[Grammar] black coffee..... coffee black

[pseudo]

One day, I heard someone said 'coffee black'
I think it has nearly the same meaning with 'black coffee'
Likewise, we can say "I met a guy handsome."
But in grammar books, I haven't found any specific illustration.

Surely there is a rule that adjective should be followed after -thing[body, one]
or present can have different meanings when it proceeds or follows a noun.

But I can't tell the meaning between 'impossible mission' and 'mission impossible'
Are they all grammatically correct? and Do they have different meanings?

 

[englishhobby]

I think "coffee black" or other similar combinations can be correctly used only in certain structures like "I like (to have) my coffee black", and cannot be used in others (e.g. you can't say "This is coffee black".)

As for the "mission impossible", it can be used as a movie or a newspaper article title or in technical language. In such cases the linking verb "be" can be omitted, so you get "Mission Impossible". But do not trust me, it's only IMHO.

 

[SoothingDave]

If you're ordering coffee (or other foods) it is not uncommon to specify how you would like it after you have said what you want. I'd like some coffee, cream and sugar. I'd like the eggs, over easy. I'll have the NY strip steak, medium rare.

 

[bhaisahab]

"I met a guy handsome" seems very unnatural to me.

 

[emsr2d2]

You'll hear "Coffee - black", "coffee - white" quite frequently. People order a coffee and then remember that they need to tell the waiter or barista how they would like their coffee prepared.

 

[Gillnetter]

You'll hear "Coffee - black", "coffee - white" quite frequently. People order a coffee and then remember that they need to tell the waiter or barista how they would like their coffee prepared.

I encounter this problem when I travel to Mexico. I thought that cafe negro (coffee black) would work if I wanted a cup of coffee with nothing added. I found that I had to start with cafe Americano (coffee American, or, American coffee. It seems that Mexican coffee has cinnamon added to it) and then go on to say that I didn't want sugar or cream in the coffee. For some reason the concept of black coffee didn't make sense to the waiter. One of them told me that coffee was not black, it was a brownish color.

 

[Winwin2011]

If you're ordering coffee (or other foods) it is not uncommon to specify how you would like it after you have said what you want. I'd like some coffee, cream and sugar. I'd like the eggs, over easy. I'll have the NY strip steak, medium rare.

I'd like some coffee, cream and sugar.

Is it unnatural to say, 'I'd like some coffee, milk and sugar.".

Thanks.

 

[emsr2d2]

I'd like some coffee, cream and sugar.

Is it unnatural to say, 'I'd like some coffee, milk and sugar.".

Thanks.

It would be odd to say "I'd like some coffee, milk and sugar" as one long sentence with no pauses, as if you're ordering some things to buy in a shop (a jar of coffee, a litre of milk and a bag of sugar). However, if it were "I'd like some coffee - milk and sugar please" then it would be perfectly normal.

I'm not sure if your main question was is it normal to ask for cream and sugar but unnatural to ask for milk and sugar. If so, the answer is there is no difference. It all depends how you like your coffee.

 

[Tdol]

Likewise, we can say "I met a guy handsome."
But in grammar books, I haven't found any specific illustration.

Can we?

 

[emsr2d2]

"I met a guy handsome" seems very unnatural to me.

I would go further than that. It's incorrect, plain and simple.

 

[bhaisahab]

I would go further than that. It's incorrect, plain and simple.

Yes, it is. You can take my previous answer as British understatement.;-)

 

[BobK]

I would go further than that. It's incorrect, plain and simple.

:up: - but it could become correct if you added a bit. 'I met a guy... handsome enough, I suppose, but...'. And in poetry this sort of inversion is quite common: 'I met a maiden young and fair' sort of thing (that's not a verbatim quote from anywhere, I'm just exemplifying the device: 'Nature red in tooth and claw' - if you want a verbatim example).

b

 

[emsr2d2]

And you can say "I like my guys handsome", in the same way we say "I take my coffee black".

 

[Winwin2011]

I'm not sure if your main question was is it normal to ask for cream and sugar but unnatural to ask for milk and sugar. If so, the answer is there is no difference. It all depends how you like your coffee.

It all depends how you like your coffee.

Thanks emsr2d2.

I looked up the meaning of cream from a dictionary as follows:-

Merriam-Webster's Learner's Dictionary
1 [noncount] : the thick part of milk that rises to the top : the part of milk that contains fat
▪ Would you like some cream in your coffee?▪ strawberries and cream▪ hot chocolate with whipped

Are cream and milk two different things when we are talking about going with coffee?

Thanks.

 

[SoothingDave]

Cream and milk are always two different things. Some prefer one over the other in their coffee. Most will accept the other as a substitute.

 

[pseudo]

from questioner...

Thank all of you for answering my question.

 

[Tdol]

Cream and milk are always two different things. Some prefer one over the other in their coffee. Most will accept the other as a substitute.

And some think both are :2gunfire:. (Black coffee and tea drinker) :up:

 

[emsr2d2]

And then there are those of us who don't drink coffee at all. Disgusting stuff! Tea (black, green, herbal or fruit) for me.

 

[5jj]

What are these tea and coffee things? Do they contain alcohol? if not, I don't want to know. :drinking: