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date: 18 March 2025

Anticipatory Reference 

Source:
Garner's Modern English Usage
Author(s):

Bryan Garner

(known also as cataphora) here denotes the vice of referring to something that is yet to be mentioned. A sentence will be leading up to the all-important predicate but before reaching it will refer to what is contained in the predicate. Or the reference may not even be explained until a later sentence. The reader is temporarily mystified. E.g.: “Conflict of laws is the study of whether or not, ... ...

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