One:Why are you laughing?
Two: What are you laughing at?
2006-08-01 02:35:41 · 28 answers · asked by immonen33 1 in Society & Culture ➔ Languages
One is perfectly fine.
Two may be considered questionable simply because it ends with a preposition. This doesn't necessarily make it incorrect. Most modern linguists feel that a sentence like this is acceptable in general grammar usage, though you should avoid using a preposition at the end of a sentence in formal writing.
Don't just take my word for it, though, here are some online sources you can check:
2006-08-01 03:01:32 · answer #1 · answered by LovingMother 4 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Yes, the first one is correct English. The second one should read: At what are you laughing?
2006-08-01 09:41:45 · answer #2 · answered by LARRY S 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Yes, though the meaning may be slightly different.
'Why are you laughing?' Implies that the person laughing is commiting an inappropriate or bizarre act in the circumstances. It almost implies a criticism.
'What are you laughing at?' Is a less interrogatory question merely asking for what the person is seeing or experiencing to be explained.
2006-08-01 14:03:22 · answer #3 · answered by KatyW 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
They are both correct. Those people who way that you can't end a sentence with a preposition are just being silly. No one would say "At what are you laughing?" because it would make you sound like a pompous goofball.
2006-08-01 09:51:15 · answer #4 · answered by starcow 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
both are correct, and are very nearly synonymous.
the first asks for a reason why the addressee is laughing.
the second asks for the topic (or subject) which has caused the addressee to laugh.
though these meanings are so close together that either question might be answered successfully with the form of information more strictly appropriate to the other.
2006-08-01 09:42:33 · answer #5 · answered by synopsis 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Both are correct--and even in academic and professional contexts these days, one would come across as pompous, arch, archaic, and pretentious if one wrote "and Eleanor wondered at what Franklin was laughing," Puhlese!
2006-08-01 17:34:03 · answer #6 · answered by Emmavoberry 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
One is correct. Two is incorrect. You can't end a sentence with a preposition
2006-08-01 09:40:17 · answer #7 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
In English, one should not end a sentence with a preposition. This would mean that the second question is grammatically incorrect.
2006-08-01 09:41:35 · answer #8 · answered by French Guy 1 · 0⤊ 0⤋
No. The second one is grammatically incorrect. It should read, "At what are you laughing?" "At" is a preposition and you never end a sentence with a preposition.
2006-08-01 09:39:55 · answer #9 · answered by heterophobicgirl 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Yes they are correct.
2006-08-01 09:46:59 · answer #10 · answered by silver_princess16_03 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