Language/Multiple-languages/Grammar/Disjunctive-questions
It is amazing to see that in different languages, the answers of a disjunctive question can be divided.
For example,
- "Don't you know it?" ＂你不知道嗎？＂
If you know it, you answer "yes", a positive word in English; but in Chinese, you should answer with a negative word "不".
It is understandable, because to answer with a positive word is to agree with the speaker's original idea, and to answer with a negative word is to oppose the negator in the question. Vice versa.
Google Translate does not distinguish this. Please help to fill in the list. Keep the alphabetic order.
Here is a method:
Find a disjunctive question and its answer in the Bible, and check it on its other versions in other languages.
The Bible has advantages:
- It has been translated into many languages;
- It is in public domain;
- Its sentences have serial numbers.
I am a stranger to the Bible, so please suggest a sentence with disjunctive question and its answer.
| Positive if do or be / Negative if do not or be not | Negative if do or be / Positive if do not or be not |
|---|---|
|
English German Japanese |
Chinese |