Are there any errors in the sentence?

Some people wish to keep living and extend their lifespans, unlike others who dislike their lives and wish to die early.

Are there any errors in the sentence?

Thanks.

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I can’t see any errors in that sentence.

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What if it is " some people wish to keep living and extending"

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In this case the second part doesn’t make sense because the verb ‘extend’ requires an object.

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Hi Torsten,

In fact you can use ‘extend’ without an object as in -

The road extends beyond the cottage on the corner.

Incidentally the verb ‘extend’ is a hot word here in the UK at the moment because the question is how long can the deadline for Brexit be extended?

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Hi Alan, I was referring to this phrase:

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Some people wish to keep living and extend their lifespans, unlike others who dislike their lives and wish to die early.

Should “extend” be “extending” instead to be parallel with “living”? Thanks.

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Both are possible and have slightly different meanings.

to keep living and extending their lifespans means that both activities – living as well as extending their lifespans have been going on for a while

to keep living and extend their lifespans – the process of living has been going on while extending their lifespans is a result of this process but not necessarily a process itself.

Please let me know if this makes sense.

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I think the insertion of the infinitive marker to in the first sentence will obviate the confusion. Otherwise it has to be made clear as in the second.

  1. to keep living and to extend their lifespans
  2. to keep living and extending their lifespans
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