Maya
Usage of whim, vagary and caprice. Do these sentences sound natural? 1). You can put your present on her desk while she leave her desk on a whim. 2). Since my dog is vagary, I have to my eyes on him. 3). She has been subjected to caprice of her little child.
Jan 15, 2017 12:33 PM
Answers · 6
2
Close! 1) Since she's left her desk on a whim, you can put your present on it. 2) Since my dog is vagarious, I have to keep my eyes on him. (This is still very strange. We don't use "vagary" in common speech, but I've corrected the noun to make the adjective you need: vagarious.) 3) She has been subjected to the caprices of her little child. (You can use "subject" as well.)
January 15, 2017
1
These sentences are great explorations of the meanings, but I don't think they are very natural!! Here are a few! 1) She leaves her desk frequently "on a whim" and the teacher is getting frustrated because she doesn't ever ask for permission. 1A) I picked up learning English on a whim 10 years ago and now I'm fluent!! 2) He acts upon every vagary, every caprice, every whimsical idea that floats through his mind. He never really sticks to his resolutions. 3) He has no sense of respect for other people's time. Every whim, every caprice, every vagary his mind comes up with, commands his attention. He never settles on anything!
January 15, 2017
I understand. I will use "whim" in daily conversation. Thank you very much.
January 15, 2017
I forgot to mention, 3) She has been subjected to the caprice of her child. And to be honest whim is the only word I might hear in daily conversation. I'm not sure about in other places!! These terms are more literary!
January 15, 2017
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