admit doing / admit to doing

[thelearner101]

Hi all. There are two sentences below. (Logman online examples)


What's the difference in meaning? (admit doing or admit to doing.)


Dana admitted feeling hurt by what I had said.
Phillips openly admits to having an alcohol problem.


Thank you.

 

[dreamlike]

There is no difference in meaning. You can use the verb 'admit' in a number of ways -- it's just a matter of style.

 

[thelearner101]

Thanks, but I have a test question that made me crazy.

World leaders turned a cautious eye to North Korea after the communist state admitted --- a secret nuclear weapons program.

Both having and to having are among the options. I think this question is wrong. What do you think?

 

[pob14]

I think that either of those options would work in that test question.

 

[Parla]

I agree with POB; either "having" or "to having" would be correct in that sentence. Whoever said that there is only one correct answer is wrong.

 

[thelearner101]

Thanks for all your help. This forum is great!

 

[EdisonBhola]

1. Peter admitted stealing my wallet.
2. Peter admitted to stealing to wallet.

I think both 1 and 2 are correct.

3. Peter admitted stealing.
4. Peter admitted to stealing.

I think only 4 is correct.


Do you agree?

 

[elicosafi]

I have the same doubt...according to macmillian dictionary, we use ADMIT:

to say that you have done something wrong or illegaladmit to: In court he admitted to lying about the accident.

admit doing something: Davis admitted causing death bycareless driving.

So the question is: can we use "admit to" or "only admit" without no difference in meaning?. It other words, are they interchangeable?

CAN SOMEBODY ASK THIS? THANKS

 

[EStjarn]

3. Peter admitted stealing.
4. Peter admitted to stealing.

I think only 4 is correct.

Do you agree?

Here's a comment from ozzourti in a thread at EnglishForums.com entitled "Admit (to) doing something?" that I feel has merit:

I think it is worth mentioning that "admit doing something" can also mean "allow something", so is is often better to include the "to" for the sake of clarity.

Forero in "admit/admit to" seems to agree with this:

"Admit doing something" is ambiguous, and one of its meanings is "admit to doing something" (confess something). "Admit doing something" can also mean "allow something":

We admitted to writing between the lines.
[We admitted that we had written between the lines.]

We admitted writing between the lines.
[Same, or "We permitted people to write between the lines."]

With this in mind, I don't think one can rule out "Peter admitted stealing" as a meaningful sentence. I think it would be understood as "Peter allowed stealing."

Furthermore, in a different EnglishForums.com thread, "admit to or admit -ing", rvw makes the following observation:

Admit to is an idiom. Technically it consists of the intransitive verb admit and the preposition to. The idiomatic combination admit to means acknowledge.

She admitted to making a mistake means she acknowledged making a mistake.

94kittycat in "admit lying or admit to lying" suggests that the version with 'to' is more formal:

I don't think that any of the two sentaces is wrong, but I'm pretty sure that, "he admitted to lying to his wife," is the one that's more official.

 

[JordyBro]

1. Peter admitted stealing my wallet.
2. Peter admitted to stealing to wallet.

I think both 1 and 2 are correct.

3. Peter admitted stealing.
4. Peter admitted to stealing.

I think only 4 is correct.


Do you agree?

To me 1 is a bit wrong. From my perspective it should be:
peter admitted he stole my wallet.

I suppose I'd sum it up that "admit" without to is short for "admit that" and requires a full sentence, as in, a sentence with a subject and verb. For example
My brother's girlfriend admitted (that) she had been to prison once.

 

[elicosafi]

Hi everybody. I think the main question has not been answered. Why is English so difficult?
When we study a language we cannot think we must know. However THAT is very useful. Rephrasing is more convenient.
Thanks a lot for your help.

 

[Parla]

"Peter admitted stealing the wallet" does not mean that Peter allowed it to happen.
"Peter admitted stealing the wallet" means exactly the same as "Peter admitted to stealing the wallet".

"Admit" simply does not mean allow or permit in these sentences, with or without "to".

 

[JM the puffin]

< This question and discussion has been added to a previous thread. Cagey, moderator. >

Hi, my grammar book says (Grammar in use UK version) after ADMIT, verb+ing is used.
BBC learning English website also says the same. BBC World Service | Learning English | The Flatmates - Language Point 84
Here's the example sentence from BBC Learning English. (not from news!)

- The children admitted taking the sweets.

But today my English friend told me admit to verb+ing is the right way to speak.
I still think BBC is a more reliable source than my friend, then I thought maybe this is one of the things that people use regardless of its grammatical correctness.

