CROSSROADS Language StudioÊs Newsletter March,
March , 2022
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They are not always on time, sometimes
too crowded and not all that comfortable tosit (or stand) in, but buses are an essential
mode of transportation in all major cities
around the world. Buses? How long havethey been a part of our daily life? And where
did the name “bus” come from, anyway?
Blaise Pascal introduced the general public
to a new concept of public transportation withthe first horse-drawn “bus” in Paris way
back in 1662. The idea was initially popular
but clearly ahead of its time, as it lasted only
15 years before this mode of transport wasabandoned. The problem was that the pricefor a ticket was too high and only the well-todo could afford a ride.
The horse-drawn“bus” finally made acomeback in theearly 19th century(some 150 yearslater!). This wasagain in France, inElla
Bordeaux. These vehicles soon also appeared in
Paris, New York and London. In those earlydays,
it was common for passengers to ride on
Janis
the roof as well as within the carriage.
Okay, so where did the name “bus” comefrom? “Bus” is a derivative of the Latin word
Omnibus meaning “for all.” One account of
how the horse-drawn vehicle became anOmnibus goes like this: In 1823 there was ahatter’s shop in front of one of the first “bus”
stations in Nantes, France. The family nameof the proprietor was Omnes. “Omnes
Omnibus” was a pun on the Latin-sounding
name omnes meaning “all” and omnibus
meaning “for all.” It didn’t take long for thecitizens of Nantes to decide that “Omnibus”
was a suitable name for the vehicle too.

Thus (if thisaccountisaccurate) wasborn the name
“Omnibus” toidentify thevehicle used totransport several people around in acarriage within the city.
In the 1830’s, steam powered Omnibuses
started to operate at around the same timeas the horse-drawn variety. Electric trolleys
powered by overhead cables were soon tofollow. The writing was on the wall for theend of the era of horse-drawn transportation.
Internal combustion engines were the nextstage in the evolution of inner-citytransportation and in 1905 motorized transport
started to significantly replace the horse-drawnvariety. The Omnibus then became known as
the Auto-bus. In time, the names “Omnibus”
and “Auto-bus” were abbreviated to just plain
old “bus,” as we call them today.
But the word “omnibus” (meaning “for all” or“all”) doesn’t have to accept the indignity of
being abbreviated to just three letters. As anadjective, Omnibus also means:
1. An anthology of one author’s or poet’s work
published in single volume.
2. Also, a compilation of several TV or radio
episodes into a single instalment.
3. An omnibus survey is marketing researchwhere data on a wide variety of subjects iscollected at the same time.
In fact, omnibus can describe almost anythingwith multiple components…..just like a bus fullof people…. Useful word, hah…!

NET LESSONS: Too busy to come to CROSSROADS?
…. Try our lessons on the net!
Here are a variety of example sentences using omnibus:

https://sentence.yourdictionary.com/omnibus

Joshua Says: want to encourage our students to read English books and articles,
watch English language movies and TV, and generally get more involved in this kindof home study. Of course “passive” learning is not as good as “pro-active” learning(speaking, etc), but this is probably the best way to keep involved between lessons.
Take notes of new words and expressions, then bring these to class and try them out– of course, using your new words is the best way to remember them.
Junko Says: We have been offering our “New Ichibancho Opening
Campaign” to new comers from the beginning of March. We hope thatmany people who need to and wish to speak English will get to know us atour new address. So, please give our 1+1 Special tickets to your friends andget a reduction (of 10% to 50%) off your own term fees next term.
Marek Says: The English language shares many words with other major
European languages. Knowing the vocabulary of one European language almost
invariably results in a knowledge of the vocabulary of another. For example, theword CURVE (a bend) exists in German, Italian, Spanish, Swedish as: KURVE,CURVA, CURVA, KURVA respectively. The knowledge of English allows you tofairly easily progress to a good command of another European language.
Mandcy dit: Ce mois-ci, j'ai été très surprise par l'annonce de l'entrée en guerrede la Russie. En effet, l'Europe a été justement créé pour préserver la Paix et pours'unir contre la guerre. C'est donc vraiment très triste de voir ça juste après ses
longues années de corona. Petit point positif de ce mois de mars : comme je suis
vraiment adorable, j'ai reçu beaucoup de gâteaux pour la white day. Je vais prendre
4 kilo avant l'été. C'est terrible mais c'était vraiment delicieux *-*ACROSS
1 in an important way
4 parts of a broadcast serial
5 idea6 a collection of various things
7 able to pay for
8 many of
9 restored or returned
14 how something is done
16 parts of something
17 based on or imitating
something
18 made shorter
19 things gathered together
20 someone who makes andsells hats
DOWN
2 insult to one's self-esteem
3 true, correct
10 left behind
11 the owner of a business
12 a humorous play on words
13 at the beginning
15 absolutely necessary

1234567891110

1213

14151617181920(print version here)Try again! Select the correct interpretation, A, B or C for each of
the following proverb:„You can catch more flies with honey than with vinegar‰ –A: It’s better to eat sweet things rather than sour things.
B: You should stop flies from coming into your house.
C: Use persuasion and politeness to win people to your siderather than confrontation and threats.

„When one door shuts, another will open‰ –A: When you loose an opportunity to do something, anopportunity to do something else will appear.
B: You can’t succeed if you continually change your mind.
C: Keep trying, never give up on your dreams.

„Watch the doughnut, not the hole‰ –A: It is not good for your health to eat junk-food every day.
B: When making an important decision, it is better to see thewhole picture, not just the details.
C: Focus on what you have and not on what you don’t have.

„The squeaky wheel gets the grease‰ –A: If you talk too much, people will start to ignore you.
B: People who complain the most are the ones that get the mostattention.
C: If you complain too much, your friends and colleagues
will not offer you any help.
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D E L I C A T EUBIDLLIS Y N T H E T I CBTLN O W A D A Y SR E L A T I V E L Y

Last Month’s Puzzle Solution
ACROSS
4 opposite of aggressive
6 able to accomplish apurpose
7 direct the course ofsomething
9 water in the atmosphere
14 materials to protect fromnoise,
heat, etc.
15 tiny pieces of anything
17 easily broken or damaged
18 not of natural origin
19 currently happening orexisting

DOWN
1 cloth often for wearing
2 disturbing, irritating
3 to a moderate extent
5 making a great effort
8 continuing for a long time
10 not easy to believe
11 a walk usually for exercise
12 strike suddenly
13 observable with the eye
16 able to hear

Don’t forget… Our SPECIAL 1+1 Campaign offer! Up to 50% off!!
See our notice board, or ask Junko in our office, for the details.