What's the difference between these two expressions:
Mike brought his guitar.
Mike brought his guitar with him.
How does "with him" change the meaning of the sentence?
asked Feb 26, 2011 at 16:36
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I'm asking this for my student who is studying English as a second language, so this is more of a linguistics question. It is hard for me to explain to a foreigner what exactly the "with him" is doing.– Joshua RobisonFeb 26, 2011 at 17:16
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3 Answers
'With him' may be used to emphasize 'at the moment'. E.g. 'Does he have his guitar?' May be interpreted more ambiguously than 'Does he have his guitar with him?'.
When using 'brought', the assumption that it is 'with him' is a pretty safe one to make, but occasionally people will automatically add the redundant 'with him' without realizing it's unnecessary.
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1Oddly enough, I would interpret the "with him" version as less specific: if Mike is in a foreign city, saying "he has his guitar" implies it's in or near his hand, while "he has his guitar with him" could mean the instrument is up in his hotel room.– MarthaªFeb 27, 2011 at 18:36
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LOL! Why his hand? Such assumptions can be very dangerous... "Look out! He's got his guitar!", now that implies it's in his hand! And possibly holding it over his head by its neck... Of course given such preconditions like being in a hotel in a foreign city, context often changes meaning or interpretation. Feb 27, 2011 at 21:22
It seems completely unnecessary because it is completely unnecessary. I don't think it could ever add anything useful except in the unlikely instance that there were other ways Mike could have brought his guitar and the speaker desperately needs to distinguish among them.
Listen, the thing is, people, like, often decorate their speech with, like, meaningless, er, decorations. Innit. Know what I mean?
