We are none of us perfect
Hello, everyone,
While I've often seen "None of us is exactly alike", “None of us is perfect”, can I say, "We are none of us exactly alike", “We are none of us perfect” as per the reference below? I assume the latter version might emphasize the subject as an emphatic reflexive, but feel those are awkward and ungrammatical. I would really appreciate if you advise me if the latter ones make sense and how you, natives evaluate those in terms of grammar.
* reference; https://idioms.thefreedictionary.com/We+are+none+of+us+perfect
Top answer
deepcosmos "None of us is exactly alike" That doesn't actually work. No two of us are exactly alike. You need two things to have alikeness.
- deepcosmos "None of us is exactly alike" That doesn't actually work.
- No two of us are exactly alike.
- You need two things to have alikeness.
- deepcosmos can I say, "We are none of us exactly alike" For the same reason, this doesn't work, either.
- The "we are none of us" part is fine, but the whole statement doesn't make sense.
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deepcosmos"None of us is exactly alike"
That doesn't actually work. No two of us are exactly alike. You need two things to have alikeness.
deepcosmoscan I say, "We are none of us exactly alike"
For the same reason, this doesn't work, either. The "we are none of us" part is fine, but the whole statement doesn't make
0"We are none of us" is a less used variant of "None of us is/are". ("We are all of us" is another phrase in the same mold, by the way.)
The meaning is the same either way. The variant version seems perhaps a bit more formal in register, but I don't think there is any attempt to emphasize anything by using it. Personally, I don't think I've heard anyone use it in conversation more than
0
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