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2011年4月26日 星期二

Common Error

ever

This word is usually used wrongly in Taiwan. Your dictionary will tell you that in Chinese it means '曾經'.
In Chinese this word is used next to the verb to show that the action happened in the past. You have to do this because there are no verb tenses in Chinese.

However, in English, the verb tense shows that you are talking about past time, so 'ever/曾經' is redundant in English.

I ever went to US. = INCORRECT
I ever go to US. = INCORRECT
I went to the US. = CORRECT

In English you can only use 'ever' in questions, like this:

Did you ever see her again? = CORRECT
Have you ever been to the US? = CORRECT

or in negatives, to add emphasis, like this:

I have never ever heard such rubbish. = CORRECT
Don't you ever do that again! = CORRECT

However, it's quite rare in negatives, so don't worry about it.

5 則留言:

  1. Can I use 'ever' in this sentence?
    'I've stuck with the fragrance much more than ever.'
    Or is this sentence totally wrong?

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  2. '____er/more than ever' is a chunk you can use in positive sentences:

    I love you more than ever.
    It's raining harder than ever.
    It's more popular than ever.

    so that part of your sentence is correct. I'm not sure about the other part of the sentence, though. What do you mean?

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  3. I want to express that I love my perfume very much. I love its fragrance more when every time I use it.

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  4. oh, well, then you can say, "I love this perfume more than ever!"

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