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A boy was holding a milk carton which has a little milk. He then shook the carton and some milk came out and fell onto the table.
In the dictionary, they say
shake: [+ object] : to force (something) out of something by shaking
He shook (out) the sand from his sandals.
So, I think I can apply this structure into my sentence "he shook (out) milk (from his carton) onto the table" and I omit adverbs in the brackets.
Is it correct to say "he shook milk onto the table"?
He shook the carton and splashed milk onto the table.
From Cambridge:
If a liquid splashes or if you splash a liquid, it falls on or hits something or someone:
- Water was splashing from a hole in the roof.
- Unfortunately some paint splashed onto the rug.
- She splashed her face with cold water.
- She poured a large gin and splashed soda into it from a siphon.
I don't know why no-one suggested "spill", which seems to be the most appropriate choice for the situation.
From cambridge,
spill (v): to (cause to) flow, move, fall, or spread over the edge or outside the limits of something
See "Don’t Cry Over Spilled Milk".
"He then shook the carton and some milk came out and fell onto the table."
We would say "He spilled milk on the table."
It’s acceptable.
But if there’s so little milk in the carton that this can happen, it’s more common to say he dribbled the milk onto the table, or he shook a few drops of milk onto the table.
