Questions tagged [omissibility]
For questions about leaving out words or punctuation marks and how such omissions affect the meaning of clauses or sentences.
100
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Is it true that "all the" means "all of the" and "some" can mean "some of the"? If so, why are they omitted in different ways? [closed]
As far as I know, "all the" is actually an informal version of "all of the", see, e.g., all + noun, all + the noun, all of the + noun, all of + noun, which one is right?.
Also, in ...
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2
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Can I omit the following words in order to make sentence shorter or concise? [closed]
A is a literary word but B is casual and everyday word.
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4
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197
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Can the second auxiliary be omitted in sentences like "...but she may (have)"?
a. I don’t think she has seen it, but she may (have).
b. This one needs to be repaired; the other already has (been).
Can you omit the second auxiliary? If so, is it more natural to omit it?
These ...
- 1,430
3
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2
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58
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Why is it OK to drop articles in “Leopard Rock is fortress and home”? [duplicate]
In episode one of the National Geographic documentary The Savage Kingdom, there is this line which you hear said (and see in the subtitles) there:
Leopard Rock is fortress and home.
The line reads ...
- 562
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2
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50
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Why are quotation marks omitted from this passage from a book from 1897? [duplicate]
In William James's The Will to Believe, he writes:
After all, though, you will say, Why so much ado about a matter concerning which, however we may theoretically differ, we practically agree?
Later, ...
- 115
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1
answer
133
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Capitalization after an ellipsis beginning a paragraph midway in a multi-paragraph quotation
If midway in a multi-paragraph quotation, a paragraph begins with one or more prior paragraphs omitted, and the line starts mid-sentence with preceding words omitted, is the line capitalized after the ...
- 37
2
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0
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64
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"The exam sheet should only be used to write answers (on)"
Do I need the prepositions in these sentences?
The exam sheet should only be used to write answers (on).
The blanks should only be used to write answers (in).
The equipment should only be used to ...
- 511
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0
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55
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Omitting the verb in non-parallel clauses
I've seen this sentence in a textbook and it sounds unnatural to me.
It was the Ottomans who were developed and Western Europe underdeveloped.
I feel like the omission might have been correct If the ...
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5
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1
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548
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Is it grammatical to leave out the "and" in "try and do"? [closed]
The motivational example sentence for this question turns out to be a typo. Nonetheless I think it triggered valuable discussions.
I came across this sentence from NYT today:
... Mr. Xi met with ...
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2
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64
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When is it appropriate to omit both articles and prepositions together?
I am working on a localisation issue within a project, but I cannot figure out through any of my searches and reference texts if there is a particular set of rules surrounding the omission of articles ...
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Omitting a pronoun from a cleft sentence
I believe this is
a cleft sentence:
It was 10:18 ᴀᴍ when it happened.
However, I cannot explain why the pronoun when can’t
be removed when you rewrite that sentence into this one:
When it (=the ...
1
vote
1
answer
69
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Is "why" implied after "explain" in this context? [closed]
Suppose that we asked to "explain the trend" in the following graph:
Would it be appropriate to just describe the trend (i.e. something along the lines of "it first increases, and then ...
- 321
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2
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71
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“The difficulty is we need” vs. “The difficulty is ᴛʜᴀᴛ we need”
Is there a right or wrong answer in the following construction? Am
I missing a more elegant way to say this?
The main difficulty in the hiring process is we need a fluent
French speaker that also ...
- 101
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3
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46
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Is "personal usage requires the user provision the device" correct? The bare infinitive v the to-infinitive
I've come across this sentence in a piece of technical documentation:
Disabling personal usage requires the user provision the device as a
fully managed device.
In my opinion this sentence is ...
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0
answers
61
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Could "being" be omitted in "spend time (being) someone"?
I came across a sentence in Maugham's The Moon and Sixpence that I don't quite comprehend:
They may spend their whole lives aliens among their kindred, and remain aloof among the only scenes they ...
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1
answer
58
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The "-ing" form of a verb and indefinite article [closed]
If celebrities visit public places, such as malls and bars, people
will crowd them demanding for a picture or autograph.
