English for Today by Ganiu Abisoye Bamgbose (Dr GAB)
LEXICAL ERRORS
I can’t build a mansion even I were a billionaire. I don’t like ~bogus~ houses (nonstandard).
I can’t build a mansion even I were a billionaire. I don’t like ~big~ houses (nonstandard).
If you describe something as bogus, you mean that it is not genuine:
His claims are bogus (false, fraudulent, illegal, deceptive). ✅
Once I open my door, I see her door because her room is ~adjacent~ to mine (nonstandard).
Once I open my door, I see her door because her room is *opposite* mine (nonstandard).
If one thing is adjacent to another, the two things are next to each other:
Her house number is 2 and mind is 4; our houses are adjacent to each other. ✅
The reason for my action is not ~far-fetched~ (nonstandard).
The reason for my action is *obvious* (standard).
If you describe a story or idea as far-fetched, you are criticising it because you think it is unlikely to be true or practical. So, when an idea is not far-fetched, that means it is believable:
That many Nigerians are suffering is not far-fetched ( that means it is believable that many Nigerians are suffering). ✅
GAB
