Spotting the mistake.

@Maria Loredana,

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a) This is the book of which I lost the cover.

Okay Maria tho I'd'v writ ...from which...

Tho others might say ...whose cover I (had) lost

While the perfectionist, ..the cover of which I had lost

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b) They stopped to eat a sandwich.

Perfectly okay tho the perfectionist might object s/b ...each to eat...

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c) You mustn’t have been that rude.

Has two possible immediate meanings: (1) You shouldn't... (2)Apparently you weren't...

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d) Of those two books I read, the more interesting is the one about the whales.

Also okay though

Of those two books I had read, more interesting is the one about whales

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@dalehileman,

Good job, IMO.
Although if you should visit The Grinder in Shoreline WA, you and your other may wish to settle on a single sandwich,

1 Reply

@neologist,

Thanks Neo

http://www.tripadvisor.com/ShowUserReviews-g58740-d647752-r274967947-Grinders_Hot_Sands-Shoreline_Washington.html

1 Reply

@dalehileman,

Definitely a worthwhile stop. Good music Saturday night.

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@dalehileman,

Thank you very much! I really appreciate your help!
Though I still have some questions. Would it be okay to say 'whose cover' since I'm talking about an object and also, why would there be a 'had'? I understand it is optional, but why 'had' and not 'have' since the rest of the sentence is in present tense?
Also, is 'musn't have' gramatically correct?

And I still have a few other questions, if that would be okay:
What is the difference in meaning between these two sentences:
a) It being a bank, it wasn’t easy to break in.
b) There being a bank, it wasn’t easy to break in.

What would be a suitable word or phrase for the blank space in the following sentence:
Boring ___ to do it, it’s a job that has to be done.

Also, I can't seem to be able to rephrase correctly the next sentence: 'Such a ridiculous proposal isn’t worth serious consideration.' so that it begins with 'There is...'

2 Replies

@Maria Loredana,

Maria Loredana wrote:

Would it be okay to say 'whose cover' since I'm talking about an object

'whose' is a possessive pronoun, and some people insist that it should only be used for people. However, it's commonly used for animals, less commonly for objects. In the sentence you posted, I don't think there's another choice.

Quote:

and also, why would there be a 'had'? I understand it is optional, but why 'had' and not 'have' since the rest of the sentence is in present tense?

'had lost' implies that it is no longer lost. 'have lost' means that it's still lost.

Quote:

Also, is 'musn't have' gramatically correct?

Some people use it to mean 'shouldn't have.' Others disagree with this use and think 'mustn't' only implies (speculative, negative) probability. The contraction is more common in British English, I think. It's common for me to say something like, 'The room is cold. I must not have turned on the heat.'

Quote:

And I still have a few other questions, if that would be okay:
What is the difference in meaning between these two sentences:
a) It being a bank, it wasn’t easy to break in.
b) There being a bank, it wasn’t easy to break in.

a) Since it's a bank, it was hard to break into it.
b) Since that place (there) was a bank, it wasn't easy to break in(to).

Same meaning, but b) is a pretty awkward way to say/write it. In that position, 'there' looks like it's beginning an expletive construction. I had to think about it before I figured out the other way to parse it.

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What would be a suitable word or phrase for the blank space in the following sentence:
Boring ___ to do it, it’s a job that has to be done.

'as it is'

Quote:

Also, I can't seem to be able to rephrase correctly the next sentence: 'Such a ridiculous proposal isn’t worth serious consideration.' so that it begins with 'There is...'

There is so much that's ridiculous about that proposal that it isn't worth serious consideration.

1 Reply

@FBM,

Thank you a lot!
I do have some more questions...
What is the mistake in the next sentence: ’By midnight, I finished the work and was ready to hand in the next day.’ Should there be an ’it’ between ’hand’ and ’in’? Or ’I had finished’? There must be only one mistake.

