Share Ellipsis - Grammar III
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What is ellipsis in grammar?
Ellipsis is the omission of words that are understood from context but necessary for grammatical completeness.
What is the main communicative function of ellipsis?
Its function is to avoid repetition and maintain cohesion and economy in language.
How does ellipsis contribute to textual cohesion?
Ellipsis creates cohesion by linking parts of discourse through shared meaning without repeating language.
What part of the sentence is typically omitted in nominal ellipsis?
The head noun (in nominal ellipsis).
What part is omitted in verbal ellipsis?
The verb or auxiliary (in verbal ellipsis).
Give an example of ellipsis in a coordinated clause.
I have washed the dishes and dried them
In the sentence “I can swim, and he can too,” what is omitted?
"swim," the main verb
Why is ellipsis more common in spoken than in written English?
Because spoken language relies heavily on shared context and is more informal.
Can ellipsis occur at the beginning of a sentence? Why or why not?
Rarely, because English sentence structure generally requires an explicit subject, but yes, it can occur.
What is situational ellipsis?
Omissions that depend on the situation, not just grammar.
What is the difference between anaphoric and cataphoric ellipsis?
Anaphoric refers to backward reference; cataphoric to forward reference.
Identify the ellipsis in this sentence: “I bought the red shirt, not the blue.”
"the blue [shirt]"
Analyze the function of ellipsis in: “She went to the party, and he didn’t.”
"didn’t" implies "go to the party"
What are some teaching strategies to help students recognize ellipsis?
Use cloze tests, sentence-completion tasks, and comparative structures.
How can ellipsis be used to improve writing style and fluency?
It makes writing less repetitive and more natural.
What is one exercise to help students practice recognizing ellipsis?
Provide a dialogue and ask students to fill in the omitted parts.
