Another vs Other

Another problem, among all other problems, is the use of ANOTHER and OTHER.

    -  It seems that the only translation learnt when starting to study English is ANOTHER. It is used here universally for singular and plural items.

    -  The problem is probably compounded through the fact that ANOTHER is one word whereas in Portuguese it is two words.

    -  ANOTHER has to be seen as not one word, but as two words that have been joined together to form only the one.

    -  AN is the Article and signifies ONE as in AN event, AN interesting article, AN Elephant etc.
AN OTHER or ANOTHER is a variation of the same theme.
    -  In use we say - There is ONE OTHER problem, or ANOTHER problem. ONE OTHER thing - ANOTHER thing I like etc.

    -  If the object is plural, it makes no sense to use ANOTHER things. But we can, and should use - OTHER things, OTHER people, OTHER objects. ANOTHER person had OTHER ideas about the project.

    -  OTHER never uses an `S` when followed by an object. The sentence `He has OTHERS cars` is wrong. `He has ANOTHER car, or he has OTHER cars.`

    -  The form OTHERS (with the S) is only used when we already know what the object is and the object doesn't need to be repeated.
    -  John and his friends have 5 cars. He has one car and the OTHERS have two cars each.(OTHER friends)
    -  The only OTHER country that speaks Portuguese in the Americas is Haiti. No OTHER countries speak Portuguese. One country speaks French and the OTHERS speak Spanish. ANOTHER country that speaks Portuguese is Portugal.

Possessive Pronouns

In recent posts, I have referred to the Gender issue when moving across from English to Portuguese and back again. Quite often, it seemed to matter only when taking into consideration the use of Articles in a structure.

More recently I discovered another anomaly where Gender plays a great part.

Consider the following sentence.
      'Mary took HIS car to be fixed' 
    -   I of course, tried to correct this and at times joked with the student about an unidentified MALE entity that was suddenly introduced into the conversation.
    -   I never really tried to understand the reason behind the mistake, especially when the student seemed to use the possessive pronoun correctly in the sentence 'Mary took HER table to be fixed'
    -   Over subsequent classes, the problem returned and disappeared seemingly randomly so I put it down to tiredness or a lack of attention.

    -   Then, last week I was prompted to reflect on this issue once again when I referred to the Gender influence.

With the help of some of my students, I began to learn the true reason why Brazilians confuse the use of possessive pronouns in English.

    -   The Subject - I, we, you, they etc take the possessive attitude in English. Objects are referred to by the pronoun 'It'. When we wish to attribute a possessive attitude to an object it will always be with Its.

    -   'Mary took her Car with its broken window to be fixed'.
    -   'The dog buried its bone under the tree.'

In Portuguese, the possessive form is attributed to the object.
    -   In the sentence, 'Mary took HIS car to be fixed'  (Mary levou SEU carro) - it is the object Car that is referred to in the possessive case. Car is carro in Portuguese and receives a masculine attribute, 'o carro', hence the use of HIS.
    -   In the sentence ''Mary took HER table to be fixed, (Mary levou SUA mesa). Table = mesa, receiving a female attribute - 'a mesa', resulting in HER table.
    -   Portuguese is more like English when the structure changes in the sentence - 'Mary levou o carro dela' (Mary took the car hers), or 'Mary levou a mesa dela' (Mary took the table hers).


Now that you understand the reasoning behind the mistakes made, it is time to remind you of the correct structures.
Mary took HER car and HER table to be fixed. The gender case is the subject Mary, she - her.
John took HIS car and HIS table to be fixed. Once again the Gender case is the subject John, he - his.
They took THEIR cars and THEIR tables to be fixed. (They - their)
We took OUR cars and OUR tables to be fixed. (We - our)
Mary took HER brother to the doctor's, then John took HIS sister out to dinner. Later they took THEIR mother to the cinema. (as above)

Come back / Go back / Return

So what is it we are doing?
Are we GOING BACK, COMING BACK, or can we simply say RETURNING?

For some reason, it seems so easy and natural for me to choose the correct form because it is intuitive. I have grown up with a sense of what it is TO COME and TO GO, so it is hard to stop and try to understand why it is so counter-intuitive for non-native speakers.

I remember mentioning in one of my early posts, how hard it is to `Gender` things in Portuguese (adding an `a` or an `o` to the end of nouns like Marcelo, carro (male) and Marcela, mesa (female)), as is done in many Latin-based languages. For speakers of these languages, it is as intuitive for them to understand `Gender` as it is for me to understand COME and GO.

So let`s begin.

GO - A place we want to reach, to get to, a destination.
    -  I am GOING home late today. When I get home I will order Pizza.
(I am not at home, I am somewhere else so I have to GO home from where I am)
    -  I am GOING BACK to bed. I am still tired.
(I am not in bed, perhaps I have just left it, but I want to RETURN to my bed.)

COME - To me, from somewhere else to where I am.
    -  He is COMING home late today. When he gets home, I will order Pizza.
(I am at home and my brother is somewhere else so he has to COME home from where he is.

