When studying English grammar, it’s common to come across sentences with the word ‘did’ that may confuse learners. In this article, we’ll explain the use of ‘did’ in the sentence ‘The group of students who studied only to improve their vocabulary got higher grades in their 2nd, 3rd, and 4th years at the university than did the students who had been placed in the regular classes.’
1. What Does ‘Did’ Mean in This Context?
The word ‘did’ in this sentence serves as a helping verb that is used to emphasize or invert the subject-verb structure in a comparative context. In the sentence, ‘did’ is used after ‘than’ to compare the performance of two groups of students. It is a standard structure when making comparisons between two subjects, and it replaces the verb that would have followed the subject (‘the students’).
2. Understanding the Comparison Structure
In English, the word ‘did’ is often used in comparisons, especially in sentences that follow the structure ‘X is better than Y did.’ It is understood that ‘did’ represents the action that is being compared. In this case, it refers to the academic performance (the grades) of the students. The phrase ‘did the students’ refers to how well the students in the regular classes performed.
3. Why Is ‘Did’ Used Instead of a Full Verb?
The use of ‘did’ is a grammatical shortcut. Instead of repeating the verb (‘got’), ‘did’ is used to avoid redundancy. This is common in comparative sentences where the action (verb) is already implied, and ‘did’ functions as a substitute. For example, ‘The group of students got higher grades than the regular students got’ can be shortened to ‘The group of students got higher grades than did the regular students.’
4. Conclusion
In conclusion, the ‘did’ in the sentence is an essential part of English comparative grammar. It helps to avoid repeating verbs and makes the sentence more concise. Understanding this structure will allow learners to confidently use ‘did’ in similar comparisons.
コメント