Text 17087, 104 rader
Skriven 2007-06-22 11:12:00 av MICHAEL LOO (1:123/140)
     Kommentar till en text av GRAMMARIANS
Ärende: grammar 709
===================
 -=> Dale Shipp said to Dave Sacerdote <=-

 DS> I stick to what Miss Hazel Haley taught me in high school Senior
 DS> English -- things modifying noun are adjectives.  Things modifying
 DS> adjectives are adverbs.  And by that consideration, in  "blueberry
 DS> cornmeal muffins" the words blueberry and cornmeal are modifying the
 DS> noun muffins -- although that particular combination sounds sort of
 DS> odd to me.  I.e. the part of speech is based on usage.

Both ways of looking at things have advantages and disadvantages.
If we took your way to the hilt and hypothesized blue cornmeal
muffins, ... no, we can make it even more striking and use a
product that I've consumed with pleasure - blue corn tortilla chips.

Chips are a noun, no question.

Tortilla refers to chips, so it functions as an adjective,
though, as Dave points out, and we shall see below, it's much
more convenient to keep thinking of it as a noun.

Corn refers to tortilla, so it functions as an adjective but is
still a noun, in the Dave scheme of things; but it would be an
adverb, in the Miss Hazel Haley scheme of things, if that were
taken as invariable. Corn isn't an adverb, and one shouldn't
say that it ever functions as one.

Blue refers to corn. It's not an adverb either.

We could tack more things on - "sky" for example; a case might
be made for sky being an adverb in these circumstances - but
I think the point is sufficiently made, and what's this great
fear and hatred of the passive voice anyway.

=

On another grammatical issue, something that came up yesterday.
The usefulness of the Oxford comma. Here is a sentence typed by one
of our esteemed colleagues down under.

  Serve with fresh bread for dipping, boiled new potatoes or mash
  and steamed green vegetables.

Which can be taken as

  Serve with fresh bread for dipping, boiled new potatoes, or mash
  and steamed green vegetables.

Which wouldn't make sense, unless the dish could tolerate only
one side dish, or as

  Serve with fresh bread for dipping, boiled new potatoes or mash,
  and steamed green vegetables.

Which strikes me as slightly more sensible.

Okay, context is important, I grant. But if context were all, and
precision were nothing, where would the language be? In a handbasket
I suppose.

---------- Recipe via Meal-Master (tm) v8.06

       Title: CHICKPEAS AND CHORIZO SAUSAGE BRAISED IN TOMATO SAUCE
  Categories: Mains, Sausages, Slow cook
       Yield: 5

       2    Garlic cloves
       1    Onions- red
      50 ml Olive oil
       1    Capsicums- red
       1 tb Paprika- sweet smoked
     250 g  Chorizo sausage
     400 g  Tomatoes; canned, peel/chop
     400 g  Chickpeas; cooked
     500 ml Water
     1/2 bn Parsley; chopped
            Salt
            Black pepper; ground fresh

   Peel & slice the garlic & onion. Heat the oil in a large, heavy pot.
   Add the garlic & onion & cook over medium heat for 5 minutes, stirring
   occasionally. Deseed the capsicum & dice. Add to the pot with paprika &
   stir to combine. Slice the chorizo & add to the pot with tomatoes,
   chickpeas & water. Bring to the simmer, then cover the pot & lower the
   heat to a gentle bubble.

   Cook for about an hour. Add the parsley, salt & parsley & cook for a
   further 5 minutes.

   Serve with fresh bread for dipping, boiled new potatoes or mash,
   & steamed green vegetables

   From: COOKING, THE ADVERTISER, 20 JUNE 2007
   By: GENEVIEVE HARRIS
   Typed by: KEVIN JCJD SYMONS

   M's notes: Oxford comma added. This dish needs hot capsicums as
   well, and don't bother with the black pepper. Pepperoni or similar
   full-flavored dry sausage may be substituted.

-----

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