Don’t put it there. Put it where it goes.
Why do we say this? When we put it there, it’s not going. It’s staying.
Going is the opposite of staying, isn’t it?
Why don’t we say Put it where it stays?
Makes my Belarusian NewThing.net friends crazy.
Go, Spot, go — er, uh, stay
Published
I would hate to have to learn English, for examples like this one. Isn’t it just a different meaning of goes? Akin to: this shirt goes with these pants. The shirt isn’t going anywhere either–it’s likely to stay if it goes.
LikeLiked by 1 person
English is a complicated language! I hadn’t thought about “the shirt goes with the pants” — another example of one word having multiple meanings, like David’s “belong.”
LikeLike
Apparently we think that inanimate objects can move. The object is going places. We just don’t know where it stays.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Whoa!
Merriam-Webster includes “to have a usual or proper place or position: BELONG.”
The Compact Oxford English Dictionary includes “fit into or be regularly kept in a particular place.”
LikeLiked by 1 person
There ya go, then. That’s why we say it! But because non-English-speakers don’t learn this definition of “go” (and neither did I, formally), “Put it where it goes” is a puzzle. Thanks for the lesson, David! Good to hear from you!
LikeLike
It’s better to hear from you. Your pieces often make my day!
LikeLiked by 1 person