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A comment on A few words about that ten-million-dollar serial comma (2017). Parent comment

Re:A few words about that ten-million-dollar serial comma (2... by ohazi on Tuesday December 21, 2021 @02:40PM (#29641214)
> “The next day, I enjoyed pan-roasted oysters with a tomato sauce over rice and broccoli salad, followed by bread pudding with chocolate sauce.”

This just moves the ambiguity.

Is the tomato sauce over rice, with a side of broccoli salad? Or is the sauce over [rice and broccoli salad]?

In this case "rice and broccoli salad" doesn't really sound like a dish, but why the fuck wouldn't you just use a tiny piece of syntax to make it super clear, rather than relying on the reader hopefully having similar culinary sensibilities?

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Re:A few words about that ten-million-dollar serial comma (2... by seanwilson on Tuesday December 21, 2021 @04:15PM (#29642191)
How does a comma alone fix the sentence I quoted though? It could then be read as the tomato sauce going over the bread pudding. I think if you really want super clear, restructure the sentence further.
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