You Know
June 5th, 2006
I was watching an interview of my favorite British rock musician on DVD when I heard the phrase "you know" many times and felt something. I thought I shouldn't translate "you know" literally after that. I guessed the meaning of "you know" was a kind of fillers(connection words?) like "well".
I looked up the phrase on my dictionary as soon as I finished watching the DVD.
According to LONGMAN Dictionary, my guess is probably correct. :)
[spoken] you know
a) used to emphasize a statement:
There's no excuse, you know.
b) used to make sure that someone understands what you are saying:
I felt very upset, you know?
c) used when you want to keep someone's attention, but cannot think of what to say next:
Well, you know, we've got a job to do here.
d) used when you are explaining or describing something and want to give more information:
That flower in the garden, you know, the purple one, what is it?
| English study |
6 comments:
Yeah, "you know" made me confused when I studied English in Canada.
ESL teachers try not to use the words in a class, but they use it a lot out of schools. lol
My host family also use it, so one day I point it out to them, then they realized that it's true.
When I asked them something, they sometimes say "You know,,, I don't know."
That's a funny sentence if translated.
BTW, some native people don't like when non-natives use this word.
Sorry to put my comment again.
"You know" is like "ってゆーかさぁ" in Japanese, I guess.
"ってゆーかさぁ" doesn't mean anything and doesn't connect with previous sentence, right?
Hey まつーら,
I'm glad my guess is correct as you mentioned.
I've never heard before they don't like that we speak that words. Thanks for your insight. And also, I've heard before that they tend to dislike that we speak "Oh, my god!" many times. Do you know that?
Hey Plow,
Most of the time, your guess is correct.
As for native speakers not liking non-native speakers using some phrases, I don't think that is true as a general rule.
Some phrases are very hackneyed in English (like "Oh, my god!," probably popularized by valley girls..http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Valley_girl)
People find it lame/unoriginal that other people try to act like a certain group/person (for instance, rappers, pop stars, etc.)
I wouldn't worry about a particular phrase or usage. English usage varies by region, socioeconomic level, and other factors. It just depends on whom you speak with!
Hey Plow,
Most of the time, your guess is correct.
As for native speakers not liking non-native speakers using some phrases, I don't think that is true as a general rule.
Some phrases are very hackneyed in English (like "Oh, my god!," probably popularized by valley girls..http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Valley_girl)
People find it lame/unoriginal that other people try to act like a certain group/person (for instance, rappers, pop stars, etc.)
I wouldn't worry about a particular phrase or usage. English usage varies by region, socioeconomic level, and other factors. It just depends on whom you speak with!
Hey jd,
It's nice of you to say that.
I always try to speak correct English as much as I can. I shouldn't be worried too much about the usage, right?
Thanks!
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