http://www.englishforums.com/search/pro.htm?q=user%3aPioussoul&o=DateDescendingSearch results for 'user:Pioussoul'en-USXMOD (Build: 3616.28671)http://www.englishforums.com/English/ReasonWhyOrThat/vrdlb/post.htm#335151Sat, 03 Mar 2007 03:57:06 GMT946f00bb-57d3-4b7b-a9a2-059b5341af52:335151pioussoulThanks, Philip and CJ, for your excellent and quick reply.http://www.englishforums.com/English/ReasonWhyOrThat/vrdlb/post.htmSat, 03 Mar 2007 03:19:34 GMT946f00bb-57d3-4b7b-a9a2-059b5341af52:335139pioussoul1. We aren't going, for the simple reason ______ we can't afford it. 2. Is there any reason _____ you can't come? Which fits better in the blanks, why or that? Is it possible that both of them do?http://www.englishforums.com/English/LeaveTheGuestOfHonorTo/dpqmh/post.htm#329108Wed, 14 Feb 2007 07:27:07 GMT946f00bb-57d3-4b7b-a9a2-059b5341af52:329108pioussoulAnnvan wrote: If you mean that the guest of honor should choose the music, then 1. is correct. Thanks, Annvan, for the feedback, but what's wrong with sentence 2? Thanks.http://www.englishforums.com/English/LeaveTheGuestOfHonorTo/dpqmh/post.htm#329107Wed, 14 Feb 2007 07:25:35 GMT946f00bb-57d3-4b7b-a9a2-059b5341af52:329107pioussoulAnonymous wrote: Great! What is your reasoning? Ditto!http://www.englishforums.com/English/LeaveTheGuestOfHonorTo/dpqmh/post.htm#329099Wed, 14 Feb 2007 07:14:17 GMT946f00bb-57d3-4b7b-a9a2-059b5341af52:329099pioussoulAnonymous wrote: Please tell us which one sounds odd to you;then we can discuss further, Pioussoul. Thanks, Anon, for the feedback. There is a typo on sentence 2, and I have corrected it. Sentence 1 sounds odd to me. What's your prized view?http://www.englishforums.com/English/LeaveTheGuestOfHonorTo/dpqmh/post.htmWed, 14 Feb 2007 07:04:46 GMT946f00bb-57d3-4b7b-a9a2-059b5341af52:329093pioussoul1. Leave the guest of honor to select the music. 2. Leave the guest of honor selecting the music. Which one sounds odd to you? If both, how would you say the similar idea? Thanks.http://www.englishforums.com/English/AlmostImpossibleQuestion/dpqwg/post.htm#329088Wed, 14 Feb 2007 06:46:45 GMT946f00bb-57d3-4b7b-a9a2-059b5341af52:329088pioussoulCalifJim wrote: using the same exact word 1. dream t - dream 2. trouble trouble s 3. li v e - li f e CJ Thanks, CJ, for your correction. Compared with you, a really keen observer, I'm only a casual amateur. After your comment, my tiny weeny coals would go like this: 1. I dream a beyond-my-wildest-dream dream. 2. Don't trouble trouble (until trouble trouble you). 3. Pious lives tons of dog-and-cat lives.http://www.englishforums.com/English/AlmostImpossibleQuestion/dpqwg/post.htm#329083Wed, 14 Feb 2007 06:32:31 GMT946f00bb-57d3-4b7b-a9a2-059b5341af52:329083pioussoulCalifJim wrote: The students sigh a heavy sigh. A fly cannot fly a plane. A spy lives two lives. The photographer prints the prints every morning. The thief pockets the money in his pockets. The policemen ticket the cars with red tickets. The drivers stop the bus at every bus stop. The hunter hides the hides from the game warden. Gardeners plant trees around the electric plant. The vintner bottles wine in big bottles. The passives will be intuitively obvious to the casual observer! CJ Well put! CJ. Here are a few tiny weeny coals that I'd like to carry to your Newcastle: 1. I dreamt a beyond-my-wildest-dream dream. 2. Don't trouble troubles (until troubles trouble you). 