August 20, 2011 - Word of the Day: gotcha

Today's word of the day isn't a real word. It's actually two words--"got" and "you"--put together. The "ch" sound is a result of the "t" sound gliding into the "y" sound (which happens a lot in English). There are a few different ways of using this word:

1. "gotcha" = Your teacher often uses this. It's very similar to "Okay, I understand."

• A: We need to move this machine away from he wall to reach the outlet.
• B: Okay, gotcha.

• A: There's isn't any ink left in the toner. Can you get me a new toner cartridge, please?
• B: Gotcha.

2. "gotcha" = Adults sometimes use this with children. A little boy or girl is running around the room and then suddenly an adult or a parent reaches down, grabs the child, and says "Gotcha!"

3. "gotcha" = You can use this as an adjective to describe an unfair question or a question that makes a person look foolish or uncomfortable in answering it.

• The reporter asked the woman running for office a few "gotcha" questions.
• The students tried to ask the teacher a few "gotcha" questions, but she answered them without any problem.

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