ESL Forum:
Techniques and methods
in Language Teaching
Games, activities
and teaching ideas
Grammar and
Linguistics
Teaching material
Concerning
worksheets
Concerning
powerpoints
Concerning online
exercises
Make suggestions,
report errors
Ask for help
Message board
|
ESL forum >
Grammar and Linguistics > Find the mistake of this sentence and correct it :
Find the mistake of this sentence and correct it :

normandey
|
Find the mistake of this sentence and correct it :
|
A fire is thought to break out by a cigarette end yesterday. |
13 Jun 2018
|
|
|

kohai
|
I think it should be "A fire is thought to have been broken out by..."
(BUT I�d prefer "A fire is thought to have been caused by..." ) Not sure though. You should better wait for our experts� answers. I�ll be waiting too. :)
|
13 Jun 2018
|
|

cunliffe
|
Mmm... it �s a bit awkward, and I agree with Ruta �s preferred sentence. The difficulty with that sentence is: the fire definitely broke out and it was thought to have been caused by a cigarette end. Maybe, �a fire, thought to have been caused by a cigarette end, broke out yesterday. � |
13 Jun 2018
|
|

yanogator
|
I agree with Ruta and Lynne, and I �ll also suggest "A fire broke out yesterday that is thought to have been caused by a cigarette end". You definitely want to avoid implying that it is only thought that the fire broke out. Bruce |
13 Jun 2018
|
|

aperkins4
|
I`d say that Bruce`s sentence is likely the one you want. You could move the day to the beginning as well: "Yesterday, a fire broke out, which is thought to have been caused by a cigarette end." If you want a shorter sentence, "A fire is thought to have broken out by a cigarette end yesterday."
If it is for a newspaper headline, you can break a couple grammar rules as say: "FIRE YESTERDAY, THOUGHT BY CIGARETTE END" Finally, if they *yesterday* thought the fire broke out by cigarette end, but *today* think it came from a different source, then you`d say, "Yesterday, a fire was thought to have been caused by a cigarette end." Today, we know it was caused by a child playing with match sticks. |
14 Jun 2018
|
|

cunliffe
|
I prefer my sentence |
15 Jun 2018
|
|
|
|