texts: What is the quantifying determiner for durian/jackfruit?

texts:
What is the quantifying determiner for the tropical fruit 'durian'/'jackfruit'?

For instance:

  I ate one durian

It is unclear if the person is eating the entire durian by themselves or just one part of it.

  I ate two seeds of durian

When someone said that, generally, we understand they don't mean eating the seeds literally. However, is there a better way to say it? What do you really use in English instead of 'seed'? (I couldn't find any instances of 'seed of durian')


texts: Using 'a' or 'an' different in speaking and writing

texts:
There is an acronym- RPD.
In a ppt, made by my teacher for the students, there is a sentence-

When the posterior abutment opposes the edentulous space or a RPD.

However as I speak this sentence I automatically use an RPD due to the sound of 'aar' for R.
So is it correct that a same sentence is written and spoken but one with 'a' and other with 'an'?
Or something is wrong, me or the ppt?


texts: Do you use "there is" or "there are" before a list?

texts:
When I use "there are:" (with a colon) to introduce a list starting with a singular item, should I use "there is" or "there are"?

According to grammar rules, I should use "there is" if the following item is singular, but in this case the colon introduces a plural group.

For example:

  In my room there [is/are]: a bed, 2 chairs, a table, 2 carpets and a wardrobe.


texts:
Can a nation be referred to as "them"?
e.g.

  The special privileges accorded to the nation of Gregonia were taken away from them.


texts:
When I was younger, I thought of friendships bidirectionally ("we're friends"). However, not all friendships necessarily are bidirectional, or they might become unidirectional. Although I'm a native English speaker, I struggle to describe directional friendships properly.
I'm setting these arbitrary definitions in order to clarify my questions:

There are two people, A and B.
There is a strictly unidirectional friendship between A and B, where one and only one of A or B is friends with the other (never both at the same time).
Although it isn't an accurate description of friendship, I'll describe the concept of friendship as "liking", because I can properly understand "liking" as unidirectional.
If one of A or B doesn't "like" the other, then they "dislike" them.
Scenario 1: A likes B; B dislikes A.
Scenario 2: B likes A; A dislikes B.

Which of these statements fit "Scenario 1" and which fit "Scenario 2"?

A says to B, "I'm your friend".
A says, "B's my friend".
A says to B, "I consider you my friend."
A says, "I'm friends with B".

Special request: If you're not sure on the answer to one or more of those, please indicate that uncertainty along with each answer. Thanks!


texts:
I cam across this below sentence in this website:

  When you feel an idea you don’t prefer (like fear, self doubt, sorrow, sadness, etc.) the first thing is not to ignore or suppress
  it, but to feel it fully. Own it.

So in this above sentence what does the author mean by saying feel or own the emotion ( the emotions of fear, self doubt, sorrow, sadness, etc.)?


texts: Another way to describe the role of a 'kapo', but not WW2

texts:
I'm looking for a way to describe a role similar to a concentration camp kapo, but outside the context of WW2 concentration camps. I need a generalized term that would work for any time-period.

The inference I want is a person with a criminal background (a 'common thug') who benefits through harassing/controlling his own minority group, enabled by a sovereign authority. The type of person who should be in jail (sociopath), but has authority or immunity to justice because of the current power structure.

It does not need to be prison-related, but probably an extreme disparity between the minority group and the sovereign authority: company towns, Apartheid, a military occupation, religious oppression, refugees, or similar – especially where the person's status is unearned, and their actions are a betrayal against the minority group.

It does not need to be a single word. It might be a pejorative, coming from the point-of-view of the people being harassed.


texts:
Let's say there is a lawyer named Sue Smith.
She could be referred to as Ms. Smith, but is there a different formal prepended honorific specific to lawyers?
Particularly when addressing one directly.


texts: should i use the definite article " free from the British rule" or "free from British rule"

texts:
Should I use the definite article as in the British rule or can I say:

The colonies are now independent and free from British rule, and King
George III is now replaced by General George Washington.


texts:
Sometimes there are words that are foreign, and a bit hard for anglophones to articulate. Such as "Dvorak", or "dvelja". When trying to refer to these words in our conversation, sometimes an extra vowel is added between the two consonants, so that it is easier to pronounce. For example, "Dvorak" is pronounced "D-ə-vo-zhak". Also, "bdellium" is pronounced "b-ə-de-llium"

Is there actually a term for this addition of vowel?


texts: How do you assign Case to sentences with an infinitival clause?

texts:
Look at this example: For the butler to attack the robber would be surprising.

Here, the butler and the robber are assigned accusative case. Is 'for' assigning case to the butler and 'to attack' assigning case to the robber? Doesn't there need to be a subject in the clause, so there's something with nominative case?

Am I right in saying 'to attack' does not assign the nominative case to anything?

For sentences such as: 'That the butler attacked the robber is surprising.' I understand the case assigning, attacked assigns nom. to the butler and acc. to the robber. As soon as an infinitival clause gets involved, I find myself getting very confused. Can anyone help?


texts: “Thank you very much” vs. “Thank you so much”

texts:
Some people used to say:

  Thank you very much.

Where others say:

  Thank you so much.

Could anybody please explain what differences there may be between those, whether of correctness or usefulness or anything else that separates one version from the other.


texts: GRE Question : pair that expresses relationship similar to original pair

texts:
Frugal : miserly :: ...

  confident : arrogant
  courageous : pugnacious
  famous : aggressive
  rash : foolhardy
  quiet : timid

Option 1  (A) was the answer. Can someone explain the logic ?


texts:
Is there alternative word/phrase to replace commonly used "save for" / "except" to indicate an exception in a sentence.
for example, the following statement:
there was no evidence to associate the Company to the premises, save for the expired tenancy.
I am looking for alternative ways to replace "save for" and "except" which is suitable to the context of the sentence
Thank you


texts: Is this a good and correct translation from 'LEGAL' into 'ENGLISH

texts:
UK Health and Social Care Act 2008 (Regulated Activities) Regulations 2014
I am trying to understand what this particularly weasely-worded section actually means in plain English.  There have been cases where, I believe it has been wrongly interpreted.  The Act says:

Interpretation
2.—(1) In these Regulations—
...
other than any services which, having regard to their nature and the
circumstances in which they are provided, do not need to be provided
by a nurse;
'X' means  ...

Is it correct to say:
"other than" = apart from, except or differently from
"having regard to..." = (Legal) Remember and think carefully about...
So this does this correctly become:

except for any services which, when you remember and think carefully about its nature and the circumstances, do not need to be provided by a nurse;
'X' means...

In other words:

If someone other than a nurse provides the service, this definition of X does not apply.

OR

'X' means this definition ONLY when the service is provided by a nurse.

Grateful for your thoughts...


texts: Concisely describe non-time sensitive measurements

texts:
I am working on profiling a graphical PC application. In this context, profiling is the act of taking measurements, mostly time based (like "time elapsed while rendering x"), but also some simple values (like "the number of x used" where x is not a unit of time).

Multiple of "the same" measurements are taken by running the same simulation multiple times. Because recording the simple values has an impact on time, I take "time" and "value" measurements in separate runs. I would like to name these two types of profiling.

Can you think of a more concise wording of "Non Time Sensitive Profiling".  In the context of programming "NonTimeSensitiveProfiling" is a bit long. A compound word or phrase is acceptable.


texts: What term is used for the programs that are educational and entertaining

texts: Many programs on internet and TV try to attract customers by teaching through games,so  what is the name of this combination?


texts:
"History sniffing" is an attack in which a malicious website can figure out what other websites you have visited by taking advantage of the way browsers draw visited and unvisited hyperlinks differently.  This made headlines in 2010 thanks to a widely read academic paper and browser vendors figuring out how to block the attack.  The oldest description of the attack I have been able to find was in 2002, but the oldest use of the phrase "history sniffing" I have been able to find was in 2008.

