be or to be

[Musicgold]

Hi All,

Should I replace the 'be' by a 'to be' in the following sentence?

'One of the first hurdles in helping students be more attuned to gays is getting around the use of the term homosexual.'

Thanks,

MG.

[Diverhank]

In my opinion, no.

[Lost_Soul]

You should remember that after help, make, let and have + object + verb we normally use the bare infinitive

[Musicgold]

So, the following is also not incorrect?

'One of the first hurdles in helping students to be more attuned to gays is getting around the use of the term homosexual.'

[Diverhank]

I can't find any grammatical reason so I would say that it's not incorrect. However, adding "to" in this case gains you nothing except making your sentence sound less than standard. For example, you say "help end world hunger", not "help to end world hunger".

[Alan]

Hi musicgold,

I think the addition of 'to' in your sentence does help to make the balance of the sentence better. At the same time it adds a positive note. Let's take another sentence:

I want you to help those who have suffered a great deal and fallen on hard times through not fault of their own to be accepted by the rest of the community. The addition of 'to' here is a more striking example of achieving a better balance.

Alan
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English as a Second Language
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[Harry Smiith]

[Yankee]

Hi Miscgold

The word 'to' would not be used in American English. The addition of the word 'to' in your sentence would simply sound more British to me.
.

[Lost_Soul]