位置32的问题 For each item, choose the one sentence that has the modifiers in the most effective place. While surfing the Internet, Joseph broke the computer's mouse.While surfing the Internet, the computer's mouse was broken by Joseph.Joseph broke the computer's mouse while surfing the Internet.

Question

BlackTom AI · Accepted Answer

Consider the task: choose the sentence where the modifier is placed most effectively to convey who did what and when.
Option 1: 'While surfing the Internet, Joseph broke the computer's mouse.' At first glance this seems plausible, but it reads as if Joseph was the subject performing the action of 'surfing the Internet' when the main verb is 'broke the computer's mouse.' The introductory modifier can imply that Joseph was surfing, which could be acceptable, yet it slightly muddles the focus between the action and the actor, making the phrasing less direct.
Option 2: 'While surfing the Internet, the computer's mouse was broken by Joseph.' This is a passive construction with a fronted time-dependent clause. The modifier attaches awkwardly to 'the computer's mouse,' making the sentence feel clumsy and less natural in emphasize who performed the action. The temporal clause is placed correctly, but the overall emphasis is off and the sentence sounds stilted.
Option 3: 'Joseph broke the computer's mouse while surfing the Internet.' This version keeps the subject (Joseph) and the main action (broke) together, and it places the temporal modifier closest to the action it modifies, ensuring clarity about when the break occurred. It preserves active voice, direct subject-action relationship, and a clean, unambiguous meaning.
In terms of modifier placement and naturalness, the third option minimizes confusion about who performed the action and when, while the first option risks ambiguity about whether the surfing or the breaking is the primary event, and the second option introduces awkward passivity and misalignment of the modifier. Therefore, the sentence with the most effective modifier placement is the one that presents the agent, action, and timing in a straightforward, active form.

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因为汉语句子中的限定成分一般都要前置，所以在英译汉时需要把英语中后置的修饰语成分全都译成汉语句子中的前置定语。

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