0
Szfreaky Posted 19 years ago
Vocabulary

up or down

0Here's a sentence from 'After Twenty Years' by O' Henry:02br
02br
00'The policeman on the beat moved up the street impressively'.02br
02br
00Will 'moved down' carry the same meaning as 'moved up'? 'up' does not really mean to a higher altitude, or does it? or is it because it simply sounds better to use 'up' after some verbs, like 'come up to my place', in which 'up' does not have any substantial meaning? thanks. 0-
  

Top answer

0 If the street is oriented from the north to the south, then use "up" for north02br 02br 00 If the street climbs in one direction, use "up" to indicate it02br 02br 00 If neither of the above, both "up" and "down" can be used to indicate either direction, if possible with hand or other signs for clarification; then, they indicate just "along" 0-

— Marius Hancu

  • 0 If the street is oriented from the north to the south, then use "up" for north02br 02br 00 If the street climbs in one direction, use "up" to indicate it02br 02br 00 If neither of the above, both "up" and "down" can be used to indicate either direction, if possible with hand or other signs for clarification; then, they indicate just "along" 0-
Free · every Monday

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
0 If the street is oriented from the north to the south, then use "up" for north02br
02br
00 If the street climbs in one direction, use "up" to indicate it02br
02br
00 If neither of the above, both "up" and "down" can be used to indicate either direction, if possible with hand or other signs for clarification; then, they indicate just "along" 0-
0
0
0O'Henry was a short story writer and often used language in poetical ways. For many English speakers, 'move up' suggests becoming better or more important. For instance, if I get a much better job, you could say I've 'moved up in the world.'02br
02br
00In this sentence, O'Henry uses the words 'moved up' to enrich the image of the policemen being 'impressive.' 02br
0
0
0
0 That's an interesting observation, M. Caliban. 0-
0
0
Thank you, M. Caliban.
0

Related Questions