texts: To take advantage of - vs. - make use of

texts:
I am writing a manuscript in scientific context and stumbled over the question if "taken advantage of" or "made use of" is the better way to express the following sentence because I have seen these formulation so far only in casual context. At the moment it is formulated as follows:

"Therefore, it is taken advantage of the in Sec. X described motion that lets a point undergo... (further details about the motion)"

I want to express, that I make use of / take advantage of the known properties of the motion to add additional constraints to an algorithm.

Which formulation would you suggest in this context? Thank you.


texts: Pluralization of [ the apple of one's eye]

texts:
Some idioms are not syntactically flexible, so I was wondering if "the apple of one’s eye" falls into that category. I mean would it be correct to pluralize the words "apple" and "eye" in this expression?
Which would you say is correct?
When I feel depressed, I hang out with my family;

a.    they are apple of my eye.
b.    they are the apples of my eye.
c.    the apples of my eyes.
d.    the apple of my eyes.


texts:
At Oxford Dictionaries Online the word alderman is marked as "chiefly historical", whereas ere is marked as "literary or archaic".

I've looked around on the ODO site, but I can't find a guide to explain the difference. To me they both mean "old and not really used any more".

How does archaic differ from historical in word definitions?


texts:
I used to think "go away" is pronounced as two separate words - go and away. However when I listen to nursery rhymes with the so-called native pronunciation, I hear more of "GO-WA-WAY", with a wa sound connecting the two words.
What is the correct pronunciation of "go away"?


texts:
I'm a bit astonished about this special use of "should":

1 (It's) funny you should say that.

Why this use of "should"? How is it explained?
I think without "should"  there would be no difference.
Is the variant 2 also used?

2 Funny that you say that?


texts:
A small number of words used in English have the derivational suffix "-ker" (maybe actually "-tiker"?), which appears to attach to words ending in "-sis". The only one I can remember off the top of my head is eidetiker = "one who is eidetic" (cf. eidesis), but I'm certain I've heard other instances.

Two questions:

Where does this suffix come from? It feels rather German to me, but I don't know any German, so I'm just spitballing here.
If you are a native speaker of English, do you feel that this suffix is productive today? A little while back (here), I used (coined?) the word "psychokinetiker" to mean "one who has the ability of psychokinesis", so clearly I feel that it's productive, but I suspect I might be idiosyncratic in this respect.


texts: Is there a term specifically applying to a three-word portmanteau?

texts:
Oxford Dictionaries define a portmanteau as

  A word blending the sounds and combining the meanings of two others, for example motel or brunch.

I've also heard the term apply to three- and four-word combinations, but I'm not sure if it's correct. For my blog, I wanted to describe the Latin word obstaculum, which is a combination of three Latin terms, and while I could use combination or portmanteau without anyone noticing, I began wondering if there are any terms that specifically describe three- or four- word mergers (in that the word is exclusive to the number). I also wanted to know if a portmanteau can correctly be applied if used for more than two words.

Any help?


texts:
Possible Duplicate:
Which is correct, “neither is” or “neither are”?

Which is correct?

No, neither of these websites is biased as they give a wide range of informative information without being one sided.
No, neither of these websites are biased as they give a wide range of informative information without being one sided.

I am confused about the subject-verb agreement here.


texts: “Fire” a weapon before firearms existed?

texts:
Did the verb “fire a weapon” exist before the actual introduction of firearms on battlefields?

More specifically, does it make sense for a creative work to have archers (or whatever ranged weaponry) be told to “fire!”, when the world they live in has not yet seen firearms?  It seems some kind of an anachronism to me, since before firearms, “fire” would never propel any projectile...

I've seen several movies do it; I can't remember them all, but for instance I verified it in The Lord of the Rings trilogy (left), Kingdom of Heaven (top right), and more recently Frozen (bottom right):

The first two do it several times (with Kingdom of Heaven also using it on ballistae, and The Return of the King even having Aragorn ask Legolas to “fire a warning shot past the bosun's ear”), whereas firearms never appear on the battlefields they feature (Kingdom of Heaven is set in the 12th century; as for The Lord of the Rings, apart from one occurrence of a witchcraft-ish bomb, it's archery and medieval siege engines all the way).  Frozen may be debatable, happening probably somewhere in the 18th or 19th century, but since we only see swords, spears and the like, it made me flinch to hear crossbowmen use “fire!”.

I've also noticed other movies avoiding this, using “loose!” instead, such as Troy (left) and Gladiator (right):

This makes me think it would be the right thing to say instead... although I'm still wondering why not use “shoot”, which seems simpler to me.


texts:
Whatever the degree of integration, teaching autistic children effectively will require more funding, to train both specialist and
  mainstream teachers.

Why do we need comma after "funding" and before "to" here?
Your response will help me a lot in understanding the English better.


texts: Do "lamb" and "ram" share a common etymology?

texts:
A couple of times, I've noticed Japanese people mistakenly use "ram" instead of "lamb". For example

  You broil lamb [correct] or mutton with vegetables. There are roughly two ways
  to have Genghis Khan; either you broil the marinated meat or dip the
  broiled meat in sauce. The difference between mutton and ram is in
  stages of growth. The sheep for mutton is two or more years after its
  birth, and that for ram is less than 12 months after its birth. [emphasis added]

This made me wonder: is the similarity between the two words, apart from the l/r difference, describing the same animal a coincidence?

Etymology online says that ram and lamb are West Germanic and Germanic respectively,  while Wiktionary traces lamb back to Proto-Indo-European but merely says that ram comes from Old English.

Is it known whether the two are related? Failing that, is a change from an "l" to "r", or vice versa, unlikely enough to rule out this possibility?


texts:
The Cambridge Grammar of the English Language, page 148, reads

  I would like to have met her and I would have liked to have met her, which are often used to convey the same meaning as I would have liked to
  meet her,  are ambiguous: they also have interpretations in which
  anteriority applies to the meeting. These interpretations are
  pragmatically unlikely in the examples chosen, but become more salient
  if we change met her to ﬁnished it.

What are the two interpretations of such sentences which make them ambiguous?


texts: Years ago I knew the distinction between "this book is different from that one" and "this book is longer than that one."  How do you choose?


texts: What is a word that is like a little treasure you leave for someone else to discover?

texts: I am having trouble coming up with a noun that is almost like an Easter egg. Is there any word that could be something someone intentionally leaves for another person to find at a later time?


texts:
What is the correspondent to dependent?

As in:
"Child" is to "parent" as "dependent" is to _____

Context:
"The ______ task must be completed before any of its dependent tasks can be started."


texts: Another idiom that has the same meaning as "mere ink on paper" or "words without actions"

texts: Is there an English idiom that has the same meaning as "words without actions" or "mere ink on paper"? Especially in the field of economics.


texts: Using a/the when an object is specific according to the context described before

texts:
I came across this popup in Gmail:

when you see an underlined date,
you can click it and add an event to your google calendar

I wonder why it says "an event" when it is a pretty specific event -- the one that the date corresponds to.

While I was writing this question I just thought maybe it is because in an email there could be multiple events for a mentioned date and it's up to me which one to add to the calendar.

If in another situation we're certain that there could be only one event associated with one date and a date is mentioned in the context (e.g. you can click an underlined date...) should I use "the" afterwards to speak about the event?


texts: What is the “Ap” in the surname “ApSimon”?

texts:
There are two questions on EL&U (1,2) concerning names with “Mc” in them (such as McGregor), revealing that Mc comes from Mac, which is commonly translated from Gaelic as “son of”.

I have now come across the last name ApSimon. A quick Google search reveals that there are quite a few people named like that, some spelling their last name ApSimon and some Apsimon. I am wondering why there is double capitalization in some cases – is this in any way related to the “Mc” names? Is it another prefix with a similar or different meaning? In any case, the “Ap” prefix seems to be a lot less common than “Mc”.


texts: Simile to describe someone in garish clothing standing out among a soberly dressed gathering

texts:
I need a simile to describe someone in garish clothing standing out among a soberly dressed gathering> such as like a Spiv at a ..... or a Dick on a doughnut...

Does anyone have any good ideas to offer?


texts:
Is the expression none less than similar to the idiom no less than?
Which form is preferable to use in the following example:

  None less than the country's president attended today's meeting.
  OR
  No less than the country's president attended today's meeting.

Please mention why if they are similar, and in which resource is  the idiom "none less than" is mentioned!


texts: Is "Please be reminded to ..." a valid construction?

texts:
I received an email today with the following sentence:

  Please be reminded to bring your basketball gear in.

He was subsequently made fun of by a co-worker:

  'Please be reminded' - Will you be doing the reminding, or should I expect somebody else to be reminding me?

I am wondering if:

the original sentence is valid and unambiguous, or if
the interpretation made by his co-worker is valid due to ambiguity in the semantic meaning of the original sentence.


texts: What the right expression for "pursue a requirement"?

texts:
I have the following sentence in my essay.

"We pursue a unique requirement, that is, how to optimally utilize the space for.......".

I feel like "pursue a requirement" is a little odd.
Any suggestions? Thanks a lot!


texts:
I thought this was the common way of saying "temporarily stop attending university" (for a semester). And Google confirmed that.

However, many native English speakers didn't understand the following sentence:

  Since I’d frozen the semester, I didn’t have much going on.

Is to "freeze" the semester a common phrase? If not, what's a better alternative?


texts:
Update: I've talked to the lady whose post I've read on Facebook. She said that this is not from a book, but part of a cooking show's transcript. Don't ask me why she didn't say earlier. I asked her if she could share the link to the video, but there was no response. Hope this helps.

I'm confused by a passage in a book I'm reading. Could someone please help me interpret it?

  ....then a Spanish pepper is…., I always take the top and the bottom of… and just hold it above the sink or the rubbish bin, so that if you rub vigorously all the seeds fall out. It’s just like with those little puddings, those little desserts, you always need to drill a hole in the top so that it drops out easily.

The context is that if you rub a pepper, its seeds start falling out, just like with the "pudding".

Please enlighten me: what exactly does this passage mean? Why would you drill a hole in the top of any pudding to make it drop out easily?

