Teacher Discussion Forums

I agree, translation is always an approximation.

Your example of 'fish' as a concept is interesting. What springs to mind when I use the word 'duck'? what about 'Bombay duck'?

Hi, Just a question. Has anyone considered 'char' = tea, or is this now out of favour and therefore inadmissable? Isn't it a loan word that has been anglicised ('ch'a') so placing it in the same group as typhoon and kowtow. Just thought of another one - where would queque be found? (No jokes please!...

An interesting point.

By reduction, then, translation is unnecessary - since each listener will impose their own meaning on the lyrics!

Is monoglot no longer acceptable?

Sorry - but I remember the jumping jack long before The Stones released their song. I'm about the same age as Sir Mick, so it is very likely that he would have been aware of the firework - and would certainly have let them off on Novenber 5th.

It's not a tense, it's a participle clause.

Hi , An interesting question, and one that deserves a proper answer. A traditional ‘hawser-lay’ rope is constructed of three strands. Countless fibres are twisted to form yarns , the yarns are twisted to form strands , the strands form the rope . The twist of the yarns is opposite to the fibres and ...

I suspect that Andrew is on the right line. A 'jumping jack' was indeed a firework that was thrown onto the ground and as each coil exploded jumped, giving off bright flashes of light as it did so. The movement of the firework was completely random, uncontrolled. 'Flash' is also a derogatory term fo...

Hi, This is not a tense - it's a participle clause using the past participle to modify the verb (had). Normally the subject of a participle clause is the same as the subject of the main clause of the sentence. Sometimes the participle acts as a 'sentence adverb' - modifying the whole, in other cases...