3

I have these confusions sometimes. Firstly, which among the following are grammatically correct to use in sentences-

  1. She would certainly have loved that.
  2. She would have certainly loved that.
  3. She certainly would have loved that.

Can you provide a sentence each for the correct one(s)? If any of them is wrong please enlighten the reason. Secondly if they are correct for specific sentence patterns then please elaborate with an example.

|improve this question
  • They're all possible. It might be preferable if you were you to provide sample sentences yourself so that we can see exactly what your concern is. – Barrie England Jul 1 '12 at 7:38
  • 1
    All three are good. The meanings are identical. Number 2 might be slightly less common than 1 and 3; but it's not incorrect. – user16269 Jul 1 '12 at 8:17
3

The contracted forms (2 and 3) are typical of speech and informal writing. Some contractions are found in formal writing, but not, on the whole, the contracted forms of have. That apart, all three are grammatical and mean much the same thing, but with slight differences of emphasis. In speech, the differences can be signalled by changes in stress. Which is chosen will depend on what has gone on previously in the conversation.

|improve this answer
  • The contractions were actually me being lazy and I'm sorry for that. Having said that, I'm confused to choose any of them. Which one, according to you, seems more appropriate for speech and writing? which one would you pick, regardless of them being almost same? – BRKsays Jul 1 '12 at 8:18
  • @BRKsays: As I said, it all depends on what has been said previously. But there really isn't much difference. If you want to be on the safe side, then in writing I don't think anyone could object to the first of your three. – Barrie England Jul 1 '12 at 8:32
  • They're all contracted in speech -- nobody says /hæv/ in any of these 3 constructions (which are all fine, by the way, and equivalent in meaning) when they can just say /əv/ or just /ə/. Whether the speech gets recorded in formal spelling is a matter of purpose and audience. – John Lawler Jul 1 '12 at 16:58
-1

I think 3 is best form because:

  1. Not a split verb
  2. Just sounds cleaner and more precise to me
|improve this answer

Your Answer

By clicking “Post Your Answer”, you agree to our terms of service, privacy policy and cookie policy

Not the answer you're looking for? Browse other questions tagged or ask your own question.