I looked it up on this forum before, then realised that admit + ing can also mean "allow something"
However the example sentence from BBC website clearly doesn't mean "The children allow (people) to take the sweets."

Should I use to or not? Anybody can explain which one is correct? Or both? (in this case then why the hell BBC and Grammar in use never say so?) :/
it's very confusing! :s

Big big thanks in advance! Have a great day! )

 

[owlman5]

Hi, JMP.

- The children admitted taking the sweets.

This sentence looks normal to me. It wouldn't trouble me a bit to find "to" in there: The children admitted to taking the sweets. The children admitted taking the sweets.

 

[heypresto]

The other examples given on the BBC site of verbs that are followed by verb+ing, are indeed correct:

The children admitted taking the sweets.

I considered becoming a singer when I left school.
Do you fancy going to see a movie tonight?
Would you mind opening the window? It's rather hot in here.
He suggested eating out, but I had already prepared dinner at home.

It's only 'admit' that sounds fine with the infinitive - as owlman says.

 

[RedwoodGrove]

Please form one complete sentence and ask one question about a single aspect about it. I don't know what verb+ing means.

 

[owlman5]

I don't know what verb+ing means.

It's time that you learned, RG, if you want to read these threads and understand them. Many ESL students use the phrase to talk about gerunds and present participles.

 

[JM the puffin]

@owlman5 @heypresto Thanks for your comments!

 

[vehadasha]

The children admitted taking the sweets.

I feel the discussed sentences must include the reference to the Past:

She admitted having taken the wallet.
The children admitted having taken the sweets.

Aren't I right?

 

[tunaafi]

I feel the discussed sentences must include the reference to the Past:

She admitted having taken the wallet.
The children admitted having taken the sweets.

Aren't I right?

No. These sentences are fine:

She admitted taking the wallet.
The children admitted taking the sweets.

 

[vehadasha]

No. These sentences are fine:

She admitted taking the wallet.
The children admitted taking the sweets.

Hmm. Does this mean my sentences with 'having taken' are incorrect? What's the difference?

 

[entangledbank]

They're just unnecessary. We can admit to present states (being a fan of romance novels, for example) or to past actions. 'Admit taking' is about a past action (we wouldn't use it to describe what we are currently doing).

 

[vehadasha]

They're just unnecessary.

Thanks for clearing it up! So, as far as I understood, 'admit stealing' is a preferrable variant. Do you ever say 'admit having stolen?'

 

[entangledbank]

Yes, it's perfectly correct, and could be said or written sometimes. Often there are longer forms like this, with extra tense information, but the simpler forms are preferred.

 

[vehadasha]

Thanks a lot!

 

[sgabi]

I feel the discussed sentences must include the reference to the Past:

She admitted having taken the wallet.
The children admitted having taken the sweets.

Aren't I right?

I do not think it is necessary.
The verb 'admit' meaning 'confess' cannot refer to anything else than something that happened prior to the act of admitting therefore the addition of HAVE is pointless.

I'd be happy to get a confirmation from a native language professional.

 

[SardorBEK]

Hi! One of the modern grammarians that I know said as follows: In many cases, the 'to' is optional. It is, however, usually omitted before an action verb (particularly in a criminal context), while it is often preserved before a stative verb, such as 'be' or 'have'.

 

[rino delbello]

Hi All

Regards post #22, by re-formulating the sentence with Present Perfect, which between '' The children have admitted taking the sweets today. '' and '' The children have admitted to taking the sweets today. '' is correct?

 

[owlman5]

Hi, rino delbello. I can't see any obvious reason to use to after admitted in that sentence. In my opinion, to is needless, so I prefer the first version of your sentence. However, I don't think that the second sentence is incorrect.

 

[rino delbello]

Hi owlman5, thank you for clarifying it.

 

[rino delbello]

Sorry owlman5, last thing : do you also prefer using admit without the '' to '' in the Present Simple ''? Ex. My children usually admit taking the sweets when they want to have a snack.

 

[owlman5]

That last example seems fairly strange to me, rino. It would sound more idiomatic to use that after admit: My children admit that they take sweets. But there isn't anything wrong with using the present simple after the word admit.

 

[rino delbello]

By '' there isn't anything wrong with using the present simple after the word admit '' do you mean that a sentence like '' My children admit taking sweets when they are in a good mood. '' may also be correct?

 

[owlman5]

Yes. Taking sweets is okay after admit, but taking is a gerund, not the present simple tense.

If you want to use the present simple normally after admit, you should use the conjunction that to introduce another clause: My children admit that they take (present simple) sweets when they are in a good mood.

 

[rino delbello]

OK. I misunderstood it, sorry . Thanks a lot.