[clause], in that [clause].

[hmgmat]

Hi,

I have seen a lot of sentences in OG in this form of construction: "[clause] in that [clause]."

But I haven't seen a construction like "[clause], in that [clause]." I wonder whether such construction is permitted.

I searched some dictionaries and usage books. But I don't see anything related to it.

Thanks in advance.

[hmgmat]

rescue my post ;-)

[JonathanSchneider]

Hey, sorry for the superslow reply. When you responded to your own post, our records showed it as more recent all of a sudden, so it missed our last round or responses.

The first version is probably preferable; however, either could be correct. Examples:

"The students were lazy in that they refused to do homework."
"The teacher remarked that the students were lazy, in that they refused to do homework."

The comma in the second version would be used as a natural pause. Were there specific problems that you came across that used a split based on this issue?

[hmgmat]

No, I haven't seen a question that splits on this difference.
Thanks =)

[StaceyKoprince]

As a general rule, study what you see in official questions and don't worry about other stuff. There are a LOT of grammar rules in the English language; concentrate on the ones you know will be tested!

Also, to echo something Jonathan said, if your post doesn't get answered for a while, don't respond to your own post. The date marked is the date of the most recent post, so it will just end up getting answered even later! I know sometimes we get slammed and it takes us a while to get to all of the posts, but we will get there eventually!