[General] When is it Tom's birthday?

[tianhang]

Hi, my dear teachers! I need your help again. The other day I listened to a dialogue and came across such a question. The dialogue goes as follows.
Tom: Hi, Jack. Tomorrow is Christmas Day and my birthday is in two days. I will have a party then and I wish you could come to my birthday party.
Jack: Sure. I will.
Question: When is Tom's birthday?
A. 27th December B. 26th December
I think the right answer is B, because "in two days" means after two days from now. But the given answer is A.
I am not clear which one is the right one according to your culture. And if I were Jack, I would not know when I should go to Tom's party.
Thanks a lot! Your answer is greatly appreciated.

 

[Matthew Wai]

Tomorrow is Christmas Day and my birthday is in two days.

Then today is 24th. "In" means "after a particular length of time" according to Oxford.
Assuming that twenty-four plus two equals twenty-six, his birthday is 26th December.

 

[tianhang]

Then today is 24th. "In" means "after a particular length of time" according to Oxford.
Assuming that twenty-four plus two equals twenty-six, his birthday is 26th December.

I intrepret the situation the same way as you do. Thank you very much!

 

[tianhang]

That is grammatically correct, but very unnatural. It is the sort of sentence that not very skilled teachers/writers invent to show off an idiom or point of grammar.

Most people don't need to be told on 24 December that the next day is Christmas Day. Tom would be more likely to say something like "I've got a great couple of days coming up. It's Christmas tomorrow, and my birthday the next day'.

I can't agree more. It is invented and unnatural. So you mean his birthday is 26 December. That is to say, in this situation, "in two days" acturally equals "the day after tomorrow."

 

[Matthew Wai]

I can't agree more.

It should be "I couldn't agree more" according to
https://idioms.thefreedictionary.com/couldn't+agree+more

 

[tianhang]

As we know, American English is different from British English in many ways. The two teachers who answered my question are British English speaker, so I wonder whether American English speakers have a different answer.

 

[jutfrank]

As we know, American English is different from British English in many ways. The two teachers who answered my question are British English speakers, so I wonder whether American English speakers have a different answer.

No, there is no cultural difference at all. The phrase in two days means the same thing everywhere in the world.