3. I used to live a dog-and-cat life.http://www.englishforums.com/English/IdiomOrVerbPreposition/dpqjb/post.htm#329074Wed, 14 Feb 2007 06:13:23 GMT946f00bb-57d3-4b7b-a9a2-059b5341af52:329074pioussoulCalifJim wrote: Is descendant of an idiom or a verb preposition combination? Neither. There is nothing about it that isn't literal, so it isn't an idiom, and there is no verb in it, so it can't be a verb-preposition combination either. CJ Thanks, CJ, for your interpretation; now I see: Is " descendant of" an idiom or a verb-preposition combination?http://www.englishforums.com/English/DoubleGenetive/dpqwn/post.htm#329059Wed, 14 Feb 2007 05:31:55 GMT946f00bb-57d3-4b7b-a9a2-059b5341af52:329059pioussoulGrammarian-bot wrote: <!-- -->1. <!-- -->According to his own account, Frederic-Auguste Bartholdi, the sculptor of the Statue of Liberty, modeled the face of the statue like his mother’s and the body like his wife’s. <!-- -->2. <!-- -->According to his own account, Frederic-Auguste Bartholdi, the sculptor of the Statue of Liberty, modeled the face of the statue as that of his mother’s and the body as that of his wife’s . Which onw of the above two sentences is correct? GB At first sight, the first one makes more sense to me. There are some minor problems with the words in bold, as for the second sentence.http://www.englishforums.com/English/IdiomOrVerbPreposition/dpqjb/post.htm#329056Wed, 14 Feb 2007 05:23:26 GMT946f00bb-57d3-4b7b-a9a2-059b5341af52:329056pioussoulGrammarian-bot wrote: Is descendant of an idiom or a verb preposition combination? GB We are not sure what you mean.http://www.englishforums.com/English/Redundancy/dpqjv/post.htm#329054Wed, 14 Feb 2007 05:17:45 GMT946f00bb-57d3-4b7b-a9a2-059b5341af52:329054pioussoulGrammarian-bot wrote: Is may be redundant in the following sentence. According to some analysts, whatever its merits may be, ................ GB Would you like to give us more context so as to give you feedback?http://www.englishforums.com/English/DifferenceInMeaning/dpqjh/post.htm#329052Wed, 14 Feb 2007 05:15:25 GMT946f00bb-57d3-4b7b-a9a2-059b5341af52:329052pioussoulGrammarian-bot wrote: What is the difference in meaning of the following tw sentences? 1. <!-- -->According to some economists, Japan is in danger of plunging into a depression that, with double-digit unemployment, could severely strain a society that regards lifetime employment as a virtual right of citizenship. 2. <!-- -->According to some economists, Japan is in danger of plunging into a depression with double-digit unemployment , which and could severely strain a society that regards lifetime employment as a virtual right of citizenship. GB At first glance, sentence 2 doesn't make much sense to me. If I were you, I would make a tiny change as above.http://www.englishforums.com/English/AccordingToTheReason/dpqwl/post.htm#329045Wed, 14 Feb 2007 05:00:17 GMT946f00bb-57d3-4b7b-a9a2-059b5341af52:329045pioussoulGrammarian-bot wrote: According to Henry David Thoreau, the reason a majority is allowed to rule is not that it is more likely to be right, but because it is stronger. Is the reason in the above sentence a redundancy. GB Yes, I concur with Marius in that we could paraphrase your base sentence as follows: According to Henry David Thoreau, the reason is .http://www.englishforums.com/English/FourTimesAsLikelyAs/dpqwc/post.htm#329041Wed, 14 Feb 2007 04:40:13 GMT946f00bb-57d3-4b7b-a9a2-059b5341af52:329041pioussoulGrammarian-bot wrote: Can we use the "as likely as" expression with twice, four-times, five-time, etc. Minority graduates are nearly four times as likely as other graduates to plan on practicing in socil sciences. GB Yes, we can. My two cents are as follows: 1.Minority graduates are likely to plan on practicing in social sciences. 