Where had I best put this

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Marius Hancu - 05 May 2009 14:39 GMT

Hello:

Is this mostly BrE: "Where had I best put this"?

I think it's a subjunctive mood form, equivalent to:
"Where should I best put this?"

----
[Uncle James visits him at his public school and creates troubles, by
smoking in his room. He wonders where to put the fag:]

'The question is where had I best put this, now that the regulation has
been broken?' By the time my uncle had decided to extinguish the
cigarette on the sole of his shoe, and throw the butt into the fire,
there was not much left of it.

A Dance to the Music of Time, Spring, by Anthony Powell, p. 17
------

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Thanks.
Marius Hancu

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Django Cat - 05 May 2009 19:31 GMT

> Hello:
>
[quoted text clipped - 6 lines]
> [Uncle James visits him at his public school and creates troubles, by
> smoking in his room. He wonders where to put the fag:]

Is that his nephew, or a cigarette?

DC
--

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jerry_friedman@yahoo.com - 05 May 2009 19:48 GMT

> Hello:
>
[quoted text clipped - 14 lines]
> A Dance to the Music of Time, Spring, by Anthony Powell, p. 17
> ------

Standard everywhere, as far as I know, and parallel with "had
better". We've discussed the origin and grammatical structure here,
for instance at

http://groups.google.com/group/alt.usage.english/browse_frm/thread/4c938503524c71b8/

if you don't mind some posts by PG.

It would be interesting to know how linguists analyze it, other than
from this site that she linked to:

http://grammar.about.com/od/ab/g/auxverbterm.htm

It indisputably means, "Where is the best place to put this?"

--
Jerry Friedman

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Discussion Groups / English Usage / May 2009

Where had I best put this