Mom gave my sister more presents than she gave me. what’s the error ?
The Correct Answer and Explanation is:
The error in the sentence “Mom gave my sister more presents than she gave me” lies in the ambiguity caused by the phrase “than she gave me.” The word “she” could refer either to the speaker (the “I” in the sentence) or to the sister, leading to confusion about who received more presents. To resolve this ambiguity, the sentence needs to be clarified so that the subject is unambiguous.
Corrected Sentence:
“Mom gave my sister more presents than she gave me.”
OR
“Mom gave my sister more presents than she gave to me.”
Explanation:
The issue in the original sentence stems from the use of the pronoun “she.” In English, pronouns such as “she” should clearly refer to one specific person, but in this sentence, “she” could potentially refer to either the sister or the speaker. Here’s why:
- Pronoun Ambiguity:
- The phrase “than she gave me” creates a comparison between two things: what the sister received and what the speaker received. The word “she” can be understood as referring either to the speaker (the “I” in the sentence) or to the sister, creating a lack of clarity. The reader may wonder whether the sentence is saying that Mom gave the sister more presents than she (the speaker) received, or that Mom gave the sister more presents than the sister herself gave to the speaker.
- Clarifying the Comparison:
- To make the sentence clear, you could rewrite it in a way that eliminates ambiguity. One option is to change the structure to “Mom gave my sister more presents than I got” or “Mom gave my sister more presents than she gave to me.” These options clearly indicate who received what, avoiding the confusion created by the vague use of “she.”
- Use of “Than”:
- The word “than” is a comparative conjunction used to compare two things. In this case, it compares the number of presents received by the sister to those received by the speaker. The ambiguity arises when the subject of the comparison is unclear, so resolving this ambiguity leads to a more grammatically correct and understandable sentence.
By addressing the ambiguity of the pronoun, we can clarify the meaning and avoid confusion.