Dave's ESL Cafe's Student Discussion Forums

[navi]

1-The city agreed to pay for building a new bridge,
2-The city agreed to pay to build a new bridge.

What is the difference between the meanings of the above sentences?


Does "2" imply that the payment is carried out before the building
begins while "1" implies that the payment is done when the job is done?

What is the subject of the infinitive "to build" in "2"? Is it not "the city"?

[pugachevV]

The mean the same thing.
The city is the subject of both sentences.

[navi]

Thanks PugachevV.

"The city" is the subject of both sentences. But what is the implied subject of "to build" in the second sentence? I think again it is "The city".

[pugachevV]

The people who run the city (The city) are not going to build the bridge with their own hands. They are going to hire contractors. The Contractors will build the bridge.

Grammatically speaking, the city is still the subject of the sentence.