Korean Job Discussion Forums

[mashuu]

During the recent midterm exams at my public middle school, a teacher included a sentence from the textbook (never a good idea, I know). A student chose the wrong answer on the test and has called in his 'professor' father for re-enforcements. The prof, who I have yet to meet with, has predictably sided with his child and is questioning the abilities of my co-teachers, people I know to be great teachers.

The sentence is as follows:

I will let you know how I spend my holidays.

Now the professor and his boy insist that the auxiliary 'will' is required between 'I' and 'spend', while others and myself feel that the sentence is fine. 'Will' would not be incorrect, but is not required for the sentence to be grammatically sound.

So, thought I'd turn it over. I'm not an English major, and thus can't explain WHY exactly the sentence is correct as it stands. "I just know it's right" doesn't seem like an adequate explanation, and my co-teachers could use my help. As such, any assistance would be much appreciated!

[cruisemonkey]

A second 'will' between 'how' and 'I' is redundant.

[LydiaSarah]

Adding a second 'will' would simply be unnatural and low frequency in terms of use in the language.

[LydiaSarah]

Adding a second 'will' would simply be unnatural and low frequency in terms of use in the language.

[Thiuda]

[yawarakaijin]

It would depend on what question was asked no?

How are you going to spend your upcoming holidays Jimmy?

"I will let you know how I spend them" sounds as if he is intending on letting him know how he USUALLY spends his holidays and would be incorrent in this situation wouldn't it? I think the better sounding sentence would be " I will let you know how I will spend them" would be more appropriate

How do you spend your holidays Jimmy?
"I will let you know how I spend them" would be the only correct choice.


Granted it is a very weird construction but there is a difference.

[Thiuda]

[Tobias]

Scenario in which a second "will" would be correct:

Time T1: NOW. Original conversation occurs.

Time T2: Future conversation occurs as a follow-up to coversation at T1.

Time T3: Holidays occur.

Jimmy is asked at T1 how he'll spend his holidays. He doesn't know yet, but he'll provide an answer at T2 when he does know. T2 is in the future, so a second "will" is in order at T1.

"I will let you know (later) how I will spend my holidays."

I can see this conversation happening around December 15th.

I wish I could see the original question.

[yingwenlaoshi]

Well if we're talking about the future:

"I will let you know how I will/am going to spend my holidays."

Or

"I will let you know how I am spending my holidays."

Present:

"I will let you know how I spend my holidays."

Past:

"I will let you know how I spent my holidays."

I don't think the prof is wrong if we're talking about future tense since when you take the sentence stand alone, it states that one person is going to tell another person how they USUALLY spend his or her holidays.

I don't think it's right to say "I will let you know how I spend the holidays." I wouldn't even use that in everyday speach when talking about the future.

[jadarite]

I will let you know when I (will?) call them.

In this case, the event has NOT taken place if will is used.

I will let you know how I will spend my holiday.

This is like calling someone the day before you go on holiday. The event has NOT taken place yet.

However, in the original post, they have:

"I will let you know how I spend my holidays."

Notice holidays is plural, but in the previous example, holiday is singular. By making it plural, you are talking about multiple holidays. This makes grammatical sense, and yes, I'd say there is a case. However, in a practical sense, we don't talk that way. We talk about holidays one at a time. They are simply taking a rule beyond its usage, like a child saying "I studied homeworks".

[poet13]

mashuu. Please send this verbatim via email to the boys father.

" 'how I spend my holidays' is an adverbial clause modifying the main verb of the main clause. In the sentence you provided, the main verb is the transitive phrasal verb let know, which is modified by the modal will. Since the adverbial clause is temporally connected to the main verb of the main clause (and therefore to the modal will), the use of will is redundant in the adverbial clause. "

yes Thiuida wrote it. Just do it. If the boys father has something to say, I bet between the several thousand Daves members, we can refute him.
.....Or just ask Thuida for another answer.

[ontheway]

[Privateer]

[Thiuda]

Privateer, you're absolutely right, "as long as the main clause's verb is in neither the past nor the past perfect tense, the verb of the subordinate clause can be in any tense that conveys meaning accurately."

I should have written:

Father and son are incorrect; the speaker intends to tell how they habitually spend their holidays, not how they intend to spend their future holiday. In this case the modal will would be wrong in the adverbial clause, since it is in the present simple.

[Privateer]

^ Thank you. I can see how it could mean how the speaker regularly spends their holidays, but my first interpretation was that the speaker is talking about a future holiday - and that's where, I think, the father and son's confusion comes from. On an analogy with sentences like...

"I will let you know how the results come out"
"I will let you know how I do in the race", etc

...the speaker in the OP sentence is saying they're going to inform the listener about their holiday but after it's over.

With all the discussion in this thread I'm starting to doubt myself now. Perhaps if the OP provided a context it would be clearer.