this post was submitted on 20 Sep 2024
394 points (93.8% liked)

196

16459 readers
1706 users here now

Be sure to follow the rule before you head out.

Rule: You must post before you leave.

^other^ ^rules^

founded 1 year ago
MODERATORS
 
you are viewing a single comment's thread
view the rest of the comments
[–] [email protected] 17 points 1 month ago (2 children)
[–] [email protected] 8 points 1 month ago (1 children)

It's a very common mistake. Probably one of those areas where English is just plain odd when compared to others.

[–] [email protected] 3 points 1 month ago (1 children)

I'd like to think of me as being a somewhat competent speaker of English (degree in English, written English heaps better than spoken, I'm sure), but some of these very small quirks are just something I've either never learned or hadn't bothered to remember lol

[–] [email protected] 2 points 1 month ago (1 children)

Many native English speakers don't know them. To them (myself included) it just doesn't "sound right" but I couldn't tell you why it's wrong.

[–] [email protected] 2 points 1 month ago* (last edited 1 month ago)

"like" needs an object for the comparison. Something can't just "look like", it has to look like something. "What" is an indirect reference to an object so you can say what it looks like.

"How" is a reference to an adjective or a description, so it doesn't need another word to make it a comparison. How does the cave look? It looks terrifying.

[–] [email protected] 19 points 1 month ago

If they know how to correct it, you’ve done alright.