the placement of knife and fork are mixed up

[Shoreditch]

Hi,

When it comes to dressing the table, the knife goes to the left-hand side and the knife the right-hand side. When, by mistake, you mix them up, what do you say?

The place for fork and knife are mixed up.
The placement of fork and knife are in the wrong way.

Are these sentences alright? If not, and even if yes, could you, please, offer me better ones?
Also, while I was constructing these sentences, I was not sure about the number of the verb "to be". I think in each of my sentences, there is call for the plural - singular is no good.

 

[BobK]

The phrase you want is 'the wrong way round', but - at least in England - your table-dressing skills are questionable. ;-) (You could also use the words 'back-to-front' or 'topsy-turvy', but I think 'the wrong way round' is best here.)

b

 

[emsr2d2]

You have said that you have a knife on both the left and right! The fork goes on the left and the knife goes on the right. If the fork is on the right and the knife is on the left, you either have them the wrong way round, or you have set the table for a left-handed person.

 

[BobK]

My brother was left-handed; I'll be seeing his twin sister, whose job it used to be to set the table (in the family home), next Saturday. I'll ask what she used to do; I don 't remember his cutlery being the wrong way round, though.

b

 

[konungursvia]

Also, 'mixed-up' implies much more disorder than being merely reversed. You could say 'the knife and fork are placed in reverse.'

 

[Shoreditch]

Bobk wrote: ...but - at least in England - your table-dressing skills are questionable.

Shoreditch: What does it mean?

Emsr2d2: or you have set the table for a left-handed person.

I desperately need a car with a clutch for right-handed people. The traffic in England is quite topsy-turvy, ie., the wrong way round. ;-)

Konungursvia: 'the knife and fork are placed in reverse.'

Oh, indeeed!


Thank you, teachers! :up:

 

[emsr2d2]

I desperately need a car with a clutch for right-handed people. The traffic in England is quite topsy-turvy, ie., the wrong way round. ;-)

I'm intrigued by the idea of a clutch that has anything to do with whether you're left- or right-handed. Generally, I use the clutch with my foot!

 

[konungursvia]

He might mean the shift stick.

 

[emsr2d2]

Oh, the gear lever!

 

[5jj]

Give me a minute or two and I might manage to make this thread even more surreal.

 

[Shoreditch]

What I meant is shift gear and not clutch.

 

[emsr2d2]

What I meant is shift gear and not clutch.

In BrE, that is called the "gear lever". Some people call it the "gear stick".

 

[BobK]

You want surreal:-? OK, why isn't a fork with three tines a threek?

b

 

[SoothingDave]

If you can place you knife and fork in reverse, can you also place them in drive and neutral?

 

[emsr2d2]

If you can place you knife and fork in reverse, can you also place them in drive and neutral?

Only if you have a left-handed clutch. ;-)

 

[Shoreditch]

Only if you have a left-handed clutch. ;-)

:turn-l::up: