{"id":"SYN-014","name":"Avoid ambiguous scope of only, not, and even","domain":"syntax","layer":"sentence","strength":"hard_constraint","human_logic":"IF a focusing or negative operator can modify more than one constituent, THEN move it directly before the intended scope ELSE retain.","when":{"all":[{"path":"operator.token","operator":"in","value":["only","not","even","almost","nearly"]},{"path":"operator.scope_ambiguous","operator":"eq","value":true}]},"then":[{"action":"move","target":"operator","destination":"immediately_before_intended_scope"}],"else":[{"action":"retain","target":"current_text","reason":"No triggering condition is present."}],"unless":[],"because":"Operator position can change the truth conditions of a sentence.","diagnostics":[],"examples":{},"source_ids":["BK-003","BK-007","BK-008"],"laka":{"smallest_sufficient_intervention":true,"primary_axes":["scope","depth","magnitude","reversibility"]},"requires_facts":["operator.token","operator.scope_ambiguous"],"tests":[],"sources":[{"id":"BK-003","title":"Garner's Modern English Usage","creator":"Bryan A. Garner","domain":"usage_reference","type":"Book","note":"Modern American usage and editorial judgment.","url":null},{"id":"BK-007","title":"The Copyeditor's Handbook","creator":"Amy Einsohn; Marilyn Schwartz","domain":"copyediting","type":"Book","note":"Professional copyediting practice, grammar, and editorial process.","url":null},{"id":"BK-008","title":"The Sense of Style","creator":"Steven Pinker","domain":"cognitive_style","type":"Book","note":"Reader-centered clarity informed by linguistics and cognition.","url":null}],"defined_in":{"file":"09-syntax-and-sentence-rules.json","title":"Syntax and Sentence Construction Rules","slug":"syntax-and-sentence-rules"}}