"unusually aggressively"

Question

Hello there!

This is my first post on this forum, i just found it via google! I was searching for some site were i could ask some people who might have an idea of English an tiny question.

There is the following sentence:

Not surprisingly such dogs soon start to act unusually aggressive on the street, too.

I was told by my teacher that this is wrong. He says it should be unusually aggressively.
My problem with this is that it just sounds stupid to me! In addition we have an exchange student
from Australia in our class which also has written it that way (unusually aggressive) and says it is correct that way!
I also asked a few penpals from the US which all aggreed. So only my teacher is still saying that this is wrong.

Does anyone know which version, "unusually aggressive" or "unusually aggressively", is correct or whether both are correct?
And the most important how can i prove to my teacher that "unsually aggressive" is also correct, if it is at all?

Thanks for any answers !!

Rvw · Accepted Answer

Greetings, Anonymous,

I think the answer hinges on whether or not act can be a linking verb: A verb that joins the subject to a subjective complement, which either describes or renames or otherwise represents the subject. ---Understanding Grammar, by Paul Roberts. Examples of linking verbs are: be, become, continue, feel, grow, look, remain, ring, seem, smell, sound, taste, turn.

I have two references that say that act can be a linking verb:

Webster's Third New International Dictionary --- act vi 3: to conduct or comport oneself (as in morals or manners or in private life or public office): BEHAVE -- often used with an adjective complement [acted tired] [acted superior].

Webster's Dictionary of English Usage --- ... Here we have an instance where the general perception of how the verb functions has changed over the years. And what is true of look in this respect is also true of other verbs, such as taste, feel, act, smell, now treated as linking verbs. These verbs are not yet fully settled into the linking-verb roles....

Since the usage is "not yet fully settled" but is moving toward that of a linking verb, I think both act unusually aggressive and act unusually aggressively are "correct."

Davkett · Answer

Is a compromise in order?--

Not surprisingly, such dogs soon start to act in an unusually aggressive manner on the street, too.

Deryaa · Answer

hiimmmm.

at the first side it seemed to me that "unsually agresive"is the right one.but when I read the sentencense once more I have decided that it is the verb "act" to be modified. and an adverb can modify a verb.

I think "agressivley" is gramatical even if it sounds a bit strange.

Forbes · Answer

Part of the problem here is that English is a language moving from synthesis to analysis. Many analytical languages have the same form for adjectives and the corresponding adverb of manner. There is a strong tendency for adjectives to serve as adverbs in some non-standard varieties of English and this has transferred itself to some aspects of standard English so that in some cases usage is, as is said above, "not yet fully settled" (as well as in some cases being settled).

The above example is interesting as the answer seems to turn partly on what people feel is right. It is perhaps the two successive -ly endings that make "unusually agressively" sound a little awkward, so that it comes down to style, rather than grammar. If "unusually" is taken out then "to act agressively" sounds fine, as does "to act very agressively". However, "to act agressive" does not sound quite right to me.

Anonymous · Answer

Thanks a lot !

For me it's not a question of style but rather a question of correct grammar here, but only because it is a special situation.
A compromise isn't possible because this sentence was given by my teacher. It was part of a test about adjectives and adverbs.
In German this stuff is a lot easier since adverbs are equal to adjectives in their written and spoken form.
Within this test we basically had to decide how to use the words "unusual" and "aggressive" to fit in this sentence.
I completely understand the functions of adverbs and adjectives though. So it is clear to me that aggressively modifies the verb "act".
And in case there would be no "unusual(ly)" i also would have written just "act aggressively".
Regarding the test, if "unusually aggressive" would be correct it would only bring me 1 more point (so 13 of 15 instead of 12) -
that's not my problem. It's only important to me to know whether it is correct. But in school the teacher decides what is correct, and he is doing his decisions based on books i guess. So i just need to find a written approval for "unusally aggressive" being correct.

So regarding what rvw has posted,
"Webster's Dictionary of English Usage --- ... Here we have an instance where the general perception of how the verb functions has changed over the years. And what is true of look in this respect is also true of other verbs, such as taste, feel, act, smell, now treated as linking verbs. These verbs are not yet fully settled into the linking-verb roles...."
- it doesn't seem to be clear if "act" is a linking verb or not, is this right?

If there is no written grammar rule saying either that act is a linking verb or that you don't use two adverbs right after another,
i guess my teacher turns out to be right. :-\
(i want to remark once again, my intention is not to show that my teacher is wrong but only that my version of the sentence is possible)

Roro · Answer

Thank you, Forbes, you have dispelled my doubts which I hesitated to ask. Thoughtful comment!

Forbes · Answer

Dear Anonymous,

If I was a judge in a trial and had to come down on one side or another I would definitely prefer "unusually agressively". In so far as there any canons of "correctness" for standard English it has to be the choice. On this occasion I think you should give in to your teacher and wait for another opportunity to try and catch him/her out! Teachers of languages have to adopt prescriptive attitudes as otherwise their pupils would be saying that anything goes. If your US and Australian friends thought the point through, they might well agree with your teacher.

MrPedantic · Answer

It's interesting that with smell, taste, look, feel, sound we can use the adjective, but not the adverb:

1. That tastes good! (not: that tastes well)

2. That sounds unusual! (not: that sounds unusually)

In the case of 'act', however, we can use an adverb or an adjective:

3. He's acting funny/unusually.

– which suggests it hasn't yet attained the same status as smell, look, etc.

That said, I do find a slight difference between the adjective/adverb forms:

4. He's acting strangely.

5. He's acting strange.

The first suggests a temporary strangeness, in someone's behaviour, while the second suggests a state of strangeness. Or to put it another way, there seems to be more 'action' in #4.

MrP

Roro · Answer

Hello MrPedantic. It's one of 'innocent-looking but nasty' problems, for me at least. Interesting.
????????????????????????????????????????
1. He acts/is acting strangely.
2. He acts/is acting strange.

3. He looks tenderly.
4. He looks tender.
????????????????????????????????????????
In Montague Grammar the verb?be?of identity and all the other copula verbs are regarded as ordinary?transitive?(!) verbs, thus they all have the same semantic value:?a relation between an individual and?a set of first-order properties??(roughly, in most typical cases).

On the other, in [1] and [3] the verb 'act' and 'look' with adverb form intransitive verb phrases. Thus they have a completely different semantic value. (To my deep regret I cannot expand on this now. It seems a bit complicated. I'm not sure at all if I will be able to do in the near future. I just wanted to say that this point could be expanded on some logical basis...) (Interesting.)
(Though I cannot explain well, I have a vague impression.....Montague's framework works here, too...! :)
A million thanks to you. Bye!

MrPedantic · Answer

That's interesting. The 'stative' form is regarded as transitive, then, and the 'active' as intransitive.

I'll have to give this some more thought.

Thank you for that, Roro!

See you,

MrP

"unusually aggressively"

Top answer

Get the Weekly English Kit 📬

Related Questions