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Cup cake Posted 11 years ago
Grammar

'for miles versus kilometres'

Why do we say...

'she travelled for miles to buy antiques',
as opposed to

'she travelled kilometres to buy antiques?'

Why do we leave out the word - for?
Thanks Emotion: smile
  

Top answer

The loose or non-literal use of "miles" to mean "an unspecified large distance" is a semi-idiomatic usage that (presumably) dates back to a time before kilometres were very familiar to most English speakers. The usage has not caught up with metrication trends (same reason we write "tons of stuff" and not "tonnes of stuff"). "for" is optional in both cases.

— GPY

  • The loose or non-literal use of "miles" to mean "an unspecified large distance" is a semi-idiomatic usage that (presumably) dates back to a time before kilometres were very familiar to most English speakers.
  • The usage has not caught up with metrication trends (same reason we write "tons of stuff" and not "tonnes of stuff").
  • "for" is optional in both cases.
  • I do not see any difference in this respect between the two.
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4 Answers
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The loose or non-literal use of "miles" to mean "an unspecified large distance" is a semi-idiomatic usage that (presumably) dates back to a time before kilometres were very familiar to most English speakers. The usage has not caught up with metrication trends (same reason we write "tons of stuff" and not "tonnes of stuff"). "for" is optional in both cases. I do not see any difference in this respe
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Thanks GPY for your response. I have to say it sounds weird to say ...for kilometres. Nonetheless, thanks for the explanation.
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Cup cakeI have to say it sounds weird to say ...for kilometres.
OK, well if so it may be that the "for miles" version is that much more idiomatic, and so less amenable to messing with.
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Gosh, I need to read up on idiomatic phrases. I know all the classic idioms and they're a whole tribe of their own. Lol.
Thanks.
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