Can anyone antedate the phrase, or the disclosure of the attack?  (I tried Google's timeline search, which you would think would be good for this sort of thing, but it fails to limit its results to uses of the exact phrase "history sniffing" even when I use the quote syntax, so it's useless.)


texts: "...have discretion in conducting policy..."

texts:
I was reading this page about monetarism and I saw a sentence in which the word discretion was used. I'd like to ask if it is correct in terms of semantics.

Characteristics of Monetarism
Monetarism is a mixture of theoretical ideas, philosophical beliefs,
and policy prescriptions. Here we list the most important ideas and
policy implications and explain them below.
1.The theoretical
foundation is the Quantity Theory of Money.
2.The economy is inherently stable. Markets work well when left to themselves. Government intervention can often times destabilize things
more than they help. Laissez faire is often the best advice.
3.The Fed should be bound to fixed rules in conducting monetary policy. They should not have discretion in conducting policy because
they could make the economy worse off.
4.Fiscal Policy is often bad policy. A small role for government is good.  .


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

texts:
I was wondering if we can use the word "luxury" to refer to a "luxurious item",

For example, are the sentences below considered grammatical? :

I have a luxury.
I have one luxury.
I have three luxuries.


texts: Difference between "report" and "report on"

texts:
1  : to give information about (something) in a newspaper or on
  television or radio

  [+ object]

  Their job is to report the news accurately and fairly.

  [no object]— often + on

  He reports on political news for a local TV station.

  2  : to tell people about (something) : to make a report about
  (something)

  [+ object]

  He was asked to report the details of the meeting.

  — often + on

  She reported on the project to her manager.

  From Merriam Webster Learner’s Dictionary

  http://www.learnersdictionary.com/definition/report

  1 NEWS [intransitive, transitive] to give people information about
  recent events, especially in newspapers and on television and radio →
  reporter

  This is Gavin Williams, reporting from the United Nations in New York.

  report on

  The Times sent her to Bangladesh to report on the floods.

  3 JOB/WORK [intransitive, transitive] to tell someone about what has
  been happening, or what you are doing as part of your job

  report (to somebody) on something

  I’ve asked him to come back next week and report on his progress.

  From Longman Dictionary

  https://www.ldoceonline.com/dictionary/report

I have quoted relevant definitions from Merriam Webster and Longman Dicitonary.

What is the difference between “report” and “report on”?

Take these two examples from Merriam Webster Learner’s Dictionary. Can I delete “on” without changing the meanings of the sentences?

He reports on political news for a local TV station.
She reported on the project to her manager.


texts:
I'm interested in finding out two things:

Why is sensical not a valid antonym for nonsensical?
Is there an antonym of nonsensical that can be used instead? I haven't found any in dictionary searches.


texts: Is a person using the pronoun "I" uncapitalized considered rude or uneducated?

texts:
Like what i am demonstrating here. To be honest i didn't even know about it until much later when i discovered the Grammarly app and i was like "it even exists?". Now it has quite become my bad habit especially in real-time messaging. I am aware that it is incorrect but when the conversation is going fast i just kind of forget to give it one more keypress and bam there goes my grammar.

Again forgive me if the passage above sounds rude or something. I just want to clarify it once and for all.


texts: What do you call a person who walks their own path?

texts:
I am not really talking about in a religious or spiritual way but I was wondering if there's such word that can be used on groups like the artists and the creatives that walks their own path.

For example: it would be an artist who doesn't imitate what the majority but he or she would walk their own path to find their own art.


texts:
Which of these sentences is correct?

  It is he I relate to most of all.

Or,

  It is him I relate to most of all.

I believe that in neither of the two sentences do the words "him" or "he" act as a relative pronoun, for the simple reason that they are not relative pronouns. Instead, both sentences have an implicit relative pronoun. The case of he/him should depend on other considerations, such as, the proper case after the linking verb, "is".

It should be simply a matter of which is more correct,

  It is he

Or,

  It is him

My Latin education would have me pick the former. But my knowledge of colloquial English tells me that the phrase, "it was him", is commonly used. Thus, I do not know. I hope these words help explain my reasoning, without making my reader more confused. I would be interested to know what you grammar gurus think of my first two sentences. Which is correct?


texts: What do we call an adjective made of a verb?

texts:
What do we call adjectives formed from verbs? For example:

Lost is an adjective made from lose,
Forgotten is an adjective made from forget,
Broken is an adjective made from break.

What is the technical term for such adjectives? Do they have a name at all?


texts: I'm not a native English speaker could anyone explain the meaning in usage of the term "ending on a short note." I've searched Google and Stack Exchange but could not find anything.


texts: Are the phrases "once for all" and "once and for all" equally acceptable?

texts:
I don't want to see you again!  It's over, once (and) for all.

Are both forms acceptable?  Is one of them old-fashioned?


texts: Is the relative clause used correctly here?

texts:
Get a first-hand feel for the Nomad life with the knowledge that this
  team has a wealth of experience in dealing with international visitors.

Is the part that this team has a wealth of experience correct here? I think it should have been "Get a first-hand feel for the Nomad life with the knowledge that this team has in dealing with international visitors.

After a relative clause "that", an independent sentence should come; however, the independent sentence "this team has a wealth of experience in dealing with international visitors." sounds wrong. Why is that? How could you correct it without losing the idea that the team has a wealth of experience?


texts: Is it right to refer to someone as a “co-chairwoman” if the other person doing the chairing is a man? Someone might say it is not, because the prefix “co-“ implies that two (or more) people share the same title. But in this case, the other person does not share the “chairwoman” title. On the other hand, someone might counter that “woman” is not really part of the title. It is just incidental. Where does the truth lie?


texts: I have difficulty understanding the following sentence fragment: ". . . cuts real deep calling miss homecoming a cow."

texts:
I heard this line in a PS4 game, where two teenage girls quarreled about a boy they both like.
For one thing, it seems to me that there's no verb in this sentence fragment. Second, the way I break the sentence down is as follows:does the word cuts function as a noun and the words real deep function as adjectives?

cuts: nouns

real deep: adjective

calling miss homecoming a cow: present participle clause

For another thing, I cannot catch the real meaning. I know that "Miss Homecoming" is one who is most well liked by the entire high school, but what does "Miss Homecoming" have to do with deep cuts?


texts: "There are no injuries" opposed to "There are not any injuries"

texts:
There has been an argument over whether one or both of these is correct and as well, which one is correct and technical, proper English.
"There are no injuries" and
"There are not any injuries".


texts:
I would be so grateful if you paraphrase the following paragraph with simple words. Note that this paragraph refers to a way of self-deprecating yourself in your speech.

  "Looks or lack of style: We all try, but we can't call be cool. In
  order for some of us to be cool, some of us have to look like nerds.
  If that's you, use it. Maybe you're talking about science, or maybe
  about fancy basketball stats - whatever it is, rock your nerdiness."


texts: What is the IPA of the throat clearing ch sound?

texts: Is there a standard IPA equivalent of the gargle-ish sound you make when you clear phlegm out of your throat, like when you pronounce 'Achmed', where the 'ch' is the 'phlegm' sound?


texts: Could any given usage of "quoth" be replaced by "quoteth" (and vice versa)? Is quoteth simply its archaic form, or is there a difference?


texts: using "to" instead of "into" in "transform A into B"

texts:
Instead of using "into", can I use the preposition "to"?

He transformed himself into a werewolf.

He transformed himself to a werewolf.


texts: I'm hesitating between these two and I don't know which one is more correct: wider width or larger width?


texts:
I am hoping to apply to a master's program in the USA. They ask for a "Diploma/Degree Certificate", but I don't really know what that means. When I looked for the definition I found only "Degree", as the level and/or paper you get after finishing your studies. "Diploma" is vague, too.

