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Taka Posted 12 years ago
Grammar
On
Which "on" is it of "complement someone on something"?
7. a: Used to indicate a source or basis: "We will reach our judgments not on intentions or on promises but on deeds and on results" (Margaret Thatcher).
or
11.a: Concerning; about: a book on astronomy.
education.yahoo.com/reference/dictionary/entry/on
Or it is something else?
7. a: Used to indicate a source or basis: "We will reach our judgments not on intentions or on promises but on deeds and on results" (Margaret Thatcher).
or
11.a: Concerning; about: a book on astronomy.
education.yahoo.com/reference/dictionary/entry/on
Or it is something else?
Top answer
It should be "compl i ment someone on something". You could say that it means "about" or "concerning". ), as is often the case with preposition usage.
- It should be "compl i ment someone on something".
- You could say that it means "about" or "concerning".
- ), as is often the case with preposition usage.
- Direct substitution of words with apparently similar meanings does not necessarily produce natural English.
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4 Answers
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It should be "compliment someone on something".
You could say that it means "about" or "concerning". There is also an element of idiomaticity (if that's a word!), as is often the case with preposition usage. Direct substitution of words with apparently similar meanings does not necessarily produce natural English.
You could say that it means "about" or "concerning". There is also an element of idiomaticity (if that's a word!), as is often the case with preposition usage. Direct substitution of words with apparently similar meanings does not necessarily produce natural English.
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Yes, I know it is usually seen as an idiom. I'm just interested in the semantical origin of the preposition.
Well, initially I thought the same way as you did: it seemed to mean "about/concerning." However, I noticed afterwards that "compliment someone for something" was also possible,
And this kind of "for", I thought, was somewhat related to the sense of reason
Well, initially I thought the same way as you did: it seemed to mean "about/concerning." However, I noticed afterwards that "compliment someone for something" was also possible,
And this kind of "for", I thought, was somewhat related to the sense of reason
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TakaStill, do you think that "on" is semantically close to "about/concerning"?Yes.
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