. If the truth be told, English is a lingua Franca in many societies in this contemporary world. 

Everybody speaks English; few people speak right. The first speaker says, 'The wedding was very interesting', and the second speaker says, 'The wedding is absolutely interesting'. The speakers speak in English; but, only the second speaker speaks right. The first speaker speaks badly - because, INTERESTING in its original meaning, has VERY in its definition already - but, the second speaker modifies INTERESTING with ABSOLUTELY which is grammatically acceptable.

Here, you will be exposed to the tips that will help you speak right in the public. The tips that will help you to be improved on your spoken English will be discussed below. 

To be improved on your spoken English, the useful tips below should be well studied and adhered to:

1. Read regularly.

2. Think in English.

3. Listen to BBC news regularly.

4. Watch English movies. 

5. Listen to advanced speakers. 

6. Record yourself and listen later. 

7. Use English dictionaries regularly.

8. Get feedback from close friends.

9. Take to correction when corrected.

10. Find reasons to speak in public. 

Let's shed light on the aforementioned tips that could help you improve on your spoken English skills:

READ REGULARLY

Everybody believes that, practice makes perfect. What you do or practice regularly, you will definitely be skillful at it. At some point, reading will be something you do on a daily basis - in fact, it has to be what you do on a daily basis. The more you read, the more you know. Therefore, cultivate the habit of reading to become a leader as a result of the reading. Till tomorrow, readers will be leaders. 

THINK IN ENGLISH

It seems people think it's not all human beings that think. For the record, everybody thinks. When you see a man staring at a spot but not really seeing what is in the particular spot, s/he must be thinking or cogitating on something (ir)relevant . Thinking in English helps your spoken English skills. Everybody voices out what s/he thinks - so, what people hear from you is believed to be what your thinking is. Everybody has opportunity to make necessary correction while thinking before voicing out.

LISTEN TO BBC NEWS

On the radio, there are news broadcast in English, broadcast in Pidgin, broadcast in Yoruba, broadcast in Igbo, broadcast in Hausa etc. For the sakes of a better speaking skills, you can give more attention to BBC News - in order to speak right. Listening to BBC News births speaking of British English; if your intention is to speak British English.

WATCH ENGLISH MOVIES

One of the best way to learn speaking is to watch English movies. Many a time, you speak what you hear - not really your usual way of speaking. The movie you watch might make you or break you. If you truly want to spice up your spoken English skills, watch English movies and keep your eyes on the subtitles (if it's subtitled) for words you might not understand.

LISTEN TO ADVANCE SPEAKERS

Listen to Les Brown, Steve Harris, Praise George and many other public speakers. The point of fact is, people choose advanced speakers based on what they are looking for. There are motivational speakers, inspirational speakers - and, there are speakers like pastors, teachers, coaches etc. If your intention is to become a pastor in the near future, you'll have to look out for a pastor that speak the gospel truth with good communication skills. Then, you try to practice what s/he does in your own unique ways.

RECORD YOURSELF AND LISTEN LATER.

Presenters often record themselves in a studio - to listen to themselves back at home. They want to either judge their performance themselves or send to friends to judge their performance. If you listen to your own record and you feel bad about it, your audience/congregation must be feeling the same way you are feeling - once bitten, twice shy. 

USE ENGLISH DICTIONARIES REGULARLY

The final judge that can give a reliable fact is an English dictionary. An up-and-coming elocutionist must consult English dictionaries always - to understand the subtle intricacies of English grammar and English phonics - then, the use of English. All you've got in your speech can only be adjudged to be grammatically and phonetically correct if they are acceptable in English lexicons.

GET FEEDBACK FROM FRIENDS

To know how far you've gone or improved, you will need bonafide friends that will give you genuine feedback on your performance. The genuine feedback you get from them will reveal your strength and your weakness that you will have to work on before another presentation. 

TAKE TO CORRECTION WHEN CORRECTED

The feedback you will get from your friends might appear like discouragement, but you've got to submit yourself to their gospel truth. When corrections come, take note of them, write them down and thank them; so that you'll get more from them. They will definitely tell you the truth on your strength too; but, you must not be fooled or carried away by the truth. Let your attention be on correcting the weakness. 

FIND REASONS TO SPEAK IN PUBLIC 

In case you have nowhere to go to speak in order to record yourself, go out or call your friends on the phone to speak with them on anything that you'll have to be the speaker. Sometimes, you will not be giving speech to deliver, nor a message to preach in your church, mosque or at school - then you have to find another reason to speak with someone around you.  

In conclusion, always speak to yourself and write it someone in your room that; speakers are leaders.

Since you want to be a leader like other successful leaders, you will always be optimistic and work harder - to become a sought-after public speaker, too.

