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Proper usage of the verbs "sit" and "set"


Grantmom
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Hello!

 

I am reading through Writing with Ease, to try and see where I need to start with DS. In Year One, Week 25, she suggests addressing proper usage of the verbs "sit" and "set". However, she doesn't give any examples of this, or any more clarification. Can someone tell me what that means? Just like differentiating between the meaning of the two words because they sound similar? Like:

 

We sit at the table to eat dinner.

 

We set the table for dinner.

 

I just want to be sure I'm not missing something here. I sometimes hear people say the word "set" in weird grammar ways. Like, "We just set around all day." Like they are aiming for the past tense of sit? I have no idea. That seems to be a common mistake. So, is that what she is talking about? Thanks for any help!

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Yes, people misuse those words sometimes. Set takes a direct object, and sit does not. That's how it is explained in R&S English. Of course, a first grader may not know what a direct object is, but you could say that you always set "something". You don't sit "something".

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Oh! Okay, that makes sense. Thank you! I never thought of it that way. That seems like a much more advanced concept thrown in there among things like "capitalize a proper noun".

 

So by direct object, does the object have to come immediately after the verb? For example, would you say:

 

The glass is sitting on the table.

 

Set the glass on the table.

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So by direct object, does the object have to come immediately after the verb?

 

A direct object does not have to come directly after the verb, but it usually does.

 

The glass is sitting on the table.

 

In this sentence, the glass is doing the sitting. The word "glass" is the subject of the verb "is sitting". There is no direct object.

 

Set the glass on the table.

 

In this sentence, somebody (the person you are talking to) is going to be doing the setting. The subject of the sentence is called an "understood you", i.e., it is understood to be "you" even though the word "you" does not appear in the sentence. Now, what are you going to set? You are going to set the glass. In this case, the glass receives the action of setting, so it is the direct object.

 

This is a usage issue that is regional or perhaps cultural. The common error is in using "set" when "sit" should be used, i.e. "I'm just going to set here on the porch a bit." I don't think it happens the other way, at least not in my linguistic environment! If my young child did not struggle with it, I probably would not mention it. If my child did, I would use the clear language boscopup suggested -- "You always set *something*."

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Oh! Okay, that makes sense. Thank you! I never thought of it that way. That seems like a much more advanced concept thrown in there among things like "capitalize a proper noun".

 

I doubt SWB means for you to teach your children about direct objects in first grade. ;) I think when we did that lesson, I just explained it briefly and didn't dwell on it. You'll see it again in your grammar program.

 

So by direct object, does the object have to come immediately after the verb? For example, would you say:

 

The glass is sitting on the table.

 

Set the glass on the table.

 

The direct object is the noun (or pronoun) receiving the action of the verb. So in your first sentence, "glass" is the subject, "is sitting" is the verb, and "on the table" is a prepositional phrase. The glass sits here - no direct object. But if you are telling someone to place a glass on the table, then you would use the word "set". In your second sentence, the subject is "(you)", verb is "set", and "glass" is the direct object (it is receiving the action of "set").

 

I wouldn't teach it as coming immediately after the verb necessarily, because you could say, "Set the clear, blue, brilliantly handmade glass on the table." In that sentence, it's about 6 words out. ;)

 

But again, for the child... If something is staying in one spot, it "sits", and if something is being placed somewhere, you "set" the item. You can go into more detail about the direct object stuff later, once you've studied direct objects.

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