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ESLBeginner Posted 17 years ago
Grammar
"neither... nor"
Hello, would someone please tell me in the following sentence why it is "nor have they" instead of "have" ?
The parties acknowledge that they neither intend to enter, nor have they entered
Thank you in advance!
The parties acknowledge that they neither intend to enter, nor have they entered
Thank you in advance!
Top answer
Your question is not clear. nor have entered'), and we often invert subject and verb in such negations: I will not sing nor will I dance for you.
- Your question is not clear.
- nor have entered'), and we often invert subject and verb in such negations: I will not sing nor will I dance for you.
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4 Answers
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Your question is not clear. However, the correlative conjunction is 'neither..nor' ('they neither intend...nor have entered'), and we often invert subject and verb in such negations:
I will not sing nor will I dance for you.
I will not sing nor will I dance for you.
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Sir: I am really interested in this poster's question. Am I wrong to think that "intend to enter" and "have entered" are not parallel? In fact, should the author express his thought using a NOT ... NOR pattern, such as: The parties acknowledge that they do NOT intend to enter, nor have they ever entered, into a secret agreement. I am eager to have your expert advice on this matter. Thank you.
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I see what you mean, Anon– it could be better structured, although the grammar is subtle enough that most native speakers would not acknowledge any problem. However, 'not..nor' is not a very felicitious structure, and I don't see that it is any improvement on 'neither...nor'. I think that I would simply do this:
The parties acknowledge that they
The parties acknowledge that they
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