5 CONFUSING EXPRESSIONS

In everyday English, people speak with different dictions that are grammatically correct - but, many listeners find some of the expressions difficult to comprehend. In fact, many of the expressions require Yes, but a listener might unintentionally say NO as s/he knows not what the speaker is insinuating.

The five (5) rampant confusing expressions shall be lucidly rationalized below. 

The five (5) CONFUSING EXPRESSIONS are;

1. In short VS For short.

2. Do you mind VS I don't mind.

3. I can't thank you enough VS Thank you.

4. Chat up VS Chat with. 

5. Upcoming VS Up-and-coming.

Let's rationalize the expressions one by one.

IN SHORT vs FOR SHORT.

Supposed you attend an interesting event, and you have to tell your friend how the event started at 7:30 a.m and ended around 8 p.m. This might take much of the time you've got. So, you have to skip some uninterested part of it to tell the main part of the event. To say that, you would want to say 'In short, the boy won't. It means, you'll say 'IN SHORT' if you want to explain the main part of something. FOR SHORT on the other hand is the shorter way of saying a long name. If you have a long name, it might be difficult for some people to pronounce it. To help the pronouncers, you can make it short for them. If your name is ABDULRASAQ, you can tell people to call you RASAQ for short (Not In short). My name is Abdulrazaq; you can call me Rasaq, for short. 

DO/WOULD YOU MIND vs I DON'T MIND. 

One of the polite ways to ask for permission is 'Do you mind'. If I want you to share this post, I will politely say, 'Would you mind sharing this post?'. The problem in this expression lies in the response. People don't know what to say in response, or they do not know if the answer is to be YES or NO. If the intention is to share the post, 'I don't mind' will be the answer - which is the same as YES. Although, 'Do you mind' could be used when you are mad at a person. If you do not want me in your room, you may say ' Do you mind! I have to be alone right now'. It's another way to tell me that you don't want me in your room at that moment.

There are other five ways to use 'Do you mind' and 'If you don't mind'. Drop your comment if you want more on that.

I CAN'T THANK YOU ENOUGH vs THANK YOU.

One of the positive expressions that appears negative is 'I can't thank you enough'. When you hear this, it means Thank you. If you appreciate something a lot, and Thank you seems not to be enough, you could say 'I can't thank you enough'. God has done so much for me, and I can't thank Him enough. It doesn't mean you don't appreciate what God did. It means, you're very happy and appreciative.  

CHAT UP vs CHAT WITH

Before you can chat a person up, you guys must have been sexually attracted to each other. When you chat up a person, it shows that you're sexually attracted to the person. You can chat your girlfriend/boyfriend up because, you guys are sexually attracted to each other. CHAT WITH on the other hand is an informal conversation with your friends, colleagues, siblings, cousins etc.  The aforementioned people could be chatted with about something (ir)relevant.

UPCOMING vs UP-AND-COMING

The words are never paid attention to, by many speakers of English in many English speaking countries. Till date, many speakers are still using the words wrongly. UPCOMING is used with event/programmes (spelling bee, wedding, festival etc). Example sentences; I will register ten students for the upcoming spelling bee. The upcoming festival will be more interesting than this. But, up-and-coming on the other hand is used to modify a person in a field/profession. There are Up-and-coming doctors, up-and-coming lawyers, up-and-coming professors etc. Pay attention here; the up-and-coming tells you

that the people are likely to be successful or popular in the professions. 

In a nutshell, the five (5) confusing expressions are not limited to the way they were been used in sentences above. Kindly drop your comments or chip in with your opinion in the comment section.  

A to Z OF SILENT LETTERS

In Spoken English, if a letter that should be silent in pronunciation is articulated, one might look stupid when s/he realizes the phonetical incorrectness of the pronunciation. 

A letter could be present in a written form, but absent in pronunciation. It means, a letter(s) could be boldly written and be muted in the pronunciation. A letter in a word could be silent, and an entire syllable could be silent in different words too. For instance, the T in DEPOT should not be pronounced; the S in ISLAND must be muted and the OR in COMFORTABLE could be silent. 

Many a time, letters might follow each other, but one will make a sound while another will be silent. It happens in PSYCHOLOGY (P is silent for S to make a sound), PHONOLOGY (P and H do not make their sounds, but the consonant sound /f/ replaced their sounds) etc. 

Thumb through the words with silent letter(s) under each letter of the English alphabet below:

A: library, Musically, Drastically etc.

B: Debt, Tomb, Plumber, Comb etc.

C: Indictment etc.

D: Landlord, Handsome, Handkerchief etc.

E: Hostel, Model, Novel Leicester etc.

F: Halfpenny etc

G: Resign, Gnash, Light, Might, Fight etc 

H: Vehement, Vehicle, Honest, Ghost etc.

