Nominalisation: Difference between revisions

From The Jolly Contrarian
Jump to navigation Jump to search
← Older edit
VisualWikitext
No edit summary
No edit summary
 
(36 intermediate revisions by the same user not shown)
Line 1: Line 1:
{{plain|issue a notification to|notify}}
{{a|drafting|}}[[Nominalisation]] — itself, a nominalisation of the verb to “nominalise”<ref>[[Goedel]] would be pleased.</ref> — is the act, as adored by [[mediocre lawyer|solicitors]] as it is loathed by anyone who cares for the English language, of gutting a precise [[verb]], by converting it into a [[noun]] and jamming a general [[verb]] in front of it.
{{plain|have a discussion|discuss}}


[[Nominalisation]] is the act, as adored by solicitors as it is loathed by anyone having any kind of fondness for the English language, of emasculating a perfectly usable verb by making it into a noun and jamming a more boring verb in front of it. The ''cause célèbre'' of nominalisations — an attorney’s very favourite — is “to be applicable”. Here the very respectable noun “apply” is saddled with a ghastly suffix and made to give up its exciting role as a “doing” word, for the comparative lassitude of being a person place or thing — an abstract thing, at that — while that irregular catchall “to be” has all the fun (as it so often does — or does not; for ''that'' is the question).
Or should I say:


But at what cost to the reader? Without thinking on it, choose your favourite:
:''[[Nominalisation]] is the act, which induces adoration in [[mediocre lawyer|solicitors]] as much as it effects a sensation of loathing in anyone having a fondness for the English language, of ensuring the evisceration of a precise [[verb]] by effecting its conversion into a [[noun]] (or [[adjective]]) and ensuring the jammery of a general [[verb]] in front of it.''


''This clause '''applies'''.'' <br>
So, where one on the [[Clapham omnibus]] might say,
''This clause '''is applicable'''.'' <br>
{{quote|“Last night I shot an [[elephant]] in my pyjamas.”}}
An nominaliser might say:
{{quote|“Last night the shooting was carried out by me, in my pyjamas, of an [[elephant]]”}}


Now we should concede at once that the nominalised version forces on us a more disciplined grammar: it is beyond doubt that it is me, and not the elephant who is wearing my pyjamas. That ruins it as a setup for Groucho Marx’s punchline, of course, and it comes at the expense of energy and elegance. In this case, too, it is punctiliousness not really needed given the ''context''. And, if you really wanted to be ''that guy'', there is always the stilted, but unambiguous, “last night, in my pyjamas, I shot an [[elephant]].”


===[[Effect]]ing a nominalisation: grammatical cross-dressing===
Dead give aways:
The worst kind of nominalisation goes a step further: not only must the poor {{tag|verb}} dress up as a noun; an equally unsuspecting {{tag|noun}} must behave like a verb. “[[Effect]]” is this kind of nominalisation.
*the string “''[[ion of]]''”
*[[gerund]]s
*[[infinitive]]s
*simple verbs: to ''be'', to ''have'', to ''do'', to ''make'' or, most hideous of all, to ''[[effect]]''.
===Examples===
:{{plain|[[have visibility of]]|see}}
:{{plain|issue a notification to|tell}}
:{{plain|have a discussion about|discuss}}
:{{plain|we are supportive of|we support}}
:{{plain|have the appearance of being|seem}}<br />
===[[Effect]]ing the worst kind of nominalisation===
The ''worst'' kind of nominalisation goes a step further: not only must the poor [[verb]] dress up as a noun; an equally unsuspecting [[noun]] must behave like a verb. “[[Effect]]” is this kind of [[nominalisation]]:
:{{plain|effect the conversion of shares|convert the shares}}
 
{{sa}}
*[[Adjectivisation]]
*[[Of]] - a dead giveaway.
*[[To be]] - the feeblest of all verbs.
*[[Obligated]]
{{ref}}
{{nld}}

Latest revision as of 13:30, 14 August 2024

The JC’s guide to writing nice.™
Index: Click ᐅ to expand:
Plain English
Drafting
Tell me more
Sign up for our newsletter — or just get in touch: for ½ a weekly 🍺 you get to consult JC. Ask about it here.

Nominalisation — itself, a nominalisation of the verb to “nominalise”[1] — is the act, as adored by solicitors as it is loathed by anyone who cares for the English language, of gutting a precise verb, by converting it into a noun and jamming a general verb in front of it.

Or should I say:

Nominalisation is the act, which induces adoration in solicitors as much as it effects a sensation of loathing in anyone having a fondness for the English language, of ensuring the evisceration of a precise verb by effecting its conversion into a noun (or adjective) and ensuring the jammery of a general verb in front of it.

So, where one on the Clapham omnibus might say,

“Last night I shot an elephant in my pyjamas.”

An nominaliser might say:

“Last night the shooting was carried out by me, in my pyjamas, of an elephant”

Now we should concede at once that the nominalised version forces on us a more disciplined grammar: it is beyond doubt that it is me, and not the elephant who is wearing my pyjamas. That ruins it as a setup for Groucho Marx’s punchline, of course, and it comes at the expense of energy and elegance. In this case, too, it is punctiliousness not really needed given the context. And, if you really wanted to be that guy, there is always the stilted, but unambiguous, “last night, in my pyjamas, I shot an elephant.”

Dead give aways:

Examples

Why say “have visibility of” when you mean “see”?
Why say “issue a notification to” when you mean “tell”?
Why say “have a discussion about” when you mean “discuss”?
Why say “we are supportive of” when you mean “we support”?
Why say “have the appearance of being” when you mean “seem”?

Effecting the worst kind of nominalisation

The worst kind of nominalisation goes a step further: not only must the poor verb dress up as a noun; an equally unsuspecting noun must behave like a verb. “Effect” is this kind of nominalisation:

Why say “effect the conversion of shares” when you mean “convert the shares”?

See also

References

  1. ↑ Goedel would be pleased.
Retrieved from "https://jollycontrarian.com/index.php?title=Nominalisation&oldid=88531"