Synthesis And Transformation

Synthesis and Transformation refers to the combining and reworking of sentences. In a perfect scenario or wherever possible, using synthesis and transformation allows us to end up using fewer words. The most important point that we should remember is that we need to make minimal changes to the original sentences, and they should have the exact same meaning as the original sentences.

As such, for synthesis and transformation, you will get two sentences and be required to combine them using conjunctions. So, let's first understand below what conjunctions are.

What are Conjunctions?

Conjunctions are words that connect words, phrases, and clauses (as opposed to whole sentences). For example:

• And: You CAN begin a sentence with “and”; it is perfectly grammatical.
• But: You can ALSO begin a sentence with “but”.
• While: Shows that 2 events are happening at the same time.

Practice Questions

Question 1:

Mrs Brown is a secret agent. Mr Brown is also a secret agent.

Mr and Mrs Brown _____________ (both) secret ______________.

Answer:

As we have grouped Mr and Mrs Brown, the subjects (Mr and Mrs Brown) are plural in nature. So, the correct answer is as follows:

Mr and Mrs Brown are (both) secret agents.

Question 2:

Hui Xian has a unicorn at home. She also has an elephant.

Hui Xian has ____________ unicorn and _____________ at home.

Answer:

The correct answer to the first blank is “a”. The correct answer to the second blank is either “elephant” or “an elephant”, as both of them are grammatically correct.

Hui Xian has a unicorn and elephant/ an elephant at home.

Question 3:

Celestz rammed into the door. It would not open.

Celestz rammed into the door ________________ it would not open.

Answer:

The correct answer to this question is “Celestz rammed into the door, but it would not open.

Question 4:

He was still thirsty. He had drunk so much!

__________ but __________!

Answer:

In this question, it is better to switch sentences. But you should not use the word "he" twice. If we switch the sentences above, the correct answer will be:

He had drunk so much but was still thirsty!

While and Whilst

"Whilst" is sometimes considered a little outdated (by Americans) and mostly used in British English. 

• “While” is much better, you can use it in many ways.
• “Whilst” would seem weird in some contexts.
• While and Whilst is similar but different. Both of these words are similar, but they are different and not exactly the same.

E.g.

We spoke for a while.

We spoke for a whilst.

E.g.

We used to while away the days in that cabin.

We used to whilst away the days in that cabin.

Question 5:

Is the following sentence acceptable?

Stanley couldn’t do very much whilst he waited.

1. Acceptable
2. Not acceptable
3. Chlorophyll
4. Poor Stanley

Answer:

1) acceptable

Explanation:

The correct answer to this question is option (1) - “acceptable”. 

Test Your Concepts

Answer the following questions based on the concepts we’ve covered in this article. If you get stuck, revisit the relevant section to revise the concepts.

Question 1:

Spot the errors and correct them:

1. The heroes are mighty. The heroes are magical.

The heroes are very magical and mighty.

2. I would like a cheeseburger. An order of fries, too.

I would like a cheeseburger and order of fries.

Question 2:

You can start a sentence with “and”.

1. True
2. False
3. And
4. But

Question 3:

Spot the errors and correct them:

1. Abraham and the boys ran hard. Abraham and the boys could not catch the elf.

Abraham and the boys ran hard but he could not caught the elves.

2. You can try. You may fail.

You may fail but you can try.

Question 4:

You can always replace the word “but” with “and”, and the meaning would remain exactly the same.

E.g. The girls heaved with all their might but the rock would not move.

1. Yes, you can always switch the words and the meaning would remain exactly the same.
2. No, you cannot switch the words because the meaning will change.
3. Yes, because “and” and “but” have the exact same meaning.
4. It depends on the weather.

Question 5:

Look at these two sentences; do they have the exact same meaning?

1: The students laughed raucously but no one stopped them.

2: The students laughed raucously and no one stopped them.

1. Yes, the meanings are exactly the same.
2. No, they have slightly different meanings.
3. Yes, because “and” and “but” have the exact same meaning.
4. It depends on the weather.