[General] Hi, Nice to meet you teachers, May I ask a question?

[zzang418lee]

Hi, nice to meet you taechers. I am Korean and I go to Korea univiersity majoing English education. I never knew there was such a great website like this. I hope I can make good use of this websites with your help.
I am reading "Introducing English semantics" by Kreidler and it says about some gestures that English-spearks use. Could you tell me what these means?
1. The fist, with kncukles down, moves up and down in short movements knocking on something or as if knocking on something ('knocking on wood')
--> I can't get the clear image of what this is. Could you describe in easier words? and tell me what it means?
2. The index finger is pulled across the throat; the gesture may be accompanied by a noise that is made with movement of air(and saliva) on one side of the mouth while the lips are slightly open on that side.
3. The hand, slightly cupped, is pulled across the forehead as if wiping something away.
--> the phrasal verb 'pull across' appears both 2,3. What does it mean? And could you explain the gesture more clearly and what they mean?

Plus, I was really curious about what pull across means and searched on thei nternet. I found a part of script of Dawn of Dead
"The great trucks lumber away from the warehouse. They pull
across the little loading lot and out a ramp toward the
roadway. Stephen hovers overhead in the chopper, following
the trucks as closely as he can."
--> pull across the loading lot... I couldn't get the meaning at all. what is loading lot and what does 'lumber away', mean...

I really thank you for reading my question.

 

[emsr2d2]

Hi, teachers, it's nice to meet you. [STRIKE]taechers.[/STRIKE] I am Korean and I go to Korea university majoring in English education. I never knew there was such a great website [STRIKE]like[/STRIKE] as this. I hope I can make good use of this website[STRIKE]s[/STRIKE] with your help.

I am reading "Introducing English semantics" by Kreidler and it [STRIKE]says[/STRIKE] talks about some gestures that English-[STRIKE]spearks[/STRIKE] speakers use. Could you tell me what these [STRIKE]means[/STRIKE] mean?

1. The fist, with knuckles down, moves up and down in short movements knocking on something or as if knocking on something ('knocking on wood')
--> I can't get the clear image of what this is. Could you describe it in easier words and tell me what it means?

"To knock on wood" is something that we do to wish for luck or to hope that good luck continues.
If you imagine the movement that your hand makes when you knock on the door of a house in order to gain entry, then you have the gesture. We will make the same movement but on any wooden surface. It's a superstition.

2. The index finger is pulled across the throat; the gesture may be accompanied by a noise that is made with movement of air(and saliva) on one side of the mouth while the lips are slightly open on that side.

This is a threatening gesture. It is done to suggest that the index finger is a knife and that the person is threatening to cut the throat of the person they are looking at when they do it.

3. The hand, slightly cupped, is pulled across the forehead as if wiping something away.

If you imagine that your forehead is sweating because you are hot, you might use the palm of your hand to wipe the sweat off. You move your hand from one side of your forehead to the other, clearing the sweat away. The gesture means "Phew! I'm relieved!"

--> the phrasal verb 'pull across' appears both 2,3. What does it mean? And could you explain the gesture more clearly and what they mean?

"To pull across" as a phrasal verb : well, the verb "to pull" is the same, but "across" means from one side to the other.

Plus, I was really curious about what pull across means and searched on thei nternet. I found a part of script of Dawn of Dead
"The great trucks lumber away from the warehouse. They pull
across the little loading lot and out a ramp toward the
roadway. Stephen hovers overhead in the chopper, following
the trucks as closely as he can."
--> pull across the loading lot... I couldn't get the meaning at all. What is loading lot and what does 'lumber away', mean?

Here, "to pull across" is used regarding cars/vans/lorries/truck. We use "to pull" + various prepositions in driving. "Pull out", "pull in", "pull over", "pull across" - they have different meanings and it may be better to have another thread about these.
"To lumber" is a way of moving that suggests that the thing or person is very heavy.

I really thank you for reading my question.

See above.

 

[zzang418lee]

Thank you very much. I never expected someone would explain so clearly as this. Also it was really helpful that you proofread my writing. Again, thank you