I've been fancying going to to Puerto Rico for years. Why is this grammatically wrong?

Question

Consider the following sentences.
I want to go to Puerto Rico.
I fancy going to Puerto Rico.
I've been wanting to go to Puerto Rico for years.
I've been fancying going to Puerto Rico for years.

Answer 1

It's not grammatically wrong, but it is long and awkward. The double "to" is a grammatical error--or more like a typographical one. Otherwise, it's an issue of style.

Answer 2

It is grammatically correct; I think it is your use of an unusual tense and verbal phrase that make it appear incorrect…but I assure, it is correct and here is why…

“I’ve [or I have] been fancying” = the present perfect progressive tense which is a grammatically acceptable tense.

(WARNING, NERD CONTENT: The PERFECT PROGRESSIVE TENSE is used to indicate an action that has been ongoing and that was or will be complete by the time of another action.)

Now, “fancying” is a transitive verb meaning that it needs a direct object (in other words, WHAT are you fancying?) Your direct object = “going to Puerto Rico” which is a gerund verbal phrase and is a grammatically acceptable direct object.

(WARNING, NERD CONTENT: A verbal phrase is simply a group of words that is missing the combination of a subject and a verb; a gerund is when a word that is typically a verb has it present participle form turned into a noun, for example, when we take the verb SWIM and turn it into its present participle SWIMMING and use that participle as a subject of the sentence “SWIMMING is fun.”)

Finally, the “for years” is simply an adverb detailing how long you have been fancying going. The only potential problem with the sentence is your placement of the "for years"...to clear up any ambiguity, you could move it to the beginning of the sentence and make it an introductory phrase OR you could move it just before or after your verb “have been fancying”. Nonetheless, it is correct as you have it.

So your sentence is correct.

Answer 3

1. It isn't grammatically wrong.

2. However, it does seem rather awkward.

3. The reason - I think - is a little complicated. So here goes:

a. There are some verbs that do not normally take the continuous tense. These are called 'stative' verbs.

b. Actually, there are few if any completely stative verbs. Rather, verbs tend to be on a continuum from non-stative - stative.

c. 'Fancy' is - in my judgement anyway - quite a lot nearer the stative end of this continuum than 'want' is.

Therefore it sounds better to most 'native speaker ears' to use the present perfect simple rather than the present perfect continuous tense - hence 'I've fancied going to Puerto Rico for years'.

Answer 4

You typed "to" twice.
I think of "fancying" as a fairly impetuous kind of wanting, so to be doing it for years is quite odd. (But I'm Canadian and we don't really use "fancy" as a verb much; I may have the connotations wrong.) Then again, it's completely acceptable if "for years" modifies "going to Puerto Rico" rather than "fancying". Or maybe the problem is that what "for years" is modifying is ambiguous?

Answer 5

Because we don't generally say "fancying", we restructure the sentence to encorporate the word "fancied".

I have fancied going to Puerto Rico for years.

Much like, I have wanted to go to Puerto rico for years.

Answer 6

You should never have fancied going to Puero Rico in the first place.

You should have fancied to go to Puerto Rico.

Answer 7

Because it is:

I have been fantasizing about going to Puerto Rico for many years.

Answer 8

Who said there was something wrong with it? It looks alright to me.

Take in account though, that the English language is very messed up.

Answer 9

Grammar is wrong, people don't talk like that. Language evolves. Grammar does its best to keep up.

Answer 10

In your example...wanting and fancy...mean the same...thus your repeating yourself