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When do you use "boy"? "Want to learn how to reheat frozen homemade food in a pressure cooker or Instant Pot? Boy do I have just the trick for you!" From this example, what does it mean when someone says "boy"? Can I say "girl" too?
21 feb. 2020 03:43
Antwoorden · 3
Lol. Note the use of inversion, “Boy do I…” — this is a special usage of the word “boy” as an exclamation. The meaning is similar to “wow”. No, you cannot use “girl” in this context without changing the meaning. The expression is always “boy”, not matter how many people we’re talking to or their genders. If the meaning of “boy” were literal, there would be no inversion, and you could substitute, “girl”, “sir”, “ma’am”, or whatever fits the situation (followed by a comma and no inversion). That being said, it’s impossible to tell from this one sentence, but the article in question may or may not actually be native English. Have you got the link?
21 februari 2020
In your example, "boy" is an exclamation of wonder. You can say "girl" if the one listening to this is a girl, like if you are having a 1 on 1 conversation with a girl. But generally "boy" is used for a general audience.
21 februari 2020
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