The UK Mirror published an article on 6 December
2016 with the headline: Kate Moss looks worse for wear as she parties after
glamorous British Fashion Awards. What does ‘worse for wear’ mean? The image
shows Kate Moss, the model.
The Free Dictionary by
Farlex defines ‘worse for wear’ as a euphemism for ‘intoxicated’ – too much
alcohol. A euphemism is an indirect word, usually used when the writer or
speaker wants to be polite. The American Heritage Dictionary of Idioms defines
the phrase ‘worse for wear’ as ‘in poor physical condition.’ Cambridge
Dictionary defines ‘worse for wear’ as ‘tired or in poor condition because of a
lot of work or use.’ Let’s read the article.
The first sentence
says, ‘Kate Moss appeared a little worse for wear as she partied into the night
after this year’s British Fashion Awards.’
The article adds that
Kate Moss was spotted (seen) leaving a celebrity hotspot (popular nightclub)
‘after what seemed to have been a long night. ‘Although she kept up her usual
sense of style, her appearance wasn’t quite matching her red carpet sizzle from
earlier in the evening,’ said the article. The article adds later, ‘Kate, 42,
looked ever so less classy as she appeared to stumble and baulk at the cold
temperature.’
The article mentions
the phrase ‘worse for wear’ only once – and once is enough. However, from the
article, and image, readers can see that Moss is not her usual catwalk model
elegance. The article makes no reference to alcohol consumption, only to her
‘poor physical condition.’ In this case the physical condition is the state of
her clothes and her stumble. With the use of the phrase ‘a long night’ there is
a suggestion of Moss being ‘tired.’
The Scorecard for the
Mirror headline is 95%. Credit goes to the article for not jumping to too many
conclusions about Kate Moss and her level of intoxication or tiredness or
‘worse for wear’ state. But there are sublte nuances and suggestions. The
article lets readers make their own conclusions by looking at the unflattering
images of the model.
Of course the headline
is also a reflection of the clothes that Moss wears as a fashion model. So
credit again goes to the article for its second sentence: ‘The supermodel has
earned a reputation as one of the ultimate ‘party girls’ over her 28 year
career in the industry, and she still looked as stylish as ever on Monday.’ So
the ‘worse for wear’ is, in this article, a statement of her looking a little
less glamorous than usual, but nevertheless still stylish.
MARTINA NICOLLS is an international
aid and development consultant, and the author of:- The Shortness of
Life: A Mongolian Lament (2015), Liberia’s Deadest Ends (2012), Bardot’s Comet
(2011), Kashmir on a Knife-Edge (2010) and The Sudan Curse (2009).
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