2. Other graduates are likely to plan on practicing in social sciences. If we combine sentences 1 and 2, we derive: 3. Minority graduates are as likely as other graduates to plan on practicing in social sciences. Likewise, if we unite sentences 4 and 2, we get 5: 4. Minority graduates are four times likely to plan on practicing in social sciences. 5. Minority...http://www.englishforums.com/English/CorrectOrNotHelpMePls/dpplc/post.htm#329014Wed, 14 Feb 2007 03:40:00 GMT946f00bb-57d3-4b7b-a9a2-059b5341af52:329014pioussoulNona The Brit wrote: Are you in Australia OP? Might be best not to use mad there. In American English it means angry but in British English it means insane. Whom do you refer to by OP? If me, I'm PS, and I'm from Taiwan.http://www.englishforums.com/English/Conjuction/cvcgn/post.htm#328823Tue, 13 Feb 2007 19:02:59 GMT946f00bb-57d3-4b7b-a9a2-059b5341af52:328823pioussoulHanuman_2000 wrote: Hello,I was reading an article on conjuction. It says that a conjuction is a word which merely joins words or sentences. It further says that relative pronouns and relative adverbs are also conjuctions but they do the other works also. My doubts are: 1. Are relative pronouns and some adverbs a conjunction? Yes, the latter are sometimes called conjunctive adverbs. 2. What other works do they do? ----------------- 2a. Relative pronouns functions as a conjunction, usually connecting two clauses. For example, who . 2b. As for conjunctive adverbs, they only connect the ideas of two sentences; therefore, a semi-colon is always used in the middle of the two sentences. For...http://www.englishforums.com/English/CorrectOrNotHelpMePls/dpplc/post.htm#328811Tue, 13 Feb 2007 18:33:07 GMT946f00bb-57d3-4b7b-a9a2-059b5341af52:328811pioussoulHere is my two cents: 1 Reaching out for the stars, how awesome you are! Bravo! Bravo! 2 You warm up my heart with your smiling face, even though you are mad sometimes. 3 You are one in a million. 4 Smile just a while, yet opening up a present will make you smile all day long. 5 You are a little girl/boy, but dream a big dream. I try not to alter your original ideas as hard as I could.http://www.englishforums.com/English/PleaseCheckSentenceStill/dpphz/post.htm#328797Tue, 13 Feb 2007 18:00:23 GMT946f00bb-57d3-4b7b-a9a2-059b5341af52:328797pioussoulJackson6612 wrote: But it is still like a verb in (the case) that it can have an object or be modified by an adverb. 1 : Although I can understand the use of in that in the above sentence but sometimes such words (I couldn't recall any other word right now) create problem because dictionary doesn't contain them. Where such words come from? 2 : Rephrasing above sentence: But it is still like a verb in that it can have an object or can be modified by an adverb. Shouldn't can be used again in front of be ? No, it's redundant. The above is my two cents.http://www.englishforums.com/English/Sentence2/dppkd/post.htm#328793Tue, 13 Feb 2007 17:49:24 GMT946f00bb-57d3-4b7b-a9a2-059b5341af52:328793pioussoulTung Quoc wrote: Hi, Are all correct? If not, pls correct them . If yes, pls tell me the difference in meaning between them: 1.You should ask the responsible person indicated by the England Team. 2. You should ask the person responsible indicated by the England Team. 3. You should ask the person responsible, indicated by the England Team. Thanks Quoc Are you trying to say: 1. You should ask the person in charge, appointed/designated by Team England.http://www.englishforums.com/English/CommaProblemAfterAnd/dppgh/post.htm#328787Tue, 13 Feb 2007 17:28:43 GMT946f00bb-57d3-4b7b-a9a2-059b5341af52:328787pioussoulJackson6612 wrote: Second Question: Is this sentence correct? If both above