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Grammar pet peeve: this is the wrong way to use “let alone.” The “bigger” thing should be listed second, not first: “He wasn’t capable of lifting a mouse, let
by ketzo 4y ago
Grammar pet peeve: this is the wrong way to use “let alone.” The “bigger” thing should be listed second, not first:
“He wasn’t capable of lifting a mouse, let alone a 500-lb weight!”
“She couldn’t see her hand in front of her face, let alone an iceberg on the horizon!”
So in your example, you would say “I have friends who can’t stay focused for more than a few minutes, let alone watch a movie or read a book.”
- dayjaby 4y agoReading a book is bigger than watching a movie though?
- thfuran 4y agoBut staying focused for a few minutes isn't.
- akiselev 4y agoHe phrased it "Can't do X, let alone Y or Z" where Y > X > Z. Reading a book (Y) takes longer than watching a 90 minute movie (X) which takes longer than staying "focused on one thing for more than a few minutes" (Z). It should be Y > X and Z > X
- usui 4y agoThank you very much for this! I was reading the original comment and I was actually confused on the correct syntactical order of this phrase. For years I struggled in the back of my mind for how to parse this phrase, now I get it.
- iggldiggl 4y agoReading a book might typically take more time total than watching a movie, but books are often read in shorter increments, whereas a movie is usually watched straight-through in one sitting.
- zimpenfish 4y ago> The “bigger” thing should be listed second, not first Do you have a link for this grammatical rule?