Common practice ....that / to..

[musicgold]

Hi,

Which one of the following sentences is more appropriate?

1. It is a common practice among corporations that a parent company guarantees the loans of its subsidiaries.

2. It is a common practice among corporations to guarantee the loans of subsidiaries.

Thanks,

MG.

[Soup]

They express different meanings; moreover, the first one is potentially ambiguous.

Alternative,

Ex: ... for a parent company to guarantee ...

[musicgold]

Soup,

Thanks. Are you suggesting the following one? Does it convey the same meaning as #2?

3. It is a common pracitce for a parent company to guarantee the loans of its subsidiaries.

[Soup]

1. It is a common practice among corporations that a parent company guarantees the loans of its subsidiaries.


2. It is a common practice among corporations to guarantee the loans of subsidiaries.
_______________________________

Hi MG


The first sentence admits two meanings:


#1. The parent company guarantees the loan of its own subsidiaries.

#2. The parent company guarantees the loans of the corporations subsidiaries.



The second sentence is also a bit awkward. Try adding in "its",

Ex: ... corporations gaurantee the loans of its subsidiaries.

As for which sentence works best, the first one does because it mentions the parent company. As for the ambiguity (double meaning) it houses, you could reduce it by replacing "its" with their:

Ex: It is a common practice among corporations for a parent company to guarantee the loans for their subsidiaries.

[Barb_D]

I feel you've mixed the its/their in those examples.

Corporations...their own subsidiaries.
A parent company ... its own subidiaries.

[Soup]

Originally Posted by Barb_D

I feel you've mixed the its/their in those examples.

Corporations...their own subsidiaries.
A parent company ... its own subidiaries.

Yes, I have. Thank you for that. Tired eyes today.