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From: "Marsha Ensminger" <>
Subject: Re: TMG-L: witness sentence: widow/widower
Date: Fri, 1 Oct 1999 00:03:07 -0700

>>"John was widowed by the death of Susie..."

>>What is a good sentence for the husband in this situation? I am <<drawing a blank.

The above is a good sentence. We don't often speak of a man being widowed, but it's the right word.

An alternative would be "John became a widower after the death of Susie..." which doesn't sound right either.

If you've read Strunk & White's "The Elements of Style", you realize that this last sentence violates rules 10 (Use the active voice) and, probably, 13 (Omit needless words).

Sorry if this sounds like a lecture, but my last boss used to ask me to "grammertize" his letters...


-Marsha

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• Re: TMG-L: witness sentence: widow/widower by "Marsha Ensminger" <>