Hi Vincent, You need an adverb at the end of each sentence. Sentence (a) would need 'tidily' in order to be grammatically correct. Sentence (b) can use either neatly or carefully.Read More...
John is in class every morning from 9:00 to 12:00. Two days ago, I (call) ______1______ him at 11.30, but I could not reach him because he (attend) _____2_____ class at that time. Can we answer question number 1 with "was calling" instead of "called (form the answer key)"? if so, do they have different meaning? thanks in advanceRead More...
Hi Nikubsam, No, 'was calling' doesn't work in that particular sentence. The sense of the sentence is that there was one attempt to call him (a short act) during a longer period of time/a longer activity (was attending class).Read More...
Hi Angiez, I doubt very much that anyone will be able to answer your question without the context you found this word in. Please post the context.Read More...
Hi teachers, Assuming that Mr Lee has 3 children, namely, 10-year-old Peter, 8-year-old Mary and 6-year-old Jim. Is Jim the second son or the third son of Mr Lee? Similarly, is Mary the eldest or the second daughter of Mr Lee? Thank you very much in advance.Read More...
It is an adjective complement in this sentence, but if you want to know what it is originally, then it is the real subject of the sentence: To talk to you (= talking to you) is nice.Read More...
A : There is something I have to tell you. B : Go ahead. I (listen) _______________ . The answer key says "am listening", but my students insist on their answer that is "will listen". Are both of them (am listening and will listen) appropriate? if so, do they have the same meaning? How to explain that to my students? thanks in advanceRead More...
Most of the time you will hear people say "I'm listening" in such a context, but "will listen" is also correct grammatically. If you use the present progressive, it would mean that I'm listening now, so you can start talking about that. If you use "will," then it would somehow mean I will start listening when you start talking, so go ahead!Read More...
I saw two sentences saying "Give me a milk", "Give me a coffee" in a book. Is thoes sentences right? I thik the latter is correct but I'm not sure whether the former is right or not. Thanks in advance.Read More...
Phrases like 'a milk' and 'a coffee' are very usual in restaurants. It means "an order of coffee' and 'an order of milk,' which also means 'a glass of milk' and 'a cup of coffee.' You are correct to wonder about this, since we know that both coffee and milk are noncount nouns. Noncount nouns can be preceded by 'some' -- some milk, some coffee -- but not by the indefinite article.Read More...
Hi Vincent, Neither of your sentences is something a doctor would say to a patient. I presume you are looking for this sort of sentence: "Have you had/Did you have a bowel movement this morning?"Read More...
A: Why does Barton look so tired this morning? B: He _________ PC games all night again. a. might have played b. must have been playing Are they both corret? Which is better? Thanks!Read More...
I agree that (b) is the better choice, as it emphasizes the idea of continuation and goes well with "all night," but I think (a) is correct too, even though the above said emphasis would be lost. Don't you agree, Rachel?Read More...
I'd like you to focus on the part "dangerously high" in (1). (1) Her blood pressure was climbing dangerously high. ( Macmillan Dictionary ) (2) Her blood pressure was climbing so high as to be dangerous ( or high enough to be dangerous). I think what (1) means is (2). Do you agree? Thank you in advance Seiichi MYOGA Macmillan Dictionary is an online dictionary that is virtually the same in description as Macmillan English Dictionary , a copy of which I have. The example sentences of the...Read More...
I think both yes and no. The reason for my saying "no" is that, in (1), "dangerously" basically modifies "high," not "her blood pressure," while, this is not the case in (2). But, after all, the two sentences have the same underlying meaning.Read More...
The newspaper headline reads: [Country X] no haven to U.S. fugitives. Background: Some U.S. fugitives are fleeing to country X because they think that they will be safe there. But the authorities in country X are helping to find and return the fugitives to the United States. My questions: (1) Did the headline writer use the correct preposition? (2) Would "for" have been equally "good"? (3) If either preposition is possible, is there a subtle (or not so subtle) difference depending on which...Read More...
Thank you SO much, Rachel and Seiichi Myoga, for your excellent refining of the answer. The point of view does, indeed, make a difference. Those darn prepositions!!!Read More...
1. The little that I know is out of date. 2. So much of what I know is out of date. 3. So much that I know is out of date. Would you kindly explain the grammatical reasons why No. 3 is considered "bad" English? Or is it? Thank you so much.Read More...
Yes, these sentences are fine. There is nothing to disapprove of, is there? In these sentences, 'what' is used instead of 'the.' If, in the original sentence, we use 'what little I know' instead of 'so much that I know,' the meanings are a bit different. 'What little I know' refers to all that I know, which is very little. 'So much that I know' means a lot of what I know, but not all of it.Read More...
Hi, If we add a question tag to (1a) and (1b), then do you agree that it is (2a) and (2b) respectively? (1) a. I think he's a fool. b. I think he's a carpenter. (2) a. I think he's a fool , don't you? b. I think he's a carpenter , don't you? Thank you in advance Seiichi MYOGA Some people seem to distinguish two types of "I think": 'attitudinal (in my opinion)' and 'assumptive.' (1a) is an example of an 'attitudinal' I think , and (1b), an 'assumptive' I think . Let's assume that the...Read More...