I tried The Free Dictionary's collection of definitions, but to no avail.


texts:
I was wondering which one is used more often by Americans when asking something?

How do you get the the train station?

vs

How do I get to the train station?

I think British use 'one', which I think is more clear.

but Is there a difference between them when Americans say it?

In that case, I think you can say both. Which one sounds more natural?

but how about a case just for myself?
For example, I need to tell my dad something sensitive and hard to bring up and I ask someone for advice on how I should talk to him.

Would you say, "how do I tell my dad..." or "how would you tell your dad..."

The use of 'I' and 'you' is really confusing for me.


texts: Why can an adjective be placed after "eat" as in "garlic can be eaten raw"?

texts:
Edit note:

This question with some good answers does not explain (or ask) why it is an adjective that's used as opposed to an adverb in this type of construction:

Is this an objective complement or adjective phrase?

My Question:

Consider this sentence: "Garlic can be eaten raw or cooked".

In the dictionary, "raw" is an adjective only and is not an adverb. "Cooked" is also an adjective.

So, why can an adjective be placed after "eat" as in "Garlic can be eaten raw"?


texts: Difference between "acute", "chronic" and "obtuse" in the sense of illness

texts:
I've checked Oxford Advanced Learners for acute:

an acute illness is one that has quickly become severe and dangerous
Compare:CHRONIC

And for chronic:

lasting for a long time
Compare:ACUTE

Can a disease be both "acute" and "chronic" simultaneously? For example it could be the case where a certain illness quickly becomes serious and have long term consequences
Are there any "obtuse illnesses" ?


texts: Which verb do I use in: “All you need in life is/are coffee and good grammar”?

texts:
Should I use 'is' or 'are' in the sentence below?

  All you need in life is/are coffee and good grammar.

This question is different from Agreement in "[Singular Noun] Is/Are [Plural Noun]"? because that question doesn't deal with what verb agreement to use in sentences like this where the subject is "all" (which can be singular, as in "All is well", or plural, as in "All are alike").


texts:
Please explain to me the meaning of an idiom “Quality cannot be tested in”.

The context is as follows (from the book How Google Tests Software):

  “Quality cannot be tested in” is so cliché it has to be true. From automobiles
  to software, if it isn’t built right in the first place, then it is never going to be right. Ask any car company that has ever had to do a mass recall how
  expensive it is to bolt on quality after the fact. Get it right from the beginning or you’ve created a permanent mess.


texts:
I've been working through some future tenses exercises and I'm wondering about which of the following alternatives is correct:

By the time I'm 30, I will have got married and will have moved out to the countryside.

By the time I'm 30, I will have got married and moved out to the countryside.

So my question is whether repeating will have twice in the first alternative is redundant or not? Would it be enough (and still correct) to simply use the second alternative?


texts: Repeating an auxiliary verb like "was" after "and" for a passive tense?

texts:
Should I repeat an auxiliary verb like "was" after "and" for a passive tense?

Here's an example:

It was shipped to laboratory in maximum time of one hour and was frozen at –80°C.


texts: Can you say "and so, he was deserved of his sorry fate"?

texts:
Can you say

  and so, he was deserved of his sorry fate ?

Would you pronounce deserved as deserve-ed, as is commonly done in poetic language?


texts: Omissions of "that" in a relative clause

texts:
I am not clear on when the word "that" can be omitted in a relative clause.
I only know that when the modified noun is the object in the clause, the antecedent "that" can be omitted. Are there any other such situations?
How about the following sentence:

  Students should be skeptical about everything they are told.

I am not sure whether everything is the object, and if not, whether this sentence is correct.


texts: Is it "after 9-hour drive" or "after 9 hour drive"?

texts:
The sentence is: "I arrived NYC after 9 hour drive." What is the appropriate way to punctuate 9 hour? and whether it is "x-hour" vs "x-hours" or "x hour"?

(possible wrong tags)


texts: What is the English equivalent of the Russian idiom ‘for a mad dog, an extra 7 miles isn’t a big deal’?

texts: In Russian there’s an idiom translated loosely as ‘for a mad (crazy) dog, an extra 7 miles isn’t a big deal’ - it means ‘unnecessary effort‘, often used ironically to talk about someone whose silliness makes them put more effort than necessary. E.g. instead of choosing a shorter route a person takes a longer route because they think it’s cheaper (in case of traveling by plane). If any of that makes sense to you, can you recommend any English equivalents?


texts:
I don't like white wine.
Me neither.

We're talking about subjects here, so naturally the pronoun should be "I". The use of "me" would only make sense to me if "neither" was a postposition. According to a dictionary it can be all kinds of things but not a preposition.

Why are we using "me" here?
What part of speech is neither?
Is this sentence a shortened version of something that explains the weird grammar?


texts: Is there an opposite phrase for "The apple never falls far from the tree"?

texts:
I was doing some research on idioms, and came upon the thought of whether there is an opposite idiom for

  The apple never falls far from the tree.

as in

  "The offspring have much in common with their ancestors."

I am searching for an idiom meaning the exact opposite, as in

  "The offspring have little in common with their ancestors."

Does such a thing exist?


texts: Repeating phrases like "There are questions after questions after…"

texts:
What is the correct way of punctuating repeating phrases in a sentence?  Are commas and semicolons required?

Example:

"There are questions after questions after questions after questions on page after page."

BTW, let's assume the extra repetitions are necessary.


texts: Do you know any words to describe the "ability to make choices"?

texts:
I am looking for a single word to express "ability to make choices"
After some searching on the net, I found the word "choice-making." However, since I could not find this word on Merriam Webster and Cambridge dictionaries, I am a bit unsure about its application.
I am going to use this word as the title of a section in my academic report. Can I use choice-making to mean ability to make choices?"
Do you have any other suggestions? I don't want to use the word decision-making.


texts: Likewise, neurons’ distance relative to the electrical field affects their response to stimulation, and neurons in deep cortical layers were often inhibited by anodal and excited by cathodal stimulation, indeed, neurons in deep cortical layers were often inhibited by anodal and excited by cathodal stimulation


texts: 1D vs. one-dimensional vs. 1-dimensional?

texts: In much of the scientific literature, the words 1D, one-dimensional, 1-dimensional, and 1-D occur frequently. Which of these is the best practice? Are there general principles for deciding which is the best format of these types


texts: Is there an idiom for "winning a contest because you were the only participant"?

texts: Is there an idiom for winning a contest because you are the only participant and there is no competitor?


texts: What is the difference between down the shore and at the beach? Does the latter imply  you are physically on the beach?


texts:
So here is the sentence:

  Since Saudi Arabia's failed attempt in 2014 to kill off shale oil, the Saudis and Russians have been giving unconventional American oil a free ride. (cnn.com)

What I understand here is that the Saudis attempted to kill off the competition of shale oil exportations.

Then I found a similar use of kill off (competition implicit/omitted as well):

  Opec bid to kill off US shale sends oil price down to 2009 low (theguardian.com)

If I am right, is that usage of kill off (omitting competition) specific to market-related subjects?

Do you have any more examples of less obvious usages of kill off like this?

Question 2: why is American oil considered "unconventional" in first sentence?

Question 3: is "free ride" used above despite of Saudis and Russian's willingness to give US advantage? Ou should we imply by "free ride" that both countries have been allowing/permitting US to take advantage?

Thanks!


texts:
Is there a specific word (or words) for albums which are named after lyrics of a song on that album?
Self-titled or eponymous albums are named after the artist, while albums with a song of the same name have a title track.
However, is there a particular term for an album that is named after lyrics?
Examples include:

U2 - All That You Can't Leave Behind - lyrics from 'Walk On'
Pink Floyd - Dark Side of the Moon - lyrics from 'Brain Damage'
Beastie Boys - Licence to Ill - lyrics from 'Paul Revere'

Note: there's a similar question here, but it's the inverse to my question.


texts: Slang or idiom for someone who wants to gain weight or bulk up

texts:
What is a more colourful way of saying someone who wants to gain weight, increase their muscle size by going to the gym?

  He has been regularly visiting the gym in hopes of ___

Can I say ‘packing some guns’ here?


texts:
I'm leaning English and have a question about 'not for now'.
Asked a friend of mine who got an argument, if I may ask her to go drinking sometime, and she told me 'not for now'.

This 'not for now' is confusing to me, it looks like she just turns me down, or I can ask her again in near future... :(

It would be highly appreciated if you teach me the exact meaning of 'not for now' in this sentence, because I don't want to bother her now... Thank you.


texts: My friend thinks the phrase "I am a fast tiger" is a metaphor, is he correct?  He also reffered to something that was not a hard rock as "a hard rock", does that also count as a metaphor? Thanks in advance.


texts: Is the word "moving" here a gerund or a present participle?

texts:
Is the word moving as used here in these two sentences gerund or a present participle?

The five stages of moving to a brand new place.
One of the most exciting parts of moving to a new place.


texts:
I really don't know the detail meaning between 'in the bed' and 'in bed'

I think that generally 'countable noun' has 'article' like 'a/an' or 'the'

But I can find the sentence like 'I usually read in bed'

What is the difference between 'in the bed' and 'in bed'?


texts: Confused about 'What she likes I like that.'

texts:
Let's look at the sentence :
I like what she likes.
This is a correct sentence. Here 'what she likes' acts as object of the verb like and it is a noun clause. So we can consider the above sentence as a single sentence with subject, verb and object.
Now let's have a look at another sentence:
What she likes I like that.
Is this a correct sentence?
What type of sentence is this?
What type of clauses are there?
What are the object and the subject?
Can I consider it as one single sentence?
I'm totally confused. Please explain it.


texts:
A person can indulge in something. Is he therefore an indulger of something or an indulger in something? Are both okay?

If both are okay, is there any difference between these two phrases or are their meanings exactly the same?


texts: present perfect, past simple, present perfect continues

texts:
I cannot understand these.
1st

We didn't win our first four games, but now we are second in the league.  (o)
We haven't win our first four games, but now we are second in the league. (x)

2nd

For the last half hour I have been watching some dolphins near the boat, and I feel really happy to be here. (o)
For the last half hour I have watched some dolphins near the boat, and I feel really happy to be here. (x)

Why each first line is correct?


texts:
Adam Jones, the Wales and Lions prop, was reported as saying about his policy regarding the referee before yesterday's match:-

  You have to get the ref on the right side of you. You don't want to be
  in their face, chopsing at them, getting on their nerves and
  pissing them off...