sentences have been correctly punctuated then is there still any choice for a third one? Here are my two cents: If both of the above are correct, are there any possible various versions?http://www.englishforums.com/English/DoesNonaSoundGranmaMotherTongue/3/dpxkh/Post.htm#328774Tue, 13 Feb 2007 16:58:15 GMT946f00bb-57d3-4b7b-a9a2-059b5341af52:328774pioussoulNona The Brit wrote: Just a one-off for fun (charity fundraising thing). It was brilliant, we had a day's training and then jumped the next day. I'd love to take it up as a hobby but can't afford it right now... Thanks, I got it. By the way, I couldn't find "one-off" in my dic, and my wild guess is: 1.once in a blue moon 2. once in a lifetime 3. once and over I'm not so solid about what you mean.http://www.englishforums.com/English/CanSentence/dpphq/post.htm#328769Tue, 13 Feb 2007 16:51:16 GMT946f00bb-57d3-4b7b-a9a2-059b5341af52:328769pioussoulLiveinjapan wrote: " I had never feelings for her until the moment when our hands touched. Then, strangely, I started noticing her." The order of wording in bold sounds odd to me; my two cents are as follows: " I never had feelings for her until the moment when our hands touched. Then, strangely, I started noticing her." What do you think?http://www.englishforums.com/English/DoesNonaSoundGranmaMotherTongue/2/dpxkh/Post.htm#328763Tue, 13 Feb 2007 16:43:38 GMT946f00bb-57d3-4b7b-a9a2-059b5341af52:328763pioussoulNona The Brit wrote: That is indeed me and I am jumping out of an aeroplane with a parachute on my back. Wow! That's awesome, so are you from the air force or just doing some parachuting for fun?http://www.englishforums.com/English/DoesNonaSoundGranmaMotherTongue/2/dpxkh/Post.htm#328755Tue, 13 Feb 2007 16:34:29 GMT946f00bb-57d3-4b7b-a9a2-059b5341af52:328755pioussoulSince this thread is all about Nona, I think I'm entitled to ask the following questions: 1. Is that you, Nona, that looks like a superlady wearing a helmet in the tiny photo under the alias " Nona the brit" ? 2. What's occasion of the photo? What are you doing there? Ready to save the world? You look like being ready to take off.http://www.englishforums.com/English/ToErrOnTheSideOfLeniency/dppzw/post.htm#328745Tue, 13 Feb 2007 16:17:27 GMT946f00bb-57d3-4b7b-a9a2-059b5341af52:328745pioussoulThanks, Nona, for the correction and clarification. It's crystal clear.http://www.englishforums.com/English/ToErrOnTheSideOfLeniency/dppzw/post.htm#328729Tue, 13 Feb 2007 15:45:54 GMT946f00bb-57d3-4b7b-a9a2-059b5341af52:328729pioussoulNona The Brit wrote: it doesn't really contrast against caution very satisfactorily (and surely the listeners are tolerant, not the speaker). I'd use 'confidence' against 'caution'. Thanks, Nona, for the comment again, but the following version doesn't make sense to me: It is better to err on the side of tolerance than that of caution confidence when supervising pupils speaking a foreign tongue. ------------- What about simplizing it a little bit: 1. To err on the side of tolerance is preferable when speaking a foreign tongue. 2. To err on the side of accuracy/caution is not preferable when speaking a new tongue.http://www.englishforums.com/English/ToErrOnTheSideOfLeniency/dppzw/post.htm#328692Tue, 13 Feb 2007 13:57:35 GMT946f00bb-57d3-4b7b-a9a2-059b5341af52:328692pioussoulNona The Brit wrote: leniency doesn't make much sense here. Thanks, Nona, for the comment. What if the word leniency is replaced with tolerance and some changes are made? It is better to err on the side of tolerance than that of caution when supervising pupils speaking a foreign tongue.http://www.englishforums.com/English/ToErrOnTheSideOfLeniency/dppzw/post.htmTue, 