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Taka Posted 12 years ago
Grammar
Such
Does the second one sound natural and make the same sense as the first?
The book is not so difficult that nobody can understand it.
It is not such a difficult book that nobody can understand it.
The book is not so difficult that nobody can understand it.
It is not such a difficult book that nobody can understand it.
Top answer
Both sentences are theoretically grammatical and understandable, but very awkward. The problem with them is that you have a double negative, "not-nobody," which is very confusing to listeners. You'd more likely hear simply: The book is not so difficult.
- Both sentences are theoretically grammatical and understandable, but very awkward.
- The problem with them is that you have a double negative, "not-nobody," which is very confusing to listeners.
- You'd more likely hear simply: The book is not so difficult.
- It is not such a difficult book.
- Or: The book is not so difficult.
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4 Answers
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Both sentences are theoretically grammatical and understandable, but very awkward. The problem with them is that you have a double negative, "not-nobody," which is very confusing to listeners. You'd more likely hear simply:
The book is not so difficult.
It is not such a difficult book.
Or:
The book is not so difficult. Anyone can understand it.
It is
The book is not so difficult.
It is not such a difficult book.
Or:
The book is not so difficult. Anyone can understand it.
It is
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So aside from the style or elegancy, grammatically and semantically, "not so adj/adv that..." is the same as "not such noun that...", right?
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Personally I do not agree with Anon that these sentences are "very awkward". OK, so they are not simple, chatty sentences, but in a formal or "wordy" context I think they are acceptable. For me, the second one works slightly less well than the first. They mean the same.
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