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Young Jun 4th, 2005 10:44 pm

Question
 
I'd like to use the word "showing" as noun.
Could you give me sentences?
Are this right?
#1.There is a StarWars showing near theather.
#2. If goods got boycott, the company will get closed soon.
And what does itinerant mean exectly?
And what does prolific mean exectly?

sighisoara Jun 5th, 2005 11:31 pm

Be careful of "ing" verbs used as nouns. The sentence you used "There is a Star Wars showing..." is an example of "showing" as a verb. At least it reads to me like a verb. I suppose one might argue it's being used as a noun, but it's a grey area. A better way to use it with your subject would be: Is Star Wars playing at the theatre? Yes, there is a showing there.

But keep in mind, that in American English we use "showing" (noun) to refer to things on display (ie: art, cars, etc.) - rarely, if ever, with movies.

As for your two sentences: Star Wars is playing at a nearby theatre. If people boycotted, then the company might close soon. (keep in mind that when you boycott, you are actually punishing the company by not buying or using their product - the goods is an indirect object of your action of boycotting)

prolific - is an adjective and is generally used to describe a person with a strong vocabulary and knows how to use it. Could also be someone who talks a lot.


I'm not sure of your other word...is it spelled correctly?

little sage Jun 6th, 2005 07:26 am

itinerant can be used as an adjective or a noun. It means traveling from place to place a lot. It is often used to describe work or workers "itinerant labor" or "itinerant workers".

For example, "A lot of the farm work in North America is done by itenerant workers".(The workers travel from one farm to another farm and stay for a short time only).

I think it's less common but correct to use as a noun "He is an itinerant." (He travels around a lot, probably for work).

Another related word you might know is itinerary (noun) which is also related to travel. "You're going to Europe next month? What is your itinerary?" (What is your travel route/ schedule/ plan.)

Paddy Fields Jun 24th, 2005 03:48 pm

I disagree on the word prolific. It is not related to speaking alone. It can mean "Very productive."

A context that I see it in relates to sport... Tiger Woods is a prolific golfer. Pele (footballer) was a PROLIFIC goalscorer.

sighisoara Jun 25th, 2005 09:43 pm

Paddy - You are correct, but this is not a matter of disagreement. What you have shown is that the word "prolific", like most English words, has more than one definition or function. The definition and example I gave is the one most commonly used in the U.S. You're example is accurate, but not as common. Perhaps in GB or Australia it is more commonly used in your context. Either way, it's good that Young now has both. :)

musica Jun 19th, 2006 11:02 pm

Re: Question
 
Prolific also refers to producing a lot of creative work, such as a prolific songwriter writes lots of songs in a short period of time, or a prolific writer produces a great deal of written work.
Pam

musica Jun 19th, 2006 11:20 pm

Re: Question
 
Showing as a noun.
eg "I attended a showing of Picasso's paintings."


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