Let's say I'm in a bar and overhear two guys talking about being on the road and stuff. Could I (as another way of asking them if they are truckers) ask them...
Are you driving truck?
Would that be natural too?
asked Sep 22, 2022 at 16:56
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2You would want to use a generic present tense, and add an article (truck is a count noun): Do you drive a truck? Using the progressive are driving refers to the present time; if they are truckers in a bar they're not driving at that time.– John LawlerCommented Sep 22, 2022 at 17:57
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1@JohnLawler That should probably be an answer.– stangdonCommented Sep 22, 2022 at 17:59
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1 Answer
It's common jargon in the trucking world to say "drive truck" to mean "drive trucks for a living".
In your situation where you're in a bar, you're asking about someone's profession, not their current activity, so present simple is the correct tense:
Do you drive truck?"
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1I'm sure you are right, so +1, but it is quintessentially American - as in she teaches school. In Britain we would almost certainly use an article I'm driving a truck (meaning - as a job, not necessarily at that moment). But we do get close to that idiom with e.g. he is playing football, he plays centre-half for Everton, he is playing cello in the local symphony orchestra.– WS2Commented Nov 8, 2022 at 7:10
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@WS2 I wasn't sure when I first read the question, but "drive truck" fit with something in the parts of my mind that are accessed once every ten years or so. I had to research it to be sure.– gotube ♦Commented Nov 8, 2022 at 7:18