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Hans51 Posted 6 years ago
Grammar

Usage of to infinitives

Nepal has deployed its army special forces to help in the search for four hikers.


The function of ‘to help in the search for four hikers’ is like ‘I am here to see you’ and here ‘to see you’ functions as an adverb phrase or like ‘I have a friend to help me’ and here ‘to help me’ functions as an adjective phrase that modifies ‘a friend’.

Or both are possible and carry the same meaning in the end?

What do you native English speakers?

Thank you so much as usual.

  

Top answer

[1] Nepal has deployed its army special forces to help in the search for four hikers . [2] I have a friend to help me . Infinitival clauses have a wide range of functions, such as subject, complement, adjunct in clause, modifier in NP etc.

— BillJ

  • [1] Nepal has deployed its army special forces to help in the search for four hikers .
  • [2] I have a friend to help me .
  • Infinitival clauses have a wide range of functions, such as subject, complement, adjunct in clause, modifier in NP etc.
  • In your examples, the underlined infinitival clause in [1] functions as a purpose adjunct in clause structure.
  • In [2] it functions as an infinitival relative clause in noun phrase structure, where it modifies "friend".
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2 Answers
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[1] Nepal has deployed its army special forces to help in the search for four hikers.

[2] I have a friend to help me.


Infinitival clauses have a wide range of functions, such as subject, complement, adjunct in clause, modifier in NP etc. In your examples, the underlined infinitival clause in [1] functions as a purpose adjunct in clause structure. In

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Consider the infinitive "to go" in these sentences. There are many ways to use the to-infinitive.

1. Kem was talking on her cell phone in the movie theater. The manager asked her to go.
2. Kem decided to treat her team to lunch. She went to the local pizza place and got three 16-inch pizzas to go.
3. Kem's idea of a good time is to go

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