Could I use ’still’ with the meaning of ’as well’ and place it at the end of a sentence? Is it gramatically correct? For example: ’My life has been a lie and my death a lie still.’ ? And if ’still’ can’t be used with that meaning, what other word could I use, except for ’also’ and ’as well’?

Is there any difference between the following sentences, is any of them wrong, if so, why?
a) It’s two years since I met her.
b) It’s two years since I have met her.
c) It’s been two years since I met her.
d) It’s been two years since I have met her.

If I turn the sentence, ’They hope this product will be successful.’, in passive voice is it correct to say: ’This product is hoped to be successful.’?

And is it correct to say: ’ The thick brown liquid is the latest product to emerge from Fischer’s laboratory.’ ? Should there be ’emerging’ instead of ’to emerge’?

1 Reply

@Maria Loredana,

You're very welcome.

Maria Loredana wrote:

’By midnight, I finished the work and was ready to hand in the next day.’ Should there be an ’it’ between ’hand’ and ’in’? Or ’I had finished’? There must be only one mistake.

I would prefer to see both of those changes, but it's OK to leave out the "had" before "finished." The "it" is necessary, though: By midnight, I finished the work and was ready to hand it in the next day."

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’My life has been a lie and my death a lie still.’

I can't find that acceptable in modern English. Maybe in poetry. That sentence does have a poetic flavor.
"...a lie on a par with it."
"...a lie even more grim."
Something like that, maybe.

Quote:

a) It’s two years since I met her.
b) It’s two years since I have met her.
c) It’s been two years since I met her.
d) It’s been two years since I have met her.

a) Colloquially, yes, I've heard things like that.
b) Seems pretty unlikely to me. Maybe in British English (BrE).
c) No problem.
d) No problem.

All these are ambiguous, however. They could either mean 'I first met her two years ago' or 'I haven't met her in two years.' The context would make the intended meaning clear.

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If I turn the sentence, ’They hope this product will be successful.’, in passive voice is it correct to say: ’This product is hoped to be successful.’?

That's fine, but keep in mind that the passive voice isn't preferred unless there's a specific reason for it. For example, if the doer of the verb isn't known, or is irrelevant and/or distracting to the message.

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’ The thick brown liquid is the latest product to emerge from Fischer’s laboratory.’ ? Should there be ’emerging’ instead of ’to emerge’?

The (infinitive) form 'to emerge' suggests that the emergence is complete.
The (gerund) ~ing form suggests that it's still in the process of emerging.

I say "suggests" because this is not an absolute rule. I think it's just a nuance.

1 Reply

@FBM,

Thank you again!
For the sentences with 'It's two years..' I actually had to rephrase the sentence: 'I met her two years ago.' so that it starts with 'It's two years since..' So I guess 'It's two years since I met her' would be the best option.

The passive I needed for the sentence: 'Fischer, the third largest brewery in France, (develop) a new product that it (hope) (put) some new life back into the beer market–a beer concentrate.' where I had use the most logical form of the verbs in brackets, so I figured it would be 'is hoped'.

How should I rephrase the next sentences:
a) ‘The package was sent by express mail this morning.’ For this one I need to use a modal verb.
b) It’s out of the question that she should lend him money. For this one I have to use the word ‘fancy’.
Could it be: ‘I don’t fancy the idea of her lending him money.’ or ‘Fancy that she should lend him money.’ (for the latter I don’t really understand the meaning of ‘fancy’)?
c) He was very gifted, but he never became a concert pianist. I have to start with ‘despite’.
Are ‘Despite his being very gifted, he never became a concert pianist.’ and ‘Despite the fact that he was very gifted, he never became a concert pianist.’ both correct?

1 Reply

@Maria Loredana,

Maria Loredana wrote:

Thank you again!
For the sentences with 'It's two years..' I actually had to rephrase the sentence: 'I met her two years ago.' so that it starts with 'It's two years since..' So I guess 'It's two years since I met her' would be the best option.

In that case: "It's been two years since I first met her" would be unambiguous.

