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Voynich Posted 12 years ago
Grammar

Grammatical inversion

Do you say "Were he in charge, he would do differently" instead of "If he were in charge, he would do differently in order to make the sentence formal?
  

Top answer

No. The latter sentence is adequately formal.

— AlpheccaStars

  • No.
  • The latter sentence is adequately formal.
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5 Answers
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No. The latter sentence is adequately formal.
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Is that kind of inversion hardly used at the present days?
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I can't recall using it myself, and maybe run across it once a year or so. Maybe the British use it more than Americans.
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voynichWere he in charge, he would do differently.
This is definitely more formal than the other one, but I don't usually hear anyone speaking so formally as this.

CJ
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AlpheccaStars. Maybe the British use it more than Americans.
I have been known to use it, but I have not infrequently been accused (even by my own offspring) of being somewhat formal/old-fashioned/pompous in the way I speak and write.
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