He reached his pocket for a cloth to wipe off the dirty before shaking the hands....

[Polyester]

Is the following sentence correct and natural?

He reached his pocket for a cloth to wipe off the dirty before shaking his hands of boss.

 

[Tarheel]

Is the following sentence correct and natural?

He reached into his pocket for a cloth to wipe the dirt off his hands before shaking hands with his boss.

I think that's what you mean.

 

[Polyester]

I think that's what you mean.

1. Why do you change my word "his" to "into"?

2. I think that's what you mean. Why do you use "that is" to replace "this is"?

 

[Tarheel]

2. I think that's what you mean. Why do you use "that is" to replace "this is"?

Two things. One, that first one is my sentence. Two, I looked for the change you asked about, and I didn't see anything like that.
:-?

 

[emsr2d2]

Two things. One, that first one is my sentence. Two, I looked for the change you asked about, and I didn't see anything like that.
:-?

The OP is asking why you said "I think that's what you mean" (post #2) instead of "I think this is what you mean".

 

[Tdol]

Shouldn't it be hand sanitiser these days?

 

[Tarheel]

The OP is asking why you said "I think that's what you mean" (post #2) instead of "I think this is what you mean".

I think the word "replace" threw me. Also, as far as word choice, it can be hard to say why you picked a particular word when you didn't think twice about it. (That's usually the case.)

I think most people would have the same problem. They are not used to being asked such questions.

Maybe somebody smarter than me can tell Polyester why I chose one word instead of the other.

 

[Polyester]

I think the word "replace" threw me. Also, as far as word choice, it can be hard to say why you picked a particular word when you didn't think twice about it. (That's usually the case.)

I think most people would have the same problem. They are not used to being asked such questions.

Maybe somebody smarter than me can tell Polyester why I chose one word instead of the other.

Tarheel,
My question is great simple and easy to understand. What is the differences between "that" and "this"? In my dictionaries, they are same.

 

[GoesStation]

My question is [STRIKE]great[/STRIKE] very simple and easy to understand. What is the differences between "that" and "this"? In my dictionaries, they are same.

You must be looking at Chinese-English dictionaries which tell you they translate the same. Look them up in an English dictionary and you'll see they are not.

The difference between this and that is complicated. They both "point" at something. In the simplest case, "this" refers to something nearby and "that" to something further away. For example, if a jeweler is showing you rings on the counter in front of you, you might say "I don't like this one" (the one right in front of me). "Can you show me that one over there in the window?" You'd point across the room at the one you're interested in.

When these words refer to text, the same relationship applies: "this" means "the words that are close by" and "that" means "the words that are further away".

We've had a number of threads discussing this issue. It's very hard for learners to master the difference when their native languages don't have similar words.

 

[tedmc]

There are the exact words in Chinese - 这 for this and 那 for that, which are more to distinguish locations. I think their difference of usage in English is more subtle.
When a problem is being discussed, say this to refer to it. When the problem has been resolved, it is referred to as that.

 

[Tarheel]

Tarheel,
My question is very simple and easy to understand. What is the differences between "that" and "this"? In my dictionaries, they are the same.

It seems like you're talking down to me. Anyhow, GoesStation explained it as well as I can.

 

[kadioguy]

What is the differences between "that" and "this"? In my dictionaries, they are same.

Are you sure? How about taking photos of them and showing to us? No worries, here you got both native Chinese speakers and English speakers. ;-)