What movement does John make according to the sentence? This sentence is taken from a dictionary, which explains the usage of "go".
John went rushing off down the corridor.
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Do you have the name of the dictionary and a link to it? The more details you put in your question, the better it is.– Alan CarmackJun 14, 2016 at 3:32
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The specific movement would likely be a fast walk, not a run. (But it's open to interpretation.)– nnnnnnJun 14, 2016 at 4:20
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longman dictionary, ldoceonline.com/dictionary/go_1, thank you for your help.– codyJun 14, 2016 at 4:47
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1 Answer
Possibly the best way to explain is with some practical examples:
Before I could warn him that the floor was wet, John went rushing off down the corridor and slipped over.
As soon as he heard that there were fresh doughnuts in the canteen, John went rushing off down the corridor to get some.
The phrase 'Hurried away' is generally interchangeable.
EDIT
In this context, down is the direction that John went. It's commonly used in English but ambiguous - you could, just as easily, have used 'up' or 'along'.
To 'rush off' is a phrasal verb meaning to hurry away.
Just to confuse things even further for the unfortunate learner, there is an alternative meaning for the phrasal verb 'rush off' meaning to be busy - I'm rushed off my feet today
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Thank you. why are there two adverb off, down, are they exactly used to describe movement, I am totally confused by them.– codyJun 14, 2016 at 4:58
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@cody down is the direction. It's commonly used in English but ambiguous - you could, just as easily, have used 'up' or 'along'. To 'rush off' is a phrasal verb meaning to hurry away. Just to confuse things even further for the unfortunate learner, there is an alternative meaning for the phrasal verb 'rush off' meaning to be busy - I'm rushed off my feet today.– PerryWJun 14, 2016 at 5:09
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@PerryW - Interesting observation about the phrasal "rush off" - I've never heard that one in US English.– stangdonJun 14, 2016 at 12:23