3 Sentences That Cause Confusion

3 Sentences That Cause Confusion 3 Sentences That Cause Confusion 3 Sentences That Cause Confusion By Mark Nichol In each of the following sentences, a word or phrase is an obstacle to comprehension. The discussion and revision that follows each example suggests a path to clarity. 1. Technology companies have a very different mind-set to traditional financial institutions. Comparisons structured as one is in this sentence should employ from rather than to, and note the insertion of the phrase â€Å"that of the† to indicate that the comparison is between mind-sets and not the entities that have the mind-sets: â€Å"Technology companies have a very different mind-set from that of traditional financial institutions.† 2. The agency found that contrary to its claims, World Wide Wickets failed to employ reasonable and appropriate measures to protect data. This sentence has an unclear antecedent: The pronoun its appears to refer to â€Å"the agency,† because no other entity has yet been identified, but it is a reference to the company subsequently mentioned. For clarity, use a specific proper noun (for example, â€Å"World Wide Wickets†) or a specific common noun (for example, â€Å"(the) company†) first, then a pronoun (or, in this case, use a proper noun on first reference and a common noun on second reference, bypassing the need for a pronoun at all): â€Å"The agency found that contrary to the claims of World Wide Wickets, the company failed to employ reasonable and appropriate measures to protect data.† 3. Jones faces criticism of others who oppose his policy positions, as does opponent John Smith and many others. This sentence is ambiguous- it could mean that Smith and many others face the same criticism as Jones, or the phrase â€Å"as does† could apply not to the verb faces but to the verb oppose. (In this case, the latter option applies.) To eliminate possible confusion, chose a clearer word or phrase in place of the nebulous â€Å"as does†: â€Å"Jones faces criticism of others who oppose his policy positions, including opponent John Smith and many others.† Want to improve your English in five minutes a day? Get a subscription and start receiving our writing tips and exercises daily! Keep learning! Browse the Style category, check our popular posts, or choose a related post below:Fly, Flew, (has) FlownFlied?75 Idioms and Expressions That Include â€Å"Break†Oppose and Opposed To