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Earlier today, I read a sentence that said:

This medication can even cure HIV.

The context was very simple, the medication has many uses to the point it could cure a currently incurable disease, however, shouldn't it be rewritten as "this medication can cure even HIV" to stress the fact that it is capable of doing that? I looked up "even" in the dictionary and most use it straight after the word "can", is that the only grammatically correct use?

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    Could you please take a moment to look through these and see if you don't find an explanation.
    – Cascabel_StandWithUkraine_
    Commented Jul 25, 2018 at 22:05
  • 2
    On an English language and usage site, questions that ignore basic punctuation protocols - capitalising the first word of a sentence and the word "I", and not having a space between a colon or question mark and the preceding word - risk an adverse reaction from readers. You might like to edit your question accordingly :-)
    – Chappo Hasn't Forgotten
    Commented Jul 25, 2018 at 22:21
  • "... can even ..." basically means "in addition to all that other stuff I just said".
    – Hot Licks
    Commented Jul 25, 2018 at 22:36
  • "... most use it straight after the word "can", is that the only grammatically correct use?" It is the more commonly used form, though both are grammatically correct, and more importantly, in almost all cases mean exactly the same. This is one of several instances where such inversion takes place for idiomatic reasons (idiomatic in the sense just because everyone says it that way). See previous related posts.
    – Kris
    Commented Jul 26, 2018 at 7:19
  • There's a subtle but critical difference in context. Either version can mean "this medicine can cure almost any disease, it can cure even HIV", with an emphasis on HIV being one of many things cured. However, "this medicine not only alleviates symptoms of the disease, it can even cure HIV" doesn't make sense as "this medicine not only alleviates symptoms of the disease, it can cure even HIV".
    – jimm101
    Commented Jul 26, 2018 at 12:25

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There is a slight semantic difference between:

This drug can cure even HIV.

This drug can even cure HIV.

In the former, the meaning likely is that the drug can cure many diseases--even HIV!

In the latter, the meaning could be the same as the former. Or it could convey that not only can this drug lessen HIV symptoms, but it has potential to cure it as well. Meaning can be determined from context. It's not usually necessary to be exceedingly precise when context is clear.

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  • The second sentence could also mean that the drug can do many things, one of which is cure cancer. (Consider: Doc Snaycoil's miracle liniment will make tough cuts of meat tender, turn lazy kids into studious ones, and will help your crops grow twice as fast! Why, it'll even cure HIV!)
    – Roger Sinasohn
    Commented Jul 25, 2018 at 23:27
  • In the first sentence, cure is not part of what even applies to so the HIV is one of multiple things that the drug will cure. In the second, cure is part of it, so it might be that it can have varying effects on HIV or it can do multiple tasks, one of which is cure HIV.
    – Roger Sinasohn
    Commented Jul 25, 2018 at 23:31
  • How is that any different from what I wrote? I clearly stated two meanings are possible in the second sentence.
    – Talmage
    Commented Jul 25, 2018 at 23:36

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