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Ryansamturner Posted 12 years ago
Grammar

Cradling or Cradled?

''It was our baby James and she was cradling him back and forth.''

Does that make sense?

Does it give the impression that someone is holding the baby and moving him back and forward? Or would 'and she cradled him back and forth' make more sense?
  

Top answer

Yes, that sounds OK to me. "was cradling" seems more likely than "cradled". I would put a comma after "James" and consider putting one before too (this depends on whether you want to present "James" as parenthetical information).

— GPY

  • Yes, that sounds OK to me.
  • "was cradling" seems more likely than "cradled".
  • I would put a comma after "James" and consider putting one before too (this depends on whether you want to present "James" as parenthetical information).
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2 Answers
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Yes, that sounds OK to me. "was cradling" seems more likely than "cradled".

I would put a comma after "James" and consider putting one before too (this depends on whether you want to present "James" as parenthetical information).
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'It was our baby James and she was rocking him back and forth.

American English uses "rock the baby" for a sleep-inducing motion and "swing the baby" for a laughter-inducing motion.
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