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Stephenlearner Posted 14 years ago
Vocabulary

Tidy up the socks, books, or files?

Hi,

Can you help me clear up the confusions arising from the usage of "tidy up"?

1)
The socks are messy. Many pairs of socks are mixed together.
Can I say "I should tidy up the socks"?

I am not sure if "tidy up" is ok, since "tidy up" a room or a drawer is the only collocation I have seen.

By the way, should I say "tidy up" a room or a drawer are the only collocations?

2)
Many books are put on the shelf disorderly.
Can I say "I should tidy up the books"?

3)
Lots of files are put in disorder in my computer.
Can I say "I should tidy up the files in my computer"?

Thanks very much!
  

Top answer

1) The socks are messy. -- You can say 'I should tidy up the sock drawer', and if 'socks' in your sentence is a short form of 'sock drawer', then that is OK, too. I am not sure if "tidy up" is ok, since "tidy up" a room or a drawer is the only collocation I have seen.

— Mister Micawber

  • 1) The socks are messy.
  • -- You can say 'I should tidy up the sock drawer', and if 'socks' in your sentence is a short form of 'sock drawer', then that is OK, too.
  • I am not sure if "tidy up" is ok, since "tidy up" a room or a drawer is the only collocation I have seen.
  • - Yes, that's OK.
  • -- That's possible.
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2 Answers
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1) The socks are messy. Many pairs of socks are mixed together.Can I say "I should tidy up the socks"?-- You can say 'I should tidy up the sock drawer', and if 'socks' in your sentence is a short form of 'sock drawer', then that is OK, too.

I am not sure if "tidy up" is ok, since "tidy up" a room or a drawer is the only collocation I have seen. By the way, should I say "tidy up" a
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