I: Business, Suit etc

J: Marijuana etc.

K: Knowledge, Knit, Knight etc

L: Almond, Palm, Half, Psalm etc.

M: Mnemonic etc. 

N: Hymn, Column, Solemn etc.

O: Colonel, Leopard, Jeopardy etc.

P: Receipt, Psychology, Pneumonia Psalm etc.

Q: Lacquer etc.

R: Farmer, Guitar, Forefathers etc.

S: Island, Chassis, Isle, Debris, Bourgeois etc.

T: Debt, Apostle, Beret, Listen etc.

U: Guard, Build, Guess, Tongue, Laugh etc

V (The letter seems not to be silent words)

W: Who, Sword, Wrath Whole etc.

X: Faux etc

Y: Beyond (The letter is not completely silent. The articulation of it - depends on how a pronouncer pronounces it) It make be articulated as BE-OND without the sound /j/.

Z: Rendezvous Chez etc.

In short, letters that are known as silent letters should not be articulated in words. Although a letter might be silent in a word, then make a sound in another word. For instance, T is silent in LISTEN, and it must be enunciated in RETIRE - If it is mistaken as a letter to be silent in RETIRE, one might end up in the web of malapropism.

WRONG USE OF PREPOSITIONS

One of the difficult parts of speech to use correctly is a preposition. Prepositions are words that are used before a noun, pronoun or gerund; to show a place, a time or a direction of something/somebody. Prepositions are included in everyday English. Therefore, they are inescapable. If one deploys wrong preposition in an expression, such expression might be misunderstood or ungrammatical. 

The prepositions people deploy wrongly on a daily basis are; 

 1. My son is a student AT the University of Lagos. 

Note: A person can be a student AT a school (NOT of). In British English, it is grammatical correct to say 'IN the school. For example, 'The boy is in the school'. 

2. My daughter is a student OF medicine AT University of Nigeria. 

Note: Obviously, a person can be a student OF something (medicine, Biology, English and Literature etc.) AT a school (Oxford University, University of Ibadan etc.).

CAMPUS in the same breath, agrees with 'ON'. The land and buildings of a Univerty or a college is referred to as a CAMPUS. One can be ON a campus or OFF campus. There might be a building that belongs to a school, but situated outside the school. Any student or member of staff living in such building is living OFF campus. 

 3. Benjamin is IN the queue. 

 Note: A line of people is simply called a QUEUE. 'ON' is the suitable preposition to deploy for a person that stands or wait in the queue. standing/waiting/beeing IN the queue does not mean, a person is inside a queue; as people think. 

4. He beckoned TO Ezekiel to fight Ben. 

Note: Beckon is synonymous with CALL. To beckon TO a person is to make a signal with your hand to a person to do something. One beckons TO (NOT on). 

5. In London, I live in an environment - conducive TO learning. 

Note: A place that provides conditions that makes learning easy is conducive TO learning (NOT for). 

 To understand proper use of prepositions, one needs to understand the messages each preposition passes, in order to deploy suitable preposition in all expressions.

SOUNDS AND SPELLING PATTERNS

To

get the pronunciations of some words correctly, phonetical rules are to be well studied. Sounds and spelling patterns expose you to the reasons why letters make different sounds in different words. The sound C makes in CENTRE is different from what it makes in CAMERA.

 The patterns shall be discussed below; 

CONSONANT SOUND /s/

 It's a fricative voiceless alveolar sound that attracts C, S and SC. 

Example; 

1. C: centre, face, cylinder etc. 

2. S: send, press, meets etc. 

3. SC: science, scene, scenario etc.

CONSONANT SOUND /ʃ/ 

It's a voiceless fricative palatal sound that attracts SH, CH, C, S, T etc. 

Example; 

1. SH: sheep, flesh, sharp etc. 

2. CH: chef, charlatan, creche etc. 

3. S: sugar, omission, admission etc. 

4. C: precious, gracious, ocean etc. 

5. T: rotation, caution, petition etc. 

 Note: In French words, CH sounds /ʃ/

CONSONANT SOUND /f/ 

It's a voiceless fricative labiodental sound that attracts F, PH, GH etc. 

Example; 

1. F: face, film, feature etc. 

2. PH: phonetic, physics, phase etc. 

3. GH: cough, laugh, tough etc. 

Note: GH is silent in right, fight, plough, bright, plight, weight etc. 

CONSONANT SOUND /dʒ/ 

It's a voiced palatal sound that attracts G, J, GE, DGE etc. 

Many a time, the letter that succeeded G determines the sound. 

Example; 

1. G: frigid, gym, gymnastics etc. 

2. J: joyful, jeep, juice etc. 

3. GE: large, divulge, marge etc. 

4. DGE: lodge, hedge, fudge etc. 

 Note: If G is followed by e, i or y, it sounds /dʒ/. If it does not followed by any of the letters, (e,i,y) it sounds /g/.

