English translation: will help you progress or not
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01:44 Oct 17, 2011
English to English translations [PRO] General / Conversation / Greetings / Letters
English term or phrase:back or forth
I´d like to know if this expression is correct : "I don´t like your attitude in class. Remember it can take you back or forth."
I suppose it means his attitude can help him improve or not, obtain good results or not. It is a comment a teacher makes to a student.
Explanation: This sentence sounds strange to me because I would never say 'back or forth'. There are no hits for it in Google when I enter it. The normal expression is 'back AND forth' but it would also sound strange in this context. 'Back and forth' is an expression indicating movement from one place to another and back. It's a repetition that doesn't make progress. So if the teacher wanted to say that the student's bad attitude was taking him 'back and forth', she wouldn't use 'can', if you see what I mean.
So I assume that your interpretation is correct, the teacher says 'back or forth' because the student needs to remember that a good attitude will allow him to make progress, and a bad attitude will prevent progress.
But the phrases are still quite strange. Because she says 'I don't like your attitude' and then 'IT can take you back or forth' when really his bad attitude can only take him 'back'.
Explanation: This sentence sounds strange to me because I would never say 'back or forth'. There are no hits for it in Google when I enter it. The normal expression is 'back AND forth' but it would also sound strange in this context. 'Back and forth' is an expression indicating movement from one place to another and back. It's a repetition that doesn't make progress. So if the teacher wanted to say that the student's bad attitude was taking him 'back and forth', she wouldn't use 'can', if you see what I mean.
So I assume that your interpretation is correct, the teacher says 'back or forth' because the student needs to remember that a good attitude will allow him to make progress, and a bad attitude will prevent progress.
But the phrases are still quite strange. Because she says 'I don't like your attitude' and then 'IT can take you back or forth' when really his bad attitude can only take him 'back'.
The translation workplace 
peer agreement (net): +5