7
   

Is there a grammar problem in this sentence"

 
 
fansy
 
Reply Tue 16 Feb, 2010 10:31 pm
Quote:
Native speakers got so used to figurative language they speak that they don't realize of how large a proportion of what they say and write is metaphorical.
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Type: Question • Score: 7 • Views: 1,377 • Replies: 8
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fresco
 
  1  
Reply Wed 17 Feb, 2010 02:26 am
@fansy,
Yes. The tenses of the verbs don't agree.
Either change got to get or don't to didn't (Not both).
0 Replies
 
Ionus
 
  1  
Reply Wed 17 Feb, 2010 02:58 am
@fansy,
Quote:
Native speakers got so used to figurative language they speak that they don't realize of how large a proportion of what they say and write is metaphorical.


I would write this as :

Native speakers grow so used to the figurative language that they speak, they don't realize how large a proportion of what they say and write is metaphorical.

Try to avoid get and got. They are overused and may not mean what you want to say. There is also some confusion in the sentence for clauses and phrases.
farmerman
 
  1  
Reply Wed 17 Feb, 2010 06:50 am
@Ionus,
Quote:
Native speakers got so used to figurative language that they don't realize how large a proportion of what they say and write is metaphorical.
Without messing with what the author is writing, this would be acceptable and simpler. Retaining the "got" and "what" as a responsive would allow the sound of this sentence to fit in with whatever the author wishes to sound like. The hard job of doing editing is to correct any errors without changing the style of the rest of the work.
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hnicoleanderson
 
  1  
Reply Sat 3 Dec, 2011 10:50 am
@Ionus,
I would use "become" instead of "got" or "grow."
Ragman
 
  1  
Reply Sat 3 Dec, 2011 11:31 am
@hnicoleanderson,
Note that the timestamps and dates of this thread are almost 2 years old. FWIW, it's doubtful the OP will be returning.
hnicoleanderson
 
  1  
Reply Sat 3 Dec, 2011 01:10 pm
@Ragman,
Does it matter?
McTag
 
  1  
Reply Sun 4 Dec, 2011 04:21 am
@hnicoleanderson,

Well said, Hermione.
0 Replies
 
Ragman
 
  1  
Reply Sun 4 Dec, 2011 05:21 am
@hnicoleanderson,
Well, it maters if you want to provide an answer to the OP. One might doubt that there's another person who might want to know about that particular grammatical issue.
0 Replies
 
 

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