texts: Can diplomat mean a person with a diploma?

texts:
From the site of the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals the title "Dip ACVB" is used. As the information I was reading was about certification or qualification, I assumed the "Dip" stood for "Diploma", however the following quote shows that it stands for "Diplomat":

  To become a Diplomat of the American College of Veterinary Behaviorists (Dip ACVB), veterinarians must complete a residency in behavior and pass a qualifying examination.
  Link

I wasn't expecting that. My next thought was that "diplomat" can mean something like "a person holding a diploma", then in that sense the person with the title "Diplomat of the American College of Veterinary Behaviorists" makes sense because a person can hold a diploma from that college. But I've checked every free dictionary online, and only two related definitions are shown usually. The first one being roughly "a person representing a country". The second one, if given, is usually along the lines of:

  a tactful person skilled in managing delicate situations.
  Random House Kernerman Webster's College Dictionary

I doubt that the "diplomat" in the abovementioned title means the definition I've just quoted, or any of the others I've found. In any case I could possibly find out what the college means by asking elsewhere.

But my question relevant to this site is can or does "diplomat" mean a person holding a diploma, or was it used in this way in the past? The dictionaries I've checked don't give any such definition.

Edit: As Lawrence has pointed out, dictionaries DO define "diplomate" as a "person holding a diploma". In that case it may be just a spelling error. Note, I think this word is mainly used in the US, though Google NGrams shows double the frequency of it in AmE when compared to BrE.

Merriam-Webster
Oxford Dictionaries (lexico.com)
American Heritage Dictionary


texts: In or On Microsoft Excel's Table/Cells/Column

texts:
I have a rather odd question here. I am delivering a presentation to a wide audience of Excel users.

How do you go about using prepositions when it comes down to Microsoft Excel's Worksheet, Workbook, Table, Chart, Columns, Cells, Formula Bar, and Rows? Would you use In a table or on a table/cell?


texts:
I recently heard an American being interviewed use the word "adios" casually in a sentence. The particular sense of the word seemed to be a sort of permanent "good bye."

Since the speaker was (as far as I know) a native English speaker this got me wondering if "adios" has become an loanword to English instead of being considered just a common Spanish word that many Americans happen to know.

When I was a kid I remember being taught "adios" in the context of Spanish; but this may also mean that over the decades it has become so commonly known & used to be considered now a part of English?


texts: What single word reflects the feelings/emotions behind “smh”?

texts:
What single word describes how one feels when another person says something that doesn’t make sense?

I’ve often seen people use shaking my head or scratching my head (“smh”) online. I’m wondering what feelings/emotions pertain to “smh”.

I’m looking for a word that would denote a mild feeling/emotion more akin to when something is ridiculous, absurd, illogical, or laughable.

Example: So and so said something so laughable I feel _____.


texts: Could someone please explain me the difference between these two sentences?

texts:
The flight started as soon as I walked through the door.

No sooner had I walked through the door than  the flight started.


texts:
Many times, I see three different ways in expressing the details of the sentence. 1) absolute phrases with past participles, 2) Prepositional Phrases, and 3) Participial Phrases. I wonder if they are semantically equivalent and if any one is more idiomatically more favorable to the others.
Example:

His attention grabbed, John turned to Sera.
With his attention grabbed, John turned to Sera.
Having his attention grabbed, John turned to Sera.


texts: One word for something liked only by a few

texts: Unpopular would not be the word I am looking for. Something may be popular but only among a small group of people. For example, classical music: here in India, not many people like it but there are some who do. Therefore, I cannot say classical music is unpopular in India. Is there a word that means liked only by a few?


texts:
If one wants to describe 10 grams, would the appropriate wording be decagram or dekagram, assuming US English?

Word recognizes both words as valid. Wikipedia lists only decagram. Merriam-Webster knows both. Google recognizes both (although it gives a definition for decagram if you enter dekagram).


texts: What English term is used to describe "sarcasm toward questions about trivial issues"?

texts:
The question is difficult to mention in a single line as a title, hence feel free to edit the title.

  Person-1: Did Brazil win the football match today?
  Person-2: People are dying across the world, economies are going down, Earth is burning and you are asking about a match?

Here "Person-1" is asking a good and valid question which interests him/her. However "Person-2" doesn't think that such questions are important when there are other major questions yet to be solved.

What is the term used for such sarcasm?


texts: How does one decide when to use an article with a predicate nominative?

texts:
For example, when used as a predicate nominative, anathema doesn't require an article: That belief is anathema.  However other words do require an article: He became a knight.

I wonder if it has something to do with singularity of the predicate nominative: I will be king.

The only research I have done is to look up definitions for predicate, nominative, copulatory verbs, as well as googling to try to find reasons why anathema could not require and article.  This was difficult to find as anathema could be counted, depending on the definition in use.


texts:
At one point while browsing the internet I came across an article that had wonderful adjectives for the different types of pride one can feel.  Unfortunately I didn't bookmark it, and I can't find it!   Examples of what I mean:

The pride you feel when one of your students does well
vs.
The pride you feel when you create something wonderful
vs.
The pride you feel when an opponent stumbles

There are subtle differences between each one.

I'm wondering - does someone know if there is a reference for these terms?  I thought it was wonderful that there was actually a distinction in the types of pride one can feel.


texts: What's the best English term for a person who is psychologically attracted to extraordinary beliefs?

texts:
I know several such people, and what characterizes them is that they fall in love at first sight with any belief that involves extraordinary theories and occurrences or unseen entities. Natural explanations are boring to them---the more fantastic the explanation, the better it is. Usually, if they believe in one such thing, e.g., in Oriental medicine, you can bet they also believe in all of them: homeopathy and all fashions of "alternative" medicine, parapsychology and telekinesis, near-death experiences, New Age beliefs, alien abduction, haunted houses, "Elvis lives,"the whole shebang. Theirs is not just a belief---it's a passion. They seem to derive great psychological satisfaction tumbling these things in their minds, and when speaking about them, they have a particular blissful expression on their faces. Steven Spielberg got it right in his movie "Close Encounters of the Third Kind"---note the Second Coming-type expression on the faces of the affected Earthlings.

But I couldn't find any English term that defines such people, be it a single- or a multiple-word term. It's a shame if there's none.


texts: Inquisitive means curious or questioning. So would using 'inquisitive' as an adjective for questions be redundant?


texts: Polite way to suggest talking about something

texts:
Is there a polite way to tell somebody that you want to tell him something, but only if he allows you to? For example, I'm talking to my friend and I want to tell him something about cats, but I'm not sure if he wants to listen to me. Is it possible to use something like this:
- If you don't mind, I will  tell you about...
or maybe
- I could've told you about cats, if you wanted to...
I understand that my explanation's a bit wierd, sorry.


texts: Volitional sentence vs. imperative sentence

texts: What's the difference? Is a volitional sentence simply a weaker form of an imperative sentence?


texts: A comma before "and consequently?" After "and?" After "consequently?"

texts:
Consider the following example:

Apples are healthy and consequently serve as a powerful tool in preventing diseases.

Where should I place a comma (or commas) in the above sentence?

If I change the above example to:

Apples are healthy and consequently they serve as a powerful tool in preventing diseases.

Where should I place a comma (or commas) in the above sentence?

Any help would be greatly appreciated.


texts:
I tried to find the origin of "the calm before the storm" expression, but I'm only lucky to find translations on other languages. I know exactly that the same expression exists in Russian language. But what is the origin of this expression? How old this expression is? Interesting to know how this expression sounds on its "native" language.

PS: I understand the meaning literally and in the expression - it is clear. But need to know when and where it was originated.


texts: Where does the expression "Polly wants a cracker" come from? Why is the parrot named Polly, and why doesn't she want seeds?


texts:
I understand this to mean to stop bothering me or interfering with me, however, does it also mean to ignore me and pay no attention to me ever again?
For example, I said to my brother, who kept interrupting me and trying to distract me while I was playing the piano, "leave me alone." Is it correct for him to tell me 1 hour later that he will not listen to me when I ask him to walk the dog because he is following my command to "leave me (him) alone"?
I thought leave me alone means stop talking to me or bothering me, but not to ignore me? IF I say "leave me alone" does this mean to ignore me should I seek your presence or help in the future?


texts: What is the verb portion of a hyphenated/compound/multiword adjective or noun called?

texts:
For example, in the noun "victim-blaming", what is the "blaming" part called? Is it some special type of verb, or perhaps something else?

Words of this form can generally be made up and can still be understood in casual speech and writing, like "tantrum-throwing" or "cigarette-smoking" (as adjectives, for example). I want to know what the -ing verb portion is called.

I am looking for something that indicates it is a verb but also indicates that it is part of a compound noun or adjective (and not just a standalone verb in the sentence).


texts: What is the connection, if any, between 'adapt' and 'adept'?

texts:
The English adjective adept originates from the classical Latin adjective adeptus, to describe a person who has obtained knowledge of alchemy, magic and the occult.

The verb to adapt would appear superficially to have a quite different etymology, deriving from the Latin verb adaptāre. However in the description of the etymology the OED says 'to perhaps compare adept'

So what is the link between adept, adapt, adopt etc.? Is there a Latin scholar out there who understands this?

  Etymology:  < adapt v. or its etymon classical Latin adaptāre, by
  analogy with adjectives derived from Latin past participle stems which
  were identical to the verb stem, as e.g. content adj.2, distract adj.,
  erect adj.; perhaps compare also adept adj. The past participle of
  classical Latin adaptāre is in fact adaptātus. Compare post-classical
  Latin adaptus (7th cent.; rare). Similar motivation may have
  determined the earlier formations adaption n., adaptly adv., adaptness
  n.; compare also adapted adj.  (Oxford English Dictionary)


texts: I'd like to know the meaning of "My dad's being mean to me."


texts: Can a preposition be followed by a V-ed?

texts:
I was taught in school that a preposition is always followed by a noun, pronoun or Gerund. But recently, I have encountered a case (Ielts writing test) in which I had to describe and write something like this: “The household trash is delivered to the trucks before dumped at a landfill site”.

I don’t know if it is grammatically right because the trash is an object so it should be dumped by people while V-ed is not supposed to follow “before”, a preposition.

