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Is this sentence correct?
Posted: 03 Feb 2023, 18:03
by Omneya Shakeep
Hi,
I read this sentence :
"The air was rife with tension, and something was going to give."
But I think it's incorrect, and should be:
"The air was rife with tension, and something was going to happen."
Or do they both give the same meaning, and I am wrong?
Re: Is this sentence correct?
Posted: 03 Feb 2023, 23:49
by Melissa Best
They're both correct depending on intentions. "Something's going to give" is a phrase that's often used to imply some sort of tension building up to an event that's about to happen. So, you're right that something's going to happen here, it's just a stylistic choice on the author's part.
For reference, here's a link to a dictionary definition of the phrase:
https://www.merriam-webster.com/diction ... 0to%20give
Re: Is this sentence correct?
Posted: 04 Feb 2023, 01:30
by Omneya Shakeep
Melissa Best wrote: ↑03 Feb 2023, 23:49
They're both correct depending on intentions. "Something's going to give" is a phrase that's often used to imply some sort of tension building up to an event that's about to happen. So, you're right that something's going to happen here, it's just a stylistic choice on the author's part.
For reference, here's a link to a dictionary definition of the phrase:
https://www.merriam-webster.com/diction ... 0to%20give
Hi,
Thank you for your help, this is very useful.
Re: Is this sentence correct?
Posted: 24 Feb 2023, 12:51
by Donna Walker
I would consider this a stylistic choice by the author. Both are correct.