trip,conspicuously silent, louder than words, conspicuous consumption

Conspicuous Consumption, a Casualty of Recession

By SHAILA DEWAN 3:16 PM ET

In the consumer race to have the latest and the best of everything, the downturn has tripped the reset button.

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In the past two elections, China has tried and failed to intimidate Taiwanese voters. In 1996 it fired missiles in an attempt to scare voters away from the KMT’s independence-minded Lee Teng-hui—who this week endorsed the DPP’s Mr Hsieh. Again, in 2000, China gave warning of the danger of voting for pro-independence candidates. This year, it seemed to have learned its lesson and has been conspicuously silent. But events in Tibet have spoken louder than words.

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trip (SWITCH) Show phonetics
verb [T] -pp-
to move a switch that operates an electrical system, or to cause such a system to start or stop working by moving a switch:
A special system prevents the circuitry being tripped accidentally by a power surge or lightning strike.


conspicuous consumption noun [U] DISAPPROVING
when people spend a lot of money intentionally so that other people notice and admire them for their wealth
conspicuous Show phonetics
adjective
very noticeable or tending to attract attention, often in a way that is not wanted:
In China, her blonde hair was conspicuous.
He tried not to look conspicuous and moved slowly along the back of the room.
NOTE: The opposite is inconspicuous.

conspicuously Show phonetics
adverb
in a way that is conspicuous:
The temple's grand white arches rose conspicuously over the dirty decaying city.