[Vocabulary] The can opener is on the cabinet.

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beachboy

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I've read it in a book. Maybe I don't understand exactly what a cabinet consists of. Can "cabinet" refer to the counter? I thought I could say "The can opener is in the cabinet" or "The can opener in on the counter", but not the sentence above.
 

emsr2d2

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Did you search Google Images for "cabinet"? I did. This is what I got. As you can see, it's perfectly possible for something to be on a cabinet.
 

beachboy

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Did you search Google Images for "cabinet"? I did. This is what I got. As you can see, it's perfectly possible for something to be on a cabinet.

Did the images show exactly what a cabinet is? What it consists of? Well, I couldn't see it. But your answer shows me that the counter is a part of the cabinet.
 

emsr2d2

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The word "cabinet" can refer to lots of different things. If you couldn't see my link, why don't you do your own Google Image search?
 

beachboy

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The word "cabinet" can refer to lots of different things. If you couldn't see my link, why don't you do your own Google Image search?

I saw your link. When I said "I couldn't see it" I meant I didn't find words describing what part is considered "cabinet" and what isn't. As I said, I didn't know the counter (if that's the way it is called) was considered a part of the cabinet. Now I know it is, and I know I can say "The can opener is on the cabinet". I thought the cabinet was only the parts inside the doors and drawers.
 

emsr2d2

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The whole thing is a cabinet. If something is "on the cabinet", then it's sitting on top of it. It's the same as something being "on the table".
 

jutfrank

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I think you're using counter in the wrong way. A counter is usually in a shop. It's the place where you can count the money that you have to pay.
 

emsr2d2

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In the UK, the long flat surface that goes along the top of the floor-level cupboards in a kitchen is usually called a worktop. However, I have heard it called both a counter and a countertop.
 

Tdol

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If something is in a cabinet, then you normally have to open a door to access it.
 

Rover_KE

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I've read it in a book.
You've been a member long enough to know that we want the title and author of any book you're quoting from.
 

GoesStation

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In the UK, the long flat surface that goes along the top of the floor-level cupboards in a kitchen is usually called a worktop. However, I have heard it called both a counter and a countertop.

That surface is a counter or sometimes a countertop in American English.
 
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