The first + noun + to/ing
a. He was the first person to climb Everest without oxygen.
b. For President Trump, the end of August has been intense. There was the verdict in the tax and bank fraud trial of his former campaign chairman Paul Manafort — guilty on eight felony counts. It was the first trial stemming from the Russia investigation. (link)
In a., I don't think you can say 'climbing' instead of 'to climb'. Am I right?
If so, why is 'stemming' possible in b.?
Top answer
[1] He was the first person to climb Everest without oxygen . [2] It was the first trial stemming from the Russia investigation . The infinitival in [1] is a relative clause modifying "person", cf.
- [1] He was the first person to climb Everest without oxygen .
- [2] It was the first trial stemming from the Russia investigation .
- The infinitival in [1] is a relative clause modifying "person", cf.
- the first person who could climb Everest without oxygen .
- Replacing it with a participial one is grammatically possible, but would make little sense as it might imply that he may have climbed only part of Everest without oxygen.
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[1] He was the first person to climb Everest without oxygen.
[2] It was the first trial stemming from the Russia investigation.
The infinitival in [1] is a relative clause modifying "person", cf. the first person who could climb Everest without oxygen. Replacing it with a participial one is grammatically possible, but wou
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