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The subject of "was" is apparently missing. This is a complex sentence, so not all parts have to have all the elements of a main clause. The main clause of the sentence is the second part, "Jane lived at home her entire life."

I found the following explanation in"A Short Overview of English Syntax based on The Cambridge Grammar of the English Language," by Rodney Huddleston:

Comparative clauses generally function as Complement to the prepositions as and than:

[59]

  • i a. I'm as ready as I ever will be. b. As was expected, Sue won easily.
  • ii a. More people came than I'd expected. b. He has more vices than he has virtues.

The distinctive property of such clauses is that they are structurally incomplete relative to main clauses: there are elements understood but not overtly expressed. In [ia] and [iia] there's a missing Complement and in [ib] a missing Subject. Even in [iib] there's a missing Dependent in the Object noun phrase, for the comparison is between how many vices he has and how many virtues he has. The fact that there's some kind of understood quantifier here is reflected in the fact that we can't insert an overt one: *He has more vices than he has ten virtues.

(Some formatting adjustments made to emphasize the relevant example and to make the formatting work on this site)

Gustavson's answerGustavson's answer shows the controversy that there has been about the proper classification of "as" in this construction (conjunction, preposition or even relative pronoun). I don't know enough about syntax to explain the arguments for and against each position. The conjunction/preposition uncertainty is apparently based on the fact that traditionally, it seems all words that introduce a clause were considered to be conjunctions, but some current analyses (such as the one that Huddleston presents) consider it possible for prepositions to take clauses as a complement. There is a relevant footnote in the overview that I will quote:

[7] In traditional grammar it is not she left but before she left that is analysed as a clause, with before being here a subordinating conjunction rather than a preposition. We present arguments in favour of our analysis on pp. 1011-14 and 129-30 respectively of [The Cambridge Grammar of the English Language and A Student's Introduction to English Grammar].

As certainly seems to function as a preposition in some commonly used constructions, such as "We're as good as them!" with objective "them" rather than subjective "they".

The subject of "was" is apparently missing. This is a complex sentence, so not all parts have to have all the elements of a main clause. The main clause of the sentence is the second part, "Jane lived at home her entire life."

I found the following explanation in"A Short Overview of English Syntax based on The Cambridge Grammar of the English Language," by Rodney Huddleston:

Comparative clauses generally function as Complement to the prepositions as and than:

[59]

  • i a. I'm as ready as I ever will be. b. As was expected, Sue won easily.
  • ii a. More people came than I'd expected. b. He has more vices than he has virtues.

The distinctive property of such clauses is that they are structurally incomplete relative to main clauses: there are elements understood but not overtly expressed. In [ia] and [iia] there's a missing Complement and in [ib] a missing Subject. Even in [iib] there's a missing Dependent in the Object noun phrase, for the comparison is between how many vices he has and how many virtues he has. The fact that there's some kind of understood quantifier here is reflected in the fact that we can't insert an overt one: *He has more vices than he has ten virtues.

(Some formatting adjustments made to emphasize the relevant example and to make the formatting work on this site)

Gustavson's answer shows the controversy that there has been about the proper classification of "as" in this construction (conjunction, preposition or even relative pronoun). I don't know enough about syntax to explain the arguments for and against each position. The conjunction/preposition uncertainty is apparently based on the fact that traditionally, it seems all words that introduce a clause were considered to be conjunctions, but some current analyses (such as the one that Huddleston presents) consider it possible for prepositions to take clauses as a complement. There is a relevant footnote in the overview that I will quote:

[7] In traditional grammar it is not she left but before she left that is analysed as a clause, with before being here a subordinating conjunction rather than a preposition. We present arguments in favour of our analysis on pp. 1011-14 and 129-30 respectively of [The Cambridge Grammar of the English Language and A Student's Introduction to English Grammar].

As certainly seems to function as a preposition in some commonly used constructions, such as "We're as good as them!" with objective "them" rather than subjective "they".