Chopsing is a new word to me. Looking it up, the only definition I can find is on the Urban Dictionary:-

  'Chopsing' is a Welsh slang term for arguing or saying disrespectful
  things to someone.

This seems quite an apposite definition, and works well given the context, but is there a more reliable source for this word? Are there any clues as to the etymology?


texts: What is the word for someone who has a good sense of direction?

texts: I'm looking for a word that describes the skill of someone who has a good sense of direction ( to write on a resume) or the name of someone who has a good sense of direction? ( as in knowing maps and how to navigate)


texts:
I suppose this is not a repeated question.

While it's natural to capitalize the first letter in a quoted sentence (even it's split into two parts), I want to know should I capitalize the first letter of quoted vocabulary (such as a noun, or something more special) which shows up at the first place.
e.g.

(Each of the following is a complete sentence.)

(Of course, there're plenty of alternative expressions.)

  "red" is a concept of color.

or

  "Red" is a concept of color.

More specially, what about

  "a2b7x" is the code I got.

(Capitalizing "a" would just give a wrong code.)

and

  The sentence started without capitalization, reads as "i start with a lowercase 'i'".

The punctuations and the capitalization rules are there to serve the purpose to carry information explicitly and accurately. So I think that forms are less important than content/meaning and we may allow the existence of sentences such as

  "a" is a lowercase letter.

It's really strange to say

  "A" is a lowercase letter.


texts: Is "that" a relative pronoun, a conjunction, or something else in "I know that..."?

texts:
I'm probably overthinking this, but I can't seem to be able to identify the function of the word "that" in the sentence "I know that...". For the sake of an example, let's use the sentence:
I know that I don't know.
Is "that" simply a conjunction here, because it connects the two clauses? If it is, it should be a subordinating conjunction. But I don't think so, because "that I don't know" is an object of the first verb "know".
My intuition tells me it's a pronoun, or a relative pronoun to be exact, but I can't explain why it is; there isn't a noun in front of the pronoun "that" for it to replace.
Is this a case in which there's an omitted noun that is supposed to be before "that"?
Any help is greatly appreciated!


texts: I've always believed the past tense of sync ("I sync my phone with my computer") to be synced ("I synced my phone with my computer yesterday").  This question would seem to suggest either synced or synched.  I have a friend who insists the past tense is sunk.  I'd appreciate if you could make this clear for me.


texts:
Would you consider "both" in the following NPs rather as a predeterminer or a conjunction? If it's a predeterminer, it would determine both NPs, right?

  The swimming pool is both a great place to relax and a perfect spot to do some exercise.

Thanks so much.
(It's my own sentence)


texts:
Is there a common way to say in English that two people were in the same place but didn't know at the time about each other and eventually didn't meet?

I know one can say they passed each other on the way or in the street but can it be used in more general context e.g. they were in the same city or building but never physically walked passing each other?

Edit:

I'm looking for a phrase that can be used to tell someone that "we almost met".


texts:
Very simple question this time around, folks! (Have) experience or (be) experienced both generally create a connotation of living through something and/or learning about it. The big question is which preposition follows which word, or if they change based on what concept follows them.
My closest guess is:

I have experience / I am experienced + with + general noun (cars, animals, etc.)
I have experience / I am experienced + in + field of knowledge (physics, French cuisine, etc.)

A coworker of mine believes the answer may be in word order:

I have linguistics/teaching/computer experience.

I still feel it's possible to say experience in/with, but his addition to the argument isn't invalid whatsoever. I do think sometimes my ascertainment is totally valid (to me), and other times there seem to be giant loopholes. Can anyone give a really thorough breakdown of which prepositions to use and where?


texts:
Possible Duplicate:
  What is the origin of the word “goodbye”?

These are probably the most used two words in our day-to-day conversations. We normally use superlative degrees all the time to emphasize something strongly.

That being the case why we don't use "better night" or "best night"?

How did "good night" become such an integral part of our usage when we had other options?


texts:
I was looking/wanting a word to describe a person who thought and kindled an original idea and was the first to do it. Say you come up with an idea for a device or an idea for software or something what would you call the person who though of it? I thought author but an author is someone who wrote a book not thought of an idea.
Anyone able to provide me with a word? Thanks.


texts: How do I properly use [sic] for a phrase? Or do I use it at all?

texts:
The actual sentence I am quoting is:

  Company A will provide regular communications to Company B on the status of level of effort in comparison the projected monthly amounts contained in our contract.

Obviously there is a word missing.  This is how I think that sentence should be quoted:

  Company A will provide regular communications to Company B on the status of level of effort in comparison (to) [sic] the projected monthly amounts contained in our contract.

Is this even close?  I am just not sure.


texts: Is there a difference between full dress and dress uniform when speaking about the army?

texts: I'm so confused when it comes to these two words. The dictionaries offer the same meanings and when I tried to google the images they seemed to look the same to me.


texts: What linguistic feature would I draw upon to explain this?

texts:
If i was writing an informative piece on a random topic and I wrote for instance "Ok, but how does CO2 get released? By burning fossil fuels." By asking a question to my intended audience and then answering it, I am not using a rhetorical question in my opinion which leads me to ask.. what would that language feature/strategy be?

(English Language teacher in need of help!)


texts: What type of phrase is the second phrase in the following sentence? Is it perfectly grammatical?

texts: "She looked through the text, editing all the errors."


texts:
Is the following sentence parallel?

Globalization causes international goods to be available in different countries, better cultural change, and international trade to be more efficient.


texts: The difference between "I used to" and "I'm used to"

texts:
What is the difference between "I used to" and "I'm used to" and when to use each of them?

Here, I have read the following example:

  I used to do something: "I used to drink green tea."

  "I used to drink green tea", means that in the past I drank green
  tea, but now I don't. Used to describes an action that did happen, but
  doesn't happen now. Check out these great examples:

  "When I was young I used to play with dolls, but I don't anymore."
  "Before I passed my driving test, I used to cycle everywhere."

  I am used to something: "I am used to drinking green tea."

  "I am used to drinking green tea" means that at first, drinking green
  tea was strange and unusual, but now it has become familiar. To be used
  to describes an action that was, perhaps, difficult and is now easy.
  "I am accustomed to green tea" has the same meaning.

But I do not know how accurate it is, so please could any one help me.


texts: Which word to use in this sentence, "when" or "which"?

texts:
Bolt took his first shot at success on the world stage at the 2002 World Junior Championships in Kingston, Jamaica, when/where he won the 200-meter dash.

Should we use when or where in this sentence?
Thanks a lot : )


texts: Word for people who buy things because they are more expensive/ for the brand

texts:
Is there a word for people who buys things because they are more expensive or because they are specific brand or label?

These people don't buy the items because they are higher quality. They buy them because they want others to think they are "cool." These people can often hardly afford such items and this money could be better spent on other items.

This is opposed to other people who might buy more expensive things because they are of better quality. (Who would rarely buy popular brands because their prices are inflated simply because they are popular.)


texts: singular event - may I use these words in referring to an upcoming 50 year high school reunion?

texts: I'm inviting classmates to attend a Fifty Year High School class reunion.  May I appropriately call it a "singular event?"


texts: Is there a word to describe the appearance of wet hair?

texts:
I work on an Oceanic language that has a specific word for the appearance of wet hair - 'ngengere'. It can apply to people just emerged from water or having put on a lot of hair oil, or wet dogs, or even a wet bird. Have I missed a word in English that grasps this idea?

N.B. 'wet-hair look' I think is not useful - that's more of a fashion term. 'Bedraggled' in my mind weights a value of 'dejected' rather than maintaining a neutral descriptive tone. I'm not so keen on 'plastered' or 'matted' either.


texts: Is [bʊt] (Northern England) analyzed as an allophone of /bʌt/?

texts:
In some/most Northern England accents, words that have [ʌ] in RP (or standard varieties of English) are pronounced with [ʊ]. So hut, cut, shut etc are pronounced with /ʌ/ in Southern British English but with /ʊ/ in Northern English accents.
Are Northern accent classified as separate accents and have been assigned a separate phonemic inventory or are they analyzed as a dialect of the Southern English accent and those pronunciations are analyzed as allophones of the pronunciations in Southern English?
In short, is [bʊt] analyzed as an allophone of /bʌt/ or does it have a separate status of phonemic transcription and analyzed as /bʊt/?


texts: Leaving out "the" in an enumeration where elements are linked

texts:
I'm having a discussion with a colleague on the following sentence:

  The objective is to assess the integrity of the servers and data they contain.

In my opinion, it should either be

  ... of the servers and the data they contain

or

  ... of the servers and their data.

My colleague feels the the before data can be left out because it's already used in front of servers.

Normally, this sounds ok to me. For example:

  I went to the supermarket, library and police station.

I feel the original sentence is wrong because of the fact that data is related to server because it makes a reference to it (they).


texts:
Is there a single word for an amount of time spent on a task for example?
More specific than duration?


texts: Is a punctuation error also a morphological error at the same time?

texts:
Are punctuation errors counted as morphological errors?
For example, is writing Johns car instead of John's car a morphological error?


texts:
Given the following sentence:

  You should always use prefixes with your table names

Is the word table properly labeled as a noun or an adjective, as it is functioning as an adjective but the base word is a noun?

Context:

I am prefixing the words in some phrases with abbreviations. Some of the words are giving me trouble in classification. (The message is supposed to be an implicit proof of why adding prefixes to table names in a database is terrible. But I'd like to get it right.)

Here's the full set of sentences for your amusement. However, please restrict your comments to the stated question, for the most part.

  com-Don't ver-Listen prep-To adj-Those adj-Other nou-People.
  pro-You aux-Should adv-Always ver-Use nou-Prefixes prep-With pro-Your adj-Table nou-Names.
  pro-I aux-Have adv-Even ver-Started ver-Using pro-Them prep-In adj-Normal nou-Writing.
  com-See adv-How adj-Effective pr-It ver-Is?
  nou-People aux-Can ver-Understand pro-Your nou-Writing adv-Better!

