Developing cohesion
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Ellipsis | page 3 of 11 |
Clause-initial ellipsis
In clause-initial ellipsis the subject and/or auxiliary verb
are omitted at the beginning of a clause. It is
very common in speech and informal styles of writing such as dialogues and personal
letters that reproduce conversation.
Because speakers of a language always aim for the greatest efficiency, short responses
are preferred rather than complete sentences, so long as no ambiguity knowingly results 
:
Telephone conversation
A: What's his name? B: [^] Keith Barton. They call him Whippet Barton. (Bank of English)
Novel
A: Just be at the airport to greet him like a normal father. B: OK, Izzy. When? A: [^] Friday afternoon. [^] British Airways flight 223. [^] Gets in around four thirty in the afternoon. Take an early break from work. B: [^] Sounds good. (Bank of English)
Play
Eva: [^] Forgot to put my coat on. Ron: [^] Anything serious? Eva: No. She says she wants to come down. Ron: [^] Here? Is that wise? Eva: She says she wants a Christmas drink with us since we're all here. Ron: Oh well. [^] Sort of thing she does. [^] Calls you all the way upstairs to tell you she's coming all the way downstairs. [^] Your drink there. Eva: Thanks. (from Absurd Person Singular, by Alan Ayckbourn)
Personal letter
[^] Sorry to hear you have been unwell. We hope you are on the mend
now ...
[^] Lots of love and [^] looking forward to seeing you all again.
(Personal letter)
If you would like to see some other examples of clause-initial ellipsis, click here.
Introduction
Clause-initial ellipsis