When we finish a Bachelor's in my country (Mexico) you get various papers:

A paper that testifies that you finished all the courses, but you are not still a "Bachelor". It's called a "Study Certificate" (Certificado de Estudios).
A symbolic paper that means you finished all the semesters, even if you failed some courses as long as they are not enough to fail the whole semester. This is called "Diploma" (just like in English).
When you present a thesis (and you get it approved) you get a "University Title" (Título Universitario) and then you can say you have a Bachelor's Degree. Some people have such a high GPA that they give them this paper without presenting a thesis.

So, as I couldn't find a specific and detailed definition of "Diploma/Degree Certificate", I am asking for your help please.

If this is off-topic, I apologize, please delete.


texts: Is there a difference between 'reform' and 'reformation'?

texts:
According to the OED, 'reform' is defined as,

  [mass noun] the action or process of reforming an institution or practice.

The same definition appears in its entry for 'reformation'.

In terms of usage, is there any difference between the two words? Are they completely interchangeable, or is one preferable over the other?

Would 'Progressive reforms" mean the same as 'Progressive reformations'?


texts: Do we use " at " or " in " with part of the day?

texts:
This kinda confused me when we were learning about Prepositions ..

Because sometimes I hear  at night. and another time I hear in the evening

even though both of them are part of the day


texts: Does one hold a M.A. 'in' something or 'of' something?

texts:
In reading a curriculum vitae, I noticed an author used both

2013 M.A. of Information Science

and

2008 M.A. in Philosophy.

Is there any logic to this? Which one should be preferred for academic cv's?


texts: A word for the state of a object which does not work

texts:
I want to describe a state of a object of not being functional and being not likely to work normally unless being fixed. How do i describe it? Is break implys that something physically breaks into pieces, and it can not describe electronic devices which do not work anymore?
 Thank you very much!


texts: “starting steep and leveling off horizontal” – adjective or adverb

texts:
Are steep and horizontal correctly written as adjectives or should they be adverbs in the following sentence?

  Scaling around the trunk leads to a huge branch that expands out the other side starting steep and leveling off horizontal high above the ground.


texts: What does "intent on his impaled insects" mean in this context?

texts:
From a passage describing Elizabeth Gaskell's Mary Barton,

  The early chapters -- about factory workers walking out in spring into Green Heys Fields, about Alice Wilson, remembering in her cellar the twig-gathering for brooms in the native village that she will never again see, about Job Leigh, intent on his impaled insects -- capture the characteristic responses of a generation to the new and crushing experience of industrialism.

I understand the main chapters talk about factory workers, Alice Wilson and Job Leigh, but I don't understand what "intent on his impaled  insects" mean.

Translating it as "attentively occupied with pierced insects" doesn't really make much sense to me. What are pierced insects?

Could you please explain?


texts: What did Lord Byron mean by "Away with this cant about nature!"?

texts:
In Oscar Wilde's A Sentimental Journey Through Literature, he suggests that the literary critic 'Mr Noel' thought Lord Byron was a "true nature worshipper and Pantheist".
Wilde provides evidence to the contrary, saying Byron spoke with contempt of

'twaddling about trees and babbling o' green fields'

And that Byron also said:

'Away with this cant about nature! A good poet can imbue a pack of cards with more poetry than inhabits the forests of America,'

What is meant by these quotes?


texts: Incomplete sentences when introducing a table below

texts:
When writing notes, I've noticed that I write incomplete sentences before a table and I'm not sure where the "full stop" should go and whether I should use a colon.
Example.
The parameters used in the pareto distribution are:

.
Is the colon supposed to be there? And should there be a full stop after the table somewhere?


texts: What is the difference between "solidus" and "slash"?

texts:
I was reading a text, and I found the word solidus.

What is a solidus? Is the word normally used in everyday language, or is there another word that replaces solidus even if it's not the completely correct word?


texts: Term for being responsible for previous customers after taking over a company

texts:
Slightly abstract question but i'm after a single word that describes this:

Say your company buys another company that provides a service - is there a word that describes that you are still responsible for your previous customers paying for your service and indeed the customers that were previously paying for the services of the company you have now taken over?

e.g. a word describing the transfer of liabilities after acquisition


texts: What is the word for music that is both a capella and instrumental?

texts:
Now, I know the terms "a capella" and "instrumental" are pretty incompatible, and to tell the truth, something like "Lyric-less" would fit better than "instrumental" in this case. Basically, I'm looking for a word that applies to songs that use the human voice more for the purposes of making notes than singing words, perhaps even imitating conventional instruments like violins or guitars (but not drums, I know the term for that: beatboxing).

For instance, I want a word that could be used (for example) in place of my made-up word "Accapellental" in this example sentence:

  Smoove McGroove is a great Accapellental artist.


texts: What is the difference between "All" and "Only" here?

texts:
What is the difference between following sentences ?

"All believers respect God" and "Only believers respect God"

(Ignore any grammatical mistake, if any)

I just want to know how "All " and "Only " affect the sentence ?


texts: Can I use the terms "CEO" and "Managing Director" synonymously?

texts: Can you please clarify if it's acceptable to use these terms interchangebly and if not point out to significant differences between these titles. It seems to me that it may be something with scale of an organization (perhaps, small/medium businesses have managing directors, and large corporations have chief executive officers) but I'm not sure. I do understand that a person may bear one or another of these titles formally, but what about real differences?


texts:
I have learnt these words so far, please correct me if I'm wrong:

Dawn, maybe 4am–6am?
Morning, maybe 6am–9am? The food for the morning is called breakfast. People greet each other Good morning!
Noon, maybe 11am–1pm? The food is called lunch.
Afternoon, maybe 2pm–4pm? People greet each other Good afternoon!
Evening, maybe 6pm–9pm? The food for the evening is called supper. People greet each other Good evening!
Night, maybe 9pm–11pm? However, Good night means "have a good sleep".
Mid-night, maybe 11pm–1am?

You see, I've missed some parts of a day, I may be not correct on the time boundaries of each part, though.

I would like to complete the list, especially the part after the morning but before the afternoon. My teacher never told us to use the word noon, and good noon seems never used by anyone.

I would like to know each part of a day, its corresponding food term (like lunch, supper, etc.), and its corresponding greeting words, thanks.

Summary

I'll update the table to reflect the answers:

Part          Begin End   Meal             Greeting
------------- ----- ----- ---------------- ---------------------
morning/dawn   0:00  5:00
early morning  5:00  6:00                  Good morning
morning        6:00  9:00 breakfast        Good morning
mid-morning    9:00 11:59 elevenses/       Good morning
                          morning tea/
                          brunch
noon          12:00 12:00 -
afternoon     12:00 17:00 lunch/           Good afternoon
                          afternoon tea
evening       17:00 21:00 supper           Good evening
night         21:00 23:00 night-time snack Good evening
midnight      23:00  1:00 midnight snack   Good night


texts:
I have been wondering why some people think that "attention payment" is an accepted phrase. The argument is that you "pay attention", therefore you can learn "attention payment". This sounds incorrect, and my original argument was that payment, in this form, is being used like something akin to a gerund. The verb "to pay" is being used as a noun. In the context of paying attention, the use of the verb is colloquial. You don't actually exchange funds -- but the concept is similar, so we use the verb to describe being attentive.

However, whenever the word "payment" is used, it appears to be used exclusively to describe the exchange of funds. I am wondering if this is correct, and if so, specifically why "attention payment" is incorrect.

Thanks!


texts: Can you help me understand the meaning of this sentence?

texts:
I came across a sentence which I found hard to comprehend since English isn't my first language.

The sentence is:-

  Cleanliness is the virtue most worth having but one.

