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Dipsik Posted 15 years ago
Grammar
To have its sex life threatened x to have had its sex life threatened
Hello,
I'm translating an article on the use of pheromones in agriculture.
One sentence reads:
The latest parasite to have its sex life threatened in this way is the moth Eldana saccharina, the scourge of sugar cane and maize in parts of .
"This way" means "spraying synthetic pheromones over crops"
I have taken the sentence to mean that synthetic pheromones have not yet been used in the case of Eldana saccharina (but are about to be). Now I'm not sure whether my implication is correct. Can the sentence also mean that the pheromones have already been used for some time?
Many thanks for enlightening me on this.
Lenny
I'm translating an article on the use of pheromones in agriculture.
One sentence reads:
The latest parasite to have its sex life threatened in this way is the moth Eldana saccharina, the scourge of sugar cane and maize in parts of .
"This way" means "spraying synthetic pheromones over crops"
I have taken the sentence to mean that synthetic pheromones have not yet been used in the case of Eldana saccharina (but are about to be). Now I'm not sure whether my implication is correct. Can the sentence also mean that the pheromones have already been used for some time?
Many thanks for enlightening me on this.
Lenny
Top answer
Hi, The sentence is a bit ambiguous, but I take it to mean they have already been used. Clive
- Hi, The sentence is a bit ambiguous, but I take it to mean they have already been used.
- Clive
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7 Answers
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Hi,
The sentence is a bit ambiguous, but I take it to mean they have already been used.
Clive
The sentence is a bit ambiguous, but I take it to mean they have already been used.
Clive
00
Thank you, Clive.
So, the sentence could be taken both ways? Or is it ambiguous in yet another way?
So, the sentence could be taken both ways? Or is it ambiguous in yet another way?
00
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Here is more context, though I don't know whether it makes any difference.
Pheromones, those **** perfumes that some insects use to lure their partners into mating, have been used more than once by wily farmers to control crop pests. The idea is to synthesize the parasite's pheromones and to spray a large quantity over an entire crop. The result is confusion – males and females fail to
Pheromones, those **** perfumes that some insects use to lure their partners into mating, have been used more than once by wily farmers to control crop pests. The idea is to synthesize the parasite's pheromones and to spray a large quantity over an entire crop. The result is confusion – males and females fail to
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Hi,
Yes, that's the idea.
I wouldn't necesssarily think 'virtually eliminated', as that is a very strong statement.
Clive
Yes, that's the idea.
I wouldn't necesssarily think 'virtually eliminated', as that is a very strong statement.
Clive
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Okay. It's just that "threatened", on the other hand, seems to me to be too mild when speaking about a situation when the pheromones have already been used.
00
Hi,
Yes, it's the word 'threaten' that makes the sentence a bit unclear, because a threat usually comes before anything is actually done. Not a word I would have chosen.
Clive
Yes, it's the word 'threaten' that makes the sentence a bit unclear, because a threat usually comes before anything is actually done. Not a word I would have chosen.
Clive
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