Professor Ernest Brennecke of Columbia is credited with inventing a sentence that can be made to have eight different meanings by placing ONE WORD in all possible positions in the sentence:
"I hit him in the eye yesterday."
The word is "ONLY."
The Message:
1. ONLY I hit him in the eye yesterday. (No one else did.)
2. I ONLY hit him in the eye yesterday. (Did not slap him.)
3. I hit ONLY him in the eye yesterday. (I did not hit others.)
4. I hit him ONLY in the eye yesterday. (I did not hit outside the eye.)
5. I hit him in ONLY the eye yesterday. (Not other organs.)
6. I hit him in the ONLY eye yesterday. (He doesn't have another eye.)
7. I hit him in the eye ONLY yesterday. (Not today.)
8. I hit him in the eye yesterday ONLY. (Did not wait for today.)
This is the beauty and complexity of the English language.
From India, Mumbai
Acknowledge(0)
Amend(0)
166"I hit him in the eye yesterday."
The word is "ONLY."
The Message:
1. ONLY I hit him in the eye yesterday. (No one else did.)
2. I ONLY hit him in the eye yesterday. (Did not slap him.)
3. I hit ONLY him in the eye yesterday. (I did not hit others.)
4. I hit him ONLY in the eye yesterday. (I did not hit outside the eye.)
5. I hit him in ONLY the eye yesterday. (Not other organs.)
6. I hit him in the ONLY eye yesterday. (He doesn't have another eye.)
7. I hit him in the eye ONLY yesterday. (Not today.)
8. I hit him in the eye yesterday ONLY. (Did not wait for today.)
This is the beauty and complexity of the English language.
From India, Mumbai
Acknowledge(0)Amend(0)
Hi,
You could even get 8 different meanings to the same sentence by laying stress on the different words in the sentence (using different voice inflections). Try saying out the sentence below with stress on the different words. :-)
I did not say he stole the money.
I did not say he stole the money.
I did not say he stole the money.
I did not say he stole the money.
I did not say he stole the money.
I did not say he stole the money.
I did not say he stole the money.
I did not say he stole the money.
Cheers,
Rakesh
From India, Delhi
Acknowledge(0)Amend(0)
You could even get 8 different meanings to the same sentence by laying stress on the different words in the sentence (using different voice inflections). Try saying out the sentence below with stress on the different words. :-)
I did not say he stole the money.
I did not say he stole the money.
I did not say he stole the money.
I did not say he stole the money.
I did not say he stole the money.
I did not say he stole the money.
I did not say he stole the money.
I did not say he stole the money.
Cheers,
Rakesh
From India, Delhi
Acknowledge(0)Amend(0)
Hello simmy2009, You are right — English is such a beautiful language — but it depends on the one who beholds it whether it’s simple or complex. Rgds, TS
From India, Hyderabad
Acknowledge(0)Amend(0)
From India, Hyderabad
Acknowledge(0)Amend(0)
This only goes to show that words have to be used with clarity and words do have specific purposes when used in aprticular way. Understand and use right word at the right time. JR Kumar
From India, Hyderabad
Acknowledge(0)Amend(0)
From India, Hyderabad
Acknowledge(0)Amend(0)
Thanks, Simmy!
Couple of things to share.
Late Mr. C N Annadurai, ex-CM of Tamil Nadu, is known for his proficiency in Tamil Literature. Once he was tested for his English knowledge in the US. He was asked to tell 100 words without using the first four English alphabets (i.e., a, b, c, d). Without any hesitation, he came up with the answer. Can you guess the words? Count from "Zero to Ninety-Nine," and you will have the answer.
On another occasion, he was asked to use the word "because" continuously three times. In a flash, he replied, "A sentence cannot start with because; because, because is a conjunction."
Have a wonderful weekend and a great New Year's Eve!
BSR
From India, Bangalore
Acknowledge(0)Amend(0)
Couple of things to share.
Late Mr. C N Annadurai, ex-CM of Tamil Nadu, is known for his proficiency in Tamil Literature. Once he was tested for his English knowledge in the US. He was asked to tell 100 words without using the first four English alphabets (i.e., a, b, c, d). Without any hesitation, he came up with the answer. Can you guess the words? Count from "Zero to Ninety-Nine," and you will have the answer.
On another occasion, he was asked to use the word "because" continuously three times. In a flash, he replied, "A sentence cannot start with because; because, because is a conjunction."
Have a wonderful weekend and a great New Year's Eve!
