In Columns 003 and 004, I discussed some Recent Trends in English. I gave examples of traditionally incorrect English grammar and usage becoming very common, and perhaps part of modern standard English.

In this Column, I will give another example of a Recent Trend.

After Hurricane Katrina hit New Orleans the police chief of that city spoke about why so many of the police officers in that city seemed to be absent when they were so badly needed. He said:

"Some of the police officers could be casualties. A small amount of them could have quit."

The use of "amount" with countable nouns is becoming very common in English. The traditional rule is: If the noun is countable, use "number"; if the noun is uncountable, use "amount".

For example:

I have a large number of apples, and a large amount of sugar.

Since "police officers" is a plural countable noun, we would normally expect, "A small number of them could have quit."

A similar trend is to use "less" instead of "fewer". However, correctly speaking,"less" is used with uncountable nouns, and "fewer" with countable nouns:

I have fewer apples than you, and less sugar.

But it is not very difficult to find examples like this, in which "less" is used when the correct word is "fewer":

I have less apples than you.

Interestingly enough, "more" is used with both countable and uncountable nouns:

I have more apples than you, and more sugar.

"Present", as a verb, seems to be a word which causes learners some difficulty. First, it is easy to get the verb and the noun ("a present") confused. (Also, notice that the stress is different: preSENT (verb); PREsent (noun).)

Another difficulty is the pattern of the verb "present". The verb "present" shares only this pattern with "give":

I gave a gold watch to him.
I presented a gold watch to him.

But it does not share this pattern with "give":

I gave him a gold watch.
I presented him a gold watch.（×）

In fact, the most common pattern with the verb "present" is that given in the title of this Column:

I presented him with a gold watch.

This is pattern which "present" shares with a number of "present-verbs". Here are some example sentences with this group of verbs:

I will furnish you with everything you need.（供給する）
The expedition was supplied with everything it needed. （支給する）
For the exam, the school will provide the students with pencils and paper. （供給する）
The new students were issued with uniforms. （支給・配布する）注：受身のみ
The billionaire endowed our school with a lot of money. （寄付をする）
The rebels armed themselves with sticks and knives. （武装する）
The boss of our company rewarded me with a good position.（報酬を与える）
We fed the stove with wood.（補給・供給する）
We plied our guests with food and drink. （（無理に）物を押しつける）
That kid is always plaguing me with questions. （質問などで）しつこく悩ませる）
The members of our section saddled me with an unpleasant job. （やっかいなことを押しつける）
I was landed with the worst job. （やっかいなことを押しつけられる）
She is loaded down with a ton of work. （（仕事などで）うんと詰め込まれる）
My father charged me with an important job. （負わせる）
The police charged him with murder. (告発する）
The police served him with a summons. （呼び出し状を送付する）

In this Column, I have discussed the pattern of "present-verbs". In the next Column, I will discuss a pattern we use in the opposite situation: when we take something from someone.

"Rob" and "steal" mean basically the same thing. However, the patterns are very different, as can be seen:

I stole the pen. （ペンを盗んだ）
I stole the pen from him.　（彼からペンを盗んだ）

I robbed him. （彼から奪った）
I robbed him of the pen.　（彼からペンを奪った）

"I stole the pen from him" is rather easy. This is a very common pattern in English (eg, I took the pen from him / I moved the book from the desk, etc.). However, the verb "rob" is a member of a class of verbs which have a far less common pattern.

These are the "deprive-verbs", and are all concerned with depriving someone of something.

A list of these follows:

You cannot deprive anyone of life. （奪う）
I am afraid to say that I will have to relieve you of your responsibilities.（解放する）
The dictator was stripped of all power.（剥奪する）
The main shareholder divested herself of her shares. （手放す）
She divested herself of her coat.（脱がせる）
We want to rid this house of all cockroaches and nasty insects.（退治する）

If you look back to Column No.62, you will see that there are fewer "deprive-verbs" than "present-verbs". Nevertheless, if you learn these two groups of verbs, you will have mastered two difficult grammar points, and expanded your vocabulary.

Many learners of English seem to have great difficulty with describing position in English. Let us imagine we are looking at a photograph with several people in it.

We could say:

John is in the centre/middle of the photo.
（ジョンは写真の真ん中に写っている）
Mary is on the right of the photo.
（メアリーは写真の右に写っている）

This use of "in" and "on" is closely related to basic meanings of these two words. "In" suggests "inside something", or "surrounded by something", as in:

Mary is in the bath.（メアリーは風呂に入っている）
John is in his room.（ジョンは自分の部屋にいる）

It is therefore natural to say "in the centre/middle of the picture".

"On the right of the picture" is connected to the "side/edge" use of "on" (...に近接して). For example:

I sat on the side/edge of the pool.
（私はプールのへりに座っている）
My house is on the corner.
（私の家は角にある）
The hotel is on the coast/on the river.
（そのホテルは海岸にある/川のほとりにある）
This door opens on the garden.
（このドアは庭に面して開く）

Therefore one difference between "in" and "on" is the difference between "inside/surrounded" vs. "side/edge". Because of this, the following sentences mean different things:

My dog is in the corner.（私の犬は隅にいる）
My dog is on the corner.（私の犬は角にいる）

The first would suggest that my dog is sitting in an inside corner, such as in a room. The second would suggest my dog is sitting on an outside corner, such as at a crossroads.

In the next Column, I will discuss whether Etorofu and Kunashiri are in Japan or not.