> Could someone please give me some hints on the meaning of *out of > question* used in the following sentence:
> ----------- > this I cannot tell you, I need to read carefully the paper and this is > now out of question, sorry > ----------------
> Regards.
The passage is unclear. At first glance, 'this is now out of the question' seems to refer to 'carefully read the paper' or 'read the paper carefully' (not 'read carefully the paper'). In that case, it means that for some reason, which isn't given, it is now impossible for the speaker to read the paper carefully.
But it is also impossible for the speaker to tell the listener something ('this I cannot tell you'), so it is possible that it is this telling which is now 'out of the question'; impossible. I think this meaning is less likely because the position of 'out of the question' makes it more likely that it is referring to reading the paper.
>Could someone please give me some hints on the meaning of *out of >question* used in the following sentence:
>----------- >this I cannot tell you, I need to read carefully the paper and this is >now out of question, sorry >----------------
This must be a translation - and a bad one - and not a sentence originally written by a native speaker of English.
The original must have been: I need to carefully read the paper and this is now out of question, sorry.
"Out of the question" means "it is not possible".
For some reason, the speaker is now unable to carefully read the paper.
In other context, "out of the question" can mean "I will not do it". Replying to a request to apologize for something, a person might say "That is out of the question". In this case, it is possible but the person will not do it.
On Mon, 27 Jun 2011 23:42:49 +0000 (UTC), Hongyi Zhao wrote: > Could someone please give me some hints on the meaning of *out of > question* used in the following sentence:
> ----------- > this I cannot tell you, I need to read carefully the paper and this is > now out of question, sorry > ----------------
It's "out of THE question", not "out of question". When you say something is out of the question, you mean there is no chance you will do it. Your correspondent is saying that he or she absolutely will not read the paper at this time.
-- "The difference between the /almost right/ word and the /right/ word is ... the difference between the lightning-bug and the lightning." --Mark Twain Stan Brown, Tompkins County, NY, USA http://OakRoadSystems.com
>> Could someone please give me some hints on the meaning of *out of >> question* used in the following sentence:
>> ----------- >> this I cannot tell you, I need to read carefully the paper and >> this is now out of question, sorry >> ----------------
> It's "out of THE question", not "out of question". When you say > something is out of the question, you mean there is no chance you > will do it. Your correspondent is saying that he or she absolutely > will not read the paper at this time.
Yes. It can't be considered.
The correspondent appears not to be a native English-speaker. Not only is "the" required before "question", but the use of an adverb between the verb-form "read" and its direct object is unidiomatic in English (although common in French).
I think the adverb "now" may be another item in evidence: as the writer uses it, it implies that something has changed to make reading the paper impossible, but I suspect he simply means that it is impossible "right now".
>>> Could someone please give me some hints on the meaning of *out of >>> question* used in the following sentence:
>>> ----------- >>> this I cannot tell you, I need to read carefully the paper and >>> this is now out of question, sorry >>> ----------------
>> It's "out of THE question", not "out of question". When you say >> something is out of the question, you mean there is no chance you >> will do it. Your correspondent is saying that he or she absolutely >> will not read the paper at this time.
>Yes. It can't be considered.
>The correspondent appears not to be a native English-speaker. Not >only is "the" required before "question", but the use of an adverb >between the verb-form "read" and its direct object is unidiomatic in >English (although common in French).
>I think the adverb "now" may be another item in evidence: as the >writer uses it, it implies that something has changed to make reading >the paper impossible, but I suspect he simply means that it is >impossible "right now".
Yes. And it may be helpful to explain that in this phrase, "question" doesn't have its most common meaning, but (as CDB shows above in "It can't be considered") in a few special uses it means the "subject for discussion". In a committee meeting, for example, it may after discussion be decided to "put the question": that is, to ask the members to vote on the matter.
