核心问题
《新编留美托福签证考试资料》上有一道模拟练习题：
I have ____ reading an English newspaper.
A. time B. method C. difficulty D. chance[正确答案为C(difficulty)]
这道题中的 reading 是否应改为 in reading, 因为 have difficulty in v-ing 才是英语的正确句型。
词典解答
较全面的说法应当是: have difficulty in v-ing 是英语的常见句型, 但是, 其中的 in 在现代英语中是可以省略的, 因此 have difficulty v-ing 也是正确的句型。让我们分别列举一些实例:
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Smith had some difficulty in understanding the man's accent. (Shaw) 史密斯听这个人的口音有些困难。
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There was little difficulty in finding him. (Doyle) 找到他并不困难。
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I was having difficulty breathing. (EED) 我呼吸困难。
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They were wedged together so tightly that Ron had difficulty extracting his arm to put it around Hermione's shoulders. (J. K. Rowling, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, P. 106) 他们坐在一起挨得太紧了，以至于罗恩都无法把胳膊抽出来搂住她的肩膀。（《哈利波特与死亡圣徒》）