Trouble with absolute phrase and modifier.

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doctortt: Senior | Next Rank: 100 Posts; Posts: 58; Joined: Wed Jan 21, 2009 10:13 am

by doctortt » Tue May 05, 2009 7:09 pm

Hi. I'm very confused with absolute phrase and modifier. A lot of times, when I see a group of words set off by a comma, I don't know how to tell whether it's a modifier or an absolute phrase.

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Source: Beat The GMAT — Verbal Reasoning | Tue May 05, 2009 7:09 pm

Jose Ferreira: GMAT Instructor; Posts: 99; Joined: Thu Mar 05, 2009 5:14 pmFollowed by: 9 members; Location: NYC; Thanked: 43 times; GMAT Score:800

by Jose Ferreira » Wed May 13, 2009 5:06 pm

Be careful with your wording here. An absolute phrase and a modifier are not mutually exclusive. An absolute phrase is simply a type of modifier.

"One by one, down the hill come the mothers of the neighborhood, their kids running beside them."

Just know that, if something is set off by commas, it is not part of the core structure of the sentence. By that, of course, I mean that it is neither the subject nor the verb.

Jose Ferreira
Founder and CEO, Knewton, Inc.
https://www.knewton.com/gmat

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doctortt: Senior | Next Rank: 100 Posts; Posts: 58; Joined: Wed Jan 21, 2009 10:13 am

by doctortt » Thu May 14, 2009 10:29 am

Thanks a lot. I was totally confused before. Yes, an absolute phrase is just a modifier.

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