texts:
I'm writing an automobile website and some of my paragraphs contain the word "only".

I understand the following. As far as I'm aware, this is right:

  Only the Volkswagen Polo, Golf, Passat, Passat CC and Sharan are available in this country.

This, as far as I am aware means that those Volkswagen vehicles are available, and no other.

This is where I'm having my problem, in the following articles:

  The Subaru Legacy was launched recently here. Sold as a sedan or wagon, it is only available with 2.0-litre/148bhp and 2.5-litre/165bhp 4-cylinder petrol engines, for now. The 3.6-litre/256bhp petrol and 2.0-litre/148bhp turbodiesel may arrive in mid-2011.

However, if I rearrange it as such:

  The Subaru Legacy was launched recently here. Sold as a sedan or wagon, it is available only with 2.0-litre/148bhp and 2.5-litre/165bhp 4-cylinder petrol engines, for now. The 3.6-litre/256bhp petrol and 2.0-litre/148bhp turbodiesel may arrive in mid-2011.

or as:

  The Subaru Legacy was launched recently here. Sold as a sedan or wagon, it is available with 2.0-litre/148bhp and 2.5-litre/165bhp 4-cylinder petrol engines only, for now. The 3.6-litre/256bhp petrol and 2.0-litre/148bhp turbodiesel may arrive in mid-2011.

Here's another similar article from my website I'm developing:

  Toyota have facelifted the Corolla recently here. It is available in three body styles, a five-door hatchback, a four-door sedan and a station wagon. There are two engines available: a 1.3-litre/85bhp and a 1.6-litre/109bhp 4-cylinder petrol.
  The hatchback model comes in four versions - GL, GLi, GLX and Executive.
  The sedan variant can be specified in GLi and GLX. Only the sedan version gets the
  1.6-litre/124bhp and 1.8-litre/132bhp engines.  The Station wagon model line-up mirrors that of the hatchback, except the Executive version is unavailable.

As I understand it, that means one version, no others.

But if I changed it to these, what would it mean:

  Toyota have facelifted the Corolla recently here. It is available in three body styles, a five-door hatchback, a four-door sedan and a station wagon. There are two engines available: a 1.3-litre/85bhp and a 1.6-litre/109bhp 4-cylinder petrol.
  The hatchback model comes in four versions - GL, GLi, GLX and Executive.
  The sedan variant can be specified in GLi and GLX. The sedan version gets the
  1.6-litre/124bhp and 1.8-litre/132bhp engines only.  The Station wagon model line-up mirrors that of the hatchback, except the Executive version is unavailable.

If I understand it correctly, only at the end of a sentence should be used carefully.

Also, the following:

  Toyota have facelifted the Corolla recently here. It is available in three body styles, a five-door hatchback, a four-door sedan and a station wagon. There are two engines available: a 1.3-litre/85bhp and a 1.6-litre/109bhp 4-cylinder petrol.
  The hatchback model comes in four versions - GL, GLi, GLX and Executive.
  The sedan variant can be specified in GLi and GLX. The sedan version only gets the
  1.6-litre/124bhp and 1.8-litre/132bhp engines.  The Station wagon model line-up mirrors that of the hatchback, except the Executive version is unavailable.

Apologies if this is very wordy, I'm trying to ensure factual accuracy with my grammar!
The use of the word "only" and word-order sometimes proves problematic for me.


texts: Is "I am running" or "I run" grammatical to say while running?

texts:
Please check this video.
I understood for performative verbs, if we are doing something and, at the same time, we are saying it, we don't need to use the present continuous tense. I am not sure I have it right.
For example, when I say, "I promise to do my homework," I am making the promise as I say this.
However, "promise" is not a stative verb, so we could say, "He is promising to do his homework."
Some sites say these are performative verbs, e.g. accept, acknowledge, advise, apologise, and warn, etc.
This site says,

Performative verbs: when you say a word you do the action the word
describes
There is a group of verbs called "performative verbs". When you say
these words, you actually do the action of the verb. If I say, "I
apologise", by saying "apologise", I make my apology.
Compare this to a word like "run". If I say, "I run in the morning",
then "run" just represents an action. Actually running is a different
action. I cannot run just by saying "run".

What if I was running and saying, "I run," at the same time?
My Question
Does the performative principle apply to other verbs, such as "run" or "eat"?
Would the utterance, "I run," be grammatical if I was running while saying it?


texts:
Is this sentence correct?

If an employee experiences an ethical dilemma, they can request a reassignment.

Is it correct to use 'they' when talking about 'an employee'? Or should the subject be plural?


texts: quoting and punctuating a quote within parentheses

texts:
How do I make sure to punctuate my quotes within parentheses correctly?  For example:

  Joe did not demonstrate insight into how he might alter his behavior to improve his social interactions (e.g., “I don’t know what I did . . . they just don’t play with me!”).

Is the e.g. correct?  What about the ellipsis?

And is having the exclamation inside the quote and inside the parentheses all correct?


texts: Is the phrase 'not bad an attempt' correct grammatically?

texts:
A friend asked me the other day if the phrase 'not bad an attempt' is correct grammatically or not. It seems correct to me, but a bit strange at the same time. Could someone shed some light on this?

This is my first time asking a question here, so please bear with me.


texts: Is there a term for a person who loves to adventure but thrives in routine?

texts: Is there a word or term or phrase (in any language) that describes a person who has a lot of grand ideas for their life but doesn't actually do any of them? Something like a daydreamer, or a dreamer, or an uninhibited person, or a free-spirit?


texts: How to best convey excitement for the next assignment, quarter, or project?

texts:
I’ve just received feedback on my work during the second quarter of the year (Q2) from my manager. I would like to reply to this feedback and end my reply with a sentence along the lines of"

  Looking forward to a ____ Q3!

In my native language, one could use our word corresponding to the English word fruitful.  But I don’t know whether fruitful would be ok to use in English, nor whether some better yet still professional way for expressing cheerful excitement about the next quarter exists.

I imagine I could also change the formula to something like:

  Looking forward to a Q3 full of ____.

or use a similar construction.

How can I convey my excitement about an upcoming assignment in a professional way?


texts:
I am translating some text to English from Russian Wikipedia, and sometimes there are quite long sentences. It is ok to have long sentences with several subordinate and participle clauses in Russian. But does a sentence like this look normal in English? Does it make sense?

  Before the appearance of Europeans, the area where Miami is situated was inhabited by Indian tribes, living on most of the southeastern peninsula, including the territories of modern counties Miami-Dade, Broward and south of Palm Beach County.


texts: Why didn't you tell me you spoke or speak English?

texts:
I watched an interview and an interviewer was surprised that a guy who was interviewed by him can speak English and he said

  Why did't you tell me you spoke English ?

Why did he use the past tense? Because he still can speak English.
I think it should be

  Why did't you tell me you speak English.


texts: Single Word Request : Flittering around a shop without buying anything?

texts:
Is there any one word that refers specifically to roaming around a shop, looking and stuff and so on without buying anything ?

I wish to use it in the context of a person fingering the items a roadside stall possesses to stall answering a question.

While the most likely term to be offered would be Window - Shopping, I wish for a word that has a more old - world feeling where the person is toying with the objects, more or less out 0of boredom.

If no word is precisely available, could you kindly provide me with etymologies allowing the creation of a new, pseudo - word ?


texts:
I know "any" is used only in plural (questions or negation) or for uncountable nouns OR if it expresses "whichever"/"every.
But what about this?

Is there any document describing that? //can I use it? I am not asking for one particular..I want to express that I need any document describing something


texts:
On the website we have two account types. One is car expert account and another is just a basic account. Website purpose is to have professionals share their experience with non professionals.

Accounts have different privileges. We assume that newly registered users don't lie to us. When user logins first time, we ask what type account is more suitable for him. Showing two buttons:

|I'm car expert| ---------- |I'm just curious|*

Is it good to have I'm just curious as an option for basic user account? Or maybe there are more elegant ways to describe not a pro account, without official language, and still be cool and not boring?:)

To make this question not opinion-based, could you please tell me what is correct to use in this situation.
Examples:

Please enlighten me

I'm looking for better insights (is it correct to use plural?)


texts: How to list books in an essay (in-text)?

texts: I would like to list in an essay three books that I read. I do not know how to do so in text.


texts: What do you call an area enclosed by apartment complex structures? Is it a courtyard?

texts:
Please take a look at the picture above. This is an inside area surrounded by apartment complex buildings. It contains parking space for the residents and a playground for kids.
What would be the proper name for this area? The best I could come up with so far is courtyard, or inside courtyard.
Sentences I'd like this to fit in:

Kids are playing in the _______ .
Where did you park the car? In the ________ .

Any help is very appreciated.
EDIT: The reason for a single word is I'm struggling with a Russian sentence, and they have a concise word for just such a thing. It's called dvor (literally "yard"), but its meaning encompasses what you see in the picture above.
This "dvor" is a colloquial term, not an official designation.
Edit #2: Thank you all for insightful answers. While I do not feel there's a single word that works as a perfect equivalent for "dvor", I'm going to accept "communal" (as in "communal parking lot" or "communal playground"), because this seems to capture Russian/Soviet mentality better, and was most useful to me in this specific instance.


texts:
I have to say I have an issue with the phrase "as best I can". After all, "best" is the superlative form of "well" and does not belong in the comparative construction "as... as" - not to mention that the second "as", for some reason, is nowhere to be found.
This, in my view, is akin to saying: "I would be glad to help you as most I can" instead of "as much as I can" ("most" being the superlative form of "much").
Is this simply a widespread error (much like the now-ubiquitous and "the reason... is because") or has it become an idiom - and if so, when did this happen?
The easy way out, of course, is to avoid the construction entirely - which is what I usually find myself doing - but I was wondering if anybody out there had similar qualms about using this phrase.


texts:
According to the SI rules for percentages (http://www.bipm.org/en/publications/si-brochure/) the value should always be separated from the % sign by a space; however, when writing text it always seems a little odd to include the space and I very rarely see it written that way.

My salary increased by 56 % last week.
My salary increased by 56% last week.

