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Anonymous Posted 17 years ago
Vocabulary
Family/families
Hi tutors,
I am confused with the usage of "family" and "families." Could you help me?
Today I read some article, written by an English native, that says "When meeting someone in their twenties or older, a natural way to ask about their own family is to start by asking, 'Are you married?'."
I understand that "a family" refers to ONE SET of parents and children ( I said as above for the sake of convenience. We have other types of families, of course.)
Why doesn't he say like "a natural way to ask about their own families"?
Is this because the sentense says "someone"??
If my guess is right, can we say like "When meeting people in their twenties or older, a natural way to ask about their own families is to start by asking, 'Are you married?'"?
Thank you for reading my long question.
I am confused with the usage of "family" and "families." Could you help me?
Today I read some article, written by an English native, that says "When meeting someone in their twenties or older, a natural way to ask about their own family is to start by asking, 'Are you married?'."
I understand that "a family" refers to ONE SET of parents and children ( I said as above for the sake of convenience. We have other types of families, of course.)
Why doesn't he say like "a natural way to ask about their own families"?
Is this because the sentense says "someone"??
If my guess is right, can we say like "When meeting people in their twenties or older, a natural way to ask about their own families is to start by asking, 'Are you married?'"?
Thank you for reading my long question.
Top answer
their family ' and ' people ... their families '. However, since a single family per person is a part of the well-understood cultural norm, many would use the singular in the second instance as well.
- their family ' and ' people ...
- their families '.
- However, since a single family per person is a part of the well-understood cultural norm, many would use the singular in the second instance as well.
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6 Answers
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Yes, 'someone...their family' and 'people... their families'. However, since a single family per person is a part of the well-understood cultural norm, many would use the singular in the second instance as well.
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Good evening Mister Micawber,
Thank you for the answer!!
I think I have almost understood the rule of this kind.
But, for instance, why did the writer of the sentences below use both singular and plural forms?
The writer should have been able to say "What they have learnt in their own family..," shouldn't he?
>It can
Thank you for the answer!!
I think I have almost understood the rule of this kind.
But, for instance, why did the writer of the sentences below use both singular and plural forms?
The writer should have been able to say "What they have learnt in their own family..," shouldn't he?
>It can
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You are right that we often opt for synonymous expressions rather than identical repetition of words and phrases. It is a communication technique-- a way of reinforcing meanings intended
Here, however, I think the writer simply didn't care-- the singular came out of his composition process the first time and the plural the second. As I mentioned above, in cases where common sense tell
Here, however, I think the writer simply didn't care-- the singular came out of his composition process the first time and the plural the second. As I mentioned above, in cases where common sense tell
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Hi Mister Micawber,
Thank you for the easy-to-understand answer.
I am really glad to receive your comment again.
Great website.
Reading your reply about the repetition of words, I have remembered my past experience in a translation agency. While I worked part-time for the agency as a coordinator, I sometimes received complaints about the quality of J to E tra
Thank you for the easy-to-understand answer.
I am really glad to receive your comment again.
Great website.
Reading your reply about the repetition of words, I have remembered my past experience in a translation agency. While I worked part-time for the agency as a coordinator, I sometimes received complaints about the quality of J to E tra
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The single biggest problem in J-E translation work and the single biggest cause of some of the silly English that appears in publications (from advertising blurbs to academic journals) is that the clients do not trust their translators or editors. So many manuscripts have been sent back to me for review with my corrections returned to the wrong original wording that I now am no longer willing to
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Hi,
I agree with you. It's exceedingly difficult to convince some clients, and translation agencies tend to give up. Translators and editors who want to create good English documents can be stressed out.
This is an interesting topic.
I agree with you. It's exceedingly difficult to convince some clients, and translation agencies tend to give up. Translators and editors who want to create good English documents can be stressed out.
This is an interesting topic.
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