Dave's ESL Cafe's Student Discussion Forums

[YHJ]

I looked 'through' on a dictionary and it says 'end', which is the same as the korean translation I read for it.
And in the context, it sounds right.
But... as I knew 'I'm through' means I passed.
That made me confused.

Does it sound natural?


The dull child is usually afraid to try at all. It takes a good deal of urging to get him to ever once; if that try fails, he is through.

how do you tell when to say 'try' and 'trial' as a noun?
Can I switch 'try' to 'trial' in the sentence above?


Thanks.

[damon@English24/7]

Hi,

Yes, you can use through to mean finished. "I am sick of this, I`m through."

In the case of your example we would use trial or, better still, attempt. "If his attempt fails, he is through."

Oddly enough, you can also use through to mean finish. "If this attempt succeeds, he will be through" means that, if he is successful, he will successful complete the challenge (whatever it is). Whereas, "if this attempt fails, he will be through" means that, if he fails, he will be out without another chance to succeed.

You just need to listen carefully to the context to understand the meaning, don`t worry if it is confusing--you will get it if you pay attention to how it is used.

damon

[YHJ]

Thank you for your help.