# absolutely common?



## James Zhang

Hi, my teachers.
I met this sentence - 'The fork was not *absolutely common* on the American dinner table until about the time of the Civil War, 1860s', which comes form the same article I mentioned in my previous thread. And I've got  some questions about it.

1. Is the compound adjective *absolutely common* good wording? I tried to search example sentences via google, but the results are not satisfactory.
2. Is the phrase *extremely common* the closest to it in meaning?

My questions may be simple to you, but to me, your answers mean a lot.

BTW, I see the ad 'I'm loving it' each noon when I pass by McDanald and go to the Chinese restaurant for my Chinese lunch. 

  Thanx


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## mzsweeett

James Zhang said:
			
		

> Hi, my teachers.
> I met *came across *this sentence - 'The fork was not *absolutely common* on the American dinner table until about the time of the Civil War*(*1860s'*)**.  *which*This* comes form the same article I mentioned in my previous thread. And I've got some questions about it.
> 
> 1. Is the compound adjective *absolutely common* good wording? I tried to search example sentences via google, but the results are not satisfactory.
> 2. Is the phrase *extremely common* the closest to it in meaning?
> 
> My questions may be simple to you, but to me, your answers mean a lot.
> 
> BTW, I see the ad 'I'm loving it' each noon when I pass by McDanald and go to the Chinese restaurant for my Chinese lunch.
> 
> Thanx


Good morning friend across the Great Sea!!! I love how inquisitive you are!! I hope you don't mine my revisions on your post.

I agree with statement #2.  _*absolutley commo**n*_ is something I have never heard.
BTW...how are the Chinese Restaurants over there??  A great deal better than here I would wager!!  LOL

Sweet T.


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## James Zhang

Hi, Good morning, but 30 mins later I'll go to bed. haaaaaa

Your patient and detailed revision is just what I want most!!! --- Kind friend from the land of free, haaaaa  

The pity is that the sentence was by native speakers, Jeff Smith, and...
And after finishing the google thing, I belived that this term must be seldom used and may be not good.

Actually Gaer has given a low rank to the work by Jeff Smith, but good stuff and bad stuff makes me know more truth about English, or language, or everything. (I'm not sure about the usage of the underlined phrases and words.... )

BTW, Chinese food is absolutely good, but I also had dinner at Pizzahut, which was good as well.  

*There must be lots of problems with my writing, and I do want to improve my English as soon as possible, but.... everything takes time, that is the rule.....pity*
*And your help helps me a lot!!!*
Thanks, have a nice day!


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## te gato

James Zhang said:
			
		

> Hi, my teachers.
> I met this sentence - 'The fork was not *absolutely common* on the American dinner table until about the time of the Civil War, 1860s', which comes form the same article I mentioned in my previous thread. And I've got some questions about it.
> 
> 1. Is the compound adjective *absolutely common* good wording? I tried to search example sentences via google, but the results are not satisfactory.
> 2. Is the phrase *extremely common* the closest to it in meaning?
> 
> My questions may be simple to you, but to me, your answers mean a lot.
> 
> BTW, I see the ad 'I'm loving it' each noon when I pass by McDanald and go to the Chinese restaurant for my Chinese lunch.
> 
> Thanx


Hey James;
No it is not realy good wording..at one time in writing 'absolutely' was used informally as an intensive..to give the statement more emphasis...
You could use..
'The fork was not common on the American dinner table'...
'The fork was uncommon on the American dinner table'..
'The fork was a rare sight on the American dinner table'..
'The fork was not extremely common on the American dinner table'...
It just means that the fork..back then..was something you did not see on the dinner table..I would imagine they ate with their fingers more...


*There must be lots of problems with my writing, and I do want to improve my English as soon as possible, but.... everything takes time, that is the rule.....pity*


James...*no*... your writing and the understanding of the English language is progressing amazingly..so do not worry..one day at a time my friend, one day at a time...
mmmm..Chinese food..have some for me..

te gato


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## mzsweeett

James Zhang said:
			
		

> Hi, Good morning, but 30 mins later I'll go to bed. haaaaaa


 Wow!! What a time difference!! Good night sleep sweet!!



