What will happen to it's meaning?
e.g: Show off, burn off.
Is there any rule for translating these words?
It might seem so easy to you, but i couldn't find these words in dictionaries.
2006-12-24 04:05:56 · 6 answers · asked by - 3 in Society & Culture ➔ Languages
the examples you gave are semi slang terms.
The easiest way to check out the meaning is to make it into a phrase.
show off, becomes show it off. Now it becomes synomynous with being a cheeky little momkey and showing it all off as to how you cane be just like a child.
burn off, becomes burn it off . If you burn it off at the tip, the tip is burned off.
The actual conjigation of the verb does not depend on the proposition that is used. it still chages just like it would had the phrase not been entered.
I suposse it depends on actually hearing it spoken and getting the full understanding of what it means when the phrase is used. But in essence there is no rule that makes adding a preposition mandatory to chage the whole meaning of the word. If that were the case in english it would become either something combined with not to make it the opposite, or the multi word would become one single compount word.
The hint is there, but really it is just a preposition added in daily speech that is improper.
2006-12-24 19:09:38 · answer #1 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
Language is a dynamic, living organism. Words are being added all the time, and other words are falling out of favor. You can't expect a dictionary to be update. In fact, five minutes after it is published, it is somewhat out of date.
2006-12-24 12:14:20 · answer #2 · answered by Allan 6 · 2⤊ 0⤋
They are annoying idiomatic expressions with no sensible meaning. There really isn't a rule for translating them, maybe a slang dictionary would help.
2006-12-24 12:21:02 · answer #3 · answered by thdweb 2 · 1⤊ 0⤋
There not compound words, so you would have to look them up seperatly, but umm most of them are slag so if youre a show off, you like to brag, and if you mouth off, you talk back, there is no rule, u just gotta use context clues
2006-12-24 12:10:30 · answer #4 · answered by Im that girl! 3 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Yes that is slang and hard to understand because the meaning of the word off changes according to the verb and context. Get off can mean more than one thing as can throw off. One thing is clear, it is never good to be told to piss off. However it is better to be pissed off than pissed on.
I think I wandered a bit.
2006-12-24 12:20:43 · answer #5 · answered by firefly 5 · 1⤊ 0⤋
verbs show action. Get off the table. I am not too sure but I think you may be using off as an adverb. check it out on www.studybuddy.com
2006-12-24 12:20:18 · answer #6 · answered by ruth4526 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