32 Comments
"She gives your dog" makes no sense in English, there needs to be a direct object for this to work. Could this be "She feeds your dog" without the word "comida" in the sentence?
I dunno, I can see it being a grammatically correct answer to a question about who sacrifices what animal to appease a pet-hating overlord.
I suppose that would work; any sacrificial situation I guess would be appropriate. Although I dont think that was the intended meaning of the sentence. Do you think it could have meant feeds?
it doesn't mean. (that would be "ela alimenta seu cachorro" or "ela dá comida ao seu cachorro"). This sentence probably means she gives the dog to someone, but in present tense ir sounds awkward even in Portuguese, at least, awkward without a further context. But in past tense we sometimes say "ela deu seu cachorro" but we'd likely say "ela deu seu cachorro embora" (she gave her/your dog away).
Why is it not: Ela da cachorro dela (if its hers, instead of "seu" which is "yours" no?)
It would make sense if it is a child donating a toy dog to charity. 'He gives money. She gives her dog.'
How do we differentiate the meaning of 'seu' if 'your' dog and 'her' dog can both be correct?
If you want clear sentences, it's better to use these ones:
- Teu ... = your ...
- O ... dele = his ...
- O ... dela = her ...
Is it incorrect to say "Ela dá o seu cachorro?" or is it just a more formal way to say it?
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Sorry, but I'm really having a hard time understanding how 'Ela dá seu cachorro' can possibly mean 'She gives her dog away', when it seems it would mean 'She gives her dog'--which makes no sense, by itself.
This just doesn't make any sense in English, nor in portuguese. Please, Duolingo, provide some context or eliminate sentence fragments of this type altogether.
Having taught English for 22 years and Spanish for half of that I find this to be as he said a sentence fragment. It doesn't have any meaning.
Is cachorro used in Brasil while cão is perhaps more used in Portugal ?
I guess I am from another planet... I understood she gives her dog away which was also wrong doulingo says *she gives away her dog * and I come here and oh jeez, anyways ... It does help to understand a bit more after reading the whole thread of comments. Thanks! Have a bless day.
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Can cachorro in Portugal also mean a hotdog? I think i saw it being used that way.
Yes. Often quite stylized ones (not really "American" style). Notice the use of lettuce & tomato on a couple of these, and cheese on the others:
In Portugal, cão is dog (cadela for female dog), cachorro/a is puppy, and cachorrinho/a, which in Brazil means puppy, then means, little puppy in Portugal (including Asia & Africa).
When the hot dogs (cachorro quente) are cut (like the top one) the pieces are cachorinhos. :)
I got marked as correct for writing "She gives her dog".
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I think this is Duolingo's weakest section. It simply isn't doing enough to help us get it.
If you didn't think that was correct, why did you write that? hmm
What if someone asked the question "What does she give to the girl?" The answer could be "She gives her dog". Or perhaps she gives your dog! That wouldn't be cool, I know, but it could happen.
Anyway, because so many people complained, some of the contributors changed it to "She gives her dog away OR She gives away her dog ". After that, others complained "Why can't you just say 'she gives her dog' " ?
It's a never-ending process of trying to please everyone, taking into account people from different countries, different regions and different cultures. Exhausting, in the end
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I don’t think of these questions and answers as anyone needing to be pleased. Duo is here for those wanting to learn.
The example which you gave for “She gives her dog,” is stilted, something more likely found in a young child’s primer, rather than in communication between two adults.
Of course, there is the issue of different nationalities, cultures, age of learner, schooling/knowledge background of the Duo learner which factors in, but it should not be that difficult to accommodate the differences...or simply state that Duo mainly deals with English from... USA, UK, AU, NZ. etc.
From my understanding, it’s all done by a ‘crew’ of (a handful?) of people volunteering their time. That means it’s something done by free will, and that, hopefully, each person donates whatever they are able, whenever they are able, so that it should not be an exhausting process—for anyone.
This is supposed to be a forum of sorts, where those so inclined impart information; I just don’t see how that is trying to please people with different viewpoints. Whatever the current accepted (and taught) form is—be it in English, Portuguese (or whatever language), then that should be the consensus...not an ever-ending questioning-of-the-basics.
