In my ATM card , it said : " This is a property of... If found, please return to..." The meaning is clear, but I've never seen a grammar structure like that. Can you tell me what that is ? Can I use the same with other verbs i.e if broken, if damaged..?
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1 Answer
Certainly! The past participle can go with the conditional if.
If found, please return to...
If broken, we won't take it back....
If damaged, you cannot return it.... and so on...
answered Mar 15, 2014 at 12:38
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3+1 You might add that this is only acceptable in notices such as OP describes, or signs. In discursive prose, these are all dangling modifiers: they do not modify the nearest NP :) Commented Mar 15, 2014 at 13:04