I'm loving it! ....correct or incorrect? When we study English grammar we learn about stative and action verbs. Stative verbs (for example: like, love, want, prefer, know, understand,...) describe sta

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I'm loving it! ....correct or incorrect?

When we study English grammar we learn about stative and action verbs. Stative verbs (for example: like, love, want, prefer, know, understand,...) describe states and cannot be used in continuous forms.

Therefore, it is incorrect to say " I'm wanting to stay" or "I'm loving it".

However, I have heard some people (mainly Americans) using these expressions. They say that it is a way to add emphasis and that you even sound more natural.

My question is: is this usage of the language considered good or bad grammar depending on the region?

And the second point. If you consider that it is bad grammar, why do you think it is used in advertising (MacDonalds, for example)? Just to attract more customers?

12 Ağu 2019 15:03

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Ana, can I make one thing clear? "I'm loving it" is not a grammar mistake. As Greg and @tempus have explained, it's just a way of saying that you are enjoying something. As an expression, "I'm loving it" is relatively informal, but it is not 'bad grammar', and there is no reason for you to avoid it. Look, I am really not the kind of person who makes grammar mistakes, and yet I'd happily say "I'm loving it" if someone asks me how I'm enjoying my new kitchen layout.

Please don't think that the rules of grammar were handed down on tablets of stone for us to follow like slaves or ignore at our peril. What you see in your grammar books is just a way of explaining patterns of language in the real world, and sometimes it's imperfect.

This is particularly the case with the concept of stative and dynamic verbs, the 'rules' of which are often very misleading indeed. Students (together with some inexperienced teachers) tend to take idea of stative and dynamic verbs far too literally. Students are often given the wrong impression that there are strict rules governing the use of the words themselves, rather than the meaning.

For example, you can see that "Lemons taste sour" and "She's tasting the soup to see if it needs salt" are different meanings of the same word, can't you? Well, the fact is that almost ALL the verbs which you see in the list entitled 'Stative Verbs' in your grammar book can, at times, be used in a sense which refers to an action or temporary situation. "I love Thai food" is a constant fact, so we use a simple tense; "I'm staying in Thailand at the moment. The traffic is terrible, but I'm loving the food" refers to something that you're particularly enjoying at the moment, so we use a continuous tense. Remember - it's about the meaning, not the word itself.

btw: Advertising campaigns do often use non-standard grammar to attract attention, but that's another story.

13 Ağustos 2019

OK, I'm sorry if I said something which you already knew. Anyway, I hope that my explanation is useful for other italki members who might be confused about stative verbs.

Seeing my answer wasn't so helpful after all, I'll answer your other questions:

<ul><li>No, there's no regional difference.</li><li>Have you noticed how advertising slogans these days often use adjectives instead of nouns? e.g. 'Find your fabulous'. https://theweek.com/articles/447030/how-advertisers-trick-brain-by-turning-adjectives-into-nouns</li></ul>;

13 Ağustos 2019

As an English speaker from the UK, in my opinion you could add the continuous form to any of those “static” verbs and it would make sense, depending on the situation!

13 Ağustos 2019

As an American, I can confirm 'I'm loving it' is a common phrase, and also grammatically incorrect.

'love' is an action verb. In the above sentence it is being in a stative sense. McDonald's popularized the expression, using it as their slogan.

Some verbs can function as both action verbs and stative verbs.

Here are some examples:

BE

<ul><li>Stative:</li><li>He is immature. (he is always immature)</li><li>Action:</li><li>He is being immature. (he is temporarily acting immature)</li></ul>

HAVE

<ul><li>Stative: possession</li><li>I have a car. He has a dog.</li><li>Action: expressions with “have”</li><li>I’m having breakfast (eating breakfast).</li><li>He’s having fun (experiencing fun).</li></ul>

SEE

<ul><li>Stative: perception with your eyes; understanding</li><li>I see some birds.</li><li>I see what you mean.</li><li>Action: meet; have a relationship with</li><li>I’ll be seeing the doctor tomorrow.</li><li>They’ve been seeing each other for a month.</li></ul>

LOOK

<ul><li>Stative: appearance</li><li>That cake looks delicious!</li><li>Action: directing your eyes to something; phrasal verbs</li><li>He’s looking at the computer screen.</li><li>She’s looking for (= seeking) a job. </li><li>They’re looking after (= taking care of) my dog for the weekend.</li></ul>

SMELL / TASTE

<ul><li>Stative: the quality of smell or taste possessed by something</li><li>The bar smells of smoke.</li><li>This meat tastes like chicken.</li><li>Action: when a person uses their nose or mouth to test something</li><li>He’s smelling the cookies.</li><li>She’s tasting the soup to see if it needs more salt.</li></ul>

THINK / FEEL

<ul><li>Stative: when talking about your opinion</li><li>I think that’s a great idea!</li><li>I feel that this is not the best use of our time.</li><li>Action: when using your mind, or experiencing emotions or health issues</li><li>We’re thinking about moving to another city.</li><li>I’ve been feeling unusually tired lately.</li></ul>

WEIGH / MEASURE

<ul><li>Stative: when talking about the quality possessed by something</li><li>The suitcase weighs 20 pounds.</li><li>The surfboard measures 2 meters by 55 centimeters.</li><li>Action: when a person performs the action of weighing/measuring something</li><li>The butcher is weighing the meat on the scale.</li><li>The architects were measuring the distance between the pillars.</li></ul>

13 Ağustos 2019