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The main question is:

Find the mistake in this sentence:

"What is the reason for you neglect your homework"

So, what is (are) the correct answer(s) from the following sentences?

  1. Is this the reason for you neglecting doing your homework?

  2. Is this the reason why you neglect doing your homework?

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  • 1
    Someone can neglect a noun, like an object or a task, not just a gerund. So in your answers, you don't necessarily need to add "doing." Neglect/ing one's homework is grammatical and idiomatic. – user8399 Apr 22 '15 at 5:45
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You would have to choose #1 , because #2 contains the diparaged construction "the reason why".

However, neither #1 nor #2 is a good rephrasing of the incorrect example.

For one thing, "what is the reason" was changed to "is this the reason", which changes the meaning.

For another thing, "neglecting doing" is awkward. Of course, simply taking out "doing", as user8399 suggests, changes the meaning. "Neglecting to do..." would be better.

For another, If you treat "neglecting" as a noun, it should be your neglecting. . . " rather than you neglecting. . ."

So really, the correct answer is that neither #1 nor #2 is a good rephrasing.

Feel free to tell your teacher this; and that the question should be thrown out (not counted), because it was so badly written; and that you deserve extra credit for this analysis, not a downcheck for whichever answer you chose.

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True, the word neglect can be used as a verb. And you can certainly say...

Don't neglect your health

Said that,

Is this the reason you neglect/are neglecting your homework? -is okay.

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  • If he is going to use neglecting, he should say "you are neglecting", not "you neglecting". – WhatRoughBeast Apr 22 '15 at 21:42

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