CONSONANT SOUND /tʃ/ 

It's a voiceless affricate palatal sound that attracts T, CH, TCH etc. 

Example; 

1. T: picture, rapture, venture etc. 

2. CH: church, chest, chap etc. 

3. TCH: catch, fetch, watch etc. 

CONSONANT SOUND /ʒ/ 

It's a voiced fricative palatal sound that attracts S and G.

Example; 

1. S: confusion, occasion, pleasure, measure, usual, erosion, television, vision, visual, evasion etc.  

2. G: garage, mirage, genre etc. 

CONSONANT SOUND /k/

It's a stop voiceless velar sound that attracts K, C, CH etc. 

Example; 

1. K: keg, kangaroo, kindergarten etc. 

2. C: calendar, capture, command etc. 

3. CH: chrome, chorus, chemistry etc. 

Note: CK could be combined to make the sound /k/, in words like; lock, cock, pluck, rock, buck, clock etc. If C on the other hand is followed by e, i or y; it makes /s/ (NOT /k/).

 In conclusion, many consonant sounds do not make a (one) sound, but two or more. Other consonant sounds attract digraph.

MISUSED/MISQUOTED/MISINTERPRETED IDIOMS

An idiom is a style of expression in written and a spoken English, with a special meaning that is different from the ordinary meaning of each separate word. For example, 'STONE'S THROW' is an idiom meaning 'A VERY SHORT DISTANCE'. 

 

The idiom (stone's throw) has nothing to do with a stone being thrown. Many idioms are often misused, misquoted and misinterpreted. 

Some of the idioms shall be shed light on below;

 1. FOR BETTER OR WORSE. 

This idiom is mostly used in a wedding; whenever a man and wife are to be joined together to become a husand and a wife. Everyone knows that MARRIAGE IS FOR BETTER OR WORSE. If it is FOR better OR for worse, the couple are expected to endure or enjoy whatever that happens in it. 

 Don't say/write: Marriage is for better for worse. 

Say or Write: Marriage is for better or worse. Note: One could use the optional word 'FOR' in the expression. 'Marriage is for better or FOR worse. 

 2. A SNAKE IN THE GRASS. 

Many users of this idiom are fond of saying GREEN SNAKE UNDER THE GREEN GRASS. A snake is known as a dangerous animal. So, whosoever that pretends to be a friend but cannot be trusted is pictured as 'a snake in the grass' (NOT a snake under the green grass). 

 Don't say/write: S/he is a green snake under the green grass. 

Say or Write: S/he is a snake in the grass. 

 3. ADD INSULT TO INJURY. The idiom is wrongly written or spoken as 'add salt to injury' by many speakers of English; especially people that speak English as their second language. Many a time, we worsen an unfavourable situation with what we say or do in the process of solving a problem. If one says or does something that does not solve problems but worsen it, you are adding INSULT to injury (NOT add SALT to injury)

Don't say/write: They mimicked him, to add salt to injury. 

Say or Write: They mimicked him, to add insult to injury. 

 4. TURN OVER A NEW LEAF. 

There must not be a change whatsoever to idioms as they are fixed expressions. The idiom (Turn over a new leaf) is to change way of life, to become a better person or a responsible person. People often drop 'OVER' in the idiom; to say 'turn a new leaf'. 

Don't say/write: My mentor advised me to turn a new leaf. 

Say or Write: My mentor advised me to turn over a new leaf. 

5. BEHIND THE SCENES. 

Films always have different scenes, and they are simply referred to as SCENES. Any part of a film that the public should/must not see/watch is referred to as 'Behind the sceneS'. The S in the scenes must not be dropped. The SCENE being released out of the SCENES in a film is a SCENE out of the SCENES. 

Don't say/write: Political decisions should not be made behind the scene. 

Say or Write: Political decisions should not be made behind the scenes. 

In conclusion, idiomatic expressions in English lexicons must not be reconstructed nor changed. They are fixed expressions that should be used the way they are.

THE MISUSE OF PhD

PhD simply means 'Doctor of Philosophy'. It is the highest university degree or one who has it. From the vantage point of semantics, it doesn't need the noun *holder* to collocate with it. 

Don't say/write: He is a PhD holder.

Say or write: He is a PhD. 

Saying someone is a PhD implies saying the said person is a 'Doctor of Philosophy'. Therefore, we should steer clear of including the noun *holder* However, it is incumbent upon me to apprise you of the fact that:

while *PhD* does not collocate with *holder*, it collocates with words such as student, thesis etc. As such, it is spot on to say or write: She's a *PhD student* Aberdeen University, Uk.