Is there a different rule for written English?


texts:
What is the difference (if any) between:

Next week, a computer trainer will be here to answer any questions you may have.

and

Next week, (...) to respond to any questions (...).


texts: What is the correct punctuation/grammar for this sentence?

texts:
Is this sentence correct punctuationally:

  Anyone who has tried it at least once, knows that...

Also, I googled it to find exact matches, but got only 4 results.

Here's the context:

It's hard to do it fast. Anyone who has tried it at least once, know that it's a complex task that requires a lot of focus...

So, how to convey this idea properly, with correct grammar and punctuation?


texts: A noun or an adjective to indicate a person with low ego, to the level of being detrimental to him/her

texts:
An inflated ego is not a highly appreciated attribute in a person, so much so that s/he might be annoying or disliked no matter if it's case of egotism or egoism.

However, an overly deflated ego can also be detrimental to one's success or psychological well-being, especially in modern day society where it's often important to stick out from the crowd and show yourself in the best possible light.

Is there a word, noun or adjective, that describes a person who's ego is so low that it might be detrimental for his/her own best? Please note that I am not referring to low self-esteem, or being insecure.

Speaking of low ego, the word humility comes to mind, but to my ears, it's a positive attribute so I don't think it captures the idea entirely.


texts: Can infinitive be moved in a "It is ... that" sentence?

texts:
For example,

He planned to go to Rome to study Italian.

→ It was to go to Rome to study Italian that he planned.


texts: Phrase / expression/ word for a smell that stimulates an emotion

texts:
I am looking for a word (in any language) for a smell that stimulates an emotion or brings back memories.

For instance, when I smell cinnamon, I get a happy feeling - and it reminds me of Christmas.

I am aware of terms such as olfactory, nostalgia, redolent and Proustian (which is more related to taste than to smell), but are there any others?

I would quite love a word that has a deep meaning if possible - such as Meraki: The soul and creativity put into something :) Thought i'd give it a go :)


texts: Why does "writes" take "to" but "reads" not take "to"?

texts: I hope this is the right sub, but I was wondering what the technical difference is between words such as "write", which take the particle "to" when involved with a grammatical object, and "read", which does not, in terms of both the formal categorical differences between the two words and the semantic differences which produce them.


texts: Can the word "mither" be used as a noun?

texts:
Can the word mither - a regional word that I have come across more and more recently - be used as a noun?

I understand that it isn't listed as a noun in dictionaries, but my husband uses it as a noun and I am trying to make sure that it grammatical features allow that.

Added from comments:

I have looked at 'mithering' which means to bother. The context that it is used in my region is

  'you'll be in mither if you do not stop what you're doing'.

I have seen the definition for mother and the OED lists a few senses such as the one mentioned. Some are adjectives, transitives etc. The sense that I'm using it in seems to be a noun, does it?

@MartinSmith offered this example:

  Steven Gerrard trial: what does 'mither' mean?

  Steven Gerrard told the court he had suffered "a lot of mither" during his career as a professional footballer, meaning he is frequently bothered by others.

(From The Telegraph, 24 July 2009)

OP: The Steven Gerrard example is the same context as I am using it. He is from Liverpool and I'm just down the road in Manchester.


texts: Do astute and acute have identical meaning and usage?

texts:
Do astute and acute have identical meaning ( - quick or shrewd) and usage?
Thanks.

EDIT: From the comments below there appears to be significant disagreement about usage and a discussion seems worthwhile.


texts:
I have a sentence fragment I must make into a sentence:

  Late August at the Los Angeles Zoo.

I use this sentence to begin a story. I really do not want to use “it is” though, because “it is” does not add new meaning. Any ideas?


texts:
In a previous question here What is the proper way to write the plural of a single letter? (another apostrophe question) someone asked what the plural of a letter is. The answer given was for uppercase letters use a lower case S with no apostrophe, but for lower case letters use an apostrophe for clarification.

What about when using the letter S? In either case, having Ss or s's looks odd. Would the plural be Ses or S's?

And when using uppercase letters that can become a word, such as Is and As, is no apostrophe okay or should an apostrophe be added for clarification?

This may be marked as duplicate for Plural of an initialism that ends with the letter S or similar questions concerning acronyms ending in S, but I believe this is different because I am asking about the letter itself, not an acronym.


texts: Is there a word for "map illiteracy" or "geographic illiteracy"?

texts:
I once read about the inability to locate a country in a world map, make any sense of a world map or the utter ignorance regarding geography, but I cannot find the resource again.

I know there's an specific English word for that condition which is to maps what illiteracy is to books. I remember it being a single word, Latin/Greek derived term, much like "agraphia" ( the inability to write ). I remember it has the "a" negative prefix.

Can anyone shed some light on it?


texts: Different usages of accommodation vs accommodating vs accommodate

texts: I have learned English for years. But I have not been good at distinguishing how different is the use of accommodation, accommodating and accommodate. This is an example. I mean in this question that when do we you -ing form of a verb, when do we you noun form (i.e. -tion etc.) of a verb, when do we use its infinitive?


texts:
which one is correct?

An evaluation of the Cronicle interface suggests that Cronicle helped the participants to find data accurately.

or

An evaluation of the Cronicle interface suggests that Cronicle helped the participants find data accurately.


texts:
I'm trying to define a goal for my scientific journal paper. What is the proper use of English language and grammar here? Does it make sense in its current form?

  We are running a study towards design of an adaptive framework for energy-efficient streaming of video segments to mobile devices over wireless networks, which is aimed to be integrated [or aiming to integrate] into DASH.


texts:
What's the difference between 'someway' and 'somehow'?

When I translate to my language (portuguese) on google translator, they translate the same. And on google I found only music lyrics.


texts: Word's meaning in a particular (provided) context?

texts:
What does a girl say at 0:14 in this video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i31s8F0fkCw  ?

1.He's got extra ???? Bits? Pits? Either one, what does it mean? If I'm not mistaken bits can be a reference to human genitals. If that's the case here, what does it mean? He's got both male's and female's ones?

2.What's the guy's last (and overall last) phrase in that video?

Thanks!
Anthony.


texts: Is “within a nose-hair of (a position / status)” a common idiom?

texts:
I was drawn to the phrase, “a man now within a nose-hair of the presidency" in the article that came under the title, “Fat-Shamer in Chief” in New York Times September 30 issue that begins with the following passage:

  “Apparently, millions of Americans don’t care that a man now within a
  nose-hair of the presidency may be the most prolific liar in modern
  political history. Nor do they care about the authoritarian policies
  he espouses, his truly scary embrace of dictators abroad and crackpots
  at home, or his monumental ignorance on every subject.”

I surmise the phrase, “a nose-hair” means a close distance, and “a man now within a nose-hair of the presidency” means “a man who is now very close to the presidency," however, I’m not able to find the usage of “within a nose-hair of (a status / position by distance) “ in English
dictionaries at hand, nor on line. Googling gave me only “nose hairs” as a noun and a picture of nose hair cutter.

In Japanese, we say “目と鼻の先 – the distance between one’s eyes and nose” to describe a very close distance.

Is it common to use “within a nose-hair of” in such was as “a man now within a nose-hair of the presidency”?


texts:
If a question is asked in surprise, informally many people use "?!" as their ending punctuation, as in the following:

  What did you do to my sausages?!

According to the accepted answer in this question, this is considered incorrect by experts. In that case, which punctuation ought to be omitted and which used?

  What did you do to my sausages!

Seems incorrect, as the question is no longer punctuated by a question mark, but

  What did you do to my sausages?

loses the punch of the exclamation mark and thus requires extra words to get the point across.


texts: A more serious version of 'no-holds-barred'

texts:
The phrase 'no-holds-barred' implies a fight, conflict or battle without any rules, but is relatively modern and comes from wrestling, giving it a friendly feel.

What is the name for a fight where one or more of the combatants will do anything to win? (not necessarily but including killing).

A prime example of this is when a character is trying to escape/kill the villain in a horror movie - nothing they do to fight back would be considered 'too far' (although in the movies they will usually panic instead of fighting with full force).

Fight/brawl/punch-up implies or belies some level of decorum (for example no biting, no eye-gouging, no false surrendering, no gratuitous use of 'unchivalrous' weapons).

war/conflict/battle implies some wider scope that may not be present.


texts: The act of talking to somebody about the same thing over and over

texts:
What do I say for somebody keeps bringing up and talking into somebody's ear about the same topic again and again till he is fed up and finally agrees to it?

Example: Mary's been [word or idiom] to John till he finally bought it for her.


texts: Is "you ate?" an acceptable form to ask the question in spoken/informal English?

texts:
I've been a part of the discussion on whether it's acceptable to ask someone "You ate?" when meaning to ask "Did you eat?" or "Have you eaten?" and we can't find a definitive answer. We've found some examples of similar ellipses omitting "to do/to have", but they all use present tense, not past tense which can be important.

The question was meant to be asked without prior context and to be a complete sentence, like Mary coming up to John and asking "You ate?"

It doesn't sound right to my ear, but it may just be my own quirks talking.


texts: What's the difference between "buy up" "buy down" "buy" and "purchase"

texts:
What's the different between:

Buy up
buy down
purchase
buy

When they're all supposed to mean "to pay money"?


texts:
Is "ultimated" a valid word?

For example:

  Range requests were originally proposed by Ari Luotonen and John Franks, using an extension to the URL syntax instead of a separate header field. However, this approach proved less general than the approach ultimated used in HTTP/1.1, especially with respect to conditional requests. (source)


texts: What does "...considered to be, well, school" mean here? Does "..., well, ..." change it's meaning?

texts:
In Time magazine (March 5) article titled, “The New SAT: America treats its language like garbage,” John McWhorter, an associate professor of English and comparative literature at Columbia University rebuts former University of California president Richard Atkinson’s speech to support exclusion of big words from SAT as follows:

  “(In his 2001 speech) He described seeing schoolchildren studying
  verbal analogies such as “untruthful is to mendaciousness is as
  circumspect is to caution” in preparation for the SAT. Atkinson’s
  implication was that this was as depressing a sight as the kids being
  taught alchemy. But there was a time when what Atkinson saw was
  considered to be, well, school.”

  http://time.com/14135/sat-vocabulary-big-words-english-language/

I am unfamiliar with the usage of “school” used in this manner.
For instance, OED carries 5 different ways of definitions of ‘school’ as a noun including

An institution for educating children:
The buildings used by a school:
The pupils and staff of a school:
A style, approach, or method of a specified character:
A group of people, particularly writers, artists, or philosophers, sharing similar ideas or methods:

But none of the above definitions seems to be applicable to the line, "there was a time when what Atkinson saw was considered to be school.”

