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Nokia88 Posted 18 years ago
Grammar
English-speaking vs English-spoken
Dear sir,
I’ve no problem in 1, 2 and 3.
1: an English written letter = a letter written in English
2: an English spoken discourse = a discourse conducted in English
3: an English spoken test; English spoken film; He lives in an English spoken country.
My problem is here:
4: My father is looking for an _____ man to practice my English.
Choice: ( A: English speaking ; B: English spoken)
Should they be written as (English-speaking); (English-spoken)
Kindly explain why?
Thanks in advance
I’ve no problem in 1, 2 and 3.
1: an English written letter = a letter written in English
2: an English spoken discourse = a discourse conducted in English
3: an English spoken test; English spoken film; He lives in an English spoken country.
My problem is here:
4: My father is looking for an _____ man to practice my English.
Choice: ( A: English speaking ; B: English spoken)
Should they be written as (English-speaking); (English-spoken)
Kindly explain why?
Thanks in advance
Top answer
Hi, I’ve no problem in 1, 2 and 3. I have. The parts in bold sound pretty odd.
- Hi, I’ve no problem in 1, 2 and 3.
- I have.
- The parts in bold sound pretty odd.
- 1: an English written letter = a letter written in English 2: an English spoken discourse = a discourse conducted in English 3: an English spoken test; English spoken film; He lives in an English spoken country.
- My problem is here: 4: My father is looking for an __ man to practice my English.
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12 Answers
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Hi,
I’ve no problem in 1, 2 and 3. I have. The parts in bold sound pretty odd.
1: an English written letter = a letter written in English
2: an English spoken discourse = a discourse conducted in English
3: an English spoken test; English spoken film; He lives in an English spoken country.
My problem is here:
4: My father is loo
I’ve no problem in 1, 2 and 3. I have. The parts in bold sound pretty odd.
1: an English written letter = a letter written in English
2: an English spoken discourse = a discourse conducted in English
3: an English spoken test; English spoken film; He lives in an English spoken country.
My problem is here:
4: My father is loo
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Hi,
I'm afraid, I wouldn't say or write any of the phrases you wrote...
I'm afraid, I wouldn't say or write any of the phrases you wrote...
- 1: an English written letter makes me think that both "English and "written" modify "letter" (an English letter + a written letter), and I start wondering whether a letter might not be written (that's a tautology, right?). I'd use your second phrase, "a letter written in English"
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CliveChoose A. The -ing version is used to describe the man, or in this case his ability, as he is right now.Beware the soft-spoken / -speaking man. Is "soft-spoken" an idiom?
Best wishes, - A.
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Hi,
I was trying to keep my earlier comments simple.
Perhaps one might indeed say that 'soft-spoken' is a bit idiomatic, or perhaps that it refers to his past history.
eg He is a soft-spoken man, but don't make him angry or he may shout at you.
By contrast, an English-speaking man is certainly not one who is liable to suddenly start talking in Japanese.
I was trying to keep my earlier comments simple.
Perhaps one might indeed say that 'soft-spoken' is a bit idiomatic, or perhaps that it refers to his past history.
eg He is a soft-spoken man, but don't make him angry or he may shout at you.
By contrast, an English-speaking man is certainly not one who is liable to suddenly start talking in Japanese.
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CliveI was trying to keep my earlier comments simple.Thanks, Clive. I've noticed that just when we think we've succeeded, someone always slides us into the controversial cagegory.
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With your advice, I will avoid using those written in bold from now on.
1. Do you mean those parts written in bold sound odd but not grammatically incorrect, as they may stand for different meanings in some ways?
2. Should we consider those parts written in bold as sub-standard phrases ?
3. As googled, many native speakers are saying in that way. Are these their dialect spoken
1. Do you mean those parts written in bold sound odd but not grammatically incorrect, as they may stand for different meanings in some ways?
2. Should we consider those parts written in bold as sub-standard phrases ?
3. As googled, many native speakers are saying in that way. Are these their dialect spoken
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All three of the bold expressions sound unnatural to me. Sometimes you need to look carefully at the Google sources - especially if there are only a few.
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- Clive wrote: The parts in bold sound pretty odd.
The above quote was added in on 24-Aug-2008 at 7:40AM by Nokia88
Clive wrote:
Choose A. The -ing version is used to describe the man, or in this case his ability, as he is right now.
Conside this simpler example.
I can see a falling man He's in the air
I can see a fallen man He's on the grou
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I hasten to point out that although we seem to be in disagreement here, we are not. In your quote, Clive was responding to a different question (example #4) than the one Tanit and I responded to (re examples #'s 1,2, and 3). - A.
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Dear Avangi,
I am sorry for the late reply.
It was my fault actually. In my thank all of you post, I forgot to include the sentence that Clive had written in her first reply.
She wrote: The parts in bold sound pretty odd.
In your post you wrote : All three of the bold expressions sound unnatural to me.
I am sorry for the late reply.
It was my fault actually. In my thank all of you post, I forgot to include the sentence that Clive had written in her first reply.
She wrote: The parts in bold sound pretty odd.
In your post you wrote : All three of the bold expressions sound unnatural to me.
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