As many of you know, I'm an ESL Teacher in Taiwan. I came across a sentence that does not sound right, but I am wondering if it's grammatically correct.
"I like to have cats."
I've NEVER heard it said like that before, but I cannot think of any reason why it's wrong. Is it wrong or is it something we simply would not normally say?
Slight correction: It was, "I like to have a cat." Somehow, that sounds worse.
The issue here is about the tense of the verb. It'd be better to use more of a "possible in the future" tense, I think.
I would like to have a cat.
or
I'd like to have a cat.
I think many ESL students (and sometimes others) miss that 'd sound because it's so slight when we speak (rather like missing the d on "iced tea" or the d on "he's supposed to..." Somehow that sound disappears when we speak quickly and that transfers into incorrect spelling and/or tense.
Here is a website that may help:'
http://grammar.ccc.commnet.edu/grammar/verbs.htm#tense
Click on different words in the image of the brain for different discussions about verbs. Click on Auxiliary and then scroll down to Uses of Will and Would.
Matt, another possibility would be
" I like having a cat".
Then "having a cat" becomes the gerund phrase direct object.
This construction is often used.
I like eating icecream.
I like playing soccer.
The sentence "I like to have cats" is grammatically correct. However, it may sound unusual or uncommon in everyday conversation. In English, it is more common to express our preference for owning pets using the verb "to have" with certain animals, such as dogs or birds. For example, we often say "I like to have a dog" or "I like to have a pet bird."
When it comes to cats, we typically use the verb "to have" in a slightly different way. Instead of saying "I like to have cats," native English speakers are more likely to say "I like cats" or "I like having cats." These expressions convey the same meaning but are more idiomatic.
So, in summary, "I like to have cats" is grammatically correct, but it may not be the most natural way to express your preference for cats in English. You could use alternative phrases like "I like cats" or "I enjoy having cats" to sound more fluent and familiar to native English speakers.