I doubt if the writer was confident of the use of ‘school’ in this context as he injected “well” before ‘school.”

What does ‘school” mean in the above quote? Does the word, ‘school’ have the meaning of “main school / stream"?


texts: Is there a word that covers listening to a song, watching a show, playing a game, etc?

texts:
I'm working on a site and I need a word that covers when "a user has ____ a movie, song, or book."

Another example would be "these are all the songs, movies, shows, etc. you have ____."

The types include songs, shows, movies, books and games.

For shows and movies there's watched; books, read;
games, played.


texts:
I usually say multiplex for a cinema with more screens. What word can I use to refer to a cinema with a single screen? Monoplex? Singleplex?

Is there a word other than single-screen to describe a cinema like that?


texts:
I have to write a 24-line poem in Dactylic Hexameter.  I looked up what dactyl meant, and I got this answer on wiki:

  ...a dactyl is a long syllable followed by two short syllables...

What is the difference between a long syllable and a short one?


texts: A word for someone/something that is hopeless and 'incurable'

texts:
I am looking for a word to describe something/someone that is inevitably going to collapse or die and there is no hope in sight to change that fact.
An example:

  Yahoo is___anyway, no one could save it.

Edit: The closest word I can find is 'doomed', is that a idiomatic word to describe that situation?


texts: Word to describe pets that can be uncomfortable to live with?

texts:
I cannot figure out how to word this.
I'm creating a rental system and have a question with regard to pets contained within a residence. But there are different types of pets.

For example, a dog who eats everything and 'litters' the backyard is very different from a turtle in a glass box.

Is there a way to differentiate between the two?
I can only think of Uncaged pets but it's not really the right way to explain it.


texts: Term for a person who conducts practice lessons

texts:
Is there a word in English for a person who conducts practice lessons in a university?

In Russia, we call these kinds of lessons "семинар", and people who conduct them "семинарист". Unfortunately, the English words "seminarian" and "seminarist" have  different meanings (as I understand, they are connected with study of theology, not with study in general).


texts:
I am looking for a word that expresses the meaning of the phrase "temporarily defeated" in a mild manner. This is to be applied on someone whose bid got displaced by a higher bidder in an auction that has not yet ended.

The <temporarily defeated> bidder...


texts: What does "to bite into something" mean?

texts: The sentence I've met is "She bit into the sushi." Can anybody tell me, what does "bite into something" mean? What is the difference between "bite something " and "bite into something."?


texts: Is "one" always a quantity if not a pronoun?

texts:
In medical transcription we are required to type all numbers as digits (unless beginning a sentence). Some phrases include the word "one," such as, "I will get around to it 1 of these days," "...on multiple occasions.  The most recent 1...," "At 1 point..."

Is "one" in these examples a true quantity?

It just feels like it should be spelled out, but in discussing this with others, I could not come up with any rules to back up my instinct.  In the common phrase, such as "one of these days," the whole phrase can be replaced with something else, like, "eventually."  In the second example, the word behaves like a pronoun, where "one" replaces "occasion."  "At one point," could be changed without changing the meaning to "at some point."  Is my point valid?

Medical transcriptionists by nature tend to be picky about wording, so I imagine there are others that would be interested in this answer.


texts: Do I need to capitalize "modernism" or "modernist"?


texts: Why is "a couple of " often shortened to "a couple "?

texts:
I would write a couple of . I often read/hear a couple .

I assumed this was an American English thing (I'm British), and just a convenient shortening of the phrase for speaking. It's easier to say a couple minutes vs a couple of minutes.

On a side note, this doesn't seem to restrict the number of things to two, but just a small amount–less than a few, in my mind.


texts: To wholeheartedly commit to something and disregard everything but your focus

texts:
What are English idioms or phrases that mean "to take your brain out and throw yourself at whatever obstacle/task/challenge etc. is in front of you", or similarly to stride forward relentlessly.

For example

The small goblin ran ___________ to catch up with the larger, faster ogre.

The pro longboarder gunned it _____________ down that mountain.

When I am inspired to start a project, I rush through it ____________.

What is the actual phrase I am trying to find?


texts: Pronunciation difference between "collar" and "color"

texts: What is the pronunciation difference between collar and color? Can a native speaker tell them apart?


texts: What would you call a person who does not understand who is his/her well wisher and who is their Ill-wisher?

texts: What would you call a person with poor judgement who does not understand who is his/her well wisher and who is their Ill-wisher?


texts:
What's a word that describes "to prey on someone's guilt".

Example:

So say, someone accidentally gets their friend killed and they are feeling guilty for the act. Then someone comes and convinces him to kill himself to further their own means.


texts: If X is a substitute, how do you call what is being substituted?

texts:
Let's say we have an event: X is substituted with Y.
To describe this event, I can refer to Y as the 'substitute'. Is there any term for 'X'?

I tried my best answering this on my own, but googling this question turns out to be hard.


texts:
Is this sentence right?

  Xs need to be at least as much as skilled as Ys.

If not what should it be?


texts:
Are "may" and "might" synonyms? They appear to be interchangeable.

What are the infinitives for these two words?

My guess is that "might" is cognate with the German "mögen" (an infinitive). Ich möchte gehen can be translated as would like to go. There is no infinitive in English, though there may have been in the original Anglo-Saxon where it could have meant "to want".


texts: A word/phrase to mean 'Beauty is in the eye of the beholder' without sounding old school/erudite/pretentious

texts:
To tell someone you don't agree with their view on what is good looking in a light-hearted way.

For instance, you visit a very skilled tattoo artist but his view on what looks good is not the same as you. What is a better way to say 'beauty is in the eye of the beholder' or 'beauty is subjective'?

 I trust your professionalism and skill but  fill_in_the_blank_here.

What about using aesthetic view?

  I trust your professionalism and skill but we don't share the same
  aesthetic view?

I'm thinking if aesthetic eyes is appropriate?

  I trust your professionalism and skill but not so on your aesthetic eyes


texts: If I mention that someone is not good looking once you see them up close, does that make them “deceptively attractive” or “deceptively unattractive?”  My friend and I are having a discussion about language syntax and this came up.


texts: Where does this translation of Saint-Exupery's quote on design come from?

texts:
A very well-known aphorism from Antoine de Saint-Exupéry is

  Il semble que la perfection soit atteinte non quand il n'y a plus rien à ajouter, mais quand il n'y a plus rien à retrancher.
  (Terre des Hommes, 1939).

The canonical English translation is

  ...perfection is finally attained not when there is no longer anything to add, but when there is no longer anything to take away... (translation by Lewis Galantière).

If this were prefaced by the words "It seems that", it would be a literal translation from the French.  Unfortunately I don't have a better source than wikiquote to see if Galantière's version includes those words.

However, the quote in English seems to be most common in the active voice:
A designer knows he has achieved perfection not when there is nothing left to add, but when there is nothing left to take away (Google)

When did this version of the quote originate, and am I correct that this version is more recognizable in English? It seems "better" and more powerful to me, but it does change the sense of the original.


texts: what should be last few sentences requesting an editor to publish your article?

texts:
i request you to publish my article.
or
would you kindly publish my article to your esteemed daily.
or
it will be good if you publish my article.
 ( suggestions please, this is for my examination to ' letter to the editor' section)


texts:
Is it linguistically incorrect to singularise the word "dregs", as in the following example:

  He finished off every last dreg of his
  coffee.

If so, are there any other English words which can only exist in plural form?


texts: Meaning of expression "What you say is not congruent"

texts: From what I can google up, congruency can have different meanings? Is this as response in a dicussion to say "I do not believe you?"


texts: "Everything will be fine" vs "everything is going to be fine"

texts:
Example sentences:

  Everything will be fine as long as we are together.

  Everything is going to be fine as long as we are together.

Are both expressions the same? Or they have subtle differences?


texts: An era of intelligent machines where vs an era of intelligent machines when

texts:
I'm writing a essay and I haven't really studied or have had to use proper grammar in years now. For the following sentence:

We are now in a era of intelligent machines where Amazon has drones and Google has driverless cars....

Is the where correct? Or is it "when"? I think it is where, the where sounds much better. But technically era is a time, not a place? Should there be a comma after the where?


texts: Correct word choice for "get a new subset from set"

texts:
I am trying to choose a title.
I have a big data set and I will get subsets of this data set using statistical techniques (random sampling etc.).

Which one of the following is correct? If more than one is suitable, is there a nuance between them?

create subset data sets
construct subset data sets
get new subset data set

I am not a native speaker; therefore if all of them are wrong, I am open to suggestions.


texts: I will or I would have left by this time tomorrow?

texts:
Possible Duplicate:
  “Will have” vs. “Would have”

I read somewhere that it is "I will". Which rule is this? Where can I find these rules for tenses?


texts:
I have read exchanges such as the following being described as Irony:

  A: "I'm going they're now" B: "It's "there". Your such an idiot"

However I'm a bit at a loss whether it could be described as an irony or not, since it's hardly the opposite of what is intended to happen.

What word could be best used in this context instead? I was thinking hypocritical, but that doesn't fit very well either (since there's no real intention of making the mistake).


texts: "I have been there first time": Does this sentence sound awkward?

texts:
I have been there first time.

The reason why I think this might not be natural is that the expression "first time" seems to describe "past". You do not use the present perfect with an adverb indicating "past", in my understanding.

However, I feel the phrase below is not that funny.

  This is the first time that I have been there.

I am wondering about the relationship between "the first time" and "I have been there". "That" could behave like a relative adverb. If that is the case, the antecedent of "that"—"the first time"—is shared with the following clause: "I have been there". Then, is it OK to say "I have been there first time"?

