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19-Oct-2004, 08:45
| | Member | | Join Date: Sep 2004 Country: Mars
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| |  Give me a minute
Hi Teachers,
I want to know what I should say in the following scenario:
Once,I was doing assignments in the library with some other classmates,I was so concentrated to finish my stuffs,then Classmate A wanted to see my answers,since I was almost done and wanted to finish it before letting him see it. I replied politely,"sure,give me a minute,I'm almost done.I'll let you see it after I finish it" Classmate A said,"Ok,thanks." At that time,Classmate B was laughing and said,"Hahahaha,give me a minute,hahaha","hey,Classmate A,give me a minute,hahaha." I was kind of embarassed and didn't know what was wrong with what I just said that would made him laughed about.
So teachers,pls tell me what's wrong with "give me a minute". As far as I know,it doesn't necessarily mean the exact 1 minute,just like "give me a second" or "give me a sec",doesn't necessarily mean 1 second. Furthermore,I just wanted to express that I'd finish my assignmnet shortly.
Am I wrong?I'm so confused.
Pls correct me,so that I won't make the same mistake again.  |
19-Oct-2004, 09:14
|  | VIP Member | | Join Date: Sep 2003 Country: Canada
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| | Re: Give me a minute
There's nothing wrong with your reply. It's correct, and you're right about its figurative meaning--that is doesn't really mean 60 seconds; It could mean 5 minutes. As for classmate B, who knows what s/he was laughing at; You need to ask her/him. It's possible s/he was drawing on the literal meaning of 'give me a minute' (i.e., exactly 60 seconds), but, you know I still can't figure out why someone would think that's so funny. :? |
19-Oct-2004, 10:52
| | Editor, UsingEnglish.com | | Join Date: Nov 2002 Country: UK
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Amigo, I think your classmates must be easily amused; they seem to find a perfectly correct, natural sentence funny. I wish I could be so easily entertained.  |
19-Oct-2004, 12:51
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That guy was looking for trouble, kick him in the b*lls next time.
FRC |
19-Oct-2004, 21:14
| | |
Quote: |
Originally Posted by Francois That guy was looking for trouble, kick him in the b*lls next time.
FRC |   |
19-Oct-2004, 22:26
| | Editor, UsingEnglish.com | | Join Date: Nov 2002 Country: UK
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He sounds like a serious student, not a football fan. |
20-Oct-2004, 02:24
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alright ! give me a minute,let me go kick his b*lls,be right back
:mad:
Thank you y'all ! u guys are fantastic |
20-Oct-2004, 08:43
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You're welcome. :D |
20-Oct-2004, 09:06
| | Editor, UsingEnglish.com | | Join Date: Nov 2002 Country: UK
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You need a minute? You're a slow kicker. |
20-Oct-2004, 10:15
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ok,give me a second,then | | Thread Tools | | | | Display Modes |  Linear Mode | 
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