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Chivalry Posted 15 years ago
Vocabulary
"Made believe"?
Does this expression mean to pretend?
Because the original context I saw goes as below:
"The manager told me to keep an eye on that cranky passenger, and I made believe that I understand."
If it means to pretend to understand,
then why isn't it phrased as " .......and I made him(the manager) believe that I understand."
Does it necessarily have to go as how it does originally?
Or can it be phrased like the one I re-phrased?
Because the original context I saw goes as below:
"The manager told me to keep an eye on that cranky passenger, and I made believe that I understand."
If it means to pretend to understand,
then why isn't it phrased as " .......and I made him(the manager) believe that I understand."
Does it necessarily have to go as how it does originally?
Or can it be phrased like the one I re-phrased?
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4 Answers
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I made believe = I pretended [no objects necessary]
(You probably want understood in your original sentence.)
(You probably want understood in your original sentence.)
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I made believe that I understood. = I pretended that I understood. = I gave the impression (to others) that I understood.
In this case you can say I made the manager believe that I understood.
But in many cases where you say I made believe, you merely fantasized something to yourself. You can make believe even if you are alone.
CJ
In this case you can say I made the manager believe that I understood.
But in many cases where you say I made believe, you merely fantasized something to yourself. You can make believe even if you are alone.
CJ
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CalifJim You can make believe even if you are alone. CJCan you type some exampling sentences?
Is it like to self-deceive oneself?
Like "I didn't totally get this, but I made believe to myself"?
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CalifJim You can make believe even if you are alone. CJCan you type some exampling sentences?
Is it like to self-deceive oneself?
Like "I didn't totally get this, but I made believe to myself"?
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