Could we say "It's a gift/ present to meet you." or is this impossible to use?
Thx.
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You could say it but no native English speaker would. It's not idiomatic. Prefer pleased/delighted/thrilled to meet you.– Ronald SoleJun 30, 2018 at 12:28
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3The idiomatic standard for your construction is It's a pleasure to meet you. More deferentially / sycophantically, It's an honour to meet you.– FumbleFingersJun 30, 2018 at 13:13
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I don't understand the title of this question. Could you explain the title?– stangdonJun 30, 2018 at 17:34
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2 Answers
As mentioned in the comments, your sentence is not idiomatic English. It is more natural to say:
It is a pleasure / delight / thrill to meet you.
or using the verb
I am pleased / delighted / thrilled to meet you.
That being said, it's less common but quite easy to rephrase the sentence to use present or gift:
Meeting you has been such a gift! I was feeling so down, but you've really lifted my spirits.
I agree with Fumble fingers. It functions idiomatically.
Compare:
"You're an absolute rose" (The Great Gatsby)
and
"You're an absolute gem!"
In both cases, they're not meant to be taken in the literal sense. Though pleasure / delight and thrill may be preferred in:
It's a _______ to meet you.
Also you could get away with "It's a gift to meet you" but not possibly, "It's a present to meet you". It just sounds unnatural.
