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Which of the following is more correct?

  1. When I speak, what I say is grammatically correct.

or

  1. When I speak, what I say is correct grammatically.
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    Generally the first would be preferred, since Modifier - Head is the normal form for a non-verbal predicate: He's a big boy ~ She's very tired. But the second is grammatical, too; it just doesn't form a constituent with the adjective. Probably an adverb in that position would modify the entire verb phrase (including the auxiliary be) instead of just the predicate adjective. – John Lawler Sep 25 '16 at 15:01
  • Domain modifiers-of-adjectives doubtless have more mobility than emphasisers / scalar sufficiency markers etc (When I speak, what I say is absolutely correct / accurate enough / too blunt.) To say nothing of the negator not. – Edwin Ashworth Sep 25 '16 at 16:45
  • When I speak, what I say is correct, grammatically. The two are semantically the same thing if you use the comma. There is only a difference in stylistic meaning from intonation. Or how it is "read in the head". – Lambie Jan 2 '17 at 22:07
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Generally the first would be preferred, since Modifier - Head is the normal form for a non-verbal predicate: He's a big boy ~ She's very tired. But the second is grammatical, too; it just doesn't form a constituent with the adjective. Probably an adverb in that position would modify the entire verb phrase (including the auxiliary be) instead of just the predicate adjective. – John Lawler

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