Dave's ESL Cafe's Student Discussion Forums

[faith2k]

According to the dictionary, the word, "threesome" seems to include "a group match involving three" and "a love-triangle." However, so far, I have understood it only as "a group sex involving three"? I wonder if its meaning has changed only to mean group sex these days, or I just haven't heard the expression in other contexts.

Thank you very much for your clarification.

Faith

[faith2k]

Which sentence sounds more natural in informal talk?

A. We are going to divide the group into two based on this line.

B. We are going to divide the group into two by this line.

("By this line", I mean the physical line that is drawn between the groups of people. I assume that the person who said it try to divide the whole group into two using the line he has drawn to initiate some activity.)

[Christine123]

No, the word "threesome" does not solely mean group sex involving three, but because one of its meanings involves sexuality, beware that when you use it you may get giggles from immature people.

Sentences A and B are both fine. They convey the same meaning, and both are natural sounding.

[teacher-simon]

I know this thread is a month or so old, but I think Christine makes a good point that is very important to remember in language study. That is usage vs meaning.

Many words and phrases are used to create an effect that is different to their original meaning. This so called 'slang' can really confuse you and unfortunately there isn't a lot you can do about it, other than continue to study hard and try your best to become familiar with common usage of words.

It may sound like a cliche comment, but carefully analyzing films, television programs, cartoons (printed), magazines, and news articles can help a lot in recognizing common word usage.
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Simon
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http://www.damn-english.com