speak
v.— «Have you gone through a file in a government office. The official language has developed over the years and there seems hardly any change having taken place with the lapse of time.The usual words like “approved,” “as proposed,” “May like to see,” “Put up P.C” etc are used during recording decisions on the official files. Another word of interest is “Please speak.” This is usually used to get immediate clarification from the subordinate staff. But, in the offices which are known for use of money power, the word “speak” has an interesting significance attached. This is used to elaborate whether greasing of officer’s palm has been attained. “Sir will definitely clear this file, I have already spoken.” is enough to describe that the officer has received the amount what was due to him in the particular case.» —“Script apna apna” by Shafi Ahmad Greater Kashmir (India) Dec. 6, 2004. (source: Double-Tongued Dictionary)
Further reading
The English language has been greatly enriched by borrowings from the languages of Asia. Barely scratching the surface, we have from Japan skosh, tycoon, tsunami, origami, yen, kimono, futon, and karaoke. From Chinese comes yen, kowtow, gung ho, and...
How and why do words from one language find their way into another? Vietnamese, for instance, includes many words borrowed or adapted from French, a vestige of colonialism. For example, the Vietnamese word for “train station,” ga, comes...