This question is part of 3 related questions:

Adjectives vs. determinatives
This question
Verbs vs. gerunds vs. something else

It originally came from this closed question


texts: 'Patriotism' is to 'Country' as ______ is to 'Language'

texts: I have been looking for a word to describe a group of people that are very loyal and passionate about their (native) language.


texts: Is plural-possessive needed before "organization"

texts:
I'm not sure which one is correct:
"The Physical Therapist Organization" or "The Physical Therapists' Organization".

I'm leaning more towards without the plural-possessive but will I be grammatically wrong? Please don't respond with saying that I can use "Therapy" instead. I need to use the word "Therapist" or "Therapists'". Any help will be well appreciated.


texts: 'The mental and automatic processing of small sets of data'

texts:
I'd always thought the word was subitemize, but I'm apparently mistaken – a dictionary search for the word yields nothing.

The basic idea is the ability to sort/correlate/grok a sufficiently small system.

For example, I can pair six socks very quickly, but this is not a linear progression to, say, sixty socks.  It's said that I can subitemize those six socks (or whatever the word actually is).


texts:
I wanna know the meaning of "jungle town" and "sporting woman" in the following context from Hemingway's To Have and Have Not:

  We stopped the car in back of this place and went into the kitchen where the man's wife was cooking at a stove. "Hello, Freda," Harry said to her. "Where's Bee-lips?"
  He's right in there, Harry. Hello, Albert."
  "Hello, Miss Richards," I said. I knew her ever since she used to be
  in jungle town, but two or three of the hardest working married women
  in town used to be sporting women and this was a hard working woman, I
  tell you that.

Miss Richards used to be a sporting woman but, after getting married, became a hard working woman?


texts: Should I Use a Comma or a Semicolon at the End of a Series of Complex Introductory Phrases or Dependent Clauses?

texts:
In my writing, I begin several sentences with a series of two or three -- or more -- adverbial (or prepositional) phrases (or dependent clauses), some of which contain commas. Seeking clarity, in order to separate each item in this complex series from the others, I utilize the semicolon. Do I need to use a semicolon after the last introductory phrase (or clause) too, separating it from the main meat of the sentence, or may I simply use a comma to separate the last introductory phrase (or clause) from the independent clause(s)? I wish to create a clear separation between my series of complex introductory adverbial (or prepositional) phrases (or dependent clauses) and the actual heart of my sentence, but I am not sure what the rule is here. The use of a semicolon may give briefly my readers the false impression the series is continuing; however, a comma may not be strong enough to demarcate the introductory material from the sentence's core. Is a comma -- or is a semicolon -- best after a complex (i.e., comma-rich) series of introductory phrases (or clauses)?

In the following example, should there be a comma or a semicolon after car?

Knowing she had to get to the store before it closed in fifteen minutes because she needed to buy bacon, eggs, and pancake mix; afraid of having to walk by -- yet again -- the extremely aggressive pit bull chained to her new neighbor's front yard oak; dreading having to do battle with her unreliable, twenty-five-year-old car, she took a deep breath, opened the front door, and exited her bungalow.

or

Knowing she had to get to the store before it closed in fifteen minutes because she needed to buy bacon, eggs, and pancake mix; afraid of having to walk by -- yet again -- the extremely aggressive pit bull chained to her new neighbor's front yard oak; dreading having to do battle with her unreliable, twenty-five-year-old car; she took a deep breath, opened the front door, and exited her bungalow.


texts:
Excerpt from Wikipedia: Public holiday,

  A public holiday, national holiday or legal holiday is a holiday generally established by law and is usually a non-working day during the year.

What are the differences between public holiday and national holiday?


texts: Anachronism to describe a practice considered outdated

texts:
Is it correct to describe a practice that is considered outdated, and has been superceded by other more appropriate practices, an anachronism?

I ask because the usual context I read anachronistic in is related to errors in chronology, rather than a practice that is now out of place.

To give a couple of examples:

"Johnny made phone calls using the old phone box at the bottom of the street. This is an anachronism peculiar to him alone"

"Debbie forced her guests to address her as ma'am, which is an anachronistic practice".

Thanks


texts: Verbal noun of pure copula - logical implications?

texts:
In her emendation of her earlier work on antilogism here, Christine Ladd-Franklin wrote

  ... That no human beings are immortal and no angels are mortal
  precludes any angels being human.

[She then presents the syllogism in symbolic form]

  The formula says "precludes that any angels (some angels) are human"
  but rhetoric has a strong penchant for
   turning the verb of a subordinate proposition into a verbal noun.

Is her point that the verbal (being) implies more existential import than the pure copula as a verb (is/are), or am I missing something?


texts: Futile wandering that makes you tired and embarassed

texts: What is the right word for going from place to place with a purpose, but turns out futile? I don't think wandering or loitering would suit the weariness results from this purposeless transport.


texts: Use of person years experience or another word for combined experience

texts:
I am preparing to write a statement about my previous company's founders experience in my resume and I am having a quandary as to how to write the following:

  ABC Info has been founded by people with more than 80 person years of experience in the marketing industry.

I assume that since the experience doesn't belong to only a single person, here person years means more than one person's experience combined together.

Is the above sentence is right? or

How can I write this statement properly?


texts: Semantic or syntactic analysis according to "adjective placement(order)"

texts:
port : a place where ships may ride secure from storms - Definition of port by Merriam-Webster.

I wonder there are any differences from adjective placement(order) of following sentences.

a place where ships may ride secure from storms. : Correct sentence.
a place secure from storms where ships may ride.
a  secure from storms place where ships may ride.
a secure place where ships may ride from storms.
a place secure where ships may ride  from storms.
a place where ships secure from storms may ride .

I made these 5 sentences. 3, 4 and 5 sentences look weird but I'm not sure it's grammatically wrong or not. If the grammar is correct, is there any differences in usage?


texts: Meaning of "he takes the cross of making his own"

texts:
For the ease and pleasure of treading the old road, accepting the fashions, the education, the religion of society, he takes the cross of making his own, and, of-course, the self-accusation, the faint heart, the frequent uncertainty and loss of time, which are the nettles and tangling vines in the way of the self-relying and self-directed; and the state of virtual hostility in which he seems to stand to society, and especially to educated society.

When I start analyzing its meaning, I don't get even little far and stuck up in almost near beginning of it, the following comes in my mind, which does not makes any sense to me:-

  For enjoying walking on the old road ... he takes the burden of making his own way in  life...

I have skipped the sentence in place of ... because it was not making any sense to me. Please help me and explain the meaning.


texts: What's the phrase/ word that can be used to describe this situation? (Non Native Speaker here)

texts:
My first time using this site so sorry if my question was answered before or I'm breaking some sort of rules/ custom this site has.

Let's say someone is taunting another person like: "It's not like you would know anything about it, you don't have a mother."

The other person may respond in someway that caused the taunter to flinched back and a bit afraid.

The taunter then replied with something like : "Okay, okay, sheez. I didn't know that you are this easily triggered."

So what's the word to describe what the taunter is doing at the end there. I want to say he's retracting his statement but he is not quite doing that. I guess remedy/ rectify the situation could work but I doubt it suits the situation.

If any of you has an idea for the word or phrase, I hope you could answer this question. Since I most likely made tons of mistake when asking this question, I would also appreciate people correcting me on how I was supposed to ask the question.

Edit: Thanks to all of you that answered the question. I found an answer I was looking for so once again, thank you. For some unknown reason, I can't accept your answer even though I wanted to, I was clicking on the tick button but nothing happened.


texts: Which expression or word should I use to describe "light" surfaces repair in room or house such as walls painting, plastering etc. As I understand overhaul means complex repair of house, but I need a word for less complex repair.


texts:
What does being drawn to someone mean in the case of a movie or book character?
(the complete question is: to which character in the film were you the most drawn?)


texts:
I am planning for a tattoo with image of target logo. and the caption I thought is "Aim life with money" Money being an arrow and the life being the "center of target".
I wanna make a point as in.. "live life fullest and is only possible with money so focus on your career" Blah blah...
My question is am I getting it (the caption) right?
Well.. firstly I am not asking for tattoo advice.. I am comparing my caption with my intention.
Secondly.. I am 25. worked for 2 years.. and jobless since 1year.. and so missing all my outings, parties and FUN, unable to do whatever I want to, completely loaded up with responsibilities blah blah... Now trying to focus on something so that I can get back to my normal life but couldn't focus straight.
I believe the sole purpose of life is on three cap letters F-U-N well I am missing it now just because of the above reasons.


texts: I am looking for an adjective, similar to "holding a grudge"

texts: I am looking for an adjective that describes a person who is not willing to forgive or excuse someone's faults or wrong-doings from the past (other than "unforgiving"). For the ones who speak German, that word would be "nachtragend".


texts: GRE Text Completion - choosing between Instigated and Prompted

texts:
I came across the following two-blank text-completion question:

  The discovery that exposure to allergens through the mother's diet during the
  last trimester could lead to complications during the first year after birth
  ① ______ the UK Department of Health to ② _______ dietary recommendations
  for expecting mothers

The options for ① are:

prompted
instigated
lulled

The options for blank ② are:

intuit
codify
officiate

I was able to rule out lulled for ① but I am stuck between choosing
instigated and prompted. The answer key is codify for ② (which is
pretty much as expected) and prompted for ①.

Why is prompted is a better fit here than instigated? Can anyone please
give more uses comparing these two words, explaining which one to use where?


texts: Why does "I wake up in the morning." sound better than "I wake up in morning"?

texts: I'm confused because some of my friend said the latter while I use the former.


texts: How to determine if a noun is a place or a thing

texts: I'm having difficulty determining if certain nouns are considered places or things. For example, I'm unsure if 'a park' is a place or a thing. More generally, with the standard definition of a noun as a person, place, thing, or idea, how does one determine the difference between a place, thing, idea, etc. Another example could be 'heaven', is this a place or an idea? I'd greatly appreciate any help. Thank you.


texts: What does it mean when someone has "golden pipes" and how did it originate?

texts:
I believe I saw this mentioned in an article/blog post I read a while ago.

