Do you have THE time?

How much can an article change the meaning of an expression?  A lot!

A few years ago, a Korean graduate student in a TESOL program experienced a very embarrassing situation. It was caused by her unfamiliarity with a common way of asking if someone knows what time it is.  A man stopped her when she was on the mall (she's a petite, very attractive, young Korean married lady) and asked her if she "had the time."  Since she only knew the expression "have time" to do something, she thought he was asking her out on a date or to have coffee together. She looked at him and told him that she was married.

The man was confused at first but after a minute or two of awkward explanations from the woman, he  realized that the woman did not know that "the" completely changed the meaning of his utterance.  He explained to her that he was not asking for a date. He pointed to the wristwatch she was wearing. "I just wanted to know the time."

Of course, my Korean classmate felt humiliated. She considered herself to be a quite advanced-level non-native speaker and had even taught English in her home country.  However, she had never heard the expression "have the time."

She has the time.

Dead Right, Dead Wrong, and Dead End

Most of us know what right and wrong mean, but what does dead right and dead wrong mean? "The End" is usually seen at the end of a story or the end of a movie. But, what is a dead end?

Like the sign in the previous post, this one is a yellow, diamond-shaped street sign. It is a warning. If you are driving and face one of these, you will have to turn around and go another way. Dead end means that you can't go any further on this street or on this subject. The road usually ends just beyond the sign.

Have you noticed other uses of dead in collocations (= words that often go together or co-occur)? We also say that the very last person who crosses a finish line in a race (usually long, long after the second to the last runner has finished) is dead last. You can be dead tired after running a marathon. When someone says something very unexpected and/or shocking, there may be dead silence afterwards. If these collocations aren't enough, you can find more at this site. Always keep your eyes open for these common words - words that you know! - but used in contexts or situations that are new to you.  This is definitely a fun way to continually build your everyday vocabulary.

Pictographs and Signs

Newspaper Rock in New Mexico's
Petrified Forest

People have probably been drawing and leaving signs since they first learned how to scratch on rocks or paint with wet minerals on cave walls. It's not surprising then that we can learn a lot about language and culture from signposts.  What is important to convey when no one is around to tell you face-to-face?

Here are some examples of signs that were posted in areas where people travel either by car or on foot. In one case, there is potential danger to the traveler (Photo A). In the other, there is potential damage that could be caused by the traveler (Photo B). Can you understand the meanings of each sign? Try to guess the meanings of the signs before reading the explanations next to them.

Photo A:  Along the road to Joshua
Tree National Monument, CA

What does subject to something mean? Maybe you know that subjects are areas or fields of study in college. The subject can also be the topic of discussion or conversation. Thus, subject is a polyseme, meaning that it has multiple meanings.

"Subject to flooding" means that this road can be affected by something bad, like floods. It is wise to pay attention to these warning signs when driving in desert country. These areas are especially vulnerable to flash floods. This water can travel very quickly down canyons or hillsides and take out roads and any vehicles traveling on them.

Photo B: Rancho Peñasquitos Park,
San Diego, CA

This sign tells hikers in the park not to cross beyond the fence because there is a project to help the plants in the area regrow. The park administrators might also have added that the off-trail area is covered with poison oak (another reason to stay on the designated trails).

Reading signs is a great way to continually expand your vocabulary. You might be inspired to read more signs if you consider that when people write signs, they assume that most people can understand the words that are used. Did you understand the signs on this page?