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I have been asked what my favorite color is, what my favorite food is, what my favorite song is... but never, ever has anyone asked me what my favorite insect is, so I can't say it's completely natural, no.

However, the grammar of the question is correct. For the response, say insects, plural.

Grammar GeekI have been asked what my favorite color is, what my favorite food is, what my favorite song is... but never, ever has anyone asked me what my favorite insect is, so I can't say it's completely natural, no.

However, the grammar of the question is correct. For the response, say insects, plural.

Hi Grammar Geek,
"Insects

The question wasn't "Do you like any insects at all?" It was "What is your favorite insect?" I suppose, if had to choose, I may choose the dragon fly or perhaps the lady bug. But it's still not a common thing to ask someone!

Grammar GeekThe question wasn't "Do you like any insects at all?" It was "What is your favorite insect?" I suppose, if had to choose, I may choose the dragon fly or perhaps the lady bug. But it's still not a common thing to ask someone!

Hi,

I gather that you meant, 'In common, do not ask such a question, it is not appropriate'. What

I think the word natural in the question was meant to indicate "syntactically and semantically natural", and in the answer the word natural was taken to include "pragmatically natural in typical situations in American culture". In view of that, I would say the subject utterance is natural in the first sense and unnatural in the second sense -- which is, as I read it, what GG ha

CalifJimFavorite insect to eat? Insects are fairly common foods in some cultures, aren't they?

CJ

In some part of Asia, Africa, South America, and even some rich-people clubs in Europe as I learned from American educational and entertainment shows on TV, people do eat insects. For me, I do not have any need or desire to put one in my mout

I guess you took a copy before I deleted that.

Hi,

I gather that you meant, 'In common, do not ask such a question, it is not appropriate'. What makes it inappropriate? some sort of phobia?

If I see a boy who collects all kinds of insect pictures, I can certainly ask the question - right? If that is not even natural, then the problem must be with the word favorite using in that context. What pr

Hi Grammar Geek,

Many ESL learners - including me - often equate the word unnatural to semantically unacceptable.

Thank you for your clarification.
Hoa Thai

I may be wrong but I chance it anyway. To my half-and-half ears, if a sentence sounds"unnatural", it is "awkwardly constructed but still understood" but "unacceptable" is either structurally or grammatically incorrect.