doubts about word usage

[Verona_82]

Hello,

I have some doubts as to the usage of a few words. I'd be grateful if anyone had a look at the sentences below and told me whether they are fine or not.

1. Every morning she ties her daughter's hair in two plaits.
2. Yesterday I nearly broke my back weeding the beds in the garden.
3. The whole house is decorated in a fairytale style, with pictures and tiny sculptures of fairies and other imaginary creatures all around the house.
4. -I'm having three job interviews tomorrow.
- Wow. Will you handle it? (it = the situation)
5. We can vacuum / hoover / do the hoovering, but can we do the vacuuming?


Thank you.

 

[birdeen's call]

Hello,

I have some doubts as to the usage of a few words. I'd be grateful if anyone had a look at the sentences below and told me whether they are fine or not.

1. Every morning she ties her daughter's hair in two plaits. I would use "braids".
2. Yesterday I nearly broke my back weeding the beds in the garden. I don't see anything wrong about it, but I was only able to find one example in literature: http://www.gutenberg.org/files/15895/15895-h/15895-h.htm#XIII

I'm too uncertain about others to comment.

 

[emsr2d2]

Hello,

I have some doubts as to the usage of a few words. I'd be grateful if anyone had a look at the sentences below and told me whether they are fine or not.

1. Every morning she ties her daughter's hair in two plaits.
OR: Every morning she puts her daughter's hair in two plaits (plaits is more common than braids in BrE)

2. Yesterday I nearly broke my back weeding the beds in the garden.
OR: Yesterday I nearly broke my back weeding the garden.

3. The whole house is decorated in a fairytale style, with pictures and tiny sculptures of fairies and other imaginary creatures all around the house.
That sounds OK.

4. -I'm having three job interviews tomorrow.
- Wow. Will you handle it? (it = the situation)
It's OK, though I might have said "How will you handle it/that?" or "Can you handle it/them?" or "Are you going to be able to handle it?"

5. We can vacuum / hoover / do the hoovering, but can we do the vacuuming?
Yes, some people say that.


Thank you.

See above.

 

[birdeen's call]

Hi, emsr2d2. When I said that I would use "braids", I meant instead of "ties".

Every morning she braids her daughter's hair in two plaits.

Would it be unnatural for you?

 

[emsr2d2]

He, emsr2d2. When I said that I would use "braids", I meant instead of "ties".

Every morning she braids her daughter's hair in two plaits.

Would it be unnatural for you?

Oh, I see. That would sound unnatural to me but again maybe that's just the BrE side of things. I used to wear my hair in 2 plaits at school when I was young and I'd never heard the word "braid" until I watched an episode of Little House on the Prairie, which is of course American.

If using "braid" as a verb, then I'd probably just say "Every morning, she braids her daughter's hair". I realise, however, that that doesn't tell the reader how many plaits she has!

 

[Mar Rojo]

Or: Yesterday, I nearly broke my back weeding the flower beds. (Note the comma.)

We can vacuum / hoover / do the hoovering, but can we do the vacuuming?

Yes, and do the vaccing, though it looks odd written.

I'd use commas here:

The whole house is decorated in a fairytale style, with pictures and tiny sculptures of fairies and other imaginary creatures all around the house.
The whole house is decorated in a fairytale style, with pictures and tiny sculptures of fairies, and other imaginary creatures, all around the house.

 

[Barb_D]

Would you Brits say "I'm having three interviews"?
I'd say "I have" not "I'm having."

Just curious about whether this is another cross-Atlantic thing.

She puts her daugthers hairs into two braids/plaits. "Ties" doesn't work for me for this action.

 

[Mar Rojo]

Would you Brits say "I'm having three interviews"?

We could use either. The progressive can be used for the future in most varieties of English.

 

[Rover_KE]

The whole house is decorated in a fairytale style, with pictures and tiny sculptures of fairies, and other imaginary creatures, all around the house.

It's my opinion that only the first comma is needed - the others being superfluous.

Rover

 

[Rover_KE]

Would you Brits say "I'm having three interviews"?

Yes, I would.

Rover

 

[Barb_D]

We could use either. The progressive can be used for the future in most varieties of English.

I'd agree on most verbs.
I'm going on three interviews would be fine.
I'm having my hair done at 3 would be fine.

I'm having doesn't work for me when "to have" is the main verb.

It's an interesting difference.

 

[Mar Rojo]

It's my opinion that only the first comma is needed - the others being superfluous.

Different styles.