emar
Reprimand , scold and argue Mum to child; she scolded her, or reprimanded her ??? A couple: they argued about the new flat , ?? I think there must be a more natural expression , right? Thank you
4 févr. 2019 08:22
Réponses · 8
1
In British English, we don't use the word 'scold' - it sounds very odd and old-fashioned to our ears. You could live a lifetime in the UK and never hear this word. 'Reprimand' is fine, but formal. You could talk about parents reprimanding their children in a written article, but you wouldn't use it in everyday conversation about your family life. In day-to-day spoken English, we use the informal phrasal verb 'tell off' : the mum told her daughter off for swearing. 'Argue' seems to be fine. If two people disagree about something and have a verbal fight, 'argue' is the right word. By the way, emarbe, I don't normally answer your questions - this is because you never seem to acknowledge the answers. It would be nice if you could at least say 'Thank you' to the people who take the trouble to help you.
4 février 2019
1
For the mother and child example, "scold" sounds more natural. "Reprimand" is perfectly fine, too, but it's a more formal word. And for the couple example, "argue" works perfectly. "They argued about the flat" sounds natural to me. Let me know if you have any questions!
4 février 2019
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