How would you use the verb " intention " with infinitive in this question? [closed]
Of the following possible usage case scenarios which option would you pick and why?
( I want to ask a person if his intention is to make me laugh )
- Is your intention to make me laugh?
- Is making me laugh your intention?
- Is your intention that you want to make me laugh?
- Something else...
Thank you and have a wonderful day!
"Is it your intention to make me laugh?" is a somewhat formal way to ask, but I would choose this option. Leading the question with "Is your intention..." "Was your intention..." prompts the listener for their answer faster than the other two in verbal communication, letting the conversation flow easier. I would also choose #1 in text-based communication, assuming none of the words are bolded, italicized, or capitalized for emphasis.
It's also worth noting: typically, "Were you trying to make me laugh?", sometimes with "trying" emphasized in the sentence, can be a way to signal to someone that their joke was NOT funny at all. In my experience this has two distinct tones: coy (similar to the phrase "Pssh, don't make me laugh"; or as an indirect way to call someone out for being inappropriate) and joking around (making fun of a failed joke amongst friends, for example).
Because "were you trying to make me laugh?" is so common colloquially, if this was a serious situation where you were vying for information, I would suggest adding a few modifiers such as: "I'm genuinely curious, were you trying to make me laugh?" or "On a serious note, was that meant to be a joke? I couldn't really tell!". That last sentence is the one I'd use in a professional environment.
(This is from an American point of view.)