What does ‘fatigued' mean?

There is a tendency among some people to use the two words interchangeably - especially, in informal contexts. It is wrong to do so. Of the two, ‘tired’ is the more frequently used. When we say we are tired, what we mean is that we are running low on energy. We all get tired from time to time - for example, after playing a couple of sets of tennis, after a long day’s work, etc. We don’t panic when this happens because we know why we are tired. We can overcome our tiredness either by eating something that will give us the energy back or by getting some rest - a good night’s sleep, perhaps! The lack of energy that we experience when we are tired is only temporary.

The children were extremely tired after trekking for two hours.

You look very tired. Get some rest before tomorrow’s big game.

It is possible for one to be both physically and mentally tired.

‘Fatigue’ is a little more serious than being tired. Unlike ‘tired’, it is not a temporary phenomenon. One can feel fatigued for days together; it is long lasting, and what is more alarming is that we may not always know the cause. It could be your diabetes or your heart condition that leaves you fatigued. No amount of rest helps in the recovery, and the constant tiredness often prevents you from doing your work. It interferes with your daily routine. This constant fatigue is your body’s way of telling you that something is wrong.

Is something wrong? You’ve been looking fatigued for a week now.

The doctor was unable to tell me as to why I was so fatigued.

The word consists of two syllables; the ‘a’ in the first sounds like the ‘a’ in ‘china’, while the following ‘i’ is like the ‘ee’ in ‘fee’, ‘bee’ and ‘see’. The word is pronounced ‘fe-TEEG’ with the stress on the second syllable.

Today, when we hear the word ‘litter’, the first thing that comes to mind is the trash we see everywhere in our cities. This meaning of the word, however, came much later. ‘Litter’ comes from the Latin ‘lectus’ meaning ‘bed’, and it was originally used to refer to the portable chair or bed carried on poles – in the past, royals like Julius Caesar and Cleopatra used to be carried from one place to another in these. With the passage of

time, the meaning of the word took on a broader meaning, and soon ‘litter’ began to be used to refer any kind of bed – including the layer of straw that owners sometimes spread on the floor when their pet cat or dog was ready to give birth. It was not long after that the focus changed from the bed to the new-born that were lying on the bed. The animals born to the same mother around the same time began to be called litter. The term is normally used with animals which give birth to several offspring - dogs, cats, pigs, etc.

Manisha’s dog gave birth to a litter of seven puppies.

I plan to give away the litter of kittens. Are you interested in adopting one?