err, whut? if they speak in unaccented English with correct grammar, you just know they ain't originally from USA :biggrin:
b0mbrman said:
I can explain more, but we're trying to catch these idiosyncrasies in precisely the sort of people who speak unaccented English with correct grammar.
If anything, my dad has some trouble with understanding figures of speech, even if it's not really one.
For instance, the other day was his birthday, and I surprised him by going to visit him (8 hour round trip drive). The first thing I said was, "What, you think I wouldn't come back to celebrate your 50th?" and he got all offended. He thought that that was incredibly unfriendly, even though we all know there's nothing offensive about it.
I can't use an idiom on him, he doesn't get it. If he needs to use one, he'll just say "There's a saying in Chinese that goes xxxx" and explain it to me. He also doesn't know complicated words very well, so if there's a way to explain it to him using simple vocabulary/layman's terms I'll do it.
His job requires him to teleconference, so I guess that's what helped him brush up on his skills quickly. If there's something specific you're looking for just let me know and I'll think a bit.