As you enter the Airport at Being, China, there is a large sign saying, “Welcome you to Beijing.”
I tell my students this is incorrect and it should read, “Welcome to Beijing.” They challenge this and ask me to explain why. I have to confess that I cannot explain. Can anybody out there help me. Why is “Welcome you to Beijing.” wrong.
I come across this problem frequently. I was recently asked to edit a brochure and it said, “Ensure you to get the presswork with highest quality.” I corrected this, but again I was challenged. Why was the original phrase wrong? Similarly, I corrected the phrase, “Exert to deliver goods on schedule.” Yet again I was challenged to explain why this was bad English. Again I was baffled.
Can anybody help to explain the mistakes, please?
Help solicited
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Hello Advoca,
I have been teaching English in Hong Kong for quite awhile now and I understand what you are going through. Chinese often want a logical explanation or a rule of why we write/say things in English the way we do. The truth is that a lot of the English language of today does not really follow any specific English rules, but rather has been developed over time through social interaction.
Perhaps the best way to go about explaining this to them is to tell them that the English language is not as logically based as Mandarin because there has been so much interaction with other languages over the last few centuries. Many common sentences have developed over time through usage rather than from grammar rules.
It would be okay to say 'We welcome you to Beijing' or 'Welcome to Beijing' or 'Beijing welcomes you' but we rarely if ever say ' welcome you to' without putting a 'noun' in front of 'welcome'.
I also recommend that you review the basic rules of the English language to help you answer these types of questions.
In the sentence 'Ensure you to get the presswork with highest quality.' there is a simple problem to watch out for that is common when Chinese write English. Most simple sentences in English start with nouns. Also, make sure that you have a list of "phrasal verbs". The word 'that' is needed after 'ensure'. Phrasal verbs are often a problem and I recommend that you teach them to your students. Now if the sentence was 'We ensure that you get the presswork with highest quality. It is a little better, but still not right. If you put 'highest quality' in front of the noun 'presswork' then the sentence is fairly good. 'We ensure that you get the highest quality presswork.' Teach them to put adjectives in front of nouns because it is easier to use them correctly in front of the noun and therefore they will make far less mistakes.
Well, I have to run, hope this helps you out.
Wishing you the best,
Justin.
I have been teaching English in Hong Kong for quite awhile now and I understand what you are going through. Chinese often want a logical explanation or a rule of why we write/say things in English the way we do. The truth is that a lot of the English language of today does not really follow any specific English rules, but rather has been developed over time through social interaction.
Perhaps the best way to go about explaining this to them is to tell them that the English language is not as logically based as Mandarin because there has been so much interaction with other languages over the last few centuries. Many common sentences have developed over time through usage rather than from grammar rules.
It would be okay to say 'We welcome you to Beijing' or 'Welcome to Beijing' or 'Beijing welcomes you' but we rarely if ever say ' welcome you to' without putting a 'noun' in front of 'welcome'.
I also recommend that you review the basic rules of the English language to help you answer these types of questions.
In the sentence 'Ensure you to get the presswork with highest quality.' there is a simple problem to watch out for that is common when Chinese write English. Most simple sentences in English start with nouns. Also, make sure that you have a list of "phrasal verbs". The word 'that' is needed after 'ensure'. Phrasal verbs are often a problem and I recommend that you teach them to your students. Now if the sentence was 'We ensure that you get the presswork with highest quality. It is a little better, but still not right. If you put 'highest quality' in front of the noun 'presswork' then the sentence is fairly good. 'We ensure that you get the highest quality presswork.' Teach them to put adjectives in front of nouns because it is easier to use them correctly in front of the noun and therefore they will make far less mistakes.
Well, I have to run, hope this helps you out.
Wishing you the best,
Justin.
You're welcome Advoca.
Maybe also let them know that English only follows the grammar rules about 80% of the time! It works for me!
Also, my wife, who is a native Hong Kong girl and speaks Mandarin, tells me that 'welcome you to Beijing' is a direct translation, word for word, from Mandarin. Chinese people are also bad for translating Mandarin to English word for word. I always see examples of this on products made in China that I find here in Hong Kong.
Some are quite funny!
I don't know about Beijing, but here in Hong Kong, some of my students actually do know the English rules as good as or better than me, especially my student who is an editor. Don' t let that bother you because knowing English rules and being able to use English effectively and naturally are totally different things.
Glad I could be of some help,
Justin.
Maybe also let them know that English only follows the grammar rules about 80% of the time! It works for me!
Also, my wife, who is a native Hong Kong girl and speaks Mandarin, tells me that 'welcome you to Beijing' is a direct translation, word for word, from Mandarin. Chinese people are also bad for translating Mandarin to English word for word. I always see examples of this on products made in China that I find here in Hong Kong.
Some are quite funny!
I don't know about Beijing, but here in Hong Kong, some of my students actually do know the English rules as good as or better than me, especially my student who is an editor. Don' t let that bother you because knowing English rules and being able to use English effectively and naturally are totally different things.
Glad I could be of some help,
Justin.