The subject of "was" is apparently missing. This is a complex sentence, so not all parts have to have all the elements of a main clause. The main clause of the sentence is the second part, "Jane lived at home her entire life."

I found the following explanation in"A Short Overview of English Syntax based on The Cambridge Grammar of the English Language," by Rodney Huddleston:

Comparative clauses generally function as Complement to the prepositions as and than:

[59]

  • i a. I'm as ready as I ever will be. b. As was expected, Sue won easily.
  • ii a. More people came than I'd expected. b. He has more vices than he has virtues.

The distinctive property of such clauses is that they are structurally incomplete relative to main clauses: there are elements understood but not overtly expressed. In [ia] and [iia] there's a missing Complement and in [ib] a missing Subject. Even in [iib] there's a missing Dependent in the Object noun phrase, for the comparison is between how many vices he has and how many virtues he has. The fact that there's some kind of understood quantifier here is reflected in the fact that we can't insert an overt one: *He has more vices than he has ten virtues.

(Some formatting adjustments made to emphasize the relevant example and to make the formatting work on this site)

Gustavson's answer shows the controversy that there has been about the proper classification of "as" in this construction (conjunction, preposition or even relative pronoun). I don't know enough about syntax to explain the arguments for and against each position. The conjunction/preposition uncertainty is apparently based on the fact that traditionally, it seems all words that introduce a clause were considered to be conjunctions, but some current analyses (such as the one that Huddleston presents) consider it possible for prepositions to take clauses as a complement. There is a relevant footnote in the overview that I will quote:

[7] In traditional grammar it is not she left but before she left that is analysed as a clause, with before being here a subordinating conjunction rather than a preposition. We present arguments in favour of our analysis on pp. 1011-14 and 129-30 respectively of [The Cambridge Grammar of the English Language and A Student's Introduction to English Grammar].

As certainly seems to function as a preposition in some commonly used constructions, such as "We're as good as them!" with objective "them" rather than subjective "they".

added 813 characters in body
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herisson
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  • 368

The subject of "was" is apparently missing. This is a complex sentence, so not all parts have to have all the elements of a main clause. The main clause of the sentence is the second part, "Jane lived at home her entire life."

I found the following explanation in"A Short Overview of English Syntax based on The Cambridge Grammar of the English Language," by Rodney Huddleston:

Comparative clauses generally function as Complement to the prepositions as and than:

[59]

  • i a. I'm as ready as I ever will be. b. As was expected, Sue won easily.
  • ii a. More people came than I'd expected. b. He has more vices than he has virtues.

The distinctive property of such clauses is that they are structurally incomplete relative to main clauses: there are elements understood but not overtly expressed. In [ia] and [iia] there's a missing Complement and in [ib] a missing Subject. Even in [iib] there's a missing Dependent in the Object noun phrase, for the comparison is between how many vices he has and how many virtues he has. The fact that there's some kind of understood quantifier here is reflected in the fact that we can't insert an overt one: *He has more vices than he has ten virtues.

(Some formatting adjustments made to emphasize the relevant example and to make the formatting work on this site)

Gustavson's answer shows the controversy that there has been about the proper classification of "as" in this construction (conjunction, preposition or even relative pronoun). I don't know enough about syntax to explain the arguments for and against each position. The conjunction/preposition uncertainty is apparently based on the fact that traditionally, it seems all words that introduce a clause were considered to be conjunctions, but some current analyses (such as the one that Huddleston presents) consider it possible for prepositions to take clauses as a complement. There is a relevant footnote in the overview that I will quote:

[7] In traditional grammar it is not she left but before she left that is analysed as a clause, with before being here a subordinating conjunction rather than a preposition. We present arguments in favour of our analysis on pp. 1011-14 and 129-30 respectively of [The Cambridge Grammar of the English Language and A Student's Introduction to English Grammar].

As certainly seems to function as a preposition in some commonly used constructions, such as "We're as good as them!" with objective "them" rather than subjective "they".

The subject of "was" is apparently missing. This is a complex sentence, so not all parts have to have all the elements of a main clause. The main clause of the sentence is the second part, "Jane lived at home her entire life."

