 |
 | Home | Contact Us | FAQ | Search & Site Map | Link to Us |
 | Sign In | Join | Other 45 Sites in Network |
| HomeDiscussion GroupsEnglish UsageBritish EnglishESL Teaching Learnglish.com Contact UsLink To UsSearch & Site Map |
Discussion Groups / English Usage / May 2009I quite see that
Hello: Is "I quite see that" mainly BrE? Also, does it mean "I agree to a considerable extent that?" ---- [conflict on tennis courts, as Lundquist had been using a special tricky "lob" which unnerves some of his partners] I quite see that Lundquist should not have sent sneaks over the net like that, [...] A Dance to the Music of Time, Spring, by Anthony Powell, p. 107 ----  SignatureThanks. Marius Hancu > Hello: > [quoted text clipped - 11 lines] > I quite see that Lundquist should not have sent sneaks over the net like > that, [...] No, in this case, "quite" means "entirely". I can't say if it's BrE specific. SignatureDavid > Hello: > Is "I quite see that" mainly BrE? Perhaps the negative sense is more common in AmE ("I don't quite see that ..."). > Also, does it mean > "I agree to a considerable extent that?" More like, "I thoroughly understand that." This expression seems to beg for a "but." I quite see that X, but not that Y follows. > ---- > [conflict on tennis courts, as Lundquist had been using a special tricky > "lob" which unnerves some of his partners] > I quite see that Lundquist should not have sent sneaks over the net like > that, [...] > A Dance to the Music of Time, Spring, by Anthony Powell, p. 107 > ---- SignatureLars Eighner <http://larseighner.com/> usenet@larseighner.com INCREDIBLE new art blog: http://inflagrantedilettante.blogspot.com/ > Hello: > [quoted text clipped - 13 lines] > > A Dance to the Music of Time, Spring, by Anthony Powell, p. 107 Frequent use of "quite" is (or was) a standard middle/upper class speech habit in English, commonly used by itself, e.g. Q: Did she really say that? A. Quite. Its primary function is to signal affirmation, viz. here "I agree Lundquist should not . . . " The secondary meaning is modified assent (less than 100 per cent) as in "The children behaved quite well." But this secondary meaning remains ambiguous: people do (or did) say things like "It was a quite perfect day." SignatureDon Phillipson Carlsbad Springs (Ottawa, Canada) > > Hello: > [quoted text clipped - 32 lines] > > - Show quoted text - It is primarily British, and its use by a Brit speaking to an American can lead to misunderstanding. When an American makes a statement that's really a request for agreement and a Brit replies "Quite," it can mean simply "I heard you" with the American thinking the Brit meant "I agree completely and that's what we'll do." On May 9, 8:12 am, "Don Phillipson" <e...@SPAMBLOCK.ncf.ca> wrote: > "Marius Hancu" <NOS...@videotron.ca> wrote in message > [quoted text clipped - 27 lines] > remains ambiguous: people do (or did) say things like "It was > a quite perfect day." CeCe: It is primarily British, and its use by a Brit speaking to an American can lead to misunderstanding. When an American makes a statement that's really a request for agreement and a Brit replies "Quite," it can mean simply "I heard you" with the American thinking the Brit meant "I agree completely and that's what we'll do." Pat: Quite so. SignaturePat Durkin durkinpa at msn.com Wisconsin Or, AOL. On May 9, 8:12 am, "Don Phillipson" <e...@SPAMBLOCK.ncf.ca> wrote: > "Marius Hancu" <NOS...@videotron.ca> wrote in message > [quoted text clipped - 36 lines] > > - Show quoted text - It is primarily British, and its use by a Brit speaking to an American can lead to misunderstanding. When an American makes a statement that's really a request for agreement and a Brit replies "Quite," it can mean simply "I heard you" with the American thinking the Brit meant "I agree completely and that's what we'll do." But quite does signify agreement. It means it is (quite) the case, or it is (quite) so. It does not mean 'I heard you'. >On May 9, 8:12 am, "Don Phillipson" <e...@SPAMBLOCK.ncf.ca> wrote: >> "Marius Hancu" <NOS...@videotron.ca> wrote in message [quoted text clipped - 43 lines] >can mean simply "I heard you" with the American thinking the Brit >meant "I agree completely and that's what we'll do." Who said that? It looks as though four people said exactly the same thing in the same words. SignatureSteve Hayes from Tshwane, South Africa Web: http://hayesfam.bravehost.com/stevesig.htm Blog: http://methodius.blogspot.com E-mail - see web page, or parse: shayes at dunelm full stop org full stop uk |
Reply to this Message |
 Sign In
 Join
 My Latest Posts My Monitored Threads My Blog My Photo Gallery My Profile My Homepage Start New Thread Enable EMail Alerts Rate this Thread
|
©2012 Advenet LLC Privacy Policy - Terms of Use
This website includes both content owned or controlled by Advenet as well as content owned or controlled by third parties.