From what I remember, the article was about a person's amazing singing voice. However, I looked it up recently and didn't come up with much other than this Urban Dictionary definition:

  Golden Pipes

  (n.) A person's absolutely amazing singing voice that
  overtakes the listener with so much emotion that he has no choice but
  to cry uncontrollably or laugh hysterically.

  Listen to Robert Plant's
  golden pipes! He can hit notes perfectly.

Maybe I'm using it wrong; if so, what's the correct usage? Also, any ideas about its origins?


texts: Where does "emphasis mine" go in a quotation?

texts:
I have often seen the term emphasis mine used whenever an author wishes to denote that emphasis in a given quotation originates from said author rather than from the original source.

What is the proper place for this phrase?

One possibility is immediately following the emphatic text, inside the quotation. But, see next question...

What if there are multiple emphatic sections marked within the quote?

If "emphasis mine" comes immediately after each phrase, it would end up repeated two or more times, which seems a bit messy. In this case, would it be OK to place "emphasis mine" at the end of the quotation? If so, should it be inside or outside?

How should the phrase "emphasis mine" be set off?

I believe I have seen parentheses () or brackets [], though brackets are also used to indicate words added by the one using the quotation.


texts: How should we use "next", "this" or "last" to refer to days in weeks?

texts:
If it is Sunday, when we say "next Wednesday", what does it mean?
My friend told me that when it is Sunday, next Wednesday=this Sunday. I am confused about it.

If the usage and understanding is different among countries, could you please give examples and explain it in detail?

Thank you^^


texts: Cleaning nose with hands in an awkward manner

texts:
I am trying to find a sentence or phrase that would best describe "Cleaning nose with your hand" but in an awkward manner, so that you straighten your hands then start pushing it across the nasal path from finger tips to the palm.

I need to use this phrase in a question of mine, but I am not able to find correct words in English or able to search it on Google for a picture as I am not sure what would be the correct words.


texts:
Let's suppose I have two objects – A and B. They are a pair. I mean that we will name them considering them one logical unit.

For example: If I call A as "driven," then B will be called "leading" with reference to A.

Question: If I call A dependent (adj.), what should I call B?


texts:
I feel comfortable saying "This is a novel about etiquette", but could I equally say "This is a novel on etiquette"?

If I had to say it, I would use "about" but I don't see anything wrong about using "on". I've been told, however, it would be wrong to use it here. Is it? Why? Don't we say "here  is a book on etiquette" or "a book on motorcycling"?


texts: Which is correct: "new features in" or "new features of"?

texts:
Which of the following sentences is correct?

The new features of the software are given below
The new features in the software are given below


texts: Why are there two different ways to spell "expediter"?

texts:
There seems to be two different ways to spell "expediter":

expediter
expeditor

A quick Google search reveals a nearly equal split between the two spellings. Are the two spellings specific to a particular region or culture? Is there some subtle difference in meaning that I am not aware of?

Why do we have two different spellings?


texts: "Demonstratable" — a dictionary word, or just a well known hack?

texts:
Someone has just pointed out a mis-spelling on my site - demonstratable, as in "demonstratable experience of...".

I can't see it in the New Oxford American Dictionary or the Oxford Dictionary of English. A quick Google shows it in the Merriam-Webster dictionary, but it has a note attached:

  This word doesn't usually appear in our free dictionary, but the
  definition from our premium Unabridged Dictionary is offered here

The closest matching word seems to be demonstrable (which means the same but sounds like it shouldn't!).

My question is, is demonstratable a recognised dictionary word or just one that is generally accepted? Where do these edge-cases fit in? For example, when writing copy for a website or other literature, is it acceptable to use words like this on the assumption that, even if they are not in the dictionary, people will recognise the meaning?


texts: What grammar pattern is used here and what does it mean?

texts:
This excerpt is from The Invisible Man by H.G. Wells. I can't figure out the italicized part. The excerpt follows:

"But they take long enough to get well, don't they? ... There was my sister's son, Tom, jest cut his arm with a scythe, tumbled on it in the 'ayfield, and, bless me! he was three months tied up sir. You'd hardly believe it. It's regular given me a dread of a scythe, sir."
"I can quite understand that," said the visitor.
"He was afraid, one time, that he'd have to have an op'ration—he was that bad, sir."
The visitor laughed abruptly, a bark of a laugh that he seemed to bite and kill in his mouth. "Was he?" he said.
"He was, sir. And no laughing matter to them as had the doing for him, as I had—my sister being took up with her little ones so much. There was bandages to do, sir, and bandages to undo. So that if I may make so bold as to say it, sir—"
"Will you get me some matches?" said the visitor, quite abruptly. "My pipe is out."


texts: Origins of the phrasal verb "to fall asleep".

texts: I have been googling around, searching for the origins of the phrasal verb "to fall asleep" but so far I have found no references. I was wondering specifically why we use the verb "to fall" to characterize the process of going to sleep and my conjecture is that it somehow links in with the connotations of tiredness and fatigue that the verb "to fall" bears.


texts: Which preposition? The rate "for","of","between", or "from" 2000 to 2010?

texts:
Let's say I calculate the rate the population changed from 2000 to 2010.
Is this than the growth rate "for", "of", "between", or "from" 2000 to 2010?


texts:
Is there a comma error in this sentence?

He wrote other, more insidious, books.

I was told that the comma after insidious is improper. It is, I say, perfectly acceptable usage. Am I in error here?


texts:
Look at these two following examples :

The class passed the experiment testing our understanding of chemical reaction.

The class attended the make up class in ENSP 703, facilitated by Mr. Quedado.

Is it right to say :

The class that was passed the experiment testing our understanding of chemical reaction.

The class which was attended the make up class in ENSP 703, facilitated by Mr. Quedado.


texts: Why is it gerontology and not geronology?

texts:
I hope this is the right place to ask this, if not please give a feedback.

According to the Wikipedia, the term gerontology is made up from two parts, geron and -logia, which mean respectively "old man" and "study of" in Greek.

I was looking for a hint, why the term has an extra -t. It seems to me that it has some indirect associations with ontology and I thought that might be the reason but couldn't find something concrete.

Thank you in advance.


texts: What does 'it' refer to in "come you more nearer than your particular demands will touch it"?

texts:
Apologies for the long title; I was led to understand it is better to be as specific as possible in titles, even if it makes them a little long. I'll edit it if people agree otherwise.

In Shakespeare's Hamlet, Act II, scene I, Polonius says the following to Reynaldo:

  Marry, well said; very well said. Look you, sir,
  Inquire me first what Danskers are in Paris;
  And how, and who, what means, and where they keep,
  What company, at what expense; and finding
  By this encompassment and drift of question
  That they do know my son, come you more nearer
  Than your particular demands will touch it:
  Take you, as 'twere, some distant knowledge of him;
  As thus, 'I know his father and his friends,
  And in part him' - do you mark this, Reynaldo?

I am not sure I understand to what the 'it' refers in "Than your particular demands will touch it". My guess would be "them knowing my son" (i.e. "the fact they know my son"), but I am not sure if this is proper English. (Of course, even if it isn't, this could be explained by either it having been back then or Polonius speaking oddly, as he is wont to do).

Am I correct? Is it correct in formal English for an 'it' to refer to a verb in this way? (I believe it is not non-standard, but it sounds a little bit informal to me (again - if this is the case, this could be explained, either by the change in English since Shakespeare's times or by the fact Polonius is not always the most eloquent speaker)).


texts: Is it correct to use 'Forgot password' or 'Forgotten password'

texts: Many websites use the phrase 'Forgot password?' when prompting users to renew their login passwords. Is this correct usage or should it be 'Forgotten password?'.


texts: What is the difference between a portmanteau and a kenning?

texts:
Their definitions seem to blur for me, as well as compound words in general. I'm thinking it might be a "square is a rectangle but a rectangle is not a square" concept but I'm not certain.
Examples are also greatly appreciated.


texts:
Where a noun ends with the letter x, is it proper for the possessive form of the word to end with 's or simply ' ?
Example 1:

"It is Xerox' position that it owns the patent."
vs.
"It is Xerox's position that it owns the patent."

Example 2:

"The ox's tail was short."
vs.
"The ox' tail was short."


texts: When someone says "They highly suspect this will work..", do they think it will work or do they think it will not work?


texts:
As I know, verbs are followed by adverbs. So, which is true?
"She stands there completely expressionlessly"
Or "she stands there completely expressionless"
Though I think the second one is likely to be true, I can't find out a satisfactory explanation. Thanks in advance!


texts:
"A bush grew out of the gutter and hung down the front of the house."

Could anybody please explain where in the above sentence 'down' belongs? It could belong to 'hang' a bit like a phrasal verb, or it could belong to 'the front'?

That kind of construction is hard for a non-native speaker to get their head around. We understand the meaning of the sentence, of course, but it feels weird, nevertheless. A non-native speak would normally say something like that instead:

"A bush grew out of the gutter and hung (down) over/before/ the front of the house."
"A bush grew out of the gutter and hung (down) in front of the house."


texts: Tylor's ways, he checked. (Hemingway's To Have and Have Not)

texts:
This is from To Have and Have Not by Ernest Hemingway.

Can anyone help me with the following sentence: "I saw her a couple of days ago on Ed. Taylor's ways, he checked."

  There are two speedboats that could catch us, Harry was thinking. One, Ray’s, is running the mail from Matecumbe. Where is the other? I saw her a couple of days ago on Ed. Taylor’s ways, he checked. That was the one I thought of having Bee-lips hire. There’s two more, he remembered now. One the State Road Department has up along the keys. The other’s laid up in the Garrison Bight.

I don't understand this "Ed." and "Taylor's ways."


texts: Word meaning "kicking softly" or "brushing with the feet"?

texts:
Example:

  I walked to the wall window, [...] the sawdust on the floor.

I could write brushing the sawdust with my feet but I want a shorter alternative, say a single word.

Any suggestions?


texts: A phrase comparable to 'In the house of the blacksmith, wooden knives'

texts:
In Spanish, we have a phrase..

  En casa de herrero, cuchillos de palo.

Literally,

  In the house of the blacksmith, wooden knives.

