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Discussion Groups / British English / January 2005homework
Hello, Because I'm retired , I follow the course of English ( my native language is Dutch). For homework, we must to correct a lot of sentences. For example: wrong correction ? 1 What you want drink? What do you want to drink? 2 I have a Coke, please. Can I have a Coke, please? 3 1 can't to help you. I can't help you. 4 It's starting rain. It's starting to rain. 5 I'm looking forward to see you again soon. I look forward to see you again soon. 6 I think to change my job soon. I'm thinking to change my job soon. 7 Phone me tonight. I give you my phone number. Phone me tonight. I'll give you my phone number. 8 I see the doctor tomorrow about my back. I'm seeing the doctor tomorrow about my back. Or: I'm going to see the doctor tomorrow about my back. Thank you veru much. Ropa, Belgium. > Hello, > Because I'm retired , I follow the course of English ( my native language is > Dutch). > For homework, we must to correct a lot of sentences. For example: we must correct > wrong > correction ? [quoted text clipped - 3 lines] > 2 I have a Coke, please. > Can I have a Coke, please? I'll have a Coke, please. > 3 1 can't to help you. > I can't help you. [quoted text clipped - 4 lines] > 5 I'm looking forward to see you again soon. I > look forward to see you again soon. I'm looking forward to seeing you again soon. > 6 I think to change my job soon. > I'm thinking to change my job soon. > > 7 Phone me tonight. I give you my phone number. Phone me > tonight. I'll give you my phone number. I am giving you my phone number. (I'm not completely sure but you can't use "will" there) > 8 I see the doctor tomorrow about my back. I'm > seeing the doctor tomorrow about my back. Or: I'm going to see the doctor > > tomorrow about my back. > > Thank you veru much. Ropa, Belgium. English is not my mother tongue so I might have made mistakes. audrey typed thus: > > 1 What you want drink? > > What do you want to drink? OK > > 2 I have a Coke, please. > > Can I have a Coke, please? Nothing wrong with this in colloquial English, although you should perhaps know that strictly, "can" is used to enquire about whether something is possible. You should really say "May I have a Coke, please?" > I'll have a Coke, please. This is OK, but only as a reply to the previous question, or "What would you like?" Otherwise, on its own it is a little abrupt. > > 3 1 can't to help you. > > I can't help you. OK > > 4 It's starting rain. > > It's starting to rain. OK > > 5 I'm looking forward to see you again soon. > > I look forward to see you again soon. No - you need "seeing". > I'm looking forward to seeing you again soon. This is OK. > > 6 I think to change my job soon. > > I'm thinking to change my job soon. This one doesn't fit with the rest - it should be: I'm thinking of changing my job soon. > > 7 Phone me tonight. I give you my phone number. > > Phone me tonight. I'll give you my phone number. OK > I am giving you my phone number. (I'm not completely sure but you can't use > "will" there) Yes, you can use "will". This version is wrong - it says that I am giving you my number *now*. > > 8 I see the doctor tomorrow about my back. > > I'm seeing the doctor tomorrow about my back. Or: I'm going to see the doctor tomorrow about my back. Both OK.  SignatureDavid ===== replace the first component of address with the definite article. I thank you very much, Ropa. > audrey typed thus: > [quoted text clipped - 58 lines] > > Both OK. rpaeps typed thus: > I thank you very much, Ropa. I forgot: Your introduction is wrong. > Hello, > Because I'm retired , I follow the course of English ( my native language is > Dutch). I am following an English course. > For homework, we must to correct a lot of sentences. For example: We must correct a lot of sentences or We have to correct a lot of sentences. SignatureDavid ===== replace the first component of address with the definite article. At 18:48:48 on Mon, 13 Dec 2004, rpaeps <rpaeps@scarlet.be> wrote in <h8adncYcA9mYSyDcRVnyjQ@scarlet.biz>: >I thank you very much, Ropa. If you want to show your gratitude (and, by the way, thank you for posting your suggested answers to the questions, rather than just asking what they should be), may I ask you in future to put your reply *after* the quoted text, and snip out what isn't relevant in the quote, the way I have done in this post? It's the way it's usually done in uk.* newsgroups, and is generally considered more polite. SignatureMolly Mockford I think I've been too long on my own, but the little green goblin that lives under the sink says I'm OK - and he's never wrong, so I must be! (My Reply-To address *is* valid, though may not remain so for ever.) Molly Mockford typed thus: > At 18:48:48 on Mon, 13 Dec 2004, rpaeps <rpaeps@scarlet.be> wrote in > <h8adncYcA9mYSyDcRVnyjQ@scarlet.biz>: [quoted text clipped - 4 lines] > posting your suggested answers to the questions, rather than just asking > what they should be I will add that it was the attempt to answer the questions before asking for help which prompted me to assist. SignatureDavid ===== replace the first component of address with the definite article. >> "rpaeps" <rpaeps@scarlet.be> a écrit: >>> 2 I have a Coke, please. >>> Can I have a Coke, please? > Nothing wrong with this in colloquial English, although you should > perhaps know that strictly, "can" is used to enquire about whether > something is possible. You should really say "May I have a Coke, > please?" Except that this would sound stilted and old-fashioned