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I've read one article about the murder of one guy and stumbled across one sentence, which I can't understand fully.

It's within the Chinese culture. You end up having somebody that’s a problem, that doesn’t give you what you want, they’re eliminated.

I think, I got the basic idea but it still looks odd to me. What does the first part ("You end up having somebody that’s a problem") mean? Why it is said in that way? Can you please give some examples of similar construction?

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  • It means that you end up having somebody who is a problem and who doesn't give you what you want and is eliminated. The original construction seems odd and wonder if it is grammatical.
    – Mohit
    Apr 12, 2013 at 10:16
  • You might be interested in our sister site: English Language Learners. Apr 12, 2013 at 10:38

2 Answers 2

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I would read it as "If at the end of the day you have somebody who is a problem and does not give you what you want, that person is eliminated; that heartlessness is part of the Chinese culture." The "This happens, that happens" construction is American, particularly New York (supposedly because of Italian influence), and is parodied in the bumper sticker "You touch my car, I break you face".

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  • It is also very conversational. I would expect such a thing (the original construction in the question) to be spoken rather than written, even by a New Yorker.
    – horatio
    Apr 12, 2013 at 19:26
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You can say the same as this:

You end up having someone who is a problem and who does not give you what you want. This person is eliminated (as a result).

A definition of end up from Cambridge Dictionaries Online:

to finally be in a particular place or situation.

Some examples of usage:

  1. end up + location: end up in prison
    If he does not stop, he will end up in prison.

  2. end up + profession: end up as a nanny
    With no qualifications, he ended up working as a nanny for his neighbours’ kids.

  3. end up + gerund:

    • end up doing
      Her colleague refused to help so she ended up doing all the work.
    • end up staying
      They could not decide where to go on holiday and ended up staying at home.
    • end up living
      She got her degree and prepared to make it big in marketing but fell in love with a farmer and ended up living in a small village in the mountains, working on the family farm.

Yours is an example of the last use. It means that at one point somebody becomes a problem for you. They (substitutes for somebody) do not give you what you want. He (or she) gets eliminated.

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