Do you read the claims and the arguments made to differentiate over any prior art the examiner finds? Trying to guess at the &quot;implications&quot; of the language is a futile endeavor unless you have a ton of context, because a ton of things need to be considered to understand the scope of a claim. In patent lawsuits, in fact, a Markman hearing is one of the most critical phases, as this is where it gets determined what terms in the claims actually mean, and hence what claims actually cover.