13 Delightful Indianisms All English Speakers Need
Read this post only.
1. "Complaint box" = someone who complains a lot.
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2. "Don't eat my head" = don't annoy me.
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3. "Please adjust" = I am asking you to compromise or improvise to make this situation work.
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Use when: you've booked a table for four but it turns out you're going to be six and the host is giving you grief.
4. "Kindly do the needful" = please do what is necessary (and get it done).
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It sounds weird to today's North American or British ear, but this Victorian-era phrase is still common in Indian business settings. Frequently seen in pleas to customer service departments:
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5. "Pre-pone" = to move something up (the opposite of postpone).
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6. "PJ" = poor joke.
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7. "BT" = bad trip, used by people in Delhi to describe bad experiences (not necessarily drug-related).
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8. "Send" used to request the passing of table items, as in "send the salt, please."
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9. "Mugging" = cramming for an exam.
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Not sure exactly how this works, but I'm guessing you point a gun at your textbook and ask it to give you all the facts inside quickly OR ELSE.
10. "Passed out" = graduated, as in "passed out of college."
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Not the way Americans pass out in college.
11. "Foreign-return" = someone who's returned home after living abroad.
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12. "On" and "off" used as verbs, as in "off the lights, will you?"
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"I offed them" doesn't sound ominous at all.
13. "Only" tacked on the end of sentences for emphasis, as in "I am doing this only" (ie. right now, when asked about the status of a task).
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Yes, I am doing the needful only, if you would just leave me to it. Kindly.
Thanks to the BuzzFeed India team, who suggested phrases for this post.