kind of

Could you explain me the "kind of" expression usage? I know it as "somehow" ,a colloquial expression. I don´t know if I have used it in these sentencesin the right way.
"My mother was also kind of a refined woman "and this would have the same meaning of a woman so refined, or such a refined woman? "They were kind of strange people"
Another question: "kind of" can be used followed by a verb?" I think I should kind of thank you for your help last month." Or " He kind of broke up when he could recover his puppy again. "
As you can notice, I am trying to learn English. I thank you a lot.:confused:
Best wishes

Yes, very colloquial. Do you speak Spanish? Would you like a Spanish expression for that?

As exx wrote, it is colloquial and yes, you can use a verb after kind of, just like the example you mention.
I am also putting a link here where you can get more examples and also the meaning.

Kind of: rather: to some (great or small) extent;
"it was rather cold"; "the party was rather nice"; "the knife is rather dull"; "I rather regret that I cannot attend"; "He's rather good at playing the cello"; "he is kind of shy"
wordnet.princeton.edu/perl/webwn

Hope it helps!;)

Quote:

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Originally Posted by SandraT

As exx wrote, it is colloquial and yes, you can use a verb after kind of, just like the example you mention.
I am also putting a link here where you can get more examples and also the meaning.

Kind of: rather: to some (great or small) extent;
"it was rather cold"; "the party was rather nice"; "the knife is rather dull"; "I rather regret that I cannot attend"; "He's rather good at playing the cello"; "he is kind of shy"
wordnet.princeton.edu/perl/webwn

Hope it helps!;)

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Good explanation! I'll take some of your examples SandraT to translate them the way we say that in Spanish... at least in Argentina:

it was kind of cold: estaba como frío, estaba un tanto frío
I kind of regret that I cannot attend: Como que me arrepiento de no haber ido/asistido
He's kind of shy: es como tímido, es una tanto tímido

It's very colloquial and very much used... now thinking about it... it's an awful grammatical structure:cool:

Hope it helps!

Thank you. I would certainly like a Spanish expression. I do speak Spanish! I am from Argentine.

I thank you a lot for your help, Sandra T and Member 286. I´ll keep on studying, as you can see I am kind of confused with several English expressions.

good explanations for something that´s a bit confusing. A few other synonyms are: a little, a bit, a tad, sort of.

I would like to add that KIND OF (= slightly) is informal (also KINDA = US)
and is often used to show that you are not certain about something
or when you try to describe something but you cannot be exact (I guess, I think, I kind of...)

When you say “my mother was kind of a refined woman”
that does not mean the same as “my mother was such a refined woman”

Gosh!!!!!! What a team we are!!!

I'm proud of you all!! :) :)

PLEASE, DO NOT CHANGE!

I certainly thank you all a lot for your useful answers.
Can I make another question?:is it right to say: I have mistaken speaking with him.? I know the verb to mistake usage like to confuse: I have mistaken Peter with John all my life. But, can we use it into another way?
My best regards

Quote:

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Originally Posted by maramaras

is it right to say: I have mistaken speaking with him.?
I know the verb to mistake usage like to confuse: I have mistaken Peter with John all my life. But, can we use it into another way?
My best regards

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It was a mistake (for me) to speak to him.
I have mistaken Peter for John all my life.

other meanings of “to mistake” :
don’t mistake me (don’t understand me wrong)
mistake someone’s meanings
don’t mistake me if you think you can scare me (don’t underestimate me)
mistake one’s road (take the wrong turn)
there’s no mistaking him with his orange hat (you can’t miss him = not recognize)

by mistake : unintentionally

mistakenadjective
wrong in what you believe, or based on a belief that is wrong:
If you think you can carry on drinking so much without damaging your health, then you're mistaken.
I'm afraid I was mistaken about how much it would cost.
The negotiations continued in the mistaken belief that a peaceful agreement could be reached.
a case of mistaken identity

mistakenlyadverb
She mistakenly believed that she could get away with not paying her taxes.

mistakable, UK ALSO mistakeable
adjective
She's easily mistakeable for a man when she wears that suit and hat.
noun[C]
an action, decision or judgment which produces an unwanted or unintentional result:
I'm not blaming you - we all make mistakes.
[+ to infinitive] It was a mistake for us to come here tonight.
This letter's full of spelling mistakes.
I've discovered a few mistakes in your calculations.
Why am I under arrest? There must be some mistake.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Frank van den Eeden

I would like to add that KIND OF (= slightly) is informal (also KINDA = US)
and is often used to show that you are not certain about something
or when you try to describe something but you cannot be exact (I guess, I think, I kind of...)

When you say “my mother was kind of a refined woman”
that does not mean the same as “my mother was such a refined woman”

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If you add the work "like" to the phrase you have the same meaning with a southern accent as in "my mother is kind of like a refined woman".

In the U.S. you also hear "kind of" or "kind of like" used as space filler while the speaker decides on the adjective needed as in "My brother is ... kind of like ... stupid around girls."

Just some spice for the stew.

Joel

OH,Frank van den Eeden, I am so glad to read your answers, which are very clear and useful for my learning. I thank you very much.
My best regards. See you soon!

Well, your remark is just some spice for the stew, as you said. It is very useful. So, "kind of like" is used in the US like a space filler, which gives you some time to think.?I am learning English and I thank you for the help.
Best regards.

Frank did an excellent job in giving you a clear understanding of the use of mistake!!:)

As for "kind of" the closest thing to it is "sort of". Both are frequently shortened in speech and come out "kinda" and "sorta". I "kinda" feel like eating ice cream. I feel "sorta" bad. (by the way, that's bad Engilish but you will hear those words very often)

This is just a suggestion but I think these are words that you might want to avoid using until you have become much more familiar with English.

Saludos!