Pinned the purse there

[cbergamo]

]I have a doubt about a sentence taken from the audio of an old American movie released in 1956. This is what I think they say:
Man: Maria, did you hide Ann's purse behind the drapes?
Woman: Yes, I pinned it there, but you must not tell her.

Does "pinned it there" mean in this context "put it there" or "hid it there""?, or
Is not "pinned" what she says? Maybe another verb that sounds alike? I've only found for "pin" as a verb the following meanings:
1. To fasten or secure with or as if with a pin or pins. 2. To transfix. 3. To place in a position of trusting dependence: He pinned his faith on an absurdity. 4. To hold fast; immobilize: He was pinned under the wreckage of the truck. 5. (Sports) To win a fall from in wrestling.

None of them make sense to me in the context. This is the link to the short audio clip (13 seconds), just in case you think I misheard something.
https://clyp.it/1dydlikj

 

[Tarheel]

She put it (hid it) there.

 

[GoesStation]

She definitely says I pinned it there. That means she used a pin to attach it to something.

 

[cbergamo]

Thanks, Tarheel. Do you mean that the woman says "put it" instead of "pinned it" or that in this case she uses "pinned" as a synonym of "put"?

 

[cbergamo]

Thanks, GoesStation, that's what I supposed, although this behaviour looks very strange to me: someone fixing a purse with pins to a curtain in order to hide it!

 

[Tarheel]

Thanks, Tarheel. Do you mean that the woman says "put it" instead of "pinned it" or that in this case she uses "pinned" as a synonym of "put"?

She clearly says, "I pinned it there. But you must not tell her."

 

[Tarheel]

Thanks, GoesStation, that's what I supposed, although this behaviour seems very strange to me: someone fixing a purse with pins to a curtain in order to hide it!

Originally, I didn't bother to listen to the the audio. Also, put is more logical than pinned.

 

[cbergamo]

In what period was the film set? In earlier times, purses were small cloth bags that could be pinned to a dress or, as in this case, a drape.

USA, 1950s

 

[Tarheel]

cbergamo, you need to work on basic grammar. (Note that "tolds" is not a word.)

 

[cbergamo]

cbergamo, you need to work on basic grammar. (Note that "tolds" is not a word.)

Carol is my daughter, Tarheel, it was her mistake not mine. And, of course, it has to be "when she tells". I was trying to help her. Thanks for your advice.

 

[Rover_KE]

Also posted here: https://www.englishforums.com/English/PinnedItThere/bxpqqq/post.htm

cbergamo,

Please do not post the same question simultaneously to more than one forum. Doing so wastes our valuable time. Instead, post your question to one forum and wait for replies. If you're not satisfied with those replies, you can try another forum, but please indicate in your thread that you've already asked the same question elsewhere (provide a link), and outline why you were not satisfied with the answers you received already.

(teechar)

 

[Tarheel]

In Spanish do they say doubt instead of question?

 

[cbergamo]

In Spanish do they say doubt instead of question?

Doubt and question are two different things, like in English.
DOUBT:The state of being uncertain about the truth or reliability of something. ("duda" in Spanish)
QUESTION: A sentence, phrase, or gesture that seeks information through a reply. ("pregunta" in Spanish)

But if you check the word "question" in an English dictionary, you can see that one of its meanings is "Uncertainty; Doubt"

So, answering your question about the use of both words in Spanish, it is possible to use "duda" (doubt) in the sentence "I have a doubt" meaning that you want to ask a question because you are not sure of something (it could be the correct meaning of a word, its spell, if you misheard it, etc.)


I thought that it was correct in English to use "doubt" ("I have a doubt about a word") in the sense of not being sure if it is the proper one. And, of course, implying that I am making a question because of this uncertainity. Does it sound awkward? Maybe I was misinformed.

 

[GoesStation]

Learners use variations of the phrase "I have a doubt" so often that it might eventually enter standard use. But it's not something native speakers say. We have a question or we're uncertain about something.

 

[jutfrank]

In Spanish do they say doubt instead of question?

It's a very typical learner error among Spanish speakers to say I have a doubt, to mean I have a question. Not just Spanish speakers, but Romance speakers generally.

 

[Tarheel]

Cbergamo, three things. One, do you know what a yes or no question is? Two, have you heard the expression "If you ask him what time it is he tells you how to make a watch"? Three, I don't know who taught you either "I have a doubt" or "make a question" but it wasn't me.

 

[GoesStation]

It's a very typical learner error among Spanish speakers to say I have a doubt, to mean I have a question. Not just Spanish speakers, but Romance speakers generally.

It seems to be widely used in the Indian subcontinent, too.

 

[cbergamo]

Cbergamo, three things. One, do you know what a yes or no question is? Two, have you heard the expression "If you ask him what time it is he tells you how to make a watch"? Three, I don't know who taught you either "I have a doubt" or "make a question" but it wasn't me.

1) I know what a yes or not questions is.
2) I have never heard this expression. Perhaps it is common in English, but not in Spanish.
3) Nobody taught me neither "I have a doubt" nor "make a question". As a matter of fact, it's "ask a question" and I know it.

But consider this, Tarheel, I am sure that if you write 3 or 4 lines in Spanish, even if you have studied this language for 3 or 4 years, I will find some mistakes in your composition and some expressions that are not used by Spaniards, although I possibly will be able to understand what you meant by them. It happens when people involuntarily translate literally from English to Spanish or vice versa. And notice that I don't use any translation software. In spite of that, I welcome your enlightening remarks.

 

[Tarheel]

1) I know what a yes or no questions is.
2) I have never heard this expression. Perhaps it is common in English, but not in Spanish.
3) Nobody taught me either "I have a doubt" or "make a question". As a matter of fact, it's "ask a question" and I know it.

But consider this, Tarheel, I am sure that if you write 3 or 4 lines in Spanish, even if you have studied this language for 3 or 4 years, I will find some mistakes in your composition and some expressions that are not used by Spaniards, although I possibly will be able to understand what you mean by them. It happens when people involuntarily translate literally from English to Spanish or vice versa. And notice that I don't use any translation software. In spite of that, I welcome your enlightening remarks.

I would like to learn Spanish, but I don't have a teacher.

It is good that you don't use translation software. It would not be a good idea to do so.

You are quite advanced.

You are right that you shouldn't be translating--either voluntarily or involuntarily.

:up: