I am not sure which one is the correct one:
A: I am hungry of knowledge.
B: I hunger of knowledge.
C: I am hungry for knowledge.
D: I hunger for knowledge.
But my feeling says that A and B are the correct ones.
asked Jan 12, 2011 at 2:00
Add a comment
|
3 Answers
The correct preposition is for. One is hungry for knowledge. One can also hunger for it.
C and D are both correct. However, "I hunger for" is not a common usage (writing as an Australian of British origin).
-
1Yet "hunger for" is perfectly acceptable. It may not be colloquial or something you hear every day, but it's not weird of awkward.– RobustoCommented Jan 12, 2011 at 2:29
-
2"I Hunger for" is used widely, though it is far more common to say "I have a thirst for", particularly used with knowledge; "he has a thirst for knowledge".– OrblingCommented Jan 12, 2011 at 3:19
-
3Strangely, I think it actually only sounds awkward if you say "I hunger for spaghetti" or some other actual food. If you use it metaphorically, "hunger for" doesn't sound awkward or overly stuffy. Gotta love language! Commented Jan 12, 2011 at 3:57
-
1@Kosmonaut: I suspect that metaphoric usage often stays alive longer than literal usage. Just as many of our abstract words have concrete roots that are long forgotten. Commented Jan 12, 2011 at 5:40
-
1@Cerberus, @Kosmonaut: Well, I rarely hunger or thirst for things I don't have, but I often yearn for them. Sometimes I lust after them, but that's another matter entirely ...– RobustoCommented Jan 12, 2011 at 14:36
A and B are incorrect. C and D are both correct, choose which one looks better in the sentence as their meaning is practically the same.. just different verb tenses :)
-
1Right, but note that they are both in the present tense. Commented Jan 12, 2011 at 2:35
-
2I think the difference you are looking for is that hungry is an adjective and hunger is a verb. Commented Jan 12, 2011 at 3:56