see him play or see him playing

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ostap77

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"I see them play soccer."

OR

"I see them playing soccer."

Is there a difference between these two?
 

Mehrgan

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"I see them play soccer."

OR

"I see them playing soccer."

Is there a difference between these two?



*not a teacher*
In English the two forms are both used, while a verb-ing form emphasises the duration of the activity.

"I saw them playing football."
"I saw her leave the room."
 

ostap77

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*not a teacher*
In English the two forms are both used, while a verb-ing form emphasises the duration of the activity.

"I saw them playing football."
"I saw her leave the room."

What would be the difference?
 

5jj

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TheParser

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"I see them play soccer."

OR

"I see them playing soccer."

Is there a difference between these two?

***** NOT A TEACHER *****


(1) Here are two sentences that may shed some light on the

matter. Many teachers use these two sentences.

I saw Tom cross the street. = I saw him walk completely

across the street.

I saw Tom crossing the street. = I saw him in the street,

but I do not know whether he actually finished the action.

(Maybe I had stopped paying attention to him because something

else attracted my attention and I turned my head away.)

*****

In your two sentences, probably the past would be more

common:

I saw Tom play soccer yesterday. = You went to the soccer

field and watched the game.

I saw Tom playing soccer yesterday. = You walked by the football

field yesterday and just happened to see Tom in action. But you

may have quickly continued on your way.

***** NOT A TEACHER *****
 

ostap77

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***** NOT A TEACHER *****


(1) Here are two sentences that may shed some light on the

matter. Many teachers use these two sentences.

I saw Tom cross the street. = I saw him walk completely

across the street.

I saw Tom crossing the street. = I saw him in the street,

but I do not know whether he actually finished the action.

(Maybe I had stopped paying attention to him because something

else attracted my attention and I turned my head away.)

*****

In your two sentences, probably the past would be more

common:

I saw Tom play soccer yesterday. = You went to the soccer

field and watched the game.

I saw Tom playing soccer yesterday. = You walked by the football

field yesterday and just happened to see Tom in action. But you

may have quickly continued on your way.

***** NOT A TEACHER *****

How about the present simple?
 

TheParser

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How about the present simple?

***** NOT A TEACHER *****

(1) Possibly present tense sentences might be:

Every day before I return home, I drop by the soccer field and watch

them play soccer for 30 minutes. Then I have to leave in order to get

home in time to help my wife cook dinner.

*****

I take the No. 4 bus home every day. When the bus passes the

high school, I always see them out on the field playing soccer.


***** NOT A TEACHER *****
 
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