So could you help me out with this question, I really appreciate it.


texts: What is the grammatically correct: "Languages Services" or "Language Services"?

texts:
Is "Languages Services" correct for when you offer multiple services for multiple languages? Or should it still be "Language Services"?
Why?
Thank you guys!


texts: What does "it doesn’t make much of a case for itself" mean?

texts:
I have found a phrase here:

  ... it doesn't make much of a case for itself in ...

Obviously, it is some negative remark. Probably, it is a combination of two expressions, but I can't divide them separately and for all my attempts I can't find their meanings.

Could you please help me and tell me what phrases are combined here, and what they mean separately and all together?

Also, is the phrase correct?


texts: If coins are inside a wallet, are they loose or not? For example, if someone sees a wallet with coins inside a coin bag, and they are asked if they saw some loose coins, would the person be wrong if he/she answered "yes"?


texts: One time, I asked my mom how come my little sister doesn't feed them. Why past tense "asked" and present tense "feed"?

texts:
Taking a test for fun to improve my English. English is my third language and it is very hard. I have been googling and getting more confused. I ran across this sentence "One time, I asked my mom how come my little sister doesn't feed them."

Link to the whole quiz at http://www.englishforeveryone.org/PDFs/To_Be_Exercise_4.pdf

I was wondering. Why is "feed" in present tense and "asked" is in past tense? How do i find out more about this kind of sentence structure.

Should it be "I asked my mom how come my little sister doesnt fed them"
or
"I asked my mom how come my little sister didnt feed them"
or
"I asked my mom how come my little sister didnt fed them"

Thanks.

Edit2:

I was doing a fill in the blanks quiz. Below is half of the quiz.

Next, I feed the pigs. One time, I asked my mom how come my little sister
doesn’t feed them. She said it is because my sister (be, not) ____ ____(8) strong
enough. But I still don’t understand. She is almost as strong as me! I guess my
mom doesn’t want my sister to get hurt. After all, the pigs can (be) ________(9)
pretty rough, especially when they (be) ________(10) hungry.

edit3:
This is how I feel right now after reading all the responses.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fk-Gn3w2gt0

Everything is not so straightforward.

Thank everybody who contributed. When I wake up tomorrow, I will work more on it.


texts: what's a close synonym for " sorted for Es and whiz"?

texts: what's a close synonym for "sorted for Es and whiz"? and what does it mean in general? When And how can we use in conversation? is it polite or impolite or impolite?


texts: Fight + preposition (with, against, zero // over, about)

texts:
At first glance, I thought fight was an easy verb, then things started to get complicated:

  I fought with my brother for the bed.
  I fought with my brother over the bed.

Here, for instance, over sounds like it means a discussion, whereas for sounds like it's for "rights over" the bed.

What about the deletion of with, then?:

  I fought my brother for the bed.
  I fought my brother over the bed.

Is there any difference? Or is it all semantics?

At the very least, I can understand it if I add another component, though it still doesn't clear up the confusion over for and over:

  I fought (with) my brother for the bed.
  = I fought against my brother for possession of the bed

  I fought with my brother against my sister for the bed.
  = I fought against my sister and my brother helped me

Do for and over have a large effect on the phrase? Does with add another nuance to the phrase that otherwise would be missing without it?


texts: What the difference between would you like me or for me

texts:
I am not native so i dont understand if this sentence means i should have send some documents  for somebody or somebody wants to send me some documents?!
(would you like for me to send the lists of  documents for a student and visitors).


texts:
What is the meaning of the sentence said by Derry in the Susan Hill play On the Face of It given below?

  In case I see you looking and mind and get upset


texts: what's for referring to here? "for her presence of mind" in the lines mentioned below

texts:
there's an article i was reading in newspaper and i stopped on this line beacause i couldn't been able to understand it properly,which says  "surender singh hooda said that if not for her presence of mind,jaswant would have not been arrested".
in this line 'for her presence' is used for what,instead it should be 'of her presence' i guess?
please explain!!
i'm very curious to know the meaning of this line.


texts: When pronouncing URL, I say (roughly) "you-are-ell." A colleague insists that (roughly) "earl" is more common. Is there a widely accepted pronunciation? Within the computer world or without?


texts: "I saw him crossing" vs. "I saw him cross"

texts:
I saw him crossing the road.
  I saw him cross the road.

Which one is correct and why?


texts: What's a word for "apprehensively hoping"?

texts:
I'm talking about that feeling of hoping that something will happen, despite that thing possibly causing a negative effect—in spite of that negative effect, even.

Context:  I'm a software developer.  When I write code, part of me wants to look back at it a year later and cringe at how terrible it is, as it's a mark of progress.  The general wisdom in the field is that if you look back at old code and you're still extremely pleased with it, odds are you're not progressing as much as you could or should be.  The cringe you feel is not a great feeling, but ultimately your higher faculties know it's a good thing.

Thanks!


texts: What would be the correct predicate/verb in this sentence?

texts:
All in all, every parent and every child is/are different.

I know that subjects with 'every' count as singular, so in case I wanted to say 'Every parent is different', then I would have had to use 'is'. But this case makes me wonder, whether the subject is plural or singular, since it's 'every parent and every child'. I suppose it's the 'and' that confuses me.

Could someone please explain which is correct and why?


texts: What semantic notions underlie 'joining together' and 'impose, enjoin'?

texts:
I quote Etymonline. To wit, how did

  in- "on" (from PIE root *en "in")
   + iungere "to join together" (from nasalized form of PIE root *yeug- "to join")

compound to mean

  "impose (on), inflict; subject to; assign (to)"

?


texts: Involuntary initial struggle of doing something different

texts:
I find people are limited in growth in technology due to them not expanding their skill  despite it not being difficult  so they end up being held back  despite the demand in business and in job marking being in new technology. Technology constantly changes and being valued at corporations is dependent on overcoming ***** steps.
This phenomenom can be described by an analogy. If you slowly move your finger up against a balloon, you feel resistance and feel like it is pushing back. You move your hand further still feeling the resistance until it pops and you can move on. These people are really smart and not lazy. The struggle in the first step of learning something new and different and give up. They need to learn to over the *****.

Words I can think of

barrier/friction/glass ceiling/struggle/opposition

Neither describes the face that the friction is just in the beginning. Learning the new thing isn't really hard but the resistance is merely in it being different and new.
I guess it is similar to waking up early in the morning or exercising. Initially it is very hard but becomes routine it is easy and become easy.

Two people get given the same task of fishing. One tries to immediately catch  fish with his hands. The other takes his time by making a net. The former could have done the same as it would make fishing so much easier however the friction of doing something different to what his existing methods was, he found to hard .

What do you call (single word or compound word) the initial friction of doing something different or the bias of not wanting to do it because it is different/strange/alien even though it is beneficial once that irrational mental block gets passed.
Not a dislike. Almost a phantom resistance but that isn't a recognized phrase. Not a mind block but a mind bubble but that also isn't a recognized phrase


texts: When you want to refer to "family" in general, which should be used: "family" or "families"?

texts:
I want to confirm the general rule on expressions which refer to generality.

Many reference books say that "you should use "zero article + plural noun" to refer to generality. For example, (1) is better than (2):

(1) Children like animals.
(2) The child likes the animal.

The books say that (2) sounds too formal, so (1) should be used.

According to this suggestion, when you want to refer to "family" in general, you should use "families".

(3) You should consider victims' families.
(4) You should consider patients' families.

However, I have often seen the expressions "the victim's family" or "the patient's family".
When you refer to "family", do you prefer to use the simple noun followed by the definite article?

More specifically, which is better, (3), (4) or (5), (6) when you write an essay or letter?

(5) You should consider the victim's family.
(6) You should consider the patient's family.


texts: My basic knowledge of these two words is that they both mean the same thing. So why are they used differently, and what is their difference in meaning?


texts: A term to explain my progress in an incomplete undergraduation

texts:
Here in Brazil, all the undergraduations last for 4-5 years and each year is divided by 2 academic periods and we refer to each one as period. Thus as I am a Mining Engineering undergraduate student and this undergraduation takes 5 years, I need to complete 10 academic periods.
My question is: when I'm introducing myself in an internship interview or just to another person, what word/term should I use to express my progress at the undergraduation? When I say "my progress" I'm referring to my degree of completion, that is, how much time is still remaining to complete.
Is period a good word for that? Some brazilians told me that it's ok and also taught me anothers: term (usually used in British English) and quarter (American English). However, quarter induces me to think that a year is divided in 3 academic periods which would implies a wrong understanding.

Example:
Hi, my name is Matheus, I'm 24 years old and I am a Mining Engineering Undergraduate Student at [...]. Currently I am in the 7th period and I will conclude the undergraduation in December 2016.

Is that ok? Could I replace it for term in the same meaning? Is there another word for that?
Is this type of introduction usually made in English?
Thanks in advance.


texts: Which is correct: 'pass-through' or 'passthrough' or 'pass through'?

texts:
Which is correct: pass-through or passthrough or pass through?

I googled to find the correct wording, but found the 3 and not sure at all what is the correct one and/or there is a some domain specific rules.

I want to describe a process in which an information goes from input to output without any change.


texts: What does "Maybe I wasn't breast-fed as a child" mean in the following excerpt?

texts:
In the film Blood Diamond, journalist Maddy Bowen and smuggler Danny Archer have a conversation:

  M: Hi. I'm Maddy Bowen.
      D: How about you dance with me?
      M: No, I don't dance.
      D: Neither do I. Come on.
      M: So, Danny...
      D: Archer.
      M: Archer. When did you first start moving stones? Was it Angola? Then you did the whole mercenary thing. Was that fun? So, what are you? Nihilist? Opportunist?
      D: Maybe I wasn't breast-fed as a child, huh?
      M: You think I haven't met
      people like you before?
      D: I think you get off on people like me.
      M: You think?
      D: When did you first start
      working for Van De Kaap?
      M: Christ, you never stop, do you?

The Free Dictionary defines the  verb breastfeed as

  To feed (a baby) mother's milk from the breast; suckle.

But I don't see the relevancy it has with the rest of the dialogue. What does "Maybe I wasn't breast-fed as a child" mean in this context?

