without my seeing it

[navi tasan]

Which are correct:

1-The dog attacked me without my seeing it.
Meaning: The dog attacked me before I had seen it.

2-The dog barked at me without my noticing it.
Meaning: The dog barked at me before I had noticed it.

3-The dog barked at me without my having noticed it.
Meaning: The dog barked at me before I had noticed it.

4-Tom shouted at me without my provoking him.

In '1' I obviously see the dog when he starts attacking me and in '2' and '3' I notice him when he starts barking. Maybe in these 'started barking' would work better than 'barked' (although this could imply a single bark).

I think '4' is fine. I have doubts about the rest.

Gratefully,
Navi.

 

[Tdol]

1 Unlikely but possible with a slightly different meaning- it attacked you and got away unseen.
2 It barked and you didn't hear it- maybe someone told you later about the barking.
3 Borderline version of 2.

 

[MikeNewYork]

I basically agree with Tdol, but in number one, I can't envision a situation in which a dog could attack you and then get away unseen, unless you stuck your arm through a hole in a fence. But in that case, the sentence would not be the normal way of describing the event.

In two and three, you might not have heard the barking, but I think you would say that.

 

[Tdol]

I did say it was unlikely, but if the dog bit you from behind and jumped over a nearby wall on a foggy night in an unlit street, it might be possible. Like you, I could think of other ways of saying it, though.

 

[MikeNewYork]

I don't know if "like" is working so let me give you a :cheers:.

 

[navi tasan]

Thank you both very very much.

I basically agree with Tdol, but in number one, I can't envision a situation in which a dog could attack you and then get away unseen, unless you stuck your arm through a hole in a fence. But in that case, the sentence would not be the normal way of describing the event.

In two and three, you might not have heard the barking, but I think you would say that.

But you would not say it if you noticed it after it barked at you, would you?
I mean, you would not use it instead of:

The dog barked at me before I had noticed it. (but then it barked at me and I noticed it)

Gratefully,
Navi.

 

[MikeNewYork]

Possibly.