By the way, Google searches for "I have been there first time" and I have been there the first time" in the UK domain show just 33 hits for the first phrase and 10 hits for the second.


texts:
The following is an excerpt from The Japan Times of June 22. What does "It's no more glaring than in the early hours of a developing story" mean?

  The spread of misinformation ‒ "fake news" if that's more your speed ‒ has long been an issue, but social media has accelerated it significantly. It's no more glaring than in the early hours of a developing story, where facts are scarce but the Twitter timeline moves at a rapid pace.


texts: One word for someone "excessively sentimental" in everything

texts:
Someone who makes you sick with his sentimental blabber.

I have a colleague who cribs and complains at almost everything. He would always get sentimental while describing his misadventures or failures.


texts: Correct preposition with "to be jealous"

texts:
Let's say Alice sees her boyfriend Bob with Charlotte, another girl. Now, I know the correct usage is "Alice is jealous of Bob". My question is how to connect this predicate (be jealous) to Charlotte. That is:

Alice is jealous [of Bob] ___ Charlotte.

What preposition should come before Charlotte? If there is such a preposition, can I leave the part between the square brackets (of Bob) out?

Or how can I otherwise express this idea with and without including Bob in the equation?


texts: Is “Click bait” an Internet buzzword? How can I rephrase it?

texts:
I found a video showing a fireman who rescued a suffocating kitten from a fire smoke and resuscitated her by oxygen inhalation introduced in the article titled “Why that video went viral” in New York Times Science section (May 19, 2014). The video is really moving, and the text follows;

  “Social sharing is powerful enough to topple dictatorships and
  profitable enough to merit multibillion-dollar investments. But
  scientists are only beginning to explore the psychological motivations
  that turn a link into “click bait” and propel a piece of content to
  Internet fame.”
  http://www.nytimes.com/2014/05/20/science/why-that-video-went-viral.html?_r=0

I thought the word, “Click bait” interesting. Is this becoming a popular word? Can I rephrase it with “Click trigger / enforcer”?

Is “___ bait” specific to Internet? In other word, can I use “bait” in combination with other motivations / impulses, like “Gamble bait,” “Investment bait,” and “Shopping bait”?


texts: I use the latter most of the time, but I am unsure where the former is more appropriate. What are the different uses of "distinctly" vs "distinctively"?


texts: Should "The history of X" be followed by "began" or "begins"?

texts:
This BBC page states

  The history of life on Earth began about 3.8 billion years ago...

Similarly, this one states

  The history of Canterbury's religious significance began with the Romans...

However, this page states

  The history of Rastafari begins with the colonisation of Africa...

as does this:

  The history of the march begins in the village of Tolpuddle...

Which is correct/preferred, or are both equally acceptable?


texts: what's the exact meaning of 'of the people'

texts: I listened to a news report and it said she really is of the people when describing the royal wedding news and showing Meghan Markle with crowds of screaming fans. My Korean text book translated the sentence as she is really popular among people. How come of the people means "popular"? What is the exact meaning of of the people?


texts: Phrase for high-performing element that 'raises the average'

texts:
My question is about the situation where there's say a film which is poorly made and would leave a bad impression overall, were it not for the exceptionally good performance of one sole actor which compensates for all the other shortcomings.

One could say that that particular actor had saved what would have otherwise been a completely unsatisfactory production.

I'm looking for the correct phrase to express this. Please note that I am only using film as an example. In my native language, the same expression that can be applied to a good actor that makes an otherwise bad film bearable can be applied to any 'anomalously high-performing' element that 'compensates' for all the substandard elements in an ensemble.


texts: What is a suitable substitute for 'approach', as used in 'research approach'?

texts: When currently writing a proposal, I find myself often using 'research approach' and 'approach to research', but I cannot come up with a suitable alternative to avoid tedious repetitions. I'm trying to describe how research is conducted in different fields quite broadly (so including theoretical background, empirical methods, "institutional memory" etc), so 'research methods' is too specific, but 'research philosophy' feels to vague.


texts: I am in need for a word to mean "designated" but with a stronger undertone of dictated task that one is obliged to perform reluctantly. Thanks. :)


texts:
I am a technical person.

Here is just an example, but this approach can be used in many situations (including other hardware components).

I want to specify that my hard disk drive (HDD) can store 100 GB of information.

How can I say this ?

HDD of 100 GB capacity

or

HDD having a capacity of 100 GB


texts: What is the difference between "etiquette", "courtesy", and "manners"?

texts:
I found this link
  explained the difference between "etiquette" and "courtesy", as following the rules and being kind to others. The answer regarded "etiquette" is similar with "manners"

If this link is correct, is there any difference between "etiquette" and "manners"? "etiquette" is more formal than "manners"?

Thank you very much


texts:
Let's define the first number as "ab" and the second number as "cd". In "ab"-"cd" proces, if "b" is smaller than "d", we add 10 to "b" and reduce 1 from "a".

In Turkish, we called it "taking a tenner from neighbour". How do you use that term in English?


texts: Is there a more generic word for "space objects" (not counting human-made or massive objects)?

texts:
Basically, objects like

Asteroids
Meteoroids
Meteors
Meteorites
Comets
Etc.

As stated in the title, this also doesn't count human-made objects, such as

Space junk
Satellites,
Space stations,
Rockets or shuttles
Other crafts

Nor does it count what I'll call here massive or unrelated objects , such as stuff like

Dwarf planets
Planetesimals
Proto-planets
Moons
Etc.

Here's a visual representation of what I mean that I whipped up in a minute:


texts: Should there be a hyphen in the sentence, early '80s or should it be written without the hyphen between early and '80s?


texts:
I am afraid that BBC TV has put me into a bit of a muddle.  Programs set in modern times seem to use "nowt" most often to mean "nothing," whereas programs set in Victorian and earlier periods say "naught" (pronounced like "not").  In periods between, usage of the word seems less frequent.

Perhaps nowt is simply slang or perhaps a recognized dialect?


texts: Should we use a comma, a semicolon or a dash before "trust me"?

texts:
Should we use a comma (as shown below), a semicolon or a dash before "trust me" in the first example below, and after "trust me" in the second example below?

"I don't think he'll last another year with his crazy wife, trust me."

"Trust me, I don't think he'll last another year with his crazy wife."

Thank you.


texts: Can we use "morning" to describe half a day? How to say half a day using an adjective?

texts: I don't know how to use an adjective word to describe the same meaning of half a day. E.g. I have done all the work in the morning. In this sentence, "in the morning" means from 08:00 am to 11:59 am or what?


texts: How do I eloquently and precisely phrase 'inability to separate from associated words'?

texts:
I imagine that the phrase I'm looking for involves the word 'metonymy', or 'metonymical', in some way.

The characters in question are unable to separate the concept of each kind of love with words associated with it, as well as with their gender roles.

I would use this in "The hubris of these characters is that they cannot __________, actual romantic and erotic relationships cannot be separated from carnal lust, storgic relationships that depend on ownership and submission, philia relationships require mocking, not just of each other, but of outsiders, and agapeic relationships, where unconditional love is demonstrated, idolatry and infatuation need to be demonstrated, in a truly Petrarchan fashion. In the same way, there are certain things that men are forced to do in certain situations, merely because their gender identity, in the case of men is based around conquest, and being macho, and in the case of women being dependant and subservient."


texts:
Which of these two sentences is the correct one please?

"[Store X is] the preferred place to shop for unique decor items that capture the imaginations of children"

or

"[Store X is] the preferred place to shop for unique decor items that captures the imaginations of children"

EDIT:

The decor items being the item that capture the imagination of children.


texts:
what is time between repeating actions. how to call it?

For example: I touch the table once.   Then I continuously touch the table like rubbing.

What is the time difference between touching once and touching continuously?


texts: What is the difference between a ¶ Pilcrow Sign and the § Section Sign?

texts:
The following symbols have both been introduced to me as a 'paragraph symbol'. With the help of ShapeCatcher and Wikipedia, I found out that

¶ is officially known as the Pilcrow Sign
§ is officially known as the Section Sign

However, I've seen both of them used to indicate what part of a document is referred to. (e.g. § 4.2 refers to the second paragraph in the fourth chapter of a book, but I have also seen ¶ 4.2)

Are both of these uses correct, or not? In what ways are these symbols further used?


texts:
I came across the word croesus a long back but pondered over its usage recently. It has the two following definitions:
1. the last king of Lydia
2. a wealthy person

Is it correct, formally, to say that he is a croesus when I mean he is wealthy and filthy rich or rather I should say that he is like croesus?

My friends dissent such a usage so I got bemused.. Please help.


texts: Is there any difference between "told to" and "told to do so"

texts:
I will release a new version when I'm told to.
I will release a new version when I'm told to do so.

Is there any difference in the meaning of the two sentences? Which one would I use in an everyday conversation?


texts:
I have always written this line:
Thank you everyone who ___.

Recently, I was told the proper way is to write it as:
Thank you to everyone who ____.

Is "to" a superfluous preposition in this situation since it is understood who you are thanking, or would it be required grammatically?


texts:
Many of them, including me, have similar thoughts about that.
  Many Koreans including myself weren't concerned about them at all.

I'm studying English and wondering how different they are.
Could you guys let me know?


texts: What is the best wording for a sentence with two present participles?

texts:
The sentence I'm correcting reads: Thank you for considering supporting our gala...

What is the best way to re-phrase this?
"Thank you for considering to support..."?


texts: Definite article in front of “nineteenth-century United States”?

texts:
Should it be:

  In nineteenth-century United States, many railroads were constructed.

Or

  In the nineteenth-century United States, many railroads were constructed.

Certainly if America were used in place of United States, then there’d be no definite article. But if I insist on saying United States, should there be one?

This question is different from the other. In my opinion, the latter sentence is somehow awkward and there is the possibility that the first sentence is 'correct'. If you think it obvious that the first sentence is wrong and the second sentence is correct, then please, instead of closing this question, answer it and explain why it is so obvious. Or why the other linked question clearly explains my question here.


texts: The recent invention of the word "heterosexual"

texts:
I read an article on the BBC whose title caught my interest. It's called "The invention of heterosexuality". It's quite a lengthy article, and goes through what it claims is the very short history of the word "heterosexual", various interpretations of early philosophers and researchers (von Krafft-Ebing, Freud, Kinsey), and many other things.

