Him & his

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Jandi

#63960 Wed, 29 Dec 04 05:23 AM

Hello, teachers!

Are these two options [him & his] both correct and natural?

1. She felt him/his touching her back.
2. I heard him/his crying in the bathroom.
3. I noticed him/his watching me.
4. She saw him/his watering the flowerpots.
5. She watched him/his using chopsticks and corrected it.
6. I've heard of him/his teaching math at my alma mater.
7. She listened to him/his explaining the rules.

Thank you very much.
Enjoy the chilly wind.

Jandi

Joined on Tue, Sep 7 2004

Full Member (348)

ahava_yin

#63986 Wed, 29 Dec 04 08:20 AM

Hi everyone,

I'd love to hear about your ideas on the following sentences.
She felt him touching her back/she felt his touch on her back.
She listened to him explaining the rules/She listened to his explaination of the rules.
Thanks!

ahava_yin

Joined on Thu, Sep 9 2004

Full Member (321)

Hi, I'm learning English. Your notes help me a lot. I love the forum.

CalifJim

#63989 Wed, 29 Dec 04 08:41 AM

Only the versions with "him" are convincing. To my ear, Sentence 6 is a bit awkward either way.
[I've / I] heard that he [taught / was teaching] math at my alma mater.

CalifJim

Joined on Mon, Aug 2 2004

California

Veteran Member (17,477)

"There are no facts, only interpretations" - Nietzsche