but I don't bite
reading Agatha Christic' "Murder on the Oriet Express":
the Colonel would like to sit on the same table with Miss Debenham in the restaurant car on the train for breakfast,
------- any objection?
------- of course not. Sit down.
------- well, you know, breakfast isn't always a chatty meal
-------- I should hope not. But I don't bite.
the colonel sat down.
question1. "but I don't bite", what does this mean?
question2. I always feel the language used in Agatha's novel is different from that in the novels like John Grisham or Jeffrey Archer, My English is not good enough to tell the difference but I feel the difference while reading. Is it because Agatha's time is much earlier so English has developed,evolved and changed? and to me, Dickens' novles are very very difficult to understand, also becuase of time or because of the syle the author chose.
thank you for your help and yor time.

thank you for your help and your time ?

Question

but I don't bite
reading Agatha Christic' "Murder on the Oriet Express":
the Colonel would like to sit on the same table with Miss  Debenham in the restaurant car on the train for breakfast,
------- any objection?
------- of course not. Sit down.
------- well, you know, breakfast isn't always a chatty meal
-------- I should hope not. But I don't bite.
the colonel sat down. 
question1. "but I don't bite", what does this mean?
question2. I always feel the language used in Agatha's novel is different from that in the novels like John Grisham or Jeffrey Archer, My English is not good enough to tell the difference but I feel the difference while reading. Is it because Agatha's time is much earlier so English has developed,evolved and changed? and to me, Dickens' novles are very very difficult to understand, also becuase of time or because of the syle the author chose.
thank you for your help and yor time.






thank you for your help and your time ?

Answer

1.  "I don't bite" is an idiomatic expression meaning, take you have no reason to fear me.  It is usually used in just this case, and it is even more appropriate because they are speaking over a meal.  In this case Miss  Debenham is trying to assure the Colonel that he has nothing to fear by sitting next to her.  Of course there is probably no reason to fear her at all, she is making a joke.

2.  I've never read Agatha Christie or Archer, but have read Grisham and Dickens.  Grisham is American, where the others are British.  I tend to think the periods in which they wrote is the main reason you notice differences in how they write and the dialogue found in their works.  Even as a native speaker, Dickens can be more difficult than a more modern writer.  To be honest it has been a while since I have read Dickens.

Answer

1. Than means miss Debenham don't bite people (and living animals as well). Being a tiger or a wolf she could hardly say this:-)
Now it's common, but informal way to explain: there's no need to be afraid of getting close to me.

NB. Nearly any English idiom can be easily googled now. A lot of stuff, really. That doesn't mean you shouldn't ask here! 
I just try to say, there a lot of funny discussions, etymologies etc... 
So always google expressions in parallel to asking the questions anyway)

2 well, I'm Russian, you're Chinese. Things are different for us. But anyway, personal languages do differ too! The hardest book to understand for me was a novel of some modern American fantasy writer. Of course, I have no problem with contemporaries in general... The simplest piece I read was a modern sci-fi.
Now I read a diary from 1842 England - and it feels like literally translated Russian:)

Answer

"I don't bite" means that you don't have to fear me/I won't hurt you. The style AND the time will make a big difference in the way an author writes. You will find that the earlier literature is written in a more formal way.

Answers · 4

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