I would like to know the meaning of "we should not roam about in the hot sun".
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Where did you read this sentence? Please provide more context.– AlenannoMay 18, 2011 at 14:50
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I found in the dictionary, they have given the sample sentence for the word "about".– A.C.BalajiMay 18, 2011 at 14:52
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4 Answers
It's not an idiom. It's just a sentence, meaning:
We shouldn't run around outside, because it's very sunny and hot. Obviously running around outside is not a good idea if it's very warm, because you'll get hot and dehydrated, and possibly sunburned.
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3Not to mention which there's the risk of bumping into mad dogs and Englishmen! May 18, 2011 at 16:30
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@FumbleFingers -- that's two upvotes from me in the last five minutes, the other for "positively fecund!" :-) May 18, 2011 at 18:39
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@Pete Wilson: That "fecund" comment was of course in the context of the prefixes de- and un-. I was really annoyed when I posted it and realised I couldn't highlight just the un in fecund. So many thanks, I feel better now! May 18, 2011 at 22:01
Among its many meanings, about can express location in a general area. So the example sentence can be "translated" as:
We should not wander around outside while it's this hot.
I don't think it's an idiom. I think it's just a sample sentence.
We should not roam about in the hot sun.
about is used in this sense
Used to indicate movement in an area: "finding my way about".
Comparable to using around.
Among its meanings, about, as an adverb (NB: It's also a preposition), has the following ones (NOAD):
- used to indicate movement in an area;
- used to express location in a particular place.
Or the OALD that says "nearly; very close to".
EDIT: But as Martha correctly pointed out, here we have a different meaning.
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"close to/near" is probably wrong in this case, as it's not possible to wander "close to" the sun. May 18, 2011 at 15:06
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Actually, the example sentence says absolutely nothing about proximity to the sun. A better rephrasing is "we should not wander around outside while it's this hot."– MarthaªMay 18, 2011 at 15:10
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@Martha: Uhm, you have a point... I'll correct that part... @victoriah: That doesn't mean the sentence can't be uttered, on the contrary... It's not possible to touch the fire, but you can say "we shouldn't touch the fire", right? It's the same thing. But Martha is right...– AlenannoMay 18, 2011 at 15:55
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It's not a figurative meaning at all. It's just that you paired "about" with "in the hot sun", when it actually belongs with "roam": [We] [should not] [roam about] [in the hot sun].– MarthaªMay 18, 2011 at 16:39
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I even looked it up, but there isn't a phrasal verb "roam about", is it?– AlenannoMay 18, 2011 at 16:53