Are the two usages both correct? Personally, I'd prefer
take something into account
but I have heard some professors and academic textbook authors prefer
take into account something.
Am I good to use what I prefer or the latter one is more correct?
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2The second one is incorrect.– n00bCommented Dec 16, 2013 at 17:54
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"taking into account <something>", however, is prevalent. Eg. "Taking into account the rebound in the grey wolf population, ..."– Roddy of the Frozen PeasCommented Dec 16, 2013 at 18:37
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1@n00b I must disagree, at least in informal speech: When planning your commute, you need to take into account the time of year as well as the time of day.– chosterCommented Dec 16, 2013 at 19:43
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Many dictionaries include phrases like this. For example: take someone or something into account and take into account someone or something– aedia λCommented Dec 16, 2013 at 21:57
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1 Answer
"Take X into account" generally works better when X is not a lengthy expression. "Take into account X" generally works better when X is long enough that the reader might have lost the sense of "take" by the time "into account" rolls around. The less experienced the likely reader, the shorter the maximum length of X before it ought to appear after "into account" rather than before. The same is true of other idiomatic expressions constructed this way.
answered Dec 17, 2013 at 22:44
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This sounds reasonable, and I came to the same conclusion as a non-native speaker. However is such position officially upheld by grammaticians? Commented Jan 25, 2018 at 18:55