Which of these sentences is correct?
Anyone remember global dimming?
Does anyone remember global dimming?
If both are correct, where is each of them used?
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Possible duplicate of Is the question mark misused in affirmative sentences? – Jan 12 '16 at 09:49
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Relevant: John Lawler's answer to Why is the subject omitted in sentences like “Thought you'd never ask”? – herisson Jan 08 '17 at 18:43
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Very similar: Asking questions without “do” in them and Why do some questions not start with an auxiliary verb? – herisson Jan 10 '17 at 21:00
2 Answers
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Yes, the second one is grammatically correct, however, when writing a quick, casual question, the first one is OK (casual ending intended).
Dave
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Only the second is grammatically correct:
Does anyone remember global dimming?
In order to write the first, you would have to make "anyone" the one being addressed, in which case it would get offset by a comma:
Anyone, remember global dimming?
Incidentally, I do not. I have no idea what "global dimming" is. Presumably, it refers to a loss of sunlight due to, my guess, pollution--ooh, contrails! Am I right? Tell me I'm right.
Benjamin Harman
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Yes, you're right ;) I took this sentence from the New Scientist Magazine's leader article. But there the author had started his article with this sentence: "ANYONE remember global dimming?" and there was no comma after 'anyone'. then how could it be correct? – Mostafa Jan 11 '16 at 12:18
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@Mostafa : The author means, "Does anyone remember global dimming?" That much is obvious. The title is meant to feel informal and catchy in order to grab the reader's attention. It'd be like writing, "You okay?" That's what people often say, but it's not technically "correct." You asked what was "correct." He may as well have headed the article: " 'member global dimming?" The language is pointedly informal, intentionally incorrect. – Benjamin Harman Jan 11 '16 at 12:32
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1Benjamin, by saying the first alternative is 'ungrammatical', do you mean it is incorrect or do you mean it is correct in a different register? Are you saying it is an error? – Mitch Jan 11 '16 at 13:10
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@Mitch : I am not saying that it is an "error," for it's clearly quite intentional. The author didn't make a mistake but said it exactly how he meant to, which is vernacularly in lieu of formal English that would have been proper English, yea, correct English. While it's technically and grammatically incorrect, it's definitely not an error. – Benjamin Harman Jan 12 '16 at 01:55
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1They are both fine. Omitting the "Does" makes it informal. A comma is not appropriate. (IMHO, of course.) – Greg Lee Jan 09 '17 at 03:03