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How Far Is the Verb
Three stepping stones, and eleven.
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The same load. The difference is how far it has to be carried.
Learner keeps the main verb close enough to its subject that the reader can still find it, and splits the sentence when a relative clause has pushed them too far apart.
Preview · progress not saved — Chapter 1 is free
Six sentences. Three of them are comfortable to read.
Where is the main verb?
One of my regular customers who lent me his generator to power my food truck was a godsend when mine was unexpectedly broken down in the middle of the business hours today.
Why distance costs, the breath test, and three repairs.
The subject arrives. Then the clause. Then, finally, the verb.
The reader has to hold the subject the whole way, and at some distance they stop holding it.
Three stepping stones, and eleven.
The same load. The difference is how far it has to be carried.
Six sentences with the method stated. Two need nothing.
One of my regular customers who lent me his generator to power my food truck was a godsend when mine was unexpectedly broken down in the middle of the business hours today. Repair by punctuating. →
The policy which the government introduced after two years of consultation has failed. Repair by splitting. →
The report, which arrived late, was wrong. Repair if needed. →
The students who study abroad and who receive no grant often struggle financially. Repair by trimming. →
The committee approved the proposal that the working group had drafted over six months. Repair if needed. →
The machine which the engineers installed in March and serviced twice since then broke down. Repair by splitting. →
One relative clause, one short sentence.
Topic: university tuition fees.
Sentence 1: include a relative clause, and keep the main verb findable. Sentence 2: short — under ten words.
Then read the first one aloud in one breath before you submit.
One per line.
Say whether you had to go back to find the verb.