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    • SPLIT INFINITIVES
    • SUBJECT and OBJECT
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    • AFFECT vs EFFECT
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SPLIT INFINITIVES

Split Infinitives
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infinitives
As a rule, it is best to avoid splitting infinitives whenever possible. The infinitive form of a verb is preceded by the particle 'to' ...

-   to skip
-   to swim
-   to laugh

To split the infinitive is to put an adverb between the 'to' and the 'verb'.  The adverb should go either before the verb or after it.

However, some people think that this is being pedantic.  Sometimes, splitting the infinitive makes for a more powerful statement:

-   'To boldly go' has a greater impact than 'to go boldly'.  You may recognise this from Star Trek!

The ‘rule’ against splitting infinitives isn’t followed as strictly today as it used to be. Nevertheless, some people do object very strongly to them. As a result, it’s safest to avoid split infinitives in formal writing, unless the alternative wording seems very clumsy or would alter the meaning of your sentence.
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                      www.oxforddictionaries.com

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Copyright © 2015
  • Home
  • GRAMMAR
    • ADJECTIVES and ADVERBS
    • ANTONYMS and SYNONYMS
    • CLAUSES
    • CONJUNCTIONS
    • GENDER
    • HOMOGRAPHS / HOMONYMS/HOMOPHONES
    • IDIOMS and METAPHORS
    • INTERJECTIONS and EXCLAMATIONS
    • NOUNS
    • PREPOSITIONS
    • SIMILES
    • SPLIT INFINITIVES
    • SUBJECT and OBJECT
    • VERBS
    • VERB TENSES
  • ODDITIES
    • AFFECT vs EFFECT
    • ALLITERATION, PARALLELISM and POLYPTOTON
    • AMONG vs AMONGST
    • CLICHES
    • CONTINOUSLY vs CONTINUALLY
    • DISINTERESTED vs UNINTERESTED
    • DOUBLE NEGATIVES
    • DUE TO vs OWING TO
    • EITHER .. OR, NEITHER .. NOR
    • FARTHER vs FURTHER
    • I.E vs E.G
    • IF ... WAS vs WERE
    • IMPLY OR INFER
    • MAY and MIGHT
    • NONE WAS vs NONE WERE
    • SHALL or WILL
    • THAT vs WHICH vs WHO
    • THIS, THAT, THESE and THOSE
  • CURIOUS
    • HANDY VERSES
    • WORD SOUNDS
    • SOUNDS OF OBJECTS
  • PUNCTUATION
    • APOSTROPHES and HYPHENS
    • BRACKETS - Round and Square
    • COLON and SEMI-COLON
    • COMMAS and FULL STOPS
    • EXCLAMATIONS and QUESTION MARKS
    • NUMERALS
  • SPELLING
    • DROP, SWAP and DOUBLE
    • FUN THINGS TO DO WITH WORDS
    • PREFIXES and SUFFIXES
    • 'I' BEFORE 'E' and ''Q'' followed by "U"
    • SILENT LETTERS
    • SINGULAR to PLURAL
  • REPORT WRITING - HINTS
    • GRAMMATICAL PITFALLS