Full transcript: http://www.springfieldspringfield.co.uk/movie_script.php?movie=blood-diamond


texts: Say you should be at work.  Would the correct answer be "yes" or "no"? The common answer would be "yes", but isn't that really saying, "yes, I should not be at work"?


texts:
Does the idiom "I'll take that under advisement" in a non-legal context always (or usually) mean "I'll ignore your advice"? i.e. is it a polite (or not-so-polite) way to snub someone?
For example, the following quote I found on IBDB, which is from the movie Die Hard (emphasis added):

  Hans Gruber: [after bad guys hit police ram with rocket]
  [in radio to bad guys]
  Hans Gruber: Hit it, again.
  John McClane: [in radio to Hans] Hans you motherfucker, you made your point! Let them pull back!
  Hans Gruber: [in radio to McClaine] Thank you, Mr. Cowboy, I'll take it under advisement.
  [to bad guys]
  Hans Gruber: Hit it, again.


texts:
A guy suggested changing my word from "activable" to "activatable". Chrome's spell checker also suggests that. However, I can see activable in most dictionaries (1, 2, 3) while I don't see activatable in these (except Wiktionary).

Which one do you usually use?


texts: Can you "sound up a room" the same way you can light it up?

texts:
I'm trying to say that a certain individual adds noise to any place he goes.

When someone, figuratively, enhances the mood of a room he enters we say "he lights up the room".

Is there any way to use sound as a verb to get the same idea across but with sound?


texts: Is there a word for incorrect use of capital letters?

texts:
I'm wondering if there is a word for the wrong use of capital letters?

As in "The Little Girl was wearing a Red Dress" (not as a headline).

Is there a word for that?

Thanks!


texts: What's the difference between - and -- in a phrase?

texts:
Possible Duplicate:
  When should I use an em-dash, an en-dash, and a hyphen?

When do I put a - in a sentence? Is it a more powerful comma? With a bigger pause?


texts: What does a bracketed sound mean in the IPA transcription of a word?

texts:
I noticed that some words have a bracketed sound in their transcriptions in some dictionaries, for example, see the following from Lexico:

locate - /lə(ʊ)ˈkeɪt/
open - /ˈəʊp(ə)n/ (I assume here the bracketed schwa sound represents syllabic "n")

And the case of "length" is more interesting, Lexico gives two transcriptions:

/lɛŋ(k)θ/ -- with "(k)"
/lɛn(t)θ/ -- with "(t)"

I couldn't find any other examples. What does a sound in brackets mean in the transcription of a word?


texts: What is the origin of the dated British expression "I say!"

texts:
It doesn't appear that this expression was a minced oath or something along those lines. Was it shortened from a longer phrase, or did it just enter the vernacular as is (similar to "listen up" or "now hear this")?

Is this phrase still used anywhere (besides in poor parodies of Brits)?


texts: Difference between "peddler," "beggar" and "hawker"

texts: I am studying Middle Eastern migration to Latin America at the end of the nineteenth century. One of the popular practices among these people was peddling, and there is much research on those who sell their goods on the streets. Yet, peddler is not the only word used for them. Hawker and beggar are also used by scholars. What is the difference between these words?


texts: Why we say 'the mountains' with definite article

texts:
There are rules for zero/definite/indefinite article.
And I don't get why we use 'the' with word 'mountains' in the next sentence:
I like to spend holidays in the mountains.
As for me the correct rule for this case is speaking about things in general, which states that we should use no article (zero article), like in 'I afraid of spiders.'
So why we use 'the' + 'mountains' ?


texts: Ambulance, (or hearse) synonym beginning with z?

texts:
I have a memory of a word like zephirchain or zephyrchain that I heard as a lyric in a song by Mike Oldfield. When I search the lyric websites they seem to have heard something else. (Maybe I "kissed the sky" when I should have been doing something else?)
From the context of the song it sounded like it was an ambulance of a hearse.
The synonym and dictionary websites also don't make any useful suggestions that I can find.
Does such a word exist or am I suffering from the Rashomon effect?
Edit: Sorry. The song was "Crime of Passion" The word is at the end of the tenth or so line, that starts, "And then he saw her moving away in a ..."  about 1:23 into the song ( vimeo. com/14715762 has a recording.)
Clarification: My ears and brain strongly disagree with the lyric websites, (which is why I deliberately didn't list the song in the first place.) I memorised this song before the fist website was ever written. If the lyric websites are wrong then just quoting the from them isn't helping. I grew up with my brain soaked in British regional accents, and none of them, (that I can manage) stretch to a person's name in this particular lyric. I would ask Oldfield, but by now he might be an unreliable narrator because of extensive assisted musical exploration.


texts: "From a fourth-pair window": what is fourth-pair?

texts:
The first section of William Henley's poem "Notes on the Firth" (1875) is named "From a fourth-pair window".

What is (а?) fourth-pair, I wonder? A horse-driven carriage of some kind? Or is it an adjective describing the position of the window?

  I. — FROM A FOURTH-PAIR WINDOW.

  The sky is dappled blue with clouds that stray.
         Like frozen waves the roofs go rolling down
         The valley steeps, but weatherworn and brown
      Steeple and stack shoot mastlike toward the day.

  Pandean pipes whereon the winds would play,
         Long rows of chimney-pots the ridges crown;
         And black on slates and skylights flicker and frown
      Shadows of smoke that streams and wings that sway.

  The city's monstrous voices surge to me,
         The mist afar its fantasies arranges,
      And sudden windows twinkle joyously.

  A blue grey streak, a fixed uncertainty,
         A fallen slip of sky that shifts and changes,
      The Forth beyond them broadens into sea.

P.S. Here is the scanned image of the printed text of the poem at Wikimedia.


texts: When was antimatter first used? Who was the person that used it?


texts: Is this an oxymoron or do they juxtapose each-other?

texts:
I am currently reading the book 'Spies' by Michael Frayn, and this phrase comes up quite often:

  'Everything is as it was; and everything has changed'

The use of the semi-colon between the two clauses I assumed suggested that the latter statement explains the first (as that is the use of the semi-colon in this way). If that is the case, then surely they contradict eachother.

My question is that as this is the case, are the two statements oxymoronic or juxtaposing?


texts: When to respond to "you" with "I" or "Me" from sentence context

texts:
I'm writing a program that responds to sentences, but I'm running into an issue:

  You write: I like that you like me.

  Program responds: What do you think makes you like that me like you?

  You write: I like that you are my best friend.

  Program responds: I also like that me are your best friend .

In simple cases, switching 'you' to 'me' and me to 'you' works fine, but in this case it isn't grammatically correct.

Under what circumstances should 'you' become 'I', and how can I tell from sentence context/wording? Can you think of more cases in which you/me,my/your cant be interchanged?


texts: What's the difference between a tune and a melody?


texts: Meaning of "yet" in "the best is yet to come"

texts:
And the best is yet to come.

In the above sentence, to be to means "will", yet means "already".
So, does the sentence mean the best has already come or that it will come?


texts:
I came across this statement and I can't understand the overall concept of the part I have made bold:

  "Current trends in scholarship demonstrate a new historical and ethnographic consciousness. Since the late 1970s scholarship has increased exponentially, with perhaps half a dozen books now being published annually in English. Highly focused analyses continue, now bringing new analytical tools to the table, including native fluency in language. Single book-length surveys of the continent have not been taken up in force, perhaps in recognition of the enormity of the task."

Google Books: 'The Harvard Dictionary of Music' By Don Michael Randel


texts: What's the difference between "to confirm" and "to verify"?


texts: Are vowels most often pronounced long or short?

texts:
English vowels can have two (or more, many more) different pronunciations:

A :  /eɪ/, mate or /ɑː/, mat
E :  /i:/, mete or /ɛ/, met
I : /aɪ/, mite  or /I/, mitt
O : /oʊ/, mote or /ɒ/, moth
U : /juː/, mute or /ʌ/, mutt

I know that this is far from an exhaustive list of all the phonemes those five letters can represent, but I am interested in the relative frequencies between each of those pairs. I think that for most laypersons, and certainly for me before I started hanging out here, those are the sounds that come to mind when asked to list the sounds represented by the vowel letters.

So, of those phonemes, is the short (monophthong) form or the long (diphthong) form more common? By more common, I mean whether the letter I is more often used to represent /aɪ/ or /I/, not which of the two phonemes is more common but which of the two is I most often used for. Is there a general trend for all vowels or is it specific to certain ones?

I realize that this might not be answerable due to the vast variety of sounds these letters can represent in different dialects or even the same one, but I am hoping a conclusion can be drawn with respect to the specific phonemes listed.


texts: Are any of these collective nouns hoaxes?

texts:
While some of these are unquestionably used (a clowder of cats, a pack of dogs), many just surprise me. For example “a cackle of hyenas”, “a memory of elephants”... For the latter I found a confirming article, namely this one.

Edit: I realise the impracticality of going through each word in the list. That’s why I reworded to “any” almost immediately. I expected that native speakers would quickly recognise at least one construction, for instance “a cackle of hyenas”, as a hoax. Although I have been an avid reader of English prose for decades, I had no idea about the origins of venery and that it was actually meant to be funny!


texts: "Trace" as a synonym for "trail" in AmEng

texts:
As far as AmEng is concerned, does "trace" mean just about the same as "trail" in "break/blaze a trace", and -- if indeed it does -- can "trace" be used pretty much interchangeably in every which literal sense of "trail"?

It takes about two people to break a trace through the brush ahead... source
Only tortuous paths and blazed traces led over the Appalachians...
source


texts: I need point of view of native speakers on the perfect tense

texts:
My question could seem to be very simple, but the reasons why I ask it connect with the understanding of fundamental principles of the construction of the English language. That’s why my question is aimed at native English speakers. I would like to know their point of view, not from the position of grammar but how they understand this aspect of the language.
So, my question is connected with the perfect verb form. In grammar books it is said that this verb form is made with “have” + “past participle” (for example: I have broken my phone). They also add that the verb “have” in this case loses its own semantic meaning and is used for showing time and voice, and that the participle gives the semantic meaning of the action.

