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Here is a sentence from the example essay of Cambridge IELTS 10, Test 1:

"This kind but firm approach will achieve more than harsh punishment, which might entail many negative consequences unintended by the parents."

My question is that why a adjective "unintended" is used after a verb "entail"?

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    It seems fine where it is. Why does its placement look odd to you?
    – Lawrence
    Jul 1, 2020 at 9:48

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"Unintended" is a past participle that introduces a passive, reduced relative clause

"many negative consequences unintended by the parents." = many negative consequences that were unintended by the parents."

Compare the use of the continuous participle that introduces an active reduced relative clause

"many negative consequences surprising the parents." =many negative consequences that surprised the parents."

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  • Thanks for the answer. Then I understand that "unintended" is used to modify "consequences". Can I rewrite the sentence as ",which might entail many unintended negative consequences by the parents"?
    – Victor.C
    Jul 3, 2020 at 8:35
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This kind but firm approach will achieve more than harsh punishment, which might entail many negative consequences [unintended by the parents].

"Unintended" is not an adjective here, but a past participle verb heading the bracketed past-participial clause modifying "consequences".

Past-participials (and gerund-participials) as modifiers in noun phrase structure are semantically similar to relative clauses: cf. "negative consequences which are unintended by the parents", but we don't analyse them as relative clauses since there is no possibility of them containing a relative phrase (cf. *"consequences which unintended by the parents").

Past-participial modifiers are 'bare' passives, as evident from the admissibility of a by phrase.

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