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I have a grammar question that one of my students has stumped me with.

Does the prespoitional phrase determine the position of the verb in this sentence?


What do you think ARE the main aims in an English speaking academic essay?

Why is this used instead of:

What do you think the main aims ARE in an English speaking academic essay?

or

In an English speaking academic essay, what do you think the main aims ARE?

Thanks!

Hah. I would have said, "What do you think the main aims in an English speaking academic essay are."

However, the other three all sound possible to me.

Lorikeet wrote:Hah. I would have said, "What do you think the main aims in an English speaking academic essay are."

Links to what I said on the identical thread Erica began on the AL forum: (Q: What do you think are... ("move" 'are' >)); A: The main aims in an English speaking academic essay are...

"What do you think ARE the main aims in an English speaking academic essay?"

This is incorrect because the question word in this sentence is "What" Questions that begin with a "to be" verb transpose the subject and verb. Otherwise, the subject and verb to do switch places. "What do you think" is the main clause. The next clause, "the main aims...are?" maintains the subject-verb pattern. Would you say, "I know that is she here? instead of "I know that she is here?" Same type of problem. We hear and sometimes speak this way, but it is not formally correct.
Hope this helps.