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Anonymous Posted 14 years ago
Grammar
Redundant words
1.He couldn't help from laughing at the old woman's silly jokes.
2. He bought half of a loaf of bread for his daughter.
Anyone can help me to determine which one of this sentence contain redundant words? It looks normal to me.
2. He bought half of a loaf of bread for his daughter.
Anyone can help me to determine which one of this sentence contain redundant words? It looks normal to me.
Top answer
No. " Somebody can't / couldn't help doing something. No "from".
- No.
- " Somebody can't / couldn't help doing something.
- No "from".
- JK
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12 Answers
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No. 1: "He couldn't help laughing..."
Somebody can't / couldn't help doing something. No "from".
JK
Somebody can't / couldn't help doing something. No "from".
JK
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azfar1.He couldn't help from laughing at the old woman's silly jokes.
2. He bought half of a loaf of bread for his daughter.You can delete "from" in the first sentence, and the first "of" in the second.
I wouldn't exactly call them "redundant."
There's nothing wrong with "He did only half of his homework
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Hi, Avangi.
Am I correct in assuming that "from" is wong after "can't / couldn't help" and that "of" could be kept after "half"?
Thank you.
JK
Am I correct in assuming that "from" is wong after "can't / couldn't help" and that "of" could be kept after "half"?
Thank you.
JK
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JohnKeatsAm I correct in assuming that "from" is wong after "can't / couldn't help" and that "of" could be kept after "half"?Yes, John, I believe [that] you are!
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Are you laughing at me? [that]
I think "redundancy" might be the correct term only in No. 2 ("of" being, in fact, not necessary)
while in No. 1 the preposition is wrong.
Thank you.
I think "redundancy" might be the correct term only in No. 2 ("of" being, in fact, not necessary)
while in No. 1 the preposition is wrong.
Thank you.
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JohnKeatsAre you laughing at me? [that]Heck, no! I just stuck "that" in to indicate that I was on board.
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Can we put it this way? He couldn't help but laughed at the old man's silly joke?
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More or less.
I'd use the bare infinitive, "He couldn't help but [to] laugh at the old man's silly joke."
I sometimes hear native speakers use your version. I'm not sure if they're thinking of past tense, or if it's simply incorrect -- or perhaps a regional variation. It's one of those strange things like "It needs cleaned."
I'd use the bare infinitive, "He couldn't help but [to] laugh at the old man's silly joke."
I sometimes hear native speakers use your version. I'm not sure if they're thinking of past tense, or if it's simply incorrect -- or perhaps a regional variation. It's one of those strange things like "It needs cleaned."
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Checked it on the internet, it seems that the combination couldn't help but is always followed by verb-ing, He couldn't help but laughing at the old man's silly joke, while the cannot help but is followed by original verb, e.g.He cannot help but laugh the old man's silly joke. Is this because of the
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