English for Today by Ganiu Abisoye Bamgbose (Dr GAB)
CATACHRESIS
Don’t tell him what you don’t want others to know about; he’s such a *lousy* person (Popular Nigerian English).
Don’t tell him what you don’t want others to know about; he’s such a *talkative* person (standard).
A lousy person is not a loquacious or talkative person. If you describe someone as lousy, you mean that they are very bad at something they do:
He never attends to his students; he is a *lousy* teacher (standard).
That’s such a *bogus* amount of money (Popular Nigerian English).
That’s such a *huge* amount of money (standard).
Bogus does not mean large. If you describe something as bogus, you mean that it is not genuine:
He presented *bogus* and inaccurate figures (standard).
GAB
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