Search results for 'tag:Verbs tag:Idioms' matching tags 'Verbs' and 'Idioms'

Re: pretty much perfect

CalifJim — Sat, 19 Jul 2008 08:45:52 GMT

If you take the point of view that perfect is an 'absolute' (non-gradable) adjective, an adjective of which there can be no degrees -- a point of view being disputed in this thread, but for the sake of argument, let's say we take this viewpoint -- then more perfect is impossible because it expresses a degree of perfection, a quality which, by the original supposition, does not occur in degrees. Given that it is absolute, it is as pointless to talk about more or less perfection as to talk about more or less nothingness, or -- to pick a more famous example -- to talk about some pigs being more equal than others. more perfect, rather perfect, pretty perfect, a little perfect, fairly perfect, very perfect, and somewhat perfect are all "banned" within this viewpoint because all express degrees of perfection.

Nevertheless, it is not contradictory, still remaining within the same point of view, to speak of conditions which are closer to or farther from the absolute (non-gradable) state of perfection. This is not at all the same as talking about different degrees of perfection. In this group we have nearly perfect, almost perfect, far from perfect, very nearly perfect, just about perfect, and pretty much perfect.

pretty is close in meaning to fairly. It belongs in the first ("banned") group because it expresses a degree of a (gradable) quality: pretty good, pretty small, pretty old, pretty shabby

pretty much is close in meaning to just about or almost. It has to be thought of as a two-word idiom not exactly derivable from the meanings of the two words that compose it. It belongs in the second group because it expresses a distance from an (absolute) quality: pretty much finished, pretty much empty, pretty much intact, pretty much equal

______________

If you take the point of view, on the other hand, that perfect is not an absolute adjective (i.e., is a gradable adjective), then all the adverbs of degree can apply: fairly perfect, very perfect, less perfect, etc. I've never, personally, taken this point of view. In fact, I was told in grade school that the "more perfect union" spoken of in the Constitution should really have been a "more nearly perfect union". Apparently that lesson has stuck with me.

Yet common sense dictates that some expressions which take perfect to be gradable have become standard idioms in English and therefore must be accepted. But I don't think I am alone in saying that pretty perfect is not one of them.

Re: my ring

Avangi — Sun, 13 Jul 2008 04:38:36 GMT

New2grammar
I remember during [the] summertime, we would go fly fishing by the river.

1 IS the optional? Yes.

I want my money back for the ring.

2 What's the relationship between my money and the ring? my ring? I'd say the relationship is only contextual (not grammatical). I think "my money back" is an idiom, and object of the verb. "For the ring" modifies the object.

(I'll probably get clobbered on this.)

Re: Proverbs Meaning ???

Tanit — Thu, 03 Jul 2008 17:54:31 GMT

Anonymous
"a drop of honey captures more flies than a barrel of vinegar"?

Hi,

"It is easier to persuade people if you use polite arguments and flattery than if you are confrontational." (SOURCE)
Some additional info in this discussion (from a British forum about idioms).

Re: It's an ill wind

EyeSeeYou — Tue, 01 Jul 2008 15:50:37 GMT

Hi, CalifJim.

Why do you assume if it's "truly" an ill wind? Did this idiom stem from another one? I mena, if you add that adverb there, it makes sense. Otherwise, if I just take the saying as it is, I interpret it as "an ill wind will not blow anybody any good", there's no room for some good things for some people.

I still find it tricky.

Re: Native-speaker/native language

Tanit — Fri, 25 Apr 2008 13:03:57 GMT

Forbes

I remember listening to a radio programme about the varieties of forms of speech in Italy ... They simply change language like they change clothes without worrying about the status of their "home" speech.

There's some truth in that article. My parents, for instance, used to speak in Sardinian (not a dialect, but recognised as an endangered language by the UNESCO) when talking to each other or to their relatives, but they would only speak Italian with my brother and me. I grew up monolingual, and although I can understand Sardinian, I am unable to articulate a sentence that contains more than a few words!

Many people who speak both Italian and their dialect, although able to switch from the first to the second depending on the context, speak a form of Italian that I would classify as regional and sub-standard. I noticed that people from Southern Italy (I have little experience of Northern Italy) who speak also a dialect usually don't speak standard Italian, but a form of language deeply affected by their dialect. Accent is not an issue. I find some grammatical structures odd, as well as the choice of some verb modes, tenses and aspects (ex. past simple versus present perfect, indicative versus subjunctive), and have problems with some vocabulary (let alone idioms, of course). I am usually able to understand the general meaning, though.

Re: She says what she means and she means what she says

Avangi — Fri, 11 Apr 2008 22:00:10 GMT

I would say, no. Perhaps if you looked at it as an algebraic equation, you could say both clauses give the same information. A = C = B is the same equation as B = C = A, where "C" is the idea or substance of what she says and means. But meaning and saying are two different verbs and describe two different processes. So even on the denotative level, the sentence is not redundant.

On the connotative level the difference is even greater. Someone who "says what she means" is often considered outspoken, or impolite. Someone who "means what she says" is often thought of as prepared to back up her words with actions.

Each expression is an idiom in its own right. A person who does one, does not necessarily do the other.

Re: idiom VS proverbs

Anonymous — Thu, 10 Apr 2008 03:32:28 GMT

Hi,

Here is my question: can a proverb then be an idiom? If I say that I "counted my chickens before they hatched," it is therefore a proverb because we all know that it means not to rely on something before you have it. However, can it not also be an idiom? I was told that if people from another country cannot understand your sentence because it is ambiguous the way you say it, then it is probably an idiom (such as "kick the bucket). I can literally go and count my chickens, however, I was meaning it in a totally different context. If I say not to "hang your head," I am also taking it out of context and not using the literal meaning. Where is the line?

Re: line against/along

Avangi — Tue, 08 Apr 2008 17:23:22 GMT

The prepositions are both fine and natural, but in AmE we'd add a third, so to speak. We use the expression (idiom) "line up" to form a line. I guess BrE is "que." I don't know if it can stand alone, or if it's "que up," or if I'm spelling it correctly.

I wonder if "up'" becomes an adverb in "line up."

Re: phrasal verb

Mister Micawber — Sat, 05 Apr 2008 21:42:13 GMT

.
1-- It takes practice. There are also long lists of phrasal verbs available in grammar texts and ON LINE.

2-- Yes, they are a kind of idiom.

Re: Is this right? "have to=have got to=got to"

Kooyeen — Wed, 19 Mar 2008 18:35:12 GMT

Jun-god
So, "got" in last sentence is not a past of the verb "get", it is same meaning as "have" in first sentence

Hi Jun-god,
yes, "got" is sometimes equivalent to "have", not only in the idiom "have got to".
I got to do it = I have to do it ---> But usually pronounced I gotta do it.
It comes from I've got to do it, without 've. Read CalifJim's post, he explained that.

The past is "had to". I don't think "had got to" is in use in American English.

Also, "got" instead of "have" can be used for possession:
Hey, look what I got.
I got no money.
What do you got? --> Waddaya got? - Watcha got?

I am not going to tell you when or where these forms are appropriate, since you said you have a private teacher... I'm sure they'll tell you about informal English.