It's 'Kind of Just' Hedging
2024-07-12
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1This week on Everyday Grammar, we answer a question from Kyosuke, a loyal reader in Japan, who asks:
2I have a question about the article "When Colleges Close, Some Students Never Go Back."
3It reads, "It kind of just saps your motivation to do anything."
4I was not able to understand the structure and meaning of this sentence.
5What is the subject and what is the verb?
6Especially, I didn't realize (the meaning of) "it kind of just."
7The story Kyosuke read told about how the University of the Arts in Philadelphia closed suddenly.
8That affected a lot of students.
9One first-year student there was unsure of his next steps.
10He said he did not know where to start looking for another place to study.
11Let us look at the structure of the statement first.
12It kind of just saps your motivation to do anything.
13The subject is "It" -- a pronoun that refers to the school closing.
14The verb is "sap" which means to use up the supply of something.
15We often use it to talk about reducing energy or strength.
16Here is an example:
17Waiting in the long line at the store sapped my energy.
18In the student's statement, the verb "sap" has a direct object - motivation.
19He is saying that he has less desire now to apply to other schools.
20The next part of the statement is "kind of."
21This phrase is in the group of words we call "qualifiers."
22A qualifier is a word, usually an adjective or adverb, that changes the meaning of another word or phrase.
23Some qualifiers strengthen the force of a statement, like "very" and "too."
24Others weaken the force, like "somewhat" and "seem."
25In his statement, the student uses "kind of just" before the verb "sap" to show he is not firmly saying that the event has had this effect.
26We can say he is hedging. A "hedge" in language is often a way to express uncertainty or reduce the force of a statement.
27For example, if you do not want to stay at a party you might tell a friend:
28I'm kind of tired, can we leave the party a little early?
29You are not saying you are very tired and need to leave immediately; you simply want to introduce the idea of leaving early.
30Using "kind of" is one way that speakers preserve their relationships with others.
31For example, a friend asks you if you like the band playing at an event. You might answer:
32Their music is okay, but it's kind of loud for me.
33You might think the music is much too loud, or even bad, but if your friend likes it, you do not want to hurt their feelings.
34So, you can hedge, or protect their feelings, by using "kind of."
35Another part of the statement our reader asked about is the word "just."
36It is also a qualifier. "Just" can change the meaning of the words that follow.
37In such a case, it can mean "nothing more than" or "only."
38For example, if you are at an event with a friend, they might ask:
39Why do you keep checking the time? Aren't you enjoying the show?
40You might answer,
41I just don't want to miss the last bus. It's getting late.
42I hope this helps you understand the expression better, Kyosuke.
43Do you have a question about English Grammar?
44Write to us at learningenglish@voanews.com.
45And that's Everyday Grammar!
46I'm Jill Robbins.
1This week on Everyday Grammar, we answer a question from Kyosuke, a loyal reader in Japan, who asks: 2I have a question about the article "When Colleges Close, Some Students Never Go Back." It reads, "It kind of just saps your motivation to do anything." I was not able to understand the structure and meaning of this sentence. What is the subject and what is the verb? Especially, I didn't realize (the meaning of) "it kind of just." 3The story Kyosuke read told about how the University of the Arts in Philadelphia closed suddenly. That affected a lot of students. One first-year student there was unsure of his next steps. He said he did not know where to start looking for another place to study. Let us look at the structure of the statement first. 4It kind of just saps your motivation to do anything. 5The subject is "It" -- a pronoun that refers to the school closing. The verb is "sap" which means to use up the supply of something. We often use it to talk about reducing energy or strength. Here is an example: 6Waiting in the long line at the store sapped my energy. 7In the student's statement, the verb "sap" has a direct object - motivation. He is saying that he has less desire now to apply to other schools. 8Qualifiers 9The next part of the statement is "kind of." This phrase is in the group of words we call "qualifiers." A qualifier is a word, usually an adjective or adverb, that changes the meaning of another word or phrase. Some qualifiers strengthen the force of a statement, like "very" and "too." Others weaken the force, like "somewhat" and "seem." 10In his statement, the student uses "kind of just" before the verb "sap" to show he is not firmly saying that the event has had this effect. We can say he is hedging. A "hedge" in language is often a way to express uncertainty or reduce the force of a statement. 11Kind of 12For example, if you do not want to stay at a party you might tell a friend: 13I'm kind of tired, can we leave the party a little early? 14You are not saying you are very tired and need to leave immediately; you simply want to introduce the idea of leaving early. Using "kind of" is one way that speakers preserve their relationships with others. For example, a friend asks you if you like the band playing at an event. You might answer: 15Their music is okay, but it's kind of loud for me. 16You might think the music is much too loud, or even bad, but if your friend likes it, you do not want to hurt their feelings. So, you can hedge, or protect their feelings, by using "kind of." 17Just 18Another part of the statement our reader asked about is the word "just." It is also a qualifier. "Just" can change the meaning of the words that follow. In such a case, it can mean "nothing more than" or "only." For example, if you are at an event with a friend, they might ask: 19Why do you keep checking the time? Aren't you enjoying the show? 20You might answer, 21I just don't want to miss the last bus. It's getting late. 22I hope this helps you understand the expression better, Kyosuke. Do you have a question about English Grammar? Write to us at learningenglish@voanews.com. 23And that's Everyday Grammar! 24I'm Jill Robbins. 25Jill Robbins wrote this lesson for VOA Learning English. 26_______________________________________________ 27Words in This Story 28kind of - adv. to a moderate degree; somewhat, more or less 29motivation - n. a force or influence that causes someone to do something 30qualifier - n. (grammar) a word (such as an adjective or adverb) or phrase that describes another word or group of words 31hedge - v. to avoid giving a promise or direct answer 32Do you have a question about English grammar? We want to hear from you. Write to us in the Comments Section.