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Jegadish Posted 15 years ago
Grammar
How to ask?
Hello
Abraham Lincoln was the 16th President of the USA
i need an appropriate question to get the above statement.
i can ask as "Who is the 16th President of the USA?" if i need "Abraham Lincoln" as the answer.
but i need "16th President" as the answer. how should i frame the question to get that answer?
Please help me.
FYI: English is not my first language
Abraham Lincoln was the 16th President of the USA
i need an appropriate question to get the above statement.
i can ask as "Who is the 16th President of the USA?" if i need "Abraham Lincoln" as the answer.
but i need "16th President" as the answer. how should i frame the question to get that answer?
Please help me.
FYI: English is not my first language
Top answer
We do not have a distinct form for that question in English. You will have to negotiate meaning. Start with A: Who was Abraham Lincoln?
- We do not have a distinct form for that question in English.
- You will have to negotiate meaning.
- Start with A: Who was Abraham Lincoln?
- B: He was the president of the US.
- A: Which president was he?
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2 Answers
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We do not have a distinct form for that question in English. You will have to negotiate meaning. Start with
A: Who was Abraham Lincoln?
B: He was the president of the US.
A: Which president was he?
B: He was the one who freed the slaves.
A: No, I mean, what number president was he?
B: Oh. He was the 16th president.
A: Who was Abraham Lincoln?
B: He was the president of the US.
A: Which president was he?
B: He was the one who freed the slaves.
A: No, I mean, what number president was he?
B: Oh. He was the 16th president.
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This question comes up all the time -- I'm beginning to think English is the only language on Earth that doesn't have a good way to ask this question!! "What number president..." is probably the closest you can get, although logically the answer to that would be "sixteen." There simply is no natural-sounding way in English to ask the question in such a way that the answer would be "sixteenth
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