Questions tagged [syllepsis]

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Dependence in word with two interrogatives acting upon the same subject

The sentence in question: How or what can a leader do to enhance the team's cohesion? "How" and "what" are both interrogatives operating on "can". "What can a ...
Exoskeletor's user avatar
0 votes
0 answers
45 views

Subjunctive and Ellipsis/Syllepsis

Reading Fowler’s Dictionary of Modern English Usage, I came across this sentence under “subjunctive mood:” “It was as if Sally were disturbed in some way and was translating this disturbance into the ...
David Marlowe's user avatar
2 votes
2 answers
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The bigger, the smaller and the greater [closed]

Is my grammar in the following sentence correct? It should also be noted that the bigger the measured distances, the smaller the variability and the greater the accuracy. Or should it be instead be ...
F.Collins's user avatar
9 votes
2 answers
1k views

Stop if you feel faint or pain! [duplicate]

Possible Duplicate: Ellipsis that results in one word serving as both subject and object I am “adjective” and I am “present continuous” in one sentence I was using some exercise equipment the other ...
ErikE's user avatar
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6 votes
3 answers
1k views

sylleptic parentheses

Here's a quote from Wikipedia: the triple point of Vienna Standard Mean Ocean Water (VSMOW, 273.16 K and 0.01 °C) Now, "VSMOW" refers to "Vienna Standard Mean Ocean Water", while "273.16 K and 0....
msh210's user avatar
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26 votes
9 answers
19k views

Of the difference between zeugma and syllepsis

I am confused about what is the relative meaning of zeugma compared to syllepsis, both in its current meaning and possibly in former understandings of these words. The New Oxford American Dictionary ...
F'x's user avatar
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26 votes
6 answers
122k views

Why does "tell me about it" not mean "tell me about it"?

A commonly used American phrase, but one that still baffles me if I stop and think about it. Why does "tell me about" actually mean, "I understand what you're talking about as I have experienced it ...
Django Reinhardt's user avatar
5 votes
3 answers
1k views

Would or Could, in a list of questions, is the first verb always the correct choice?

Here is an example of what I am wondering about: I wonder why or how someone could kill a person. In this sentence we have two questions, why and how. They both require different supporting words: ...
BBischof's user avatar
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