But I wonder if “have” to native speakers not only shows time and voice but plays the role of a verb that expresses state, like in old English where to make the perfect verb form “be” is used instead of “have”  - for example “autumn is come” (in this example verb expresses state and action at the same time).  So, my question is - for native speakers  is the perfect form understood initially as a finished action (using the perfect form, the speaker means result of action (or its connection with the present and so on, but in general it is the action)) or is the perfect form understood initially as indicating state? (in this example – “autumn is come” we see that this perfect form of old English expresses state, not action)? How is it for native speakers in modern English?


texts: Pronunciation of 'gyroscope' in the late 19C

texts:
Reading a question relating to portmanteau words has prompted me to ask this question. The reason is that Charles Dodgson writing as Lewis Carroll included the line

Did gyre and gimble in the wabe

in the nonsense poem Jabberwocky as part of Through the Looking Glass and What Alice Found There.
There are many strange invented words in the poem but some of them are explained later in a conversation between Alice and Humpty Dumpty including 'gyre', 'gimble' and Dodgson's new invention 'portmateau words' such as 'slithy' and 'mimsy'. 'Gyre' is defined as "to go round and round like a gyroscope" and 'gimble' as "to bore holes like a gimlet"
I've known and enjoyed the poem for years and, because "gyre" is said by Humpty Dumpty to be derived from "gyroscope", I've always pronounced it with a 'soft' g or [ʒ].
However I have heard several other people, including respected actors on commercial records, pronounce it with a 'hard' g or [g] thus producing alliteration between 'gyre' and 'gimble' which the soft g does not.
On looking up the etymology of 'gyroscope' I find that it is of French origin and that the French pronounce it with an even softer g than English speakers do. I also find that its origin is the Greek word γύρος (gyros, 'circle' or 'turn'). This starts with a gamma which the Greeks do not pronounce at all like a g in either French or English and certainly not like an English [g].
My question, finally, is this:
Was the word 'gyroscope' pronounced with a hard g [g] in Dodgson's time (second half of the 19th century), even if only at Oxford University, or am I correct in my pronunciation of 'gyre' producing only a very slight alliterative effect with 'gimble'?


texts:
I have a question about money.

We have different sorts of money such as blood money and I was wondering what stolen money is called.

Is there any kind of specific word for this type of money?


texts: Does "don’t stay awake for too long" mean "go to sleep soon"?

texts:
"stay awake" means "don't go to sleep", right? Or does it mean something else?

On "Beabadoobee - Coffee" song, she starts with:

  Don’t stay awake for too long
  Don’t go to bed
  I’ll make a cup of coffee for your head
  I’ll get you up and going out of bed
  ...

All the lines except the first one seem to refer to "not sleeping". Is this just an abstract song, or could it be that I have a wrong understanding of the first line?


texts: Statistics 'has' or 'have' applications?

texts:
which is correct:

Statistics have applications in almost every field of science and business

Statistics has applications in almost every field of science and business

I thought has should accompany third person singular object (here, Statistics). But online grammar check tells me 'have' should be used.

Can someone throw some light on this? Thanks.


texts: Meaning of "Thank you for entertaining my application"?

texts:
I found this line at the end of an application. What does it mean actually? When to use it?

Thank you for entertaining my application.


texts: Analogous versus analogue: why the extra "o" after the "g"?

texts:
Why does the word analogous have an extra letter o after the g in comparison to the word analogue?

How is their origin related to one another?

According to The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language, 4th edition, analogue has the following origin:

  French, analogous, analogue, from Medieval Latin analogus, from Greek analogos, proportionate; see analogous. (see wordlink.)

And analogous has similar origins:

  From Latin analogus, from Greek analogos, proportionate : ana-, according to; see ana- + logos, proportion; see leg- in Indo-European roots. (see wordlink.)


texts:
I have used “based on” for the entirety of my life until I went to a UK boarding school where 90% of the time I hear my teachers say “based off of” instead.

For example, ”We will give you your final grades based off of your performance over the past 2 years.”

I happen to have an English tutor and I asked him what’s the difference, then he said he hasn’t heard of based followed by “off of” as an alternative to saying “based on”, all his life. He then remarked “based off of” as rubbish and advised me not to use it. Now I am even more confused. Would you guys use “based on” or “based off of”?

Thank you in advance.


texts: "feed aggregator" instead of "feeds aggregator"

texts:
Possible Duplicate:
  Is it correct to say “lesson count” or “lessons count”?

I find it odd that the common expression (see Wikipedia for example) is "feed aggregator" rather than "feeds aggregator". I would find the plural more meaningful with the concept of aggregating :). Does this happen in other English expressions? Why?


texts: Can anyone provide me with a list of English words that are their own antonyms?

texts:
I am looking for a list of all English words that are their own antonyms. Off the top of my head, I can only think of "either", "fast", "to dust" and "to lease", but there must be dozens more. Can you provide a link to a comprehensive list, if such exists?

Also, what are such words most commonly called? I like the term "Janus word" I once heard, but is that widely understood?

Edited by popular demand to make it absolutely clear that this is not a community wiki poll.


texts:
Ok, I know I already asked this stuff but I thought that I should've organized it. So here it goes. By the way, quick shout out to people who answered my original question. I guess it was off-topic but I just wanted answers for something I've been wondering for a while. Also this is my first day on stack exchange. Sorry this is long:
1. Is saying "come on" and "let me" rude. And I mean let me in a way like "let me see that" and "let me have your phone".
2. If it is rude to say commands without please,then why do people do it so often. (And I mean certain commands. Like, ones where please could be added appropriately)
3. Am I the only person who does say let me and come on? Also I don't use imperatives that much. I usually rephrase them to be statements and questions. Is that weird?


texts: Using gerund at the beginning of bullet points: What is more common, better or correct?

texts:
Is it correct or common to use the gerund at the beginning of bullet points? Which of the following examples is more common, better or correct? What are the pros and cons? Can I use the gerund?

Example (with gerund):

Establishing new universities
Strengthening the fight against drugs
Promoting E-learning

Example (with infinitive):

establish new universities
strengthen the fight against drugs
promote E-learning

Example (with noun)

The establishment of new universities
The strengthening of the fight against drugs
The promotion of E-learning


texts: Is there an appropriate parting phrase to someone leaving on bad trip?

texts:
If someone you know is leaving for a vacation it's appropriate to say something like "have a good trip"

A colleague was going on a trip to visit his terminally ill mother. On his last day in the office we talked briefly and I said "well, have a good trip" at the end of our conversation. I quickly realized this was inappropriate because he isn't going there to have a good time.

What would be an appropriate parting phrase in this situation? I wanted to express concern and hope for his mother and at the same time wish him safe travels.


texts: Preferences and reasons for the use of "prey" as a verb instead of "predate"?

texts:
As an entomologist I must write and review manuscripts every day. English is my second language, and luckily the main idiom for scientific writing and discussion.
I am often of two minds about the best choice of verb for conveying "consuming another animal" — either "prey on/upon" or "predate". In fact for a long time I thought the second "latinized" usage was a common mistake.
What do others think, please?


texts: What do you call fake interviews that have been scripted

texts: What do you call those fake interviews which are conducted according to a specific script, perhaps, against your honest beliefs?


texts: Present progressive for "decided" future with no human agency

texts:
The present progressive is very often used to describe future events that are already decided due to fixed plans or arrangements:

I'm getting married next month.
We're getting new furniture for the office.
My friends are coming over tomorrow.

What I'm interested in is the acceptability of the present progressive in sentences where the future is determined, but not due to plans, but rather due to factors beyond human control:

I checked the forecast – it's raining tomorrow.
The license is expiring in two days.
The sun is setting at 4:30 pm tomorrow.

I would appreciate it if native speakers (from both sides of the pond) could write how they feel about each of the above sentences – does it sound awkward? slightly awkward? totally okay? I'd like to get as many opinions as possible.

I've done some research on sentence #3. I've asked two native speakers, and done some research in grammar books and on the Web (including this StackExchange question) – answers have ranged from "totally okay" to "ungrammatical", which is why I was hoping to get some more feedback.

Thank you in advance for your help!

PS. I realize these sentences can be phrased in different ways (e.g. The sun sets at 4:30pm tomorrow. or The sun will set at 4:30pm tomorrow). My question is specifically about the present progressive.


texts: About the usage of "with" in "There are grey goos everywhere, with many consuming the haemocoels of tardigrades"

texts:
Is the sentence below grammatical?

There are a lot of people, with many wearing tuxedos.
There are some cute teenage girls in the club, with many of them being PhD graduates in topological field theory.

I check through my dictionary and don't see a definition of with that makes the above sentence legit.

with wɪð preposition preposition: with

accompanied by (another person or thing). "a nice steak with a bottle of red wine" synonyms:   accompanied by, in the company of,
escorted by "she's gone out with her boyfriend"

having or possessing (something). "a flower-sprigged blouse with a white collar" wearing or carrying. "a small man with thick glasses"

indicating the instrument used to perform an action. "cut the fish with a knife" indicating the material used for a purpose. "fill the
bowl with water"

in opposition to. "a row broke out with another man"

indicating the manner or attitude in which a person does something. "the people shouted with pleasure"

indicating responsibility. "leave it with me"

in relation to. "my father will be angry with me" affected by (a particular fact or condition). "he's in bed with the flu" indicating
the cause of (a condition). "he was trembling with fear" because of
(something) and as it happens. "wisdom comes with age"

employed by. "she's with the Inland Revenue now" using the services of. "I bank with the TSB"

in the same direction as. "marine mammals generally swim with the current"

indicating separation or removal from something. "to part with one's dearest possessions"

cf. ODO

So my questions are:
1] can I use "with" this way?

There are partial differential equations on this paper, with many of them having no real solutions.

2] or with an adjective?

There are deuterium atoms in this jar, with many/some of them ionized.

3] or without "of them"?

There are grey goos everywhere, with many/some consuming the haemocoels of tardigrades.


texts: You're welcome, it's been my pleasure helping you out?

texts:
Is it correct to say:

  You're welcome, it has been my pleasure helping you out!

Or is this more correct:

  You're welcome, it has been my pleasure to help you out!

