I found the sentence "He forgot the judge in the father." in my English textbook, and it says that the meaning is "He forgot his duty as a judge in the name of fatherhood." Do native speakers find this sentence natural and clearly meaningful?
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It depends who “he” is. If “he” is the father then it’s fine. When I first read it I thought that “he” was a son and he forgot that his father would judge him.
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No, “He forgot the judge in the father.” does not sound natural or immediately clear to most native speakers. The intended meaning—“He forgot his duty as a judge in the name of fatherhood.”—is quite abstract, and the phrasing is unusual.
Why does it sound unnatural?
1. Uncommon Structure – The phrase “the judge in the father” is not a standard English expression. Native speakers might struggle to understand what it means without additional context.
2. Ambiguity – It could be misinterpreted as “He forgot about a judge who was inside a father.”
3. Lack of Context – English tends to explicitly state relationships to avoid confusion, especially in abstract concepts like this.
How to Make It More Natural?
A more natural way to express this idea could be:
✔ “He forgot his role as a judge because he was thinking as a father.”
✔ “He let his fatherly instincts override his duty as a judge.”
✔ “He put fatherhood above his responsibilities as a judge.”
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Maybe in a certain context it would make sense, but when I first hear it, it doesn't make sense.
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