"To go to the countryside" in my sentence

[Rachel Adams]

Isn't it wrong to say "to go to the countryside" instead of "to go to the country?"

A word for word translation from Russian would be "to go to the village".That probably doesn't work in English.

 

[tedmc]

No, they both mean the same thing, referring to places outside the urban areas.

 

[Tarheel]

Or:

outside urban areas

I don't think I would say go to the countryside as it is not a specific place.

 

[Rachel Adams]

Or:

outside urban areas

I don't think I would say go to the countryside as it is not a specific place.

Would you instead use "to go to the country" and "to go to the village"?

 

[Tarheel]

Would you instead use "to go to the country" and "to go to the village"?

The first one.

 

[emsr2d2]

We would say "go to the village" only if we really were referring to an actual village (a very small town) and, with "the", one that has previously been mentioned.

I would say that BrE has a fairly even split between "the country" and "the countryside", as long as the context makes it clear that "country" doesn't mean "nation". "Countryside" avoids that ambiguity.

 

[Rachel Adams]

We would say "go to the village" only if we really were referring to an actual village (a very small town) and, with "the", one that has previously been mentioned.

I would say that BrE has a fairly even split between "the country" and "the countryside", as long as the context makes it clear that "country" doesn't mean "nation". "Countryside" avoids that ambiguity.

When I use "to go to the country" it doesn't matter if "country" has been mentioned before, does it? Is it also more specific that "the countryside"?

 

[probus]

In Canada we'd be most likely to say "get out of the city" or "get out of town" rather than "go to the country". But Canada differs from most countries in that the non-urban areas are as likely to be wilderness as agricultural regions.

 

[GoesStation]

When I use "to go to the country" it doesn't matter if "country" has been mentioned before, does it?

That's right. It's always the country.

Is it also more specific that "the countryside"?

No.

 

[probus]

When I use "to go to the country" it doesn't matter if "country" has been mentioned before, does it? Is it also more specific that "the countryside"?

I imagine Canada and Russia are similar in that people like to have a second home outside the city if they can afford it. You call them dachas and we call them cottages.

P.S. My UE avatar shows me sitting in front of my cottage staring at Lake Erie. The United States and GoesStation are on the far side.

 

[emsr2d2]

I can't really imagine actually saying "go to the country" though. We usually say what we're going to do followed by where we're going to do it.

Dave: What are you doing on Saturday?
Helen: Sam and I are going for a walk in the country/Sam and I are going for a country walk.

It would be clear to Dave that they are going somewhere that's not just outside an urban/suburban area, but somewhere tranquil, probably scenic, with green open spaces, or woods/forests.

 

[Rachel Adams]

I can't really imagine actually saying "go to the country" though. We usually say what we're going to do followed by where we're going to do it.

Dave: What are you doing on Saturday?
Helen: Sam and I are going for a walk in the country/Sam and I are going for a country walk.

It would be clear to Dave that they are going somewhere that's not just outside an urban/suburban area, but somewhere tranquil, probably scenic, with green open spaces, or woods/forests.

If the people in your dialogue when talking about "a dacha" which would be the best choice to use when talking about going to your "dacha"?

1."I am going to the countryside."

2. "I am going to the country."

3. "I am going to the village." (The village has not been mentioned before but it's always one and the same village.)

 

[emsr2d2]

I thought a "dacha" was a house in the countryside, usually used as a second home or a holiday home. If I'm right, we'd say "I'm going to my house in the country", "I'm going to my country house" or "I'm going to my holiday home". The third wouldn't necessarily be in the countryside, though. It could be by the beach, in the mountains, or simply in a town/country other than the one you normally live in.

 

[Rachel Adams]

I thought a "dacha" was a house in the countryside, usually used a second home or a holiday home. If I'm right, we'd say "I'm going to my house in the country", "I'm going to my country house" or "I'm going to my holiday home". The third wouldn't necessarily be in the countryside, though. It could be by the beach, in the mountains, or simply in a town/country other than the one you normally live in.

You are right. Sometimes it's (the dacha) not mentioned and people say "I go to the country" to mean "I go to my house in the country." That's why I was wondering if all three sentences would work in my previous post without adding the word "dacha" if I want to say that I am going to my country house. In post #12.

 

[emsr2d2]

I wouldn't use any of the sentences in post #12 in that context because none of them mention a house. I would take them to mean you were just going on a nice day out in the countryside, perhaps for a long walk.

 

[Rachel Adams]

I wouldn't use any of the sentences in post #12 in that context because none of them mention a house. I would take them to mean you were just going on a nice day out in the countryside, perhaps for a long walk.

So unlike Russian in English it is impossible to say that you are going to "the country" "the countryside" or "a village" or "the village" to mean that you are going to your house in the country. I will only use the examples you suggested in post #13.