    -  Are you COMING BACK to bed. I am still tired?
(I am in bed, perhaps my partner has just left it, but I want my partner to RETURN to my bed.)

In these examples, I have tried to make the idea of COME and GO as simple as possible. The use of COME or GO depends on how the information you are giving relates to YOU or the TARGET Subject.

Consider the following;
    -  `Sorry Mum, I am only GOING home when I am ready.`
(The TARGET Subject is ME - I could be going anywhere, and eventually it will be home.)
    -  `Sorry Mum, I am only COMING home when I am ready.
(The TARGET Subject is MUM - I am replying to Mum asking me `When are you COMING home?`)

Now, what about the BACK.
    -  When I COME BACK FROM New york, I will phone you.
(Here we are talking about a future event where I am not in New York at the moment but expect to go there soon, then RETURN TO the place of speaking. Note the matching FROM.)

    -  When I GO BACK TO New York, I will study more.
(In this case I WAS in New York and am not there now. I intend to RETURN TO New York and hope to study more once I am there. Note the matching TO.)

The translation from Portuguese includes BACK, while there is always confusion as to whether to use COME or GO as in COME BACK or GO BACK. (BACK in this structure is a preposition.)
BACK by itself can NOT be used.
    -  I need to BACK home just doesn't work. You MUST use GO BACK or COME BACK.
(BACK can NOT be used as a verb in this context.)

    -  In the famous phrase - 'I'll be back' - BACK is used as an adjective in the same way as HOME in 'I'll be home' and HAPPY in 'I'll be HAPPY'

When unsure of which option to use, GO BACK or COME BACK, it is much simpler to use RETURN.

In all of the above examples, RETURN works perfectly well

Anticipate vs Bring forward or start earlier

Anticipate vs Bring forward or start earlier

The word anticipar (Portuguese) is often translated into ANTICIPATE, in sentences like;
                  - "Can we ANTICIPATE our next class?"
(Meaning the speaker wants to start the class earlier)

This phrase in English seems very strange. When we ANTICIPATE something, we usually prepare something we believe will be necessary in advance. ANTICIPATE has a sense of predicting a future necessity, NOT to start something earlier as is understood by the writer`s question.

Proper use of ANTICIPATE can be seen in these examples;
                  - "We ANTICIPATED your need for a Slide projector, so we  set one up for you in the meeting room."
                  - Apple ANTICIPATED there would be higher sales of its new smartphone through the first few days, so provided more sales people to cope with the demand.

We would normally write this question in the following way;
                  - "Can we start the meeting/our next class earlier?" (Usually for the same day)
Or
                  - "Can we bring the meeting/our next class forward to Tuesday instead of Wednesday?"

In a similar way;
                  - "Can we postpone the meeting/our next class until Wednesday?"
                  - "Can we start the meeting/our next class a little later, say 19:00 instead of 18:00?"
                  - "Can we move the meeting back by an hour?"

These forms are all used to have an appointment start at a later time or date.

Pick vs Pick up

PICK vs PICK UP

The difference here doesn`t seem that great at first glance.
    PICK usually means select;
                  - Please PICK the colour of the car you would like? So you choose the colour you want.

    PICK UP is a phrasal verb which means to collect or retrieve.
                  - The car will be ready on Friday. You can PICK it UP then.

(Note how the verb (PICK) and preposition (UP) can be separated by the subject.)

Some of my students with children will sometimes tell me;
                  - "I will PICK my children from the school".

(I sometimes wonder if there is a special scheme here in Brazil where if your children annoy you too much, you can choose to take some other children instead.)

                  - Of course they mean to say they will PICK their children UP from school.

Compare the following;
                  - "There is a Board Meeting in 2 hours. We need to PICK the Chairman."
                  - (Confusion) "But we already have a Chairman. What happened?"
                  - "Nothing. What do you mean? He is returning from a meeting in RJ. We have to PICK him from the Airport." (It should have been, "PICK him UP")

This is one of those situations where too many doubts arise, simply because of a missed preposition.

Happy Families

So, you have a nice, happy FAMILY, two PARENTS, CHILDREN, SONS and daughters, Brothers and Sisters, maybe even STEP Brothers and STEP Sisters or even FOSTER children, probably GRAND-parents and PARENTS-IN-LAW, not to mention Uncles, Aunts, Nieces and Nephews, Cousins or even an adopted family member. There is no end to the confusion a family can bring.

And confusion it does bring as soon as we start moving across cultures and language.
        -  Relatives, Kin - Parentes

        -  Parents - Pais

        -  Family - Familiares. (NOT to be confused with FAMILIAR - which means someone or something that we know quite well)

The first time I heard someone tell me they had 10 Parents living in Sao Paulo, I was really confused. (They meant that they had 10 relatives living in Sao Paulo)

In English, a Parent can only be your Mother or Father. 

