0
Mudclay Posted 16 years ago
Grammar
Prepositions (need your help)
I have here some sentences. I need your help to understand the meaning and sense of each.
1 The pen fell from the table.
2 The pen fell out of the table.
3 The pen fell on the table.
4. The pen fell down.
Thank you in advance.
1 The pen fell from the table.
2 The pen fell out of the table.
3 The pen fell on the table.
4. The pen fell down.
Thank you in advance.
Top answer
1. It was resting on the table but then it slipped off, or was knocked off, and fell onto the floor (typically). 2.
- 1.
- It was resting on the table but then it slipped off, or was knocked off, and fell onto the floor (typically).
- 2.
- Not really possible.
- For the pen to fall "out of" the table, it must previously have been in the table, and objects can't really be "in" tables.
Get the Weekly English Kit 📬
New words, one handy idiom, and a 2-minute quiz — delivered to your inbox to keep your streak alive.
2 Answers
0
1. It was resting on the table but then it slipped off, or was knocked off, and fell onto the floor (typically).
2. Not really possible. For the pen to fall "out of" the table, it must previously have been in the table, and objects can't really be "in" tables.
3. It was initially above the table (on a shelf, say, or in someone's hand) and it fell, coming to rest on the ta
2. Not really possible. For the pen to fall "out of" the table, it must previously have been in the table, and objects can't really be "in" tables.
3. It was initially above the table (on a shelf, say, or in someone's hand) and it fell, coming to rest on the ta
00
Only one caveat for #3: A grammar test would demand 'fell onto the table' if the pen was not initially on the table. 'Fell on the table', as many a wag of a grammarian has insisted, means that the pen was already on the table, standing upright perhaps, and fell over, remaining on the table.
0
Related Questions