comparative adjective
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comparative adjective
One of my students asks me this grammar question.
The greater the surface of ski that is in contact with the ground, the easier _________.
(A) to control it (B)is to control (C)to control it is (D) it is to control
The answer is A.
She asks me why the answer is not D.
Does anyone have any idea?
Many thanks.
The greater the surface of ski that is in contact with the ground, the easier _________.
(A) to control it (B)is to control (C)to control it is (D) it is to control
The answer is A.
She asks me why the answer is not D.
Does anyone have any idea?
Many thanks.
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My 'order of preference' is D, A, C. (Like Lolwhites I wouldn't accept B at all).
Last edited by fluffyhamster on Tue Aug 17, 2010 8:01 am, edited 1 time in total.
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It's like the test writers have deliberately seperated out the expected elements ('it is to control' overlaps with 'to control it', except for the final, anaphoric 'it' there, as does 'to control it' with 'it is to control', minus the dummy subject 'it' and verb 'is'). I agree with lol that B is totally unacceptable, but I still think A is only marginally acceptable (and would not be accepted by most people); as for C, that is Yoda-speak here (but to-infinitive clauses can be subjects). All this leaves us still with D as the best choice.
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comparative adjective
Did you consider that the answer given is incorrect? If the answer is "A" then the sentence would not be parallel and both sides of a comparative adjective must be parallel.
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lolwhite,
I've haven't heard the term symmetrical before. The only term I'm familiar with is parallel. Coordinating conjunctions and comparatives require parallel structures on each side. For example:
"blue and interesting" doesn't work because "interesting" is not a color
"neither the movie nor seeing a play" doesn't work because "seeing" is a gerund form of a noun rather than a simple noun
I'd like to hear more about your term "symmetrical".
I've haven't heard the term symmetrical before. The only term I'm familiar with is parallel. Coordinating conjunctions and comparatives require parallel structures on each side. For example:
"blue and interesting" doesn't work because "interesting" is not a color
"neither the movie nor seeing a play" doesn't work because "seeing" is a gerund form of a noun rather than a simple noun
I'd like to hear more about your term "symmetrical".
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