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Navitasan Posted 13 years ago
Grammar

Depend on

1-You can depend on his repairing your car.

Can this sentence mean two things:
1a-You can depend on him to repair your car. He will repair your car.
1b-His repairs will be reliable. His repairing your car will be dependable. He will repair your car in a proper manner.

Actually I think it only means "1a", but I am not really sure.

Gratefully,
Navi.
  

Top answer

I agree: it only means 1a. '

— Mister Micawber

  • I agree: it only means 1a.
  • '
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5 Answers
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I agree: it only means 1a.
1b is 'You can depend on his car repairs.'
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navitasanYou can depend on his repairing your car.
No, that's not what a native would say.
You can count on him to have your car fixed. Depend - is not quite the word in this context.
You can say though " I depended on her to give me a ride to school every day when my car was in the shop".
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grammarfreakNo, that's not what a native would say.
Oh, it sounds natural enough to me.
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Sorry for the late response. JUst so I get can a feel of what really is natural; Mr MM, you would actually prefer the possessive gerund version over the other two?
You can depend on him to repair your car.
You can depend on him to have you car repaired.
You can depend on his repairing your car.
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grammarfreakUst so I get can a feel of what really is natural; Mr MM, you would actually prefer the possessive gerund version over the other two? You can depend on him to repair your car.You can depend on him to have you car repaired.You can depend on his repairing your car.
I find all 3 quite native. Of course, the middle one can be interpreted 2 ways: he is
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