Omitting 'is'

Question

Could someone please explain the difference between the following sentences

1. 'I can see a bird is flying in the sky'

2. 'I can see a bird flying in the sky'

Is the 'is' in the first sentence a helping verb? Is the difference to do with a tense difference? Which would be grammatically correct?

CalifJim · Accepted Answer

Jolly E1. I can see (that) a bird is flying in the sky.

This is two finite clauses connected by "that". "that" can be dropped, which is how you got the sentence in your post.

Jolly E2. I can see a bird flying in the sky.

There is no "that" here, and an occurrence of "that" has not been dropped. This is a catenative construction. Catenative verbs like 'see' and 'hear' allow catenative constructions. This means that one verb governs the form of another verb that follows. Here "see" governs "fly". This construction allows us to combine two ideas into one sentence.

Both 'see' and 'hear' allow a second verb with -ing.

I can see a bird. / A bird is flying in the sky.
> I can see a bird flying in the sky.

I hear a noise. / A noise is coming from the garage.
> I hear a noise coming from the garage.

Only certain verbs are catenative verbs. You cannot do this with any verb.

Both sentences are correct, but they show very different grammatical patterns even though they may look alike.

CJ

Omitting 'is'

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