| | <正>It is sometimes said that the English are polite people. This can make life difficult for foreigners. Suppose a foreign boy asks an English girl to go
【分类号】：G634.41
【DOI】：CNKI:SUN:GYNJ.0.2007-11-022
【正文快照】：
It is sometimes said that the English are polite people. This can make life difficult for foreigners. Suppose a foreign boy asks an English girl to go out with him and she says,“If I finish my work, I’ll meet you in the caféat seven o’clock.”Is she saying“yes”or“no”to his invitation? In grammatical terms, she is using the conditional structure. By using the conditional, speakers of English can avoid giving a “yes”or“no” answer to a question. It enables people to be diplomatic.… |