I found the following explanation in"A Short Overview of English Syntax based on The Cambridge Grammar of the English Language," by Rodney Huddleston:

Comparative clauses generally function as Complement to the prepositions as and than:

[59]

  • i a. I'm as ready as I ever will be. b. As was expected, Sue won easily.
  • ii a. More people came than I'd expected. b. He has more vices than he has virtues.

The distinctive property of such clauses is that they are structurally incomplete relative to main clauses: there are elements understood but not overtly expressed. In [ia] and [iia] there's a missing Complement and in [ib] a missing Subject. Even in [iib] there's a missing Dependent in the Object noun phrase, for the comparison is between how many vices he has and how many virtues he has. The fact that there's some kind of understood quantifier here is reflected in the fact that we can't insert an overt one: *He has more vices than he has ten virtues.

(Some formatting adjustments made to emphasize the relevant example and to make the formatting work on this site)

Gustavson's answer shows the controversy that there has been about the proper classification of "as" in this construction (conjunction, preposition or even relative pronoun). I don't know enough about syntax to explain the arguments for and against each position. The conjunction/preposition uncertainty is apparently based on the fact that traditionally, it seems all words that introduce a clause were considered to be conjunctions, but some current analyses (such as the one that Huddleston presents) consider it possible for prepositions to take clauses as a complement. As certainly seems to function as a preposition in some commonly used constructions, such as "We're as good as them!" with objective "them" rather than subjective "they".

The subject of "was" is apparently missing. This is a complex sentence, so not all parts have to have all the elements of a main clause. The main clause of the sentence is the second part, "Jane lived at home her entire life."

I found the following explanation in"A Short Overview of English Syntax based on The Cambridge Grammar of the English Language," by Rodney Huddleston:

Comparative clauses generally function as Complement to the prepositions as and than:

[59]

  • i a. I'm as ready as I ever will be. b. As was expected, Sue won easily.
  • ii a. More people came than I'd expected. b. He has more vices than he has virtues.

The distinctive property of such clauses is that they are structurally incomplete relative to main clauses: there are elements understood but not overtly expressed. In [ia] and [iia] there's a missing Complement and in [ib] a missing Subject. Even in [iib] there's a missing Dependent in the Object noun phrase, for the comparison is between how many vices he has and how many virtues he has. The fact that there's some kind of understood quantifier here is reflected in the fact that we can't insert an overt one: *He has more vices than he has ten virtues.

(Some formatting adjustments made to emphasize the relevant example and to make the formatting work on this site)

Gustavson's answer shows the controversy that there has been about the proper classification of "as" in this construction (conjunction, preposition or even relative pronoun). I don't know enough about syntax to explain the arguments for and against each position. The conjunction/preposition uncertainty is apparently based on the fact that traditionally, it seems all words that introduce a clause were considered to be conjunctions, but some current analyses (such as the one that Huddleston presents) consider it possible for prepositions to take clauses as a complement. There is a relevant footnote in the overview that I will quote:

[7] In traditional grammar it is not she left but before she left that is analysed as a clause, with before being here a subordinating conjunction rather than a preposition. We present arguments in favour of our analysis on pp. 1011-14 and 129-30 respectively of [The Cambridge Grammar of the English Language and A Student's Introduction to English Grammar].

As certainly seems to function as a preposition in some commonly used constructions, such as "We're as good as them!" with objective "them" rather than subjective "they".

added 813 characters in body
Source Link
herisson
  • 84.5k
  • 9
  • 216
  • 368

The subject of "was" is apparently missing. This is a complex sentence, so not all parts have to have all the elements of a main clause. The main clause of the sentence is the second part, "Jane lived at home her entire life."

I found the following explanation in"A Short Overview of English Syntax based on The Cambridge Grammar of the English Language," by Rodney Huddleston:

Comparative clauses generally function as Complement to the prepositions as and than:

[59]

  • i a. I'm as ready as I ever will be. b. As was expected, Sue won easily.
  • ii a. More people came than I'd expected. b. He has more vices than he has virtues.

