0
Reegis Posted 10 years ago
Grammar
The easy way to learn a language is to live in a country.
Hello,
please let's have a look at the sentence:
1) The easy way to learn a language is to live in a country.
Is this sentence correct and mean that, for example, if you want to learn French you can go to France and it will be easy for you to learn this language?
Here we have a language and a country - they have indefinite articles so can they be a language and a country that are not connected? Let's say random?
This makes we wonder if this sentence is not too ambiguous. For example, if somebody is nitpicking, then can he say that it might mean that you can try to learn Spanish and then go to France and good luck?
2a) The easy way to learn a language is to live in a given country.
2b) The easy way to learn a language is to live in the given country.
Are these sentences correct and can be regarded as more unambiguous versions of 1)?
please let's have a look at the sentence:
1) The easy way to learn a language is to live in a country.
Is this sentence correct and mean that, for example, if you want to learn French you can go to France and it will be easy for you to learn this language?
Here we have a language and a country - they have indefinite articles so can they be a language and a country that are not connected? Let's say random?
This makes we wonder if this sentence is not too ambiguous. For example, if somebody is nitpicking, then can he say that it might mean that you can try to learn Spanish and then go to France and good luck?
2a) The easy way to learn a language is to live in a given country.
2b) The easy way to learn a language is to live in the given country.
Are these sentences correct and can be regarded as more unambiguous versions of 1)?
Top answer
Reegis 1) The easy way to learn a language is to live in a country. The sentence makes no sense. Everybody lives in a country, except perhaps those few who live on the continent of Antarctica or the International Space Station, neither of which has a country affiliation.
- Reegis 1) The easy way to learn a language is to live in a country.
- The sentence makes no sense.
- Everybody lives in a country, except perhaps those few who live on the continent of Antarctica or the International Space Station, neither of which has a country affiliation.
- 2b) The easy way to learn a language is to live in the given country.
- Those make no sense either.
Get the Weekly English Kit 📬
New words, one handy idiom, and a 2-minute quiz — delivered to your inbox to keep your streak alive.
4 Answers
0
Reegis1) The easy way to learn a language is to live in a country.The sentence makes no sense.
Everybody lives in a country, except perhaps those few who live on the continent of Antarctica or the International Space Station, neither of which has a country affiliation.
Reegis2a) The easy way to learn a language is to live in
00
Wow, this is interesting! I took this sentence from a quite reputable program that helps people to learn English. I must say that thus far I have discovered that a small percentage of sentences there have issues, but rather insignificant - at least not ones that could make a sentence senseless. Now I will be even more careful with trusting this program.
Could you please explain why 2a) an
Could you please explain why 2a) an
00
Reegis Can't 'a language' be linked with 'the given country' (= the country in which the previously mentioned language is spoken) and as a result make sense?Not to me.
"Given" in no way means or implies "language."
Also, "place" is better than "country." In China, for example, there are many Chinese languages that are mutually unintelligible. I
00
Related Questions