What I found most interesting were both that the word originally was defined in dictionaries as a pathology.

  The 1901 Dorland’s Medical Dictionary defined heterosexuality as an
  “abnormal or perverted appetite toward the opposite sex.” More than
  two decades later, in 1923, Merriam Webster’s dictionary similarly
  defined it as “morbid sexual passion for one of the opposite sex.” It
  wasn’t until 1934 that heterosexuality was graced with the meaning
  we’re familiar with today: “manifestation of sexual passion for one of
  the opposite sex; normal sexuality.”

So I checked the Merriam-Webster Dictionary and the word results in:

  heterosexual
  1 a : of, relating to, or characterized by a tendency to direct sexual
  desire toward the opposite sex b : of, relating to, or involving
  sexual intercourse between individuals of opposite sex

and then as to its first usage:

  First Known Use: 1892 in the meaning defined at sense 1a

This is in complete contradiction with the claim in the article as to the 1923 definition.

I was in fact surprised that both "heterosexual" and "homosexual" are of quite recent coinage.

From Wikipedia I got this:

  The term "heterosexual" was first published in 1892 in C.G. Chaddock's
  translation of Krafft-Ebing's "Psychopathia Sexualis". The noun came
  into use from the early 1920s, but did not enter common use until the
  1960s. The colloquial shortening "hetero" is attested from 1933. The
  abstract noun "heterosexuality" is first recorded in 1900.[5] The word
  "heterosexual" was first listed in Merriam-Webster's New International
  Dictionary as a medical term for "morbid sexual passion for one of the
  opposite sex"; however, in 1934 in their Second Edition Unabridged it
  is defined as a "manifestation of sexual passion for one of the
  opposite sex; normal sexuality".[6]
  Heterosexuality

Apart from the sentence that the term didn't become popular until the 1960s, the information in Wikipedia seems to square with that in the BBC article. However caveat lector: The citation marked [6] is the same source as cited repetitively in the BBC article, an essay with a title identical to the BBC's article's, by Jonathan Ned Katz, published in 1990 in the Socialist Review magazine. I've read through Ned Katz's information and the BBC article writer seems to have just repeated everything written by this Katz person.

I'm not very good at hunting down dictionary editions and quotations from specific time periods, so I was wondering if anyone could shed light on this. Basically that the word "heterosexual" didn't lose its "morbid" connotation until about 1934.


texts:
I am trying to write a quiz question.

Currently it states, "Which of the following is an exclusive part of an AC motor?"

I have the impression that the question is implying that an AC motor consists of one part and it is one of the following choices. Shouldn't it be, "Which of the following parts belongs exclusively to AC motors?”

I feel like the original question is unclear or even incorrect.


texts:
Let's imagine that you are browsing a list of games and stumble across a game called Wheelie 6. You've never heard of it before and have never played the previous five games.

Wheelie is back... in the past! Help him travel through (a|the) fantasy land and rescue (a|the) princess from (an|the) evil car wizard.

What articles do you expect to see in the sentence above considering that Wheelie has never been to fantasy lands before, has never rescued any princess, and has never encountered evil wizards?

Can "a" and "the" be interchangeable in this case?

For me, as a non-native speaker, "a" fits better since the land/princess/wizard was a new piece of information for me at the time when I first read the description, and the context is way too thin to "define" all of them with "the".
For some reason, though, the original description (I found it on Google Play) has "the" in front of all of the aforementioned nouns. It bugs me. Please, help me understand.


texts: How did some English words get a "y" sound in front of "uː"-sounding vowels?

texts:
I'm wondering what mechanism puts a y sound (IPA /j/) into words like coupon, which presumably had none when it came into the language. French pronunciation would seem to indicate it would be pronounced [ˈkuːpɔ:n], not [ˈkjuːpɔ:n], but many people pronounce it the latter way.

Similarly, why do we have such a difference in a word like duke, which can be pronounced [djuːk] or [duːk], when dude only ever seems to be pronounced [duːd]?

addendum

An even more puzzling example, brought up in the comments below, is that of Houston, which is pronounced with the /j/ when it refers to the city in Texas, and without it when referring to the street in Manhattan.


texts:
I'm currently writing a paper for my research however I'm wondering if the usage of the passive voice is correct. for example I wrote like

  mistakes were corrected
  were normalized
  were identified

One whole sentence example in my paper:

  After loading the dataset in Excel (selecting tab as
  delimiter) delimiter mistakes were corrected.

However when I use a grammar checker it will say "passive voice" and suggest to correct this, however what choice should I make when writing a scientific paper?


texts: Can "about" and "around" be used interchangeably in some cases?

texts:
Example:

  He paced about/around the room.

Can those words be used interchangeably? If that's the case, which one is more common?


texts: Can I delete the relative adverb "where" anytime?

texts:
Can I say, "You can stand in the house Romeo and Juliet fell in love."
In this case, relative adverb 'where' was deleted. But I think there should be "in" at the end of the sentence. Am I right? Can anyone answer about this?


texts:
I am looking for a word that means "only letters A–Z", sort of like alphanumeric, but not numbers. The closest I got is alphabetic/alphabetical. The context is

  Please enter a [word] string:

This is in a program I am making that doesn't work if anything other than A–Z is entered.


texts: I can't understand these sentences. Please give me some help

texts:
I have two questions:

I can not completely understand the following two sentences. and what dose the phrase 'is external to survival'?

In the lives of primitive peoples and in ancient civilizations few experiences or communal functions approached the dance in importance. It is not viewed as an activity that is external to survival.

I can not understand this phrase 'dance can assume so many guises' in the following sentences. what does it mean?

The gestures in some dances may refer to specific emotional states and their sequence may tell a story. Other dances tell no story, but instead present beautiful images of people in motion, the choreographer believing that pure movement in itself is worthy of attention. Because dance can assume so many guises, the viewer should regard each dance he attends with fresh, unprejudiced eyes.


texts: Is it okay to use the word "freedoms" in the following sentence or should I use the word "freedom"?

texts: The laws in our country that restrict our freedoms are not legislated by evil politicians.


texts: Different between future prefect vs simple future + until

texts:
what's different in meaning between these two sentences?

The decorator will have painted the wall by Thursday.
The decorator will paint the wall until Thursday.

Does the second sentence mean the decorator will finish painting exactly before Thursday start or it could finish before for example in Wednesday like Future Prefect Tense.


texts:
What is the grammar of the verb 'dare' in the following example?

  The pizza was nice but, dare I say it, the salad was awful.

Is it some type of imperative?


texts: What is the correct capitalization for "zip file? "

texts: Because "zip" is not an acronym, my feeling is that it should be "zip file." However, I've seen "ZIP File" and "ZIP file" commonly. What is correct?


texts: Which punctuations to use when bringing up questions in this way?

texts:
In formal writing, is the following usage of punctuations acceptable?

  I keep asking myself. Who am I? Where am I from? And where am I going?

I'm not quite sure whether using a period after I keep asking myself is weird. To me, the natural choice would have been a colon, but this also would have made the first interrogative sentence have to start with a lower case w whereas subsequent ones, as they follow a question mark, must begin with a capitalised W , like ..asking myself: who am I? Where am I from..., which doesn't make much sense to me either.

Of course, alternatively, I can reorganise these interrogative sentences into clauses like

  I keep asking myself: who I am, where I am from and where I am going.

But this feels much less emotionally charged than the first one, which makes it not so desirable to me.


texts:
There is a cow and two sheep.

The sentence above has caused me some problems. I’ve studied all Murphy’s Grammar books, but couldn’t find a particular rule or exception for this case. My teacher corrected «is» to «are» saying that after a singular noun (a cow) there is a plural “two sheep”. Is there a rule for such a situation? Thanks in advance.


texts:
As per my understanding, 'at' can be used for streets and specific address etc. and 'in' has to be used for cities.

  For eg. at Suite 101, Johnshon Avenue in London.

But I see in a prominent English news paper of India 'The Hindu' that they use 'at' for cities. This is what they publish after the header:

  "Printed at Chennai, Bangalore, Hyderabad"

I think it should be: "Printed in Chennai, Bangalore, Hyderabad".

Or it should be something like:

  Printed at xyz press in Chennai.


texts: Can you use a 'to' infinitive instead of using 'by ~ing'?

texts:
To identify human genes and understand their roles allows researchers to discover the cause of various diseases.

To contain the meaning of 'by ~ing' or 'while ~ing', can you use 'to infinite' like in the example above?


texts:
I am drafting the following sentence:

  We would like to adopt XXX given its much better readability and "analysis-friendly".

Obviously, analysis-friendly shall be used as an adjective, not like readability (as a noun).

I am writing to ask a proper way to adjust this term analysis-friendly and produce a noun.


texts:
Can I say "By the way" in an official document or professional meeting and other important/formal times?

I never saw any film which would include these words.


texts:
I went to use the phrase “eke toward” today, in the sense of “very gradually but increasingly move toward”. I thought this was cromulent, because I’ve heard & used it occasionally in the past. But I could only find it attested pretty rarely online—e.g.:

“Eking towards the door…” — Dave Webb, 2019
“As we eek towards [sic?] 15k subscribers…” — Reddit user gergo_v, 2019
“I focused on the asphalt shaking under me so I wouldn’t have to watch my house barely eking toward me from the end of the road.” — The Pain Eater, 2018
“We’re slowly eking toward the healthy side of the business ledger” — Night Hawk, 2015
“Quarterbacks keep throwing interceptions for Arizona and we might eek toward [sic?] #FreeWerlinger territory.” — Zack Rosenblatt, 2015
“I stand facing him, with his fingers, hand and arm eking towards me.” — Broken Bones, 2011
“…I’ve found myself eking toward a fence-sitting position about Twitter…” — J. C. Hutchins, 2010
“Hoyt’s blood was cool now, and eking toward cold.” — Morrigan’s Cross, 2006
“Many, very many, are the sons of St. David who wear the leek to distinguish from enemies; but it is the heart’s leek eking toward the pure and hallowed paths of religion and knowledge.” — The Opal: A Monthly Periodical of the State Lunatic Asylum, Vol. 8, 1858

Notably, most of these citations are recent, so I thought this form might be a recent development. But there is that one citation from the mid-1800s that made me think it might be older, and just rare enough that it’s not well documented, or not trivial to search for. There aren’t any attestations in Google Ngrams, or there are so few that it falls below the searchable threshold.

