[aware of] or [attentive to]
I have made up (1a) and (2a) below. (1b) and (2b) are my non-native English speaking friends' revisions.
(1a) In the dark, you need to be attentive to traffic and the ground to avoid accidents.
(2a) Please be attentive to the wet paint on the wall.
(1b) In the dark, you need to be aware of traffic and the ground to avoid accidents.
(2b) Please be aware of the wet paint on the wall.
Is "attentive" really the wrong word? Please help me. Thank you.
Top answer
ansonguy Is "attentive" really the wrong word? It is a little wrong. To my mind, you can only be attentive to things that want your attention, like a teacher, or to something you are doing.
- ansonguy Is "attentive" really the wrong word?
- It is a little wrong.
- To my mind, you can only be attentive to things that want your attention, like a teacher, or to something you are doing.
- I would never use "attentive" in your two sentences.
- "Aware" is better in both cases, but it is not ideal in 1b.
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ansonguyIs "attentive" really the wrong word?
It is a little wrong. To my mind, you can only be attentive to things that want your attention, like a teacher, or to something you are doing. I would never use "attentive" in your two sentences. "Aware" is better in both cases, but it is not ideal in 1b. It is hard not to be aware o
0Sometimes the best way to improve a sentence is to find out how native speakers express the same thought (in a full sentence). That usually gives you better results than asking how to change one word.
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