9.49 Leaving out words: ellipsis

In English people often omit words rather than repeating them. This is called ellipsis. Some kinds of ellipsis only occur in coordinate clauses and coordinated groups of words. These are explained in paragraphs 8.140 to 8.164.

This section deals with ellipsis that occurs in subordinate clauses and separate sentences as well as in coordinate clauses. The second clause or sentence could be said or written by the same person, or it could be part of a reply or comment by someone else. The use of ellipsis in conversation is explained in paragraphs 9.63 to 9.69.