0
Komountain Posted 21 years ago
Grammar

What's the logic behind this?/2nd opinions please!

Hi,

The sentence
(1) "Though he was a child, he could outwit the robber"

can, in a very formal writtten style, be rephrased as

(2) "Child as he was, he could outwit the robber."

My question is: What is the rationale for the absence of the article 'a' before 'Child' in (2)?


Happy New Year, everyone!
  

Top answer

The sentence (1) "Though he was a child, he could outwit the robber" >>>>>>>>>>>> JTT: Hi Komountain. Is your real name Koyama? Can I ask you about the sentence above.

  • The sentence (1) "Though he was a child, he could outwit the robber" >>>>>>>>>>>> JTT: Hi Komountain.
  • Is your real name Koyama?
  • Can I ask you about the sentence above.
  • What is the context surrounding it?
  • " My question is: What is the rationale for the absence of the article 'a' before 'Child' in (2)?
Free · every Monday

Get the Weekly English Kit 📬

New words, one handy idiom, and a 2-minute quiz — delivered to your inbox to keep your streak alive.

28 Answers
0
The sentence
(1) "Though he was a child, he could outwit the robber"

>>>>>>>>>>>>
JTT:

Hi Komountain. Is your real name Koyama? Can I ask you about the sentence above. What is the context surrounding it?

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

can, in a very formal writtten style, be rephra
0
Hello Komountain

Did you mean to write for #2: 'Child though he was'?

This would fit the context better.

MrP
0
Hi, JTT and MrP.

First, I am not a Japanese. komountain is just my log-in handle. I know 'mountain' is 'yama'
in Japanese. I know just that much about the language. Asked many times, however, if Koyama is my real name, I am tempted to ask back if it sounds strange, pompous, arrogant, silly, or something in Japanese.


Second, judging from your responses, "Child as he w
0
Is this a bilingual dictionary, Komountain? While and can be used interchangeably in some instances, that doesn't mean they can be used across the board in all situations.

I see these types of strange English sentences all the time in Japanese-English dictionaries.
0
Yes, bilingual ones.

Based on your responses, the [Noun as S V] structure doesn't exist in comtemporary English.
But given that the two examples I presented in my previous post have somehow made their entry into the dictionaries whose quality you may question, I wonder if the structure was used in the past like in the 19th century or older times, if not today.

With the
0
Hello Komountain

Those two sentences seem fine to me.

Don't throw your books away yet. It may be that e.g. 'child as he was' is used, in some regions or contexts. I'll look into it a little further.

MrP
0
Thank you, MrP.

I'm agog for your research results.

In the meantime, let's suppose 'Child though he was' is the correct expression.
Then, I'd like to go back to my very first post and ask the same question: What's
the rationale for the absence of the article 'a' before 'Child'?
0
Still waiting for your research result, MrP.

I'd appreciate it if you'd be so considerate as not to put this thread on the back burner.

Thank you.
0
Hello Komountain

I had not forgotten. Here are some versions of the structure in question:

1. Hungry though he was, he shuddered at the sight.

This seems to be the only non-problematic variant. It is an emphatic inversion: 'though he was hungry, he shuddered at the sight'.

2. Hungry as he was, he shuddered at the sight.

This can't be i
0
Hi Komountain,

perhaps this helps, my English-German dictionary says among other things:

as [...] 2. rel. adv. or conj. in subord. clause [...] b) (though) ... as he etc. is/was [German for "although he etc. is/was ...]; intelligent as she is/was, ... [...] safe as it might be, ... [...] 4. rel. **

Related Questions