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"She's acting weird lately" or "She's acting weirdly lately"?
For some strange reason, the first one sounds better to my ears.
Which one sounds better to you?
Maybe I shouldn't have used present progress tense at all in this case?
What do you think?
:)
Mar 30, 2010 2:44 AM
Answers · 8
2
Noagenda,
It is not easy to illustrate the difference between, she is acting "weird" and she is acting "weirdly" but I'll give it a shot.
-She is acting weirdly lately.
She is an actress and she is acting weirdly lately.
She just joined Wicca and she is acting weirdly lately, casting spells on everyone she knows.
- In the above examples "weirdly" is clearly an ADVERB.
In English you can use two adverbs together, though you should exercise caution as it can sound awkward. I know of no rule restricting their use according to tense.
-She is acting weird lately.
Her behavior is bizarre recently; she is acting weird.
-In this case "weird" is a PREDICATE ADJECTIVE and "to act" is a linking verb.
It is similar to saying:
She's being weird lately... or ... She seems weird lately.
Linking verbs describe no action -- they merely state an existing condition.
The present continuous can also be used to describe longer actions in progress although we may not be doing them "exactly" now.
example:
I am studying to be a doctor.
She is acting weird lately.
March 30, 2010
2
hi,
the adjective "weird" best suit this phrase:
"she's acting weird lately"
as far as I know, we only use an adjective (i.e. weirdly) before or after a verb it modifies in simple past tense. thus:
"Lately, she acted weirdly." (I stand corrected on this...)
:)
March 30, 2010
1
like anybody's answer.
cowboy...
March 30, 2010
1
The first one
March 30, 2010
1
My vote is for "She's acting weird lately". Try re-wording the sentence or even asking it as a question, to see if it still makes sense and sounds right.
"Lately, she's acting weird."
"How is she acting lately? Weird."
I'm keen to know if anyone can shed light on Romulus' rule? I wasn't sure either...
March 30, 2010
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chen
Language Skills
Chinese (Mandarin), English
Learning Language
English
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