I couldn't understand the purpose of the usage of "but one" in this sentence.

I'll be grateful if you can shed some light on this.

Thank you.


texts:
What would be the 1 word to describe "to generate interest"?
For example, David is generating customer's interest in his selling product.
Considering "tout" may not be a good choice. What is the 1 word (also a common word)?


texts: If we can say 'Where are you going to?', why don't we say 'Where do you live in?'?

texts:
In most cases 'where' seems to be substituting for a prepositional phrase. As in: -

Where do you live? / I live in Brighton.

Where does the train stop? / It stops at Reading and Bristol.

So why is it seemingly okay to say 'Where are you going to?' as well as 'Where are you going?'.

Is the former actually correct? And if it is correct, is it something to do with asserting the preposition 'to' because the listener may otherwise assume 'in' or 'at' as default?

And now I come to think of it why do we say 'Where do you come from?' as opposed to 'Where do you come?'? In this case 'where' is substituting for a noun with no preposition which kind of messes up my theory and my mind at the same time!

Please help - I don't know where my head is at!!!!


texts: What is a good alternate for "forensic" in a non-criminal sense?

texts:
I was looking for a word that captured the sense of "forensic" with regard to after-the-fact "scientific methods and techniques to the investigation of crime", but in non-criminal situations.

I'm thinking primarily about root cause analysis-type scenarios in engineering and project management.

Example usage: "Can we set aside time to forensically look at the reason for all of the delays"

The implication that I would like to have is that:

We are doing research, as opposed to pontificating
The approach is data driven as opposed to philosophical


texts: Is it appropriate to address a college instructor by their first name?

texts:
During my tenure at community college, we often addressed our professors (or instructors, whatever you'd like to call them since most didn't have a doctorate) by their first name. Is this the proper thing to do, or should they be addressed as Professor Whomever?

All through elementary school and secondary school we were taught to address the teacher as Mr. This or Mrs. That. In college those rules seemed more relaxed but it still makes me wonder, should you address a college professor with a title or just by their name?


texts: Mixing tenses and talking about the past of an imaginary discussion

texts:
I posted this question on English Learner Stack, too, but I didn't get an official answer(maybe it is because my question is kind of a complex one.)

This question is relative to a topic I posted last time:
https://ell.stackexchange.com/questions/149420/tense-usage-in-an-imaginary-discussion

This time, I have some questions about "what if an imaginary situation is something mixing up different times"
I believe many learners have the same question in mind, so I decided to post it.

Example 1,

(using present tense to talk about an imaginary situation happening now)

I am talking to my friend about an imaginary situation:

What I say to my friend:

    You are walking on the streets. You meet a beautiful woman that you saw yesterday.

    Because you went to a coffee shop and saw her sitting beside the window the previous day.

    (back to the imaginary present)

    Then, You guys chat and have a good time. It seems like she is your right one. Will you ask for her number?

Example 2

(using past tense to talk about an imaginary situation happening now, because I think, this way , I can let others know that all I talk about is something imaginary in a more clear way. And I use past perfect in this example to indicate something happening in the past of the imaginary situation. I don't know if it is ok to use it like that.)

I am talking to my friend about an imaginary situation

What I say to my friend:

    You were walking on the streets. You met a beautiful woman that you had seen yesterday.

    Because you had been to a coffee shop and had seen her sitting beside the window the previous day.

    (back to the imaginary present)

    OK, then, You guys chatted and had a good time. It seemed like she was your right one. Would you ask for her number?

Can I mix tenses like the above examples when I talk or write an imaginary situation?

PS:
By the way, since talking about the plot of a book, movie, or video can mix tenses like this to convey a better picture of what the plot is about, I think talking about something imaginary probably follows the same rules.


texts: What's the expression for "someone doing what you intended to do before you"

texts:
I know this expression in my own language, and I think I've heard it a couple of times in English, but it completely slipped my mind. I can give an example to make it easier for you to understand what expression I'm looking

  I wanted to ask her out. But then she spoke. "You wanna grab dinner, or something". (expression)

Basically something saying; she got the before me. Or something like that. Sorry if this is too vague, but please try your best. If there's any Norwegians reading this question, here's the expression or phrase in Norwegian: "Å komme noen i forveien".

Alright, hope I gave you all enough to work with. I think it's a pretty common expression. Also, sorry for the really bad written example. I just need to make something quick, it simply there to paint a picture.


texts: Is there a term or adjective to describe this plot device?

texts:
Imagine you are watching or reading a work in which a certain amount of suspension of disbelief is required (such a work is typically science fiction or fantasy). And then, out of nowhere, comes this other plot device which cannot be a plot hole just by the sheer amount of thought that had to be put into it, but, nonetheless, actively counteracts the suspension of disbelief thus far achieved. Is there a term or adjective that describes such a device? These devices are distinctive in that they are frustrating because even granted the often remarkable postulates of the plot, they are still ridiculous or ask too much of the reader/viewer.

I'm sure many people have experienced this phenomenon and have been frustrated by it. Whenever I've experienced it among friends or family, we often quip at the person who points it out by saying "This is what you have a problem with?", or something of the like, and go on to point out the equally ridiculous or more ludicrous events that have happened or things that exist. Of course, this quip is in jest and everyone agrees that it's ridiculous, but we are unwilling to pause to discuss it, and it is easier to accept it and move on.

I have many examples of this type of device. Of the ones I have in mind that would be well-known are of the 'cop-out' flavor, or in highbrow terms deus ex machina. For example, the
eagles in the Lord of the Rings. J.R.R. Tolkien requires us to suspend a lot of disbelief such as disbelief in elves, hobbits, dragons, etc. But then he invokes the use of the eagles to save the heroes on more than one occasion; and yet, they are not used to end the main conflict in the story.

There are many more examples of that flavor, but I'm asking for a more general term. At the risk of losing some readers but for the sake of another example, I was particularly confused by Karl Ruprecht Kroenen from Hellboy. First of all, Hellboy required the audience to accept the existence of demons, mutants, and Nazis that created a portal to hell. All that is fine and good, but then Karl shows up, who somehow achieved immortality for himself through genius, but nonetheless needs to 'wind himself up' like a common pocket-clock. As though a person with that amount of genius couldn't figure out how to automate that required function.

Any suggestions to describe this type of plot device are appreciated.


texts:
since it is acknowledged that one’s mastery of language is apparent in their collection of vocabulary, strengthening your vocabulary is a must to anyone and everyone.

"be apparent in" is a collocation I have never seen before.What does it mean?


texts: Word meaning "impractical, didactic, theoretical"

texts:
I am in search of a word which I'm not sure exists. What is a good way to describe something which:

— has little to no consequence

— is possibly important in theory

— would be considered good form to do correctly

Here's an example. Suppose you are writing an essay for a professor who really cares about formatting. You italicize a section of words and also italicize the period which follows, even though the period should not have been italicized. Obviously nobody can tell whether a period is italicized or not, but if your professor opened your essay in a word processor, they might note that you had italicized incorrectly.


texts: Alternative, more commonly accepted parlance for "currentness"

texts:
The following two sentences are identical:

  Ensure that X is current.

  Ensure the currentness of X.

However, the word "currentness", while present in the dictionary, represents a very uncommon usage of the phrase. Are there any alternative ways to phrase this sentence while avoiding the "is current" construct?


texts: "Take the weight off your feet": offensive?

texts:
I kind of have the impression that the phrase, "take the weight off your feet," is offensive towards fat people (sorry couldn't think of any PC terms).

Is my impression correct? or have I just watched too many sitcoms?

[I did try googling this - but came up with nothing!]


texts: Comma separator for numbers with 4 or 5 digits?

texts:
Having gone to school back in the mid 80's to the early 90's, I pretty much sucked at math and English. However, one of the things I remembered was that the first comma in a large number was not inserted unless the number had at least 5 digits.

