Hello. I will be very grateful if you check the sentences:
1)"Do you think students are not allowed to use dictionaries while writing tests?"
2)"Do you think using dictionaries is not allowed while writing tests?"
Do they sound natural and standard English? I'm especially interested in the combination "do you think" and the following negative structure.
Thank you for help.
You wrote: Do they sound natural and standard English? I'm especially interested in the combination "do you think" and the following negative structure.
1)"Do you think students are not allowed to use dictionaries while writing tests?"
2)"Do you think using dictionaries is not allowed while writing tests?"
They read awkwardly to me. Here's how I'd rephrase them:
1. Do you think students will be allowed to use dictionaries during tests or not?
2. Do you think using dictionaries is allowed during writing tests or not?
Both sentences sound natural and grammatically correct. The combination "do you think" followed by a negative structure is indeed commonly used in English to ask for someone's opinion or belief about a certain topic. In this case, the topic is whether students are allowed to use dictionaries while writing tests.
1) "Do you think students are not allowed to use dictionaries while writing tests?" - This sentence is asking for the listener's opinion on whether or not students are prohibited from using dictionaries during tests.
2) "Do you think using dictionaries is not allowed while writing tests?" - This sentence is slightly rephrased but still conveys the same meaning as the first sentence. It is asking for the listener's belief about whether or not the act of using dictionaries is prohibited during tests.
Both sentences are valid ways to express your question and are commonly used in standard English.