nicolewatson
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- Sep 23, 2010
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- English Teacher
personally i would say "Tom is getting married along with Tim", as it still sounds odd otherwise, or maybe id say he's getting married at the same time as Tim....
personally i would say "Tom is getting married along with Tim", as it still sounds odd otherwise, or maybe id say he's getting married at the same time as Tim....
In my OPINION, one should say "married with", even though the accepted norm is "married to". Similarly, A long ago professor of mine made me aware that it was more polite to say "talk with" instead of "talk to".
It would make me cringe if I were to hear someone say "Get married with", and in the same vein, "Talk with".
It is bloody annoying because it sounds like self censorship stretched to the point of political correctness gone mad.
AmE is to blame as that is the main proponent of the "...with" usage.
What are the Americans taught at school?
I have the same question for the use of Present Perfect. As far as I know in AE it is very often, if not always, replaced by Past Simple.
I would appreciate if someone (a native) can answer these questions; I'm really interested in such differences.
I'm an American speaker and writer, and in AmE, the use of the Present Perfect tense is still taught in school and remains alive and well in general usage. It in no way has been replaced with the Past Simple tense, as you claim. The distinction regarding continuing vs. completed action is one which we Americans continue to find entirely useful, and it is a disctinction of which we remain keenly aware. :shock:
For you, perhaps. For me, and for many speakers of BrE, 'talk (verb) with' is not very natural."Talk with" vs. "talk to," on the other hand, raises the issue of whether two people are speaking to each other on equal terms. "Talk with" implies that they might be. "Talk to" implies that they may not be. A friend "talks with" another. A judge "talks to" a witness.
I presume the person was referring to some uses of the present perfect in BrE where AmE and other variants, may use the past. Jumping from that to wondering whether it's alive in AmE is something of an over-reaction.
The person who wrote that was not claiming authority; they wrote, as you quoted, 'as far as I know'. They also wrote, 'I would appreciate if someone (a native) can answer these questions; I'm really interested in such differences.' The claim that this is infamous characterisation of your countrymen is indeed hyperbolic.Perhaps, but I refer you to the original question. "As far as I know in AE it [the Present Perfect] is very often, if not always, replaced by Past Simple." My hyperbole and my bug-eyed emoticon friend were supposed to convey bemusement that my countrymen and I were being so infamously characterized. (Ooops, there goes that hyperbole again). ;-)
The person who wrote that was not claiming authority; they wrote, as you quoted, 'as far as I know'. They also wrote, 'I would appreciate if someone (a native) can answer these questions; I'm really interested in such differences.' The claim that this is infamous characterisation of your countrymen is indeed hyperbolic.
Don't worry about it. I feel no need to apologise for my denseness in not noticing that it was an attempt at humour, so you certainly don't have to feel guilty about my densesness. The threads are a better place for humour, even if it doesn't always work for some. Carry on, please.Oops. I see what all the fuss is about. I thought I was still posting in the "Weird US English" thread when I first gave my response. I apologize sincerely to the original asker of the question for my flippancy and to those whom I may have perturbed with my inappropriate and mistaken attempt at humor in an "Ask the Teacher" thread.
Not in the sense we are discussing.What about get married 'off' :-?
Could someone confirm if it is true that "talk with" is not very natural in BrE? Thanks in advance.For you, perhaps. For me, and for many speakers of BrE, 'talk (verb) with' is not very natural.
For you, perhaps. For me, and for many speakers of BrE, 'talk (verb) with' is not very natural.
Of course dictionaries don't list unnatural forms. They would be ten times the weight and size if they did.Could someone confirm if it is true that "talk with" is not very natural in BrE as stated by Johnson_F below although the dictionaries from which I quoted don't say it is the case?