13 Feb 2007 13:36:04 GMT946f00bb-57d3-4b7b-a9a2-059b5341af52:328686pioussoulIt is better to err on the side of leniency than that of caution when practincing speaking a new tongue. Does this sentence make sense to you? Is it correct?http://www.englishforums.com/English/IsThisTheSubjunctive/3/dpxmw/Post.htm#328649Tue, 13 Feb 2007 11:40:33 GMT946f00bb-57d3-4b7b-a9a2-059b5341af52:328649pioussoulInchoateknowledge wrote: do we drop the '-s' inflection in conditional mood? NO quod erat demonstrandum Mind you: it's a poem we're addressing, and it owns poetic liscense.http://www.englishforums.com/English/IsThisTheSubjunctive/2/dpxmw/Post.htm#328644Tue, 13 Feb 2007 11:27:35 GMT946f00bb-57d3-4b7b-a9a2-059b5341af52:328644pioussoulThe Choice by William Butler Yeats (1865~1939) The intellect of man is forced to choose perfection of the life, or of the work, And if it take the second must refuse A heavenly mansion, raging in the dark. When all that story's finished, what's the news? In luck or out the toil has left its mark: That old perplexity an empty purse, Or the day's vanity, the night's remorse. -------------------- Hi, Incho, I couldn't and wouldn't describe a poem written by a nineteen-century poet as archaic. Anyway, let's simply look at the first three lines. Apparently, as for the third line-- if it (the intellect of man) take the second (the perfection of work ), this could happen, right? That is, the intellect of man could either...http://www.englishforums.com/English/IsThisTheSubjunctive/2/dpxmw/Post.htm#328635Tue, 13 Feb 2007 10:36:15 GMT946f00bb-57d3-4b7b-a9a2-059b5341af52:328635pioussoulInchoateknowledge wrote: I do not Thanks for the feedback, but have you read CJ's post in this thread? By the way, as for my first question, what kind of if is it in the poem "The Choice", subjunctive or conditional? Or both?http://www.englishforums.com/English/IsThisTheSubjunctive/2/dpxmw/Post.htm#328630Tue, 13 Feb 2007 10:23:03 GMT946f00bb-57d3-4b7b-a9a2-059b5341af52:328630pioussoulInchoateknowledge wrote: Why do you not say, 'I do not agree with what this sentence says'. It implies that you understand the meaning but cannot go along with the idea it puts forward. So, do you agree?http://www.englishforums.com/English/IsThisTheSubjunctive/2/dpxmw/Post.htm#328626Tue, 13 Feb 2007 10:10:37 GMT946f00bb-57d3-4b7b-a9a2-059b5341af52:328626pioussoulInchoateknowledge wrote: Sorry, put it again. "However, the use of the subjunctive after if hardly ever occurs anymore in modern English." What is it that puzzles you seeing the sentence? It's not the meaning of this sentence that puzzes me, but the truth of what it describes does.http://www.englishforums.com/English/IsThisTheSubjunctive/dpxmw/post.htm#328622Tue, 13 Feb 2007 10:00:31 GMT946f00bb-57d3-4b7b-a9a2-059b5341af52:328622pioussoulHi, Incho, I think I'm losing you. Don't you understand my questions?http://www.englishforums.com/English/IsThisTheSubjunctive/dpxmw/post.htm#328601Tue, 13 Feb 2007 08:40:34 GMT946f00bb-57d3-4b7b-a9a2-059b5341af52:328601pioussoulInchoateknowledge wrote: We use subjunctive mood to express somethig desirable, possible, hypothetic. if suggests something hypothetic or desirable will follow "However, the use of the subjunctive after if hardly ever occurs anymore in modern English." It means the occurence of subjunctive in Modern English is not common anymore Thanks, Incho, for the feedback. Yet, my first question is still missed. Second, I'm still puzzled by your line in blue. Have the following samples with if hardly ever occurred any more in modern English? 