1: Why did the writer use the "-ing" form of the verb "demand&...
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2
answers
2k
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"They are" or "that they are"? [duplicate]
It's clear they are honest.
vs.
It's clear that they are honest.
Is there a difference? Is one more correct than the other?
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0
answers
68
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'Ordered' + object + past participle
Fowler's Dictionary of Modern English Usage, page 852 reads
The construction ordered + object + past participle (often expressed
in the passive) is first recorded in 1781 in AmE ( These things were
...
- 2,433
1
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0
answers
39
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Is the sentence "we don't need to be what they want us to" correct without the "be" in the end?
The formal way to say the sentence would be "we don't need to be what they want us to be", but would it be acceptable and understandable in colloquial language (eg in a song) to say "we ...
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0
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Comparing/Contrasting Adjectives with/without "the" and "one"
In terms of American English, I'm considering the following 3 options of comparing/contrasting adjectives. Are all of these okay?
The red dress is better than blue.
The red dress is better than the ...
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2
answers
55
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Adjective-Denoted Nationalities without "the"
I came across the following in the Wall Street Journal, as part of the main story (not the headline),
... Swiss voted narrowly against more hunting, by 52% to 48% ...
... Last year, Swiss voted on ...
- 197
4
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1
answer
344
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Omissibility of the definite article “the” before attributive modifiers of personal names in American English
Are both inclusion and omission of the definite article
the before personal names that have attributive
modifiers (nominal or adjectival or both) considered grammatical in Ameri...
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0
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45
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When is the omission of relative pronouns acceptable? [duplicate]
So I learned that I tend to forget and unconsciously omit relative pronouns from my sentences, because apart from the fact that the meaning of some clauses without them remain clear and obvious, I ...
0
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0
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Could articles be omitted in descriptions of art?
Compiling brief descriptions of art objects, is it okay to make do mostly without articles? For instance (about an old coin),
Eagle under crown; shield featuring Moscow’s coat-of-arms on eagle’s
...
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votes
1
answer
39
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omitting auxiliaries and articles in logs [closed]
Is it a widespread practice in logbooks and in written accounts of events in general to omit articles and auxiliaries? E.g.:
"Message received. Information read. Crew instructed. Complaints ...
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1
answer
29
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Dropping "when" in an adverbial clause renders this sentence ungrammatical?
Please consider these sentences side by side:
When walking in a dark alley, you should be cautious.
When walking in a dark alley, be cautious.
Walking in a dark alley, be cautious.
Walking in a dark ...
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0
votes
1
answer
763
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Have difficulty/difficulties (in) doing something
What is syntactically the -ing-phrase in both the versions with and without the preposition? For example in He has trouble [in] keeping things in perspective right now.
Secondly, does the latter ...
- 2,433
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1
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47
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Why in "think about/of" and "talk about" the "of" and "about" sometimes are omitted?
I sometimes see, more often of late, that in sentences like this:
There're less known but high performing currencies: think of Georgian Larry, Armenian Dram.
"of" or "about" get ...
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1
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39
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Is it correct to omit "be" verbs and conjunctions when reporting a sentence? [duplicate]
Can you say "Actor dead aged 44" instead of elaborately saying "Actor dies at age 44"?
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0
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When two "be" verbs are used in one sentence, should the second be omitted?
For example
He is a teenager and [is] from South Sudan.
Is it necessary to delete the second "is" in parentheses?
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votes
2
answers
480
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Do I need to repeat a verb in a second clause?
He will not only pass the exam but will also excel in sports.
He will not only pass the exam but also excel in sports.
Which one is correct?
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votes
2
answers
112
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Omitting pronouns in conditional clauses
I have a dispute with an acquaintance over this sentence:
If [you're] looking for aliases that will be displayed in the help message, see the link above.
("you're" is omitted)
I'm pretty ...
1
vote
1
answer
96
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omission of semantic subject
Toni Morrison began writing when she was in college, but she did not produce anything good enough to publish for many years. Her troubled marriage, divorce, and life as a single mother made it even ...
