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01-Nov-2007, 10:22
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| |  playing the stock market
We buy lottery tickets, enter contests or spend hours building a business or playing the stock market. We're sure when we have plenty of money, we will be happy. But will we?
I doubt whether I can rewrite the underlined part as the following without making a change in meaning.
Moreover, I'm especially troubled by the phrase "playing the stock market." Is it right to utter "playing the stock" or "investing in the stock market?" Your advice? Thanks.
We buy lottery, take part in contests or spend hours setting up a business or investing the stock martet... |
01-Nov-2007, 19:13
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| | Re: playing the stock market
Quote:
Originally Posted by angliholic  We buy lottery tickets, enter contests or spend hours building a business or playing the stock market. We're sure when we have plenty of money, we will be happy. But will we?
I doubt whether I can rewrite the underlined part as the following without making a change in meaning.
Moreover, I'm especially troubled by the phrase "playing the stock market." Is it right to utter "playing the stock" or "investing in the stock market?" Your advice? Thanks.
We buy lottery, take part in contests or spend hours setting up a business or investing the stock martet... | Take part or enter contests seem to me to be about equal.
"Playing the stock market" means that you are treating it like a gambling game - you are always assessing if you should buy or sell shares, aiming to make as much profit as you can, double-guessing what the market is about to do. It is a recognised idiom. Investing in the stock market is much too staid to replace it. |
02-Nov-2007, 04:29
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| | Re: playing the stock market
Thanks, Anglika, for the helpful reply.
By the way, does "double-guessing" refer to "thinking over and over again?" |
02-Nov-2007, 07:32
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| | Re: playing the stock market
No, double-guessing refers to guessing, its like a reassured guess. |
02-Nov-2007, 10:42
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| | Re: playing the stock market
Thanks, Niall.
Just to make sure, does "double-guessing" indicate "guessing again and again?" |
02-Nov-2007, 15:21
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| | Re: playing the stock market
No, not necessarily it means making a guess. |
02-Nov-2007, 15:29
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| | Re: playing the stock market
Thanks, Niall.
But I still don't get it--if it's just making a guess, why it's "double-guessing?"
I suspect there must be more connotations attached to it than just making a guess? |
02-Nov-2007, 15:33
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| | Re: playing the stock market
No, I wouldn't say that there are any extra connotations associated with double-guessing.
I would say making a guess and double-guessing are synonyms. | | Thread Tools | | | | Display Modes |  Linear Mode | 
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