In my earlier discussion of today, I had suggested the following as a good example sentence: "Although richer countries do possess a moral obligation to share their wealth with poorer ones, I consider that this should not TAKE THE FORM OF a legal requirement."
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In my sentence, the verb phrase “should not be” would have been acceptable but is not interesting. I used “TAKE THE FORM OF” because, if a moral obligation is going to be useful in any way, then it must be more than an idea in someone’s head. It must become something more practical and more active. A “law” or a “legal requirement” is one way in which a moral obligation becomes real. You can see laws written down. A “law” or a “legal requirement” can impose an obligation on people. However, a moral obligation can also TAKE OTHER FORMS such as a published guideline.<o:p></o:p>
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“X [TO TAKE] THE FORM OF Y”
In summary, you can use this when you are describing how an idea becomes
real, how it is made real in a particular way – in other words, the way that it
is put into practice. Here is another real example from the net:
“These payments may take the form of shell money, food, pigs, cash, or
other goods.”
Feel free to write here your own practice sentences that include this expression and ask for feedback on the quality of your sentence. Try to write enough so that the meaning is obvious without knowing any further context. Good luck!<o:p></o:p>
Adib - excellent e.g.s, as ever. I recommend changing 2 "if unpaid work took the form of STUDYING a mandatory subject". In 3, the word "required" is not meaningful.
Maria, Good efforts. I found it hard to understand the meaning of your terms. You used correct grammar in 2, 3, and 5. 1 and 4 did not make sense.
2 was the best. My only problem is that "tutoring" and "teaching" and overlapping concepts and so the difference is not clear in your sentences.
If you write the other sentences more simply, hopefully I will be able to understand what you mean and see where you went wrong.
Maria, 3A is better now (with "the" not "a").
I am sorry but 1.A is still not right or clear.
In 4A, I think you mean that currency conversion rates "are forms of" exchange rates. This is a different idea to "take the form of".
I recommend that you study more example sentences before you try again. Compare the natures of A and B in "A takes the form of B". Good luck.
Thank you, Michael, for sharing another interesting topic.
Here are my example sentences:
1. Employers can boost the level of job satisfaction among their workforce by offering benefits which could take the form of financial aid, life insurance, and retirement benefits. These incentives have proven to be effective in keeping employees motivated in the long term.
2. Tackling the household waste problem can take the form of introducing required laws, raising public awareness and investing in modern recycling technologies.
3. While there is no doubt that teenagers would benefit from doing community service, I suspect parents would accept it if unpaid work took the form of a mandatory subject in the school curriculum.