> Your patient and detailed revision is just what I want most!!! --- Kind friend from the land of free, haaaaa


I am sure there are others who are better in the grammar area than I, but thank you very much. It is nice to be appreciated.



> The pity is that the sentence was by native speakers, Jeff Smith, and...
> And after finishing the google thing, I belived that this term must be seldom used and may be not good.


 Some authors write in colloquial or spoken form.  I don't know why.  To me it's harder to read through.


> Actually Gaer has given a low rank to the work by Jeff Smith, but good stuff and bad stuff makes me know more truth about English, or language, or everything. (I'm not sure about the usage of the underlined phrases and words.... )


 The underlined phrases are fine to me. You could change the first to be more like _Gaer gave a lower rank to Jeff Smith's work._  It is still correct though.  


> BTW, Chinese food is absolutely good, but I also had dinner at Pizzahut, which was good as well.


 I love food in _all_ its forms.  But authentic food is best.  I don't think that many Chinese restaurants _here _are as good as over _there_.  That is what I meant.  Ouch, my tummy aches at the idea of Pizza Hut!!  It gives me agita!!  LOL.


> *There must be lots of problems with my writing, and I do want to improve my English as soon as possible, but.... everything takes time, that is the rule.....pity*
> *And your help helps me a lot!!!*
> Thanks, have a nice day!


Not at all!! I find your English to be great!! How strange that the people most concerned are those that are non-native speakers!! It is wonderful that you are so determined!!
BTW...how would you say goodbye in Chinese??  LOL

Sweet T.


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## te gato

mzsweeett said:
			
		

> I hope you don't mine my revisions on your post.
> 
> I agree with statement #2. _*absolutley (absolutely) commo**n*_ is something I have never heard.
> 
> Sweet T.


Hey MZ GF;
a little correction for you..mmm..maybe hold off on having so much coffee 
your friend
te gato


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## mzsweeett

te gato said:
			
		

> Hey MZ GF;
> a little correction for you..mmm..maybe hold off on having so much coffee
> your friend
> te gato


LMAO!!!Yes, that and the new supply of Godiva's don't help either!!  
LOL / YF

Sweet T.


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## Aeneas

I'm not sure about the accuarcy of the first statement either.  It is my understanding that Civil War era folk would have had both a knife and fork at their place setting, and also a spoon.  They would likely use the spoon to steady the meat as they cut it.  
The main difference was that, prior to that time, the food was transported from the plate to the mouth using the knife, instead of the fork.  The forks were generally large and two pronged, similar to a serving fork today, and were mainly used for that purpose.  These were considered too dangerous to use as we now use our smaller forks.  Just FYI.


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## te gato

Here is an interesting link to the history of utensils...

http://www.cuisinenet.com/glossary/utensils.html

te gato


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## James Zhang

Many thanks, all my good teachers.!!!

Ha, nice to see you, te gato. 

It might break the rules of the English Only Forum, but I still wanna risk being criticized ....to give the Chinese version for goodbye in here. It is 再见!

Ha, I'm applying for a Chinese-English forum one day.

Little by little, bit by bit, quantity change to quality change, One day at a time...ha

All my good teachers.....

Well, te gato, I'll check out the link later...come and enjoy Chinese food one day.... haaaaaaaa
Good night


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## te gato

James Zhang said:
			
		

> Many thanks, all my good teachers.!!!
> 
> Ha, nice to see you, te gato.
> 
> It might break the rules of the English Only Forum, but I still wanna risk being criticized ....to give the Chinese version for goodbye in here. It is 再见!
> 
> Ha, I'm applying for a Chinese-English forum one day.
> 
> Little by little, bit by bit, quantity change to quality change, One day at a time...ha
> 
> All my good teachers.....
> 
> Well, te gato, I'll check out the link later...come and enjoy Chinese food one day.... haaaaaaaa
> Good night


Hey James;
Do I get to use an absolutely common fork..or ..absolutely common chop sticks..  to enjoy my Chinese food?
Keep up the good work!!
te gato


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## James Zhang

Ha, my teacher, you can try to use the chop sticks that are extremely common on our Chinese dinner table, .....but don't worry, I can be a teacher in this haaaaaa...

