P.3 English, pls help

minniemouse

Fill in the blanks with the most sutiable words. (at/on/to/under/with/for/by/in/out)

A: Can you play with me?

B: No, I can't. Climb _____ to the chair and look out of the window. My mother is comling.

Which is one the most sutiable word? Why?

Thanks

[ 本文章最後由 minniemouse 於 07-11-28 20:18 編輯 ]

minniemouse

tli

on. As she needs to look out the window yo see her mum, as she is not tall enough

sabmar

'climb onto the chair' sounds ok to me.

原文章由 minniemouse 於 07-11-28 20:16 發表
Fill in the blanks with the most sutiable words. (at/on/to/under/with/for/by/in/out)

A: Can you play with me?

B: No, I can't. Climb _____ to the chair and look out of the window. My mother is comlin ...

minniemouse

Thanks to both of you.

The model answer is ON.

星級國民

原文章由 sabmar 於 07-11-29 15:04 發表
'climb onto the chair' sounds ok to me.

"Climb onto the chair" is grammatically correct.

"Climb on to the chair" would either be wrong or very strange usage.

The whole exercise is very problematic.

The question "Can you play with me?" is Chinglish. "Can" is usually for a question on ability. For example, "Can you ride a bicycle?" is asking about the skills of handling a bicycle. "Would you like to ride a bicycle?" is asking for a choice. "Play with me" is also a very odd phrase. One play with toys, matches(fire risk!), plasticine etc, which are usually objects rather than a person. "Play with me" may be used in a muscial sense meaning following my lead music. So that question should be "Would you join me for a game?" or in a imperative format "Let's play".

For most native speakers, "climbing onto a chair" will end up sitting on it. So the better way is to say "Stand on a chair". (Note, the indefinite article should be used rather than the definite one).

With exercise like this, no wonder our kids' English is so poor!

星級國民

原文章由 christf 於 07-12-3 16:09 發表


No,  play with somebody or something is a com ...

I would not say that is common English. However, it is the whole question that is Chinglish. If you insist to take "Can you play with me?" as proper English, it is up to you.

星級國民

原文章由 christf 於 07-12-3 16:54 發表
Go to check with a dictionary (e.g. Oxford's Advanced English Learner) if you don't believe that "play with somebody or something is a common and correct form of English usage but not a Chinglish"

By ...

I am not saying that it is grammatically wrong, just odd language.

As I say, it is up to you about usage. I do not believe it is proper English.

However, I hope at least parents can help kids to learn English in a way to distinguish between the meanings of
"Can you go with me?" and
"Shall we go together?".

麟媽媽

其實....香港地上堂跟課程教之嘛，
小三，教緊"Can"咪用can 囉，
上到小四，好似我仔咁，
教埋Shall/Will/Should/Would，
佢又未必再用"Can"喇，係咪？
英文as a second language，
細路學，咪一步一步黎囉。

星級國民

原文章由 christf 於 07-12-3 17:34 發表
星級國民 insisted that:

"lay with me" is also a very odd phrase. One play with toys, matches(fire risk!), plasticine etc, which are usually objects rather than a person.

************************

O ...

Yes, I do insist. If you would like dictionaries as authority, I see nothing in Advanced Learner to suggest proper usage of "play with". Let us refer to some more authoritative source.

The New Shorter Oxford Dictionary V2, p 2245. Under the head word "play" as verb (meaning 13)

13 v.i. follow by with, amuse oneself with, sport with, touch or finger lightly by the way of amusement, treat or do lightly or frivolously, trifle or toy with, colloq. masturbate.

Or using a dictionary good for its usage in context, the Collins COBUILD dictionary explains on P. 1259

(6) If you play with an object or with your hair, you keep moving it or touching it with your fingers, perhaps because you are bored or nervous. [pattern v with n].

I trust those trustworthly dictionaries.

[ 本文章最後由 星級國民 於 07-12-3 18:11 編輯 ]

星級國民

It is not one of various ways. The only item in the Shorter Oxford Dictionary (which is the full Oxford Dictionary without the quotes from literature) that links the two words "play with" together is in that quote.

[If you do not consider the full Oxford Dictionary as authority, what is?]

The COBUILD dictionary is based on the Bank of English database and lists all the most common usages from both British and American sources. It also only carries that item with the pattern "play with".

I wish you luck if your kid(s) learn such a kind of English based just on simple definitions.

[ 本文章最後由 星級國民 於 07-12-3 18:36 編輯 ]

星級國民

原文章由 christf 於 07-12-3 18:34 發表
For The Advanced Learner, it gives out 18 different usages of "play" as a verb, 2 different usages of "play" as PHR V and 7 different usages of "play" as  a noun.  It almost has two whole pages descri ...

Google "The Shorter Oxford English Dictionary" or "The Oxford English Dictionary" or even OED, than you will know what is authority in the English language.

星級國民

Language is about common accepted usage. If both highly respectable dictionaries list that as the only meaning, I would definitely logically recommend parents not to teach kids to use such phrases when they do not intend to carry the listed meaning.

BTW, have you googled OED and learn a bit more about dictionaries. You may also google COBUILD or "Bank of English" to see how we determine usage and meaning in context.

原文章由 christf 於 07-12-3 18:44 發表
Have a logical sense, please !

The dictionaries you use may not completely list out all the various usage of a word.  I am not saying the thing you quoted are wrong but just tell you that one of the  ...