take for granted etc.

[jiang]

Dear teachers,

I have two questions to ask:

No.1
It was for two thousand years "taken for granted" as "obvious" that a heavy weight must fall faster than a light one.
Could you please tell me if "take something for granted as " a phrase? I can't find it in my dictionary.

No.2
Every time we think along a particular thought-pattern, makes it easier for us to think the same way again.
I think there is a grammatical mistake---- which is the subject of 'makes'?

Looking forward to hearing from you.
Thank you in advance.

Jiang

[BobK]

Originally Posted by jiang

Dear teachers,

I have two questions to ask:

No.1
It was for two thousand years "taken for granted" as "obvious" that a heavy weight must fall faster than a light one.
Could you please tell me if "take something for granted as " a phrase? I can't find it in my dictionary.

No.2
Every time we think along a particular thought-pattern, makes it easier for us to think the same way again.
I think there is a grammatical mistake---- which is the subject of 'makes'?

Looking forward to hearing from you.
Thank you in advance.

Jiang

1. Yes, 'take something for granted' is a phrase. It has two main meanings: accept uncritically (as in this case), and accept without gratitude on the assumption that a service is only to be expected ('She should stop doing the housework - he'd soon realize how much he takes her for granted.')

2. 'Every time we think along a particular thought-pattern, it makes it easier for us to think the same way again.'

Some people would say that the subject is 'time'; I frequently hear things like 'Every time we think along a particular thought-pattern makes it easier for us to think the same way again' [no comma], but it seems to me that this shows lazy thinking; in that case, the thing that 'makes it easier' is the fact of having added one more time to the repeated thought-pattern, not the time itself.

b

[jiang]

Dear BobK,
Thank you very much for your explanation.
No.1
There is an 'as' after 'take for granted'. Does it mean I can say 'to take something granted as....?

Looking forward to hearing from you.
Thank you in advance.
Jiang

Originally Posted by BobK

1. Yes, 'take something for granted' is a phrase. It has two main meanings: accept uncritically (as in this case), and accept without gratitude on the assumption that a service is only to be expected ('She should stop doing the housework - he'd soon realize how much he takes her for granted.')

2. 'Every time we think along a particular thought-pattern, it makes it easier for us to think the same way again.'

Some people would say that the subject is 'time'; I frequently hear things like 'Every time we think along a particular thought-pattern makes it easier for us to think the same way again' [no comma], but it seems to me that this shows lazy thinking; in that case, the thing that 'makes it easier' is the fact of having added one more time to the repeated thought-pattern, not the time itself.

b

[jiang]

Dear BobK,
Thank you very much for your explanation.
No.1
There is an 'as' after 'take for granted'. Does it mean we can say ' to take something for granted as...'?

Looking forward to hearing from you.
Thank you in advance.
Jiang

Originally Posted by BobK

1. Yes, 'take something for granted' is a phrase. It has two main meanings: accept uncritically (as in this case), and accept without gratitude on the assumption that a service is only to be expected ('She should stop doing the housework - he'd soon realize how much he takes her for granted.')

2. 'Every time we think along a particular thought-pattern, it makes it easier for us to think the same way again.'

Some people would say that the subject is 'time'; I frequently hear things like 'Every time we think along a particular thought-pattern makes it easier for us to think the same way again' [no comma], but it seems to me that this shows lazy thinking; in that case, the thing that 'makes it easier' is the fact of having added one more time to the repeated thought-pattern, not the time itself.

b

[BobK]

Originally Posted by jiang

Dear BobK,
Thank you very much for your explanation.
No.1
There is an 'as' after 'take for granted'. Does it mean we can say ' to take something for granted as...'?

Looking forward to hearing from you.
Thank you in advance.
Jiang

- in this case "taken for granted as obvious"; you could express this more briefly as 'taken for granted' or 'regarded as obvious'. In the longer version, the words "as obvious" don't add much to the meaning.

b

[jiang]

Dear BobK,
Thank you very much for your explanation. Now I see.

Jiang

Originally Posted by BobK

- in this case "taken for granted as obvious"; you could express this more briefly as 'taken for granted' or 'regarded as obvious'. In the longer version, the words "as obvious" don't add much to the meaning.

b