Friday, June 29, 2012

word order - What goes first: Sometimes, I bring X (1)'with me' (2)'to Y'?




  1. Is one of the following constructions incorrect?

  2. If not, do they differ semantically in any way, even if only mildly so?




    • Sometimes, I bring my lunch to work with me.

    • Sometimes, I bring my lunch with me to work





Usually, I prefer fewer words between 'to' and its complement. However, I don't actually know whether, or how, the arrangement of the words affects the meaning of the sentence or whether some people regard some common arrangements as incorrect.



Edit: Although, thinking about it now, 'I bring' entails 'with me'; perhaps I should just write Sometimes, I bring my lunch to work.



Thank you.


Answer



In the example you give, both phrases to work and with me are adverbial phrases modifying the verb bring. In this example, changing the word order does not create ambiguity, because neither phrase is likely to be misconstrued to refer to some other part of the sentence.


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