Once I was in a class and raised my hand saying "I have a doubt". The teacher laughed and replied "now you'll talk about God!". I learned I should have said "I have a question". It was British context. Is it the same for American English?
Yes: "I have a question".
Learning Italian every day!
Thanks! This one is very tricky for Portuguese speakers, my students say it a lot and are normally not convinced when I tell them not to use "doubt" in this situation, because it would be a natural translation from our mother tongue.leosmith wrote:Yes: "I have a question".
Valeria.Fontes wrote:my students say it a lot and are normally not convinced when I tell them not to use "doubt" in this situation, because it would be a natural translation from our mother tongue.
That's interesting. In Korean, although you can say "I have a question" it's more common to say "I'm curious (about something)".
Learning Italian every day!
They do? In English that sounds like making a statement than asking a question although I'm sure they already understood that's the intent of saying they are curious about something. Good to know if ever I study in Korea. :)
"Не волнуйтесь"
I can't believe I have been using "doubt" all this time! 
It must be a really common problem for native Spanish speakers because we are used to saying "I have a doubt" in Spanish when we raise our hand in class. Good to know!
Language shapes our view of the world.
Actually I've raised this doubt - oops, question - in "other than English" forum, because I was suspicious Spanish speakers have the same translation issue.ZairaI.Uranga wrote:I can't believe I have been using "doubt" all this time! :laughing: It must be a really common problem for native Spanish speakers because we are used to saying "I have a doubt" in Spanish when we raise our hand in class. Good to know!
In America, when you use the word, "Doubt," for example,
A: "I think Earth is the shape of square."
B: "I doubt it."
And plus, I think they don't use a sentence like "I have a doubt." Most likely it is supposed to be "I have a question." :)
I don't doubt it at all! The Earth is definitely round, haha!JaeHong.S wrote:In America, when you use the word, "Doubt," for example,
A: "I think Earth is the shape of square."
B: "I doubt it."
And plus, I think they don't use a sentence like "I have a doubt." Most likely it is supposed to be "I have a question." :)
