You are the star or You are a star

Question

Dear all,

A.) Which sentence is correct in the following situation?

I dropped my scarf on the road and someone picked it up and returned it to me. Then I said " Thank you very much, you are a star but not the star. Why? However, in an american english, people says,"You are the man" but not "You are a man"

B.)What article is correct in the following sentence?

1.) Suppose there is one mathematician and a psychologist in the room.
The psychologist: Why that man is so weird and haven't put any socks on?
The mathematician: You are "the" psychologist. You are telling me why.
Why do we not put a rather than the in this situation?

2) Now suppose there are two psychologists in the room
The psychologist A: Why that man is weird and haven't put any socks on?
The psychologist B: You are a psychologist. You are telling me why.
Why do we not put the rather than a in this situation?

C.) Which sentence is correct? Why?
1.) What kind of language is this word XXXX coming from?
2.) What kind of language does this word XXXX come from?
For a native person, they will chose 1 rahter than 2. Why?

Cheers
ROn

Dimsumexpress · Accepted Answer

ronctlsmileI dropped my scarf on the road and someone picked it up and returned it to me. Then I said " Thank you very much, you are a star but not the star. Why? However, in an american english, people says,"You are the man" but not "You are a man"

With the above context, neither "you are a star" nor "you are the star" sounded very good to me. Perhaps "you are (such) anice man" suits more appropriately.

ronctlsmile You are "the" psychologist. You are telling me why. Why do we not put a rather than the in this situation?

In such context, either 'a " or "the " works fine. IF someone want to split hair, "a " may be the choice in my opinion

ronctlsmileC.) Which sentence is correct? Why?1.) What kind of language is this word XXXX coming from?2.) What kind of language does this word XXXX come from?For a native person, they will chose 1 rahter than 2. Why?

Present progressive definitely is the wrong choice. Present simple may be acceptable for some in a general sense.
I'd say " which language did this word come from?"
.

Ronctlsmile · Answer

I think what you said to me was totally wrong I am afraid

Clive · Answer

Hi,

A.) Which sentence is correct in the following situation?

I dropped my scarf on the road and someone picked it up and returned it to me. Then I said " Thank you very much, you are a star but not the star. Why? Neither sounds at all natural to me in this context.

However, in an american english, people says,"You are the man" but not "You are a man"
I view 'You are the man' as an idiom. Possibly the underlying thought was originally 'you are specifically the best or most important man'. But today, I think people just say it without thining about the precise meaning.

B.)What article is correct in the following sentence?

1.) Suppose there is one mathematician and a psychologist in the room.
The psychologist: Why that man is so weird and haven't put any socks on?
The mathematician: You are "the" psychologist. You are telling me why.
Why do we not put a rather than the in this situation?
Both articles are possible. 'A psychologist' suggests he speaker is thinking 'you are one of many in the world'. 'The' suggests the speaker is thinking only of the two people in the room.

2) Now suppose there are two psychologists in the room
The psychologist A: Why that man is weird and haven't put any socks on?
The psychologist B: You are a psychologist. You are telling me why.
Why do we not put the rather than a in this situation?
Same comment as above, except that now the speaker is just thinking of the two people in the conversation, ie the speaker and the psychologist he is talking to.

C.) Which sentence is correct? Why?
1.) What kind of language is this word XXXX coming from?
2.) What kind of language does this word XXXX come from?
For a native person, they will chose 1 rahter than 2. Why?
Only #2 sounds natural.

Clive

Ronctlsmile · Answer

In question C.) what kind of language is this word XXXX coming from? I heard this kind of expression when I went for a pub quiz the other night. After the quiz, I asked my english friends and all couldn't explain to me but kept saying the option 1 is better.

In question A.) you are a star -- is a metaphor, which means what a fantastic thing you have done. However, it's not ture when you said you are the star

In question B.) I am still not sure about your explanation

Clive · Answer

Hi,

In question C.) what kind of language is this word XXXX coming from? I heard this kind of expression when I went for a pub quiz the other night. After the quiz, I asked my english friends and all couldn't explain to me but kept saying the option 1 is better. Strange. Are they native speakers of English? Where did they grow up? How many bottles of beer did they drink in the pub?

In question A.) you are a star -- is a metaphor, which means what a fantastic thing you have done. However, it's not ture when you said you are the star It doesn't sound to me like a natural thng to say to someone in that context. Maybe it's a way of speaking that I am not familiar with. eg Young people often have their own way of speaking.

In question B.) I am still not sure about your explanation Oh?

Clive

Dimsumexpress · Answer

ronctlsmileI think what you said to me was totally wrong I am afraid

That problem nowadays with some learners is that they fail in their characters to be humble. If you think I am wrong, Give me a good reason. I am listening! You will hear a lot of substandard English on the street even in work place. What you hear doesn't constitute a reason to tell someone who tried to help you wrong. You've got a lot to learn besides English.

Ronctlsmile · Answer

@ dimsumexpress

http://forum.wordreference.com/showthread.php?t=4689

There is a long explanation of the phrase "You are a star". I have just found out on the internet. Being direct is not relevant to being rude. I appreciate your help. I remember you. You the one who loves showing off all the time.

dimsumexpress You've got a lot to learn besides English.

Please do not love me.

Clive · Answer

Please do not be offensive.

Clive

You are the star or You are a star

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