Comment on Would you consider making a sandwich to be "cooking?"
lvxferre@mander.xyz 2 months agoPerhaps I’m overthinking it, but the English verb seems to have different meanings when it’s used transitive and intransitively. For example, let’s say that you ask someone to prepare you a salad, and the person answers:
- “I can’t cook.” (sounds OK?)
- “I can’t cook a salad.” (sounds weird)
untorquer@lemmy.world 2 months ago
I think that’s grammatically true but i tend to think of it more in terms of colloquialisms or slang. I imagine intransitive use of the verb developed out of convenience for lack of a lazy alternative. “I can’t prepare food” would either suggest you require assistance to eat, you can’t legally work at a restaurant, or your aristocratic status is beyond that of a mere peasant who has seen a kitchen before.