Quote:

The passive I needed for the sentence: 'Fischer, the third largest brewery in France, (develop) a new product that it (hope) (put) some new life back into the beer market–a beer concentrate.' where I had use the most logical form of the verbs in brackets, so I figured it would be 'is hoped'.

The verb tense is left wide open, so there are a few options:
"...developed...it hoped would put..."
"...is developing...it hopes will put..."
"...will develop...it hopes will put..."

Quote:

a) ‘The package was sent by express mail this morning.’ For this one I need to use a modal verb.

The package must/should have been sent by express mail this morning.

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b) It’s out of the question that she should lend him money. For this one I have to use the word ‘fancy’.

It's a flight of fancy that she might lend him the money.

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Could it be: ‘I don’t fancy the idea of her lending him money.’ or ‘Fancy that she should lend him money.’ (for the latter I don’t really understand the meaning of ‘fancy’)?

This is a distinctly BrE expression, and I'm an AmE native speaker, so I can't promise 100% accuracy. "I don't fancy..." means that you don't like the idea. "Fancy that..." means "Imagine that..."

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c) He was very gifted, but he never became a concert pianist. I have to start with ‘despite’.
Are ‘Despite his being very gifted, he never became a concert pianist.’ and ‘Despite the fact that he was very gifted, he never became a concert pianist.’ both correct?

Both of those are equally good, I'd say. Gerunds take possessive pronouns ("his"), but bear in mind that not many native speakers either know or care about this rule. You'll find examples of us doing it the other way often enough. Wink

1 Reply

@FBM,

I guess you're getting tired of my thanks (but thank you!) and my questions...
For the most logical form of those verbs I actually had in mind: '...has developed...is hoped...to put...'. I thought that 'it'i before '(hope)' referred to 'a new product'. Could this be also right or that 'it' only means the 'brewery Fischer'?

There is a mistake in this sentence: 'He inherited a huge sum of money unexpectedly last year and has been spending it all since.' Should there be an 'ever' before 'since' or there is another mistake?

Rephrasing this sentence: 'It is just conceivable that we shall get an answer tomorrow. ' using a modal would go something like: 'We may get an answer tomorrow.'? Or do I need to use a different modal verb?

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@Maria Loredana,

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Thank you very much!

Not at all, Maria

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Would it be okay to say 'whose cover' since I'm talking about an object

It's done frequently, while only the fusspot will take issue

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but why 'had' and not 'have'

Highly technical diff. Hope one of our experts responds

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Also, is 'musn't have' gramatically correct?

Yes I think so but as I said it's equivocal

Quote:

a) It being a bank, it wasn’t easy to break in.

I'd delete the first "it"

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b) There being a bank, it wasn’t easy to break in.

I'd delete the "there," being ambiguous, suggesting it might not be the bank we want to break into

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Boring ___ to do it, it’s a job that has to be done.

About 354 different words or phrases might fit, depending on exact meaning. I'd simply delete "___ to do it"

2 Replies

@dalehileman,

Well, I'm preparing for my college admission exam, that's why I neet to get things grammatically correct as much as possible. Smile

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@dalehileman,

Quote:

'Such a ridiculous proposal isn’t worth serious consideration.' so that it begins with 'There is...'

There is a suggestion among several of us that if you seriously consider your notion that burning her house is a superior approach to the problem of her reluctance, owing to the likely probability of her being burned to death, then such...."

1 Reply

@dalehileman,

Quote:

There is a suggestion among several of us that if you seriously consider your notion that burning her house is a superior approach to the problem of her reluctance, owing to the likely probability of her being burned to death, then such...."

Wait... what?

1 Reply

@Maria Loredana,

Quote:

Wait... what?

Sorry Maria I was sorta kiddin

...hoping somebody else might make the attempt with a single word or two

1 Reply

@dalehileman,

Would 'There is no chance a proposal so ridiculous would be worth serious consideration' be correct?

1 Reply

@Maria Loredana,

Yes

0 Replies

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