"I left my keys" vs. "I forgot my keys"

[tuncay]

Business Idiom in English, Intermediate level

ESL/EFL Test #136 "How to make exclamations", question 2

How stupid can I get! I ......... my keys in the door overnight.

(a) forgot
(b) deserted
(c) traced
(d) left

Business Idiom in English, Intermediate level

ESL/EFL Test #136 "How to make exclamations", answer 2

How stupid can I get! I left my keys in the door overnight.

Correct answer: (d) left

Your answer was: incorrect
How stupid can I get! I forgot my keys in the door overnight.
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Why can't i use forgot here?

[Alan]

Hi,

The speaker didn't forget the keys because you can't really forget keys, can you? He left them in the door. He forgot to take the keys out of the door.

Alan
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English as a Second Language
You can read my ESL story Word Story: Search Engines

[Tamara]

Hi

Sorry for the off-topic...
But what was/is always intriguing to me: which form – plural and 'pattern' (keys) or single (a key, my key) – should I use if there is only one key on my key ring?

(By the way, to me, personally, when a person says 'I’ve lost my key' – he/she more likely means that he/she has forgotten/lost a (software) product key. )
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It’s impossible to learn swimming without entering the water…

[Alan]

HI Tamara,

Keys aren't glasses (spectacles) so if you've only got one key, then one key it is as in: If we're not back before you go, leave the key under the mat.

Alan
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English as a Foreign Language
You can read my EFL story Are you a Persuader?