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Teo Posted 20 years ago
Grammar

in front of/in the front of the classroom

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  • 00Wall maps of the United States and the world (ideally hanging01font00 02font01font00in 01b00the02b00 front of the classroom).02font02br
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  • 00A banner above the black board 01font00in front of the classroom02font00 reads, Wanted: Inquiring Minds. 02br
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  • 00What's the difference between 01i00in 01b00the02b00 front of the classroom 02i00and01i00 in front of the classroom02i00?02li
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    Top answer

    0Well, precisely speaking, I prefer 01i 01font 00in 01b 00the02b 00 front of the classroom02font 00. 02i 00Though I doubt most readers/listeners would misinterpret 01i 01font 00in front of02font 02i 00 in this context, the phrase typically refers to a location behind which is the next thing. The classroom here is not meant to be understood as behind the blackboard.

    — Davkett

    • 0Well, precisely speaking, I prefer 01i 01font 00in 01b 00the02b 00 front of the classroom02font 00.
    • 02i 00Though I doubt most readers/listeners would misinterpret 01i 01font 00in front of02font 02i 00 in this context, the phrase typically refers to a location behind which is the next thing.
    • The classroom here is not meant to be understood as behind the blackboard.
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    10 Answers
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    0Well, precisely speaking, I prefer 01i01font00in 01b00the02b00 front of the classroom02font00. 02i00Though I doubt most readers/listeners would misinterpret 01i01font00in front of02font02i00 in this context, the phrase typically refers to a locatio
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    0Hi,02br
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    00You might also speak of 'in front of the class' - 01i00the teacher stands in front of the class, (ie in front of the students.)02i02br
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    00Best wishes. Clive 0-
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    0" in the front of the classroom " means the part of the classroom which faces forward. 02br
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    00" in front of " means " 00close to the front part of something "02br
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  • 00A banner above the black board 01font00in front of the classroom02font00 reads, Wanted: In
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    0My dictionary (OED) suggests "in the front of X" is an archaic version of "in front of" used up to the middle of 19th century. It says both mean "at a position where one can face X". This means the position is outside of X.02br
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    00As to Teo's sentences, I think "in (the) front of the classroom" should be "at the head of the classroom"02br
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    01cite10Paco200412cite12br
    10My dictionary (OED) suggests "in the front of X" is an archaic version of "in front of" used up to the middle of 19th century. It says both mean "at a position where one can face X". This means the position is outside of X.12br
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    10As to Teo's sentences, I think "in (the) front
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    1i01font00A teenaged boy and girl are seated 01b00in the front of02b00 an open, yellow roadster convertible.02font02i02br
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    01font01i01b00in (the) front: 02b02i00in the part of a car where the driver and the controls are02font0
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    01cite10Davkett12cite10I'm a bit confused by that OED statement. Here's a quite typical example where the phrase cannot be replaced either with 11i11font10at the head of12font12i10 or 11i11font10in front of12font12i10
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    01cite10Teo12cite11i11font10A teenaged boy and girl are seated 11b10in the front of12b10 an open, yellow roadster convertible.12font12i12br
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    11font11i11b10in (the) front: 12b12i10i
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    01cite10Paco200412cite10I see. The OED also defines "front" itself as "foremost part". Your uses seems fit to this sense.12br
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    10paco 12blockquote
    10Exactly right, Paco. The same goes for the blackboard-in-the-classroom example.0-
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    Hi. Please tell me if "The teacher stands in front of class" without the definite article "the" in front of the word "class" is correct or not. Thank you for your help in advance.
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