0
Wowenglish Posted 14 years ago
Grammar

woke up with a cough/coughing

Is there any difference in meaning between "1" and "2"?
1. I woke up with a cough.
2. I woke up coughing.
  

Top answer

With #1, it is possible that you were not actually coughing at the moment of waiting, but coughed soon after, and realised that the cough was was not just a momentary thing - it's similar to saying that you woke up with a cold. With #2, it is possible that you did not have a cough. You merely coughed, and that woke you.

  • With #1, it is possible that you were not actually coughing at the moment of waiting, but coughed soon after, and realised that the cough was was not just a momentary thing - it's similar to saying that you woke up with a cold.
  • With #2, it is possible that you did not have a cough.
  • You merely coughed, and that woke you.
  • A cough can be a single act or an illness.
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.

1 Answers
0
With #1, it is possible that you were not actually coughing at the moment of waiting, but coughed soon after, and realised that the cough was was not just a momentary thing - it's similar to saying that you woke up with a cold.

With #2, it is possible that you did not have a cough. You merely coughed, and that woke you.

A cough can be a single act or an illness.

Related Questions