Example -

100

1000

10,000

100,000

1,000,000

However, I never really tried looking that up until now, when it came up in discussion. I can't seem to find a reference to this 'rule' or guidance anymore, and am wondering if - in my old age - I'm just completely making that up now.


texts: Word for working at a certain post but not made official

texts:
I am working as a Project Manager from the last few months but my official designation is still of a software engineer. The official role change will happen next year but I want to use "Project Manager" as my designation because I want recruiters see me in that position. Is there any word which can specify this?

[I saw some profiles on LinkedIn writing "Manager (Designate)" - is "designate" the word I am looking for?]


texts: Verb for meeting the requirements of a policy

texts:
I'm looking for a verb that would go with policy.

Our company has a policy, which defines a set of requirements. I want to say that I am responsible for ensuring that the company meets the requirements of the policy, but I don't really want to use the word requirements. Is there a word that I could use like this:

  I am responsible for [some verb] the policy.


texts:
I'm wondering why this phrasing:

  I spend most days thinking about the future. Hoping that I'm on the right path, I do my best at everything I can.

is preferred over this one:

  I spend most days thinking about the future, hoping that I'm on the right path, I do my best at everything I can.

I think both are grammatically correct (I'm not so sure about the latter). In my ACT textbook, it says that the latter is indeed grammatically incorrect.

But—we are allowed to use commas to insert additional information. For example:

  Her brother, who lives in Chicago, came to see her.

So, I am not sure why the latter is deemed incorrect.


texts:
Can I say "I study in a faculty of medicine." instead of "I study in a medical school?"

Would it sound natural?

Or should I just say "I am studying medicine at (name of institution)."

Let me put it this way: Can we replace "medical school" with "the faculty of medicine", and if so would these sound natural?

▪ I was an A student, on my way to medical school.
▪ They never taught me in medical school that I would be doing so much paperwork.

Thank you for reading. I appreciate it.


texts: Rememeber reading this in Reader's digest or some novel. "When the revolution comes, you will do as you are told" Cannot find any references in Google. Maybe wrong spelling? The meaning seemed to be that one revolution will lead to just a different set of rules and rulers. Not much will change for the common man. Is this understanding correct? Does anyone know which book/ incident/ speech this is from?


texts: What's with the passive present perfect progressive?

texts:
I was taught that we made passive voice using be + the participle of the main verb, without changing the verb tense. E.g.,

  I send letters. (present simple)
      Letters are sent. (present simple of 'Be' + participle)

  I sent letters. (past simple)
      Letters were sent. (past simple of 'Be' + participle)

  I was sending letters. (past progressive)
      Letters were being sent. (past progressive of 'Be' + participle)

  I have sent letters. (present perfect)
      Letters have been sent. (present perfect of 'Be' + participle)

Works beautifully, right? That is, until a student asks you "How about…"

  I have been sending letters. (present perfect progressive)
      Letters HAVE BEEN BEING SENT. (present perfect progressive of 'Be'?!)

I said that would be too weird to say (is it not‽ ) and it would be more appropriate to say Letters have been sent, to which the student retorted:
But then you are changing the verb tense. It is no longer progressive.

Can anyone explain, please?


texts:
I came across the following sentence in a book. I wonder how should I interpret "noon hour":

  "And how shall you rise beyond your
  days and nights unless you break the
  chains which you at the dawn of your
  understanding have fastened around
  your noon hour?"

(The first part of the sentence is closely related to the sentence before.)

Those who are interested can see the whole text at 'On Freedom'.


texts: What is the meaning of the word "inriation"?

texts:
I looked up the definition of the word elation in Webster's Revised Unabridged 1913 dictionary and found the following definition  (Page: 476):

Elation
E*la"tion (?), n. [L. elatio. See Elate.] A lifting up by success; exaltation; inriation with pride of prosperity. Felt the elation of triumph." Sir W. Scott."

I had never seen the word inriation before and my subsequent attempts to find a definition failed. It is not listed as a word in the 1913 dictionary, or any others that I've found.
Is there an example of this word in English literature? Is it made-up, a misspelling? I can infer the definition from context, but is there any dictionary where inriation is defined?


texts:
My name, Shehab, is an Arabic word. Interesting, more than 10 white Americans and a black American have addressed me 'Shebab' (both in writing and verbally).

Why is this particular mistake is so much common?


texts: Is it appropriate in a sort of business related mail using "'em", contracted form of "them"?

texts:
I was writing an email today, and I was supposed to write a phrase like this "did it for all of  'em", even though I eventually  changed it to them as them as that looked a little informal to me, I am not rally sure if this is what the case is?

and just for information, mail was not for any boss/manager, it was just for a colleague but she is in US and I am not so I didn't know whether it is okay or not?


texts: How to put a negative answer for which-question

texts: If I want to give a negative reply for a which-question, such as, which one is your favourite ? Can I merely use a word "None" to reply to the question?


texts:
It seems that the term ghetto was used for the first time at the  beginning  of the 17th century to specifically indicate an area in Venice where Jews  were restricted. According to the Etymonline Dictionary and  Wikipedia
various theories of its origin include:

a) Yiddish get "deed of separation;
b) special use of Venetian getto "foundry" (there was one near the site of that city's ghetto in 1516);
c) a clipped word from Egitto "Egypt," from Latin Aegyptus (presumably in memory of the exile);
d) or Italian borghetto "small section of a town".

Is there  evidence that any of these theories, or others, can be considered as the most reliable source of the origin of the term or, is its origin to remain unclear as it appears to be now?


texts: Antonym of "distributed" as in "distributed system"

texts: If we consider context of computing, what is the opposite of distributed? Is it single or combined ? What is the opposite of "distributed system"?


texts: Suppose that my boss had a talk with me yesterday morning. He told me “You will have a meeting next week.” After a while, I called my wife and told her what the boss said. At the time, can I say to my wife that my boss told me I would have a meeting next week? I was wondering if the “would” can be used here. Do you think there are any other tenses to express the same meaning. For example, I told my wife I have a meeting next week, or I told my wife I will have a meeting next week. As for the three sentences above, which one is correct and which ones are incorrect? Please explain the reasons. Thank you very much.


texts: "I would have liked 'to have seen'/'to see' New York before the cyclone"

texts:
Possible Duplicate:
“Would you have liked to have been” vs. “would you have liked to be”

Is "have" redundant when repeated in successive verb phrases?
Well, let us read the following sentences:

I would have liked to have seen New York before the cyclone,
I would have liked to see New York before the cyclone.

Am I right in saying that one instance of "have" seems to have prompted another? Or are there subtleties and shades of meaning?


texts:
Possible Duplicate:
  Position of the adverb “of course”
  Should an adverb go before or after a verb?

I was wondering what position of an adverb relative to more than one auxiliary verbs are generally? For example, "have basically been doing something" or "have been basically doing something"? Thanks!


texts: International English - Question related to an adjective used to describe a very easy to grasp, yet thoroughly complex concept

texts:
I'm looking for a word that would describe a certain idea that is so easy-to-grasp that it appears to be innate, yet it is thoroughly complex and complicated.

An example is national identity, which anyone can understand and explain in simple terms, but there are extensive bodies of literature and research on the subject.


texts: Use of "already" in context or alternative phrasing

texts:
On a blog post I (German native speaker) recently wrote the following sentence:

  I forgot to tell my boss that the meeting will start already at 2 tomorrow.

Someone then posted a comment that the already doesn't make sense and wouldn't be used by a native speaker of English, correcting my sentence to:

  I forgot to tell my boss that the meeting will start at 2 tomorrow.