So my question is: is this a new form, derived from “eke out (a living)” after it became solidified as a set phrase? Or is it an old form, albeit rare, from Early Modern English or Middle English, when “eke” was still a productive verb with the sense of “increasing”, “growing”, or “stretching”? (From which we get the set phrase “eke out”, i.e., to stretch your meager means to last longer.)


texts:
Question is simple and direct and is very specific to usage in a particular scenario.
The person, xyz, who works 'at'/'on' the post of a typist does a good job.
I am having a healthy debate with multiple people in this regard and the opinion is divided.
Please refrain from saying "both usages are correct" unless you can strictly back the same with source.
Step by step constructive interpretation would be appreciated.


texts: Spelling and plural of abbreviation "hi vis"

texts:
We regularly use these "hi visibility jackets/vests":

We use them often enough to informally abbreviate it to simply "hi vis".

I am struggling as to how to pluralise such a term. In speech it sounds moderately okay to say "hi vises" but as you can see it looks terrible in writing. Any better suggestions?

Also would such a term be hyphenated?


texts: Using 'ride' vs. 'drive' when it comes to a motorcycle

texts:
Suppose I am offering someone a ride home. I know "I'll give you a ride home" would be correct. But can I also use ride as a transitive verb, as follows?

  Come, I'll ride you home.

I'm asking because "I'll drive you home" makes perfect sense. But what about using ride in the same manner?


texts:
This might seem like a trivial case, but I'm unsure whether to use:

"he will come to pick you up"

or:

"he will come pick you up", i.e. without "to".

If it makes any difference, the sentence describes an action that will happen in the future.

The latter version sounds better to me, but I can't argue for it grammatically. Maybe the first version is the correct one, and I've simply gotten used to hearing something that's wrong.

Any help appreciated - thanks!


texts: Does the word, ‘napkin’ have a metaphoric or symbolic meaning other than a piece of cloth or paper used at meals?

texts:
There was the following sentence in the New York Times (April 5) article titled, “Steak for Two, Please, With a Side of Bribes” dealing with a recent bribery case of a New York State Congressman and a City Councilman. http://www.nytimes.com/2013/04/06/nyregion/steak-for-two-please-with-a-side-of-bribes.html?nl=nyregion&emc=edit_ur_20130405&_r=0

  “The link between corrupt politicians and steakhouses would appear to
  be so obvious that corrupt politicians would avoid them altogether,
  especially since there are apparently as many hidden microphones as
  shrimp cocktails at a given table. But still they come. Experts on
  either side of the napkin offered theories. “They’re men,” said Ben
  Benson, the owner of a steakhouse. “Men go to steakhouses. The power
  lunches, the power dinners — it’s what the steakhouse is all about.””

Though it seems ‘Expert on either side of the napkin” simply implies restaurant business expert to me, what does it  exactly mean?

Does the word, “napkin” have any specific metaphoric or symbolic meaning other than “a small square piece of cloth or paper, used while you are eating to protect your clothes or to clean your mouth or fingers” defined by Cambridge English Dictionary? Is “Expert on the napkin” a word on everybody’s lips?


texts: Usage of the phrase "in itself" in this specific context?

texts:
"The watching in itself of this video put my brain in a bit of a
  knot."

If I want to use the term "in itself", is this the correct way to format a sentence, if I want to put emphasis on the "watching" -part?

Other examples also welcome, which do not include "in itself".

Thank you.


texts: Is it actually incorrect to follow certain verbs with a that-clause?

texts:
I found a webpage saying certain verbs are followed by infinitives rather than that-clauses.  However, is it actually incorrect to use a that-clause with certain verbs, for example, with the verb "request"?

Example:  I request that you come with me.

Request is a transitive verb, which can take that-clauses as a direct object.  So why would this example be incorrect?  Or is it only non-standard but still correct?  Another verb that fits this is "allow".

Example:  I allow that they stay up until 10pm.

If this is actually incorrect, what and where is the rule?  Is there some authority or rule book with the rules?  Thank you!


texts: The use of indeed at the begining of a paragraph

texts:
Is it appropriate to use indeed at the beginning of a paragraph?
I have two paragraphs as follows:
Paragraph "A" describing some concepts that are better to be considered in a class of methods, name it M.
Paragraph "B" discussing that in fact these concepts are considered in some literature related M.
In fact, the two paragraphs should be combined in the following manner "A. Indeed, B". However, the resulting paragraph is too big.
As in writing different paragraphs should be independent, the use of indeed at the beginning of a paragraph seems to be inappropriate?


texts:
The picture is an imprint of a photographer's imagination and soul through a lens.

Is the whole sentence structure correct? Is it "a lens" or "the lenses."


texts: How to mention an uncertain object/thing in English?

texts:
I want to know how to mention an uncertain object, like X country.
e.g. I want to go to a certain country no matter where it is because I just need to go out right now.
I found a Question on this website.
It seems I can use a certain country to infer a country that is not specific or particular but it's just a country in the context.

Is it correct?
Or I should use a country instead?
Or there's no comparable usage in English?

More example in other languages,
In other languages, such as Japanese or Mandarin, we use あの or 某個 to refer to an object that's not a specific one but belongs to the group of the object.
That is to say, あの or 某個 often implies the object that the speaker mentioned has specific meanings in the dialogue.

Thanks.


texts: What is the correct plural form of a family name that ends in -i?

texts:
I have just made a family group with my surname which is Karami, and I want to make my surname plural to show this is a family group, so I'm wondering whether I should add -s or -es?

Which one is correct?

The Karamis
The Karamies

A comparable group name would be the Cyruses.

Many thanks in advance.

Edit: Or should the group name be just The Karami without an "s" at all?


texts:
I asked a question over on math.SE and as part of an exchange someone said:

  Morally the function is csc φ in the limit for the reason you mention.

...a pretty funny thing to say. I asked them about it and they said that,

  It is a figure of speech sometimes used in mathematics and physics

and that one interpretation might be

  What follows may be wrong in detail, or not contain enough detail, but it gives the right intuition.

Does anyone know about how this started, or have any other understanding of what it means? Are there any parallels elsewhere?

Even if used figuratively it betrays something quite strong about one's  philosophical attitude, or that of one's community. For this reason I am quite interested in this turn of phrase. Does it reflect a lack of seriousness or respect for moral questions, or does it simply acknowledge that mathematical and social realities are different?

Anything that can help me understand would be appreciated.

Edit:

To be clear, I would like to know if it has an implication regarding the value of moral reasoning. If it has the implication that moral reasoning is less rigorous, then it is certainly a possibility. Please do not take my question as an assertion of what it does mean.

Although some might find asking this outside the community in which it is used a little strange, there is one reason, and one excuse for this:

The word is probably used elsewhere in a similar way.
There's probably some mathematicians here.

Edit:

A coincidental discovery: There is such a thing as a moral graph, which seemingly has a rather esoteric etymology.


texts:
When someone says "woke up" is it assumed that the person was sleeping in the horizontal position? Do they physically have to move up after they regained consciousnesses?

Would it be correct to apply this phrase to a person who was sleeping upright or any other position for that matter?

E.g.

  He was hanging upside-down with his ankles tied to a branch then he woke up.

Or should I use

  He was hanging upside-down with his ankles tied to a branch then he awoke.

Thanks.


texts: Word for "something used to bother or annoy someone by others"

texts: I am looking for a word for something used to bother or annoy someone by others from time to time, like a threat by threatening to make known the secret which someone has shared with others.


texts: "Formal English" - Can its meaning vary from place to place? From person to person?

texts: Can it be opinion based? Whenever I ask a question here about word usage in formal English, I will invariably get a comment saying "It depends on what you mean by formal English".  Isn't there an academic definition which is considered the "golden reference"? I mean, if a writer doesn't point out that he refers to a specific type of formality, everyone should assume that he refers to that "golden definition".


texts: Can I use "no problem" for expressing okay?

texts:
One friend of mine A and I have misunderstanding on use of "no problem"

For example, the conversation between A and me:

A: should we meet at 16:30 in science building?

I: Ok, that's no problem for me

A: Do agree that then? @I @B

B: agreed

I: no problem for me.

A: By “no problem” you mean agreed - or something else?

Am I using "no problem" in a wrong way? Is it wrong to express agreement using "no problem"?


texts: What does "would get back to you" actually mean?

texts:
Some days ago I sent an email with an attachment. The recipient replied with the following sentence.

Thanks for kindly sending your profile information. I would get back to you as soon as possible.

What does this reply email mean?
What is the actual meaning of I would get back to you as soon as possible?


texts: are there other phrases set up like "end up ____-ing (gerund)" if so, what are they called?

texts:
I'm watching a documentary and this was said:

"We believe they did intentional things that kept Gabriel in harm's way, and ultimately ended up in him dying"

The "him dying" part is what struck me as odd.
I know that "end up" (from other questions here) usually is accompanied by a gerund, but I'm wondering if there are other sentence structures like this in English, and what this is called?
Tyia!


texts: A word or expression for someone who had a very important influence in your life?

texts:
How to say that someone had a very important influence in your life?

I know the word "milestone" which is mostly used for events.. Is there any similar word that can be used for people?

Thanks!


texts: How to describe an animal lover who is against pet ownership

texts:
Is there a particular term or a set of words used to describe someone who loves animals but is against humans owning them as pets? I am looking for a neutral or positive term.

I was having serious dilemma about whether I should post this in the Pets sub-forum, but since the answer is an English term I chose to ask here.


texts: Word for an attempt which you know is useless

texts:
What word do you use when you are trying to say that you attempted to do or solve something which you know would most probably fail?

For example, I dropped my Nokia off the highest level of the Eiffel Tower. The screen shattered and the phone could not be turned on anymore. In a [word] attempt, I still tried to repair the phone.

