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JbhB682
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When - Subordinate clause

by JbhB682 Thu Apr 22, 2021 11:44 am

Hi Experts - i was wondering what is the difference between these two sentences

Source : made up

Sentence 1) I like chicken when roasted
vs
Sentence 2) I like chicken when it is roasted

In both sentences - "WHEN" is playing the role of an adverb (i.e. subordinate)

I believe the 1st sentence is wrong because it implies I like chicken when I (the subject), myself am roasted which is not the intended meaning

Is the second one wrong ? In the second case, I have "when" no longer in the "Verb+past participle" format like in the first case..

This is a play from the discussion in this link below as to why "When +PAST participle" refers back to the subject.

So I, was curious, what happens if you had When playing the role of an adverb but it is in the format of "When + clause" like in sentence 2.


https://www.manhattanprep.com/gmat/foru ... tml#p29810
esledge
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Re: When - Subordinate clause

by esledge Thu Apr 22, 2021 6:48 pm

JbhB682 Wrote:Hi Experts - i was wondering what is the difference between these two sentences

Source : made up

Sentence 1) I like chicken when roasted
vs
Sentence 2) I like chicken when it is roasted

In both sentences - "WHEN" is playing the role of an adverb (i.e. subordinate)

I believe the 1st sentence is wrong because it implies I like chicken when I (the subject), myself am roasted which is not the intended meaning

Is the second one wrong ? In the second case, I have "when" no longer in the "Verb+past participle" format like in the first case..
These examples made me chuckle. You are right about the funny meaning of the 1st one. The 2nd one has the correct meaning in terms of what (it = chicken) is roasted. The other meaning issue to consider is that "when" should only be used if you really are referring to a certain time. I think your example qualifies because while "when it is roasted" isn't strictly a time, it is describing a condition that must have occurred in order for you to like chicken:

Correct: I like chicken when it is roasted.
Correct: I don't like chicken before it is roasted.

JbhB682 Wrote:This is a play from the discussion in this link below as to why "When +PAST participle" refers back to the subject.

So I, was curious, what happens if you had When playing the role of an adverb but it is in the format of "When + clause" like in sentence 2.


https://www.manhattanprep.com/gmat/foru ... tml#p29810
I suspect "when" will usually be followed by a clause, but I can't think of many GMAT examples where "when+clause" vs. "when+participle" is the issue. More often, the GMAT is testing whether "when" is even appropriate at all.
Emily Sledge
Instructor
ManhattanGMAT