The meaning is probably clear, but some examples:

A math teacher whose children cannot add.
A software engineer who is still using Windows 95 at home.
...a country which supposedly leads the world in technology and
industry,  yet is still incapable of providing the most basic of manufactured goods needed  to confront a major crisis and must import them.

Is there a comparable expression or phrase in English that describes this situation?


texts: One word to describe a situation where two people have their first and last meeting in the same place

texts:
There are two people who had their first date in a place. Six years later, they'll be meeting in that particular place for the last time because one of them is going to die. In the six year time period, there was a time when they loved each other but now there is just hatred between them.

They decide to meet there. But it's not for old times sake and not for some sentimental value attached to that place. They just wanted to meet over coffee and that happens to be the only coffee shop in their locality so they decide to meet there without giving it much thought. But while the girl is waiting for the guy she realizes that it's the same place where they had their first date (which was nice and sweet but now they only have bitter feelings between them).

I am not sure but I think I could have said that the situation was poignant if two lovers have their first and last date in a particular place. But these people are not lovers anymore. In fact either would be kind of happy if the other died.


texts:
It seems quite common (although not universally accepted) to open emails addressed to a large group with "Dear All," (see e.g. this question). Extending this logic, is seems reasonable to open with "Dear Both," is the group you're addressing happens to have exactly two people in it.

It goes without saying that it is not appropriate for formal letters, but I am wondering - just how inappropriate is it? Is it OK in semiformal correspondence (to one's coworkers, students, etc.)? How does it sound to the native spreakers? (i.e. Does it sound/look unnatural?)

Edit: I have tried googling, but unfortunately, this does not produce very satisfactory results. It's mostly forum threads with contrary and unsupported answers (ranging from things like "I've never seen it used" to "surely, it's been widely used even before emails").


texts:
Possible Duplicate:
  To hyphenate or not?
  When is it appropriate to use a hyphen?

In the phrase

  It is simply a large door sized wall of fire.

Should "door sized" be hyphenated to "door-sized"?


texts: Merriam-Webster obviously says that the word is an abbreviation for doctor, and I also acknowledge the fact that it's less formal than doctor. My question is: when talking to your doctor, would it be considered rude to call him or her a doc?


texts: For which fractions is it standard practice to specify using 'over' instead of '-ths'?

texts:
For which fractions is it standard practice to specify using 'over' instead of ordinals?

For example, we read 5/16 as 'five-sixteenths' but 100/151 as 'one hundred over one hundred fifty one'.

Where do we stop reading numbers like that, and start using 'over'?


texts:
What is a little plate used for disposal of a tea bag called?
I find myself in a real conundrum here. Tea drinker problems.
Typical scenario: I order a cup of tea at a diner. I'm given a cup of hot water and a teabag. Said teabag is steeped for a few minutes until the tea is just how I like it: not too thin, but not too thick.
Now, said teabag must be removed, or the tea will be too strong! A small plate or saucer is immediately needed for disposal.
Establishments are often hesitant to give out these little plates, because it adds a lot of dishwashing/waste for something they seem to think is a luxury item. So, I'm left "holding the bag" as they say... and, sadly, nowhere to put it.
I must then resort to barbaric acts, such as placing the used bag:

Directly on the counter, where it leaks all over.
On my paper placemat, where it makes a big wet spot.
On my teaspoon, which is just rude.
Wrapping it in a napkin, which promptly turns into a soppy brown mess
Using the paper tea bag wrapper for disposal, which really doesn't work very well.
Into an empty water glass, which is obscene.
Rock-bottom has to be eating a single-serve jelly, directly out of the packet with my teaspoon, and putting the used bag into the little empty plastic container.

Don't even think about putting that nasty teabag on the side of my food plate.
So I need to ask, "May I please have a little plate for my used teabag?
English SE, please tell me, what is the name of this little saucer thingy?
https://forum.thefreedictionary.com/postst39438_specific-name-for-a-tea-bag-disposal-plate.aspx


texts: I was reading the Mac OS X Lion upgrade page, and it said "make sure" all over the place. It struck me as odd. Where does the term "make sure" come from? What are you making to be sure? Yourself? Shouldn't the expression be, more verbose, but more accurately, "make yourself sure", or something similar?


texts:
English poet Robert Browning in his poem "Paracelsus" has written:

"Nay, autumn wins you best by this its mute appeal to sympathy for its decay"
[AllPoetry]

Why is "its" preceded by "this"? If I parse it as if there is no "this" it makes total sense, but that just doesn't seem correct. However, the original sentence also doesn't seem grammatically correct to me. So why was "this" used in this context and what was it supposed to mean?
My best guess is that there should be a long dash after "this":

"Autumn wins you best by this — it's mute appeal...",

but no source I could find gives this line with dash. Besides, English punctuation differs significantly from punctuation in my native language (Ukrainian), so my grammar sense might be tricking me.


texts:
Should Nazi be capitalized in the phrase grammar nazi/Nazi?

While I can't think of any other examples right now, I would like to extend the question to ask if the words which are historically nouns should be capitalized in similar phrases.


texts: What do you call using another method when you can't explain something

texts:
What do you call the method what you use when you know what to say but not exactly how to say it but use another method to do so?

You have an idea you have to explain to people, you know what you want to say but not how to articulate it correctly. So you end up using examples, sayings to help the person to understand what you are trying to convey, to help to get to the meat/jist of it until you get an "aha"moment that is what I'm trying to say

  The  stackexchange english language user knew what he wanted to ask in an indirect way but didn't know the exact words to ask it correctly so he used examples to trying get the question in a "roundabout" way.

or

  Pete wants directions to the arcade. He asks a passerby but forgot the word " arcade" so instead he asks "can you give me directions to the place in the mall where the 12-year old kids hang out?" He used  workaround way to explain where he wanted to go. He didn't say the correct word but the passerby knew the place he meant.

What method did Pete use?

  For the above Pete can't explain the word succinctly so he uses a [...] way or expresses it []

Words that don't fit exactly:

convoluted means. Convoluted means difficult to understand or complex where I'm trying to instead convey it's an "other"  way to ask to get there.

non-succinct way also is similar to the above

Inarticulate method coveys he isn't clear which is untrue since he is using another method

parallel conveys the two ways that are the same, where instead I want to say the the other method is instead an out of the norm way

Roundabout,Workaround is probably the closest I can think of

This might be a better explanation of the context

  The computer system user asks a question but the support ticket was closed with explanation "Your question is convoluted". The user believes the reason is unfair as he believed he question in isolation might be phrased without the correct technical terms but he additionally used a specific example to explain  what he was trying to achieve which left no room for ambiguity to understand what he was asking. He escalates it to their manager saying his question was not convoluted as he used used a [got to the jist of it] way to explain which the helpdesk should have understood and that he feels they were intentionally being pedantic.


texts: Which construction is correct, "astonished finding" or "astonished to find"?

texts:
Like,

  We were astonished finding the cat climbing the tree itself.

or

  We were astonished to find the cat.


texts: Change of subject in respect of "in order to"

texts:
"In order to" or the shortened version "to" always require that the subject of the main clause and subordinate clause are the same (cf. https://englishstudypage.com/grammar/using-in-order-to-in-english/), right? In order to change the subject, I would need "in order that" or "in order for ... to" (sort of object complement).

The following sentence:

  Sensors require maintenance in order to clean the lenses from fouling

wouldn't make much sense, I guess, as it would mean that "once sensors received maintenance, the sensors can clean their lenses (themselves)"

I would need to write either:

  Sensors require maintenance in order for the lenses to be cleaned from fouling

or

  Sensors require maintenance in order that lenses are cleaned from fouling

Is this understanding correct?

I guess the same applies to situations where the main clause is in the passive voice meaning that the 'subject' of the passive main clause needs to be the subject of the subordinate clause introduced by 'in order to'.

But, I can't help myself in thinking that the following sentence is correct even though the above logic doesn't apply:

  The signal is sampled with a data acquisition system in order to make it processable with a computer for calculating the TOA data

The only way I can explain this to me is that the subject of the active voice version of the main clause would be the same as the subject in the 'in order to' clause (I sample the signal and I make it processable).


texts:
Context: academic, resume-like document detailing a person's achievements.

"The institute has attracted people from all over the University"

Does the above sound okay, or is the "from all over" an informal phrase?

I've found a dictionary entry that "all over the place" is informal when it's used non-literally, and haven't found any mention of the actual "from all over" being informal, but it feels vaguely informal to me. Vaguely. Can anyone weigh in?


texts: Difference in meaning between: “It had been wrapped up…” and “It was wrapped up…”

texts:
I read a paragraph in a book:

  Three months passed and then one morning,
  he found his wallet outside his front gate.
  It had been wrapped up in newspaper
  and contained half the money he had lost.

My question is whether 'had been wrapped up' in the sentence
can be replaced with 'was wrapped up'. Please explain in detail; thanks!

According to my personal view, Past Perfect Tense focuses more on an action
which had been conducted by someone prior to the moment the wallet was found,
so it gives the impression that someone had done it intentionally.
On the other hand, if we replaced it with Simple Past Tense,
the meaning would be totally different. It would focus more on
the state of the wallet when it was found, and that is,
there was newspaper around the wallet when it was discovered.
Am I right?


texts: Is "cheering you on" appropriate in this context?

texts: I have a friend who has a recital that I won't be able to attend due to a plane flight. I was going to send a message which ended with "I'll be cheering you on from the plane," but I'm not sure if "cheering you on" is appropriate outside of a sporting or competition context. My goal is to convey my support despite the fact I won't be able to attend the recital.


texts:
I am reading 'A Dog of Flanders' and here is the sentence that includes the phrase: She had neither brother nor sister; her blue serge dress had never a hole in it; at Kermesse she had as many gilded nuts and Agni Dei in sugar as her hands could hold.

In here, she refers to 'Alois', who is Nello's friend.


texts:
I am writing my thesis. I have a sentence

Finally, we conclude the thesis and discuss future work in Section 6.

