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Anonymous Posted 16 years ago
Grammar
Both instead of both of
Hi,
I have a few doubts:
1) Can one say 'both friends' instead of 'both of' his friends? Like: He cried, so both friends realized that John was upset.
2) It took only a moment for his tongue to reveal all the secrets.
Does this sound right?
3) This is extremely confusing, and I am not sure which verb to use.
He would have to get a job, failing which no girl would ever respect him.
Can we use 'would' twice in a sentence like this? The first 'would' is a simple past tense, whereas the second 'would' is a modal verb, suggesting what might happen should he fail to get a job. Have I used them correctly?
Thank you in advance.
I have a few doubts:
1) Can one say 'both friends' instead of 'both of' his friends? Like: He cried, so both friends realized that John was upset.
2) It took only a moment for his tongue to reveal all the secrets.
Does this sound right?
3) This is extremely confusing, and I am not sure which verb to use.
He would have to get a job, failing which no girl would ever respect him.
Can we use 'would' twice in a sentence like this? The first 'would' is a simple past tense, whereas the second 'would' is a modal verb, suggesting what might happen should he fail to get a job. Have I used them correctly?
Thank you in advance.
Top answer
1. Both your suggestions are grammatical. You can say: both friends both his friends both of his friends The meaninng of the first option may not necessarily be clear enough in the context and that's why one of the last two may be preferable 2.
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- Both your suggestions are grammatical.
- You can say: both friends both his friends both of his friends The meaninng of the first option may not necessarily be clear enough in the context and that's why one of the last two may be preferable 2.
- Again, nothing wrong grammatically.
- Sentences like yours are not very often uttered in casual conversation.
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2 Answers
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1. Both your suggestions are grammatical. You can say:
both friends
both his friends
both of his friends
The meaninng of the first option may not necessarily be clear enough in the context and that's why one of the last two may be preferable
2. Again, nothing wrong grammatically. Sentences like yours are not very often uttered in casual conversat
both friends
both his friends
both of his friends
The meaninng of the first option may not necessarily be clear enough in the context and that's why one of the last two may be preferable
2. Again, nothing wrong grammatically. Sentences like yours are not very often uttered in casual conversat
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Cool BreezeTo my mind, He would have to get a job can only refer to the future. Apart from that, I see nothing wrong with the sentenceThanks. What I am asking is: even though it refers to the future, it refers to it from the past tense. Is that okay? He will have to get a job, failing which no girl would ever respect them. This is present tense, but when we c
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