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Distinguishing "get the job done" and "have the job done"  區分「get the job done和「have the job done的用法


T : Thomas, N : Nathan


 

T: Good morning Nathan! What have you been up to lately?

 

N: Hi, Thomas. I have been trying to enrich my vocabulary and expressions. I believe you agree that words are the bridges for communication, at work and at play.

 

T: So, tell me what you have learned recently?

 

N: I have been taking in quite a lot, but I am still troubled by some expressions. The words on these expressions are not difficult ones, but once they are put together in a particular way, it beats me!

 

T: Can you give me an example?

 

N: Certainly. Take for example the expression “Get the job done”. Why can’t we simply say, “Complete the job”? And there are other similar expressions, like “Have the job done”. Do “get” and “have” mean same?

 

T: Nathan, you are very observant. “Get the job done” and “Have the job done” are not the same thing. The difference is this: “Get the job done” usually refers to oneself, that is, the speaker or writer of the expression, whereas “Have the job done” suggests that the job is being or will be done by another person for the speaker.

 

N: I see. Incidentally, the other day my boss said something like that to me. She said, “If you’re too busy to get the documents copied right away, have it done by Sandy.”

 

T: You’ve got it all, Nathan! Great!


 

T: 早晨,Nathan!你最近在忙甚麼?

 

N: 嗨,Thomas。我近來一直忙於增進自己的詞彙量和文字表達方式。相信你也認同,文字是溝通的橋樑,不管在工作還是玩遊戲上。

 

T: 那麼,可以告訴我你最近學習了甚麼?

 

N: 我已經學懂了不少,不過仍然弄不清一些英文表達。這些特定的表達形式選用的單詞本身並不艱澀,但是一旦把它們組合起來,我就投降了!

能夠給我舉個例子嗎?

好的。以「Get the job done」(完成工作)為例為甚麼我們不能簡單地說「Complete the job」?還有其他類似的表達,例如:「Have the job done」。 其實 「get」和「have」所衍生的意思一樣嗎?

 

T: Nathan,你很細心。「Get the job done」和「Have the job done」並非同一回事。 它們區別在於:「Get the job done」通常所指的是自己,即說話者或作者本人會完成工作;而「Have the job done」即說話者表示,該項工作目前或者將由另一個人完成。

 

N: 我明白了。前幾天,我的上司剛巧向我說了類似的話。她說:「如果你忙得不能立即複印這份文件,那麼找Sandy代勞。」

 

T: Nathan你真的學懂了!非常好!