Trying new stuff can be a fun!!!

Thanks for the encouragement from all of you!


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## te gato

James Zhang said:
			
		

> Ha, my teacher, you can try to use the chop sticks that are extremely common on our Chinese dinner table, .....but don't worry, I can be a teacher in this haaaaaa...
> 
> Trying new stuff can be a fun!!!
> 
> Thanks for the encouragement from all of you!


Hey James;
Ohhhh..You are learning fast!!!
Ok..I am extremely good at using the absolutely common chop sticks that are extremely common on your Chinese dinner table...but yes you can be my teacher..to teach me the extremely common way to use the absolutely common chop sticks..
(_I think I just confused myself on that one_)

te gato


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## James Zhang

haaaaa, wondering why you can be extremely familir with using chop sticks...maybe you often visit Chinese restaurants there.

Guess it's time for you to go to bed....have a good sleep


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## te gato

James Zhang said:
			
		

> haaaaa, wondering why you can be extremely familir with using chop sticks...maybe you often visit Chinese restaurants there.
> 
> Guess it's time for you to go to bed....have a good sleep


Hey James;
I have my own set of extremely..absolutely common chop sticks..and forks. 
Good night 
you too!!
te gato


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## James Zhang

So you just got them for preparing for using our set of chop sticks during the visit to china? haaaaa

Good night. teacher and friend


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## te gato

James Zhang said:
			
		

> So you just got them for preparing (for using--to use)our set of chop sticks during the visit to china? haaaaa
> 
> Good night. teacher and friend


James;
You are absolutely correct..but never common.. 
a little correction for you..in blue
Good night

te gato


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## gaer

James Zhang said:
			
		

> Actually Gaer has given a low rank to the work by Jeff Smith, but good stuff and bad stuff makes me know more truth about English, or language, or everything. (I'm not sure about the usage of the underlined phrases and words.... )


James,

Well, you see that again these people have used something that is weird sounding to most of us. I Goggled and found 524 hits for "absolutely common".

I Goggled and found 22,200,000 hits for "extremely common". That should tell you something, right?

再見 (zai4 jian4, sorry I don't have the right pitch marks, and I like the traditional characters)  

Gaer


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## James Zhang

Ha, Gaer, happy to get your post. haaaaa 

I'm afraid Jeff Smith will be angry with me as I only see the weak points of his....ha

A coin has two sides. To err is human. haaaaaa

You are cool to mark the correct ....pitches (the first time I see this word, I guess) for the Goodbye in Chinese. Yes, both of them are of the fourth tone....

How come you know pingyin????? haaaaaaaa


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## gaer

James Zhang said:
			
		

> Ha, Gaer, happy to get your post. haaaaa
> 
> I'm afraid Jeff Smith will be angry with me as I only see the weak points of his....ha
> 
> A coin has two sides. To err is human. haaaaaa
> 
> You are cool to mark the correct ....pitches (the first time I see this word, I guess) for the Goodbye in Chinese. Yes, both of them are of the fourth tone....
> 
> How come you know pingyin????? haaaaaaaa


I don't. I know characters. 再=again, 見=see. See you again, probably "see you soon".

彼女に*再び*会った。 I never saw (met) her again.

You can catch most of the meaning by characters: 彼女, she, 会, meet, *再, again*

miru、みる、*見る*、to see.

I learn backwards. I understand the characters first. They are comparitively easy. That's why I can sometimes read a bit of Chinese.

Back on topic. I think you now that the text written by these guys is pretty bad, right? 

