The infinitive is the form of the verb made by adding ‘to’
to its STEM:
Example: to go.
Some traditionalists say that you should never place
anything between the ‘to’ and the stem. They argue that since the infinitive is
a part of the verb, it should never be split. So it is wrong to say ‘to boldly go’.
You should instead say to go boldly or boldly to go.
There is no grammatical justification to this so called rule
and people have been splitting infinitives for centuries. Indeed sometimes it
is impossible to convey your meaning unless you do split an infinitive. For
example:
Everyone else thought they were too young to really cope
with adult responsibilities.
If you move really to another position you change the meaning
of the sentence.
Everyone else thought they were too young really to cope
with adult responsibilities.
Everyone else thought they were too young to cope really
with adult responsibilities.
This post is courtesy ‘Oxford A-Z of grammar and punctuation
by John Seely.
I use a mix of both style while writing. Never gave it a thought. Thanks for sharing.
ReplyDeleteI admire grammarians, but I could never claim to be one. I am more drawn to the content of writing than if someone has technically perfect grammar. However, that is probably the bit of the historian in me.
ReplyDeleteI love grammar and vocabulary. Words are important, and how you use them more so. I'd rather split the infinitive and say what I mean, than risk having what I mean get lost. But it is important to first understand what a split infinitive is, to know how to use it.
ReplyDelete@Get Lost in Lit