Or are both fine?


texts: Is there a word to describe someone who disagrees with people just to be different?

texts: I have a friend who always changes their mind depending on what others say just so he can be different and stand out, I've heard someone call it something before (I think I have, anyway) is there a name for this type of behavior?


texts: Should I start democrats and republicans with capital letter or not?

texts:
I am writing an academic text, that deals with American politics.
If I write about party members in congress, should I write about Democrats, Republicans and Independents or about republicans, democrats and independents?

(Those independents here, are not members of an "IndependentParty")


texts: I want to say parking of McDonald's, i.e. using an apostrophe S. Would I say McDonald's's parking?


texts: How come in English we don't put symbols above our letters to change how they are pronounced?

texts:
How come in English we don't put symbols (things) above our letters to change how they are pronounced?

In French for example they have an acute accent ( ´ ) and grave ( ` ) and the cedilla that goes under the "c" and in Spanish they sometimes put ~ over the "n".

Many languages do this so why not English?


texts: What is the meaning of "Pat came the reply"

texts:
I was reading following text from a blog post and I experienced difficulty  understanding the phrase - "Pat came the reply".  I've searched enough (limited to internet search engine) but I didn't find the standard or proper meaning (Suppose, I guess) of this phrase - Pat came the reply.

  Emperor Bahadur Shah Zafar asked him:

  "Mirza, kitne rozey rakhkhey?" ("Mirza, how many days did you fast?")

  Pat came the reply: "Bas huzoor, ek nahin rakhkha" ("Sir, I did not fast for one day")

I've also found the use of the same phrase in a book authored by noted Indian author and journalist Khushwant Singh - K. Singh Best Indian Short Stories-Vol.II.

  'No, bothersome. One can't spit.'

  Pat came the reply from Namu: 'Right
  under the chair. Maaro pichkri!'


texts: What is the difference of lavatory from toilet?

texts:
I was so far in understanding that lavatory and toilet are synonyms. But they are different in the following passage of Jeffery Archer’s “Be careful what you wish for.”

A mastermind of IRA related gangster, MacIntyre give the direction to his underling, Brendan in a newly commissioned luxury liner, which they plan to destroy on its maiden voyage:

  “Can you remember where the public toilet on deck six is? - - It’s on
  the far side of the first–class lounge. And by the way old chap, it’s
  a lavatory, not a toilet, That’s the sort of simple mistake that could
  get me caught out. Don’t forget this ship is typical of English
  society. The upper classes don’t mix with cabin, and the cabin classes
  wouldn’t consider speaking to those in tourist.” - Page 439.

However, COD (10th ed.) defines toilet as “(1) a large bowl for urinating or defecating into typically plumbed into a sewage system,” and lavatory simply as “= a toilet.”

OALED defines toilet as “(1) a large bowl attached to a pipe that you sit on or stand over when you get rid of waste matter from your body, and (2) a room containing a toilet,” and lavatory as “(1) a toilet, or a room with a toilet in it.

Both COD and OALED seem to suggest 'toilet' and 'lavatory' are same.

Is lavatory so different from toilet in actual usage as the character of Jeffery Archer’s fiction, (or Archer himself) recognizes?


texts:
I submitted my paper in a journal and after five months the reviewer replied as follows. I cannot understand him. Would you please let me what is really he means (bold words below).

Words are omitted ('even [if] an intruder', p. 3), misspelled ('asses' instead of 'assess', p. 4), and extraneous ('a multi-objective problem is about to find a vector', p. 6). Some of the carelessness is substantive (e.g., the definition of pareto dominance, p. 7).

In my Paper:

Thank you for your help.


texts: "Passed" vs "past": Usage in an error message

texts:
I wrote code to detect a problem where live video playout of a file had moved beyond the end of the clip on disk.  The clip itself may be growing due to an ongoing recording or a transfer of the file across a network.  The error message described the effect ("displayed black") followed by a helpful hint about the possible reason:  passed media EOF?  I waffled for quite a while between that and past media EOF?  Both are true:  The "play head" has passed the end of the file and it is now past the end.

Ultimately I chose passed because it described the event.  It allows for the fact that the file may grow and then stop again, causing a second occurrence of the message when we pass the EOF once again.  It does cause confusion for people who are dealing with a file that won't grow.  In that case past EOF seems more accurate.

Is one clearly better than the other in this application?


texts: Why does the 3rd-person of verbs that end in -y follow the rule for plural nouns instead of verbs?

texts:
I don’t understand why the 3rd-person of verbs that end in -y such as cry, try, or fly follow the rule for pluralizing nouns like fly. Why do they become cries, tries, and flies instead of crys, trys, and flys? This makes no sense because we are not talking about plurals, or even nouns. Plus, this form is not consistent with the 3rd-person form of other verbs like jump->jumps or eat->eats.

Is there any rational reason for this or is it simply yet another example of arbitrary and inconsistent English grammar?


texts: What is a single word alternative to "whispered"?

texts:
I am looking for a single word alternative to "whispered". I am already using whispering for emotional, scared or caring dialogue and so the odd time when I try to use it for a neutral (unaffected) whisper it still feels to me like the character is being emotional, scarred or caring which gives of the wrong vibe. The closest I have found is "murmur" but that (to me at least) feels too much like "mumble", and "hiss" is usually used for aggressive whispering. Any suggestions at all?
I could go with something like "he/she said softly/gently/quietly etc" but I'm hoping there's a better alternative?


texts:
Looking for a word/phrase to state a situation between like and love. In fact, this is aimed to present a likeliness that is growing to be love.

Basically, how to define a spectrum for the love from the first sight to final stage, e.g. marriage.


texts:
What is the difference between "in which" and plain "which"? Can they be used interchangeably?
For instance what is the difference between these two sentences:

The party in which I attended was fun.

vs

The party which I attended was fun.


texts:
The word hella has spread from the Southern California dialect to the point where most varieties of American English speaker (such as me in the Midwest) know that it exists and hear it used. I always thought that hella meant either very or a lot of, for instance:

(1) Vancouver is hella far.
(2) There were hella cars on the freeway.

The above two sentences (which I both made up) were the only contexts I assumed hella was used in. However, I've recently and very occasionally overheard something like this:

(3) You have to walk hella to get to that subway station.

Which doesn't fit with my understanding of the word. So, question to Californians or others familiar with the hella-using dialect: Is (3), and sentences like it (where hella comes immediately after a verb), common? Are there any other usages for this word that I'm missing?


texts: What does "that" refer to in "Instagram is an online photo-sharing and social networking service that enables..."?

texts:
What does the word "that" in the sentence refer to?

  Instagram is an online photo-sharing and social networking service that enables its users to take pictures, apply digital filters to it...


texts:
Which of the following sentences is natural and common in terms of word order?

"This picture was taken by my uncle last year."

"This picture was taken last year by my uncle."

In English sentences, does the last part of a sentence, such as "by my uncle" in the second sentence, get focal emphasis?

Thanks in advance.


texts: Does using the word "idealist" to self-describe carry an air of arrogance?

texts:
Forgive me if this question is off-topic as POB.  But, I believe there is a language usage/philosophical question here.

My wife and I were having a discussion about politics this evening, and she claimed herself not to be a liberal, but rather an idealist.

My counter to this statement was that calling oneself an idealist carries the presupposition that one's personal preferences are ideal.  And, hence, the term is actually arrogant.

(I realize, that out of context this sounds far more heated than the actual discussion that took place.)

So, in summary, can you describe yourself as an idealist without it being a form of arrogance?  Does the term presuppose that your ideas are, in fact, ideal?  Or does it allow that you would prefer an ideal world regardless of how it comes about?


texts: Meaning of 'charge' as a noun - Jan 8 1799 letter by John Marshall (US)

texts:
[Source] Dear Sir,
  I had the pleasure of receiving your letter of the 30th of Dec’r while Genl Pinckney was at this place and of delivering to him the packet it inclosed. He left us with the ladies of his family on the 4th in health and spirits.

  I thank you for the charge of Judge Addison; ♦ ’tis certainly well written and I wish that as well as some other publications on the same subject could be more generally read. ♦ I believe that no argument can moderate the leaders of the opposition—but it may be possible to make some impression on the mass of the people. For this purpose the charge of Judge Addison seems well calculated. I shall forward it to Mr Washington. [Rest of letter omitted]

  charge = 2. An accusation, typically one formally made against a prisoner brought to trial

My first guess was definition 2 above, but this connotes negativity, which contradicts  the last para above, because the 2nd sentence wherein (that I surrounded with  ♦) approves of Judge Addison's charge. Moreover, if definition 2 above were true, John Marshall probably wouldn't forward it to Mr Washington?


texts: Why is “resolved” used ahead of a question in a debate title, instead of saying “the Subject, topic” or alike?

texts:
I’m now reading a book titled “Competitive Debate – The Official Guide” by Richard E. Edward. In it, there is the following sentence:

The topic for public forum debate are selected by a comitee of the NFL. --- Some public forum topics have been resolutions of fact: “Resolved: The United States is losing the War on Terror.” Some topics have been solution value: “Resolved: The costs of legalized casino gambling in the U.S. outweigh the benefits” “Resolved: The United States should issue guest worker visas to illegal aliens.”

In all of the above examples, for what meaning is “Resolved” used? I gusess “Resolved” means “Question to be resolved.” But I don’t understand why it (Resolve) is used in past participle form, not in noun form, and why not using a word like “the debate subject” “theme”, “issue”,“agenda” or even “Resolution required”?


texts: word: fridges that keep things hot (and not cold)

texts:
What's the word for what looks like a fridge but actually keeps things warm/hot instead of cold?

hot fridge?


texts: is "traveling through highway" correct or traveling by highway correct

texts: which sentence is correct? Traveling "through highway" or "by highway"


texts: What is a better, less vulgar phrase than "take s**t from"?

texts: I'm looking for something better than "take shit".  For example, "The clerk refused to take shit from the enraged customer."  Specifically, I'm looking for something less vulgar.  I looked at the question as f**k, but this is not quite the same, as "shit" is not being used as an intensifier. I thought about using the word "abuse", but that seems more intentional vs. the more random or spontaneous behavior that I tried to convey in my example.


texts:
What does the following phrase generally mean?