Gaer


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## James Zhang

gaer said:
			
		

> 再=again, 見=see. See you again, probably "see you soon".
> *Cool, Gaer, your understanding of 再见 is correct. But "See you again," or "see you soon" could be word-by-word translation. The best version is still Goodbye, I belive*
> 彼女に*再び*会った。 I never saw (met) her again*.--This must be Japanese*.
> 
> 
> 彼女, she, 会, meet, *再, again--The "女" in "彼女" refers to "she". As to 彼, ancient Chinese will use it to refer to "that (person, thing, etc.)".*
> 
> miru、みる、*見る*、to see*..--This must be Japanese*
> 
> Back on topic. I think you now that the text written by these guys is pretty bad, right? *--The lucky thing is that I have good teachers in here. And it also does me good to come across such writing as I can make good comparision with your help.*
> 
> Gaer


 
Hi, Gaer.

Knowing over 2 languages must be a fun, huh?

You can find interesting differences between different parts of the world, which actually form the true world. haaaaaa

Many Japanese characters come from Chinese, though they alter in meaning - I believe.

Time to go to bed?

Have a good sleep.


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## James Zhang

Hi, Gaer, I just think of (can u give me properer verb phrases than this, coz I feel it is not quite appropriate in here) a question:
Is 'See you again' and 'see you soon' commonly used in the US?


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## James Zhang

Sorry, Gaer. I didn't do the google thing before I made the haste remarks on See you again and See you soon. 

Ha, a lesson to learn....

I'm terribly sorry...........


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## lizzie chen

hi people,
really happy to find you are discussing Chinese here...is it kind of sense of belonging...
by the way,there are many kinds of Chinese cuisine, thus, Chinese restaurants serving different Chinese cuisines...but the same thing is that,they are all mouth-watering~


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## James Zhang

haaaaa, Chen, I thought the post was by Gaer...

I used to work in Shenzhen, GZ is a good place. haaaa


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## lizzie chen

oh, shenzhen is a good too...even better than Guangzhou. Many of my fellow students come from Shenzhen... and to my delight,they speak cantonese as well as chinese!

so i suppose you work in Beijing now? how do you like it? i'm always longing to visit the capital.


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## gaer

James Zhang said:
			
		

> Hi, Gaer, I just think of (can u give me properer verb phrases than this, coz I feel it is not quite appropriate in here) a question:
> Is 'See you again' and 'see you soon' commonly used in the US?


Hmm. I would probably say this most commonly:

Talk to ya later…
See ya later…

That would be if we were talking.

As we've all talked about, it's hard to be sure what we say. I may find out that I say other things. I just can't think of them now.

I would not say "See you again". But I would say:

See ya again later…

Not much help, I'm afraid.

About the characters: simplification of both Chinese and Japanese characters has resulted in a greater difference. If you examine traditional Chinese characters and those used by Japan earlier, they were very close. That is why kanji 漢字 means what you know it means. 

Now, I can't say more, because we would have to start a topic in another forum. 

Gaer


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## te gato

James Zhang said:
			
		

> Hi, Gaer, I just think of (can u give me properer verb phrases than this, coz I feel it is not quite appropriate in here) a question:
> Is 'See you again' and 'see you soon' commonly used in the US?


Hey James;
It is used in Alberta as well..although I personally say 'see you soon'...
For me 'good-bye' is to final..it sound like you will never see that person again..
so 'see ya' soon'..or..'see you soon' sounds better..and is absolutely common..

see you soon
te gato


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## garryknight

te gato said:
			
		

> For me 'good-bye' is to final..


I hope you don't mind me pointing out a very tiny, little, small, minute error, either grammatical or a typo, I don't know which. It should be "too final". The rule I learnt hundreds of years ago in school to remember which one is spelt how, is to notice how long the "ooooo" sound is. When you say something like "to go", the "ooooo" is short, so it's just one "o". When you say "too final", the "ooooo" sound is longer, so it has two "o"s.

I thought I'd point it out because it might help learners of English. And also, just because I wanted tooo.


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## te gato

garryknight said:
			
		

> I hope you don't mind me pointing out a very tiny, little, small, minute error, either grammatical or a typo, I don't know which. It should be "too final". The rule I learnt hundreds of years ago in school to remember which one is spelt how, is to notice how long the "ooooo" sound is. When you say something like "to go", the "ooooo" is short, so it's just one "o". When you say "too final", the "ooooo" sound is longer, so it has two "o"s.
> 
> I thought I'd point it out because it might help learners of English. And also, just because I wanted tooo.


