Foiled again!

[Elf]

What's the meaning of "Foiled again!"

[Alan]

Hi Elf,

This means once more you have been tricked/deceived.

Alan
_________________
English as a Second Language
You can read my ESL story Present Simple

[VerballyCompetent]

I'm sorry, Alan, especially given that you're a co-founder, but that is part of an expression made famous by a character, Dastardly Dan, with a varied history on television, with an opposite connotation.

Dastardly Dan himself was a villain noted for his trickery and deceit. The hero would thwart (esl guys, prevent, stop) Dastardly Dan's clever little ruses, at which point he would exclaim 'Curses. Foiled again." To restate, rather than mean a person has himself been tricked again, it means a person has been interrupted or stopped in the attempt to do so to another person. It really carries the association that the person saying it was the villain, not the victim.

(This is my first post here. My cred's: I had the highest verbal scores ever in my grad school, sky-high Miller Analogies, and am reasonably competent with the English language. I'm getting older, and I am aware that I've acquired a lot of misconceptions over usage along the way, when, rather than research immediately, I tried to determine via context--which is likely the root of a lot of malapropisms, etc for many. Luckily, for the most part I've double-checked, and at this point in life, triple-check. Also luckily, I've studied Latin, Classical Greek, French, and speak some Spanish, so I have a good sense of the 'roots of words--etymology.

I am, however, a terrible typist, so I'll try to check for typo's. I am also commited to accuracy, as clear communication is dependent on a shared understanding of meaning, which is what prompted my joining this group. I hope I can be of some use, as well as being prompted to explore areas that are unclear to me, as well.)

[Alan]

Hi,

Welcome to the forum. No need to apologise. You have added some useful information. On reflection your explanation stands up better than mine and I think 'thwarted' is a good synonym. Look forward to hearing from you again.

Alan
_________________
English as a Foreign Language
You can read my EFL story Progressive Forms

[VerballyCompetent]

Thank you very much, Alan, for your warm welcome. I'm sure you have a huge amount of members, but, on the chance that you are able to remember me: I appreciate those who are more interested in approaching truth than maintaining their egos. That you've just demonstrated, and I take much the same approach. I'm hoping to start writing in earnest and have a huge amount to learn about the process. This is a great place to reassess usage a person has taken for granted. I had a Mexican friend say to me, on seeing a billboard sign 'oh, Buggle Boy' for Bugle Boy. I had never studied English pronunciation much, but I wanted to see if there was a general rule that would help him. In the process I learned the general rule about long or short vowels preceding single or double consonants. It's since been a help when I forget spelling or learn new words--except for the drat exceptions scampering all over the language, too fast to be swatted down.

It's late here--2:20 am, and I'm about to turn in, but I was wondering if the differences in the local usage in the UK v. the US presents many problems here? If there's a ready answer here, please excuse my laziness. I'm very tired and have some injuries making it difficult to type. Also, is it a help for the ESL students if posts are typed in a formally correct manner? (I just did the lazy 'am', an accomplishment as I've been so overly precise I'm starting to feel like a anachronism.

Thank you in advance. I am flagging...

Kathy Coe

[Alan]

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Hi Kathy,

Don't worry about being formal or informal. Just be yourself. We get the occasional spat along the lines of: You say tomato, I say tomato. But that sort of thing doesn't last long. Tell us more about yourself.

Alan
_________________
English as a Second Language
You can read my ESL story Passive Voice