substitute for/ achange with/ change for

[vil]

Dear teachers,

I know that use of the verb "to substitute" presents considerable difficulty as the action of substituting is viewed in Bulgarian and English from different points.
The direct object in the English sentence corresponds to the indirect object in the Bulgarian sentence, while the direct object in the Bulgarian sentence corresponds to the prepositionl object in the English sentence.

substitute (v) = substitute something for something

The recipe says you can substitute yoghurt for the sour cream.

The worker substituted a new part for the broken part of the machine.

I used food as a substitute for happiness.

The coach substitutes Smith for Jones.

She substitutes the blank sheet for the list.

He puts the list into her bag and substitutes the blank sheet of paper for it.

Compare: I changed it for a blank sheet of paper.

replace (v) = replace something with something

They replaced the permanent staff with part-timers.

Pull the wing skin off and replace with the new.

If it does not show up well enough as the screen dump replace with the following text: FUNCTION BLOCKCNT1() Copy () FileOpen,,

The 5ft 9in model and actress with a 38-23-36 figure said it made a change for women to be seen as tough and strong.

Change Schools and their children have suffered change after change for more than a quarter of a century,…

But what a change for the better, I kept thinking, when compared to old committee meetings I….

It seemed to many observers that there had been a change for the worse since 1835

It will mean change for the better.

The research aims to evaluate the effect of policy change for the distribution of health care across different groups in the British population.

Regards.

V.

[Neillythere]

Hi Vil

Having read through your long post, I wasn't sure what question you were asking. Please advise, so that we can respond.

Many thanks

NT

[vil]

Hi Neilyythere,

I try and find some way of accepting your bewildering by the reading my original post. How are you to interpred this? You don’t know Bulgarian, do you? The question was ciphered in the following sentence which was written in the introduction to my post above.

“The direct object in the English sentence corresponds to the indirect object in the Bulgarian sentence, while the direct object in the Bulgarian sentence corresponds to the prepositionl object in the English sentence.”

In other words: substitute (v) = substitute something for something.

substitute margarin for butter = replace butter with margarine

In my natural language substitute = replace.

In your language the situation by usage of “replace” is different from that one of the “substitute”.

replace (v) = replace something with something

for example: replace butter with margarine

Would you be kind enough explane to me that irregularity?

Thank you in advance for your efforts.

Regards.

V.

[Neillythere]

Hi Vil

It's taken me some time, but I think what I've come up with may help clear up the confusion:

Replace“butter” with “margarine”
i.e. for “butter” read “margarine”
i.e. for “butter” use “margarine”
i.e. for “butter” substitute “margarine”
i.e. for every occurrence of “butter” replace it with “margarine”

i.e. “margarine” replaces “butter”
i.e. “margarine” substitutes for “butter”

i.e. A replaces B = A substitutes for B
i.e. If you substitute A = You replace with A

Essentially, what this "boils down" to, in English, is:

1. "replace" doesn't equal "substitute" but "substitute for"
2. "substitute" doesn't equal "replace" but "replace with"

Best regards

NT

[vil]

Hi Neillythere,

Thank you for your visual methods of teaching. You made me the problematic matter clear. Thank you again for your very original clarification.

Regards.

V.

[Neillythere]

Hi Vil

I have to make it simpler, so I can understand it! I'm a simple guy.
And, the more visual it is, the easier it is to understand/remember!

With an overload of information, it's "difficult to see the wood for the trees".

Always remember the "KISS" principle:
Keep it short and simple.

The reason why I often try to help Zoe is because she does exactly that.

She only posts a sentence or 2 at a time, so if you've only got a few minutes on the site, it's easier to lend a hand.

Best regards

NT