1. If it should rain tomorrow, we would cancel our picnic. 2. If I were you, I wouldn't go so far as to say that. 3. If I had studied harder when young, I...http://www.englishforums.com/English/PleaseCheckSentenceEveryoneExpected/dpxgz/post.htm#328596Tue, 13 Feb 2007 08:23:15 GMT946f00bb-57d3-4b7b-a9a2-059b5341af52:328596pioussoulThanks, CJ, for the correction. By the way, which aspect fits better in this context, present perfect or simpe present? Or both? Everyone is expected to return his permission slip the day after it has been given/is to them.http://www.englishforums.com/English/IsThisTheSubjunctive/dpxmw/post.htm#328591Tue, 13 Feb 2007 07:56:06 GMT946f00bb-57d3-4b7b-a9a2-059b5341af52:328591pioussoulCalifJim wrote: The missing s on take is a sign of the subjunctive, yes. However, the use of the subjunctive after if hardly ever occurs anymore in modern English. CJ Hi, CJ, Could it refer to, by any chance, a conditional if in the case of the poem "The Choice"? Second, I'm bewildered by your line I highlighted in blue. Would you shed more light? Thanks.http://www.englishforums.com/English/PleaseCheckSentenceEveryoneExpected/dpxgz/post.htm#328579Tue, 13 Feb 2007 06:58:13 GMT946f00bb-57d3-4b7b-a9a2-059b5341af52:328579pioussoulJackson6612 wrote: The meanings of the following sentence seems somewhat weird to me. I have written the alternative. Is that alternative correct? Suppose everyone refers to both girls and boys then I don't think his/him will be used. What word will be suitable then in place of his and him ? Everyone is expected to return his permission slip the day after it has been given to him . Alternative: Everyone is expected to return his permission slip one day after the day it has been given to him. Correct me if I'm wrong, but I sense a difference in meaning between the following two sentences: 1. Everyone is expected to return his permission slip the (same) day after it has been given to them . 2. Everyone...http://www.englishforums.com/English/WhatDoesSayingMeanLive/dpxzx/post.htm#328575Tue, 13 Feb 2007 06:47:13 GMT946f00bb-57d3-4b7b-a9a2-059b5341af52:328575pioussoulJackson6612 wrote: What does that saying mean? Live as if your were to die tomorrow. Learn as if you were to live forever . Mahatma Gandhi. For me, Gandhi seems to tell us: Treasure every second of our life and devote it to a good cause as if we would pass away any second. Keep learning even when we are ninety nine as if we would be immortal and use what we learn at the age nine hundred and ninety nine.http://www.englishforums.com/English/PleaseAphorismLearningLearn/dpxgl/post.htm#328569Tue, 13 Feb 2007 06:20:18 GMT946f00bb-57d3-4b7b-a9a2-059b5341af52:328569pioussoulHere are my childish scribbles: 1. We learn by doing. 2. We learn by practice. 3. We learn by trial and error. 4. We learn by writing. 5. Writing is a must to master a language.http://www.englishforums.com/English/Syntax/dpxhb/post.htm#328557Tue, 13 Feb 2007 05:08:57 GMT946f00bb-57d3-4b7b-a9a2-059b5341af52:328557pioussoulIf one will scoff at the study of language, how, save in terms of language, will one scoff? - Mario Pei I came across this in Philip' post, and it reminds me that it could serve as the best answer to your question, I bet.http://www.englishforums.com/English/AMultipleChioceQuestion/dpxnn/post.htm#328551Tue, 13 Feb 2007 04:47:25 GMT946f00bb-57d3-4b7b-a9a2-059b5341af52:328551pioussoulGrammarian-bot wrote: <!-- -->1. <!