Thread: As for/As to

My guess is, "as to" points to the object of discussion, and "as for" refers to its subject.

Example:

As to these two constructions, both are translated into Russian with the same word combination "что касается".
As for me, I find it difficult to decide between them.

Is this my guess correct?

It's a good guess, but I don't think it's as clear-cut as that (this is English afterall). As far as I can figure out, they're (at least partial) synonyms.

You could use either in your first example;

As to/ As for these two constructions, both are translated into Russian with the same word combination "что касается".

but your second example only works the way you wrote it.

Amusingly, my lil' old pocket dictionary (the only one I have access to just now), explains:

as for: with regard to; concerning
as to: see 'as for'



By the way... Is/ was my guess correct? or Is this correct? (or even Am I correct?)

Originally Posted by scotcher

By the way... Is/ was my guess correct? or Is this correct? (or even Am I correct?)

А если человек очень хочет, чтобы в вопросе было и this, и указание на то, что вопрос именно его, то можно сказать "this guess of mine".

Thank you, guys. Can I use "as to" in the example below:

My mother is a doctor. As to my sister and her husband, they are medical workers too. As for our little brother, he doesn't like an idea to become a doctor, he wants to be an ice cream seller.

No. In that case it must be "As for my sister..."

I pondered this question after your first post Indra, but I wasn't very confident about my answer.
I'm still not, but I'll say what I think - "as for" is much more common and can be used in all cases. And if the subject is animate (or at least human), "as to" sounds very unnatural indeed.

(mezhdu prochim, "he doesn't like the idea of becoming a doctor")

Originally Posted by Indra

My guess is, "as to" points to the object of discussion, and "as for" refers to its subject.

Example:

As to these two constructions, both are translated into Russian with the same word combination "что касается".
As for me, I find it difficult to decide between them.

Is this my guess correct?

I simply cannot think of a good example for the use of "as to".
I think you would be better off just using "as for".

-He asked as to the well-being of the sick man.
-I like the product, but as for its seller, no I do not.

I think as to is similar to replacing the word about. It isn't a comparison. And because it isn't a comparison, you don't need a previuos sentence or comment. But, as for is a comparison. You must have a previous sentence, to use as for.

In the USA, "as for" is a more common. However, the use of "as to/for" is not used very much. If you are only going to mention one extra sentence in this manner, "And for" would be more common.

Originally Posted by Indra

My mother is a doctor. As to my sister and her husband, they are medical workers too. As for our little brother, he doesn't like an idea to become a doctor, he wants to be an ice cream seller.

Would be a little better as:
My mother is a doctor. As for my sister and her husband, they are medical workers too. And for our little brother, he doesn't like the idea of becoming a doctor; he wants to sell ice cream.

"an idea to become a doctor" is not how it would be said, but the meaning is still understood. This version - "the idea of becoming a doctor" is how is usually said. And for the word "seller" - most Americans would say "wants to sell ice cream" instead. Other options that would be common are "wants to be an ice cream salesman" or "wants to be an ice cream vendor".

"And for" can be used for the last sentence that continues an idea. You wouldn't want to begin two or more sentences with "and for".

Also, the semicolon ";" or a hyphen "-" is needed to join the sentences as they currently are written. The semicolon is more grammatically correct, but the hyphen is more frequently used for informal writing.
"And for our little brother, he doesn't like the idea of becoming a doctor; he wants to sell ice cream." could have been written as:
"And for our little brother, he doesn't like the idea of becoming a doctor. He wants to sell ice cream."

GKnight,

спасибо

Originally Posted by Indra

GKnight,

спасибо

You're welcome. I just started the journey of learning Russian yesterday when I stumbled onto this site - it's a fascinating language. There's so much information here so I'm more than happy to return the favor by helping with English.

GKnight, that's not right at all.

And for our little brother, he doesn't like the idea of becoming a doctor; he wants to sell ice cream.

It should be "And as for", or just "As for", as we already discussed.

Originally Posted by waxwing

GKnight, that's not right at all.

It should be "And as for", or just "As for", as we already discussed.

In every day conversation, "and for" is just as common as "and as for." However, technically speaking, you are correct.

Frequently, people will some something like:
"For our little brother, he doesn't like the idea of becoming a doctor."
..dropping the "as" would then make the sentence similar to this one:
"Regarding our little brother, he doesn't like the idea of becoming a doctor."

Thanks for pointing this out though, for native speakers it may go unnoticed when common conversation becomes widely accepted but doesn't form technically correct sentences. It always helps to be put back in place.

I'm an American and I have never heard this usage either. "As for" is much better.