1. zaffy

    zaffy Active Member

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    Do I need two wases?

    Discussion in 'Word Mechanics' started by zaffy, Jul 19, 2010.

    She was in a better frame of mind than Stella.

    She was in a better frame of mind than Stella was.
     
  2. Steerpike

    Steerpike Felis amatus Contributor

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    I'd go with the first sentence. I'm pretty sure the second one is grammatically-incorrect in any case, and that if you're going with that option the "was" comes before "Stella."
     
  3. Fantasy of You

    Fantasy of You Banned

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    No, the first is grammatically correct and the second is ugly.
     
  4. BlueWolf

    BlueWolf Banned

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    It is never a good idea to repeat the same words in a sentence - always avoid repeating the same words in a sentence if you can
     
  5. Fantasy of You

    Fantasy of You Banned

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    Hypocrite! jk :) Could you PM me your website please? I'm unsure why you can't have it in your sig, but I'd like to check your book out. Thanks x
     
  6. zaffy

    zaffy Active Member

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    Thought so.
    Word suggested the second version, so I wanted a second opinion.
     
  7. Cogito

    Cogito Former Mod, Retired Supporter Contributor

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    I hope the irony in this sentence was deliberate. :)

    Some people recoil at the notion of writing sentences like:
    because of the adjacent hads, but it is merely a perfectly fine use of past perfect tense with the verb to have.

    As for Zaffy's sentences, both are fine. In most cases, I would prefer the first version, which omits the understood (and therefore superfluous) repeated verb. With different words or a different context, though, the second form may be clearer. Sometimes, explicitly completing the parallel structure adds emphasis.
     
  8. minstrel

    minstrel Leader of the Insquirrelgency Supporter Contributor

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    Then there's this:

    "James while John had had had had had had had had had had had a better effect on the teacher."

    Or, with punctuation:

    James, while John had had "had", had had "had had"; "had had" had had a better effect on the teacher.
     
  9. zaffy

    zaffy Active Member

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    Explain, please.
     
  10. Steerpike

    Steerpike Felis amatus Contributor

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    James and John both turned in something to a teacher. John used "had" and James used "had had" and the teacher preferred the work of James.
     
  11. zaffy

    zaffy Active Member

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    Got it.
     

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