Question
Updated on
13 Dec 2018
- Korean
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English (US)
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Question about English (US)
By comparison, the Gauls were an undisciplined horde. Few, if
any, women and children would have held back to watch the battle.
This was not a tribe on the move but a war band looking for trouble,
glory and treasure. Like any wandering army of this time its warriors
would have stunk and been infested with lice.
In the paragraph above, what does the sentence-Few if any, women and children would have held back to watch the battle- means? Women and children might have enjoyed the battle because the battle might have looked silly?
By comparison, the Gauls were an undisciplined horde. Few, if
any, women and children would have held back to watch the battle.
This was not a tribe on the move but a war band looking for trouble,
glory and treasure. Like any wandering army of this time its warriors
would have stunk and been infested with lice.
In the paragraph above, what does the sentence-Few if any, women and children would have held back to watch the battle- means? Women and children might have enjoyed the battle because the battle might have looked silly?
any, women and children would have held back to watch the battle.
This was not a tribe on the move but a war band looking for trouble,
glory and treasure. Like any wandering army of this time its warriors
would have stunk and been infested with lice.
In the paragraph above, what does the sentence-Few if any, women and children would have held back to watch the battle- means? Women and children might have enjoyed the battle because the battle might have looked silly?
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13 Dec 2018
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- English (US)
@fleet "Hold back to watch" means they stayed and watched. "Few, if any" stayed and watched, so that means that almost nobody stayed to watch. See?
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- English (US)
Wow I thought you had written that first paragraph and was going to be incredibly impressed haha.
Anyway, what the sentence means is that Not many women and children would have watched the battle. "Few, if any" means a couple of people or none at all.
Here's an example: "Few, if any, NBA players are shorter than 6 feet tall."
This sentence means that only a couple of NBA players, or even NONE, are shorter than 6 feet tall. Almost everyone is ABOVE 6 feet tall.
So just a couple of women and children, or even ZERO, would have watched the battle.
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- Korean
Thanks, So not many people would have held back to watch the battle. That means, many women and children watched the battle. Do I understand it right?
- English (US)
@fleet No other way around. Many women and children DIDN'T watch the battle.
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- Korean
I thought ‘hold back to + verb’ means hesitate to do something... Am I wrong?
- English (US)
@fleet "Hold back to watch" means they stayed and watched. "Few, if any" stayed and watched, so that means that almost nobody stayed to watch. See?
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