Thursday, January 22, 2015

word usage - What does "do" mean in "What do I do"?


What does "do" mean in "What do I do?" I think it means "What do I usually do?", but I don't know why anyone would ask what they usually do. Does it mean something else?




Answer



Do can occur both as an auxiliary verb and as a lexical verb. In your example, it is an auxiliary verb in the first instance and a lexical verb in the second instance. The lexical verb, I assume, presents no difficulty. It means things like perform, execute, achieve, carry out, effect, bring to pass.


As an auxiliary verb, do is used to form questions and negatives. When a question begins with a word like what, and that word is not the subject, auxiliary do (or does in the third person singular) is placed before the subject of the clause. This applies when the lexical verb is do, just as much as it does with any other lexical verb.


In a clause such as this, do, as ctype.h has suggested, can mean should, but it does not necessarily do so. The question could, for example, be a response, seeking clarification, to the question ‘What is your job?’


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