他现在都是卡着时间准点开会 Does 卡着时间 mean stop time right? I remember being told it is slang for 卡点 which means to like check the time but whaf I am confused about is 都是 卡着时间 is a verb and object right? How come 是 is put before it. Can I ask what 都是 does when behind a verb? Is it indicating a cause?
3 Answers
No, 卡着时间 does not mean stop time. It means "right on the clock"(or at the last moment). 卡点 is similar too( some time 卡点 means right on the beat with the music though).
Basically the sentence means: He is always attending the meetings right on the clock(/at the last moment) nowadays(/recently).( which implies that he is not showing early to meetings at all recently. LOL exactly like me in workdays)
The 是 can be removed but I believe the 是 implies it is a new ongoing norm for him to 卡着时间. Thats why I used "is always attending" in the translation above. I think this is indicating a similar status as the "habitual be" used in AAE.
so in short it is similar to "is+ verb(ing) + object" in English but more emphasizing on the "habitual" behaviour
他现在都是卡着时间准点开会。There are two verbs 卡着 and 开会.
The verb is 卡着. In this sentence, 都是 is an adverb before the verb 卡着.
都是 = always.
现在 = recently, which is another adverb.
Here, 卡 is used as a verb that means "be wedged in between and cannot move, or get stuck".
他现在都是卡着时间准点开会。- He is now always struct to the exact time for the meeting.
