BRACKETS optional or not and if words are correct?

Question

Could you please tell me whether the brackets are optional and which word to use in each sentence and if it sounds natural please?

- If he buys it, (it means) its a good deal.
- How many people can (you) fit in this room?
- I would hate it if my son was..../for my son to be...
- The ring one buys for his finacé is in direct relation to their income. 10000 might not mean/be anything for one person.
- I lose as often/much when I spend 2 dollars on a lottery ticket as I do when I spend 6 dollars.
- I can't sleep for a whole week before an exciting event./leading up to an exciting event.
- I want to spend the money to buy/buying something for her.

Thank you

Doctor D · Accepted Answer

Here are my suggestions/comments. They are more than you asked for, but I hope they will be helpful in any case.

- If he buys it, (it means) its a good deal. First, use it's (not the possesive "its"). Second, probably not optional if you want to restrict the meaning of the action. (You want the action of buying the object to only indicate that it is a good deal).

- How many people can (you) fit in this room? Not optional. If you say "How many people can fit in this room," you leave open how they get there. They could wander in by themselves.

- I would hate it if my son was../for my son to be...
This is a hypothetical situation, so use "were" in first instance: I would hate it if my son were... The second phrasing (for my son to be...) is acceptable as is.

- The ring one buys for his finacé is in direct relation to their income. 10000 might not mean/be anything for one person.
Fiancé is a man; fiancée is a woman. Also, do you mean "his income" (the boyfriend) or "their income" (the income of the couple)? Finally, do not begin a sentence with a figure. I would rewrite the sentences. "The ring a man buys for his fiancée depends upon his income. Spending lt;/u>10,000 might not mean anything to some people."

- I lose as often/much when I spend 2 dollars on a lottery ticket as I do when I spend 6 dollars. "Much" is an amount; "often" is a time. Which is your concern? I lose just as often whether I spend two dollars on a lottery ticket or six dollars.

- I can't sleep for a whole week before an exciting event./leading up to an exciting event.
Either, but I would use "the whole week." This is clearer in the second wording, where you should see that the complete phrase is "the week leading up to.") "I can't sleep for the whole week leading up to an exciting event."

- I want to spend the money to buy/buying something for her.
Not "to spend...to buy." So either "I want to spend the money buying something for her" or else the simplier "I want to spend the money on her."

BRACKETS optional or not and if words are correct?

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