In that example, I am not feeling reluctant. I know it's almost impossible to fix that phone but I'm still giving it a shot. What is the word or feeling that I should use?


texts:
I often have problems with article words referencing to its correct referent. In the following statement for example:

  The touching scenes in the film leaves the audience a heavy feeling,
  encouraging them to consider charitable acts and the role it plays in
  our society.

My intention is to have the word "them" linked to the audience, and the word "it" linked to the charitable acts.

I am quite confident that the word "them" does link to the audience. But I am worry that the word "it" may not link to the charitable acts. I find that there is possibility the reader may confuse "it" referring to the touching scenes in the film instead of the charitable acts.

Are the article words in the sentence that I have constructed above correctly linked to its referents?

In general, is there a rule to watch out when identifying references in long and complex sentences?


texts: What's the difference between "take over control of" and "take control over"?

texts:
I'm currently reading India after Gandhi: The History of the World's Largest Democracy written by Ramachandra Guha, and in one of the starting pages of the book, the author has written the sentence.

After the events of 1857 the Crown took over control of the Indian colonies.

I've two questions here:

If the sentence below is grammatically correct and passes the rules of the English language?
If it can replace the original sentence (written above) keeping the context same?

After the events of 1857 the Crown took control over the Indian colonies.

If the sentences have any difference in the meaning, please enlighten me with it.


texts: An alternative to using the word "Resources"?

texts:
I am stuck with a labeling issue.

we have a software that allows users to publish content including release notes, product screencasts,white-papers etc. So far I have been using the label Resources to describe this content. An initial test revealed that the term is too generic. what would be the best choice of word to use to describe the different types of content that i mentioned.

I have tried using "Document library" and "Asset library" but still not convinced that it encompasses all the different types of content.

Any thoughts, ideas

Update to put this in context.The main issue is that I am catering for two populations viewing essentially the same thing but from different perspectives. For one population ( consumers) "Resources" does the job but for the other population ( makers) it doesn't


texts: If you're using a quote with a period but do not want to end the sentence, do you keep the period?

texts:
For example. If I want to quote a passage from a writing, that says

  The cake is not a lie.

and my sentence is:

  The book by author states that "The cake is not a lie." however studies show that the cake is a lie.

Is it OK to replace the period with a comma to make the sentence flow?

Relevant: Also what do you do with the capital "T" Are you allowed to lowercase it?

  The book by author states "the cake is not a lie," however studies show that the cake is a lie.

I usually just work around this by switching up the structure of the sentence, but sometimes I really want to phrase something a particular way.


texts: Why would "an mule" be used instead of "a mule"?

texts:
As generally agreed and as extensively discussed in this question, "an" should be used in place of the more common "a" where the following word begins with a vowel sound.
I have just encountered for the first time an instance of the phrasing

an mule

in the book Why Chemical Reactions Happen (James Keeler and Peter Wothers, Oxford University Press, 2003). (This book is not mine. I was sitting opposite a friend when the friend mentioned the unusual phrasing.)
This phrasing appears to contradict the rule discussed above, since "mule" is, as far as I am aware, pronounced /mjuːl/ (see Wiktionary).
Here is the context. The author is using an analogy to explain a chemistry concept (the italics are not mine, but the bold emphasis is):

A useful analogy here is that of an mule, which we get by crossing a horse with a donkey. To describe an mule as a horse or a donkey would be inaccurate and it certainly does not interconvert rapidly between the two! Rather we need to recognize that although an mule has parts that are reminiscent of a horse and parts that a reminiscent of a donkey, it is something altogether different.

Looking for other examples online, I have managed to find one on Wikipedia's List of Siege engines. Discussing a Siege engine, the Scorpio:

Similar to the ballista, but smaller. Was sometimes mounted on an mule-drawn cart.

Other examples are difficult to find, but here's one from a user-posted question on Answers.com (referring, notably, to a kind of deer rather than the animal, a mule):

Is an mule deer an omnivore?
No. Mule deer are herbivores. ...

What is going on? Is there an irregular pronunication of "mule" of which I am not aware? Is this some strange language quirk, some archaic spelling that I am encountering for the first time?


texts: Is there a word for "not pronouncing any r's"?

texts:
Some find it difficult to form an "r" sound, and some are able to, but just don't.  I'm looking for a word which means "not pronouncing r's", without implying inability to pronounce them, though that may be the case.

Specifically, I'd like a word which mean "not pronouncing any r's", but if there's a word which means "not pronouncing some r's" (as in many dialects), that would be interesting to know too.


texts: How does the present participle work in a sentence like "He is seven feet tall, making him the tallest person in the room."

texts:
I am unsure of what usage the present participle uses in a sentence like "He is seven feet tall, making him the tallest person in the room." I checked the wikipedia article for participles

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Participle#English

but none of them seem to fit. For example, I don't think it fits into "adverbially, the subject being understood to be the same as that of the main clause" since "he" is the object of "making" and the subject seems to be something else, and it doesn't seem to fit "similarly, but with a different subject, placed before the participle" since there is no subject in "making him the tallest person in the room."


texts: Is there a word for making a neologism by adding an "em" prefix to nouns or adjective?

texts:
I am a trusted critic of a friend's writing. I have noticed an (admittedly obnoxious) habit they have of "creating" new words by adding the "em" prefix to nouns or adjectives, like empurpled.

For example they will say things like "The boy stared, his eyes emgoldened by sun," or "The girls walked with empowdered faces." "The emspangled sky." "His embrightened smile."

The closest I've come to finding an answer on my own is the terms "verbing." I also know "em" is frequently used as an intensifier. I've taken to calling it "emverbing" but I wonder if there isn't a real term for this particular type of move.

This is pretty specific, so my broader question would be: is there a word which describes creating a neologism by affixing a prefix to a word that doesn't typically have one. I haven't been able to find any term.

Thanks in advance.


texts:
The US death toll from the coronavirus climbed to 12 on Thursday, with all but one of the victims in the north-western US state of Washington.

What does it mean: 11 dead in Washington Or just 1 one dead there?


texts: Why are words ending in "-um" and "-us" pluralized to end in "-a" and "-i", respectively?

texts:
Where does the practice of using -a and -i for plural forms of -um and -us, respectively, come from?

Bacteria vs. bacterium
Fungi vs. fungus


texts: What do you call the headings along the top of a newspaper that reference later page articles?

texts:
Often newspapers have a header on the front page where they feature headlines, as well as the page number, for feature articles in later pages of the newspaper.

Here "'Power granny' to the royals" refers to a page on B5 to read the article.

What do you call these?


texts: What does ‘Red meat rhetoric’ exactly mean?

texts:
I see quite often the expression 'Red meat rhetoric’ these days in journals, for example

Obama’s red meat rhetoric –CNN Conservative Media July 7.
Mitt Romney delivers red meat rhetoric to CPAC Crowd. - National Journal Feb. 11.
Tim Pawlenty needed red meat rhetoric – I forgot the source.

I checked the definition of this expression on both Cambridge Dictionary online and Merriam-Webster com.  Neither of them registers it. I checked Google Ngram. It shows growing rise of the usage of ‘Red meat,’ notably coming into 1980s, but no ‘Red meat rhetoric' registration.
I found two posts defining the word in Word Reference Com. Language Forum, which say;

This is rather like the contrast between an aggressively carnivorous creature, an eater of red meat - perhaps a hyena; and a more gentle and judicious creature, a muncher of leaves and fruit - perhaps an orangutan

Red meat" rhetoric is rhetoric that you can "chew on". "Chew on" = "think about".
As opposed to rhetoric that you can "swallow whole," predigested.

I don’t know either the above definitions are right or not, but they feel very loose. Can you provide me with a more concise and exact meaning of Red meat rhetoric?


texts: Using possessive apostrophe s of a singular abbreviation that ends with s

texts:
Which one is correct?

1- The OPS structure.

2- The OPSs structure.

3- The OPS's structure.

4- The OPS' structure.

OPS: A singular abbreviation.


texts:
Reading the sentence:

  "We were still talking about what we should do when we heard the children shouting".

in the above sentence, why don't we write "heard the children shout", as the verb 'hear' takes a bare infinitive without 'to'?


texts:
From Solstice By Anne Enright:

  A full forty minutes later, the dual carriageway turned into the old Blessington Road, and oncoming traffic shot by so close he flinched in the glare of the lights. This was the part of the journey that he loved best: the street lamps gave way to the idea of countryside, and there was a song on the radio as the road opened up ahead.

What does "traffic shot by so close" mean?

Is it talking about thr light reaching the eye from a close distance?


texts:
What are more formal ways to say "How are you" with a hint of positive expectation, in the sense that you want the other person to confirm that his/her life is just fine. Does "Are you well?" work?
During new year season people greet "Happy New Year" etc. What would you say if you want to wish the other person's celebration of the new year be enjoyable and nice, instead of wishing good things for the entire year that is coming?


texts:
Which is correct: synced or synched? Is one of these American and the other British spelling or are they interchangeable?

I have only ever seen sync used in the computing industry.


texts: Word or phrase meaning a target for outflow / place to put something in excess

texts:
Is there a word or phrase meaning a target for outflow or a place to put something, when there's too much of something and it has to go somewhere?

Like a detention basin but in more general use, since that is a very specialized thing used for outflow of water.

The words drain or sink are in the ballpark, but they seem to have the wrong connotations; I'm looking for something that sounds a bit less like a plumbing term.

(edit: in my specific instance I'm working in the subject of energy flow rather than liquid flow, but I'm interested in a general answer)


texts: When someone has great influence within a group, what do you call his situation?

texts:
If one's opinion matters and he is influential, for example inside a company, we say that he  has "something" within the company.
I am sure there's a word for "something", but can't think of it right now.

This person I am trying to describe is not a leader, however he is very influential, e.g. he has been an old and respected member of a group, his opinion carries a lot of weight.

The word I'm looking for is not used very often


texts: My pronunciation of "ul" in pull, culture, multiple - a mid back rounded vowel?

texts:
I've puzzled over my pronunciation of "ul" in words like pull, culture, adult and multiple. The dictionary says it should be /ʌ/. I heard a Canadian teacher pronounce "culture" /'kol tʃɘr/. My pronunciation is between /o/ and /ʌ/, so I think it's a mid back rounded vowel: /o̞/.

