order of sentence

[blue_jeans_vb]

I haven't post for while. I have a question

Which of the two sentences is more correct?

He answered the question correctly.
He correctly answered the question.

 

[Anglika]

They are equally correct.

 

[MrPedantic]

Hello BJ,

Both are correct, to my mind; but I find the word order in the first version more usual.

The second version might be used for e.g. stylistic reasons, or in contexts where the speaker did not wish to put so much emphasis on "correctly".

Thus:

1. I'll give the prize to Tom, since he answered the question correctly.

— usual word order; the important information is "correctly".

2. He wrote his name at the top of the exam paper, correctly answered all the questions, and returned the paper to the invigilator. Then he went home and watched tv.

— here, we can assume that "correctly" is not an important piece of information, from the speaker's point of view.

Best wishes,

MrP