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Mediators were standing by, prepared to intervene in the labor dispute even though both sides had refused earlier offers for assistance.
How should i revise this sentence following the standard grammar ? Help plz
Thanks

BarbaraPA · Accepted Answer

Hi Tmbtw,

Welcome to English Forums.

There's nothing wrong with the original sentence. In what way do you want to revise it?

Montur · Answer

What do you mean by "standard grammar"?  There's nothing ungrammatical about your sentence, although I would prefer the use of the preposition "of" rather than "for".

Tmbtw · Answer

yep. , thanks both of you

In fact, my teacher told me that the use of for is not very correct in this case and advised that i use " of " instead. So i wanna know whether "offer of " is type of idiom

Anonymous · Answer

No, it isn't an idiom, it is usually a noun phrase, as in "He made me an offer of $50 for the car";  "I made an offer of help, but she refused".  Please don't be offended, but if you are learning English, writing "wanna" as a colloquial shorthand for "want to" is generally bad practice and should be avoided, in case you get into the habit and write it at the wrong time.  You should never say it - although you will hear many native speakers breaking the rule.  That's because they aren't as well educated as you are!

Clive · Answer

Hi,
There's a rule that you should never say 'wanna'? How come nobody ever told me?

Best wishes, Clive

Montur · Answer

Clive, Nobody ever told you because everyone knows what you mean. It isn't a "rule", it's a question of good and poor speech or good and poor writing. When I speak very quickly, "Want to" sounds very much like "wanna". I might say to my wife; "I want to go to Cambridge". You wouldn't hear the "t" at the end of "want", nor the "t" at the beginning of "to". It would sound like "I wanna go to Cambridge." If I were speaking publicly, or lecturing my students, I would say "want to" clearly, not quickly. But you should never write "wanna", and try not to speak that way because it is lazy and doesn't reflect the amount of effort you have put into learning the language.
Best wishes.

Clive · Answer

Hi,
I agree that in a formal situation I would enunciate more clearly, and that one shouldn't write 'wanna'. I wasn't disputing that.

However, I don't agree that it is lazy in casual speech. That seems like a harsh and subjective moral judgement. I'm not lazy about language, nor are many of the people that I know. We all say 'wanna'.

Best wishes, Clive

Montur · Answer

Yes, I sympathise with that view, unreservedly.  I'm 65 yrs old and something of a dinosaur who was made to go to extra elocution lessons when I was 12 yrs old!  It's pedantic and unnecessarily critical to cast judgements about anyone's use of English, either written or spoken - provided the message is clear.  Undoubtedly "wanna" is unambiguous and I'm willing to bet that in 25yrs or so it will be an accepted written form as well as spoken; it's how language changes, as change it must.  I suppose I like to preserve what I'm comfy with, that's all it is and, to some extent, I associate what I would call "lazy" speech with slovenly behaviour.  If I heard a presenter at a conference saying "wanna", I'd be less inclined to hear what he or she had to say.  Perhaps it's me who needs educating!

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