Broadly speaking=To speak not so exactly?a lot of details=a lot of detail?

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Hiya Raymond

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Broadly speaking=To speak not so exactly?
a lot of details=a lot of detail?

Broadly speaking/To speak not so exactly, I like north more than south. Are both correct? And is there better way or phrase to express that meaning?

Thanks a lot!
 

Grumpy

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"To speak not so exactly" is never used in spoken or written English.

"Broadly speaking, I like [the] north more than [the] south" is correct. You could also say, "In general, I like the north...." or "As a rule, I like the north..."

Also, "a lot of details" does [in general] mean the same as "a lot of detail"
 

Barb_D

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It means "There may be exceptions to this general rule, but overall it's more true than not."

So if you say that broadly speaking, you like living in the north more than the south, but admit you like to visit a particular beach town in the south, you are still speaking the overall truth when you say you prefer the north.
 
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Hiya Raymond

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It means "There may be exceptions to this general rule, but overall it's more true than not."

So if you say you that broeadly speaking, you like living in the north more than the south, but admit you like to visit a particular beach town in the south, you are still speaking the overal truth when you say you prefer the north.

I like the sentence "There may be exceptions to this general rule, but overall it's more true than not." But how to understand "So if you say you that "? Is that an ellipsis sentence?

Thanks a lot!
 

bhaisahab

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I like the sentence "There may be exceptions to this general rule, but overall it's more true than not." But how to understand "So if you say you that "? Is that an ellipsis sentence?

Thanks a lot!

It's a typo. "If you say that broadly speaking..." is what Barb meant to write.
 

emsr2d2

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I like the sentence "There may be exceptions to this general rule, but overall it's more true than not." But how to understand "So if you say you that "? Is that an ellipsis sentence?

Thanks a lot!

Note that I have corrected the typos in Barb's post so her post doesn't look exactly like the one you quoted any more.
 
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