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Anonymous Posted 20 years ago
Grammar

help me with this sentence

0Hi,02br
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00Why this complex sentence in a guide is formed as such?02br
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01i00Qualifying for an IV is a "by the numbers," legally defined process that is not waiverable and requires sequential...02i02br
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00Why "a" here and why no determiner in front of "legally defined process"? 0-
  

Top answer

0'01i 00by the numbers02i 00' is also an adjective modifying 01i 00process02i 00. 02br 02br 02i 00 0-

— Mister Micawber

  • 0'01i 00by the numbers02i 00' is also an adjective modifying 01i 00process02i 00.
  • 02br 02br 02i 00 0-
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3 Answers
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0'01i00by the numbers02i00' is also an adjective modifying 01i00process02i00. The complete noun phrase is:02br
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01i01b00a02b00 by-the-numbers, legally-defined process.02br
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02i00 0-
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0Thank you.02br
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00How about these, MM? Are they grammartically correct?02br
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01i00 a "by the number," legally defined process02i02br
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00I saw cases few times where writers do not hyphenated when having long drown-out words as an adjective but place aphostrophes instead. Are they acceptable?02br
02b
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0Well first, punctuation is not usually included in grammar, and the former can be even slipperier than the latter. In this case (as in many), it is more a matter of what communicates most clearly. I think all of yours are OK; I do have opinions (see below), but they are not important:02br
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01i00a "by the number," legally defined process --02i00 comma
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