elipsis

[navi tasan]

Are these sentences both correct:

1-We have always thrown a party on his birthday, except for two years ago, and that was because he was away on a business trip.

2-We have always thrown a party on his birthday, except for two years ago, because he was away on a business trip.

[svartnik]

First, elipsis is ellipsis. Second, where is one example of ellipsis?

1 -We have always thrown a party on his birthday, except for two years ago, and that was because he was away on a business trip.

What is the referent of that? The fact that we have always..? Or the exception? Your sentence is ambigious to me.

We have always thrown a party on his birthday except for two years ago when he was away on a business trip.

---

2-We have always thrown a party on his birthday, except for two years ago, because he was away on a business trip.

No good.
Again, what does 'because' relate to? What does it explain?

My reading of your second sentence is this:
We have always thrown a party on his birthday because he was away on a business trip, (except for two years ago.) -- Highly unlikely.