I usually write very long questions which come not to be understandable, so I feel I have to keep a number of words and I must not exceed it. So, when I want to write an English question, what is the maximum number of words to use in a question?
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Infinite, no worries but up to the point.– FreddyCommented Oct 8, 2014 at 16:30
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If you gave some examples of long sentences you are concerned about, it would be easier to help. Length alone is not the only criteria. It also has to do with understandability and holding one's attention.– user3169Commented Oct 8, 2014 at 16:48
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Have you learned how to fix run-on sentences?– JasperCommented Oct 8, 2014 at 17:40
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One fix is to use this format: "I have a question. Here is the situation: <Explain the situation>. My question is: <Ask a short question>?"– JasperCommented Oct 8, 2014 at 17:45
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2If the person you are talking to understands that you are going to ask a question, you can leave out some of the framing statements, like "I have a question", "Here is the situation", and "My question is".– JasperCommented Oct 8, 2014 at 19:08
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2 Answers
There's no such thing in English grammar as "a maximum number of words". No rule stops you from writing sentences spanning a full page, or more. For example, a quick Google provides this gem of wisdom:
"It is only when special and exceptional circumstances clearly transform the relationship between a particular driver and a particular passenger into a special or different class or category of relationship that the case will be one in which the duty of care owed by the particular driver to the particular passenger will be either expanded or confined by reference to the objective standard of skill or care which is reasonably to be expected of a driver to a passenger in the category of a case where that special or different relationship exists."
92 words, no punctuation (leave it to the lawyers to come up with that!), and yet it's a perfectly correct sentence.
Long sentences are not necessarily a sign of bad style, though. You should obviously avoid run-on sentences (where two separate clauses are in the same sentence, not separated by anything - "She always calls me she has nothing better to do"), and most of the time you'll want to get rid of comma splices (where they're only separated by a comma - "She always calls me, she has nothing better to do").
Sometimes, however, you just have a complex sentence, where several clauses are linked both logically and grammatically by conjunctions. It's not wrong - if you can reword it into multiple sentences, you might do that, but it's generally OK to leave it as is (minding the style, of course - generally the longer it is, the more literary and formal it sounds).
answered Oct 8, 2014 at 18:20
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1A driver's duty of care to the passenger depends on the type of relationship between them. Each type of relationship has its own objective standard of care. 27 words. Must have been paid by the word.– TimRCommented Oct 8, 2014 at 23:12
The notion that you can become more clear by capping the number of words you use is a silly one. It depends on the subject matter, and what you are asking about.
It's true that you can get too wordy in a single sentence, and that sentences can be improved if they are changed around, but a simple cap on the number of words is not the answer.
