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  1. #1
    AakashPandita's Avatar
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    Default Can we "assess" a question?

    I read in a book,
    We will turn to an assessment of whether elections in India are free and fair.

    Is the sentence correct?

  2. #2
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    Default Re: Can we "assess" a question?

    Can we "assess" a question? Yes. As with anything, some questions are better than others.

    We will turn to an assessment of whether elections in India are free and fair. Is the sentence correct? Yes.

    I'm not quite certain I understand your question, however. Are you seeking to assess the question of whether elections are free and fair in India?
    Remember - we don't do politics here.

    John

  3. #3
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    Default Re: Can we "assess" a question?

    assessing means evaluating the quality , nature or significance of something.
    So according to that sentence,
    we evaluated the quality , nature or significance of whether the elections in India are free and fair.
    is this correct?

  4. #4
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    Default Re: Can we "assess" a question?

    Yes, that's pretty much it. But, you'll have to choose one concept of the definition.
    Assess also means evaluate or estimate the nature, evaluate or estimate the ability, or evaluate or estimate the quality of something.

    Your sentence should reflect one of the concepts of the definition of assess.
    For example:
    We will turn to an evaluation of whether elections in India are free and fair.
    Or:
    We will turn to the question of whether or not India has the ability to conduct free and fair elections.
    Or:
    We will turn to the nature of Indian elections and see whether they can be free and fair.

    John
    Last edited by JohnParis; 07-Nov-2011 at 16:15. Reason: re-wording

  5. #5
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    Threadstarter / Original Poster

    Default Re: Can we "assess" a question?

    But if we go with the literal meaning of the sentence....it is not right.
    Isn't it?

  6. #6
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    Default Re: Can we "assess" a question?

    No, I answered this question in my first post.
    We will turn to an assessment of whether elections in India are free and fair. Is the sentence correct? Yes.
    There is nothing wrong with the sentence grammatically, logically or otherwise.
    Perhaps you are not familiar with the phrase "we will turn". It is short for "we will now turn our attention" to an assessment of whether...

    John

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