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I would like to learn how to reconstruct this sentence to use it at the beginning:

The reason why they chose this way looks weird to me.

I think we could form it as follows, but of course I am not really sure about it:

It looks weird to me the reason why they chose this way.

And, could you please also explain the grammatical approach to form sentences like the above starting with it?

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It seems to me that you want to use "it" as a Dummy Pronoun (like I have in this sentence). However, you are actually using "it" to refer to "the reason".

Furthermore, I would not use "looks" to describe the intangible noun "reason". A suitable replacement might be "seems" or "feels".

A possible reconstruction (with the substitution) could be:

It seems weird to me that they chose this way.

or

It seems weird to me that they chose this way for the reason that they did.

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  • First reconstruction is better (+1). The second seems somewhat unwieldy. – Qube Jul 24 '12 at 20:59
  • @Qube I agree; I think "reason" is already implied whenever you're questioning an action, but I thought it might be helpful to include a possible reconstruction that more closely mirrors the original sentence. Edits or suggested improvements are always welcome :) – Dani Jul 25 '12 at 13:43
  • OP's example is itself unwieldy. 'It seems weird to me that they chose this way' maintains the sense that the original really indicates 'It seems weird to me that they opted for this method of choosing' (eg by single transferable vote). // OP probably means 'Their choice seems weird to me' which is rendered (though less elegantly) 'It seems weird to me that they chose/opted the way they did'. – Edwin Ashworth Jan 27 '20 at 19:38
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"It" functions as a pointer to something; you don't need "it" if the something is in the sentence -- "the reason."

Try this:

"The reason for their choice seems weird to me."

Or even simpler:

"Their choice is weird (because....)"

If you absolutely want to start with "it," you could write:

"It is weird to me that they chose (x), because (y)."

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  • OP makes it plain that valid sentences beginning with 'it' are the nub of the question. – Edwin Ashworth Jan 27 '20 at 19:30
  • "It" functions as a pointer to something: No, it doesn't, often. See Dummy pronoun – Colin Fine Jan 27 '20 at 19:46
  • It ("the nub of the question") may be best answered by pointing out that beginning sentences with "it" when the reference is unclear harms clarity. Although, it may be that I misunderstand your point. – user8356 Jan 29 '20 at 14:17
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Using both reason and why in the same sentence makes it redundant.

It looks weird to me the reason why they chose this way. can be rephrased thus:

It looks weird to me the reason they chose this way. or

It looks weird why they chose this way.

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  • SO WHAT? There's redundancy all over language. A few people (such as my father used to) pick out this particular one and complain, as if there's something wrong with redundancy. There isn't. Also, this does not address the question. -1. – Colin Fine Jan 27 '20 at 19:43

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