绑德sings
Nice to meet you, native English speakers. Sorry to disturb again. Fortunately, to tell the truth , my query is just related to really three sentence, but all my question, depending on which (which= three sentences above), accidentally adds up to six. 1a. She looked up in surprise. 1b. She looked up with surprise. Which is grammatically correct? Do both have the same meaning? 2a. They couldn't conceal their surprise at seeing us together. 2b. They couldn't conceal their surprise seeing us together. 2c. Seeing us together, they couldn't conceal their surprise. Which is grammatically correct? Do theyhave the same meaning? 3. When a man goes back to look at the house of his childhood, it has always shrunk: there is no instance of such a house being as big as the picture in memory and imagination call for. Question: Is this sentence grammatically correct? I really don't understand how to understand the "the picture in memory and imagination call for" by grammar because the subject "picture" is single , but its verb"call for = (demand)" is plural , I guess the verb "calls for" should have grammatically correct.
Apr 9, 2025 10:43 AM
Answers · 4
1. Both are good. I prefer "in" because "surprise" is a state she is "in". Like being "in love", or "in haste", "surprise" describes an enveloping circumstance. "With" is better if you want to describe her "look" rather than her, as in "a surprised look". 2. All are good. In (a), "seeing" is a noun. In the others, "seeing" is an adjective. I prefer (c) to (b) because in (c) the adjective is placed close to the pronoun it modifies, "they". But (b) and (c) have exactly the same meaning. 3. You are right to be confused by "call for". It's not a good choice of words. Memories don't "call for" anything. Rather, they "recall" something. It becomes a good sentence if you either omit "call for" or change the sentence to read "as the picture in memory that it recalls" ("it" refers to "house")
Apr 9, 2025 11:31 AM
1a. "She looked up in surprise." → This is idiomatic and more natural. "In surprise" means the manner in which she looked up (like "in anger" or "in confusion"). 1b. "She looked up with surprise." → This is grammatically correct but slightly less idiomatic. It’s still understandable and acceptable, but "in surprise" is more common and fluid in native usage. Meaning: Both mean the same, but 1a sounds more natural. --- 2a vs. 2b 2a. "They couldn't conceal their surprise at seeing us together." → This is correct and natural. The phrase "at seeing us together" explains the cause of their surprise. 2b. "They couldn't conceal their surprise seeing us together." → Grammatically possible but slightly awkward. It sounds like “surprise seeing us together” is one concept, which can feel less precise. Meaning: Both express a similar idea, but 2a is clearer and better structured.
Apr 9, 2025 4:11 PM
Invitee
1. Both "she looked up in surprise" and "she looked up with surprise" are grammatically correct and commonly used, but "in surprise" is slightly more common and natural in this context. 2.
Apr 9, 2025 10:52 AM
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