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NL888 Posted 12 years ago
Grammar
Long live vs. long dead
I wonder whether "He's long dead, not "long live"" is grammatically correct. Does it sound native?
Context:
A: Long live Chairman Mao.
B: He's long dead, not "long live".
Context:
A: Long live Chairman Mao.
B: He's long dead, not "long live".
Top answer
Your A statement, which means 'May Mao live a long time, could be uttered only by: 1. someone speaking when Mao was still alive, 2. someone who intends 'Mao' to mean 'the teachings of Mao'.
- Your A statement, which means 'May Mao live a long time, could be uttered only by: 1.
- someone speaking when Mao was still alive, 2.
- someone who intends 'Mao' to mean 'the teachings of Mao'.
- We can speak of the long-dead Mao.
- We cannot express a wish for him to be dead for a long time with the words 'Long dead Mao'.
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1 Answers
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Your A statement, which means 'May Mao live a long time, could be uttered only by:
1. someone speaking when Mao was still alive,
2. someone who intends 'Mao' to mean 'the teachings of Mao'.
We can speak of the long-dead Mao. We cannot express a wish for him to be dead for a long time with the words 'Long dead Mao'.
1. someone speaking when Mao was still alive,
2. someone who intends 'Mao' to mean 'the teachings of Mao'.
We can speak of the long-dead Mao. We cannot express a wish for him to be dead for a long time with the words 'Long dead Mao'.
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