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Meowth Posted 16 years ago
Grammar
As it were
Please, could anybody explain me what the following means and particularly what is the sense of the extract in bold?
She restored his belief in himself and put healing ointments, as it were, on all the
bruises of his soul.
1. Is that the subjunctive mode?
2. What does "it" stand for?
3. Maybe it is a set expression?
(aside: is there any difference between mode and mood (concerning grammar)?)
Thank you in advance!
She restored his belief in himself and put healing ointments, as it were, on all the
bruises of his soul.
1. Is that the subjunctive mode?
2. What does "it" stand for?
3. Maybe it is a set expression?
(aside: is there any difference between mode and mood (concerning grammar)?)
Thank you in advance!
Top answer
1. Is that the subjunctive mode? Yes.
- 1.
- Is that the subjunctive mode?
- Yes.
- 2.
- What does "it" stand for?
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5 Answers
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1. Is that the subjunctive mode? Yes.
2. What does "it" stand for? It's just a dummy "it".
3. Maybe it is a set expression? Exactly. That's what it is. "so to speak" means about the same thing.
2. What does "it" stand for? It's just a dummy "it".
3. Maybe it is a set expression? Exactly. That's what it is. "so to speak" means about the same thing.
meowthis there any difference betwe
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Thank you. Can you please also tell me what's the meaning of that expression?
What does it mean in this particular case?
What does it mean in this particular case?
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She restored his belief in himself and put healing ointments, as it were, on all the bruises of his soul.
She restored his belief in himself and put healing ointments, so to speak, on all the bruises of his soul.
She restored his belief in himself and -- if you want to express it this way -- put healing ointments on all the bruises of his soul.
as it
She restored his belief in himself and put healing ointments, so to speak, on all the bruises of his soul.
She restored his belief in himself and -- if you want to express it this way -- put healing ointments on all the bruises of his soul.
as it
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CalifJim -
Just a little praise from a German translator: I have checked this "as it were / so to speak" problem all over the place and your explanation is the clearest I have come across! Thanks.
Just a little praise from a German translator: I have checked this "as it were / so to speak" problem all over the place and your explanation is the clearest I have come across! Thanks.
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