PASTEL  +  41674 Wed, 11 Aug 04 09:17 AM 1) He's more qualified than you, even though he's less experienced. 2) Being less experienced, he's more qualified than you. 3) He's more qualified than you, being more qualified. 3) is incorrect because present participle phrase should be fronted. Reading your post, I have some questions. I think it is an ambiguous sentence. There are some interpretations: 1) After I read your posts, I have some questions. 2) Before I read your posts, ---- 3) When I am reading your posts, ---- I don't know how to replace an adverbial phrase with a participle clause in sentence 2). Would you help me with this? Thank you. Pastel PASTEL Joined on Thu, Jul 1 2004 Regular Member 547 Clauses

	Mister Micawber  +  41714 Wed, 11 Aug 04 03:41 PM I don't understand what you want in the first part, Pastel. Only (1) makes any sense; (2) and (3) are grammatical but irrational. PP phases don't have to be fronted, they just have to refer unequivocably to their proper referrent. In the second set: (1) should be 'After having read your posts, I have some questions'; (2) should be 'Before I read your posts, I had some questions' and carries the opposite meaning; (2) can be recast as 'Having read your posts, I have some questions'; and (3) is incorrect. Mister Micawber Joined on Wed, Aug 4 2004 Yokohama Veteran Member 30,802 'The question is,' said Humpty Dumpty, 'which is to be master-- that's all.'

	PASTEL  +  41765 Wed, 11 Aug 04 08:35 PM Hi, Micawber He still came to school, even though he was sick. Being sick, he still came to school. ( If this sentence is correct, why sentence 2 is irrational?) In the second set, In your sentence 2, the latter one, I think it is different from what I meant in the original post. Yours: 'Having read your posts, I have some questions' Mine: 'Before I read your posts, I had some questions.' Yours is saying that "I have read your posts"(the reading is done), whereas mine is dealing with the questions.(the reading is not started yet.) I look forward to hearing from you. Thanks. PASTEL

	Mister Micawber  +  41790 Thu, 12 Aug 04 12:18 AM Hi Pastel, In the first part: 'Being less experienced, he's more qualified than you.' Irrational because experience is logically required for qualification. 'Being sick, he still came to school.' Rational because it is easily possible to come to school in spite of being sick. In the second part: You're absolutely right that our meanings are opposite; probably again because 'before I read your posts, I had some questions' is not a normal sequence. Let me re-recast as 'before reading your posts, I had some questions'. Mister Micawber

	CalifJim  +  41831 Thu, 12 Aug 04 05:59 AM Before I read your posts, ----- >> Interesting challenge. I think this is one solution: Not yet having read your posts, ----- CalifJim Joined on Mon, Aug 2 2004 California Veteran Member 22,405 "There are no facts, only interpretations" - Nietzsche

	CalifJim  +  41832 Thu, 12 Aug 04 06:03 AM Just curious, Mr M. Is "unequivocably" the Canadian version of "unequivocally"? Or just your personal preference? It seems to me some people like to say it that way. CalifJim

	Mister Micawber  +  41833 Thu, 12 Aug 04 06:11 AM Couldn't say, Jim; didn't look it up; might not be a word; let me know, eh? Mister Micawber

	anon1  +  41834 Thu, 12 Aug 04 06:19 AM CalifJim seems to win this argument as shown here, at least according to one reference. Hope this helps. MountainHiker anon1 Joined on Fri, Jul 2 2004 Senior Member 2,049

	CalifJim  +  41845 Thu, 12 Aug 04 07:56 AM MH, Was that an argument? Could've fooled me! Actually, I think I've said it both ways. Can't remember now. Thanks for the link. How do you do that? (I mean put the word 'here' in there as a link.) I'm technically challenged! Mr. M, Your "eh" reminds me. A couple of years ago I was in Toronto on Canada Day, and I saw a sign that spelled Canada like this: C eh N eh D eh. Probably old as the hills to you, but I thought it was quite amusing. Jim CalifJim