-- -->According to a study by the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching, companies in the United States are providing job training and general education for nearly eight million people, about equivalent to the enrollment of the nation’s four-year colleges and universities. (A) equivalent to the enrollment of (B) the equivalent of those enrolled in (C) equal to those who are enrolled in (D) as many as the enrollment of (E) as many as are enrolled in The official answer to this question is E but what's wrong with C. GB I don't have a doubt on choice C in that equal is an adjective, and in the context a noun is required. Choice A evokes my...http://www.englishforums.com/English/HowBetterHandle/dpxnd/post.htm#328540Tue, 13 Feb 2007 04:29:18 GMT946f00bb-57d3-4b7b-a9a2-059b5341af52:328540pioussoulBeliever wrote: Hi, Whenever I encounter the sorts of phrases like the underlined part where a preposition is attached to the words like 'which', I have a hard time deciding which prepositional word is needed in that situation. Do you have a tip? A grammar I saw seems to rely on the method of separating the sentence involved like the example I gave below . The method your grammar book teaches you seems to be the most foolproof and effective tip I've ever known.http://www.englishforums.com/English/Syntax/dpxhb/post.htm#328536Tue, 13 Feb 2007 04:13:32 GMT946f00bb-57d3-4b7b-a9a2-059b5341af52:328536pioussoulAnonymous wrote: why do we study syntax How could you express this doubt of yours?http://www.englishforums.com/English/DoesNonaSoundGranmaMotherTongue/2/dpxkh/Post.htm#328527Tue, 13 Feb 2007 03:26:25 GMT946f00bb-57d3-4b7b-a9a2-059b5341af52:328527pioussoulPhilip wrote: While I was in China last year, my guide said that "popo" is also Chinese for grandmother. Amen to that! Philip. I was about to blurt out that before you mentioned it.http://www.englishforums.com/English/DoesNonaSoundGranmaMotherTongue/dpxkh/post.htm#328523Tue, 13 Feb 2007 03:22:26 GMT946f00bb-57d3-4b7b-a9a2-059b5341af52:328523pioussoulThanks, GG, for the corrections. Trying to use a new language is still as exciting, intriguing, and fascinating as a wild goose hunting for me though there are maybe tons of off-the-target shots..http://www.englishforums.com/English/DoesNonaSoundGranmaMotherTongue/dpxkh/post.htm#328511Tue, 13 Feb 2007 03:05:13 GMT946f00bb-57d3-4b7b-a9a2-059b5341af52:328511pioussoulActually, one of the Chinese versions of granma is uttered something like this: niena, but it could be a variant of nona. And I remember nona de brit told me in another thread that some friends from different cultures also mentioned the granma connotation of nona. Besides, I'm also curious about de brit , and my goose-hunting shot is: In French, de means of , and brit couldn't be a variant of brat--no one would appreciate brat for a nick. Therefore, my shot in the dark will be that it's an abbriviation of Britain(ia). In a nutshell, the whole alias refers to Nona of Britain(ia).http://www.englishforums.com/English/About/2/dpnkv/Post.htm#328498Tue, 13 Feb 2007 02:40:01 GMT946f00bb-57d3-4b7b-a9a2-059b5341af52:328498pioussoulThanks, GG, I got your points, but there are still tons of samples with no about, right?http://www.englishforums.com/English/DoesNonaSoundGranmaMotherTongue/dpxkh/post.htm#328497Tue, 13 Feb 2007 02:33:56 GMT946f00bb-57d3-4b7b-a9a2-059b5341af52:328497pioussoulGrammar Geek wrote: So... you shouldn't always think too much about what a word means. Sometimes - it just gets dropped on you . Thanks, GG, for your wonderful extra info about nick; I'm really fascinated by what you said. By the way, what does the line in bold mean? My wild shot in the dark is: 1. The nickname just stuck on you by chance. 2. The nickname just happened to be there on you all the time. Correct me if I'm wrong.