An English question
By youless
@youless (112481)
Guangzhou, China
April 14, 2017 7:49am CST
This comes from my son's homework and I don't know which is the correct answer.
The question is: There is a bridge ___ the river.
A.above B.through C.acorss D.over
Basically I think C and D are both OK. As I remember a song call Bridge over Trouble Water
Is there a better answer? Since this is not a multiple choice. Thank you!
24 people like this
31 responses
@louievill (28851)
• Philippines
14 Apr 17
My answer would be " over" cause if you say across i think it would mean the bridge is on the other side of the river, " above" means the bridge is flying above the river, through would mean the bridge is penetrating the water now you have to pay me for my opinion
7 people like this
@youless (112481)
• Guangzhou, China
14 Apr 17
@louievill Now I am curious about the correct answer from the teacher
3 people like this
@louievill (28851)
• Philippines
14 Apr 17
@youless , oh yes another thing why " above " is a poor choice because if it's not flying over the river it must be floating. If your son explains to the teacher the reason for the choice, the teacher would admire him
4 people like this
@owlwings (43910)
• Cambridge, England
14 Apr 17
Both 'across' and 'over' may be correct. Actually, only 'through' is definitely incorrect. 'Across' would be preferred if you were describing a route from A to B which crossed the river; 'over' would usually be preferred if you were describing the river itself and the scenery around it and were not concerned with a journey by road so much. However, 'across' may also be used to mean 'on the other side of' (as in 'across the street'), so I think that 'over' is the required answer here.
There are possible occasions when one might say 'There is a bridge above the river' but I think that that usage would be too advanced for an elementary student's homework! It would be used if you were using other prepositions in relation to the river in the same passage and would usually imply that the bridge was quite high above the river (if, for example, the bridge spanned a gorge and the river was not the main thing that the bridge crossed).
The only crossing point through a river would be a ford!
4 people like this
@GardenGerty (160642)
• United States
14 Apr 17
@youless They never want to make things easy. I was feeling that "over" should be the correct answer.
1 person likes this
@JESSY3236 (19912)
• United States
14 Apr 17
I would say across the river sounds better.
4 people like this
@Happy2BeMe (99380)
• Canada
14 Apr 17
I would think the teacher like looking for D but A, C and D are correct but then again C is what I would choose. Hmmmm that is good one.
6 people like this
@Happy2BeMe (99380)
• Canada
14 Apr 17
@youless good luck. Be sure to let us know what the correct answer is.
1 person likes this
@shantalclay (623)
• Baguio, Philippines
14 Apr 17
I think it's over the river.. or could it be above? Not sure
2 people like this
@shantalclay (623)
• Baguio, Philippines
14 Apr 17
@youless Oh, I see. English is sometimes confusing for us non-native speakers of English.
3 people like this
@TheInvisibleMan (17597)
•
14 Apr 17
By the grammatical question, I would say that the correct one is the letter "C".
2 people like this
@Mass_Sonu (1021)
• India
14 Apr 17
@youless C is correct answer. I don't think D is grammatically correct, but both are confusingly close options.
3 people like this
@Mass_Sonu (1021)
• India
14 Apr 17
@owlwings I agreed with @JolietJake 's explanation below.
1 person likes this
@celticeagle (166783)
• Boise, Idaho
15 Apr 17
It depends on the action in the sentence. Here is something that might help.
Across, over or through ? - English Grammar Today - a reference to written and spoken English grammar and usage - Cambridge Dictionary
1 person likes this
@celticeagle (166783)
• Boise, Idaho
16 Apr 17
@youless ......I hope it was helpful.
1 person likes this
@allknowing (136133)
• India
15 Apr 17
We cross over the bridge and so you can safely go for 'over'
2 people like this