The earthquake made me feel like living here was a disaster.

[kachibibb]

Say, there was an earthquake in the city I lived. And now, everything is ruined. The houses and facilities are all broken.

And I say:

The earthquake makes me feel like living here was a disaster.

I would like to ask native English speakers. Is there something wrong with the use of "feel like" here?

 

[tedmc]

The clause after "feel like" is wrong.

I would replace "like" with "that" or "as if".

 

[jutfrank]

I'm not sure I understand what you mean. Try to explain in more words exactly what you're trying to say.

 

[kachibibb]

The earthquake ruined the city. So it is like a disaster to live in the city.

The earthquake makes me feel like living here was a disaster.

By "feel like" I want to mean "I feel that it is like something (like a disaster)".

 

[emsr2d2]

Say no comma here there was an earthquake in the city in which I lived no full stop here and now no comma here everything is ruined. The houses have been destroyed/damaged and the facilities are all broken.

[STRIKE]And[/STRIKE] I say:

The earthquake makes me feel like living here was a disaster.

I would like to ask native English speakers if there is [STRIKE]there[/STRIKE] something wrong with the use of "feel like" here.

Note my corrections above. I don't know what you mean by "facilities" (underlined). Do you perhaps mean "utilities", such as the gas, electricity and water supplies?

Your main sentence isn't very clear. There has obviously been a disaster in the city - an earthquake! Do you mean that moving to the city has turned out to be a disaster for you?

 

[Tarheel]

I'm not sure what the point is here. Do you mean that the earthquake was unsettling? (Understandable.)

Do you mean to say that moving there was a bad idea, and you want to leave?

Some places are more prone to earthquakes than others. I'm sure you can find a place where they are less likely.

 

[kachibibb]

Yes, like an earthquake ruined a city. And the city needs a long time to be fully redeveloped. And during the period of redevelopment, things may not be as convenient as before. So to some people, to exaggerate it a bit, it is like a nightmare or disaster to continue to live in the city.

First of all, I would like to know, does "I feel like it is something" mean "I feel that it is something"?

I feel that living here is a disaster.
I feel like living here is a disaster.

Do they mean the same thing?

On the other hand, about the word "disaster", I want to say something like "living in the city has become a disaster--it brings great convenience and hardship".

 

[Tarheel]

Yes, an earthquake ruined a city. [Edited.]

It's impossible for me to know what is meant by that. Were buildings damaged? Were people injured?

You could say:

I feel like my life has been turned upside down.

 

[jutfrank]

First of all, I would like to know, does "I feel like it is something" mean "I feel that it is something"?

I don't think you should consider either of these phrases as useful patterns.

This is how I'd present things:

1) I feel like + clause

The clause in this pattern will normally express some kind of feeling or emotion or intuition about something.

I feel like she hates me.
I feel like I'm going to die.
I feel like it's going to rain.
I feel like you're trying to tell me something.

2) I feel that + clause

The clause in this pattern typically expresses some kind of opinion or judgement. It's often similar to I think that + clause.

I feel that we should try a new approach.
I feel that this isn't going to work.
I feel that you're not working hard enough.
I feel that there is a subtle difference in use between the two phrases.

This difference is often not very clear.

 

[kachibibb]

Tarheel.

You said you did not understand "I feel like living here is a disaster".

And now you know I am referring to the inconvenience, disruption of traffic, utilities, etc., loss of farmlands, etc., in the city currently (after the earthquake). Do not you think living in the city will be like a disaster? Yes, it functions like a metaphor here.

Or what you guys actually want to tell me above is that "disaster" is not a good metaphor because it is misleading? But for native speakers, do not you sometimes describe some harsh situations as "disaster"?

 

[Phaedrus]

Say, there was an earthquake in the city I lived. And now, everything is ruined. The houses and facilities are all broken.

And I say:

The earthquake makes me feel like living here was a disaster.

I would like to ask native English speakers. Is there something wrong with the use of "feel like" here?

Informally, it is OK for "feel like" to be followed by a finite clause such as yours.

Because of the confusion about your meaning, I'd like to change the example a bit: The earthquake made me feel like it was a mistake to move here.

If that sentence used "feel that" instead, the meaning would be different; the view occasioned by the earthquake would be represented as definitive.

Strict traditionalists object to "like" being used to introduce a finite clause. They would change "feel like" to "feel as if" or "feel as though."

 

[Tarheel]

You could say:

The earthquake made it feel like living here is a disaster.

My best guess is that you are unhappy with the situation.

You can say:

The earthquake ruined the city.

You can say that. However, it's unclear what that means. Have all the buildings been destroyed? Has the electricity been shut off? Has transportation been affected adversely? Is the place on fire? Has there been flooding from a tsunami? Have you been cut off from friends and relatives? Have you been made homeless by the earthquake? Do you have trouble getting clean water? Do you have a problem getting food?

I think your grammar question has been answered, but I can't help wondering what those sentences mean in practical terms.

 

[Tdol]

An earthquake is a disaster, do using it to describe how you feel doesn't work for me.

 

[kachibibb]

"tragedy" is an acceptable word to describe how one feels right?

 

[5jj]

An earthquake is a disaster, do using it to describe how you feel doesn't work for me.

...so...?

 

[tedmc]

Is "tragedy" is an acceptable word to describe how one feels[STRIKE] right[/STRIKE]?

A tragedy is an event. How can an event describe how you feel? You can liken the event to how you feel though.

 

[kachibibb]

The earthquake made me feel that living here was a tragedy.

Does this sound more natural to native speakers compared to "disaster" or it's similarly a bad choice?

 

[tedmc]

The earthquake made me feel that living here was a tragedy.

Does this sound more natural to native speakers compared to "disaster" or it's similarly a bad choice?

No, that's not natural either. It seems you regret living in the place. In which case, you could say it was a bad mistake/greatest mistake/wrong decision/wrong choice/worst decision.

 

[emsr2d2]

I can't think of anything that works after "The earthquake made me feel that living here was ..." except "a bad idea"!

 

[Tarheel]

Well, I already made a couple of suggestions. Here are those and another one or two. You feel:

unsettled
unhappy
disoriented
confused
helpless
suicidal
hopeless
at odds and ends
depressed

Possibly one or more of those apply to this situation.