  For an old girl, she moves fast. For a saber, you are pretty soft.
  For a guy I barely know, you are really starting to annoy me.

Does the structure [For X, Y] mean Y is typically unusual for X?
For example, old girls are not fast, but for her, it's exception to her.


texts: 'Kilograms' or 'Kilogrammes' -- British English

texts:
Which is correct and what is your evidence?

I would normally write the word 'kilogram' without the extra 'me'. I know that 'kilogramme' has a French origin. However, as far as I can see, this version isn't used in Britain.

I could be wrong and would like to be corrected if there is evidence that the French version is considered standard.


texts: I have noticed increasing confusion with the use of the nominative and accusative forms for the first person singular. Why has this come about? I can only assume that it might be the result of childish talk from my young childhood in the fifties coming home and saying "Me and my friend went...", with the correction of our parents "Don't say me, say I", and that this stuck with some of those children who then went on to be teachers. As if "me" was a universally bad word. More recently it has been linked to the phrases "X and I" and "X and me", as if saying "X and me" is somehow offensive. So we have extremely well-educated professionals who seem to be unable to use the word "me" if it is preceded by another entity. So we hear "he said to Fred and I", for example. But what if Fred wasn't there? "he said to I"? Just imagine the sentence without the other entity. (Fred and) I will go, he said to (Fred and) me.


texts: "take the initiative" vs "make the initiative"

texts:
What is the difference between "taking the initiative" and "making the initiative"?

Context : I recently sent an email asking advice on whether I should "take the initiative to contact X". The person answered "Yes, you should make the initiative".


texts: Which indefinite number is most common in AmE?

texts:
Which indefinite number having the suffix '-illion' is the most common one in American English in colloquial speech?

I don't see how I could possibly arrive at the answer using the Internet. The best I can do as a competent speaker of American English is guess: 'gazillion'.


texts: Why is 'shucks' (as in 'aw, shucks') used with an '-s' ending?

texts:
I understand that 'shucks' is a slang that is:

  used especially to express mild disappointment or embarrassment

and this definition is listed separately from 'shuck' (the verb/noun) in merriam-webster.

Oxford dictionary online  lists 'shucks' under 'shuck' as:

  exclamation

  (shucks) informal

  used to express surprise, regret, irritation, or, in response to praise, self-deprecation: 'Thank you for getting it.' 'Oh, shucks, it was nothing.'

But neither explains why the exclamation must be 'shuck' + 's'. I don't really know if the 's' expresses a plural (from the noun 'shuck') or a 3rd person singular (from the verb 'shuck').

Some online sources like Urban Dictionary says it is

  a combination of f*** and sh*t

which I'm not really believing as I don't really hear people say 'aw f**k sh*ts' -it'd be more like 'f***ing sh*t'.

So, why is there an '-s' ending in this usage?


texts:
When I am solving English tests. I came across with would like in passive voice. So the question is:
Mr. Brown said he'd like...by Wednesday if that's possible
a) have finished the report
b) the report will be finished
c) the report finished
I thought variant B(the report will be finished) is correct because the first part of the sentence indicates future tense. But the answer is C(the report finished). As you see in variant C(the report finished) there is no to be that is required by the passive voice. I didn't understand why it accepted as a correct answer. Could someone explain to me the reason for that?


texts: How to write a pair of pairs without sounding awkward

texts:
I am attempting to write a list of pairs of people, like so: "The pairings are Bob and Jane, Joe and Mary, and Fred and Ashley." This works fine in that the comma lets you know where each pairing is broken up. However, if I only have two pairings, I'm not entirely sure how to phrase that. Both options I can think of look incredibly awkward to me, and I'd like to know which is the preferred way of phrasing it (or if there is another way that I did not mention).

Option 1 is "The pairings are Bob and Jane and Joe and Mary." without a comma, which is hard to parse.

Option 2 is "The pairings are Bob and Jane, and Joe and Mary.", which looks awkward to me because there are only two things in the list, and usually you omit the comma for that.

Any help on this would be much appreciated.


texts: Differences between "how to do something....." and "how do I do something..."

texts:
"how to...." is correct ? or Impolite？
I'm not really make sure What's the difference between the two.


texts: Are there any simple rules for choosing the definite vs. indefinite (vs. none) article?

texts:
I can’t for the life of me figure out where to use a and where to use the — and where there is no article at all. Is there a simple rule of thumb to memorize?

The standard rule you always hear:

  “If a person knows which item you are talking about then use "the"

. . . doesn’t clear things up for me, as I have no idea whether or not they know.


texts: Why is it “Merry” Christmas, but “Happy” New Year?

texts:
Happy Christmas just sounds wrong to my American ear. (I do get that it is customary in England.)  Merry New Year, equally so.  Of the two, Christmas is the younger holiday and yet its greeting seems to be the more archaic.

So, my question is this: how did these greeting wishes get stuck with these holidays, and not the reverse?


texts: My understanding about the non-restrictive use of the relative clause in a partcular sentence

texts:
Almost every chinese who works at an iPhone manifacture in China usually uses a china-produced phone, which is way cheaper.

I just want to make sure if my understanding especially about the non-restrictive use of the relative clause in the sentence above is correct.

What I understand about it is "china-produced phones are generally (or usually or most of the times or all the times) way cheaper than iPhones."

Do I understand correct?
Thank you!


texts: Is "great" used by native speakers to describe calamities any more?

texts: I know that "great" used to be used to indicate "very large" for disasters and other calamities, such as the Great Fire of London, the Great Chicago Fire and the Great War. Is it common for native speakers of English (as opposed to say, the government of Japan in using the term "Great East Japan Earthquake") to use "great" for calamities these days?


texts: What did Kate mean when she said: "(....)? Or did Big Pussy and Meadow miss you too much?"

texts:
In the 2014 film “The Other Woman”, there is an exchange between several characters

  Phil: Who's this?

  Carmela: I'm Carmela,  Kate's decorator.

  Phil: Oh. Really? When did you fire Joel?

  Kate: Joel? No, I didn't.  No, he's, um...  She's doing all of the stuff in the...  on the feng shui in the house.  Remember? Um, we met  in Hong Kong... I told you...

  Carmela: Yeah, we bonded over dim sum and spatial reasoning.

  Phil: Two of my favorite things.

  Carmela: That's so smart and funny. That's really witty.

  Kate: Ha-ha. That's funny.  So, um, this is my brother. Remember?  - And he's a contractor.
  - Oh, a contractor. Oh.
  He's gonna go look at the office while you go...

  Phil: Unless you want to stay...  I mean, you could help me check things out.

  Carmela: I would love to, actually,  but it's kind of a tricky project.  And I don't want to  complicate things, so...  But it was really nice  meeting you, so...

  Phil: Yeah, you, too.  I hope I see you again soon.

  Kate: Carmela? Really?  Did you and Tony have fun living  in Hong Kong? Or did Big Pussy and  Meadow miss you too much?

  Carmela: You know what? You're gonna  thank me for using a fake name. You don't want Phil  mentioning to Mark about your  new friend Carly, do you? No, you don't,  so you are welcome.

What did Kate mean?

Please note: English is not my native language, so the simpler and clearer you can make your explanation, the better


texts:
A couple of math teacher colleagues of mine are discussing two interpretations of the following sentence:

  A number will give the answer 6 when it has been doubled.

The intended interpretation was that "it" refers to "a number" (so that the required number is 3). The alternative interpretation is that "it" also could refer to "6" (so that the number is 12).

To me the sentence structure seems lacking for other reasons (how can a number "give an answer" at all), but I would appreciate your input on whether or not the second interpretation could be considered correct, as this is the way several students seem to have understood it.


texts: Word to describe "A single point of entry"?

texts: If there is not such a single word, the a shorter phrase or more eloquent way to sat it would do.


texts:
I am uncertain as for meaning of at an arm's length in the following sentence. I have taken this example from an online philosophical magazine.

The answer seems clear at an arm's length, but let us trace the
trajectory of the problem as it emerged prior to that opening
question.

In my opinion, at an arm's length means, in this case, something like at first sight, so I would say that when something is or seems clear at an arm's length, that would amount to saying that because something is close to us, we would be able to distinguish it in a clear way. I have, however, consulted on this with a native speaker and he said that for him this expression would mean here that the answer seems clear from a distant viewpoint. In any event, he takes the expression to mean, in this context, something like from a long distance. In my opinion, such meaning would not make sense taking into account what is being said after the preposition but. Certainly the expression at an arm's length is here used metaphorically, but it seems that neither the literal nor the metaphorical sense of this expression could end up meaning something like "from a distant point of view". Or could this be the case?


texts: Series, Franchise and Universe as applied to creative works

texts:
I'm trying to clear up my understanding of the words series, franchise and universe as applied to creative works.

Wikipedia's use of Multimedia Franchise suggests that a franchise can include multiple series and potentially incompatible cannons. This makes franchise a larger unit, but the retail usage tends towards a franchise being a smaller unit, such that a single McDonalds outlet is an instance of the franchise. Neither of these links really address the concept of a creative franchise although the multimedia franchise seems closest.

So, to put it into a few examples. How would the words series, franchise and universe be used to deal with;

Star Wars: Original Trilogy, Prequel Trilogy, Sequel trilogy and various books.
Spiderman: Comics, Sam Rani Films (2000s), Marc Webb films (2010 reboots), 1980s cartoons.
Jurassic Park: Books, Jurassic Park 1-3 (1990s), Jurassic World 1-x, (2010s).


texts: What tense to use for research results/statistics

texts:
My question is similar to this one and this one. However, I think I need further elaboration to understand at what points I am supposed to use present tense, and where to use past tense.

