Complain or complain about?

Hi DJ,

Yes, you need the preposition. Your sentence is not correct without the word 'about'.

If I may, I'll take a contrary view. "I don't complain living here" is a valid sentence in my opinion, though you probably want the preposition.* The meanings are subtly different.

* actually, I don't know on what basis I said that, so I've struck it out.

Thank you very much, Yankee.

I wonder whether that's a regional usage. I can't recall ever having heard anyone use 'complain' that way, Mr. Wordy. It sounds totally off to me without the preposition.

YankeeI wonder whether that's a regional usage. I can't recall ever having heard anyone use 'complain' that way, Mr. Wordy.

How do you feel about "Living here, I don't complain"? I see "I don't complain living here" as meaning the same.

Ah, now I'm with you. Yes, that would have a different meaning. Nevertheless, "I don't complain living here" strikes me as a pretty unlikely sentence. It would seem more likely to me for someone to say something along the lines of "I don't complain (anymore) now that I'm living here".

Do you mean that someone could say, "I don't complain, living here" -- not meaning exactly "I don't complain about living here" but more like "I don't complain while I'm living here"?

Living here, what is there to complain about?

What is there to complain about living here?

Is there anything to complain about living here?

Is there anyone to complain about living here?

khoff"I don't complain while I'm living here"

That sounds pretty close, to my ear. But I hear something like causality at work, thus:

I don't complain because there's no reason to complain if I'm living here.

CJ