Oooooo..Sir knight caught me again...
Thank you..actually..typooooooooo...I was in a hurry..and fooorgooot tooo..add the ooother ooooo... but it is ok..I do not mind being an 'English' lab rat...for the sake of others..

te gatooooooo


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## James Zhang

ha, thanx, all my friends 

Every day a good day!!!!!!!!!!


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## te gato

James Zhang said:
			
		

> ha, thanx, all my friends
> 
> Every day a good day!!!!!!!!!!


Hey James;
Yooou are welcooome..
Yoou toooo
Just so I dont forget my ooooooo's 
te gato


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## James Zhang

hey, my dear teacher!!!

To error is human - the title of the article I read before this cookbook.

Remember it?!

And I guess the "o" part is far from 'way out in the left field'. Do I use this correctly?

Anyway, all of you have my respect and loveeeeeeeeeeee.


haaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa


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## te gato

James Zhang said:
			
		

> hey, my dear teacher!!!
> 
> To error is human - the title of the article I read before this cookbook.
> 
> Remember it?!
> 
> And I guess the "o" part is far from 'way out in the left field'. Did I use this correctly?
> 
> Anyway, all of you have my respect and loveeeeeeeeeeee.
> 
> 
> haaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa


 
Hey James;
'To err is human..to forgive divine'..is the quote..means we all make mistakes..but forgiving the mistakes makes us better people..

...and the oooo part is because I had that brain to finger problem again..I was in a hurry when I answered you and got caught on a typo.. 
te gato


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## James Zhang

hi, my teacher te gato. 

Yes, forgiving is so good that it helps people live in peace. haaaaaa

Actually here is noon time, and I just finished the lunch in the Chinese restaurant close to the McDonalds. 

haaaaaaaa, happy each time I talk to u

See you sooooooooooooooooooon!!!!!1


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## gaer

te gato said:
			
		

> Hey James;
> It is used in Alberta as well..although I personally say 'see you soon'...
> For me 'good-bye' is to final..it sound like you will never see that person again..
> so 'see ya' soon'..or..'see you soon' sounds better..and is absolutely common..
> 
> see you soon
> te gato


I have too little contact with people. Too little casual contact. I see people at work, and I see my students. Outside of work, I don't socialize much. But if you run into a friend, I don't think "I hope I'll see you soon" would be at all unusual, and all these phrases can be shortened. 

Gaer


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## James Zhang

hi, Gaer, now outside of work?!

Enjoy your spare time.


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## gaer

James Zhang said:
			
		

> hi, Gaer, now outside of work?!
> 
> Enjoy your spare time.


James, it's now 1:45 AM here. It's the middle of the night. Usually I answer messages between midnight and about 3 AM. I'm a nightowl. 

Gaer


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## James Zhang

Hey Gaer.

Take good care of yourself.

Well, ..........

I don't know your schedule (or routine), but I go to bed at 11:20 pm and get up at 7:00am....

Maybe I'm lazy....ha  the sleep is still not enough. haaaaaaa


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## gaer

James Zhang said:
			
		

> Hey Gaer.
> 
> Take good care of yourself.
> 
> Well, ..........
> 
> I don't know your schedule (or routine), but I go to bed at 11:20 pm and get up at 7:00am....
> 
> Maybe I'm lazy....ha the sleep is still not enough. haaaaaaa


We both get 8 hours sleep, so it doesn't matter when we get it, right? 

What is your time zone? How many hours east of GMT are you?

G


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## James Zhang

gaer said:
			
		

> We both get 8 hours sleep, so it doesn't matter when we get it, right?
> 
> What is your time zone? How many hours east of GMT are you?
> 
> G


Hey, Gaer.

Then you are lazier than me as you get up so late every day 

just kidding......

Beijing time is GMT + 8, the time zone is east No. 8 zone (or east zone No. 8?). 

Enjoy the sleep


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