Now, my prior was that present tense should generally be used to present research results. Some examples:

  Overall, value traded of members ranges from 14% to 20% in our sample
  Some members account for up to 34% of total trading
  For members of group A, total trading is estimated at 25%

However, both 1. and 3. would sound better in past tense, I think. Is there a specific rule that I can follow with regard to tense, both in general as with regard to my examples?


texts: What does it mean "Leaping into saddle as she ran"?

texts:
I am reading Andrzej Sapkowski's "The time of contempt". I found the paragraph which I didn't get, here it is:
"She had to be faster than them. She ran to the black horse, who was stamping its hooves on the flagstones and galloped off with a cry, leaping into the saddle as she ran"
Bold part of the sentence I can't understand. As I guess she didn't manage to catch the horse. I would like to know the meaning of last sentence  and reason why is it constructed this way.


texts: How could i express this situation properly

texts:
At past, I thought :
If i go to the cafe at 7 pm, i can meet my friend at there.
But i couldn't meet him.
I want to express the situation at present.
I tried :
"I thought that if i go to the cafe at 7 pm, i can meet my friend at there. But i couldn't meet him."
Is this right? Using both if and thought is very confusing.
Any help will be appreciated.


texts: I would like to know the meaning of this sentence

texts:
"Is this the Golden Gate?"
  "Yes."
  "I had an etching right there of the Capitol before it was finished."
  "Took 85 years to complete it."
  "How long did it take to complete the bridge?"
  "Uh, about four years. It opened a few months after FDR's second inaugural."
  House of Cards Season 2 Episode 10 (transcript)

What I confused is this sentence.
"I had an etching right there of the Capitol before it was finished."
What is the meaning of this sentence?
And does the Capitol took 85 years to be completed?

I will be very grateful if someone explains it to me.
Thank you.


texts: Does the word 'Conscripter' exist and if doesn't what is the alternative?

texts: I recently came across the word 'Conscriptees'(Thanks to Pirates of the Carribbean 4) and looked up the meaning for it and found that it referred to the victim of a 'Conscription' which in turn means compulsory enlistment of people into a national service. But what does the person who does(or maybe orders) the 'Conscription' called? I felt the word 'Conscriptor' would exist for this purpose but a Google search reveals that it refers to a composer, writer or an author ! Then I searched for 'Conscripter' but Google doesn't show any trustworthy results. So does the word 'Conscripter' exist and does it mean the doer of a 'Conscription'? If it does exist and doesn't mean that way or maybe if it doesn't exist at all then what is the best alternative word for it? Thanks in advance!


texts: What is the opposite of “commercial” art?

texts:
What is the opposite of commercial in the context of writing about art? For example:

  The artist created both commercial and  _________ art.


texts: Why was the word "bull" taboo in some dialects of English? What did it mean?

texts:
According to the American Heritage Dictionary in the entry for "critter", the word "bull" was once highly taboo (mainly in Ozarks).

What did it mean?

Why was it taboo?

Does the word still hold the same meaning and strength somewhere?


texts:
I want to describe an inanimate object as being travel worn but am unable to find a suitable replacement.

The intended meaning is to convey something which has been affected by the passage of time, is not completely destroyed but has come out weakened.

E.g. - Two travel-worn statues stood guard by the entrance.


texts: "Information is a distinction that makes a difference" - Donald MacKay

texts:
This quote keeps puzzling me.

I've newly started attending some lectures relating to the linguistic/information and theories of linguists past and present, which is usually followed up by a debate among the participants and the guest-lecturer of the day.

Though I usually enjoy these, the lecturer quoted Gregory Bateson half-way in, saying:

  "The difference that makes a difference"

Which he quickly acknowledged as an extension of Donald MacKay's quote:

  "Information is a distinction that makes a difference".

The problem was that the last quote confused the heck out of me.

What exactly did MacKay mean when he said "information is a distinction that makes a difference", anyway?

Could anyone explain what this quote meant?

An example would also be lovley, but is by no means mandatory.


texts: Do all major occupations ending -man have a gender-neutral option?

texts:
Traditionally, many professions have been known by terms ending in -man, presumably because they have often been overwhelmingly performed by men in the past. There are probably others but ones I can think of off the top of my head include:

Fisherman
Postman
Fireman
Policeman
Ombudsman
Barman
Cameraman
Chairman
Linesman

Which of these have become acceptable to use for both men and women? Which have different, gender-neutral terms which are now widely used? I know that policemen are now more commonly known as police officers but I'm not aware of any gender-neutral options for the others.

I'm primarily asking in a UK context but usage from other countries would be welcome too.


texts: What time are we talking about in “She’ll have bought a new mobile/cellphone yesterday”?

texts:
I encountered this sentence when I was learning another language. I have never used such a sentence in English nor seen one, but it seems it exists.

What idea does this sentence trying to convey? What time should we relate to?


texts: Better phrase for "not throwing good money after bad"

texts:
I have a friend who is shrewd in his business decisions: he often takes a painful step if it is overall cheaper than something that might feel morally satisfying but comes at higher cost.  I want to compliment him on this attribute.

Joe, you are the king of..

not throwing good money after bad.
intelligent tradeoffs.
shrewd decisions.
cutting your losses.

I can't find any words that are artful and pleasing; any suggestions?


texts: What is the historical origin for the naming of the word 'function' in its mathematical context?

texts:
I tried Wikipedia but it doesn't explain why functions are called functions.

The reason why I'm asking is because this word just doesn't make any sense for what it does.

If we were to reinvent all the words that don't make sense, and they become normal in a given culture, communication would be far more efficient and clear.


texts: Moving present participle within sentence

texts:
The latest major stampede occurred in 2006 killing at least 346 and injuring 289 people.

This sentence is a citation from news.I tried to alter the sentence as below.

  The latest major stampede killing at least 346 and injuring 289 people occurred in 2006.

So, what kind of differences can you recognize between these two sentences in terms of both grammar aspect and meaning aspect?


texts: Is "whom" correct in "I speak of him, whom is..."

texts:
Is the following sentence grammatically correct?

I speak of him, whom is one of the best people I've met.

I think that sentence to be grammatically incorrect. I believe it to be as such because you could replace "whom" in that sentence with "and he"; the word "he" in that situation would indicate that you would replace "he" with "who", not "whom". This is why I believe I know the answer to be that it would be "who", not "whom". However, I get confused because of the fact that you could also change the sentence by placing "of" before "whom". In that case, to my knowledge, it would be grammatically correct.


texts: What's the difference between double quotes and single quotes when paraphrasing?

texts:
Not sure the exact name and proper use when someone paraphrases using single quotes (') vs double quotes ("), eg. 'abcd' as opposed to "abcd".

Can someone explain the difference please?


texts: Should I use the "correct" form or the form used in the specification

texts:
I'm writing about a web framework. Integral part of it is its lifecycle. Apparently (as for example my browser tells me), this is not the correct spelling. I should either use life cycle or life-cycle. Google Ngram confirms this. And I also had a look at Life cycle, life-cycle or lifecycle? and When should compound words be written as one word, with hyphens, or with spaces?.

However the specification uses exclusively lifecycle. It may be the short form of some kind of proper name Request Processing Lifecycle. But then again it uses the spelling lifecycle in a different context, like this: "A human readable string describing where this particular JSF application is in the software development lifecycle.". So I'm not sure about the "proper name".

But since the specification uses the spelling lifecycle, and I'm writing partly about the lifecycle defined by this specification, should I also use this spelling? Should I only using this spelling when I'm writing about this specific lifecycle and use life cycle when writing in a different context? Or should I always use life cycle?


texts: What does "rules are not decree or routine so much as the starker demands of what’s possible" mean?

texts:
What does the emphasized part (the sentence in bold) mean?

  The hackers are the technicians of this science - “It’s a term of
  derision and also the ultimate compliment.” They are the ones who
  translate human demands into code that the machines can understand and
  act on. They are legion. Fanatics with a potent new toy. A mobile
  new-found elite, with its own apparat, language and character, its own
  legends and humor. Those magnificent men with their flying machines,
  scouting a leading edge of technology which has an odd softness to it;
  outlaw country, where rules are not decree or routine so much as the
  starker demands of what’s possible.


texts: Is the phrase "fresh six muffins" grammatically correct?

texts:
Possible Duplicate:
  What is the rule for adjective order?

A non-native speaker that I know always puts the count before another adjective, as in "fresh six muffins". "Six fresh muffins" seems to be more grammatically correct.

This sounds so funny. It seems that there is a rule that the number must come before any other adjectives.

Is there a hierarchy of adjectives and rules that determine which ones come first?

Is there any logic to these rules?


texts: What is the best antonym for "friendship"?

texts:
I looked at my co-worker, on the opposite side of a half-wall. He looked at me. I said, in jest, "This is not a wall representing our friendship a wall representing our ______."

  We laughed, knowing that the wall was used to describe or relationship in the same way a half-cup of water in a 1-cup glass is used to describe someone's outlook on life.

What would I use to fill in that blank, which best works as an antonym to friendship?


texts:
What's the difference between "decide on something" and "decide for something"?

For example, which preposition would you use in the following passage?

  After more than a decade of disagreement, residents of Berlin finally decided __ a monument to celebrate German reunification.


texts: "Thirty times weaker": Using a multiplier to describe the lack of something

texts:
I was watching CNN's coverage of the earthquake that struck northern California this morning, and I heard the following exchange between the CNN anchor and a seismologist, Walter Hays:

ANCHOR: This is 6.1 on the Richter scale, that means ... one-tenth the power of the one that struck in '89?
HAYS: No, that's the confusion ... It's nearly thirty times mo—weaker. It's one-thirtieth of the Loma Prieta earthquake.

(Emphasis mine.) As it happens, this touches on a longstanding peeve (and I am perfectly willing to describe it as such) that I have about the use of positive multipliers to describe the lack of something: twice as small, three times colder. In everyday use, of course, this pattern is readily understood as indicating the reciprocal of the opposite quality: something that's thirty times weaker is actually one-thirtieth as strong. It was interesting to hear Mr. Hays catch himself making the mistake, and then correct himself using more formally precise language—something I think a scientist would be more likely to do than a layperson.
So my question is: Is this really a mistake, or is it actually semantically proper/meaningful to use language indicating a positive magnitude to characterize a concept that is defined specifically as a lack of something else? We don't have a problem using ordinary intensifiers and superlatives in such contexts: a thing can be very small or much weaker. It seems intuitive to me that a multiplier should be treated differently from an intensifier, but I can't actually define why that should be the case. What about the reverse: if twice as small is semantically proper, what about half as small (the obvious ambiguity notwithstanding)? Or are these all more properly thought of as physics or mathematics questions, rather than language questions?


texts:
If you want to describe a number that is greater than zero, you would use positive. Is there a similar term for numbers (not necessarily integers) that are greater than one? I.e., this term would be to multiplication as positive is to addition.

