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Thread: While I'm planning to have a baby

  1. #1
    keannu is offline Key Member
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    Default While I'm planning to have a baby

    "Now that" is the answer, but if you say "while" in the sense of "during the time", doesn't it make sense? It seems to and not to, so it's confusing.

    Choose the correct answer.
    ex)(Now that, While) I'm planning to have a baby, I have stopped drinking and smoking.

  2. #2
    Tdol is offline Editor, UsingEnglish.com
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    Default Re: While I'm planning to have a baby

    It doesn't really work- with while, you'd probably use will.
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  3. #3
    keannu is offline Key Member
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    Default Re: While I'm planning to have a baby

    Quote Originally Posted by Tdol View Post
    It doesn't really work- with while, you'd probably use will.
    Is this "while" "during the time" or "in contrast to"? It may be "during the time", but the main clause doesn't seem to be logically deduced. It sounds weird to me, sorry.
    Okay, it may make sense on second thought. does "I'm planning to" mean "recent activity"? Is that why recent activity(I'm planning to) doesn't go with past or present perfect action(have stopped), but with future action(will stop)?

    ex)While I'm planning to have a baby, I will stop drinking and smoking

  4. #4
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    5jj
    5jj is online now Moderator
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    Default Re: While I'm planning to have a baby

    keannu, native speakers of English (and probably of most other languages) just do not worry about how their utterances may be analysed later - they just say what is in their minds.Normally the listener 'hears' the message rather than the words.

    Possibly, if they had time to think about it, native speakers might say:

    While (despite the fact that) I'm pregnant, I am still smoking. (Unlikely)
    While (despite the fact that) I'm planning to have a baby, I am still smoking. (Unlikely)
    While (during the time that) I'm pregnant, I have stopped smoking / I am not smoking.

    There are many other possibilities. Context normally resolves any potential misunderstandings.
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    Context is always important; labelling is rarely important.


  5. #5
    emsr2d2 is offline VIP Member
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    Default Re: While I'm planning to have a baby

    Quote Originally Posted by keannu View Post
    "Now that" is the answer, but if you say "while" in the sense of "during the time", doesn't it make sense? It seems to and not to, so it's confusing.

    Choose the correct answer.
    ex)(Now that, While) I'm planning to have a baby, I have stopped drinking and smoking.
    Now that = At this point in time, because I am planning to have a baby, I have stopped drinking and smoking.

    "While I'm planning to have a baby" sounds like it will be followed by something else that I will do while I am planning. For example, "While I'm planning to have a baby, I'm also going to plan how I will decorate the nursery".

    I would use "While" to say "While I am trying for a baby (trying to conceive), I have stopped drinking and smoking". That shows that I have stopped drinking and smoking for the duration of my attempt to conceive.
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  6. #6
    keannu is offline Key Member
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    Default Re: While I'm planning to have a baby

    Quote Originally Posted by emsr2d2 View Post
    Now that = At this point in time, because I am planning to have a baby, I have stopped drinking and smoking.

    "While I'm planning to have a baby" sounds like it will be followed by something else that I will do while I am planning. For example, "While I'm planning to have a baby, I'm also going to plan how I will decorate the nursery".

    I would use "While" to say "While I am trying for a baby (trying to conceive), I have stopped drinking and smoking". That shows that I have stopped drinking and smoking for the duration of my attempt to conceive.
    The grammar book's author made an inadequate example thinking "have a baby" means "to conceive a baby", so all my confusion disappeared when you told me the examples. The translation goes "conceive a baby" not "deliver a baby" for "Now that I'm planning to have a baby", and it affected the "while" case so awkwardly. So do you only say "We're planning to conceive a baby" when you want to have a child, or do you have any other common expression?
    Anyway, thanks a lot!!!
    Last edited by keannu; 07-Jan-2012 at 23:39.

  7. #7
    emsr2d2 is offline VIP Member
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    Default Re: While I'm planning to have a baby

    To be fair, if someone says "I'm planning to have a baby" we would understand that to mean that they were about to start trying to get pregnant, not that they were already pregnant and planned to actually give birth. Despite having no kids, I'm pretty sure that once you're pregnant, you don't have any choice in whether or not to give birth!
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  8. #8
    keannu is offline Key Member
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    Default Re: While I'm planning to have a baby

    Quote Originally Posted by emsr2d2 View Post
    To be fair, if someone says "I'm planning to have a baby" we would understand that to mean that they were about to start trying to get pregnant, not that they were already pregnant and planned to actually give birth. Despite having no kids, I'm pretty sure that once you're pregnant, you don't have any choice in whether or not to give birth!
    Okay, once you get pregnant, there's no other option but to deliver a baby, so you wouldn't say "I'm planning to have a baby", but I think it still means "deliver a baby" not "possess a baby", Then, in the following exmples, I think even b is also possible as "I'm planning to have a baby" can be interpreted as "plan to conceive a baby" as you said. Isn't it? Sorry, I may be too persistent, but it's because my concept of "having a baby" is about to be changed a little bit.

    ex) While I'm planning to have a baby,
    a. I'm also going to plan how I will decorate the nursery".
    b. I have stopped drinking and smoking

  9. #9
    emsr2d2 is offline VIP Member
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    Default Re: While I'm planning to have a baby

    Quote Originally Posted by keannu View Post
    Okay, once you get pregnant, there's no other option but to deliver a baby, so you wouldn't say "I'm planning to have a baby", but I think it still means "deliver a baby" not "possess a baby", Then, in the following exmples, I think even b is also possible as "I'm planning to have a baby" can be interpreted as "plan to conceive a baby" as you said. Isn't it? Sorry, I may be too persistent, but it's because my concept of "having a baby" is about to be changed a little bit.

    ex) While I'm planning to have a baby,
    a. I'm also going to plan how I will decorate the nursery".
    b. I have stopped drinking and smoking
    "To have a baby" doesn't really mean exactly "to conceive", "to give birth" or "to possess". It is closer to "to become a parent".
    Barb_D, 5jj and keannu like this.

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