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From: chris@umcp-cs.UUCP (Chris Torek)
Newsgroups: soc.misc
Subject: Re: Words (was Re: Paging)
Message-ID: <3815@umcp-cs.UUCP>
Date: Sat, 11-Oct-86 06:30:52 EDT
Article-I.D.: umcp-cs.3815
Posted: Sat Oct 11 06:30:52 1986
Date-Received: Sun, 12-Oct-86 13:36:20 EDT
References: <8494@duke.duke.UUCP> <147@eneevax.UUCP> <7110@utzoo.UUCP> <3809@ism780c.UUCP>
Organization: Computer Sci. Dept, U of Maryland, College Park, MD
Lines: 22

>In article <3736@umcp-cs.UUCP> I wrote:
>>`Today was and will be a wonderful day, although it is presently
>>raining'.  Without the word `presently', it means something entirely
>>different.

In article <3809@ism780c.UUCP>, marty@ism780c.UUCP (Marty Smith) writes:
>I don't see the difference.

Without `presently', `raining' applies to `it', whose referent is
`today', implying that it has been and will continue raining even
while the day is wonderful.  With the additional word, raining
applies to `presently', implying that it was not raining earlier,
and soon will stop raining.  Thus the shorter sentence might say
that rain does not preclude wonderful days, while the longer one
may very well say the opposite.  The implications are subtle enough
to be overwhelmed by any contradictory context, though.

Does that make sense?
-- 
In-Real-Life: Chris Torek, Univ of MD Comp Sci Dept (+1 301 454 1516)
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