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 Wed Jul 16, 2008 3:00 am 'separate' and 'separated' |
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Separated is the past tense of the verb separate.
However, separate can also be an adjective.
So, a couple who have 'broken up' are separated, and living separate lives.
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Skrej
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| Wed Jul 16, 2008 10:19 am 'separate' and 'separated' |
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I know that such spouses are referred to as estranged spouses
Is that true?
Thanks! |
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Lost_Soul
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| Wed Jul 16, 2008 22:46 pm 'separate' and 'separated' |
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hi,
if I simply want to say "they're separated/separate", which one should I use?
thanks. |
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Jctgf
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| Wed Jul 16, 2008 23:02 pm 'separate' and 'separated' |
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Say "They're separated."
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Yankee
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| Thu Jul 17, 2008 8:12 am 'separate' and 'separated' |
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| lost_soul wrote: | I know that such spouses are referred to as estranged spouses
Is that true?
Thanks! |
Sure. "Estranged" carries a sense of bitterness or hatred, i.e. the breakup/divorce/separation was not amicable and pleasant. If you're referring to an estranged spouse, it means they're divorced, also.
Calling them separated just means they're living apart, the breakup or separation wasn't necessarily a nasty, mean, hateful battle.
Also, if you refer to a husband and wife as separated, that normally means they're not yet officially divorced, just no longer living as husband and wife. They may finalize the divorce, or they may get back together after resolving their problem(s).
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Skrej
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| Thu Jul 17, 2008 10:17 am 'separate' and 'separated' |
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| Also, he/she is separated from her/him. How about: Don Quixote finally became separate for he had got separated from all his friends. |
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Haihao
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| Thu Jul 17, 2008 14:53 pm 'separate' and 'separated' |
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The phrasing "he became seperate" is very odd.
It would take a weird example, like twins who did everything together for years and were simply thought of as one unit, until they both started trying to showcase their individual identities. "I'm trying to become more seperate from my sister" -- but even so, it's a stretch. |
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Barb_D
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| Thu Jul 17, 2008 15:02 pm 'separate' and 'separated' |
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| Barb_D wrote: | The phrasing "he became seperate" is very odd.
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I know. That's why I used Don Quixote. But it's possible, right?
Separate: Archaic. Withdrawn from others; solitary. |
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Haihao
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| Thu Jul 17, 2008 15:07 pm 'separate' and 'separated' |
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| An archaic use doesn't sound more plausible when used to refer to an older era. It just doesn't sound right, period. |
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Barb_D
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| Thu Jul 17, 2008 16:08 pm 'separate' and 'separated' |
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Wasn't Don Quixote written in Spanish? I imagine there have been quite a few English translations over the centuries. I wonder whether an archaic use of 'separate' would be found in modern translations -- or more likely in the centuries-old ones. 
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Yankee
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| Thu Jul 17, 2008 16:37 pm 'separate' and 'separated' |
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| Yankee wrote: | .
Wasn't Don Quixote written in Spanish? I imagine there have been quite a few English translations over the centuries. I wonder whether an archaic use of 'separate' would be found in modern translations -- or more likely in the centuries-old ones.
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Wasn't it one of the first novels in the 16th century? I remember trying to read Don Quixote when I was a boy, and I really struggled with the book before i put it down. A few years ago, I read a new translation, and it made for an amazing read!
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Ralf
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| Thu Jul 17, 2008 16:46 pm 'separate' and 'separated' |
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This is a little off-topic, but I thought the Wikipedia write-up about the most recent translator (of Don Quixote) was interesting:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Edith_Grossman
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Yankee
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Ralf
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| Fri Jul 18, 2008 1:58 am 'separate' and 'separated' |
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| Ralf wrote: | Wasn't it one of the first novels in the 16th century?
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Exactly, Ralf. Unfortunately I came across that English version but ended up being made interested in it...  |
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Haihao
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| Rising and falling declaratives | We found the lamp being on/burning |
