Interpreters and Commentators

Interpreters and Commentators Interpreters and Commentators Interpreters and Commentators By Maeve Maddox Mike Feeney overheard a business owner repeatedly [mention] that they would be using an â€Å"interpretator† and has asked for a post on interpreter/interpretator and commenter and commentator interpreter: one who interprets or explains; one who translates languages. In current usage, interpretator is nonstandard, as is the obsolete verb formation interpretate. The OED has an entry for interpretator, but its the most recent documentation is from the 17th century and the word is labeled as obsolete. The Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary has no entry for it. M-W does have an entry for interpretate, which redirects to interpret. Here are some examples of nonstandard interpretator: I know there is a secretarys dayIs there an interpretators day? Speaking in Malayalam, through an interpretator, Poulse and his other colleagues said   I bet I was the best hand writing interpretator in the world. software, incorporating the only true award interpretator system for Australian conditions since 1991 Chinese (mandarin) translator/interpretator service provider Nonstandard interpretate also abounds: management will read the same contract as you but will interpretate it different[ly]. Im pretty sure he misinterpretated the study, Himmler thought that Germany was going to recover because he misinterpretated one of Nostradamuss predictions. In November 2005 she interpretated the role Dame at â€Å"Dido and Enea† by Purcell While interpretator has no meaning apart from that of the standard word interpreter, commentator and commenter have distinctive meanings. commentator: A writer of expository comments or critical notes on a literary work; the writer of a commentary; One who reports or comments on current events, esp. on radio or television. commenter: One who comments Here are some examples of both words: Sometimes sports commentators say the strangest things Alan Watkins, doyen of political commentators, dies at 77 Texas police take on blog commenters Are Blog Commenters â€Å"Real† Writers? N.C. Judge Unmasks Pseudonymous Blog Commenters The 6 Types of Blog CommentorsDo You Know Them? (NOTE: The OED gives commentor as an alternate spelling of commenter.) I see a useful distinction between commentator and commenter, especially in this everybodys a writer culture of ours. Commentators are qualified to write intelligently about a particular topic, approaching it and analyzing it in terms of a body of knowledge. Commenters, on the other hand, express opinions on matters about which they may or may not be particularly informed. Many DWT readers bring professional expertise in language to their comments, resulting in useful commentary. In general, however, blog commenters tend to be stronger on opinion than information. Bottom line: Id reserve the word commentator for analysts operating from a professionally-informed perspective and writing or speaking in a formal setting. Id use commenter for people who respond to blog posts. Want to improve your English in five minutes a day? Get a subscription and start receiving our writing tips and exercises daily! Keep learning! Browse the Vocabulary category, check our popular posts, or choose a related post below:"Because Of" and "Due To" 50 Idioms About Fruits and Vegetables6 Foreign Expressions You Should Know

When Not To Use the Personal A of Spanish

When Not To Use the Personal A of Spanish The general rule is that the personal a of Spanish is used before a direct object when that object is a person or an animal or thing that has been personified. However, there are exceptions. The personal a is either optional or not used when the direct object is a nonspecific person, when following the verb tener, or to avoid awkwardness when two as would be close to each other in a sentence. Omitting the Personal A When the Person Isn’t Specific Perhaps the best way to state the biggest exception to the rule is to clarify the rule. Rather than saying that the personal a is used before people, it would best to say that the personal a is used only with specific, known, or identified human beings (or animals or things that have been personified). In other words, if the person is treated as a member of a category rather than as a known person, the personal a isnt needed. Here are some examples of the difference: Busco a mi novio. (I am looking for my boyfriend. Here, the boyfriend is a specific, known person, even though his name isnt given.)Busco un novio. (I am looking for a boyfriend. Here the boyfriend is merely someone who is a member of a category. We do not know who the person is, or even if he exists.)No conozco a tu bisabuela. (I dont know your grandmother. We have the persons identify even if her name isnt given.)No conozco una sola bisabuela. (I dont know a single great-grandmother. As in the case of the boyfriend above, the person is talking about a hypothetical person rather than an identified one.)Necesito una secretario. (I need a secretary. The speaker needs assistance, but not necessarily from a specific person.)Necesito a la secretario. (I need the secretary. The speaker needs a specific person.) As a result, some sentences can have a slightly different meaning, depending on whether the a is used. For example, we might say El FBI busca a un hombre de 40 aà ±os, meaning that the FBI is looking for a specific 40-year old man, perhaps the one who committed a crime. If we say El FBI busca un hombre de 40 aà ±os, it suggests the FBI is looking for a 40-year-old man in general, perhaps for a criminal lineup or for some other purpose where it doesnt particularly matter which 40-year-old man it finds. The main exception to this clarified rule is that certain pronouns, such as alguien (someone) and nadie (no one), always require the personal a when used as direct objects, even when they refer to no specific person. Example: No conozco a nadie.  (I dont know anybody.) Dropping the Personal A After Tener When tener is used to indicate have in the sense of having a close relationship, the personal a is not used even if the direct object is known. Tenemos tres hijos. (We have three sons.)La compaà ±ia tiene muchos empleados. (The company has many employees.)Ya tengo mà ©dico de atencià ³n primaria. (I already have a primary-care doctor.) When tener is used to mean have someone in a role, however, the personal a is retained: Tengo a mi hermana como amiga de Facebook. (I have my sister as a Facebook friend.) Avoiding Two As in a Sentence Sometimes a sentence following the general rule would have two as, especially when a verb is followed by direct object and then an indirect object. In such cases, the personal a before the direct object is omitted. The listener will then understand that the object without a preceding a is the direct object. In this way, such sentences often mimic the word order in English. Mandà © mi hijo a su profesor. (I sent my son to his teacher. Note the lack of a before hijo.)El bombero llevà ³ Pablo a mi madre. (The firefighter carried Pablo to my mother.) Key Takeaways Although Spanish uses a personal a when a person is a direct object, the personal a is not used unless the person is a known person rather than someone who merely fits a category.An exception is that the personal a is required with nadie and alguien.The personal a is often not used following the verb tener, even if the object is a known person.