Hi Seeichi, Your theory seems plausible to me. The fact that the 2a states the speaker's personal opinion, there is no question that this is what the speaker's opinion is. Thus, the "don't you" tag simply asks the other person to express their own attitude towards him. "Don't you" does not ask the other person to confirm that the statement is in fact the speaker's personal opinion of him. This is the reason that the tag can only have rising intonation. The sentence in essence says "This is...Read More...
How do I say in the dialogue as follow: (a) If we want to teach the child, how to say with them? Ask them, "If you want to pee, I will take you to the toilet." (or any other good comments? How do I say in a dialogue?) (b) If I want to tell the doctor, I alwayd wakes at midnight to pee , maybe, I got problems. How to say in dialogue? (c) If I want to scolded somone who always simply pees in public places, how do I say in a dialogue?Read More...
Right. I don't think we often use 'go to the bathroom' for our pets. A word which is used nowadays, for both humans and animals, is 'poop.' It is acceptable in many places, I think, because I hear it on TV, It's both an intransitive verb and a noun. Here's the entry for 'poop' as a noun from the LDOCE: poop: American English informal: solid waste from the bowels [= poo British English] 2 [singular] American English informal: the act of passing waste from the bowels [= poo British English]...Read More...
Can one say: a. Watch that you don't step on the grass. b. Watch it that you don't step on the grass. c. Watch not to step on the grass. d. Watch it not to step on the grass. They are all supposed to mean: Be careful that you do not step on the grass.Read More...
Hi Azz Personally, I don't think using 'watch' in your sentences is particularly typical, but sentence a seems to be the best of the lot as a general piece of advice. Sentence b sounds like something that might possibly be said AFTER someone has already stepped on the grass. Sentences c and d seem completely unnatural to me.Read More...
1. If you want to make money, you've got to think money. 2. If you want to make money, you've got to think about money. 3. If you want to make money, you've got to think of money. Could you tell me which sentence is correct? I'd searched to find the difference among them in this site but couldn't find appropriate one. It is really confusing to understand the difference among 'think something, think of something and think about something' Thanks so much!Read More...
Hi Jey, I like sentence 1 best. To me, 'think money' is rather idiomatic, and it means that 'money' is a concept or idea that is fixed permanently in your mind. In other words, 'money' (and/or how everything else is connected to money) never leaves your thoughts. If you tell someone to 'think about money', you might be simply asking the person to consider various aspects of money right now, but you are not telling the person to think about money constantly or to never think about anything...Read More...
1. [A chocolate is a sweet made from chocolate.] I don't know what 'a chocolate' means in the sentence above. I just suppose that 'a chocolate' refers to 'chocolate products' such as a chocolate bar. Could you let me know what it means? 2. [I love a chocolate.] [I love chocolate.] If you hear someone say "I love a chocolate", not "I love chocolate", what strikes you? Thanks a lot!Read More...
The image that comes to my mind with 'furniture' is a living room with chairs, a sofa, a small desk, lamps, and tables. All of it. I think my image has been formed from thinking about the word 'furniture' so often when I teach noncount nouns -- and that is many, many times over many years. 'Furniture' is one of the words usually taught at first to represent noncount nouns. 'Furniture' -- like many other noncount nouns -- refers to a group of count nouns, and generalizes them. A few others...Read More...
This certificate is awarded to Johnson Smith of Primary 3A for being 1st in his class for/in English. Should I use 'for' or 'in'? Is 'his' optional? Are there any errors in the sentence? Thanks in advance.Read More...
Yes, both are correct. If you use "is," you're seeing the class as a unit, but if you use "are," the focus is shifted on the individuals. You usually find the singular verb in AmE. Here's a related thread: http://thegrammarexchange.info...=155104234#155104234Read More...
1. Jim Has gone to Italy. (=he is there now or on his way there) 2. Jane has been to Italy. (=she has now come back) by Raymond Murphy 3. 'I went shopping yesterday.' 4. He told us he had been shopping the day before. 5.'I went to a brilliant lecture this morning.' 6. Jim said he had gone to a brilliant lecture that morning. 7.' Did you go to the cinema last night?' 8. They asked if we had gone to the cinema the previous night. 9. We went to a boring museum. 10.I wish I hadn't gone there.Read More...
Hi Amy, Thank you for your reply. I am afraid that sentence 4a doesn't use the past perfect continuous form of the verb 'shop' .Rather, it uses the past perfect simple of the verb 'be' + gerund (shopping) because the original speech in sentence 3 is in the past simple , so the reported speech in sentence 4a should be in past perfect simple . What do you think?Read More...
This certificate is awarded to Johnson Smith of Primary 3A for being 1st in his his class for/in English. (What is meant is that he topped his class in English.) Should I use 'for' or 'in'? Is 'his' necessary? Are there any errors in the sentence? Thanks in advance.Read More...
Hello, Ms. Tan: Both 'for English' and 'in English' are correct in this sentence. 'In English' means 'in the field of English.' 'For' is a bit informal; it means 'for doing so well in English.'Read More...
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