The distinctive property of such clauses is that they are structurally incomplete relative to main clauses: there are elements understood but not overtly expressed. In [ia] and [iia] there's a missing Complement and in [ib] a missing Subject. Even in [iib] there's a missing Dependent in the Object noun phrase, for the comparison is between how many vices he has and how many virtues he has. The fact that there's some kind of understood quantifier here is reflected in the fact that we can't insert an overt one: *He has more vices than he has ten virtues.

(Some formatting adjustments made to emphasize the relevant example and to make the formatting work on this site)

Gustavson's answer shows the controversy that there has been about the proper classification of "as" in this construction (conjunction, preposition or even relative pronoun). I don't know enough about syntax to explain the arguments for and against each position. The conjunction/preposition uncertainty is apparently based on the fact that traditionally, it seems all words that introduce a clause were considered to be conjunctions, but some current analyses (such as the one that Huddleston presents) consider it possible for prepositions to take clauses as a complement. As certainly seems to function as a preposition in some commonly used constructions, such as "We're as good as them!" with objective "them" rather than subjective "they".

The subject of "was" is apparently missing. This is a complex sentence, so not all parts have to have all the elements of a main clause. The main clause of the sentence is the second part, "Jane lived at home her entire life."

I found the following explanation in"A Short Overview of English Syntax based on The Cambridge Grammar of the English Language," by Rodney Huddleston:

Comparative clauses generally function as Complement to the prepositions as and than:

[59]

  • i a. I'm as ready as I ever will be. b. As was expected, Sue won easily.
  • ii a. More people came than I'd expected. b. He has more vices than he has virtues.

The distinctive property of such clauses is that they are structurally incomplete relative to main clauses: there are elements understood but not overtly expressed. In [ia] and [iia] there's a missing Complement and in [ib] a missing Subject. Even in [iib] there's a missing Dependent in the Object noun phrase, for the comparison is between how many vices he has and how many virtues he has. The fact that there's some kind of understood quantifier here is reflected in the fact that we can't insert an overt one: *He has more vices than he has ten virtues.

(Some formatting adjustments made to emphasize the relevant example and to make the formatting work on this site)

The subject of "was" is apparently missing. This is a complex sentence, so not all parts have to have all the elements of a main clause. The main clause of the sentence is the second part, "Jane lived at home her entire life."

I found the following explanation in"A Short Overview of English Syntax based on The Cambridge Grammar of the English Language," by Rodney Huddleston:

Comparative clauses generally function as Complement to the prepositions as and than:

[59]

  • i a. I'm as ready as I ever will be. b. As was expected, Sue won easily.
  • ii a. More people came than I'd expected. b. He has more vices than he has virtues.

The distinctive property of such clauses is that they are structurally incomplete relative to main clauses: there are elements understood but not overtly expressed. In [ia] and [iia] there's a missing Complement and in [ib] a missing Subject. Even in [iib] there's a missing Dependent in the Object noun phrase, for the comparison is between how many vices he has and how many virtues he has. The fact that there's some kind of understood quantifier here is reflected in the fact that we can't insert an overt one: *He has more vices than he has ten virtues.

(Some formatting adjustments made to emphasize the relevant example and to make the formatting work on this site)

Gustavson's answer shows the controversy that there has been about the proper classification of "as" in this construction (conjunction, preposition or even relative pronoun). I don't know enough about syntax to explain the arguments for and against each position. The conjunction/preposition uncertainty is apparently based on the fact that traditionally, it seems all words that introduce a clause were considered to be conjunctions, but some current analyses (such as the one that Huddleston presents) consider it possible for prepositions to take clauses as a complement. As certainly seems to function as a preposition in some commonly used constructions, such as "We're as good as them!" with objective "them" rather than subjective "they".

added 109 characters in body
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herisson
  • 84.5k
  • 9
  • 216
  • 368
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herisson
  • 84.5k
  • 9
  • 216
  • 368
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