she’s a conspicuous lady / girl

[Cunning Fox]

Hello,
I
Is it possible to describe someone or yourself as “conspicuous”?

For example, she’s a conspicuous lady / girl - she always wears bright dresses.

I don’t think it works well.

Thank you in advance.

 

[probus]

I wouldn't use conspicuous there, although it's not wrong. If it's her clothing that makes her stand out I'd call her dressy.

 

[emsr2d2]

Hello.
I
Is it possible to describe someone or yourself as “conspicuous”? For example, "She’s a conspicuous lady/girl - she always wears bright dresses."

I don’t think it works well.

Thank you in advance. Unnecessary. Thank us after we help you, by clicking on the "Thank" icon.

You're right - it doesn't work.

 

[Skrej]

You could however say something like "She is rather conspicuous in that bright dress", given the right context.

A neon-yellow sundress would be conspicuous at a funeral, but it might well go unnoticed at a beach.

 

[Tdol]

She stands out.

 

[Cunning Fox]

Thank you for your replies.

Doesn't the word work because it's followed by "a girl" or "a lady"? Don't you think "she's conspicuous" would work better (I personally don't like it either)?

The reason is why I'm asking this is that I can't quite explain to my students how the word is used. They ask many questions and produce many examples where I don't think the word would actually work but I can't explain why. I tend to fully rely on my Sprachgefühl, whereas they demand more or less hard-and-fast rules.

 

[Cunning Fox]

The way I see it is this: you can't always be conspicuous, that's why it grates on our ears when someone says "she's a conspicuous girl" or "she's conspicuous" as if she were conspicuous all the time. Yes, she might have been conspicuous with her brave décolletage at the party yesterday or, as @Skrej noticed, you'll be definitely conspicuous if you, for some reason, decide to wear a sundress at a funeral. So the best way of explaining the use of the word might be by saying that "your conspicuousness" isn't an ingrained feature but rather a temporary thing.

I personally hate rambling on such minor things but I simply felt a sudden rush to tell you my take on the use. Hopefully, it's more or less in line with what you think.

 

[jutfrank]

The reason is why I'm asking this is that I can't quite explain to my students how the word is used.

If you want to develop a sense of how a word is used, you need to look at lots of good examples. This is true for both you and your students.

They ask many questions and produce many examples where I don't think the word would actually work but I can't explain why.

You don't need to explain. Just give them some good examples of use, in context.

I tend to fully rely on my Sprachgefühl, whereas they demand more or less hard-and-fast rules.

Well, you shouldn't give in to their demands. Instead, show them how to develop a Sprachgefühl of their own.