deep or deeply

English as a Second Language English Vocabulary, Grammar and Idioms
1

She looked . . . . into her son’s eyes and asked him to tell her the truth about what had happened to cause the fight.
a) deep b) deeply
please with the explaination!
thanks inadvance!

2

‘Deep’ is the required form.

The adverb ‘deeply’ doesn’t work because it would describe how she looked and not where she looked.
Where she looked is what is important here.

Note the spelling of ‘explanation’.

3

Hi Bee

I know we need an Adv here. Both deep and deeply serve as adv.

when I look up them in the oxford dictionary. I found
Deeply (adv) : a depth that is quite a long way from the surface of sth
deep (adv) : a long way below the surface of sth or a long way inside or into sth.

I am confused now, I cannot tell the difference between them. Both is kind of having a distance to the surface.
As your explanation, deeply tells us how she looked.
Deep indicates where she looked (in this case is into her son’s eyes).

Your explanation is different from the oxford definition (related to the surface - the depth in her eyes). Thought It’s easier to understand when you explained in that way.
So “She looked deep into …” does it mean She look at the depth of her’s son eyes ?

So my question is IN GENERAL, when we write a sentence, in which situation we pick deep and deeply.

4

The OALD gives this usage note:
The adverbs deep and deeply can both mean ‘a long way down or into something’. Deep can only mean this and is more common than deeply in this sense. It is usually followed by a word like into or below:We decided to go deeper into the jungle.
Deeply usually means ‘very much’:deeply in love ◇ deeply shocked. You can use deep down (but not deeply) to talk about a person’s real nature:She can seem stern, but deep down she’s a very kind person. ◇ She can seem stern, but deeply she’s a very kind person.

5

It looks like I need to learn more to use the OALD. I did not notice it (I’m using OALD application on my computer. It does not show until I click on the [which word ?] function).

Deep can only mean this and is more common than deeply in this sense.

Does it mean We can use deeply (as a meaning of “a long way down or into something”) but It’s not very common, natural ?

6

It means we can use it in some contexts, but not as many contexts as ‘deep’.

7

Thank you Bee.

8

***** NOT A TEACHER *****

Hello, Mr. Cheng:

I am, too! In fact, I could not sleep well last night because I was thinking about a word that I had never, ever thought about until I read Biglittleboy’s question.

So, of course, I rushed to my books and the World Wide Web. May I share with you what I found?

  1. I went to Google and typed “look deeply into eyes.” I got 12,000 results; I typed “look deep into eyes” and got 67,000 results. I then went to the “books” section of Google [where thousands of books have been digitalized] and typed in “look deeply into eyes.” I found only 8 results! I think that we can say with confidence that “look deeply into eyes” is not IDIOMATIC. [You are an advanced student, so you know what “idiomatic” means.]

  2. From my books, I learned the following:

a. Sometimes you have a choice:

i. “When trenching [dig a trench] dig deep / deeply.”
ii. “Breathe deep / deeply.”

b. The adverb “deeply” is used ESPECIALLY before past participles: "“Deep” as adverb is deeply entrenched in the language.

c. The adverb “deeply” is also used when the meaning is “profoundly” or “intensely”: I should like to consider the matter a little more deeply. / He was deeply conscious of his shortcomings.

d. The adverb “deep” is used LITERALLY: The boat was stuck deep in the mud.

e. The adverb “deep” is used in many FIGURATIVE expressions: They sat up deep into the night; It does not go deep enough into the problem; still waters run deep. [Since you are an advanced student, you know the difference between “literal” and “figurative.”]

James

My main source was the third edition of the renowned book by H.W. Fowler: MODERN ENGLISH USAGE.

9

Thanks for overestimating my English level. I don’t think I am an advanced student at all. I am still asking many questions and I submitted not quite correct answers when trying to help the others. :slight_smile:

Thanks to quote the book name, I just downloaded it and read the entry. It’s an old book but helpful. Today, Not many grammar books were well written and covered many perspectives as the old ones.

Thank you for your help.
You are an expert (look like we’re flattering each other ha ha ). Seriously, your English is a whole lot better than mine.

10

Thanks for your kind comments.

Mr. Fowler published his book in 1926.

At that time, more and more British people were moving into the middle class, and they wanted to speak “good” English. So I hear that his book was a sensation!

I have the 1965 and the 1996 editions.

The 1965 edition did not change much of Mr. Fowler’s 1926 classic.

The 1996 edition changed a lot, so some people are very upset with it.

For some people (such as I), Mr. Fowler is the Master.

For some people, he is a joke. That is, they say that he did not really understand grammar. You may have heard of Randolph Quirk. He said some very rude things about the Master.

If you ever get a chance, also read The King’s English, which was first published in 1906. He and his brother wrote it. Their love and respect for the English language is so obvious in that magnificent book.

James