Now, adding already to the sentence (in German) does one of the following 2 things:

Expressing that the meeting, which was originally scheduled to start at 3, has been "preponed".

or

Expressing that the starting time, yet unknown to the boss, is early from the perspective of the boss/ myself because maybe usually meetings start at 5 or maybe we are about to work till 5 at night today so 2 tomorrow is early for us.

If not using already, how would either case be expressed in English then?


texts: I often get confused by the usage of "located " and "situated"

texts:
Possible Duplicate:
  Situated vs Located?

Can I have a few examples to comprehend?


texts:
I knew the authenticate means to prove that something is real, true. For example The system need to authenticate the user before the user can use the system.

But I can't understand the below example well. please help to review it.

The sentence I read is from here.

  In the traditional client-server authentication model, the client
  requests an access-restricted resource (protected resource) on the
  server by authenticating with the server using the resource owner's
  credentials.

What does authenticate with mean? Thanks.

Does it mean server provide the authenticating function to authenticate the client? Thanks.


texts: Singular or plural verb with "a minimum of"

texts:
Does the phrase "a minimum of" in conjunction with a plural term require a singular or plural verb?

"A minimum of 1.6 million reads was generated per sample."

vs.

"A minimum of 1.6 million reads were generated per sample."

Edit 1:
I suppose that the situation is similar to using the collective noun "a total of", in which case a plural verb would be required ("A total of 10 babies is..." vs. "a total of 10 babies are..." vs. "Ten babies in total are...")


texts:
I'm not a native English speaker, so I am learning the pronunciation of words mostly from using Google.

The way I found how to pronounce the word "want" was more or less like how I (british-way) say "can't" (/wɒnt/), which I presume the American way of pronouncing it.

But when I listen to British speakers, what I hear sounds more like "won't".

So I'm confused whether the British actually pronounce is as /wɒnt/ but I'm keep hearing it wrong. I'm interested in the knowing the correct British pronunciation of that word. Thank you.


texts: What punctuation is this sentence missing?

texts:
One big ass mistake America.

I'm thinking it should be:

  One big ass mistake, America.


texts: What's it called to be cautious about something you do?

texts:
Is there a term in English for where you want to describe the discreet or cautious approach you take, when you want to make sure you're not risking or jeopardizing anything in doing a routine job?

How would a native complete these sentences?

  The _______ is to take two more spare tyres with you when you go off-road.

OR

  You have to bring a sleeping bag, in case it gets cold in the forest over night; that is called _______, my friend :)


texts: "I am done with school for now." vs "I am done for now with school."

texts: Is the second sentence incorrect, and if so, why?


texts: How would you call sitting with your legs crossed but one calf resting on the other knee?

texts:
Sorry, perhaps this has been asked before but I just can't think of what this way of sitting should be called. Is there a word for it? I hope so!

To be more specific, you're sitting upright in a chair or something with one foot planted on the ground firmly enough while calf of the other leg is resting on the knee of the planted leg. Men tend to sit like this far more than women.

Thank you for your help!!

EDIT: Ok, as Mitch kindly suggested I try and do, I found a picture with the search terms "crossed legs man"


texts: What is this grammatical form called and how should punctuation be used

texts:
I am trying to find the correct punctuation for the following sentence:

  It allows connection to, and customisation of, functions available in the program.

Does such construction, with two direct objects, one sort of clarifying the other one, have a name? I was trying to use Google to answer my second question, but failed to explain to it what I mean.
What is the correct punctuation to use here? A colleague of mine suggested moving the second comma ahead to before “of”. I am in doubt.


texts: 'Master of the universe' or 'Nucleus of the universe'

texts:
Can I say:

  No one likes man thinks he is a nucleus of universe.

I've just seen on some website the use of "master of the universe" I'd better use this word?

And please correct my grammar.


texts: "yet the least" and " the least ... yet"

texts:
From the sentence:

  Grave, taking life at its own face value and a little too seriously, with a deportment as unbending as it is "correct" , he is yet the least formidable of men.

Some people interpret "he is yet the least formidable of men" as he is not formidable at all in the crowd. But seems that the "yet" means "still" would be more natural. So what is the meaning of it? Is it different from "he is the least formidable yet "?


texts:
I'm curious about the grammar in the vulgar idiom "Where the sun don't shine".

Why is there a don't instead of doesn't? The latter strikes me as the correct grammatical form, but I'm not sure.


texts: Synonym for "increase by one" for use in technical publication

texts:
I was wondering if there is a synonym for the word group "increase by one". Example:

  "If the shoe didn't fit, the shoe size was increased by one size."

I think it sounds weird because of the repetition of "size", however, I think I cannot just delete the second "size". So I thought there might be a synonym to give the sentence more variability.

Or does the sentence below sound natural to native speakers?

  "If the shoe didn't fit, the shoe size was increased by one."

P.S.: The intended use is a technical publication, so please no colloquial terms or phrases.

P.P.S.: For the offended footlocker headquarter - imagine a series of tubes in your kitchen that come in sizes one, two, three (I hear already plumbers shouting "no, they don't") and the same situation "If the tube was too small to connect with the sink, the tube size was increased by one."

Yup, I got it now, you could say "the next size was chosen" and I will never ask a question here again because obviously this here is native speaker corner and these kind of synonym questions are trivial.
So long, and thanks for all the fish.


texts: Double possession dilemma: should I say “your” or “yours”?

texts:
What is the best way to say this?

  Because of yours and the John Wichel Foundation’s grant we are able to continue our mission to serve all Texans with diabetes.

Should it be

  Because of your and John Wichel Foundation's grant, we are able . . .
  OR
  Because of yours and the John Wichel Foundation's grant, we are able . . .

It's a double possessive with the word your.  No matter how I write it, it doesn't sound right.


texts:
Is there a term for a word that is only used if paired with another word?
For example "dulcet", (Dulcet tones), or "inclement".


texts: Is there a word for words like "dozen", "score", "gross" that refer to specific cardinal numbers?

texts:
I'd like to know whether the words that describe numerical quantities have a name to describe them as a group.

This would be similar to how onomatopoeia is a word to describe a group of words that all share the characteristic of actually sounding like the sound they are describing.

EDIT, note that my question is not asking the same question as at this link, because I'm asking for the word describing the group or category

English words for specific positive integers (e.g. dozen, score, gross, myriad)


texts: The Coq proof assistant does not seem to specify a pronunciation on its website, nor does the Wikipedia page list a pronunciation. How should its name be pronounced?


texts: Is there any difference between "talk to someone" and "talk with someone"?

texts:
Possible Duplicate:
  “Speak to” vs. “Speak with”

Well, the question is in the title. I always had the impression that "talk to someone" refers to situations when some information must be conveyed to someone else, while "talk with someone" refers to cases that involve a more complex two-sided interaction. E.g., I "talk to my colleague" to tell him that I'm going for a lunch break (no response is required apart from maybe an acknowledgment), while I go and "talk with my colleague" if I have to discuss something with him in detail. Is this correct, or is there any difference between the two phrases, or is there no difference at all?


texts:
For terms like liquid chromatography–mass spectrometry that typically use an en dash rather than a hyphen, would an en dash still be used in the acronym, LC–MS? Or would we only need a hyphen there, LC-MS?

EDIT: Anybody have a style guide that speaks to this issue?


texts: What expression describes a person who knowlingly invests in a scam?

texts: What word or phrase describes a person who invests in an enterprise that he knows is a scam or Ponzi scheme? Can the word or phrase refer to a person who votes for a politician who repeatedly tells known lies?


texts: Using the preposition For to indicate a purpose

texts:
I am curious to know if the usage of "for" in the sentence below is grammatical?

  The reason why “socioeconomical understanding” is chosen as the umbrella section is for it to mediate the understanding of innovation in X industries. The following subsections are intertwined in their individual evolutions and implications for X industries.

