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 #2 (permalink) Fri Feb 13, 2009 16:20 pm "live to be 100 years old", can the word "be" be removed? |
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| "live to be 100 years old", can the word "be" be removed? |
What for?
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con·text - The part of a text or statement that surrounds a particular word or passage and determines its meaning. |
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 Milanya
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| #3 (permalink) Fri Feb 13, 2009 16:46 pm "live to be 100 years old", can the word "be" be removed? |
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Hey Milanya,
By the way, I am still learning 
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Gray
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| #4 (permalink) Fri Feb 13, 2009 16:49 pm "live to be 100 years old", can the word "be" be removed? |
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| Gray wrote: |
Hey Milanya,
By the way, I am still learning |
So do I. That is why I am here.
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con·text - The part of a text or statement that surrounds a particular word or passage and determines its meaning. |
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Milanya
I'm here quite often ;-)
Joined: 29 Dec 2008
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Location: Texas, USA (at present)
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| #5 (permalink) Fri Feb 13, 2009 17:47 pm "live to be 100 years old", can the word "be" be removed? |
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Hi Milanya,
He meant to ask if "be" is removed from the former, would the latter have the same meaning as the former?
Does it make sense if we say "live to 80" in the following context:
If I live to be 80 I would say it's because of the fresh air, having a physical job, doing physical work.
| Milanya wrote: |
| Gray wrote: |
Hey Milanya,
By the way, I am still learning |
So do I. That is why I am here. |
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Anna.ha
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Joined: 02 Jan 2009
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| #6 (permalink) Fri Feb 13, 2009 17:58 pm "live to be 100 years old", can the word "be" be removed? |
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| Anna.ha wrote: |
He meant to ask if "be" is removed from the former, would the latter have the same meaning as the former?
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I understand the question. What I do not understand is what he/she wants to maim a perfectly good sentence for.
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Milanya
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| #7 (permalink) Fri Feb 13, 2009 18:09 pm "live to be 100 years old", can the word "be" be removed? |
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Milanya,
Could we have a better expression to wish the same - i.e., She'll live to be 100 years old?
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Gray
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| #8 (permalink) Fri Feb 13, 2009 18:15 pm "live to be 100 years old", can the word "be" be removed? |
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| Gray wrote: |
Milanya,
Could we have a better expression to wish the same - i.e., She'll live to be 100 years old? |
1. What is wrong with this one? (I an genuinly puzzled.)
2. I do not see a wish, I see a statement. ("She will" is a statement, "I wish she would" is a wish.)
May wish to you is:
May you live for as long as you want and never want for as long as you live.
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con·text - The part of a text or statement that surrounds a particular word or passage and determines its meaning. |
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Milanya
I'm here quite often ;-)
Joined: 29 Dec 2008
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Location: Texas, USA (at present)
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| #9 (permalink) Fri Feb 13, 2009 18:28 pm "live to be 100 years old", can the word "be" be removed? |
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| Milanya wrote: |
1. What is wrong with this one? (I an genuinly puzzled.)
2. I do not see a wish, I see a statement. ("She will" is a statement, "I wish she would" is a wish.)
My wish to you is:
May you live for a long as you want and never want for as long as you live. |
I wish I could understand the difference -- that is what I didn't know and wanted to ask.
One more question I see --
May you live for a long as you want and never want for as long as you live.
Could we interchange 'for a long as' with 'for as long as'?
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Gray
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| #10 (permalink) Fri Feb 13, 2009 18:35 pm "live to be 100 years old", can the word "be" be removed? |
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| Gray wrote: |
Could we interchange 'for a long as' with 'for as long as'? |
No, we cannot. As...as.. is a set expression, we should not be messing with it.
as … as versus so … as. A traditional usage rule draws a distinction between comparisons using as … as and comparisons using so … as. The rule states that the so … as construction is required in negative sentences (as in Shakespeare’s “’tis not so deep as a well”), in questions (as in Is it so bad as she says?), and in certain if clauses (as in If it is so bad as you say, you ought to leave). But this so … as construction is becoming increasingly rare in American English, and the use of as … as is now entirely acceptable in all contexts.
http://www.bartleby.com/64/C001/012.html
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Milanya
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| #11 (permalink) Fri Feb 13, 2009 18:40 pm "live to be 100 years old", can the word "be" be removed? |
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| Milanya wrote: |
| No, we cannot. As...as.. is a set expression, we should not be messing with it. |
Do you mean -- 'for a long as' construction is correct?
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Gray
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| #12 (permalink) Fri Feb 13, 2009 18:48 pm "live to be 100 years old", can the word "be" be removed? |
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No, I mean the opposite. You can say "for a long time," but if you are making a comparison you have to say "for as long as..." (not "a long as")
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con·text - The part of a text or statement that surrounds a particular word or passage and determines its meaning. |
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Milanya
I'm here quite often ;-)
Joined: 29 Dec 2008
Posts: 846
Location: Texas, USA (at present)
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| #13 (permalink) Fri Feb 13, 2009 18:57 pm "live to be 100 years old", can the word "be" be removed? |
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| Milanya wrote: |
| No, I mean the opposite. You can say "for a long time," but if you are making a comparison you have to say "for as long as..." (not "a long as") |
This is confusing  You wrote -- May you live for a long as you want...
If we don't need comparison here then why should we use 'as'? Can we not simply say -- May you live for a long... ?
Also, isn't it somewhat strange to wish someone -- to live as long as he/she wants?
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Gray
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| #14 (permalink) Fri Feb 13, 2009 19:05 pm "live to be 100 years old", can the word "be" be removed? |
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I simply mistyped. Thank you for pointing out my typo. I have a new ergonomic keyboard and am still getting used to it. (keyword is "new")
I have corrected the mistake.
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con·text - The part of a text or statement that surrounds a particular word or passage and determines its meaning. |
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Milanya
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Joined: 29 Dec 2008
Posts: 846
Location: Texas, USA (at present)
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| #15 (permalink) Fri Feb 13, 2009 19:12 pm "live to be 100 years old", can the word "be" be removed? |
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| Milanya wrote: |
I simply mistyped. Thank you for pointing out my typo. I have a new ergonomic keyboard and am still getting used to it. (keyword is "new")
I have corrected the mistake. |
It seems I am not going to allow you to take a nap I should apologize first for those many questions but you have just given me another opportunity to learn --
Is it okay to exclude the subject 'I' here -- 'and am still getting used to it'?
I am just curious, curious to learn.
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| 'And' vs 'as well as' | confusion in "prefeciency" |
