Ran
How to discern a "so...as.." in a complex long sentence? What is currently (i) _____ civil engineers is not so much a predicted increase in annual precipitation as the likelihood that many storms will come in (ii) _____ , thereby making flooding in lower lying riparian regions (iii) _____ . What does "not so much a predicted increase in annual precipitation as the likelihood that many storms will come" mean?
Oct 26, 2014 9:14 AM
Answers · 2
1
This is quite an interesting game, though you did not intend it that way. You should fill in the blanks first. Some possibilities: (i) troubling? vexing? worrying? (ii) a season - summer? (iii) inevitable? Regarding your question, what the sentence means is "the likelihood of storms is more worrying than the predicted in increase in rainfall." The construction "not so much A as B" means that B is the more significant or influential factor. Example: It is not so much John's philandering as his physical violence that made up Mary's mind to leave him.
October 26, 2014
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