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Thread: capacity

  1. #1
    English4everyone is offline Member
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    Default capacity

    He doesn't have the capacity to drink! Whenever he starts drinking, he overdoses on alcohol.
    is the first sentence correct? if not, what iscommon?
    do we have to use (the) before (capacity)?

  2. #2
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    Default Re: capacity

    "He doesn't have the capacity to drink!" means that he cannot physically ingest liquids.
    Most people would say: "He can't hold his liquor. Whenever he starts drinking, he overdoses on alcohol."
    To "hold one's liquor" means to be able to drink without becoming drunk or sick.

    The article "the" is necessary.
    English4everyone and ridvann like this.

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    English4everyone is offline Member
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    Default Re: capacity

    Thank you very much for this phrase "hold one's liquor"
    I am looking for a word or phrase that we can use in any situation for example:
    He .................., whenever he smokes, he has nausea.
    He .................., whenever he goes shopping, he spends all his money.
    He .................., whenever he watches porno movies, he ...........
    Do we have such a word or phrase that we can use in almost all situations?
    And sorry for the third example.

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    English4everyone is offline Member
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    Threadstarter / Original Poster

    Default Re: capacity

    Can anyone help?

  5. #5
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    Default Re: capacity

    Quote Originally Posted by English4everyone View Post
    Can anyone help?
    At a guess I would say that nobody understands what you are asking.

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    emsr2d2 is online now VIP Member
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    Default Re: capacity

    Quote Originally Posted by English4everyone View Post
    Thank you very much for this phrase "hold one's liquor"
    I am looking for a word or phrase that we can use in any situation for example:
    He .................., whenever he smokes, he has nausea.
    He .................., whenever he goes shopping, he spends all his money.
    He .................., whenever he watches porno movies, he ...........
    Do we have such a word or phrase that we can use in almost all situations?
    And sorry for the third example.
    If you're looking for a word that fits all those situations then the answer is no.

    For the smoking one, I can't think of anything that fits.

    For the shopping one, "He is a shopaholic" which means he loves going shopping but I can't think of a phrase that means he always spends all his money.

    For the one about watching porn, the main thing I'm intrigued about is what word you think will fit at the very end of the sentence!

  7. #7
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    Default Re: capacity

    Quote Originally Posted by emsr2d2 View Post
    For the one about watching porn, the main thing I'm intrigued about is what word you think will fit at the very end of the sentence!
    He is a monk. Whenever he watches porn films, he vomits.
    Context is always important; labelling is rarely important.


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    emsr2d2 is online now VIP Member
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    Default Re: capacity

    He is a perfectly normal man. Whenever he watches porn films, he hides the evidence from his girlfriend.

  9. #9
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    5jj
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    Default Re: capacity

    Quote Originally Posted by emsr2d2 View Post
    He is a perfectly normal man. Whenever he watches porn films, he hides the evidence from his girlfriend.
    These days, his girlfriend buys them, and they watch them together.
    Context is always important; labelling is rarely important.


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