Timeline for Use of "preoccupied" to refer to a future time
Current License: CC BY-SA 3.0
9 events
| when toggle format | what | by | license | comment | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dec 19, 2017 at 6:28 | history | migrated | from english.stackexchange.com (revisions) | ||
| Dec 19, 2017 at 2:57 | comment | added | Drew | Be aware too that preoccupy in English has some false friends in other languages, where it can mean such things as worry. | |
| Dec 18, 2017 at 13:33 | answer | added | Death by Words | timeline score: 0 | |
| Dec 18, 2017 at 12:23 | vote | accept | Sreeraj Chundayil | ||
| Dec 18, 2017 at 11:50 | comment | added | Phil Sweet | I don't believe you can talk about preoccupation as something that is scheduled to begin at a later time. However, once begun, it can be predicted to continue for virtually any duration contingent on the context. The war in Afghanistan will continue to preoccupy the US for several years. I won't be in Florida for Christmas because I will still be preoccupied with fixing up mom's house so she can sell it. | |
| Dec 18, 2017 at 10:58 | comment | added | Colin Fine | "Pre-occupied" looks as if it might mean "arranged in advance to be busy", but in fact it does not have that meaning at all, but means something quite different. Language is what it is, not what somebody thinks it ought to be. | |
| Dec 18, 2017 at 9:28 | answer | added | Zanna | timeline score: 4 | |
| Dec 18, 2017 at 9:25 | comment | added | oerkelens | The sentence is not wrong. "I read preoccupied is for past" You read it, but it's wrong. I was preoccupied = past, I am preoccupied = present and I will be preoccupied = future. That it's called a "past participle" is just confusing. | |
| Dec 18, 2017 at 9:13 | history | asked | Sreeraj Chundayil | CC BY-SA 3.0 |