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Pructus Posted 10 years ago
Grammar
Omission of that in "nothing is ~ "
Hello....
1. Can this one have two meanings below, a. and b.?
Or is only one meaning possible?
The place is a world in which nothing is contradicted that would lead people to happiness and joy.
a. The place is a world in which nothing that would lead people to happiness and joy is contradicted.
b. The place is a world in which nothing is contradicted, therefore the world would lead people to happiness and joy.
Question #2 is in the same context with #1.
2. Can we use b. instead of a, without losing the meaning of a.?
a. Nothing is so simple that it cannot be misunderstood.
b. Nothing is so simple that cannot be misunderstood.
To make the question clearer....
If the answer is YES, then the structure of b. will be like this:
Nothing is so simple (that) that cannot be misunderstood.
1. Can this one have two meanings below, a. and b.?
Or is only one meaning possible?
The place is a world in which nothing is contradicted that would lead people to happiness and joy.
a. The place is a world in which nothing that would lead people to happiness and joy is contradicted.
b. The place is a world in which nothing is contradicted, therefore the world would lead people to happiness and joy.
Question #2 is in the same context with #1.
2. Can we use b. instead of a, without losing the meaning of a.?
a. Nothing is so simple that it cannot be misunderstood.
b. Nothing is so simple that cannot be misunderstood.
To make the question clearer....
If the answer is YES, then the structure of b. will be like this:
Nothing is so simple (that) that cannot be misunderstood.
Top answer
pructus The place is a world in which nothing is contradicted that would lead people to happiness and joy. That sentence is unnatural.
- pructus The place is a world in which nothing is contradicted that would lead people to happiness and joy.
- That sentence is unnatural.
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6 Answers
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pructusThe place is a world in which nothing is contradicted that would lead people to happiness and joy.That sentence is unnatural.
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1. Only (a) is possible.
2. No.
"Nothing is so simple that that cannot be misunderstood" is already awkward. While dropping the relative pronoun "that" is in principle possible, in practice the result is almost impossible to parse in the way you suggest.
If (b) means anything, it means "Nothing that cannot be misunderstood is so simple."
(Cross-posted.)
2. No.
"Nothing is so simple that that cannot be misunderstood" is already awkward. While dropping the relative pronoun "that" is in principle possible, in practice the result is almost impossible to parse in the way you suggest.
If (b) means anything, it means "Nothing that cannot be misunderstood is so simple."
(Cross-posted.)
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Oh, I see... I see...
This part has been so confusing...
Now, It's so clear to me..
Thanks so much, GPY!!
This part has been so confusing...
Now, It's so clear to me..
Thanks so much, GPY!!
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Yes, now that you pointed it out....
Actually, this is a sentence that I made up to clearly understand some grammatical structure...
It maybe unnatural to natives, but I needed find out natives' sense of English that doesn't appear in grammar books.
I was wondering if this sentence might be considered to be unnatural....
Thanks so much, teechr!!
Actually, this is a sentence that I made up to clearly understand some grammatical structure...
It maybe unnatural to natives, but I needed find out natives' sense of English that doesn't appear in grammar books.
I was wondering if this sentence might be considered to be unnatural....
Thanks so much, teechr!!
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pructusI was wondering if this sentence might be considered to be unnatural....It is an unusual sentence that could, in my original estimation, equally have been taken from an old literary source or written by a non-native speaker.
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I see... I see...
I knew the sentence might not be so smooth.
I needed to make up a sentence to make clear what I was not sure about.
Thanks a lot, GPY, for being focused on your reply, no matter how the question sentence was written...
That was what I needed most...
Your explanations so clearly solved my questions and confusions!!
I knew the sentence might not be so smooth.
I needed to make up a sentence to make clear what I was not sure about.
Thanks a lot, GPY, for being focused on your reply, no matter how the question sentence was written...
That was what I needed most...
Your explanations so clearly solved my questions and confusions!!
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