Danish people also get to throw things on New Year's Eve.

[angliholic]

Danish people also get to throw things on New Year's Eve. There, old dishes are saved all year. When December 31 comes around, they go to their friends' houses and throw the dishes at the doors.



Does "get to" refer to "have to" or "get the chance to?" Or something else? Thanks.

 

[Anglika]

"get the chance to" - they would not normally go around throwing things at people's doors.

 

[angliholic]

"get the chance to" - they would not normally go around throwing things at people's doors.

Thanks, Anglika.
But I still have some questions.
First, does "go around" in your post amount to "go about" or "go over?"
Second, do you mean that the idea in my base sentence is not exactly true? In other words, Danish people don't practice this custom any more.
Third, it suddenly struck me that I wasn't very sure of the meaning of "comes around" in the following. Does it mean "comes near" or "comes?"

When December 31 comes around, they go to their friends' houses and throw the dishes at the doors.

 

[Anglika]

Thanks, Anglika.
But I still have some questions.
First, does "go around" in your post amount to "go about" or "go over?"
Second, do you mean that the idea in my base sentence is not exactly true? In other words, Danish people don't practice this custom any more.
Third, it suddenly struck me that I wasn't very sure of the meaning of "comes around" in the following. Does it mean "comes near" or "comes?"

When December 31 comes around, they go to their friends' houses and throw the dishes at the doors.

#1 They go from house to house, around the streets. They go around the district.

#2 I have no idea - you need a Dane to answer that. ??Anyone out there who can help? What I meant was that Danes are generally very well behaved and wouldn't normally do something that is not regarded as acceptable. Throwing plates at people's doors is not usually seen as good behaviour. So this custom is a once-in-the-year chance to behave in a way that is not usually acceptable.

#3 "What goes around comes around" - December 31st comes around each year. It might be clearer if you think of the calender as a circle with December 31st as the ending point. Each year, special dates will come around [Midsummer comes around; Hallowe'en comes around; June 21st comes around] as the year progresses.

 

[angliholic]

Thanks, Anglika.
To make sure, I presume "comes around" in question amounts to "comes back again," right?

 

[Anglika]

Yes!

 

[angliholic]

Thanks, Anglika.