PS: I am aware that there is a split among linguists concerning the usage of "The reason why". By extension, I am open to suggestions regarding reconstructing the paragraph.


texts: What game did "game changer" originally refer to?

texts:
Game changer is an expression , often used in business contexts,  to refer to:

  a newly introduced element or factor that changes an existing situation or activity in a significant way. Origin 1993 (M-W)
  a person or thing that dramatically changes the course, strategy, character, etc., of something:
  Social media has been a real game-changer in the company’s marketing efforts. Origin 1960/1965 (Dictionary.com)

According to the following extract from etyman.wordpress.com:

  The Corpus of Historical American English has an entry for game changer that appears in the Chicago Tribune of 1995. In an article that covered the development of oil industries in Cuba, we find;

  In the Obama administration, Cuba’s oil development is likely to be seen as an issue for the future. Says a senior State Department official, ” If it’s a game changer it’s not going to be a game changer for a while.

  In one of his On Language pieces for the New York Times, William Safire refers to a Washington Post article baseball reference:

  Singleton hit his game-changer… fair by eight yards.

  In the same piece, Safire says that Ben Zimmer had tracked it back to 1930 and a discussion about changing the game of bridge: “Seldom are the game-changers idle.”

It appears that the different sources disagree on the origin of the expression "game-changer", especially on the period when it was first used.

Questions:

What game did the expression originally refer to? Was it the game of bridge as suggested above or was it in sports, for instance?
When was the expression first used figuratively, in the '60s or the '90s?


texts: What term is used for something you say in social situations but may or not actually be true?

texts:
For example, my son's birthday is Christmas Eve. When I tell people this I generally add how I have to tell family and friends not to go cheap and buy him a birthday present but say it's also for Christmas. In fact, I have never had to do this. I only say this because so many people have brought this up I preempt them with this "anecdote".

"That story I told wasn't exactly true, it was a/an ______"


texts: How/When did English transform to the modern version we use today?

texts:
I know that a language evolves with time and constantly keeps itself up to people's needs. But when I read a bible or a poem of Shakespeare, I can see English was very different by then with sentences like:

"I love thee."
"O Romeo, Romeo! wherefore art thou Romeo?
Deny thy father and refuse thy name!
Or, if thou wilt not, be but sworn my love,
And I'll no longer be a Capulet."
"Draw, if you be men. Gregory, remember thy swashing blow."
"Such is my love, to thee I so belong."
"Come, night; come, Romeo; come, thou day in night;
For thou wilt lie upon the wings of night
Whiter than new snow upon a raven's back.
Come, gentle night; come, loving, black-brow'd night;
Give me my Romeo; and, when he shall die,
Take him and cut him out in little stars,
And he will make the face of heaven so fine
That all the world will be in love with night
And pay no worship to the garish sun."

I concur that "Thou" is a single version of "You". Maybe I'm wrong but what happened to it? How did it get lost? Bible is relatively old but not Shakespeare. So how did English transformed that much in such a short time? Or were there any official attempts like governments enforcing some grammatical rules at schools?


texts:
I was thinking about the "intimate" word used here:

  How can I intimate this to my most intimate friend?

How can I differentiate both words?

Edit: in response to comments, I don't quite understand the meaning of the sentence. What is the difference between the first "intimate" and the second?


texts: Subject-verb agreement with "Some" as the subject

texts:
In the sentence, "Some of their work to make their community a better place to live include(s):" followed by a list of 10 items, which is correct?

  a) Some include:
  b) Some includes:

A link to a specific rule to share with others would be helpful.


texts: What's the word for "synonyms of a phrase"?

texts: I'm looking for multiple ways to say "Call the Police". When searching the thesaurus, I couldn't find anything. In my head, I can come up with "report to the authorities", or "report a crime", but I don't know the word for these phrases so that I can do more digging and find more examples.


texts:
Example:

  — What is he called?
  — I have not a clue.

  — What is he called?
  — I have no clue.

Are both versions grammatical in English? If they are, which one is preferred by native speakers in the US and the UK?


texts:
As I understand it, apostrophes are used to show where a letter/letters are missing (e.g. shouldn't-> should not, hadn't-> had not).

So when I abbreviate "little", is it correct to write:

  li'l'

(with an apostrophe at the end for the missing "e")

I believe it is usually written

  li'l

(without the apostrophe)

But if we're leaving out the last apostrophe, can we leave out the middle one too, to give us:

  lil


texts: English equivalent of Russian "по кд" meaning "used repeatedly and as soon as possible"

texts:
There's a Russian gaming phrase "по кд" which means "fired/activated/used repeatedly and as soon as possible after the cooldown time".
The example of it being used in World of Tanks - "Зашёл к нему в спину и начал разваливать по кд", which roughly translates as "Flanked him and started damaging with all the DPS available".

The phrase mainly used in gaming, but it may be used in other domains, for example, programming - "Начал слать запросы по кд", which translates as "Started sending requests with a minimum possible downtime (be it receiver or sender restrictions, depends on the context)."

Is there an English equivalent for this Russian phrase?

I tried to use the literal slang translation, on/at cooldown, but it rather means "the thing is not ready (it is on cooldown)".
Another option, fire at will, roughly means "fire when ready", but it barely concerns the weapon itself.

So, is there an English phrase or idiom that means "по кд"?


texts:
The following passage is quoted from the fifth chapter "Diagon Alley" of  Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone.  What does the word "them" in bold refer to? I think that grammatically speaking, it should refer to Harry and Doris, but contextually speaking, it should refer to Hagrid and Harry.
Can the word "them", not the word "themselves", include the subject "Hagrid"?

  But the others wouldn't let Professor Quirrell keep Harry to himself.
  It took almost ten minutes to get away from them all.  At last, Hagrid
  managed to make himself heard over the babble. "Must get on -- lots
  ter buy.  Come on, Harry." Doris Crockford shook Harry's hand one last
  time and Hagrid led them through the bar and out into a small,
  walled courtyard, where there was nothing but a dustbin and a few
  weeds.


texts: What's wrong with "I'll open you the door"?

texts:
When I call the buzzer outside my girlfriend's flat, she sometimes says *"I'll open you the door". I correct this to "I'll open the door for you".

I've never heard a native speaker say it the first way, which is why I think it's wrong. But I can't explain why.

There is a pattern in lots of English phrases that would suggest both are correct. A few common examples:

Give the keys to me before you go — Give me the keys before you go
I'll buy a coffee for you at the cafe — I'll buy you a coffee at the cafe
We sent a text to Martin on his birthday — We sent Martin a text on his birthday

The left-hand side is more formal, and the right-hand side is more common in everyday speech.

What do you call this pattern?

What makes the 'open-the-door' sentence an exception?


texts:
There are two ways to pronounce the word 'direction'.

dɪˈrɛkʃ(ə)n and dʌɪˈrɛkʃ(ə)n

Is one American and one British? If yes, please confirm which is which.

If not, what's the difference in usage?


texts: The phrase “awfully well” is fairly common, but it strikes me as an oxymoron. Is it?


texts: Meaning of a second occurrence of "on which" in a single sentence

texts:
Could someone teach me what the following sentence means? I don't understand about the second instance of "on which"; is that "on the platform" or "on the trade surplus"?

  "A recent Chinese white paper on China's membership of the WTO will do nothing to alter the beliefs of those who see the WTO as the platform on which China has built the trade surplus on which the Trump administration is now waging trade war."

Many thanks for your help.

Hoo


texts: Looking for a word which describes something that doesn't inspire confidence

texts:
I am looking for a word which describes results or conclusions which don't inspire confidence because they were reached using poor quality data or a faulty procedure.  The feeling I am trying to convey is something that can't be trusted or relied on to be correct.

