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Kevin002 Posted 22 years ago
Grammar

Weird assignment for Professional Writing course! Please help

This was the assignment as it was handed out:

Write 5 sentences using the following format:

Subject+Verbs+Complimentary Phrasing

"Strangle the verbs" I guess she means to mess up the tenses.

Then take the 5 sentences and "free" up the verbs, by which Im guessing she means correct the sentences.

I'm thinking something like this:

WRONG: I am teaching an English class
CORRECT: I teach English.

Just not sure if it comes under the format she's looking for.

Any help to get me started would be appreciated!!

Thanks

Kevin
  

Top answer

Go back to the teacher and get some clarification, or go through your textbook if you have one or through your class notes looking for clues. This doesn't make any sense to me. Strangling and freeing up verbs?

  • Go back to the teacher and get some clarification, or go through your textbook if you have one or through your class notes looking for clues.
  • This doesn't make any sense to me.
  • Strangling and freeing up verbs?
  • Hmmm.
  • She's obviously not speaking literally here.
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3 Answers
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Go back to the teacher and get some clarification, or go through your textbook if you have one or through your class notes looking for clues. This doesn't make any sense to me. Strangling and freeing up verbs? Hmmm. She's obviously not speaking literally here. Maybe she's gone round the bend.
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I emailed the prof and this is what she wrote back:

"Hi Kevin,
Good that you asked. I meant that you should strangle the verb with "to be" and
"ing" or start to, begin to. For example, She seems to be starting to enjoy her
job. After the first month, she enjoys her new job. In the second sentence, the
reader gets to "enjoy", the important part of the sentence without
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OK. Now it makes more sense, although it still isn't exactly crystal clear!
The teacher is asking for illustrations of pairs of sentences. The first sentence is wimpy, tentative, and indirect. The second is strong, definite, and clear.

In her illustration, she uses "seems" ("seems to be"), "starting" (I sometimes call them "weasel words".) to give the wimpy version. She rephras

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