Learn English – “Lets talk about the disadvantages, the first one being….”

word-choice

So I heard this sentence of someone who was clearly a native speaker

Lets talk about the disadvantages, the first one being….

and he chose it instead of

Lets talk about the disadvantages, the first one is…."

which is what I would have gone with in such a sentence. So of course, I want to know why.

Best Answer

Let's talk about the disadvantages, the first one is the ketchup covering the cucumbers.

Believe it or not, this is incorrect. It's a run-on sentence. Instead of the comma to connect two independent clauses, there should be either a semicolon or a period, separating it into two sentences. Both of these are clunky and awkward. But there's a smoother way to do it.'

Let's talk about the disadvantages, the first one being the ketchup covering the cucumbers.

Not only is this grammatically correct (being the ketchup... is a participial phrase modifying one, an appositive), it's smooth and easy to say.

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