Re: Grammar of "something to do."
From: | Roger Mills <romilly@...> |
Date: | Sunday, March 24, 2002, 22:51 |
Raymond Brown wrote:
>
>I have to agree with William. The Latin for "I have nothing to do" is
>surely _Nihil habeo quod faciam_; "they had nothing to eat" _nihil habebant
>quod essent_; "I need some to love" _desidero quam amem_ / _desidero quem
>amem_ (depending on the sex of the someone).
Aha. A similar construction (with subjunctive) serves in Spanish, for the
"someone to love" that I couldn't figure out earlier.
Busco a alguien que (yo) ame 'I'm looking for someone [that I may love]'
(though it still sounds awkward........)
Unless I'm mistaken, there would be a difference between:
No tienen nada que comer 'They have nothing to eat' [there is no food] vs.
No tienen nada que coman 'They have nothing [that they can eat]' -- there
may be ample food, but none that they want.
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