I think I saw some ordinary adverbs modifying the infinitive in front of the infinitive marker 'to', which were not 'not' nor 'never'. Is this usage of adverbs standard? (I thought you wouldn't need any examples.)
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1Please give examples. What did you see, and where?– XanneAug 16, 2020 at 3:28
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2If you choose not to split the infinitive, the adverb usually goes after the verb, not before. E.g. "to go boldly" rather than "boldly to go".– BarmarAug 16, 2020 at 5:10
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1Does this answer your question? Are split infinitives grammatically incorrect, or are they valid constructs?– Edwin AshworthAug 16, 2020 at 13:43
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Thank you, sir. Then are ordinary adverbs(not 'not') modifying infinitive verbs before the marker 'to' ever used?– Kim Hui-jeongAug 17, 2020 at 6:01
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1 Answer
The usage (To clearly perceive) is not regarded as standard by many editors, but is undoubtedly common (see the humorous https://www.theguardian.com/science/shortcuts/2017/sep/25/to-boldly-go-split-infinitive-grammatical-error-research).
A full discussion is at http://www.lel.ed.ac.uk/grammar/splitinf.html
The rule that an infinitive should not be split is arbitrary, unnecessarily inhibiting, and does not reflect common usage.
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Thank you, sir. Then are ordinary adverbs(not 'not') modifying infinitive verbs before the marker 'to' ever used? Aug 17, 2020 at 5:59