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English 1b3 Posted 14 years ago
Grammar

verb vested in relative clause

The federal government is composed of three distinct branches: legislative, executive and judicial, which powers are vested by the U.S. Constitution in the Congress, the President, and the federal courts, including the Supreme Court, respectively

Is the relative clause "...which powers are vested..." ungrammatical? If so, how should it be worded?
  

Top answer

Hi, It's fine. It's just an uncommon construction that is sometimes but not exclusively used in legalistic English. It sounds old-fashioned, as is often the case with legal English.

— Clive

  • Hi, It's fine.
  • It's just an uncommon construction that is sometimes but not exclusively used in legalistic English.
  • It sounds old-fashioned, as is often the case with legal English.
  • Clive
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7 Answers
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Hi,

It's fine.
It's just an uncommon construction that is sometimes but not exclusively used in legalistic English. It sounds old-fashioned, as is often the case with legal English.

Clive
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Thanks, Clive. Could you please tell me what 'which' refers to and rewrite the sentence so that I can make sense of it? That would be most helpful.
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Hi,

'which powers' refers to legislative, executive and judicial.

The federal government is composed of three distinct branches: legislative, executive and judicial. These legislative, executive and judicial powers are vested by the U.S. Constitution in the Congress, the President
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CliveIt's just an uncommon construction that is sometimes but not exclusively used in legalistic English. It sounds old-fashioned, as is often the case with legal English.
Really? Clive, to be honest I see sentences like that a lot... but anyways, it's good to know that such structures are old-fashioned.
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Perfect Stranger I see sentences like that a lot.
Perhaps you read a lot of legal documents or older books and magazines. I agree with Clive that the construction is not common in modern standard English.
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Clive'which powers' refers to legislative, executive and judicial.The federal government is composed of three distinct branches: legislative, executive and judicial. These legislative, executive and judicial powers are vested by the U.S. Constitution in the Congress, the President, and the federal courts, including the Supreme Court, respectively.Here's a much simpler exa
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Hi,

It's more equivalent to '. . . . and these powers which have just now been mentioned are . . . '

Clive
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