Cerca tra vari insegnanti di Inglese...
Robin
by accident and by chance
I ran into him by accident.
I ran into him by chance.
are they both natural?
Thank you!
1 dic 2014 12:13
Risposte · 10
6
It depends on your meaning. 'By accident' and 'by chance' don't have exactly the same meaning.
If 'I ran into him' means 'I met him in the street', for example, you would be more likely to say 'by chance' in this situation. This means 'I happened to run into him' ie you hadn't arranged to meet, and you didn't expect to see him.
'By accident' is mainly used when you have done something wrong, but not deliberately. It is the opposite of on 'purpose'. So, if 'I ran into him' means, for example, that I physically banged into him during a football match, then you could say 'by accident'. This would mean that you didn't deliberately bump into him, or that you didn't do this 'on purpose'.
1 dicembre 2014
1
Yes, they are both fine.
1 dicembre 2014
Non hai ancora trovato le tue risposte?
Scrivi le tue domande e lascia che i madrelingua ti aiutino!
Robin
Competenze linguistiche
Cinese (mandarino), Inglese
Lingua di apprendimento
Inglese
Altri articoli che potrebbero piacerti

Same Word, Different Meaning: American, British, and South African English
11 consensi · 8 Commenti

How to Sound Confident in English (Even When You’re Nervous)
13 consensi · 11 Commenti

Marketing Vocabulary and Phrases for Business English Learners
10 consensi · 4 Commenti
Altri articoli