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Pructus Posted 11 years ago
Grammar

Older the better

Hello...
How can we express the idea below...
And, which is the best one among those below?

1. As she grew older, she cooked better.
2. As she grew older, her cooking skills improved.
3. She cookd better and better with the advance of her age.
4. She older she got, the better she cooked.
  

Top answer

" Somehow the verb "cook" doesn't take adverbs well. " Maybe someone else can give a better explanation of why this is so.

— Khoff

  • " Somehow the verb "cook" doesn't take adverbs well.
  • " Maybe someone else can give a better explanation of why this is so.
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11 Answers
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#2 is the only one that "sounds right." I can't identify exactly what's wrong with the others -- they would all be fine if, for example, you substituted "looked" for "cooked." Somehow the verb "cook" doesn't take adverbs well. You can say "the chicken is well cooked," but instead of saying "she cooks well" you would say "She's a good cook" or "She's good at cooking." Maybe someone else can g
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khoffMaybe someone else can give a better explanation of why this is so.
I can't. It just seem to be that the natural expression for someone who has good cooking skills is that s/he is a good cook, not that s/he cooks well.

The same would be true of She teaches well vs S/he's a good teacher.
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I see...
Then, instead of saying, "She cooked well/better", we need to say, "She became a good/better cook"

Thanks so much, khoff!!
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I see....
Thanks a lot, fivejedjon!!
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pructusI see...Then, instead of saying, "She cooked well/better", we need to say, "She became a good/better cook"
Exactly!
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khoff I can't identify exactly what's wrong with the others -- they would all be fine if, for example, you substituted "looked" for "cooked." Somehow the verb "cook" doesn't take adverbs well.
I think it's because certain verbs are too diffuse in meaning. They incorporate many different skills into one imprecise, all-purpose word. "cook" and "teach" have alr
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I see....
Thanks so much, CJ!!
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I understand 'cook' can be weird in saying, She cooks well, because 'cook' has other meanings like falsify.
And also, She cooks well. may be understood as She cooks in a manner of well done.
But, He teaches well. doesn't seem to have other meanings....
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Maybe, "He plays soccer well" is also awkward and it needs to be "He is a good soccer player"?

And also, maybe, "He is a good runner" is better than "He runs well"?
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pructusHe plays soccer well.
This sounds OK to me, and so does He is a good soccer player.
pructusHe runs well.
This doesn't sound as good to me as your other choice (He is a good runner).
________

I can't find a principle that guides the choices.
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