BSR
From India, Bangalore
Acknowledge(0)Amend(0)
Dear All,
English, as you read the sentence, "I hit him in the eye yesterday," is very enchanting. Such sentences can be pooled into one small book and read by the beginners of the language who only have limited meanings and usages of each sentence and phrase. No one will be surprised if a beginner learning the language asked, 'How can a child kick the bucket?' taking the literal meanings of the words used.
Ramachandran
From India, Madras
Acknowledge(0)Amend(0)
English, as you read the sentence, "I hit him in the eye yesterday," is very enchanting. Such sentences can be pooled into one small book and read by the beginners of the language who only have limited meanings and usages of each sentence and phrase. No one will be surprised if a beginner learning the language asked, 'How can a child kick the bucket?' taking the literal meanings of the words used.
Ramachandran
From India, Madras
Acknowledge(0)Amend(0)
Good ones...!!
I particularly enjoyed Rakesh's sentence, which was more about giving stress at different places in the SAME sentence - which is trickier than the original thread where we move the "only" to different places. Quite thought-provoking as you never appreciate the true meaning when you read it; it makes sense only when someone verbally uses it and, more importantly, when we are keen enough to observe the "stress"... isn't it ??
From India, Madras
Acknowledge(0)Amend(0)
I particularly enjoyed Rakesh's sentence, which was more about giving stress at different places in the SAME sentence - which is trickier than the original thread where we move the "only" to different places. Quite thought-provoking as you never appreciate the true meaning when you read it; it makes sense only when someone verbally uses it and, more importantly, when we are keen enough to observe the "stress"... isn't it ??
From India, Madras
Acknowledge(0)Amend(0)
Hi All,
Try this one out too:
He stole my cow (No one else but he stole it).
He stole my cow (He didn't ask for it but preferred to steal it).
He stole my cow (He chose to steal my cow, not the one that belonged to someone else).
He stole my cow (I had an ox, sheep, and a cow, but he chose to steal my dearest cow).
Regards,
Mervyn
From India, Mumbai
Acknowledge(0)Amend(0)
Try this one out too:
He stole my cow (No one else but he stole it).
He stole my cow (He didn't ask for it but preferred to steal it).
He stole my cow (He chose to steal my cow, not the one that belonged to someone else).
He stole my cow (I had an ox, sheep, and a cow, but he chose to steal my dearest cow).
Regards,
Mervyn
From India, Mumbai
Acknowledge(0)Amend(0)
Dear Bala, Correctly opined. Though I thought it is long known. And this could be true with almost any language. regards Navin
From India, Mumbai
Acknowledge(0)Amend(0)
From India, Mumbai
Acknowledge(0)Amend(0)
Dear Members,
Thank you for your words of wisdom and for sharing your remarkable ideas and comments. Here are some interesting facts about language:
- "Almost" is the longest word in the English language with all the letters in alphabetical order.
- There are only four words in the English language that end in "duos": tremendous, horrendous, stupendous, and hazardous.
- The Chinese language does not require punctuation.
- Rudyard Kipling was fired as a reporter for the San Francisco Examiner. His dismissal letter was reported to have said, "I'm sorry, Mr. Kipling, but you just don't know how to use the English language. This isn't a kindergarten for amateur writers."
- "Four" is the only number whose number of letters in the name equals the number.
Thank you for sharing these fascinating language facts!
Best regards,
[Your Name]
From India, Mumbai
Acknowledge(0)Amend(0)
Thank you for your words of wisdom and for sharing your remarkable ideas and comments. Here are some interesting facts about language:
- "Almost" is the longest word in the English language with all the letters in alphabetical order.
- There are only four words in the English language that end in "duos": tremendous, horrendous, stupendous, and hazardous.
- The Chinese language does not require punctuation.
- Rudyard Kipling was fired as a reporter for the San Francisco Examiner. His dismissal letter was reported to have said, "I'm sorry, Mr. Kipling, but you just don't know how to use the English language. This isn't a kindergarten for amateur writers."
- "Four" is the only number whose number of letters in the name equals the number.
Thank you for sharing these fascinating language facts!
Best regards,
[Your Name]
From India, Mumbai
Acknowledge(0)Amend(0)Looking for something specific? - Join & Be Part Of Our Community and get connected with the right people who can help. Our AI-powered platform provides real-time fact-checking, peer-reviewed insights, and a vast historical knowledge base to support your search.
The Hindu English Finale.doc
The.a-z.of.corr ect.english.com mon.errors.in.e nglish_186.pdf