What does there signify in expressions like "Dude are you out there?" or "I am there for you"? It is not referring to any previously mentioned location, right?
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closed as not a real question by MετάEd, tchrist, Robusto, Mitch, Daniel δ Dec 10 '12 at 20:59
It's difficult to tell what is being asked here. This question is ambiguous, vague, incomplete, overly broad, or rhetorical and cannot be reasonably answered in its current form. For help clarifying this question so that it can be reopened, see the FAQ.
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If I heard or read
I'd assume it was asking someone whether he was outside, so it doesn't necessarily relate to a previously mentioned location, but it does refer to a general location (e.g., outside my house). If someone says or writes
I would understand it to mean that the speaker/writer is saying that he or she is always willing to help me if I need help. I say this to my son to let him know that I love him and will always be ready to listen to him if he needs to talk about his problems, to support him if he has financial problems, to do whatever I can do to help him if he ever gets in trouble. The meaning has nothing to do with a location, but is similar to what military people and police mean when they say "I've got your back": "I'll make sure nobody shoots you in the back". |
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Let me differ with Bill Frank. I think "there" works as an adverb of place, an indexical, which points—yes—to a place. But the place at hand can be physical or non-physical, i.e., metaphorical. When I say: I mean that wherever you need me (in whatsoever place or whatsoever situation) I will be there. |
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