Dave's ESL Cafe's Student Discussion Forums

[kerstin]

1.something's off.=something's wrong?

2.Is there a special term for "common knoledge of laws"?

3.how to distinguish "costom"from "costom-made"?
why would people said "costom dentures"instead of "costom-made" denture?

*star crossed* lovers=a couple who only have been together for a short time.?

a kill strike .
what verb does it usually goes with,take out? use?
or in what situation would you use it?

[CP]

1.something's off.=something's wrong?
--A little context would help here, but yes, that is probably what it means.

2.Is there a special term for "common knoledge of laws"?
--In the British and American system of law, the common law is the judge-made law, the law that is built up of the court decisions of many cases. Common knowledge means what everyone knows, or is supposed to know. Most lawyers would probably say there is no common knowledge when it comes to the law, but there is the common law.

3.how to distinguish "costom"from "costom-made"?
why would people said "costom dentures"instead of "costom-made" denture?
--Both mean made or modified specifically for the person or the situation. There are custom cars and custom-made shirts. (Note the spelling of "custom.")

*star crossed* lovers=a couple who only have been together for a short time.?
--No. This comes from Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet. The couple were star-crossed, meaning it was their fate to fall in love but have tragedy result, because it was written in the stars / foreordained by astrology. Read the play! It's worth the all the work it takes to understand it.

a kill strike .
what verb does it usually goes with,take out? use?
or in what situation would you use it?
--Probably you would say make a kill strike or execute a kill strike. A kill strike would mean an attack whose purpose was to kill the target, maybe with rockets or bombs.
_________________
You live a new life for every new language you speak. -Czech proverb

[eddfx]

CP's answers are great! Here are my answers. Using different peoples teachings will only broaden your understanding.

1. Something�s off =something's wrong?
Yes, something�s off means that something is wrong. Or how I would say it, something is not right.

Examples:
I feel a little off. (Meaning you feel sick)

My scooter is a little off. (Meaning something with the scooter needs to be looked at or fixed)

2. Is there a special term for "common knowledge of laws"?
I am not sure if I understand this question fully, but I will try to answer. Do you mean common knowledge? Common knowledge means something generally known to everyone. Like the sky is blue, you breathe air and water is wet.

The way you ask makes me want to say that a law student should have common knowledge of the law(s) so he would make a good lawyer.

3. How to distinguish "custom" from "custom made"?
Why would people say "custom dentures �instead of "custom made" denture?
Example:
Are your dentures custom made?
Yes, my dentures are custom made.

Also:
Are your dentures custom?
Yes, my dentures are custom.

You can technically use this example either way. I like custom made in this example personally, but there would be no harm in saying it the second way.

*star crossed* lovers=a couple who only have been together for a short time?
I have never heard this term before. Are you translating it from Chinese? Where did you hear it?

A kill strike.
A killing strike or a killing blow means the final hit that kills your opponent. It is used in many situations from military to video games. I have heard native speakers say �a kill strike� in video games.


Hopefully some other teachers will come and add their experience and broaden my answer.

In the future, might I suggest you ask only one or two questions at a time. You will get much faster responses that way. When you ask too many questions at once, it is very tiring.

[missdaredevil]

common law=laws that are supposedly known to most people and more related to regulations that they might be familiar with?

[CP]