The man watched his child play/playing in the park.

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The man watched his child play in the park.
The man watched his child playing in the park.

Are both sentences correct? If so, is there a difference in meaning?

Thanks.

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Both are correct; there is little difference in meaning - many would say they are equivalent, although an exact speaker might say that the first implies he is focusing on the son, the second that he is focusing on the playing.

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@centrox,

centrox wrote:

Both are correct; there is little difference in meaning - may would say they are equivalent, although an exact speaker might say that the first implies he is focusing on the son, the second that he is focusing on the playing.

Thank you.

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@centrox,

centrox wrote:

may would say they are equivalent

A typing error - that's "many would say".

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@centrox,

centrox wrote:

centrox wrote:
may would say they are equivalent

A typing error - that's "many would say".

No problem, centrox. I noticed that.

1 Reply

@tanguatlay,

The man watched his child play in the park.
The father watched his child play in the park.

I have replaced "man" with "father" in the second sentence. Does it make the relationship between the man and the child clearer?

Thanks.

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@tanguatlay,

tanguatlay wrote:

I have replaced "man" with "father" in the second sentence. Does it make the relationship between the man and the child clearer?

No, it doesn't. The relationship is made absolutely clear in the first sentence. The only man who can watch his child is the child's father. I suppose if you want to imply that the man is having fatherly feelings while watching his child, you might prefer to use 'father' instead of 'man'.

The man watched his child play/playing in the park.

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