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Moon7296 Posted 11 years ago
Grammar

what = the thing that xx

1. While their anxiety initially intensifies as a result of worry exposure, anxiety levels soon drop below what they were originally.

Q) If possible, could you rephrase the underlined part in #1?
I don't think it is rephrased like this.
While their anxiety initially intensifies as a result of worry exposure, anxiety levels soon drop below the thing that they were originally.
  

Top answer

In a sense it does mean what you say, but the result is awkward in practice. This is better: While their anxiety initially intensifies as a result of worry exposure, anxiety levels soon drop below the level that they were originally (at). The repetition of "level" is still a bit awkward.

— GPY

  • In a sense it does mean what you say, but the result is awkward in practice.
  • This is better: While their anxiety initially intensifies as a result of worry exposure, anxiety levels soon drop below the level that they were originally (at).
  • The repetition of "level" is still a bit awkward.
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2 Answers
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In a sense it does mean what you say, but the result is awkward in practice. This is better:

While their anxiety initially intensifies as a result of worry exposure, anxiety levels soon drop below the level that they were originally (at).

The repetition of "level" is still a bit awkward.
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While their anxiety initially intensifies as a result of worry exposure, anxiety levels soon drop to a point below where they were originally.
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