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Taka Posted 21 years ago
Grammar

For him to do

It is difficult for him to do it.


Is there any case to say:
It is difficult to him to do it.


instead?

If so, what is the difference in nuances?

If the latter sounds wierd, then why?
  

Top answer

". Sorry! It's not w ei rd sounding.

— CalifJim

  • ".
  • Sorry!
  • It's not w ei rd sounding.
  • It just sounds wrong!
  • CJ
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32 Answers
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Hi, Taka,

No, there is no "It is difficult to him to ...". Sorry! Emotion: sad

It's not weird sounding. It just soun
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But 'To him it is difficult to do' is possible , isn't it?
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Hi again, Taka,

Not in my variety of English, no! Maybe others will weigh in on this, but "to ... it is difficult to ... " doesn't fall within the acceptable in my opinion.

Regards,
Jim
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Then, what about this one?
But to me it is possible to duplicate a short phrase w/o ever hearing it before.


http://www.wetcanvas.com/forums/showthread.php?t=184241&page=4&pp=15
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Just a by-the-way.

This is what I've heard before from a native speaker.

1. For/To me the problem is difficult.
In this sentence, both 'for' and 'to' is possible, but 'for' is much more natural.

2. For/To me the problem is difficult to solve.
In this sentence, when an action is involved, only 'for' is the correct choice.

Jandi
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"But to me it is possible to duplicate a short phrase w/o ever hearing it before."

I looked at that site, and now I understand better what you are talking about.

The quoted material is not saying "I can duplicate a short phrase without ever hearing it before". It is not saying "For me it is possible to duplicate ..." nor "It is possible for me to duplicate ...", which
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Hello Jandi

I think 'To me, the problem is difficult' is used by some speakers as an ellipsis of "As to me, the problem is difficult". Also I feel someone might say "To me, it is impossible to V" as an ellipsis of "It seems to me it is impossible to V". Anyway I don't think these kinds of ellipsis are not formalized in English.

Enjoy sansuyu flowers.

pa
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Hello, Paco.

Thank you as always.
And ... How do you know 'sansuyu'? Is it Japanese also?

I hope you are always well and happy.
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Jim, then what do you think about the idea that Jandi got from a native speaker?
1. For/To me the problem is difficult.
In this sentence, both 'for' and 'to' is possible, but 'for' is much more natural.

2. For/To me the problem is difficult to solve.
In this sentence, when an action is involved, only 'for' is the correct choice.
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Hello, Take (and Jim).

I'd like to say 'my action' instead of 'an action'.
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