We have Grandparents and Step-parents which fulfill similar roles as parents do. 
        -  Parents are NOT your Uncles and Aunts, nor your Nieces, nephews or cousins. These we refer to as Family or Relatives. Your Mothers large family of 6 brothers and 5 sisters are all your relatives.
        -  Their extended families are often referred to as Distant relatives.

For older generations we begin with GRAND, as in Grandparent being your Grandfather or Grandmother.
        -  Then their parents are referred to, by us, as GREAT as in Great Grandfather, Great Grandmother etc, which becomes Great, Great, Great for each generation that precedes theirs.

        -  In Brazil it isn't uncommon for us to hear a relatively young woman saying she is a Great Grandmother. She means that her Granddaughter(or Grandson) has had a child.

While on this subject let's look at another awkward set of family terms.

        -  The term STEP as in Step Mother, Step Father or Step-children, refers to the Mother or Father or Children who are not yours by blood but through remarriage when two families become united under one family.

        -  This is not to be confused with FOSTER (Mother, Father, Children) which is part of a social program designed to provide, usually temporarily, a family environment for mostly children, when their own environment is compromised. FOSTER and ADOPTED should not be confused. An adopted child or family refers to a choice in making the Adopted members legally real members of a family. As real members of the Family, the same designation applies, Father, Mother, Son, Daughter, Brother or Sister.
        -  And what about IN LAW? you might ask. Parents IN LAW refer to your Father IN LAW or Mother IN LAW. (IN LAW obviously means that the relationship comes about through LAW, being your marriage). IN LAW relations include - Brother IN LAW and Sister IN LAW. 

        -  Brazil has a strong religious trait to it which means that it is not uncommon for families to invite friends to be their children's GOD PARENTS. They are referred to as GOD MOTHERS and GOD FATHERS to their GOD CHILDREN (GOD DAUGHTER or GOD SON)

Sons, Children - Filhos

        -  While the translation is correct, the word Filhos is also used to mean children.
This leads to a lot of confusion when Brazilians ask questions like, 
        -  'Do you have any Sons?' (already a strange first question. We would ask - 'Do you have any children?).
        -  When you answer, Yes, 2 sons and a daughter, the normal understanding would be, Oh, so you have 3 sons. After some time the speaker begins to understand the term children and can relate to that concept when the children are young.

        -  Then the same speaker talks to a much older person and reverts to;
        -  'How many sons do you have?'

The concept of Child - crianca in Brazil, is for young and small members of your Family or young and small people, children in general.

        -  In English, a child is a small and young human, but your children are your offspring as well. 
        -  Your children are born and remain YOUR children, even when they grow up. They will always be YOUR children, not simply CHILDREN (small, young people). 
        -  'How many Children do you have?' 
        -  'I have 3 children, 2 sons who are both married and a daughter who is teaching at Univeristy.'

Usually vs Used to - Accustomed

English speakers usually have no problems with distinguishing between USED TO, USED TO DOING and USUALLY.

Unfortunately, this is not always the case with non-native speakers, especially Brazilians

You could attribute this perhaps, to what is really a false friend in the word ACCUSTOMED or acostumado in Portuguese. We are ACCUSTOMED TO DOING something is understood to mean usually or habitually by Brazilians when in fact it has quite a different meaning.

To be ACCUSTOMED to something or be ACCUSTOMED TO DOING something indicates the acceptance of something being NORMAL or USUAL (not repeated or habitual)

Compare the following;

                  - I USED TO go everywhere by bicycle, but now I use the Bus.
(I USED TO is a simple past tense structure and means that the statement isn't true today. I USED TO drink a lot of Coke. I USED TO smoke.)

                  - I AM USED TO RIDING around the city on Buses.
(Taking Buses is easy for me. I have no problem finding the Buses I need when I need them.
PLEASE note. The verb to BE (AM, IS, ARE, WAS, WERE etc,) means that the main verb MUST be VERB + ing - riding, taking, estimating etc)

                  - I AM ACCUSTOMED TO RIDING around the city on Buses.
(It is my CUSTOM to take the Bus when I go around the City. Sometimes I MIGHT take a Taxi, The Train or get a ride with someone, or even ride my Bike, but it is more NORMAL or USUAL for me to go by Bus.
PLEASE note. The verb to BE (AM, IS, ARE, WAS, WERE etc,) means that the main verb MUST be VERB + ing - riding, taking, estimating etc)

                  - I USUALLY RIDE around the city on Buses.
(When we want to express something that happens on a regular basis we always use USUALLY. I USUALLY work on Saturday`s, but not every Saturday.)

ALWAYS
Another problem similar to this is the use of `We all the time go to the Supermarket on Saturday`s`
Here, there is a teaching problem where the idea of always and all the time has not been explained properly.

The correct usage is `We ALWAYS go to the Supermarket on Saturday`
ALL THE TIME / THE WHOLE TIME refers to an extended period of time.

Compare - Stop complaining ALL THE TIME.
               - Stop complaining THE WHOLE TIME.
               - He is ALWAYS complaining.