[Grammar] postpone

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Ashiuhto

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Please check the following sentences.

(1) More and more Japanese women postpone their marriage, and even some totally refuse marriage.
(2) According to a new survey, more than seventy percent Taiwanese women consider to be single.
 

apex2000

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Please check the following sentences.

(1) More and more Japanese women postpone their marriage, and even some do not get married (at all).
(2) According to a new survey, more than seventy percent of Taiwanese women are single.
OK?
 

Ashiuhto

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I am confused by the sentences revised by you. Here I am explaining the original meanings.

In #1, its originally means that some Japanese women don't plan to get married. I wonder there is a difference between "do not get married at all" and "don't plan to get married".

In #2, its originally means that seventy percent of Taiwanese women don't want/plan to get married, not are single. Therefore, the sentence you revised distorted my meanings.

So, what's your idea about this point?
 

Tdol

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I'd say some even not [strike]even some[/strike] as even is modifying the verb and not some.

You could use have no plans to get married if you like. Do not plan doesn't work very well. Consider to be single doesn't work at alll- they are single or not. They might not consider getting married, but they know whether they're single or not and could only consider being single if they were married or in a relationship and might leave.
 

apex2000

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It would have been helpful if you had stated this in your first post. I took the sentences as shown and gave my interpretation.
Now
1) More and more Japanese women postpone their marriage, and even some don't plan to get married.
(2) According to a new survey, more than seventy percent of Taiwanese women don't want/plan to get married.

So as you can see you had the correct version at the beginning and then posted versions that were not clear.
 

Raymott

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Please check the following sentences.

(1) More and more Japanese women postpone their marriage, and even some totally refuse marriage.
I agree with Tdol about the word order of "even".
But I'd suggest the following as being the most common:
"... and some don't even plan to get married."

"... and some even don't plan to get married" - possibly OK. In a positive clause, we'd say, "... some even plan to get married". In a negative sentence, this translates to "..some don't even .."
 

Ashiuhto

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A techer gave me the correction as written. I think they are compatible to my original meanings.

(1) More and more Japanese women postpone their marriages, and some even forgo marriage.

(2) According to a survey, more than seventy percent ofTaiwanese women are considering remaining single.
 

SoothingDave

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"Postpone" to me means that they have a date set and then have to set a new, later date. Is that what you mean?

I think you mean that more and more Japanese women are marrying later in life, or not at all.
 

opa6x57

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"Postpone" to me means that they have a date set and then have to set a new, later date. Is that what you mean?

I think you mean that more and more Japanese women are marrying later in life, or not at all.


=============================
Not a teacher, 53-year-old American.
=============================


I agree that a common meaning of "postpone" is the one you gave. To have a definite plan for something - and then reschedule it to a later date.

However, postpone could be correctly used in the context desired by the OP. If Japanese woman typically married in their 20's - and now many are choosing to marry later than that - they are certainly choosing to postpone marriage.

An example of my own creation:
Teenagers all accross the country work hard to get their driver's license when they turn 16. The quality of mass transit in New York City, however, causes most teens in The Big Apple to postpone getting their license until they leave home for college.

That said, however - this is how I would make the statements:
(1) More and more Japanese women are delaying marriage, and some are choosing to remain single.

(2) According to a survey, more than seventy percent ofTaiwanese women are considering staying single.


That's my opinion.
 

Raymott

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A techer gave me the correction as written. I think they are compatible to my original meanings.

(1) More and more Japanese women postpone their marriages, and some even forgo marriage.

(2) According to a survey, more than seventy percent ofTaiwanese women are considering remaining single.
These examples are correct English in both syntax and semantics.
They aren't the same as yours. "Forgoing" is not "refusing". And as someone pointed out, your second sentence can't mean the same because "consider to be single" is meaningless.
 
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