SC Practice question #3

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by simba12123 » Thu Nov 06, 2008 3:33 pm
Karen thank you. I understand that subjunctive mood does require the word THAT. However, in order to please the subjunctive requirement we are stampeding over the REQUIRE X TO DO Y idiom. IT seems that two rules are overlapping here. Hence, a needed hierarchy of rules?

THe reason I am a stickler on this is because I am clearly ruling out a blatant grammar violation. WEll atleast I thought I was.

Thanks in advance.
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by Karen » Fri Nov 07, 2008 12:10 pm
It's not a matter of a hierarchy of rules or stepping on an idiom. Some verbs can be used in two or three patterns, while others can be used in only one. To take a simple example, you can say "He gave me the book" or "He gave the book to me." The verb 'give' can be used in either pattern. But 'donate' can't be used that way -- you can say "I donated the book to the library" but not "I donated the library the book."

Each verb comes with its own set of permissible patterns, and "require" has at least 3. There's no hierarchy among them, though. You simply have to know that you can say either "require him to do it" or "require that he do it." Or, as in this case, "require of him that such-and-such be done."
Karen van Hoek, PhD
Verbal Specialist

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