Infinitives and placement

evangaline

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Any expert input on the following sentences? *shakes head* The more research I do, the more confused I become. Thanks, everyone!
The last thing he wanted was to leave.
The last thing he wanted to do was leave.
The last thing he wanted to do was to leave.
 

Bufty

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As always- context is everything.

First one doesn't make sense on its own - may do so in context..

Second and third both make sense as they are - use whichever you wish and which fits the situation.

What sort of input do you want?

Any expert input on the following sentences? *shakes head* The more research I do, the more confused I become. Thanks, everyone!
The last thing he wanted was to leave.
The last thing he wanted to do was leave.
The last thing he wanted to do was to leave.
 

evangaline

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*g* You gave me my answer, Bufty. Thank you! During my searches, I pulled up info on "bare infinitives" which flummoxed me even more.
 

heza

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I like No. 2. (ETA: but yeah, it does depend on context

No. 1 speaks to the end result. The last thing he wants is to be gone from where he is.

No. 2 speaks to the action. The last thing he'd do in this situation is actively leave.

I'm not especially fond of No.3 because I find the second "to" superfluous.)
 
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evangaline

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Thank you, blacbird! That's what I needed to know.

- - - Updated - - -

Heza, what you said about #3 was my thought as well.
 

Jamesaritchie

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The first really makes no sense. It's ambiguous, at best. The second probably reads best, but both it and the third are correct.
 

absitinvidia

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All three are fine, including the first. There's nothing grammatically wrong with any of them.
 

evangaline

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Thank you for your input. I realize the first one is predicated on what precedes it, but I was uncertain if it was grammatically correct.