Reply #39: ok, here we go, I'll construct some sentences for you. [View All]

[harmonicon]

"Considering that you ______ (this is a fill in the blank - my guesses are "are frequently kicked in the head by horse", "drink water from a hazardous waste containment pool", or maybe "were raised by wolves, only learned English as an adult, and thus far your only experience with the language is on DU and fast-food menus"), your failure to grasp these differences are not unusual, though such failures are uncommon."

Get it?!?! "Usual" deals with normalcy, while "common" deals with frequency. What is there not to get about that?! Here: "A black hole is not unusual, but is uncommon", or, "In the universe, carbon-based life-forms are not unusual, but are uncommon." Another: "While genetic disfigurement from nuclear exposure is uncommon, around Chernobyl, it is not unusual."

In the case of the iceberg, these qualifiers were not needed in the sentence which you have a problem with, because they had previously been laid out in the text. I got it. Your inability to understand is not some fault of mine.

Now, good luck on the GED - you're gonna need it (protip: "gonna" isn't a word you should use on those tests).

DONE DONE DONE DONE DONE DONE DONE. OVER AND OUT.