No one has ever cut an apple off a tree?Of course, that never happens.
I doubt it. We pick apples.No one has ever cut an apple off a tree?
My intention was that Jack raised his hand like a student would in class, to show he's willing to do it and ask for permission. I guess a barbarian-like swing would be better described by "He raised the knife..."That's a good passage. The only thing that I can't grasp is why Jack raised his hand? Did he swing the knife like a battle axe to cut the apple in half or he raised the hand to ask for the knife to cut the apple? Maybe I'm reading it wrong.
Wait, can I use cut off only when a knife is involved? Can't you cut off fruit from trees with your bare hands?Not that I know of. Why would they? It isn't necessary to use a knife to pick apples. (You might use a knife to cut the apple itself, of course.)
Well, instead of a knife, you could also use scissors, shears, a machete, or a katana, but for the most part, no, you can't use your bare hands to cut something off. Maybe if you had hands like this you could, though.Wait, can I use cut off only when a knife is involved? Can't you cut off fruit from trees with your bare hands?
Then how do I word it? Picked the apple off/from the tree? Detached the apple from/off the tree?
What's the difference between off and from in such a sentence?He picked the apple. You can add from the tree if you think the person you are talking to does't know where apples come from.
Not that simple, though. Off is one of my favorite examples of contronyms.Simple opposites. A light switch is either on or off.
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