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Glenn Toko Posted 13 years ago
Grammar
Why is the human different to other living things?
Why is the human different to other living things? What is wrong with using "the human" in this phrase. I assume the question is not referring to a particular human.
I want to explain this to my childs English teacher here in Ecuador, but I can't explain why it is wrong
Here is what I have got so far. but I am not sure if I am right or am saying it right.
You should not say "the human" unless you are refering to a particular human
An Alien might say, What is the human doing?
the other times you might use "the human is when it is used in a "noun phrase"
the human condition
the human body
a human being
you can see a discusion about this here but I have not gotten a satifactory answer
http://forum.wordreference.com/showthread.php?t=2712545
I want to explain this to my childs English teacher here in Ecuador, but I can't explain why it is wrong
Here is what I have got so far. but I am not sure if I am right or am saying it right.
You should not say "the human" unless you are refering to a particular human
An Alien might say, What is the human doing?
the other times you might use "the human is when it is used in a "noun phrase"
the human condition
the human body
a human being
you can see a discusion about this here but I have not gotten a satifactory answer
http://forum.wordreference.com/showthread.php?t=2712545
Top answer
Why is the human different to other living things? I wouldn't say this use of 'the human' is wrong, but I would say it is not natural, not idiomatic, particularly when compared to the plural word 'thing s '. Natural things to say include eg Why are human beings different .
- Why is the human different to other living things?
- I wouldn't say this use of 'the human' is wrong, but I would say it is not natural, not idiomatic, particularly when compared to the plural word 'thing s '.
- Natural things to say include eg Why are human beings different .
- .
- eg Why are humans different .
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3 Answers
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Why is the human different to other living things?
I wouldn't say this use of 'the human' is wrong, but I would say it is not natural, not idiomatic, particularly when compared to the plural word 'things'.
Natural things to say include
eg Why are human beings different
I wouldn't say this use of 'the human' is wrong, but I would say it is not natural, not idiomatic, particularly when compared to the plural word 'things'.
Natural things to say include
eg Why are human beings different
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I agree
You could say, "Why is the human different from every other living thing?", and it sounds OK to me.
You could say, "Why is the human different from every other living thing?", and it sounds OK to me.
CliveI assume you don't also want a discussion of different from/to/than.Nope I have heard that on WordRef and did learn that "to" is preferred in England, However, it sounds very awkward in this sentence in American English. Thanks
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Why is the human (being) different than other living things?
How is the elephant different from the woolly mammoth?
The sentences above are OK.
Usually "human being" is used for the species "**** sapiens," but human is acceptable.
How is the elephant different from the woolly mammoth?
The sentences above are OK.
Usually "human being" is used for the species "**** sapiens," but human is acceptable.
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