“**If, when you are asked to explain what the author means by a particular sentence, all you can do is repeat his very words, with some minor alterations in their order, you had better suspect that you do not know what he means**. Ideally, you should be able to say the same thing in totally different words. The idea can, of course, be approximated in varying degrees. But **if you cannot get away at all from the author’s words, it shows that only words have passed from him to you, not thought or knowledge**. You know his words, not his mind. **He was trying to communicate knowledge, and all you received was words**. “The process of translation from a foreign language to [[English]] is relevant to the test we have suggested. If you cannot state in an [[English]] sentence what a [[French]] sentence says, you know you do not understand the meaning of the [[French]]. But even if you can, your translation may remain only on the verbal level; for even when you have formed a faithful English replica, you still may not know what the writer of the French sentence was trying to convey.” ([Location 1852](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B004PYDAPE&location=1852)) --- **Tags** -- [[quotes]], [[communication-skills]], [[analytical-reading]], [[reading-books]], [[semantic-creep]] **Source** -- [[20250103084100 - B - How to Read a Book]] Consider, words can never be offensive - it is meaning that can be offensive