2
   

the person leaving and the person to leave

Forums: English, Esl, Grammar
Email this Topic • Print this Page
 
 
SMickey
 
Reply Tue 28 Jul, 2015 06:42 pm
How are you?

I had a test days ago, and one question is still bothering me.
Could you take a look at this?

The person ( ) the classroom last should turn off the light.

The choices given were,
A. leaving
B. to leave

The answer was A - leaving.

And I wondered 'Why not B? What makes 'to leave' sound awkward there?
My guess is 'the person to leave' is 'the person who is supposed to leave' or 'the person who is going to leave', so the sentence could be understood

The person who is supposed to leave the classroom last should turn off the light.
Does this sound still rather weird?

Would you please let me know if the sentence - The person to leave the classroom last should turn off the light - sounds awkward?

I'd appreciate any comment from you.
  • Topic Stats
  • Top Replies
  • Link to this Topic
Type: Question • Score: 2 • Views: 516 • Replies: 3
No top replies

 
View best answer, chosen by SMickey
Ragman
  Selected Answer
 
  2  
Reply Tue 28 Jul, 2015 08:10 pm
@SMickey,
A is a better choice, IMHO. Perhaps you should ask your teacher/prof why B is wrong.

This is not one of the test choices but ..the way it is most likely to be spoken is the following:

"The last person leaving the classroom should turn off the light."

I disagree that B is a wrong choice; however, I'm not grading your test.

SMickey
 
  1  
Reply Thu 30 Jul, 2015 07:41 pm
@Ragman,
Thanks for then answer.

I'm thinking of going to the teacher, a Korean, and say
what makes you decide B is wrong
when a native speaker says he finds nothing wrong with it.
I hope he might not slap me in the face out of shame, lol.

Thank you again Ragman.
0 Replies
 
ehBeth
 
  1  
Reply Thu 13 Aug, 2015 08:25 am
@SMickey,
SMickey wrote:
Would you please let me know if the sentence - The person to leave the classroom last should turn off the light - sounds awkward?


yes, it sounds awkward

it does not sound like native English - it looks like a translation test trick. all the right words for the sentence are there - but in the wrong order.
0 Replies
 
 

Related Topics

deal - Question by WBYeats
Expert help needed: pronoun form following main verb before a gerund - Question by adavis444
Let pupils abandon spelling rules, says academic - Discussion by Robert Gentel
Please, I need help. - Question by imsak
Do you understand what "Transition overground" means? - Question by Alexander7
Is this sentence grammatically correct? - Question by Sydney-Strock
"come from" - Question by mcook
Is this paragraph incomprehensible? Would you suggest an edit? - Question by tamara123454
Does this sentence make any sense in English? - Question by estherara
Could someone review my assignment? - Question by kair0s
concentrated - Question by WBYeats
 
  1. Forums
  2. » the person leaving and the person to leave
Copyright © 2025 MadLab, LLC :: Terms of Service :: Privacy Policy :: Page generated in 0.03 seconds on 01/30/2025 at 08:38:41
▲ ▼