Which sentence is correct and formal?

[Murphy0918]

Here are two sentences.
1. He has a dream to go picnicking with his family near the lake.
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2. He has a dream to go picnicking near the lake with his family.
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Which is correct and formal?
Give me some adivice.
Thanks!

[Jamie (K)]

Both of them sound bad because of the collocation "he has a dream to".

You should say, "He has a dream of" + gerund, or "He dreams of" + gerund.

[Alan]

Hi Murphy,

I believe that it would be more appropriate to say: He has this dream to .. if you really want to use the infinitive but I agree that 'of' + gerund is the right construction. I assume that you were also asking about word order but I don't think it makes any difference in which order you put 'with his family' or 'near the lake.'

Alan
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English as a Second Language
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[Murphy0918]

[Murphy0918]

[Sahid59]

better it should be.." He has a dream to go on picnicking with his family near the lake.."
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Sahid59

Better tomorrow with better English

[Esl_Expert]

Hello Sahid59,

The word "picnic" can be used as a noun or as a verb. Your sentence contains the -ing form of the verb "picnic".

You can use the word "picnic" as a noun this way: "go on a picnic".
That more or less means the same thing as "attend a picnic" or "have a picnic". You can use the noun "picnic" in a sentence this way, for example:

We are planning to go on a picnic.
He dreams of going on a picnic.

However, you have used the -ing form of the verb "to picnic" in your sentence. When "go on" is followed by the -ing form of a verb, then "go on" means "continue". Adding the word "on" to Murphy's sentence changes the meaning. In your sentence, "go on" would mean "continue".

[Jamie (K)]

[Sahid59]

I am sorry Jamie..it shoud be .." He has a dream to go on a picnic with his family near the lake.." is this right..? I appreciate your close following of the subject matters..
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Sahid59

Better tomorrow with better English

[Sahid59]

but you could have used some polite language instead..

that is.." avoid correcting people's English.." would be a better preference...Am I right..?[
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Sahid59

Better tomorrow with better English

[Sahid59]

dear Esl expert..

thanks you for the complete explanation for my misunderstanding..I am very grateful to the people with real intention for correcting the mistakes of others other than just arguing..[/quote]
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Sahid59

Better tomorrow with better English

[Torsten]

Hi Sahid,

Of course it is important to be polite to other forum members. As you know, this part of the forum is for people who want answers to specific grammar or vocabulary questions. Now, if somebody answers such a question by making very basic punctuation and grammar mistakes the person who asked the question gets even more confused than before. If you are not sure about your answer, why not just ask another question instead of giving an answer yourself?

Since English is not my native language I frequently post grammar or other questions here on the forum to learn from experienced native speakers. In addition to myself a lot of other learners of English read the answers to my questions so they can learn something new too. This means, other learners of English often benefit more if I ask a question than if I answer one. As you can see, there are native speakers here on the forum who are confident and competent enough to answer our questions.

Please let me know what you think.
Many thanks,
Torsten

TOEIC listening, photographs: Ready to cook

[Jamie (K)]

[Iwanna]

Hi, Sahid59,

You have a warm heart, I really appreciate that. But, with all due respect, I'd say correcting learners' English is far beyond web chatting. Many times I felt that I was also able to give a good answer to some simpler question, but almost every time the explanations given by native speakers proved me wrong. For many tougher questions, even a native speaker cannot easily cope with them unless he/she is knowledgeable about English language and well-experienced in teaching English. I have learnt a great deal from the question askings and answerings here. With the dedication of all these great teachers like Jamie (K)，Alan, Mr Micawber，etc., this site has become a really great place for us learners to improve our English.

Iwanna