Conversation started Feb 12, 2016 at 13:24.
Kinzle B
Kinzle B
Feb 12, 2016 13:24
Hi, everybody!!
I edited my Q: ell.stackexchange.com/questions/81057/…
I'm not sure emphasizing is a gerund or a present participle here..
Damkerng T.
Damkerng T.
Hi! @KinzleB
For me (without going into any technicality), it works like an adjective in that one.
Kinzle B
Kinzle B
I think it's a gerund, like in "I like singing".
Damkerng T.
Damkerng T.
"[It] is just barely mentioned and could stand emphasizing in that or another answer."
~ (approx. =) "[It] is just barely mentioned and could be emphasizing in that or another answer."
Kinzle B
Kinzle B
The comments below said it could be reworded as "could stand being emphasized"
Damkerng T.
Damkerng T.
If I'm not mistaken. It's similar to these: She is tall. He stayed high. They stood tall.
@KinzleB Could being is weird, I think.
Kinzle B
Kinzle B
Feb 12, 2016 13:30
sorry, edited
Damkerng T.
Damkerng T.
Oh, I see!
StoneyB
StoneyB
Hi, @KinzleB. Good question; I differ with @Dam and take it to be a gerund object of transitive stand -- and it is the implicit object of emphasize! "It could tolerate [emphasizing it]." The passive version would be "It could stand being emphasized".
Damkerng T.
Damkerng T.
Ahh
Hmm... "It could tolerate emphasizing (it)" with it omitted?
StoneyB
StoneyB
Yes. Obligatorily omitted -- that's the idiom. Much like "It needs/wants emphasizing."
Damkerng T.
Damkerng T.
nods
Kinzle B
Kinzle B
Feb 12, 2016 13:34
Thank you :) could I add an indefinite article between "stand" and "emphasizing"? I got lots of examples of "could stand a refurbishing" in Google Books.
StoneyB
StoneyB
And like those, it accommodates a passive infinitival: "It could stand to be emphasized".
Damkerng T.
Damkerng T.
@KinzleB I found none!
But I found 17 hits of "could stand refurbishing".
Kinzle B
Kinzle B
sorry, just Google search
StoneyB
StoneyB
@KinzleB In that case the gerund is fully deverbal. I don't think you'd use emphasize that way; the more ordinary noun would be employed, and only if it took some modifier: "It could stand an emphasis of some sort", "It could stand more emphasis".
 
Conversation ended Feb 12, 2016 at 13:37.