jutfrank
VIP Member
- Joined
- Mar 5, 2014
- Member Type
- English Teacher
- Native Language
- English
- Home Country
- England
- Current Location
- England
Are you going to tell him that he can't convert "slept at nine o'clock" to "slept late"?
I would, yes. I'd also encourage him not to use slept in this context at all, in favour of went to sleep or went to bed. Misuse of the past simple form of sleep is a very common learner error, across a wide range of first language backgrounds.
If so, how will you answer him when he explains to you that it is possible for "late" in "slept late" to refer to the time at which the sleeping commenced?
I'd explain that it doesn't matter what he thinks is possible, and that I'm just trying to help him speak better English. :-D