Feline Warrior

Slain Minister’s Wife Faces Murder Charges - Yahoo! News

Yes, it’s hideous, the minister is dead. Horrible crime. But there’s another crime here and I am about to point it out to you:

Does this Slain Minister’s Wife Faces Murder Charges mean that
(a) The minister’s wife, who has been slain, is facing charges of murder?
or
(b) The wife of the slain minister is facing murder charges?

After reading the article, I believe it is the second choice (the wife of the slain minister is facing murder charges).

Let’s compare two versions of this headline - one, the original, which I believe to be unclear, and another that I have created, which is clear. We will compare clarity and amount of space taken by each.

Slain Minister’s Wife Faces Murder Charges

Wife of Slain Minster Faces Murder Charges

Aah, so much better! Thank you for playing my game.