Does anyone know if the two sentences below are the same or is one better than the other? What is the difference?
He seems to be nice.
He seems nice.
A student of mine asked me this questions. Wasn’t sure how to explain it.
Thanks.
“He seems nice” is perhaps preferable because it is two less words and brevity is the soul of style as it were.
The first, to me, implies that he seems nice but might not be, while the second is more just a statement of opinion.
one site said seems is short for seems to be.
I would asdsume appears and appears to be is similar.
[quote=“sername1”]one site said seems is short for seems to be.
I would asdsume appears and appears to be is similar.[/quote]
Hmm, but then wouldn’t:
“He appears to be late” would be the same as “he appears late”
In the second sentence “appears” could mean “shows up” while that would be a real stretch for the first sentence.
Perhaps the “to be” is there to avoid ambiguity with two meanings of ‘appear’? In sentences where there would be no ambiguity the “to be” is superfluous but still acceptable?
My humble opinion:
“to be” is acting as a qualifier. Ergo, it adds some degree of uncertainty. As in, the person speaking is implying his hesitance in establishing the statement. “He seems to be nice, but he is actually an abusive laoban compensating for genetic deficiencies.” As opposed to “He seems nice, but I don’t know him well.”
I was reading about this the other day in Celce-Murcia and Larsen-Freeman’s “The Grammar Book”. They say that a sentence such as “He seems nice” implies the infinitive “to be” anyway. The OP’s two sentences have the same meaning.
it’s interesting that seem seems to be in a category of its own here–not seems in a category hehe. you can’t say feel to be nice, turn to be red, etc.
Exactly. But it depends on the following word as well. If the OP had asked if “He seems to be rice” was preferrable to “He seems rice” we would have had to respond in the affirmative. The notion of an abstract grammar is somewhat misguided since words frequently have their own grammar that determines what structures they can be used in. The grammar of the two words blends together with the abstract notions to create a veritable minefield of variability.
Bad example. ‘to be late’ is the infinitive verb, but in the second, ‘late’ is an adverb describing the verb ‘appears’.
- He seems to be nice.
- He seems nice.
I think 2 is in the same class as ‘he looks nice’, ‘that sounds nice’, ‘that feels good baby’ etc.
1, is more like ‘he appears to be nice’, and, as Tetsuo said, means almost the same, but perhaps expresses slightly more doubt as to whether or not he is nice.
Brian
I think that linking verbs like appear, seem, look, sounds etc which can be followed by an adjective actually ought be followed by “to be” but this has become obsolete except in the emphatic case.
Bad example. ‘to be late’ is the infinitive verb, but in the second, ‘late’ is an adverb describing the verb ‘appears’.
- He seems to be nice.
- He seems nice.
I think 2 is in the same class as ‘he looks nice’, ‘that sounds nice’, ‘that feels good baby’ etc.
1, is more like ‘he appears to be nice’, and, as Tetsuo said, means almost the same, but perhaps expresses slightly more doubt as to whether or not he is nice.
Brian[/quote]
Right. My point was that the use of “to be” clarified the lexical/semantic ambiguity of “appear”, which on its own can either be a linking verb with a predicate adjective or as an intransitive action verb followed by an adverb complement. When combined with the infinitive “to be” the function of “late” becomes clarified: it’s an adjective in the infinitive phrase, not an adverb.
There are reasons languages maintain more than one way to say the same thing. I’m merely suggesting that the purpose here is to allow a way to avoid ambiguity.
It should be pointed out that seems and appears are not really comparable. Puiwahin gets this I think but I am not sure everybody else here does. “Appears” can be used as an action verb or as a linking verb and the two usages yield distinct differences in meaning, at least in combination with “late.” There is therefore a reason to maintain the “to be” form. “Seems” however is always a linking verb so saying “He seems to be nice” is similar to saying “He sounds to be nice.” The “to be” contributes nothing to the meaning (except what people dream up after the fact) and probably first started to be used because people failed to distinguish between verbs that are always linking verbs and verbs that can be used both as action verbs and as linking verbs. It is not that big a deal I don’t suppose but since we were asked…
A funny note: “seem” is derived from the Middle English word “semen” that could lead to some malapropism if it were still in use today.
A similar situation occurs with the verb “needs (to be)”. “Needs” does not require “to be” and depending on region people will say one or the other with more frequency.
You may say:
“He needs to be changed.” or “The car needs to be washed.”
You may also say:
“He needs changed.” or “The car needs washed.”
Would that would be the two action verb senses then “He semens nicely” (compared to the other guy) and “He semens to be nice” (such a gentleman) or is that a linking verb usage with the contemporary meaning as in “He semens nice”? I guess I am a little confused again.
[quote=“twocs”]A similar situation occurs with the verb “needs (to be)”. “Needs” does not require “to be” and depending on region people will say one or the other with more frequency.
You may say:
“He needs to be changed.” or “The car needs to be washed.”
You may also say:
“He needs changed.” or “The car needs washed.”[/quote]
Wow. I learned something. What regions would you be able to use that in? I would always say “needs to be changed” or “needs to be washed”
Without the “to be” I would always use a gerund rather than a participle. “He needs changing” or “the car needs washing”
Any idea where the dialect boundaries are on this one?
I have only a vague memory of anyone speaking in this way - must have been in Cleveland, Ohio…
This usage is probably a result of lead in the water, or work related solvent inhalation. Cleveland has a lot of auto factories, doesn’t it?
‘He seems to be nice.’ is the correct sentence,
and ‘He seems nice.’ is a shortened version of the same sentence, with an implied qualifier.
‘He seems nice.’ is not incorrect. It is a slang form that became common spoken English. If you were writing a formal essay, though, you would avoid ‘He seems nice’ or ‘He appears late.’
Thanks. Good for the carnival trick of placing people from their accent and word choice. 