3 Examples of Confusion Caused by Missing Words

3 Examples of Confusion Caused by Missing Words 3 Examples of Confusion Caused by Missing Words 3 Examples of Confusion Caused by Missing Words By Mark Nichol In each of the sentences below, omission of a small but key word muddles the statement’s meaning. Discussion after each example explains the problem, and a revision to each sentence provides a clarifying solution. 1. Some organizations still look at privacy and security as a cost/benefit equation, rather than an issue that could create long-term damage. This sentence requires corresponding prepositions preceding the phrases that express conflicting possibilities; otherwise, readers may be unclear as to whether â€Å"an issue that could create long-term damage† is complementary to â€Å"a cost/benefit equation† or whether the former phrase describes something organizations still look at instead of privacy and security: â€Å"Some organizations still look at privacy and security as a cost/benefit equation, rather than as an issue that could create long-term damage.† 2. The agency particularly calls out the need for firms to ensure systems and technologies are resilient to cyberattack and that firms are not exposed to attack during periods of change. The conjunction that is often optional, but it is recommended after ensure so that the reader is not temporarily misled into misunderstanding, for example, that the phrase â€Å"ensure systems and technologies† does not refer to ensuring those things themselves as opposed to ensuring that something about them occurs or is true: â€Å"The agency particularly calls out the need for firms to ensure that systems and technologies are resilient to cyberattack and that firms are not exposed to attack during periods of change.† 3. Respondents from the region are also significantly less likely to believe that the direction of regulatory scrutiny is increasing than other regions. Here, the notion of other regions, rather than a situation occurring in other regions, is compared to the original situation. To clarify the relationship of the key phrases, a preposition should precede â€Å"other regions†: â€Å"Respondents from the region are also significantly less likely to believe that the direction of regulatory scrutiny is increasing than those in other regions.† Want to improve your English in five minutes a day? Get a subscription and start receiving our writing tips and exercises daily! Keep learning! Browse the Grammar category, check our popular posts, or choose a related post below:Avoid Beginning a Sentence with â€Å"With†List of Greek Words in the English LanguageAffect vs. Effect