What’s the difference between ‘from the sofa’ and ‘on the sofa’?

Question

What is the difference between

and

?

score 0 · Accepted Answer · answered May 24 '21 at 05:26

0

In terms of meaning, there isn't much.

This is because they both mean you were sitting on the sofa and used the remote control to send a signal from the sofa to the tv to turn on.

In general "on" and "from" have quite different meanings.

answered May 24 '21 at 05:26

James K

3

I think "turned on the TV on the sofa" could mean that that TV was located on the sofa. – Jack O'Flaherty May 24 '21 at 07:02
@Jack O’Flaherty No, James K answered my question right. – May 24 '21 at 08:41
1

@user2848 No, Jack O'Flaherty is right: the sentence is grammatically ambiguous, although there is only one interpretation that would normally make sense. Consider "I looked at the cat on the chair" - that would normally be interpreted to mean that the cat was on the chair, not that I was on the chair. – stangdon May 24 '21 at 11:17
It could mean that that TV was located on the sofa, but it probably doesn't. Do you have a TV that you keep on the sofa? This is almost a textbook illustration of a situation in which a sematic ambiguity is removed by context. – James K May 24 '21 at 19:43

1 Answers1