My friend told me that "discuss future work" was not appropriate, and I could not find the usage of
"discuss future work" on the internet. Shall I adopt "discuss the directions for future work"?
I cannot distinguish "discuss future work" with "discuss the directions for future work".
Could you give me some suggestions? Thanks in advance!


texts: Re: 'Sorry, no results for "outwest" in the English dictionary.' So, it's not an acknowledged word then?

texts:
Re: "outwest"

Google search: About 496,000 results (the first 10 pages showing business names, except a street name and a hashtag).

Google search: "outwest meaning" --> "Did you mean: out west meaning"

Other search results for "outwest" (from dictionaries):

M-W: out West (idiom; variant: out west).
ODO: No exact matches found for "outwest" (nearest result: out West).
American Heritage: No word definition found.
Cambridge Dictionary: "words with similar spellings or pronunciations" (out west, southwest, outcast...).
Chambers: Sorry, no entries for outwest were found.
Collins: Sorry, no results for "outwest" in the English Dictionary. (Did you mean: outwrest, outjest, outwent...).

Based on that, I guess outwest is not an acknowledged word. I suppose some people and outfitters use it because western sounds sort of old-timey (e.g., outwest outfit vs. western wear). But I don't have access to the OED, not yet.

Question: Is outwest listed as an actual word in some source (not included in the ones I have listed above)?

Or is it considered idiomatic only by those who sell (or buy) a lot of steaks and/or boots, for example?

An example found online, similar to how I've heard outwest used most often (not including references to merchandise):

    The guests enjoy the Arizona "outwest" vibe that
    [he] brings to the campfire with his songs and his stories.

  --Activities Supervisor

(Unlinked quote due to "not secure" warning.)


texts:
Firstly, is "I washed the dishes clean." a grammatically correct sentence?

If it is right, I have a question about it: in this sentence, is "clean" an adverb or an adjective?

I think that "I cleanly washed the dishes." is a correct sentence and I also think "I washed the dishes cleanly" is a correct sentence, using "cleanly" as an adverb.

But I wonder whether "I washed the dishes clean" is a correct sentence or not.


texts: Does it make sense to say that ones' interest in something is "instrumental" if

texts:
if the interest was born out of some personal goal?

For instance:

  My interest in grammar is both academic, in that I enjoy studying
  languages, and instrumental, in that I hope to become a grammar
  teacher one day.


texts: Casual way of asking someone how they found or calculated a number?

texts:
I am doing some calculations for a work project, and I guess that I have made a mistake in finding Flow Rate. I want to ask a coworker in a casual manner that where he/she get the flow rate from. This is not to undermine their work but to ask them to help me understand their method.
I am looking for a phrasal verb that has a sense of finding, calculating and comming up with.


texts: Is this correct grammar: "[...] cash can't be beat."

texts:
I found the following phrase in a NYTimes article and I was pretty surprised that it wasn't corrected or edited out: "But when it comes to privacy and freedom, cash can't be beat.".

I am under the impression that this is incorrect grammar and the sentence should actually be "[...] cash can't be beaten." or "[...] you can't beat cash" but definitely not the one used in the article. Am I wrong here?

This sort of grammar is mostly only used in slang in England and I always thought that it was wrong but after a bit of googling, I'm not sure anymore. Is it just another difference between American and British English? I know it's really petty but I'm still interested in the answer!

Article link: http://www.nytimes.com/roomfordebate/2012/04/04/bringing-dollars-and-cents-into-this-century/a-shift-toward-digital-currency


texts:
Please explain what "a time that never was" means.

The context:

She glanced to the three who stood to one side of the King's throne, looking as though they'd stepped out of paintings from a time that never was.


texts: By that I refer to the sound people make when they're thinking. Most people write "hm" nowadays, so they may not know of this, but traditionally, people wrote it as "h'm". The apostrophe can't indicate elision, since "h'm" is an onomatopoeia, so why is it there?


texts: Is "Selected 1 of 1 Entries" correct pluralization?

texts:
I'm trying to work out any possible pluralization strings for an application that handles dynamic values, and I'm a little stuck on the English here.. What I think sounds right doesn't feel right.

Pluralization options:

Selected 1 entry (correct)
Selected 2+ entries (correct)

But if I want to include the total as well:

Selected 1 of 1 entries (is this correct? it sounds correct to me)
Selected 0 of 1 entries (is this correct?)
Selected 1 of 2 entries (correct)

I know it's trivial, but these little details matter to me..

EDIT: If the count is the max, another option is to express this as:

Selected all 2 entries (correct)
Selected all 1 entry (this doesn't sound correct? is it?)


texts: I know that the person being interviewed is interviewee, but I cannot find the equivalent for the person being observed! Any help would be greatly appreciated.


texts:
I have heard this word, but I just can't remember it. It is a 3 to 5 letter word, probably 2 syllabled, and begins with letter T.

I am not totally sure if it's an English word. The context I have heard it in "whether there is a greater purpose of life." Or something like "Does the universe have 'a greater purpose'."
It was in one of the videos of a YouTube channel called exurb1a (I am not telling you to look through all of his videos to find the word, although it is an interesting channel).

Sorry if the question is not exactly a single word request, because it's more like a word identification request but such tag doesn't exist :D.


texts:
According to English WordNet, tidy up has a meaning:

put (things or places) in order: "Tidy up your room!"

I feel comfortable with the use of "Tidy up your room!"
However, what is the exact meaning of putting things in order? Is it rather like in

"Tidy up your shoes!" = put all the shoes to their proper place in the shelf, do not leave any under the furniture
or

"Tidy up your guitar!" = take the guitar and move it to the place where it is usually kept

In other words, can you use tidy up as an instruction to put one single thing to its usual place? If not, what is the best word for such a situation then?


texts: How do I say: Something is 1/1.5 times as big as something else? e.g. using the analogy X is 1/3 (one-third) as big as Y

texts:
Here is my challenge:

According to the proper grammar of English:

My house is TWICE (2X) as big as yours.....Your house is HALF (1/2) as big as mine. CORRECT.

How do I then say that:

My house is ONE AND A HALF (1.5X) times as big as yours.....Your house is 1/1.5?


texts: Does "precluded from" require a direct object?

texts:
In a copy-editing job I'm doing, I came across the following phrase:

"a man is precluded from all women except for his wife"

- i.e., his sexual relationship with her is (should be, anyway) exclusive.

This doesn't really seem correct to me, since I'd think that "preclude" requires a direct object, like "precluded from marriage with" or something like that. Am I correct, or is this sentence fine as is?


texts:
I have trouble understanding the usage of "only" in this scenario.
I was watching the Walking Dead, and I came across this scene.
"How many blood transfusions did you get?"
"2, only 2.
Is "only" used to say that the speaker thinks that "2" is very little? I'm unsure because they gave off the impression that '2' in such a short time is a lot. Though, I've also thought that "only" is used to imply that you think something as very minor (very little). Am I wrong?


texts: Are "willingness" and "being willing" the same thing?

texts: Willingness is often defined as "the quality of being willing." Does that mean that it's the same as "being willing"? We can say sentences like "Bob's best quality is his willingness to do what's right" which would suggest that they are the same, and phrases like "act of breaking glass" suggest that too. However, if I were to rephrase sentences like "he has the willingness to try new things" to "he has the being willing to try new things", the latter sentence seems wrong.


texts: Word for someone excited who foolishly fantasizes?

texts:
I'm looking for a word to describe the kind of fantasizing and overconfidence someone might exhibit when they are foolishly excited at the prospect of something immensely desireable or something they have wanted deep down, but had, until now, thought unattainable. A few examples for what I'm going for:

A weak mathematician hastily concludes he has solved some longstanding unsolved problem. He believes that with this new proof he will attain the tenured position he has always wanted. He fantasizes about winning the Fields medal and all the recognition he will receive from his colleagues. His proof, however, is flawed in an invalidating way.

A man impoverished by his gambling habits falsely believes he has discovered a secret trick to win roulette. He thinks about the lavish lifestyle he always dreamed of that he can now afford with this trick.

Overconfidence, fantasizing, and foolishness are related, but I thought they described a much wider range of behaviors. Greedy also doesn't seem right; I thought it describes a selfish desire for money or power well beyond what one person needs.
I'm trying to find a word to specifically describe this behavior. I'm okay with words from other languages if they fit better. I'm also okay with compound words or short (2-3 word) phrases as well (just not "overconfident fantasizing" or "foolish fantasizing").


texts:
In the following sentence:

  One out of ten people speaks (English) as their mother tongue

Is "one out of ten" considered singular, or should speaks be changed to speak?


texts: A word or succinct phrase for "capable of producing financial income"

texts:
I have a bullet point list describing some requirements for a game I will be producing. It is written as follows:

The game will be:

Requirement 1
Requirement 2
...

One of the requirements is "capable of producing financial income", but this is a bit of a mouthful.

At the moment I have the word "monetizable", but that is a bit of a miserable little word. Are there any better suggestions?


texts: A person you have a relationship for only business

texts:
In a piece of software, what would I call a person you have a relationship for only business in real life. He/she is not your friend and you are not working in same place.

For instance, you are freelancer, and someone wants you hire. So what would I call that person?


texts: Do contractions (e.g. "don't") and full phrases (e.g. "do not") have the same meaning?

texts:
What is the difference between "don't" and "do not" in the English literature as well as spoken English? Are they same?

The same question goes for "wouldn't" and "would not", "couldn't" and "could not".


texts: Why don't dictionaries employ both positive and negative claims when defining a word?

texts:
Although a definition can take the form of a positive claim, often employing language such as "of or relating to", or a negative claim, employing similar language as "not of, relating to", it never seems the case that an entry utilises a combination of positive and negative claims.
Inspired by jsw29's comment to this question here, where they state the following:

Lurking behind this question is another one: why don't dictionaries do that (more often), when it would be so useful if they did? That may technically be outside the scope of this site, but it is a very interesting question.

In hopes this question would be in "the scope of this site", why do "definers" never employ positive and negative claims together when defining a word? Is there a particular philosophy that said "definers" adhere to when constructing definitions that discourages this?


texts: How do you say "to brown-bag it" in your neck of the woods?

texts: Is the North American phrase "to brown-bag it"--which means to take a packed lunch to work, school, etc.--used or at least readily understood in the UK and other English-speaking countries? How would you say this in the variety of English you speak?


texts: Whats the difference between made it and did it when they arr used to mean success?

texts:
My colleague in America fixed his computer after having a lot of conversations with IT guy in Korea. He skyped and told me It's finally fixed and I replied "you finally made it!!!. I'm sure he obviously understood what I tried to mean.

