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meysam zeynali
Looking forward to seeing or looking forward to see?
Hi there
A native english teacher told me that "looking forward to seeing" is not the correct form, it's a common mistake people make and the correct form is "lokking forward to see"(for example).
Is he right??
Dec 11, 2017 12:30 PM
Answers · 5
4
No. This is wrong.
The correct form is "..look forward to seeing". As Beth has explained, the "to" is a preposition - part of the phrasal verb "look forward to" - and is not part of an infinitive construction.
The common mistake is to presume that "to" must always be followed by an infinitive. I have come across near-bilingual non-native speakers who still make the mistake of saying "look forward to see".
As for your teacher, there are two possibilities:
1. He is lying about being a native speaker (a sadly common occurrence).
2. He is over-applying a rule that he doesn't quite understand. Unfortunately, this can also happen, especially among under-qualified native speakers who teach abroad.
Either way, he is not to be trusted, and you may want to consider finding a better teacher.
December 11, 2017
4
It is incorrect because 'to' here is just a preposition and has nothing to do with infinitives.
I have been speaking and listening to English all my life and I have never once said or heard said ' I look forward to see you'
The only way 'I am looking forward to see you' would be correct if I was talking about the physical direction, for example ' You are standing infront of me, so yes then, I look forward to see you, because if I look to the right, left or back, I can't see you.
December 11, 2017
1
See Beth's answer. :)
December 11, 2017
i think it is correct, Looking forward to seeing you soon
December 11, 2017
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meysam zeynali
Language Skills
Azeri, English, Persian (Farsi), Turkish
Learning Language
English
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