“Is the box of sweets for me?”
“Not a chance. I bring you sweets only on your birthday. This is for my nephew. He called very excitedly yesterday to say that he’d come first in an inter-school quiz competition.”
“That’s wonderful news! He must be cock-a-hoop about winning.”
“Cock-a-hoop? Does it mean to be extremely happy about something?”
“Exactly! When you’re cock-a-hoop about something, you’re pleased or excited. The expression is considered old fashioned, and is mostly limited to informal contexts.”
“I see. How about this example? My mother was positively cock-a-hoop about the fact that her brother was visiting us next week.”
“Sounds good. All my cousins were cock-a-hoop about India winning the World Cup.”
“Quite a few people were. Everyone at home was cock-a-hoop over the raise I got.”
“Your friend also got a raise, right? I’m sure she is cock-a-hoop about the new flat that she’s bought. Any idea when she’s moving in?”
“I’m not sure about when she’s moving in. Initially, she seemed very excited. But now, she seems concerned. She feels it was a mistake buying such a big flat.”
“These things usually happen. Your friend is experiencing buyer’s remorse.”
“Buyer’s remorse? What does it mean?”
“It’s the sense of guilt that you have after buying something expensive. It could be a house, a laptop, a car…”
“Or a fancy motorcycle. I think I understand. When you have buyer’s remorse, you’re worried about the financial implications — whether you’ll be able to repay the loan you’ve probably taken.”
“Whether the loan will become a financial burden. You have a feeling of uncertainty as to whether you’ve done the right thing or not. Last year, I bought a really expensive home theatre system. It took me nearly six months to get over my buyer’s remorse.”
“My sister loves to shop. But when she returns, she usually has buyer’s remorse. Wondering if she should have bought half the things she did.”
“That’s a good example! The term ‘buyer’s remorse’ can be used in other contexts as well. For example, if the person you have supported turns out to be a crook, then you can be overcome with a sense of buyer’s remorse.”
“You’re ashamed to have supported such a candidate.”
“Exactly! Many people who voted for the President are now experiencing buyer’s remorse.”
“I endorsed the CEO’s plan of action to downsize. I can tell you to this day I haven’t experienced buyer’s remorse. Now, before I forget, how do you pronounce a…s…t…h…m…a. Is the ‘th’ pronounced like…”
“The ‘th’ in the word is not pronounced; it is silent. The ‘a’ in the first syllable sounds like the ‘a’ in ‘bat’, ‘hat’ and ‘pat’, while the ‘a’ in the second sounds like the ‘a’ in ‘china’.”
“So, the word is pronounced ‘AS-me’ with the stress on the first syllable!”
“That’s one way of pronouncing the word. The Americans tend to pronounce the ‘s’ like the ‘z’ in ‘zip’ and ‘zoo’. They pronounce the word ‘AZ-me’.”
“No matter how you pronounce the ‘s’, the stress is always on the first syllable. Do you have asthma?”
“Luckily, I don’t! But the nephew who came first, does. I’d better take the box of sweets to him.”
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Published - April 28, 2025 08:30 am IST
