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Is there a Grammer error in this sentence?
Posted: 30 Apr 2023, 08:29
by Christine Johanna Miszuk
"He toweled himself off and looked in the mirror, turning his head from side to side and admiring the stubble."
The sentence just seems off to me. It starts in passed tense and finishes in the present.
I also feel like the last and in the sentence is not necessary.
I'm thinking the correction could be,
"He toweled himself off and looked in the mirror, turning his head from side to side he admired the stubble."
I appreciate the help!
Re: Is there a Grammer error in this sentence?
Posted: 30 Apr 2023, 14:30
by MsH2k
Hi Christine,
The sentence is grammatically correct as written.
The highlighted section beginning with “turning” is a pair of participial phrases serving as an adjective describing the pronoun “He.” The comma before “turning” clarifies that the phrases modify something earlier in the sentence, not the preceding word, “mirror”:
He toweled himself off and looked in the mirror
, turning his head from side to side and admiring the stubble.
Alternatively, the phrases could have been placed at the beginning of the sentence:
Turning his head from side to side and admiring the stubble, he toweled himself off and looked in the mirror.
Here is an excellent resource on participles:
https://owl.purdue.edu/owl/general_writ ... iples.html
And this link describes when to use a present vs. past participle. I think it made sense to use present participles in this case:
https://study.com/learn/lesson/particip ... esent.html
Re: Is there a Grammer error in this sentence?
Posted: 30 Apr 2023, 16:40
by Christine Johanna Miszuk
MsH2k wrote: ↑30 Apr 2023, 14:30
Hi Christine,
The sentence is grammatically correct as written.
The highlighted section beginning with “turning” is a pair of participial phrases serving as an adjective describing the pronoun “He.” The comma before “turning” clarifies that the phrases modify something earlier in the sentence, not the preceding word, “mirror”:
He toweled himself off and looked in the mirror
, turning his head from side to side and admiring the stubble.
Alternatively, the phrases could have been placed at the beginning of the sentence:
Turning his head from side to side and admiring the stubble, he toweled himself off and looked in the mirror.
Here is an excellent resource on participles:
https://owl.purdue.edu/owl/general_writ ... iples.html
And this link describes when to use a present vs. past participle. I think it made sense to use present participles in this case:
https://study.com/learn/lesson/particip ... esent.html
Wow! This is the most accurate, specific answer I have ever gotten. Thank you so much. I appreciate you taking your time to explain that to me!
Re: Is there a Grammer error in this sentence?
Posted: 30 Apr 2023, 16:46
by MsH2k
Christine Miszuk wrote: ↑30 Apr 2023, 16:40
MsH2k wrote: ↑30 Apr 2023, 14:30
Hi Christine,
The sentence is grammatically correct as written.
The highlighted section beginning with “turning” is a pair of participial phrases serving as an adjective describing the pronoun “He.” The comma before “turning” clarifies that the phrases modify something earlier in the sentence, not the preceding word, “mirror”:
He toweled himself off and looked in the mirror
, turning his head from side to side and admiring the stubble.
Alternatively, the phrases could have been placed at the beginning of the sentence:
Turning his head from side to side and admiring the stubble, he toweled himself off and looked in the mirror.
Here is an excellent resource on participles:
https://owl.purdue.edu/owl/general_writ ... iples.html
And this link describes when to use a present vs. past participle. I think it made sense to use present participles in this case:
https://study.com/learn/lesson/particip ... esent.html
Wow! This is the most accurate, specific answer I have ever gotten. Thank you so much. I appreciate you taking your time to explain that to me!
You are very welcome. I have this nerdy combination of loving puzzles
and grammar, so ...
