BMM10204 Chapter 12 - Word Order.pdf

7/28/2019 BMM10204 Chapter 12 - Word Order.pdf

1/3

Chapter 12 | Word Order | BMM10204 |58 of 112

Remember that the directions to questions on Sentence Correction state Choose the answer that produces the most

effective sentence: this answer should be clear and exact, without awkwardness, ambiguity, redundancy or grammatical

error.

Sometimes, the order in which a set of words are used in a sentence can give rise to ambiguity, and they must be reordered

to bring out the intended meaning clearly

Sometimes a wrong ordering of the words may even result in humorous, or even ridiculous statements.

Examples

The corrected version is given in brackets.

1. A nursemaid is wanted to look after a baby about twenty-years old. (A nursemaid,abouttwenty years old, is wanted to look

after a baby.)

2. After the accident, I was for thirty days confined to the cot with swollen legs. (After the accident, I was confined with

swollen legs to the cot for thirty days.)

3. The stool over there was purchased by my grandfather with three legs. (The stool with three legs over there was purchased

by my grandfather.)

4. These verses were written by a young man who has long since been dead for his own amusement. (These verses were

written by a young man for his own amusement, but he has long since been dead.)

5. You must not forget to visit the spot where Mahatma Gandhi was assassinated during your trip to Delhi. (During your trip

to Delhi, you must not forget to visit the spot where Mahatma Gandhi was assassinated.}

6. The man was brought before the magistrate who had stolen the watch. (The man who had stolen the watch was brought

before the magistrate.)

Let us look at a few examples involving wrong word order :

Example - 1

A publication may be sued for libel in any state where it regularly circulates under a unanimous ruling by the Supreme Court.

(A) A publication may be sued for libel in any state where it regularly circulates under a unanimous ruling by the Supreme

Court.

(B) A publication may be sued for libel in any state where it has regular circulation under a unanimous ruling by the Supreme

Court.(C) Under a unanimous ruling by the Supreme Court, a publication may be sued for libel in any state in which it regularly

circulates.

Word Order12


2/3


(D) Under a unanimous ruling by the Supreme Court, a publication may be sued for libel in any state in which there is regular

circulation.

(E) Under a unanimous ruling by the Supreme Court, there may be a suit for libel in any state in which a publication regularly

circulates.

Analysis

We can easily surmise that what the author wishes to say is that, under a unanimous ruling of the Supreme Court, a

publication may be sued for libel in any state where it regularly circulates (and not necessarrily in the state in which it is

printed and published).

But, because of the wrong ordering of words, the given sentence can be misunderstood as implying that the unanimous

ruling of the Supreme Court is to allow the publication to circulate regularly in state any state! So, (A) is wrong.

(B) also contains the same error.

(C) removes this ambiguity, has an elegant construction, and is the answer.

The phrase in (D), in which there is regular circulation is wrong, and must be corrected as in which it has regular

circulation.The second part of the sentence in (E) is unnecessarily verbose and is less elegant than the corresponding phrase in (C), and

is therefore not a better choice.

So, (C) is the answer.

Example - 2

Promotions, retirements, deaths and other actions approved by the board of directors at its May meeting will be reported in

the July 15 issue of the company paper.

(A) Promotions, retirements, deaths, and other actions approved by the board of directors at its May meeting will be reported

in the July 15 issue of the company paper

(B) Promotions, retirements, and other actions which have been approved at the May meeting of the board of directors along

with deaths, will be reported in the July 15 issue of the company paper.

(C) To be reported in the July 15 issue of the company paper are the promotions, retirements, deaths, and other actions which

were approved at the board of directors' May meeting.

(D) Meeting in May, the promotions, retirements, and other actions approved by the board of directors, including obituaries,

will be reported in the July 15 issue of the company paper

(E) The July 15 issue of the company paper will report on promotions, retirements, and other actions approved by the board

of directors at its May meeting; the paper will also include obituaries.

AnalysisBecause of a wrong ordering of words, the given sentence has the absurd implication that the board of directors are in the

habit of approving deaths!

All the first four choices can be interpreted to have this meaning, and are all wrong.

Choice (E) is clear and unambiguous, and is the answer.


3/3


Example - 3

Evidence of some shifts in the character of violence on television is emerging from a new study of 500 television programs

by the Center for Media and Public Affairs, a nonprofit research center in Washington, D.C.. a study that is underwritten by

a number of educational institutions.

(A) programs by the Center for Media and Public Affairs, a nonprofit research center in Washington, D.C. a study that is

underwritten by a number of educational institutions

(B) programs by the Center for Media and Public Affairs, a nonprofit research center in Washington, D.C, and it is underwritten

by a number of educational institutions

(C) programs underwritten by a number of educational institutions and conducted by the Center for Media and Public

Affairs, a nonprofit research center based in Washington, D.C.

(D) programs, a study underwritten by a number of educational institutions and conducted by the Center for Media and

Public Affairs, a nonprofit research center in Washington, D.C.

(E) programs, a study conducted by the Center for Media and Public Affairs, a nonprofit research center based in Washington,

D.C., and it is underwritten by a number of educational institutions.

Analysis

The author's intention is to say that the study of 500 television programs was undertaken by the Center of Media and Public

Affairs, and that this study had been underwritten by a number of educational institution. Because of a wrong ordering of

words, the given sentence would mean that the 500 television programs had themselves been produced by the Center for

Media and Public Affairs. (A) is therefore wrong.

(B) is wrong for the same reason.

(C) is also wrong, because it would mean that it was the television programs (and not the study about them) that had been

underwritten by a number of educational institutions.

(D) makes the intention of the author very clear in a grammatical and elegant sentence, and is the answer (E) is wrong,

because the pronoun it in it is ambiguous, and could be construed to refer to the Center for Media and Public Affairs,

instead of to the study undertaken by it as is intended by the author.

BMM10204 Chapter 12 - Word Order.pdf

Documents

Transcript of BMM10204 Chapter 12 - Word Order.pdf