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day, an Eastern University professor visited
the expanding campus {of the University} {of California} {at Los Angeles.} He watched construction work {on half a dozen new #1 buildings.} He inspected new laboratories and attended summer classes {in modern study rooms.} He walked {across miles} {of eucalyptus-lined lawns and athletic fields} {with one} {of the deans.} He was impressed. "My," he said, "just how #2 many students do you have here?" "Let me see," the dean answered thoughtfully, "I'd say about #3
one {in a
hundred."}
Baude's Handbook of Humor for All Occasions.
Compiled by Jacob M. Braude. Englewood Cliffs: Prentice Hall, 1958. p. 52.. 1. One could explain "(on half a dozen new buildings)" through a series of ellipsed prepositions -- "(on half) (*of* a dozen) (*of* new buildings") -- but why make things difficult? 2. In "just how many students do you have here?" "how" modifies the adjective "many." Traditional grammarians and linguists often also want to note that it is an interrogative adverb, but KISS grammar ignores this -- is there any pre-schooler who cannot use "how" to form a question? "Just," which here means "exactly," can be viewed as an adverb to the "how," or, if one prefers, to the "how many." We will see another acceptable explanation for this "just" when we get to the level of clauses. 3. "About," which here means "approximately"
modifies "one," and is therefore an adverb.
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