in almost all circumstances now. The phrase "Can I have a Coke, please?" would always be interpreted as a request for a drink, only a linguist or logician making a joke would think of replying "yes" but not serving one. You could even say "Is it possible to have a Coke, please?" which would come across as extra polite but would be interpreted as a request for the drink. The difficult thing is how you would ask about the possibility of having a Coke without it coming across as a request for one, to make yourself clear I think you'd have to say something like "I don't actually want one, but do you have Coke available?". It wouldn't work to say "I don't actually want one, but can I have a Coke?". Matthew Huntbach Matthew Huntbach typed thus: > >> "rpaeps" <rpaeps@scarlet.be> a écrit: > [quoted text clipped - 17 lines] > "I don't actually want one, but do you have Coke available?". It > wouldn't work to say "I don't actually want one, but can I have a Coke?". I agree with all of that except for the suggestion that "May I have a Coke?" sounds old-fashioned. Sounds perfectly normal to me. SignatureDavid ===== replace the first component of address with the definite article. > Matthew Huntbach typed thus: > [quoted text clipped - 24 lines] > I agree with all of that except for the suggestion that "May I have a > Coke?" sounds old-fashioned. Sounds perfectly normal to me. I would tend to say "Might I have a Coke?", but that's probably even worse :-) SignatureJohn Briggs At 14:54:22 on Wed, 15 Dec 2004, John Briggs <john.briggs4@ntlworld.com> wrote in <yeYvd.218$i95.93@newsfe3-win.ntli.net>: >> Matthew Huntbach typed thus: >> >>>>> "rpaeps" <rpaeps@scarlet.be> a écrit: >>> >>>>>> 2 I have a Coke, please. >>>>>> Can I have a Coke, please? ... >>>> "May I have a Coke, >>>> please?" ... >>> "Is it possible to have a Coke, please?" ... >>>"I don't actually want one, but do you have Coke >>> available?" ... >>>"I don't actually want one, but >>> can I have a Coke?". [quoted text clipped - 4 lines] >I would tend to say "Might I have a Coke?", but that's probably even worse >:-) Just for the sake of completeness, could I have a Coke, please? SignatureMolly Mockford I think I've been too long on my own, but the little green goblin that lives under the sink says I'm OK - and he's never wrong, so I must be! (My Reply-To address *is* valid, though may not remain so for ever.) Molly Mockford wrote... > At 14:54:22 on Wed, 15 Dec 2004, John Briggs <john.briggs4@ntlworld.com> > wrote in <yeYvd.218$i95.93@newsfe3-win.ntli.net>: [quoted text clipped - 13 lines] > > Just for the sake of completeness, could I have a Coke, please? I'll have a Coke too, please. > Molly Mockford wrote... >> At 14:54:22 on Wed, 15 Dec 2004, John Briggs <john.briggs4@ntlworld.com> [quoted text clipped - 16 lines] > > I'll have a Coke too, please. In common North American usage now, especially among the younger set is: "Can I get a Coke?" The GET meaning may I have a Coke, not am I capable of obtaining one. > I would tend to say "Might I have a Coke?", but that's probably even worse > :-) I honestly doubt that - this was meant as an answer to "What do you want to drink" - I've asked the question thousands of times (that and the truncate version "what do you want...?"). I don't think that anyone has ever said 'May I have a ...." or "Might I have a ...". "Can I have a ...." has been used when the other person wanted a particularly expensive drink (whiskey or other short). Generally the answer has been to just say the name of the drink "a pint of larger" or "I'll have a ...". As regards "Is it possible to have a Coke, please?" which would come across as extra polite but would be interpreted as a request for the drink." I don't think that it is a request for a drink - you've merely asked if it is possible to have a Coke - it may be possible and the barman/barmaid's answer would be "Do you want a Coke?" at which point you could say "NO" I just wanted to see if one could get one here. >Because I'm retired , I follow the course of English ( my native language is >Dutch). [quoted text clipped - 4 lines] >1 What you want drink? >What do you want to drink? Yes. >2 I have a Coke, please. >Can I have a Coke, please? That's fine, but "I'll have a Coke, please" would also be correct and would be closer to the original. >3 1 can't to help you. >I can't help you. Yes. >4 It's starting rain. >It's starting to rain. Yes. >5 I'm looking forward to see you again soon. I >look forward to see you again soon. No. Either version would be correct if "see" was replaced by "seeing". >6 I think to change my job soon. >I'm thinking to change my job soon. "I'm thinking of changing my job soon." >7 Phone me tonight. I give you my phone number. Phone me >tonight. I'll give you my phone number. Yes. >8 I see the doctor tomorrow about my back. I'm >seeing the doctor tomorrow about my back. Or: I'm going to see the doctor > tomorrow about my back. Yes, both of your suggested corrections are fine. SignatureJohn Hall Johnson: "Well, we had a good talk." Boswell: "Yes, Sir, you tossed and gored several persons." Dr Samuel Johnson (1709-84); James Boswell (1740-95) >>Because I'm retired , I follow the course of English ( my native language is >>Dutch). [quoted text clipped - 6 lines] > >Yes. <snip> I realise that that is open to misinterpretation. By "yes", I meant "yes, it's correct". SignatureJohn Hall Johnson: "Well, we had a good talk." Boswell: "Yes, Sir, you tossed and gored several persons." Dr Samuel Johnson (1709-84); James Boswell (1740-95) |
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