0
Anonymous Posted 12 years ago
Grammar

Clearing the ambiguity

Hi. Would the phrase "a very hard, bright light" be ambiguous as to whether the adverb "very" modifies the adjective "bright" in addition to the adjective "hard" if the writer intended to have "very" modify both "bright" and "hard"? I think having the coordinate conjunction "and" in the place of the comma, as in "a very hard and bright light," would make it clear that "very" modifies both "hard" and "bright" if that is the intent. What do you think?

Also, which is correct? Thank you in advance for your help.

1. We will have a competition between Team A, B and C.
2. We will have a competition between Teams A, B and C.
  

Top answer

" "A very harsh, bright light" is okay - this would generally be understood to mean that the light was very harsh and also very bright. " is okay.

— Anonymous

  • " "A very harsh, bright light" is okay - this would generally be understood to mean that the light was very harsh and also very bright.
  • " is okay.
Free · every Monday

Get the Weekly English Kit 📬

New words, one handy idiom, and a 2-minute quiz — delivered to your inbox to keep your streak alive.

1 Answers
0
"Hard" is not right in this context - lights are never described as "hard." It should be "harsh." "A very harsh, bright light" is okay - this would generally be understood to mean that the light was very harsh and also very bright.

"We will have a competition between teams A, B, and C." is okay.
0

Related Questions