Who shall I give it? vs. To whom shall I give it?

English as a Second Language English Vocabulary, Grammar and Idioms
1
  1. Who shall I give it to?
    1a. To whom shall I give it?
  2. He very kindly promised to take my sister and I for a sail.
    2a. He very kindly promised my sister and I to take for a sail.
    Are these sentences correct?
    Please point out which is correct.
2

#1 is the normal form in everyday English. #1a is formal, and risks sounding pedantic in everyday contexts.

The second sentence should be “He very kindly promised to take my sister and me for a sail.” (“me” is the object of “take”). It is not uncommon to see native speakers use “I” in such cases in the mistaken belief that it is more correct or polite.

The word order of #2a is not possible.

3

Dozy,
Thanks.

  1. The seeds should be set in rows with two feet between each.
    1a. The seeds should be set in rows with two feet between the rows.
  2. All the houses have a television aerial.
  3. Each house has a television aerial.
    Please correct and point out the error.
4

  1. It’s easier to say “The seeds should be set in rows two feet apart.”

  2. I prefer “All the houses have television aerials”. The second sentence is OK.

5

Thanks, Dozy.

  1. Due to the illnessof the chairman, the meeting was cancelled.
  2. After the holidays I will go back to work feeling a new man.
  3. It would have been better to have ignored him.
  4. The neighbour thought him a wealthy man, which, of course, he was not.
    Please correct the above.
6

  1. OK except for the typo (missing space) in “illnessof”. Some people have objected to such use of “due to” as a preposition, but it is so widespread and so widely accepted that the objections seem futile.

  2. Possible, but the double entendre may raise sniggers among people with childish minds(!). It may be best to say “feeling like a new man”.

  3. I prefer “It would have been better to ignore him”, though both forms are in use.

  4. OK.

7
  1. Due to the illness of the chairman, the meeting was cancelled.
  2. The meeting was cancelled due to the illness of the chairman.
  3. Because of the illness of the chairman, the meeting was cancelled.
  4. The meeting was cancelled because of the illness of the chairman.
    Which are grammatically correct?
  5. Get it over quick.
    5a. Get it over quickly.
  6. Under the circumstances his resignation was justified.
    6a. His resignation was justified under the circumstances.
    Please correct the above.
8

Setting aside the aforementioned fact that a few people quibble over this use of “due to”, the first four are all OK. If you are looking generally for different ways to say this, consider the more direct “The meeting was cancelled because the chairman was ill”.

Use of “quick” as an adverb as in #5 is common and widely accepted in colloquial English, but formally the adverb should be “quickly”.

#6 and #6a are both OK.

9
  1. Do you think the wall is perpendicular.
    1a. Do you think the wall is perpendicular to.
  2. Shall you join us in the bar?
    2a. Shall you join with us in the bar?
  3. Though shy most people find him good company?
    3a. Though he is shy most people find him a good company?
  4. Do you really want to forego the privilege?
    4a. Do you really want to forgo your privilege?
    Kindly correct the above with your comments.
10

1a is incomplete. You have to provide an object which you are comparing the wall with. 1 and 1a should have question marks.
2. sounds very formal using ‘shall’. The usual form is 'Will or ‘won’t’.
2a ‘join with us’ is stilted.
3. needs a comma after ‘shy’. 3 and 3a should not have a question mark.
3a - you should not have an indefinite article…
4a is not a common form, but it is correct if you ignore the spelling error/typo ‘forego’.