-
Spoken sentences
I heard these sentences from movies. I wonder I heard them correctly.
"He at a time used an alias known as the Godfather"
"Corleone is a term used by friends on the affection, on the respect"
Are they correct in grammar?
Thank you,
-
Re: Spoken sentences

Originally Posted by
vvaann "He at a time used an alias known as the Godfather"
"Corlerone is a term used by friends on the affection, on the respect"
The first sentence is stretching grammar a little but I’d say it’s still grammatical. However, I would express it as follows:
At one time, he used the alias the Godfather. (Note: no need for “known as”)
The second one is the one that doesn’t look right to me. I think it should be:
Corlerone is used by friends as a term of affection and of respect.
(
)
-
Thanks for your comment.
What makes me wonder about these sentences is whether "at a time" and "on the affection, on the respect" are ever used. Do native speakers say so?
Thanks,
-
“At a time” is used in such phrases as “one at a time”, “two at a time”, etc, but in your quoted example, it means “at one time”.
I have never heard of the phrases “on the affection” and “on the respect” before.
(:?)
-
If you put commas in, it sounds better to me:
He, at a time, used an alias known as the Godfather
-

Originally Posted by
tdol He, at a time, used an alias known as the Godfather
I’d say “… used the alias the Godfather” – “an alias known as the Godfather” means that it is the alias, not the person, that is called the Godfather.
(:?)
-
Good point- I was thinking about the 'at a time' and neglected the rest of the sentence. Sorry. 8)
Similar Threads
-
By Anonymous in forum Ask a Teacher
Replies: 7
Last Post: 03-Jun-2008, 03:59
-
By jack in forum Ask a Teacher
Replies: 2
Last Post: 06-Sep-2004, 10:09
-
By RonBee in forum General Language Discussions
Replies: 6
Last Post: 01-Dec-2003, 00:13
-
By Anonymous in forum Ask a Teacher
Replies: 3
Last Post: 02-Oct-2003, 22:53
-
By Anonymous in forum Ask a Teacher
Replies: 2
Last Post: 10-Feb-2003, 22:57
Posting Permissions
- You may not post new threads
- You may not post replies
- You may not post attachments
- You may not edit your posts
-
Forum Rules

Search Engine Optimization by
vBSEO 3.6.1