The clause "which xxx to [verb]" is short for "the question of which ..."

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T. Z. - 15 Jul 2004 01:37 GMT

1. Which letter to send is a difficult problem.

2. Which conditions to apply is a difficult problem.

3. Which licensing conditions to apply needs to be
determined.

4. Which licensing conditions to deliver to the user
needs to be determined.

The clause "which xxx to [verb]" is like a
shorthand for "The question of which ...".
Is this true?

Could someone comment?
I'd esp. appreciate links to web pages that explain
this, and reference to old Fowler (1944).
A newer edition of Fowler didn't have anything
relevant under the entry for "which".

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Ron Hardin - 15 Jul 2004 03:12 GMT

> 1. Which letter to send is a difficult problem.
>
[quoted text clipped - 9 lines]
> shorthand for "The question of which ...".
> Is this true?

It shows up in places that can't have that interpretation, eg.

He couldn't determine which licensing conditions to apply.
He told us which licensing conditions to apply.

and it has a life of its own elsewhere that would defy the ``question
of'' gloss, eg.,

He is uncertain which licensing conditions to apply.

where it is an adjective complement.

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Ron Hardin
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Greg Lee - 15 Jul 2004 06:43 GMT

In sci.lang Ron Hardin <rhhardin@mindspring.com> wrote:

> > 1. Which letter to send is a difficult problem.
> >
[quoted text clipped - 9 lines]
> > shorthand for "The question of which ...".
> > Is this true?

Yes.

> It shows up in places that can't have that interpretation, eg.

> He couldn't determine which licensing conditions to apply.
> He told us which licensing conditions to apply.

    "He couldn't determine the answer to the question of which
    licensing conditions to apply."

    "He told us the answer to the question about which
    licensing conditions to apply."

> and it has a life of its own elsewhere that would defy the ``question
> of'' gloss, eg.,

> He is uncertain which licensing conditions to apply.

"He is uncertain about the question of which licensing
conditions to apply."

> where it is an adjective complement.

Regardless of whether one can find a paraphrase with the word
"question", these constructions are all generally classified
as indirect questions. We've talked about indirect questions
before, Ron.

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Greg Lee <greg@ling.lll.hawaii.edu>

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Ron Hardin - 16 Jul 2004 12:28 GMT

> > It shows up in places that can't have that interpretation, eg.
>
[quoted text clipped - 3 lines]
> "He couldn't determine the answer to the question of which
> licensing conditions to apply."

No, he couldn't determine which to apply. The answer to the question
of which ... forces it through a filter that is not justified by
context.

If you come to a fork in the road, you can be uncertain which to take
without there being any question; for instance if you have no goal,
but are just out walking.

To have a question, you'd have to decide some other things first.

To be uncertain about which to take, that is not necessary.

You take one, and it would involve a great deal of thought to get
right what question you have answered; it may not be possible.
Probably most decisions are like that, and few come through
determinable questions.

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Ron Hardin
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Discussion Groups / British English / July 2004

The clause "which xxx to [verb]" is short for "the question of which ..."