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What is the difference between this two sentences? I looked into the google,and found that these two sentences are used.

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    The first sounds more refined. Otherwise, equivalent to my mind.
    – David M
    Commented Feb 20, 2014 at 6:01
  • While I got from one native speaker that probably the second pattern is more formal than the first. I am a little confused.
    – user115444
    Commented Feb 20, 2014 at 6:04

1 Answer 1

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Both forms are correct and mean the same thing.

The adjective "above" can be used as a post-positive adjective. In some cases post-positive adjectives can vary the meaning of the sentence, but not in this case.

...above analysis... : normal adjective use

...analysis above... : post-positive adjective

In general, post-positive adjectives are rarer, and can signify archaic use. The post-positive adjective use looks more formal to many (due to the archaic nature / rarity of the construction in general), so I've seen it used commonly in formal contexts.

Edited: Thanks to Edwin pointing this out, I did a bit more research on how common each construction is. What I found is that until the 1990s "the above item" was more common than "the item above", but recently the latter construction has become more common [Link]. However, the use of "the below item" seems to be negligible compared to "the item below" [Link]

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    I don't agree that 'the below N' is common usage. Commented Feb 20, 2014 at 9:33
  • @EdwinAshworth: Good point. I've definitely seen it around, but thinking about, it is not common.
    – Shisa
    Commented Feb 20, 2014 at 9:41
  • There's a previous analysis at the linked duplicate thread (above)(!) Commented Feb 20, 2014 at 9:43
  • Thanks! Didn't see your latest before going some research of my own :)
    – Shisa
    Commented Feb 20, 2014 at 9:55
  • @EdwinAshworth: 'the below N' sounds awkward but is becoming more popular.
    – Mitch
    Commented Feb 20, 2014 at 14:06

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