a. They broke that door of the house that I had painted.
b. They broke the door of the house that I had painted.
In which of the above cases:
1. I had painted the house
and in which
2. I had painted the door
---------------------------------
c. He was petting that puppy of the dog that I had given him.
d. He was petting the puppy of the dog that I had given him.
In which of the above cases:
3. I had given him the puppy
and in which
4. I had given him the dog
?
Many thanks
attachment ambiguity
Moderator: Alan
- Alan
- Teacher/Moderator
- Posts: 15208
- Joined: Mon Dec 29, 2003 7:56 pm
- Status: Teacher of English
- Location: Japan
Re: attachment ambiguity
The sentences are all grammatically sound.
Meaning is determined by a combination of context, background knowledge and common sense.
(You appear at times to be confusing ambiguity with grammaticality - two quite different things.)
Meaning is determined by a combination of context, background knowledge and common sense.
(You appear at times to be confusing ambiguity with grammaticality - two quite different things.)