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3
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"The place I was born" vs. "The place I was born in"
This is the place where I was born. [1]
I can omit where & keep the antecedent place :
This is the place I was born. [1a]
I can omit the antecedent place and keep the relative word where :
...
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votes
1
answer
44
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Omission of subject in tensed clause
I know the subject can be omitted in untensed clauses. But I've encountered with the following:
You spent more money than was intended to be spent.
Here, 'than' seems to be functioning like a ...
0
votes
1
answer
94
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Go fun the world - is it correct?
I want to know if 9Gag slogan "Go fun the world" is correct or not.
I know that it is ok to say "Let's go have fun" but the slogan above misses "have". Is it ok?
One more - is "word" addressee there? ...
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0
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59
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How do I omit part of part of a legal definition with an ellipsis?
I need to contract the below sentence (it was legalese that I have simplified) to just present (b), but need to indicate that (b) is not the only condition:
Ending on the earlier of (a) [occurrence]...
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3
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1k
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What’s the long form corresponding to the short form “English Language & Usage”?
Am I right that ①English Language & Usage is the short
form either for ②English Language & Its Usage or else
for ③English Language & The Usage of It, rather than
for ④English Language ...
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vote
1
answer
380
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When can I omit the auxiliary verb in Past Perfect...?
I've come across two examples of past-perfect in the textbook and was wondering if someone could please explain why the latter sentences still use 'had' and why it shouldn't be omitted:
1) When I ...
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1
vote
0
answers
309
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Omitting Relative Pronoun and verb "be" [duplicate]
Could someone please explain, why the pronoun and the verb "be" are omitted in the following sentence?
"it allows communication even for people far away from each other"
Shouldn't this sentence be "...
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2
answers
542
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What do you call the sentence structure of “The X-er __, the Y-er __”?
Is there a term for a sentence in the form of "The ___, the ___"?
For example:
The quieter you become, the more you are able to hear.
Further, is this a proper sentence? Is there an implied verb?...
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2
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216
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Omission of "is" in "She thought the study of Latin a waste of time."
In The Elements of Style, the authors give this example:
She thought the study of Latin a waste of time.
I cannot understand why the verb is has been omitted. Should not this sentence be as:
...
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2
answers
1k
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If it isn't [someone's name]!
"If it isn't [a name]!" can be used to show surprise when you bump into someone, but it is not a complete sentence. What is omitted (and understood) here?
I'd appreciate your help.
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3
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What is the grammatical topic of this shortening technique?
Extracted from an English cloze test:
.....these virtual selves exist in the same online spaces that many people use every day. And this is a new and unfamiliar phenomenon that some people might ...
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0
answers
109
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Can you omit only a subject following “as long as?”
Can you leave a subject following “as long as” out, keeping the verb followed alive?
I can read it aloud for you as long as it is in English.
So you can watch any movies as long as they have ...
- 204
2
votes
1
answer
88
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The "that" elimination problem
The sentence
I marveled that you chuckled that I said "juxtaposition".
suffers from "that" overload. We'd all agree.
It's easy to slim either 'that'. Hence either
I marveled you chuckled that I ...
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1
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160
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Since and for, where can they be omitted?
I’m well aware of the difference between ‘since’ and ‘for’. However I have a question.
Imagine I say ‘I’ve been working on the essay since Saturday’ or ‘I’ve been working on the essay for two days’. ...
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1
answer
111
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commas/ omitting "which is"
In the passage below, shouldn't the writer have included which is before the word championed, since it is in a non-defining clause?
In seeking to describe the origins of theater, one must rely ...
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votes
3
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398
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Article before nouns in the appositive phrase?
Here are two examples:
Nobody creates post-apocalyptic flicks better than George Miller, the director of the Mad Max series.
Is the necessary before director, and can it be omitted?
The business ...
0
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1
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48
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differentiate `to+verb` from `verb` in the context of a list
He gives wisdom and knowledge to enable his children to understand and see the invisible.
He gives wisdom and knowledge to enable his children to understand and to see the invisible.
Sometimes I ...
