When you're taking a ride on a bicycle, are you riding it, too?

Question

It's probably a basic question but I got a little obsessive about it. When you 'take a ride', can you be the driver, too?

1. Do these two sentences:

I took a ride in my car/in a car.

make you think of two different situations? e.i. 'in my car' makes you think I'm driving it and 'in a car' makes you think someone else is the driver? Or in both you think of me sitting in the back seat?

2. Is the same true about bicycle? 'I take a ride on my bike' means 'I ride my bike?'

3. How about a 'bus' or any public transport? Is a bus driver while driving the bus taking a ride, too?

Answer 1

Yes, you can be the driver. Since it's your car, it's likely you will be the driver, unless you have a chauffeur.

1. Yes, to some extent they do. If you take a ride in a car, it generally means that you took a ride in someone else's car. If you speak of your car you're typically the one who is driving. It is possible, of course, that someone else drove you home in your car, perhaps because you spent too much time drinking at a bar. In families, where children and spouses take rides in their car, one generally will say the car, unless there are two cars (one Mom drives and one Dad drives) and you want to specifically draw a distinction between the two. For example, a mother might say "You ride in my car and Joey will ride in Dad's car."

2. "I take a ride on my bike" has a pretty similar meaning to "I ride my bike." The distinction is that taking a ride means riding the bike once, whereas riding a bike is more general. Look at these:

   I like to ride my bike.
   I like to take rides on my bike.

These two have a similar meaning, and you'll notice that "take rides" is plural.

3. No, generally someone who is driving in a professional capacity will be said to be "driving" the bus. The passengers will "ride" or "ride on" (note that it isn't "ride in") the bus.