Some time later, I statrted to wonder whether I would have used "you finally did it" instead of made it.

My questionS here are

Either 'made it' or 'did it' allowable for above sentence?

Can I always use you made it to mean you finished something succesfully? or I can use it only in particular cases?


texts: A word for an individual who feels that compliments that he receives are always backhanded

texts:
Is there a word to describe an individual who believes that the compliments that he receives are always backhanded?

For example, let's say an individual who is part of a soccer team receives a compliment for good performance in a match that his team won. However, the individual is sceptical of his own performance in the match and therefore reckons that the compliment was backhanded.


texts: Does using "and" three times in a sentence make it a run-on?

texts:
I'm currently writing a cover letter and I've got a rather long sentence with three "and"s. I personally feel it has a good flow, but I've gotten mixed feedback on whether or not it is appropriate. The sentence in question is below along with the sentence afterwards to illustrate why I am hesitant to simply replace an "and" with a period (ruins the flow in my opinion).

  I recently graduated summa cum laude from Iowa State University with a Bachelor of Science in mathematics and minors in actuarial sciences and business & entrepreneurship and I am eager to apply my education to the consulting actuary industry. During my time at Iowa State I also had the opportunity to study at the University of New South Whales in Sydney, Australia and take classes from the Applied Finance and Actuarial Studies department.


texts: “Can” vs “Able to”: People/Animals vs. Inanimate Objects

texts:
I’m wondering if the English grammar “rule” given below, which I have heard from numerous non-native speakers, has any validity.

  “can” is used for people, animals, and inanimate objects.

  “able to” is　not used for inanimate objects, only for people and animals (animate objects).

Is this an accurate description of current usage? Was it maybe a prescriptive rule from long ago?

Just a quick Google search for “is able to” and “science” shows the following, and all from prestigious publications or institutions:

  In this situation the neuron is able to form new connections.

  The material is able to store the gas at a much higher concentration

  The human brain is able to recognise a familiar object

  The enzyme is able to go on chewing up

  The new compound, Pentobra, is able to easily punch holes


texts: The meaning of "hemorrhoidal sensations"

texts:
The Swede, like the Frenchman, prefers in Poetry the light, the clear and the transparent. The profound, indeed, he demands and values also; but it must be a depth that is pellucid. He wishes that he may see the gold sands at the bottom of the wave. Whatever is dark and muddy, so that it cannot give him any distinct image — let it be as far fetched as it may — he cannot suffer. He believes that

Th’ obscurely utter’d is th’ obscurely thought,

and clearness is a necessary condition for whatever shall produce any effect upon him. In this he differs widely from the German, who in consequence of his contemplative nature, not only suffers, but even prefers, the mystical and the nebulous, in which he loves to foresee something deeply thought. He has more ‘Gemüth’ and gloomy seriousness than the Swede, who is more superficial and more frivolous. This is the source of those mystical feelings and hemorrhoidal  sensations (hemmorrhoidal-känningarne) in the German Poetry, for which we have no taste.
Esaias Tegnér, quoted in Fritiof's Saga: a Legend of the North, by F M Franzén, 1839 (my emphasis)

What's the meaning of "hemorrhoidal sensations"?
Does that mean that reading German poetry will produce bad feelings just like having piles?


texts: What does it mean by "looking for beans and cheap thrills"?

texts:
I am currently translating a subtitle where this kid said something about creating a bunker to defend himself from mutant biker gang who sack each city looking "for beans and cheap thrills".
I wonder if it meant literally or there's another meaning behind it.


texts: Is there a word for where an arrow starts?

texts: I'm not talking about the arrow as in bow and arrow, but about this kind of arrow → . The tip is called 'arrow head', but what do I call the point where it starts? Starting point of the arrow? Foot of the arrow? Base of the arrow?


texts: Idioms for keeping the big picture in mind while picking out the details

texts:
As above -- I'm looking for suitable phrases, metaphors or idioms -- standard or invented -- for keeping the big picture in mind while picking out selected details.
This is related to a previous question of mine where I was trying to formulate an extended cherry-picking metaphor. But I'm not too happy with the outcome. It sounds very awkward. I'm hoping there are better idioms out there.
So far I've got:

If you're going to cherry-pick, you've got to size up the whole tree
first.

Or -- not quite so awkward but clearly a mixed metaphor.

Cherry picking is all very well, but try not to lose sight of the big
picture.

Any suggestions welcome

Edit: The original is a text in German where the writer wants to say: It's all well and good if you want to choose the functions of (say) a program that suit your needs but you should also know about the other functions. The metaphor works in German. (It's all very well to pick out the raisins, but you should still keep the whole cake in sight.)


texts: When was the term "All lives matter" first used and what was it meant?

texts:
These days these two terms "Black lives matter" and "All lives matter" are in the centre of the discussion.
Although, it is understood what "All lives matter" in context of "black lives matter", Can you please provide some details when "All lives matter" was originally used and what it was supposed to convey?

I have gone through couple of articles on this topic but none of them provided me satisfactory answer.

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/All_Lives_Matter

https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.sportsnet.ca/basketball/nba/explaining-lives-matter-actually-means-say/sn-amp/

https://www.10tv.com/article/why-phrase-all-lives-matter-problematic-2020-jun


texts: Origin and meaning of "You catch more flies with honey than you do with vinegar"

texts:
I'm having trouble understanding the rationale behind the meaning of an American English phrase of which I just became aware.  That phrase is:

  You catch more flies with honey than you do with vinegar

From what I understand now, this phrase would indicate that You make more friends by being nice than by being rude.  Please correct me if I'm wrong.

My confusion comes from the fact that no one catches flies in order to do anything nice to them (Well, I suppose some people do. But it's not common!).  When I first read it, I actually thought the phrase meant You'll have more success luring people into a trap by being nice than by being rude. This didn't make much sense in context, though, which led me to ask around about the phrase.

Where does this phrase come from? More importantly, why does it have such a counter-intuitive meaning?


texts: What's the difference between "judicial" and "juridical"?

texts:
I have found the definitions below from Merriam-Webster (my bold) and, aside from the fact that judicial has a wider use (and definition) than juridical (most of which I cut from this excerpt). When using each word as per my highlighted definition, is there a technical difference in what is being referred to or are they synonyms?

  ju·rid·i·cal adj \ju̇-ˈri-di-kəl\
  Definition of JURIDICAL
  1: of or relating to the administration of justice or the office of a judge
  2: of or relating to law or jurisprudence : legal

  ju·di·cial adj \jü-ˈdi-shəl\
  Definition of JUDICIAL
  1a : of or relating to a judgment, the function of judging, the administration of justice, or the judiciary (judicial processes)


texts: Why is "a" missing in "running like clockwork"

texts:
I would like to know why the idiom "running like  clockwork" is not written as "running like  a clockwork"? Is there some common rule that explains this?

I am asking this question since I am not sure that this word is a mass noun, see here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Clockwork


texts:
I would like to ask, whether I should use two time 'that' in a relative clause. Here is my sentence:

"Especially modulating heat pumps that can not only be switched on and off but that can continuously regulate their compressor speed..."
Another option would be.
"Especially modulating heat pumps that can not only be switched on and off but continuously regulate their compressor speed..."

Which one sounds better for you?


texts: Common expression for when ideas meet reality

texts:
I am searching for a common (though, apparently, relatively obscure) expression that goes something like one of the following:

  the crucible of reality
  the crucible of truth
  the mortar and pestle of reality
  the mortar and pestle of truth

The essence is that the true test of something, like an idea, is when it meets with reality and is no longer purely theoretical.

Does anyone know the accurate phrasing of this expression?


texts:
Do native poetry enthusiast pay attention to British vs. American pronunciation when enjoying poetry?

As I understand, there could be differences in rhythm and rhyme depending on the given accent, which could affect the "exterior quality" of a piece of poetry. The question came to me in connection with poetry translation to English, but I would generally find it interesting to know whether native speakers actually consider the nationality of the poet before reading his/her works, or find it irrelevant.

(I mean, I'm not sure I would want to listen to a Robert Burns poem in an Australian accent :D )


texts: What does it mean for someone to be "speaking with a forked tongue"? I've heard it used by my boss when referring to particular customers of ours.


texts: What was the meaning of "sometime" in Medieval England?

texts:
There are many questions here regarding "sometime" but none of them looked as if they referred to the Medieval context of the word. I was tempted to write "Middle English" instead of "Medieval England" but I'm not sure that would be correct—I did use the middle-english tag though.

What was the Medieval meaning of "sometime"?

I am asking this because the modern meaning is, as defined in Wiktionary:

At an indefinite but stated time in the past or future.

I'll see you at the pub sometime this evening.
This will certainly happen sometime in the future.

(obsolete) Sometimes.
(obsolete) At an unstated past or future time; once; formerly.

Yet, Alison Weir in 'Elizabeth of York' quotes (unspecified origin, but presumably Medieval chroniclers; all in quotation marks in the text):

  ...'Here lies the body of Richard III, sometime King of England'.

  ...'eldest legitimate and natural daughter of the late Edward, sometime king of England',...

  ...'Here rests Queen Elizabeth, daughter of Edward IV, sometime king; sister of Edward V, who bore the name of king;'...

None of these examples include a definition for time; the time when the mentioned people were kings is clearly undefined. Yet, in this usage that would also mean that the people writing the inscriptions did not know when Richard III/Edward IV/etc were kings (which I don't believe they didn't actually know).


texts:
If a person needs help but will not ask for it because they don't want to need to depend on other people (based on their pride), is the word hubris fitting to describe this?

How would you use it in a sentence for this situation?


texts: Is there a link between animal names which are their own plurals and domesticability?

texts: Moose, caribou, bear, ibex, zebra, buffalo, deer. All are their own plurals, although 'bears' is far more common. None are domesticable. Sheep would seem to be an exception. To what degree is this coincidence?