Saw these examples:
They were accused of aiding his escape.
They were accused of aiding him in his escape.
http://www.oxfordlearnersdictionaries.com/definition/american_english/aid_2
Is there any difference between these sentences and If there is how do I use aid and aid in properly?
Thank you
Best Answer
The difference between "aid" and "aid in" is one of specificity. In the example you give, this difference is not apparent because the object of "aid" changed from "him" to "his escape."
However take the following examples:
In the first case, we don't know how or when the doctor aided the terrorists, or even if she knew they were terrorists. Maybe she simply followed the Hippocratic Oath and patched up their burns after the bombing. We are only told that she generally aided them somehow; we would typically assume she aided them in her capacity as a doctor, but the meaning is not overtly so restricted, and we'd have to rely on external context.
However in the second case, by using the preposition "in", we are able to specify to some degree how the doctor aided the terrorists. We can rule out the Hippocratic Oath in that case.