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Teo Posted 19 years ago
Grammar

take its SWEET time

0The bus is taking its sweet time getting here.02br
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00I know the meaning of the phrase "take one's time." But what does "sweet" mean in the above sentence?0-
  

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3 Answers
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0 01blockquote
01cite10Teo12cite10The bus is taking its sweet time getting here.12br
12br
10I know the meaning of the phrase "take one's time." But what does "sweet" mean in the above sentence?12br
12blockquote
11font00It's merely an intensifier....probably cultural [southern AE?
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0But it carries a sense of annoyance.02br
02br
00If I say to you "Take your time," I'm saying not to rush.02br
02br
00If I say "Take your own sweet time," it's likely that I'm being sarcastic and implying that you are taking too long.0-
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0 Adding 01i00sweet02i00 to that idiom indicates that the speaker is growing impatient and frustrated, and that he feels some unnecessary or inexcusable delay is occurring.02br
02br
00 CJ0-
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