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I read the following script in a TOEIC Speaking book:

“Hi, Mohammed. This is Sam. I just got your voicemail about the printing job. I would rather go with the original printer. Maybe you can ask them to print twenty copies first and make sure they deliver them on time, before you have a meeting with a client, and then they can finish up the rest of the copies later… after you have a meeting.”

I think the bold-faced sentence can be analyzed into the following:

  1. You can ask them to print twenty copies first and (you can ask them to) make sure they deliver them on time.

  2. You can ask them to print twenty copies first and (you can) make sure they deliver them on time.

Which one do you think is correct? #1? #2? Thanks in advance.

Edwin Ashworth
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niue
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2 Answers2

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Mohammed is definitely the one that has to make sure they deliver them on time. If the writer meant that the printers have to make sure themselves that they deliver on time, he/she would probably have said :

"Maybe you can ask them to print twenty copies first and to make sure they deliver them on time."

It is a bit heavier but removes any ambiguity.

MorganFR
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  • Thank you for your clear and simple explanation! I like it! ^^ – niue Apr 08 '16 at 13:49
  • But it's inconsistent. It's unacceptable to follow 'Mohammed is definitely the one that has to make sure they deliver them on time.' with '[Version B] removes any ambiguity.' – Edwin Ashworth Apr 08 '16 at 14:51
  • Well i don't have any doubt in the matter, but someone else might (hence the OP's question). Whatever the case is, [version B] does remove any ambiguity one might have. – MorganFR Apr 08 '16 at 14:54
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I believe that Sam is asking Mohammed to make sure that the printer delivers them on time, for example by checking with the printer a couple of times that they are on target to deliver them on time.

Max Williams
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  • 'I believe' probably indicates a level of doubt. – Edwin Ashworth Apr 08 '16 at 12:49
  • Well, it's always hard to be certain about what's meant by some random bit of text. – Max Williams Apr 08 '16 at 12:49
  • I think the opposite from Max. But it is ambiguous as written. In speech, the phrasing and tone of voice would probably have clarified it. – Colin Fine Apr 08 '16 at 12:49
  • If you're leaving it up to the printer to make sure it's on time, what would you do? When you make the booking, would you say "Oh, and could you deliver it on time please?" The printer would say "Yes, of course!", possibly slightly insulted that you'd asked. And then (in my experience) they might deliver it late, for a variety of reasons, such as disorganisation and general incompetence (I've dealt with printers). If it's very important to Sam that the materials are delivered on time, then Mohammed needs to take extra steps to make sure it happens. – Max Williams Apr 08 '16 at 12:52
  • See also delivering something with obvious printing flaws, or that simply isn't what you asked for, or delivering it to the wrong address. etc. – Max Williams Apr 08 '16 at 12:54
  • What I'm saying is that (as Colin adds) as written, there is an ambiguity. Your reading is probably the intended one, but that's a pragmatic deduction. This sort of question has been addressed (and pointed out as an example of ambiguity) on ELU before, but I'm not spending an hour trying to find the original. – Edwin Ashworth Apr 08 '16 at 12:56
  • Oh yeah, i'm definitely not sure that my interpretation is correct - that's why I said "I believe...". My confidence in my guess is actually slipping, i'm probably only 60/40 now. – Max Williams Apr 08 '16 at 12:58
  • Then it should not be given as an 'answer' on ELU. // The question has been addressed before; I'm impressed with the best (thb's) answer there. – Edwin Ashworth Apr 08 '16 at 13:04
  • @EdwinAshworth I'm sorry, i think i've misunderstood the rules of the site. Can you please post a link to the rule which says "Don't answer unless you're 100% stake-your-life-on-it sure about something?". I mean that genuinely. – Max Williams Apr 08 '16 at 13:41
  • @EdwinAshworth all fair points. However, in a question with genuinely ambiguous text such as this I don't believe it's possible to provide a definiive answer, backed by research. Also the questioner asked "Which one do you think is correct?", meaning they want an opinion. That arguably pushes the question itself into "bad question" territory, for inviting opinion-based answers. So, one is left with the choice of giving an opinion-based answer, or voting to close the question. I chose to answer. – Max Williams Apr 08 '16 at 14:45
  • There is a quote on Meta: 'We are assured that on EL&U questions must not be posted whose answers can only be opinion-based. And - if your answer isn't factual, it'll be closed immediately.' / Matt Gutting has stated elsewhere: 'What we're really looking for (on this or any other Stack Exchange site) is a supported answer; one that you can support with authoritative references'. / And Sven Yargs has posted: 'Your answer seems to be heavily weighted toward personal opinion as opposed to ... – Edwin Ashworth Apr 08 '16 at 14:47
  • objective analysis—but this site especially prizes answers that have an identifiable basis in verifiable fact rather than just opinion. Please consider strengthening your answer by citing some independent authority that draws the same general conclusion that you do with regard to usage.' (He's being especially gentle; the fact is that opinions-as-answers can be and sadly often are unhelpful or downright misleading. And from your switch from 'I believe that Sam is asking Mohammed ... 'to 'My confidence in my guess is... slipping: I'm probably only 60/40 now', you don't see the answer as great.) – Edwin Ashworth Apr 08 '16 at 14:48
  • @EdwinAshworth I thought my answer might be helpful to the questioner. We clearly both love an argument and thus run the risk of spending hours arguing about whether or not my answer was worthwhile. I think it's best if you (and indeed others) simply downvote answers that you think are of poor quality. – Max Williams Apr 08 '16 at 14:53