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ClarissaMach

"Dr Bollen spotted another curious correlation. When he compared trends in the national mood with movements of the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA) he noticed that changes in one of the mood measure's seven components, anxiety, predicted swings in the share-price index. Spikes in anxiety levels were followed, around three days later, by dips in the price of shares. Why this happens remains unclear, but one possible explanation is that the falling prices were caused by traders' tendency to exit risky positions when feeling STRUNG UP".

In the English test I did yesterday, it was asked if the idiom STRUNG UP might be replaced by the word ANXIOUS. Do you think it is was wrong?
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Stormy Weather.

IanT · Joined: 13 Sep 2012 Posts: 340 Location: Spain

Basically, the use of "strung up" in the text is incorrect. (or at least very unusual!)

It should be "strung out". This can mean anxious, more or less, and can also suggest lack of sleep or use of stimulant drugs.

"Strung up" normally means "hanged", what used to happen to murderers etc.

Nowadays it normally only occurs in the phrase "they should be strung up", used to talk about people whose behaviour one strongly disapproves of.
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All my answers refer to British English.

www.EnglishSwearing.com - How to use all the bad words! ... and ... www.throdworld.com - Silly verses to make you happy.

You decide the price for both!

ClarissaMach · Posted: Mon Dec 03, 2012 10:52 am Post subject:

Well, this text was taken from "The economist":

http://www.economist.com/node/18750604

I'm from Brazil and I just did an English text in which I was supposed to answer if the idiom "strung up" might be replaced by the word anxious in this sentence...

I hate this kind of question. I think it does not evaluate anything at all.
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Stormy Weather.

IanT · Joined: 13 Sep 2012 Posts: 340 Location: Spain

Clarissa,

Checking online, it seems as if this meaning of strung up does exist.

So, yes, anxious would be an acceptable substitution.

Personally, I've never seen "strung up" written, or heard it said, with this meaning before. And I read A LOT! Very Happy

But hey, live and learn.

Best wishes,
Ian
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All my answers refer to British English.

www.EnglishSwearing.com - How to use all the bad words! ... and ... www.throdworld.com - Silly verses to make you happy.

You decide the price for both!

ClarissaMach · Posted: Tue Dec 04, 2012 5:45 am Post subject:

I believe in you!

You see how much effort the examiners responsible for preparing these tests do in order to derail students...
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Stormy Weather.