Watch Your Phrasing

When summarizing or restating information, think about the implications of how something is stated. In answer to a comment about divorce I almost wrote:

I have an ancestor and an aunt who were both married and divorced twice from the same man.

After I read it I realized that someone might think I was suggesting that the man was married and divorced twice from my ancestor and my aunt. That was not what I meant, but my off the cuff response could have been taken that way.

I rephrased it something like:

My ancestor and my aunt both had one husband to whom they were married and divorced from twice.

I’m not certain it was the best way to rephrase it, but it made it a little more clear that two different men were involved.

Always read over what you type before you send, post, or publish it. You may accidentally be saying something you do not intend to.