Am I the only American who pronounces "ul" like this? For your reference, as an ESL teacher, I generally speak General American, have mostly lived in Northern California, but also in western North Carolina for four years.


texts:
I'm not a native English speaker, and I don't understand the meaning of the phrase "in your general direction."

I have found its use in the line from Monty Python and the Holy Grail:

  I fart in your general direction.


texts: What is the word for "something that is true, but misleading"?

texts:
A person in the news recently stated that he was a "Vietnam era veteran". This misled EVERYBODY into thinking he was a Vietnam veteran (and newspapers widely reprinted that he was). But no, he merely served in the armed forces while the Vietnam war was going on, but never participated.

Is there a word for that specific kind of technically-true-but-grossly-misleading claim?

BTW I'm very liberal this is not meant to be about politics but strictly language usage, there's no doubt in my mind that calling yourself a "Vietnam era veteran" is meant to convey a false impression.


texts: Does speed limit become plural when referencing two roads?

texts:
When writing about the speed limit on two different roads, is it correct to say:

"The speed limits on Hunt Brothers Road and State Road 17 will both be reduced to 45 miles per hour,"

or

"The speed limit on Hunt Brothers Road and State Road 17 will both be reduced to 45 miles per hour"


texts: Meaning and etymology of the word "dockle"

texts: I've been reading Betty Smith's A Tree Grows in Brooklyn, and I came across several uses of the word "dockle", usually in the context of light teasing. While I can find some small evidence online of its usage elsewhere, I can't find any actual explanation of its etymology or meaning. The book is set in a lower-class borough of Brooklyn in the early 1900's, if that helps.


texts:
When should we use "object-oriented" and when "object oriented" when talking about programming?

An example:

  Why should I start writing object oriented code?

I personally think that there should be a hyphen, because "oriented" connects to the word "object", but I am not sure.


texts: Idiom for someone who needs constant babysitting

texts:
I work in an I.T. company and I was assigned to work with a lazy guy who needs constant baby sitting. For instance, yesterday he asked me to go to his desk because he could not type the "@" symbol.

In Spanish we have an idiom that says : "He got drown in a glass of water". Which means he gets stuck and in minor or dumb things.

What's the most similar idiom in English?


texts: Trying to determine if a specific clause/phrase is essential or non-essential

texts:
I am a volunteer English tutor. My advanced ESL student wrote the following sentence after reading an article:

  However, recent studies, in Sweden and in Finland, have found out that different patients suffering from diabetes could be divided into 5 groups, depending on which cluster they suffer from.

Of the four commas in the sentence, I marked commas 2, 3, and 4 as unnecessary. He argued that he was taught that because "in Sweden and in Finland" and "depending on which cluster they suffer from" are non-essential, they need commas around them.

I am more or less certain that the commas around "in Sweden and in Finland" are wrong and pretty sure that the last comma is also unnecessary, but I do not know how to explain how these are essential when non-essential elements, "elements embedded in the sentence that interrupt it without changing the essential meaning" according to Purdue, can be a bit subjective when talking about elements that add more information. Both elements can be removed from the sentence without changing its core (another 'how to determine if it's essential' tip I read), but the commas simply do not look right.

Am I in the wrong? Are these points of information that give the reader more detail non-essential and should actually be surrounded by commas? If not, how do I explain to the student how to determine when additional information is essential or non-essential?


texts:
I'd like to know your judgments on the following sentences. Are they
well-formed?

Mary suggested him buying a laptop.
Mary suggested his buying a laptop.
What did Mary suggest him buying?
What did Mary suggest his buying?
What did Mary suggest buying?

Next, consider the following:

Mary suggested him going to Boston.
Mary suggested his going to Boston.
Where did Mary suggest him going?
Where did Mary suggest his going?
Where did Mary suggest going?

I am considering whether there is a transitive vs. intransitive asymmetry between 1 and 2 on the one hand and 8 and 9 on the other; and between 3 and 4 on the one hand and 10 and 11 on the other.

I'd appreciate your help.


texts: I'm not a native English speaker, and the use of could and would always confuses me. Could someone please explain it to me?


texts: Does the dedication "To my beloved John" need a comma after "beloved"?


texts: What is a document called, which records the process of a company giving its staff necessary items to their use for work?

texts:
Sorry for slaying the English in the title but I don't know how to be more explanatory.

For example John starts working with Microsoft as a programmer, and the company gives him a computer which is still company's property, but for the usage of John. What is that action called? Issuing? Commisioning? Deploying?

What would be the name of a document which records that action?


texts: What is the name of a business that fixes clothes?

texts:
The following local business, which I'm trying to add to Google Maps, fixes clothes by sewing and patching them or changing their hemline.

This is a workshop, not a self-service business: The client hands over a few pieces, and collects them a few days later, rather than fixes the pieces themselves by renting a spot by a sewing machine.

Is there a term for such a business in English? I could not find a proper translation for the Hebrew term "מתפרה".


texts: What do you call someone who is authorized to make decisions very few other people are?

texts:
Example 1: A General would have the authorization to abort a military mission, a regular soldier can't.

Example 2: In a high security workplace where people use keycards for accessing rooms, John Doe can't access room 504 with his keycard, but the CEO can.


texts: Is there a schwa in the middle of Coleridge?

texts:
How many syllables are in the name Coleridge - two or three?

I.e. is it [koʊləɹɪdʒ] or [koʊlɹɪdʒ]?


texts:
I can  not understand this sentence because of this one  all year long.

  Oh, it sounds like it's raining all year long in Belgium. Which season is actually the nicest one?

Can someone  explain it?


texts: What's it called when you switch the order of two words around?

texts:
What's it called when you switch the order of two words around, completely changing their meaning?

For example, simply childish becomes childishly simple.

Or wonderfully sarcastic becomes sarcastically wonderful.


texts:
I was reading an article where this quote appeared:

  "... I often receive emails and calls from friends telling me I was just spotted at X corner wearing Y outfit—people observe, comment, notice. Who wouldn't want to look good for those fishbowl moments?"

What does a "fishbowl moment" mean? I tried googling, but no definitions showed up.


texts: What are some heartwarming words you can think of?

texts:
Are there any heartwarming words you can think of? Words like "blossom," "mellow," and "melt" are good examples of what I am looking for. I don't need anything too major, just some words that make you feel "warm and fuzzy" inside.
Here are some example sentences with italicized heartwarming words:
"I still find single strands of your hair in the front seat of my car."
"As you lay in my arms, all of my worries melt away."
Something about those sentences just gives me chills (in a good way), so now you can somewhat "catch my drift," if you know what I mean.
Any suggestions are welcome! =)


texts: Is there a word that means that what was once good for you eventually becomes harmful?

texts:
More of an adjective to describe a noun. The example that comes to mind is the umbilical cord feeds and natures but once birth happens doctors sever it. If left too long it could harm the baby. So another way to look at it is something is good but too much of it will be bad. A phrase that comes to mind is a quote from The Dark Knight:

  "You either die a hero or you live long enough to see yourself become the villain."

I write poetry and like to include repetitiveness in the sense of words and their definitions if that makes any sense. I am still in the editing part of my poem but here is the part where I would like to insert such word if it exists.

  Stop writing encores that sound like the first one, you're just rearranging the words
  Give birth to new comings and with them comes what once feed you with essentials
  So sever all those ___ umbilical cords

So the word would go in the last line between "those" and "umbilical".


texts: Is 'she-woman' an acceptable counterpart of 'he-man'?

texts:
If this is, as it is, a real English example,

  I wanted to know what role his women played in persuading him that he was this incredible he-man.

can this

  I wanted to know what role her men played in persuading hers that she was this incredible she-woman.

be proper, too?

If she-woman is not proper, can anyone suggest a word that, in that phrase, would be more suitable?


texts: What is the longest word you can come up with that the letters are all in alphabetical order?

texts:
It's Friday again, how about some fun to get us into the weekend?

What is the longest word you can come up with for which all the letters in that word are in alphabetical order?

Rules:

English words only
Can't be a name of a place, person or other proper noun.
if it contains the same letter twice in a row, that does not disqualify it.
No fair looking it up on Google!

Update: One more rule to help you guys out.

The word can be in either ascending or descending alphabetical order.


texts: Adjective for someone who knows their limits

texts:
I am looking for adjectives for describing a person who knows their limits, what they are capable of and what not, knows their weak and strong points.

Usage example: When you are going through a new adventure (or having a difficult time in order to change something) in your life, try to find your limits and strengths along the way. Once you are done with it, you become a more [word] person.

I know this sounds like a simple question, but I, as a non-English speaking person, just can't think of good adjectives for it. I could think of wise, clear-minded, etc. but I am not happy with what I came up with.


texts: Word that describes the thing which has an aspect or facet

texts:
Basically, is there a relationship words/phrase for "that which can have aspects"?

If I have an aspect/facet "A", that belongs to thing "B".  A is an Aspect, and B is a <noun>

Something like "Aspectee", but a real word.

Sample sentence: "Please tell me the 'Aspectee' of the aspect 'A'?"

Edit: To clarify:  If "A is an Aspect of B", then "B is a(n) <?> of A"


texts: Sentences in passive voice that don't use "by" for the agent

texts: I was being asked to write sentences in the passive voice, and one of the requirements was to use prepositions aside from "by" for the agent. Is that possible? Some examples would help. Thank you in advance.


texts: what does "deliver" mean in the context?

texts:
You go to a store and buy a product that sounds like it's the best deal. But then you get it home, and it doesn't deliver.

What does deliver mean here? Does it mean It doesn't work as you expected?


texts: Is it correct to say 'what price is it?'

texts:
I think it is ok to say 'how much is it?' or 'what is the price of it?', but can I say 'what price is it?'

Also, why sometimes we can both use 'what xxx is it' and 'what is it's xxx' but sometimes we can't. For example we can say 'what nationality are you?' but we cannot say 'what job are you?'

Thanks in advance :)