Change in the Meaning

[hni105]

Hi,
Don't the following sentences have the same meaning?:

1) It was as provoking an exhibition as the one before it.
2) It was a provoking exhibition as the one before it.

 

[grassy]

They don't mean exactly the same thing, no. Where are those sentences from, please?

 

[hni105]

They don't mean exactly the same thing, no. Where are those sentences from, please?

The first one is from bbclearningenglish.com

Using nouns
When using a noun between as…as, it is important to remember the article a or an:
It was as bright a day as I have seen in a long time.
It was as provoking an exhibition as the one before it.

 

[CaptainZero]

It was a provoking exhibition as the one before it.

This is incorrect. But you could say: "It was a provoking exhibition, like the one before it."

 

[grassy]

1) It was as provoking an exhibition as the one before it.
2) It was a provoking exhibition, as like the one before it.

Sentence 1 means the two exhibitions were equally provoking*. Sentence 2 means that they were both provoking but one may have been more provoking* than the other.

*I now wonder if the BBC didn't by any chance mean thought-provoking. 🤔

 

[Aguas Claras]

*I now wonder if the BBC didn't by any chance mean thought-provoking. 🤔

I understand it as "provocative", i.e. it provoked (some) people to react, probably negatively.