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Thread: On opening

  1. 06-Feb-2013, 22:08 #1
    lille82
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    Default On opening

    "On opening the bottle, he drank all the wine."

    Could anybody please explain when the structure of on + verb + ing is used? Can it be replaced by anything else? Why is it not correct to say "After he opened the bottle, he drank all the wine?" Thanks.
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  2. 06-Feb-2013, 22:14 #2
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    5jj
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    Default Re: On opening

    Quote Originally Posted by lille82 View Post
    "On opening the bottle, he drank all the wine."

    Could anybody please explain when the structure of on + verb + ing is used?
    It's just a natural English construction.
    Why is it not correct to say "After he opened the bottle, he drank all the wine?"
    It is correct, if that's what you want to say.
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    Context is important. Please provide enough for us to be able to deal effectively with your question.
    Your thread title should include all or part of the word/phrase being discussed.
    If you just want to know the meaning of a word, try OneLook Dictionary Search first.

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  3. 06-Feb-2013, 22:28 #3
    lille82
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    Default Re: On opening

    Does "on the opening" and "after he opened" mean the same? Or is it equivalent to "when he opened"? Also could you please give some more examples with this structure.
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  4. 07-Feb-2013, 00:50 #4
    hetzer
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    Default Re: On opening

    I believe "on the opening" means "as soon as he opened the bottle, or right at the moment he opened the bottle."
    On the other hand, "after he opened" is almost equivalent to "when he opened."
    If an action is done at the almost same time as another, then we use "on."
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  5. 07-Feb-2013, 06:24 #5
    JMurray
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    Default Re: On opening

    not a teacher

    Also, could you please give some more examples with this structure?

    He was very nervous before the party, but on entering the room he noticed some friends and felt more relaxed.
    On receiving the bad news about her son, she collapsed in the hallway.
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