Posted on 11/18/2024 8:47:25 AM PST by SeekAndFind
Star Wars fans might recall Obi-Wan’s Jedi mind trick in A New Hope when he tells stormtroopers, “These aren’t the droids you’re looking for.” Were Star Wars writers wrong about the placement of the preposition “for”? Should Obi-Wan instead have said, “These aren’t the droids for which you’re looking”? The latter sounds unnatural (and much more Yoda-esque, to be honest). Situations like these have caused grammar reformers to question or outright rebel against this “rule” about not ending sentences with prepositions.
Prepositions explain one noun’s relation to another, often indicating where or when. They can tell you if a cat is above, below, beside, or under the bed, and they also indicate if the cat hid there before, during, or after dinner. Some argue against ending a sentence with a preposition because it indicates a relationship between two words. They reason that a sentence might seem unfinished if a second noun isn’t included after the preposition. However, ending a sentence with a preposition isn’t the grave grammar mistake that some make it out to be.
Consider this sentence: “The vase was on the table until the cat knocked it off.” Ending with the preposition “off” sounds natural. By the same token, “That’s what I’m talking about” sounds better than “That’s about which I’m talking,” and the structure of “I have no eggs to bake with” is more common than “I have no eggs with which to bake.” As you can see, context and structure matter.
However, just because it isn’t wrong doesn’t mean it’s always right. Sometimes, that ending preposition is redundant. Asking a friend, “Where are you at?” or “Where are you going to?” falls into this trap with unnecessary prepositions. “Where are you?” and “Where are you going?” are complete questions. To avoid this mistake, try removing the end preposition and see if the sentence still makes sense.
To give some context, the argument for the rule dates back to the 17th century. Grammarians tried to instill Latin preposition placement rules into English, resulting in some believing these were hard-and-fast English rules. In modern English, preposition placement comes down to writing style — there’s no need to adhere to an arbitrary centuries-old rule. Today, most grammar guides and syntax experts agree that ending a sentence with a preposition is OK if it sounds natural and doesn’t break any true grammar rules.
Ahh. The grammar Nazis here at FR have found the thread they’ve been looking for.
I love that one.
No. That would be silly. The correct statement is: “For sure, these aren’t the droids for which you’re looking for.” The rule is to use the preposition in the sentence as much as possible.
But then again, I got my degree in English from Faber College. So what do I know?
Now the snob is twice as offended, because the Southern Belle ended her last sentence with an adverb disguised as a misplaced modifier!!!
Reporting for duty, sir.
Now let’s tackle “could of went” usage.
“Ending a sentence with a preposition is something up with which I shall not put.” — Winston Churchill
NEVER use a preposition to end a sentence with!
Churchill said that this was a rule in English up with which he would not put.
Yes it is. I forget the exact reason but mainly has to do with not speaking, using, Latin anymore.
There is writing. Then there is colloquial conversation.
Aside from thing that make you sound ig’nant, speaking a few dangling prepositions is nothing to be hung for.
Try rewriting this sentence so there are no prepositions at the end:
What did you bring that book I did not want to be read to out of up for?
What is Rachel talking about?
Bill Buckley said years ago that it was OK to end a sentence with a preposition so I stopped feeling guilty about it. No better authority on the English language than Bill Buckley.
“ What did you bring that book I did not want to be read to out of up for?”
Why did you bring up the book I didn’t want read aloud?
I do it more frequently now than in the past. I feel a little guilty when I do, thinking back to my 8th grade English teacher who preached the rules of grammer and had us diagramming an endles number of sentences.
“Knowing that I did not want to be read to out of it, why did you bring up that book?”
Didn’t this argument start with two poets arguing about prose?
Not in proper English but in casual vernacular communication I think it’s fine
“Where are you at” is probably most common
We have so destroyed proper speech and reading
Google no longer calls the word (at) a preposition but rather a FUNCTION WORD
WTF is that?
And yes we curse more now
Openly
Public figures and podcasts and politicians
Trump uses the S word often lol
Megyn Kelly curses like a sailor
Imagine David Brinkley or Cronkite or Mudd saying (shit) on air lol
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