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 Wed Feb 01, 2006 11:23 am Look forward |
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Hi Fabrice,
This construction: look forward to doing is the accepted form and the infinitive to hear is a well known error made by writers to whom English is a foreign/second language.
Alan
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Alan
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| Fri Feb 03, 2006 6:02 am Look forward |
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| Alan wrote: | | This construction: look forward to doing is the accepted form and the infinitive to hear is a well known error made by writers to whom English is a foreign/second language. |
Fabrice --
I agree with Alan, but I would say that (at least in some countries) many native English speakers make the same mistake, and you can even hear the error in advertisements.
Their confusion has to do with whether the word "to" would be the first word of the infinitive or a preposition. It's a preposition, so it has to be followed by a gerund form of the verb or some other type of noun phrase.
In any case, I'd judge this as a mistake, whether from a native speaker or foreign speaker, and I'd take it as relatively indicative of their command of English grammar. |
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Jamie (K)
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| Fri Feb 03, 2006 9:34 am Look forward to hear from you? |
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Hello Alan and Jamie, thanks a lot for your answers. Mind you, this mistake was made by a person who was seeking a position as an English language teacher/trainer in our company. I have often noticed that many of the free lance English trainers here in Paris frequently make spelling or grammar mistakes and I attribute this to the fact that most of those people have not studied to become English teachers. What do you think about this?
Fabrice
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toeic
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| Fri Feb 03, 2006 13:25 pm Mistakes |
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Hi Fabrice,
All I can say is that the mistake over 'look forward ..' would indicate that the writer is not a native speaker/writer of English. It's not like a spelling mistake or careless writing or in fact a sign of not being trained. I would suggest, if I might, that you should find a reason for seeing some further evidence of this person's written English.
Alan
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Alan
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| Sat Feb 04, 2006 7:01 am Look forward to hear from you? |
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| toeic wrote: | | Mind you, this mistake was made by a person who was seeking a position as an English language teacher/trainer in our company. I have often noticed that many of the free lance English trainer here in Paris frequently make spelling or grammar mistakes and I attribute this to the fact that most of those people have not studied to become English teachers. What do you think about this? |
Fabrice, the first thing that occurs to any anglophone backpacker who is abroad, and wants to stay in a place longer, is that he or she can teach English. Because of the dismal state of the average person's English education in the US (I don't know about the UK), many people who want to teach English not only don't know how to teach English, but don't even know English that well. In the early '90s, some East European countries naively hired many such people, and they caused so many problems that for a while a lot of schools in the Czech Republic, for example, would not let any native speaker teach an English grammar class, no matter how qualified he or she was.
Alan, during my years as a proofreader, I had to correct that "look forward to do" error scores of times in the writing of native English speakers. At least in North America, it's not an indication that the person is a non-native speaker, but just one that they don't know English. |
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Jamie (K)
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| Mon Mar 13, 2006 12:10 pm Look forward to hear from you? |
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Hey everybody,
I look forward to your answer
Is this right?
Thanks
Spencer |
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spencer
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| Thu Oct 26, 2006 13:47 pm Look forward to hear from you? |
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| As they say, Spencer, silence gives consent. I'd still like to point out that you 'look forward to something' (i.e. a noun) so you're right, you can say 'I look forward to your answer'. In business correspondence, though, the usual phrase is 'I look forward to hearing from you' -- the gerund 'hearing' being used like a noun. |
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Conchita
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| Sun Aug 19, 2007 20:25 pm Look forward to hear from you? |
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| Thanks for this clarifications |
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zillah
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| Mon Aug 20, 2007 12:59 pm Look forward to hear from you? |
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Hi Zillah,
Your sentence should read: Thanks for clarifying this. or Thanks for the clarification.
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Torsten
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| Sat Mar 15, 2008 9:39 am Post subject: Look forward to hear from you? |
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I look forward to my next birthday party.
I am looking forward to my next birthday party.
Is there any mistake in those sentences?
Debasish |
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djoardar1969
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| Sat Mar 15, 2008 10:43 am Look forward to hear from you? |
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Hi,
No, they are both fine. The use of the continuous 'looking forward' suggests greater immediacy.
Alan
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