One careless match

鸭呼嘿

––How is it one careless match can start a forest fire, but it takes a whole box to start a campfire?––

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; E' U. B, g* N- ILogically, a person can be careless, but a match can not be. ( And in my first language Chinese the equivalent or parallel expression is not allowed. You have to speak at least like this: a carelessly thrown match can start ...). But this is a common and economical way in English communication.


I was wondering when one can use an adjective which is essentially related to mankind to qualify an inanimate concrete noun?
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I have once written “an easy understanding” and similar phrases, but "understanding" is an abstract noun and obviously a human action.

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鸭呼嘿

这是一种英语修辞格，叫Hypallage，也叫transfered epithet。是一种常见的书面语和口语都常用的修辞格。但是常见的将修辞格的书限于篇幅都讲不到它。我在英语学习资源区分享了一个资料: 英语修辞格大全，里面讲到了很多我们平时可以见到却不了解的修辞格。

englishpatient

汉语里这种”不合语法“但意思明了的意会表达，比英语不知多到哪里去了，多到我随便举个例子都会显得挂一漏亿。

mxh3698

this subforum is really a lonely one.
one has to think aloud, talk to oneself, which is what you and I are doing right now