Speaking of Dictionaries

Category: Uncategorized

Speaking of dictionaries, I corrected some of my students writing today where they had to talk about where they live, and some of them said things like “I live in a residential quarter of Madrid”. Now I would never say that. I’d say “I live in a residential neighborhood in Madrid”, yet the dictionary supports the students’ meaning, so I can’t “correct” it. I’ll try to remember to ask my British colleagues if that sounds right to them.

  

Speaking of this sort of thing, I remember once a student came up with some sort of bizarre expression which I piously corrected. “No no, that’s not right” I said. But she told me she’d just gotten back from Australia and that that was the most normal expression there. Oops. Put my foot into, didn’t I. “Correcting” (feedback) can be tricky business. Oh well, we’ve all got to be wrong sometimes, don’t we?

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