ESL General English Grammar Questions

Re: sounds OK?

Taka — Tue, 29 Jul 2008 14:23:32 GMT

MrPedantic
For me, "tell you an aspect" here simply promises a page header (so to speak), whereas "tell you about" promises the text itself.
MrP

Your comments are always thought-provoking, MrP!

You say it's like a page header.

So even if you started your advice with 'I'll tell you an aspect of yourself that...', you might end up with the same development and content as if you started it with 'I'll tell you about an aspect of yourself that...'? Different signboards, the same thing to tell?

Re: sounds OK?

MrPedantic — Mon, 28 Jul 2008 20:51:39 GMT

I think I'd say "Now I'll tell you an aspect of yourself that you are not usually aware of". For me, "tell you an aspect" here simply promises a page header (so to speak), whereas "tell you about" promises the text itself.

MrP

Re: sounds OK?

Taka — Mon, 28 Jul 2008 12:36:21 GMT

You said 'tell someone the/some aspects of oneself' (actually what I'm really thinking about right now is not the one about love, but someone's aspects) requires a list. So do you think the singular 'an aspect' version like this would sound strange?

・Now I tell you an aspect of yourself that you are not usually aware of.

Re: sounds OK?

MrPedantic — Sun, 27 Jul 2008 22:10:52 GMT

Hello Taka,

Yes, I think that's it (I agree with Marius too).

I would guess that "tell you about" was intended, though, in the original.

All the best,

MrP

Re: sounds OK?

Marius Hancu — Sun, 27 Jul 2008 14:59:11 GMT

He will tell you the aspects of love that you haven't thought about.

This sounds like:

He will list to you you the aspects of love that you haven't thought about.

I'd say:

He will comment/expatiate to you on/about aspects of love that you haven't thought about.

Re: sounds OK?

Taka — Sun, 27 Jul 2008 14:51:17 GMT

A very interesting point you've made, MrP! I didn't notice the difference until you mentioned it. And I think your analysis is valid.

So you think it's the same with 'the/some aspects of oneself'?

When it's 'tell you the/some aspects of yourself', is it something like this?

・OK. Now I tell you the/some aspects of yourself that you are not usually aware of. First, you are ...And second, you are not ...when...

And when it's 'tell you the/some aspects of yourself', it goes like this?

・Now I'm going to tell you about the/some aspects of yourself that you are not usually aware of. You know you are basically...but you are not ...when...

Re: sounds OK?

MrPedantic — Sat, 26 Jul 2008 23:23:01 GMT

I wonder if there's a slight ambiguity in the original sentence. Cf.

1. Tell me the people you've invited.

2. Tell me about the people you've invited.

#1 requests a list; #2, incriminating information.

MrP

Re: sounds OK?

Taka — Sat, 26 Jul 2008 15:46:47 GMT

Jim?

Re: sounds OK?

Taka — Sat, 26 Jul 2008 03:43:53 GMT

CalifJim
Apparently I am pickier than Ms. Benjamin on this point.
CJ

And than Philip, it seems.

So some native speakers see the expression 'to tell someone the/some aspects of X' as acceptable, but some don't; it's not that it's completely wrong and unacceptable.

Can I see it that way?

Re: sounds OK?

CalifJim — Fri, 25 Jul 2008 20:25:54 GMT

Taka
tell them the aspects of literature that they might want to consider.

OOF! I'd have said:

tell them which aspects of literature they might want to consider.

i.e., tell them the answer to the question: Which aspects of literature should we consider?

to tell someone an answer is idiomatic, so indirect questions after tell are quite normal.

Tell me what you want to do next.

Jerry told me how he caught the fish.

Sally will tell me later where we can store the suitcases.

Otherwise, if I had to retain the aspects, I might have said We need to ... [list / enumerate] for them the aspects of literature ... or ... make them aware of the aspects ...

Apparently I am pickier than Ms. Benjamin on this point.

Re: sounds OK?

Taka — Fri, 25 Jul 2008 19:13:58 GMT

Isn't (some) aspects of yourself a sort of truth, information, about yourself and therefore something which we can tell somebody?

In fact, I've found this. It's from 'An English Teacher's Guide to Performance Tasks & Rubrics, written by Amy Benjamin:

We need to give them the language and tell them the aspects of literature that they might want to consider.

Re: sounds OK?

CalifJim — Fri, 25 Jul 2008 18:55:00 GMT

I'm here (for now, anyway!)

You tell someone a story, a narrative, the truth, a lie.

You don't tell someone a rabbit, a table, a book.

And neither do you tell someone an aspect, an attitude, a consideration, a parameter, a size, a shape.

In the latter cases, you tell someone (something) about a rabbit, table, book, aspect, attitude, etc.

In short, you have to have about there.

Re: sounds OK?

Taka — Fri, 25 Jul 2008 17:46:26 GMT

Jim, are you there? Do these below sound natural?

Taka
・They will tell you some aspects of yourself that you are not usually aware of.
・They will tell you about some aspects of yourself that you are not usually aware of.

Re: sounds OK?

Taka — Fri, 25 Jul 2008 14:43:11 GMT

Great. So with the noun 'aspect(s)', it can be either 'tell someone about the aspect(s) of X' or 'tell someone the aspect(s) of X', right?

e.g

・They will tell you some aspects of yourself that you are not usually aware of.

・They will tell you about some aspects of yourself that you are not usually aware of.

Re: sounds OK?

Philip — Fri, 25 Jul 2008 14:34:36 GMT

Taka
Does this sentence sound OK as English?

He will tell you the aspects of love that you haven't thought about.

It's o.k. I think I would replace 'tell you' with 'talk to you about'.