0
MUSCOVITE Posted 12 years ago
Vocabulary
general public
Hi,
If you could comment on the following (closely related) expressions:
(1) general public
(2) ordinary people
(3) people in the street
(4) man/woman in the street
Ex: Would it be of interest to people in the street to watch such a TV show? (*)
I assume this example is ok?
Q#1. "General public" is more formal than "people in the street"?
Q#2. My Longman claims that "people in the street" is, first, BE and, second, "old fashioned". Is it so?
Do AE speakers ever use "people in the street"? Should it be "people ON the street" in AE? :-)
Q#3. In general, can we say that (1)-(2)-(3)-(4) may be used interchangeably in the example above (*)?
mus-te
If you could comment on the following (closely related) expressions:
(1) general public
(2) ordinary people
(3) people in the street
(4) man/woman in the street
Ex: Would it be of interest to people in the street to watch such a TV show? (*)
I assume this example is ok?
Q#1. "General public" is more formal than "people in the street"?
Q#2. My Longman claims that "people in the street" is, first, BE and, second, "old fashioned". Is it so?
Do AE speakers ever use "people in the street"? Should it be "people ON the street" in AE? :-)
Q#3. In general, can we say that (1)-(2)-(3)-(4) may be used interchangeably in the example above (*)?
mus-te
Top answer
MUSCOVITE Ex: Would it be of interest to people in the street to watch such a TV show? (*)I assume this example is ok? It sounds odd, since it is hard to watch TV in the street.
- MUSCOVITE Ex: Would it be of interest to people in the street to watch such a TV show?
- (*)I assume this example is ok?
- It sounds odd, since it is hard to watch TV in the street.
- MUSCOVITE Q#1.
- "General public" is more formal than "people in the street"?
Get the Weekly English Kit 📬
New words, one handy idiom, and a 2-minute quiz — delivered to your inbox to keep your streak alive.
2 Answers
0
MUSCOVITEEx: Would it be of interest to people in the street to watch such a TV show? (*)I assume this example is ok?It sounds odd, since it is hard to watch TV in the street.
MUSCOVITEQ#1. "General public" is more formal than "people in the street"?Yes and more usual.
MUSCOVITEQ#2. My Longman claim
00
In the US all four could be used in this sense, but the wording and context would be different for each:
1. It would be in the interest of the general public to watch such a television show. (This is the most general statement, and most formal.)
2. Ordinary people would find the show interesting. (This would be the informal version of the statement.)
3. People in t
1. It would be in the interest of the general public to watch such a television show. (This is the most general statement, and most formal.)
2. Ordinary people would find the show interesting. (This would be the informal version of the statement.)
3. People in t
0
Related Questions