EnglishClub ESL Forums

Hi, I am Korean student.

I took an English test last week.
A question is on English writing.

The answer my teacher suggested was ' No matter how trivial his action is considered, he won't stop doing."
But my answer I wrote was " No matter how mere his action is considered, he won't stop doing."

My teacher said my answer was wrong because 'mere' must be used in front of a noun grammarticaly.

But, by Googling, I found a sentence that "No matter how mere they are or how grand the view." in the novel titled "The Lady travelers Guide to Larceny with a Dashing Stranger".

Showing this sentence, I told my teacher my sentence is right, but she replied me I am still wrong and to bring any grammar document saying such use of 'mere' is acceptable.

Please help me.

Thank you in advance.

Jack.

The adjective "mere" is attributive, ie used before a noun. This is shown in good English dictionaries, and you can see it at:

http://www.learnersdictionary.com/definition/mere (US)

https://en.oxforddictionaries.com/definition/mere (UK)

The novel you cite appears to be mimicking the language of a bygone era.