For example, I have a box in a figure that says "Antecedent: Factor Greater Than One", but that's a bigger name than most of the antecedents (or consequents) in my figures, so I'd really like it to say something like "Antecedent: Superpositive Factor" where "Superpositive" is a word I made up right now that I hope will never have the meaning I'm attributing to it here.

Plural has been suggested, and that's a really good answer for discrete quantities (such as the number of dogs), but in my particular case the number in question is continuous (a multiplicative factor).

Per request, here are other Antecedent/Consequent names I've used (after the "Antecedent:" or "Consequent:" bit): "Nonnegative Divisor", "Acceptable Error", "In Between Result", "Min Less Than Max" (which is equally as wordy), and "Applies Brake When At Rest" (which is even more wordy). So far, I've eschewed using actual math symbols (such as "> 1"), but I don't really have a solid reason for doing so.


texts: When I write sarcasm, I put it in italic writing, like; what a beautiful sweater. I also do this when writing third person perspective characters like; he's ugly. But what if the character is thinking something sarcastic. Like for example, the character meets someone called John Smith. So then he sarcastically thinks; creative name. Apologies to anyone called John Smith. Anyway, considering thoughts are already in italic, there's not way of showing what's sarcasm. Sure, one can use one's brain, but that's not always reliable, for two reasons. First, opinions are subjective, so one might think that John Smith is a very unique name (statistically it isn't). Secondly, there is autistic readers out there who simply might not get the sarcasm without a clear pointing finger to it. I was not trying to be hurtful back there, I'm just stating the facts. -Not seeing sarcasm and not being good at communication in general are traits of autism. Anyway, back to the question. How to make sarcasm visually clear within already italicized writing? It's a question of writing technicality, I believe.


texts: Is it 'juice', 'bouillon', 'soup' or what?

texts: I've just opened one can of canned corn. Besides corn there is always some liquid inside — just like in case with any other canned vegetable. So what is that liquid? How would you call it? Juice, bouillon, soup?


texts: Using similar meaning verbs in paralel sentences

texts:
Two letters arrived on Monday, and a third arrived on Wednesday.

  Two letters arrived on Monday, and a third came on Wednesday.

  Two letters arrived on Monday and a third on Wednesday.

  Two letters on Monday and a third on Wednesday arrived.

Does adding a different verb, come, in the second independent clause than the verb, arrive, used in the first independent make the whole sentence better ? Because as far as I know using synonyms, if needed, are good for writing or on the contrary does the verb come makes the sentence confusing? I am just trying to develop a style. Id like to ask which one sounds better for a formal writing  like a short story.


texts: To native English speakers, "I'll take it as take out"

texts:
If I order a coffee and want to take it out. (To go..)
The expression "I'll take it as take out." makes sense?
And use that in common?


texts: A sentence without a predicate in the middle of narrative given in past tense

texts:
From William Gibson’s debut 1984 science-fiction novel, Neuromancer:

Crossing the arcade to stand beside her, high on the deal he’d made, he saw her glance up. Gray eyes rimmed with smudged black paintstick. Eyes of some animal pinned in the headlights of an oncoming vehicle.
Their night together stretching into a morning, into tickets at the hoverport and his first trip across the Bay. The rain kept up, falling along Harajuku, beading on her plastic jacket, the children of  Tokyo trooping past the famous boutiques in white loafers and clingwrap capes, until she’d stood with him in the midnight clatter of a pachinko parlor and held his hand like a child.

The whole text before and after that sentence is in past tense. Just want a clarification whether it is just “night that is stretching” or maybe something else that I missed at school. I’m bad with grammar.


texts:
It seems to me that the author should have used a singular pronoun here:

  Bakunin: Universal suffrage by the whole people of
  representatives and rulers of the state — this is the last
  word of the Marxists as well as of the democratic school.
  They are lies behind which lurks the despotism of a
  governing minority, lies all the more dangerous in that
  this minority appears as the expression of the so-called
  people's will.

(Karl Marx, "On Bakunin's Statism and Anarchy" (1874), as quoted in A Darwinian Left, by Peter Singer (1999).)


texts: Is there any phrase or idiom for "impossible to find out about something"?

texts:
In Persian, when we think it is almost impossible to find out about or discover something, we usually say "even a genie wouldn't find it out!" For example:
"They had stashed the drugs where even a genie wouldn't discover!"
Is there anything like that in English?


texts: Source of the expression that sounds like "Jee-hossey-fat"

texts: A refugee American Loyalist, around 1800 or so,  hits his thumb with a hammer and says ''Jee-hossey-fat''  or something like that (my Great Grandfather)   Where does this expression come from please?


texts: Indirect speech for “Was there a chair there at the last lesson”

texts:
Could you please to help me with translating it to indirect speach:

"Was there a chair there at the last lesson?"

This exercise is from "Get your tenses right" by Ronald Barnes, and I have doubts about second "there", what is it, a subject? I think the solution is

"Somebody asked if a chair there was there at the last lesson",

isn't it?


texts: Job requirements. Why do they write words with capital letters within sentences?

texts:
I noticed the capitalization within sentences. For example,

Great experience in Java, Android SDK with core knowledge of Object
Oriented Programming principles and Design Patterns.

Is there a grammar rule explaining the capitalization?
Update #1.
Now we have the following opinions.
@Jim and @Sweet72

They're all proper names of things.
The names of Proper nouns always begin with capital letters. Java, Android SDK, Object Oriented Programming, Design patterns ; all refer to proper nouns

@Xerxes

Neither "object-oriented programming" nor "design patterns" is a proper noun. The author of the piece merely means to emphasize these terms and does not know how to correctly do so.

My opinion
Android SDK and Java are proper names.
Object Oriented Programming, Design Patterns. I think employers just want to place emphasis on these key words. I may be wrong.


texts: A word that means "one is so rash about a political cause that even simple, unrelated things are misinterpreted"?

texts:
There is a connotation here of being a bit overzealous, maybe even unreasonable.

Imagine the person who goes on a rant about environmental saftey when someone says "pass the butter".


texts: Hyphen in physical quantities before nouns?

texts:
In cases where a physical quantity (consisting of a number and a unit) is used like an adjective to describe a property of an object, should it be written with or without a hyphen between the number and the unit?

Examples:

"A 2 kilogram potato" or "A 2-kilogram potato"?
"We use 4 Gbit memory devices" or "We use 4-Gbit memory devices"?

Is one of the forms correct, or are both forms possible?

The second example is supposed to refer to an unspecified number of memory devices with 4 Gbit (gigabits, of capacity) each, rather than four memory devices.

Does any of the following modifications make difference?

The quantity is written as a word instead of digits, i. e. "A two kilogram potato" vs. "A two-kilogram potato" ("two" instead of "2")
The unit is abbreviated rather than written out, i. e. "A 2 kg potato" vs. "A 2-kg potato" ("kg" instead of "kilogram")
The quantity is a decimal fraction, i. e. "A 1.5 kg potato" vs. "A 1.5-kg potato"
The quantity is a simple fraction, i. e. "A 1/2 kg potato" vs. "A 1/2-kg potato"?

Furthermore, would it ever be correct to use a hyphen in a case like "This potato has a weight of 2-kg" (or "2-kilograms")?

An answer to this question (which discusses a different case) states that when there is no ambiguity, hyphens may be omitted. Does that statement apply to this case?

Note that this case is different from the case where an ajdective is explicitly given (another example).


texts: can "happy" bells toll: Say wedding bells? or does "toll" have an ominous connotation, suggesting doom, funerals, death, etc.? : "For Whom the Bells Toll", etc.


texts:
I am an elderly Australian teaching translation from Chinese and Korean to English at an Australian university. A Korean student's translation read:

  There have [sic?] been much response to ...

When I suggested that he should have written something more like There has not been much of a response ... (though my own translation was The response has been considerable), my students protested that a model translation prepared by a previous Canadian lecturer read:

  There has been considerable response ...

I beat a strategic retreat and said I would look into the question. Considerable is a flexible word that can qualify countable and uncountable nouns, so its use does not appear to be decisive.

But the Canadian teacher's omission of an article indicates that he thought response could be uncountable; so I am beginning to think that North American differs from British English (which I usually use) in this respect. Perhaps this tells us something about the development of English.


texts: Differences between "output of" and "output from"?

texts:
Is there any rule as to when to use "the output of..." or "the output from..."? Is it one more formal than the other?

Thanks


texts: Use of “yes” and “no” in answering questions worded in the negative

texts: In studying other languages (Korean at the moment) the use of “yes” and “no” when answering questions that are worded in the negative seems to be opposite English (at least American English) style. In Korean, the Question “You haven’t eaten yet?” Would be answered “Yes, I haven’t eaten yet.” While in English it would be answered “No, I haven’t eaten yet.” What are the English grammar rules for answering questions worded in the negative?


texts: "He had me do this" vs "He had me doing this" vs "He had my doing this"

texts:
I know this example sounds awkward, but it’s obviously grammatically incorrect to say "me being here" in sentences like this one:

He said me being here was wonderful.

That instance of me being should be my being because we need to use being as a gerund phrase so that it can be the subject of the verb was and so conform to the grammatical structure of Subject–Verb≠Complement.

But what about in this second example?

If he had my doing (of) this from the beginning, we would have succeeded.

Because if you say it this way:

If he had me do this from the beginning, we would have succeeded.

Now there seems to be a conflict of had and do because both are verbs. Can someone explain, please?

Here is the  NY Times grammar example: the After Deadline blog posting of 2012-05-29:

  Aurélie Filipetti, 38, a novelist and a legislator, was named culture minister. She had made public an account of being groped by Dominique Strauss-Kahn, the man whom many thought would be the Socialist candidate.

They say it should be who and not whom because the example here is that it's ultimately the verb being done by the subject that counts, not the "many thought" part (seems the verb gives priority to the subject rather than the other way around).