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Gene93 Posted 11 years ago
Vocabulary
to knock over
Hello,
Is it wrong to say "I somehow crashed into an oncoming vehicle and my car was knocked over. (it was turned upside down)?
Thank you
Is it wrong to say "I somehow crashed into an oncoming vehicle and my car was knocked over. (it was turned upside down)?
Thank you
Top answer
These are OK: I somehow crashed into an oncoming vehicle and my car rolled over onto its hood. I somehow crashed into an oncoming vehicle and my car (was) turned upside down. "knock over" is used for stationary, not moving, objects.
- These are OK: I somehow crashed into an oncoming vehicle and my car rolled over onto its hood.
- I somehow crashed into an oncoming vehicle and my car (was) turned upside down.
- "knock over" is used for stationary, not moving, objects.
- I hit the lamppost and knocked it over.
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10 Answers
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These are OK:
I somehow crashed into an oncoming vehicle and my car rolled over onto its hood.
I somehow crashed into an oncoming vehicle and my car (was) turned upside down.
"knock over" is used for stationary, not moving, objects.
I hit the lamppost and knocked it over.
I somehow crashed into an oncoming vehicle and my car rolled over onto its hood.
I somehow crashed into an oncoming vehicle and my car (was) turned upside down.
"knock over" is used for stationary, not moving, objects.
I hit the lamppost and knocked it over.
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Is it impossible one vehicle to knock another one over? I don't think it is. Could you tell me why "overturn" makes sense in this context and "...and my car turned over" doesn't?
Thank you
Thank you
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"Knocked over" cannot be used for cars. However, it is sometimes used for large trucks and buses.
A bus crashed into a truck and knocked it over.
A truck crashed into a bus and knocked it over.
The following are okay:
I crashed into another car and my car was overturned.
I crashed into another car and my car was turned over.
A bus crashed into a truck and knocked it over.
A truck crashed into a bus and knocked it over.
The following are okay:
I crashed into another car and my car was overturned.
I crashed into another car and my car was turned over.
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Thank you, Anonymous. Unfortunately I don't know where you are from and regional differences might exist. An AE speaker told me that "turn over" used in this very context was unacceptable in American English. Is that so? Does "knock over" not fit the context because the two cars are of similar sizes?
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This has nothing to do with the kind of car or its size. "Knock over" simply cannot be used for cars in (US) English. The person you talked to was mistaken. "Turned over" can be used for a car in this context, although other phrases are more often heard: flipped over, flipped on its hood, overturned.
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Does "roll over" sound good to you in this context? It might be fine, but it gives me the idea that the vehicle landed on its wheels in the end (360 degrees).
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"Roll over" might be used, for example, in the following:
The car was going over a hundred miles an hour when it hit the barrier and overturned, rolling over twice and landing on its wheels.
The car was going over a hundred miles an hour when it hit the barrier and overturned, rolling over several times and landing on its roof.
The car was going over a hundred miles an hour when it hit the barrier and overturned, rolling over twice and landing on its wheels.
The car was going over a hundred miles an hour when it hit the barrier and overturned, rolling over several times and landing on its roof.
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Yes, it makes sense in this sentence. I just think that one can't say "I crashed into a truck and my car rolled over." There is nothing wrong with this one, but I am trying to emphasize the fact that the car was turned upside down in the end. Your second sentence without "landing on its roof" wouldn't suggest landing on its roof.
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