Yes, I've heard the one about Latin and infinitives too...
Although now that you mention it, I think it's impossible to split an infinitive in *any* language at all other than English -- not any of the ones that I know, anyway. The whole idea of sticking 'to' in front of a verb and claiming that this is somehow the definitive root form of it is very weird. I feel that the infinitive of the verb 'be' (être, sein, быть, εἰμί...) is probably actually 'be', and the fact that in English we need to use an auxiliary 'to' in front of it when referring to the action in specific contexts ("I refuse to listen") is just another case of the widespread use of auxiliary extra words in English. The fact that other languages can stick the infinitive in without needing any auxiliaries doesn't really seem justification to me for claiming that the 'to' therefore becomes an inherent part of the verb...
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timeasmymeasure
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Date: 2019-04-10 04:38 pm (UTC)Although now that you mention it, I think it's impossible to split an infinitive in *any* language at all other than English -- not any of the ones that I know, anyway.
The whole idea of sticking 'to' in front of a verb and claiming that this is somehow the definitive root form of it is very weird. I feel that the infinitive of the verb 'be' (être, sein, быть, εἰμί...) is probably actually 'be', and the fact that in English we need to use an auxiliary 'to' in front of it when referring to the action in specific contexts ("I refuse to listen") is just another case of the widespread use of auxiliary extra words in English. The fact that other languages can stick the infinitive in without needing any auxiliaries doesn't really seem justification to me for claiming that the 'to' therefore becomes an inherent part of the verb...