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Angliholic Posted 17 years ago
Grammar
He runs (off) to find Polly
Just then, Dave hears another bird call. He looks in the direction of the noise.
Dave: Whoa! Check that out! I've got to find Polly!
He runs off to find Polly.
Hi,
Is the bolded off in the above optional? If not, what does it mean? Thanks.
Dave: Whoa! Check that out! I've got to find Polly!
He runs off to find Polly.
Hi,
Is the bolded off in the above optional? If not, what does it mean? Thanks.
Top answer
The sentence 'He runs to find Polly' is in itself grammatically correct, but in this case it would be less stylistically successful than '... '. The phrasal verb 'run off' in the sentence you ask about means 'to suddenly leave a place or person', eg, Their dad ran off when they were little.
- The sentence 'He runs to find Polly' is in itself grammatically correct, but in this case it would be less stylistically successful than '...
- '.
- The phrasal verb 'run off' in the sentence you ask about means 'to suddenly leave a place or person', eg, Their dad ran off when they were little.
- The presence of 'off' adds dramatic effect to this fictional narrative (this is where this sentence was taken from, I suppose) as well as makes it more emotionally charged.
- In summa: 'off' is not optional in this context and cannot be left out without seriously affecting the meaning.
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1 Answers
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The sentence 'He runs to find Polly' is in itself grammatically correct, but in this case it would be less stylistically successful than '... runs off...'. The phrasal verb 'run off' in the sentence you ask about means 'to suddenly leave a place or person', eg, Their dad ran off when they were little. The presence of 'off' adds dramatic effect to this fictional narrative (this is wh
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