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I am struggling with structure and meaning of this sentence:

"Showers with a weak change forecast for later in the week."

What is the main verb? Does it mean that there is a high chance for shower and the forecast will not change? or the chance is weak?

I rechecked the original text, it is written "change". But I believe it should be "chance".

FumbleFingers
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Mahmoud Kamyab
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    Presumably that was chance, not change? Please double-check the sentence and give us a source or some context, or this question risks being closed as unanswerable. –  Oct 14 '17 at 04:19
  • Do you understand the sentence now that you see it is a typo? – ColleenV Oct 15 '17 at 23:21
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    Does this answer your question? "This Page Intentionally Left Blank" – FumbleFingers Oct 21 '20 at 14:22
  • The sentence is virtually illiterate. Probably some words are omitted. The only verb in the sentence is "forecast," and neither "showers," "change, nor "chance" make forecasts. Even if we assume that "are" was dropped, what does a "shower with a weak change" or a "shower with a weak chance" even mean? Possibly what was meant is "Showers are forecast for later in the week, with only a weak chance of change [in the forecast]." That makes sense, but it does not much resemble what was written. – Jeff Morrow Oct 26 '20 at 19:06

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The main verb 'are' has been omitted. This kind of omission is often used in news headlines and sometimes in weather forecasts. The main verb 'are' is omitted because it can be understood in the context. (Any form of verb [be] is usually omitted from these kinds of sentences. See Wikipedia.)

The full sentence is 'Showers with a weak change are forecast for later in the week'. In other words 'The weather bureau forecasts showers with a weak change for later in the week'.

Sydney
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  • What's a "weak change"? I agree with the author that "change" is a typo. I don't think "weak chance" is great writing either (small chance) but "weak change" makes no sense to me. – ColleenV Oct 15 '17 at 23:35
  • As I understand weather forecasts, a weak change is a small (to moderate) drop in temperature and a slight (to moderate) chance of rain. Take your umbrella, but don't otherwise chance your plans. – Sydney Oct 26 '17 at 23:03