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Anonymous Posted 16 years ago
Vocabulary

"as merry as you please"

Hi,

Could you please help me to understand the phrase (in the title) in the story "Tom Thumb" by Brothers Grimm? :

"When the time came the mother harnessed the horse to the cart, and put Tom into his ear; and as he sat there the little man told the beast how to go, crying out, ’Go on!’ and ’Stop!’ as he wanted: and thus the horse went on just as well as if the woodman had driven it himself into the wood. It happened that as the horse was going a little too fast, and Tom was calling out, ’Gently! gently!’ two strangers came up. ’What an odd thing that is!’ said one: ’there is a cart going along, and I hear a carter talking to the horse, but yet I can see no one.’ ’That is ***, indeed,’ said the other; ’let us follow the cart, and see where it goes.’ So they went on into the wood, till at last they came to the place where the woodman was. Then Tom Thumb, seeing his father, cried out, ’See, father, here I am with the cart, all right and safe! now take me down!’ So his father took hold of the horse with one hand, and with the other took his son out of the horse’s ear, and put him down upon a straw, where he sat as merry as you please."

Does it mean: "as merry as you can imagine"?

Thanks.
  

Top answer

Hi, It means 'very, very merry'. as .... as you please is a fixed and rather old-fashioned expression.

  • Hi, It means 'very, very merry'.
  • as ....
  • as you please is a fixed and rather old-fashioned expression.
  • eg Come in.
  • Stay as long as you please.
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2 Answers
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Hi,
It means 'very, very merry'.

as .... as you please is a fixed and rather old-fashioned expression.
eg

Come in. Stay as long as you please. ie Stay the
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I thank you as you please. Emotion: smile

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