If the data is of poor quality, the conclusions reached by the study might be inaccurate, misleading, or [insert word here].


texts: Difference between "classical" and "classic"

texts: What's the difference between classical and classic? Should we say classic content in textbooks or classical content in textbooks?


texts: In legalese, while describing a party which loses the capacity to perform certain obligation, is it awkward to say "During the course of the calamity, the performance incapacitated (or disabled) party shall ..." instead of "During the course of the calamity, the party who is incapacitated by the said event to perform the obligation, shall…"? I would be happy to know if there are better ways to convey the meaning succinctly.


texts: "This, and other questions" or "This and other questions"

texts:
Doing XYZ is a difficult task. This, and other questions are discussed in the following chapter.

or

  Doing XYZ is a difficult task. This and other questions are discussed in the following chapter.


texts: Is there a verb form of the word "agenda", as in, to create a political agenda for or against something?

texts: It doesn't have to contain the root word, but I would like at least a synonym.


texts: "Opportunities of" vs "opportunities for;" which one is correct and why?

texts:
The sentence is "I was privileged with ample opportunities of one on one interactions with my writing teachers."

Would it be more appropriate to use "for" or "of" in this situation? What dictates that?

Thanks


texts: What are synonyms for 'disputed regions'?

texts: I would like to know what else I can use instead of 'disputed regions', I've used conflicted territories, but that doesn't sound right. Are there any other combinations of two words that have the same meaning as 'disputed regions'?


texts: "Up until that time" sounds awkward -- is there a better way to say it?

texts:
Maybe I'm having a bad day, but I've just written a sentence similar to this one, and it doesn't read well for me, but I can't think of anything better right now:

  The task was to build a new accounting system; up until that time they had been doing everything by hand.


texts: Is there a grammatical mistake in this sentence?

texts:
I just spotted a sentence in a magazine article, Which seems to have a grammatical mistake. Please find it as follows. It seems that the subject is missing, isn't it? There should be a noun before is in the sentence; no? Thanks!

  Within the vast collection of the National Museum of Fine Arts of
  Havana is an astonishing breadth of work by some of Cuba’s greatest
  artists.


texts: Is "has died for several years" correct?

texts:
I know it is correct to say

  He has been dead for three years.

I've learned the present perfect tense, and it's said that non-continuous verbs are allowed. Is this sentence correct as well?

  He has died for three years.


texts: Phrase for the belief that your field of study or project has higher merit

texts:
I'm trying to find a phrase for the act of rating one's activity greater then another person's activity.
An elementary school teacher might state that reading a chapter with your child is critical but an instructor at a gym might put a greater emphasis on social interaction and physical activity at that age takes precedents.  Both are vital for a well rounded child, but each individual rates their activity greater than the others.  What is that called?


texts: A word to describe the feeling of liking something, without understanding why?

texts: Is there a word that describes the feeling that you get when you enjoy or like something but you cannot put your finger on as to why you do?


texts: Idiomatic way to express "you bought an apple and complain it's not a pear"

texts:
Consider the following two examples:

You're discussing a particular tablet. When you bought this tablet, you expected that you would not need your phone any more because you can call with the tablet, and while it's less convenient because it's bigger, you figured you don't call that often anyway. After a while you realize that, in fact, it turned out to be so inconvenient that you want to warn the other for this. At the same time you want to clarify that you don't want to complain about the fact that the tablet is too big (after all, this has other advantages).
You read the memoirs of a particular sportsman in order to get somewhat of an overview of the culture in professional sports. After reading it you are somewhat disappointed because it only shows this for a particular sport / locale. You want to tell somebody that this book is not right if you want a general overview. But again you don't want to complain about this because you cannot expect a systematic overview from a memoir.

So in both cases you are disappointed with a particular aspect and want to highlight that, but without judging or blaming the author / manufacturer for this. I'm thinking about something along the lines of:

  [I don't want to complain that the apple I bought is not a pear], but this tablet is not a good alternative for a mobile phone.
  [I don't want to complain that the apple I bought is not a pear], but this memoir does not provide a systematic overview.

What would be an idiomatic way to express the part between brackets?


texts:
When is there a "the" at the beginning of a university's name?

For Example,

Cornell University or the Cornell University,
Brown University or the Brown University,
Johns Hopkins University or the Johns Hopkins University, (I saw the latter is used often, and not sure about the former)
Carnegie Mellon University or the Carnegie Mellon University,
University of Illinois at Urbana–Champaign or the University of Illinois at Urbana–Champaign,
Stanford University or the Stanford University.

Thanks!


texts: "You’re going to have jump for it" meaning

texts:
The writer talks about some funny word unknown to reader yet.

From "New Ad Land Cartoon: The Most Important Word in Advertising":

  David’s new Ad Land cartoon honors and celebrates the MVP word in advertising’s lexicon, but we’re not going to give it away in this intro. You’re going to have jump for it. Trust us, it’s worth it.

I guess that the possible meaning is:
The reader will jump (like "jump for joy" idiom) when he knows the funny word at last.


texts: "Like never before" or "Like you have never done before"

texts:
I am a not a native English speaker. But the term "Manage Teams like never before" which our company thinks about using for advertising our software sounds strange to me.

Wouldn't it be better to use "Manage Teams like you have never done before" (by using our software)?


texts:
I was reading an article and I found be and get being used at two places.
Extract-
Different workers respond to this in different ways and some employees may be left behind
there is a risk that others who are more comfortable being managed may get left behind
What is the difference between be left behind and get left behind . Also, I thought of other two lines where I am confused with get and be .
When they were being shot
when they were getting shot
What is difference between meanings of the two lines ?


texts: hypernym for clients, suppliers, partners, public enterprises, employees

texts:
I need an abstraction for the above terms for using in a financial service application.

I am thinking to use "Current Accounts".

Is it appropriate to use this term to cover all of these terms that I mentioned on title?


texts: Words to describe the person who made the complaint and the one who is being complained

texts:
I am looking for nouns for

A person who made a complaint;
The person who is being complained about.

I would have used "complainer" but that sounds wrong as it is closer to saying that person likes to complain a lot.


texts:
Is the phrase "combined with" or "coupled with" a nonessential phrase?
For example": Her neat work combined with her pleasant nature makes her a pleasure to teach. Should it be "Her neat work [comma] combined with her pleasant nature [comma] makes her a pleasure to teach"?


texts: Why are curse words called "curse" words?

texts: I understand that words like "hell" and "damn" are cursing the person they are directed to, but why would words such as "shit" and "bitch" be viewed as curses?


texts: How do you describe calling someone a "Loser" when you mean it in a "good-natured" way

texts:
How do you describe calling someone a loser in a "nice" way? What word can replace "nice"?

There's a specific word I'm looking for but cannot dig it out of my brain.

  "I mean loser in a   _____ way"

It's almost the opposite of "patronising" or "condescending".

Similar words but not quite right:

  good-natured
  friendly
  chummy
  affectionate
  sweet
  nice
  charming
  lovable

Context:

Someone calls me this word but I have known this person for a long time and know his humour and what he is like. He says the word often and with a great big smile on his face and arm over my shoulders. I find it funny/laugh when he says it. I am trying to describe this to another person who doesn't quite get it like I feel most people here don't!


texts: Most appropiate word for someone addicted to Internet

texts: Apart from computer savvy or geeks,I am looking for the most appropriate English word for someone who is addicted to Internet?


texts:
In English, there are many tendencies towards what I understand to be redundant.
Why do people say expressions like "sit down", "fall down", "jump up": if you were to sit, obviously you would sit downwards, it's impossible to sit upwards, so wouldn't "sit down" be redundant? The same goes for "fall down", it's impossible to fall upwards just like it's impossible to jump downwards. Is it redundant in English? If not, why?


texts: A word for an examination of a product's design

texts:
I am looking for a word describes a kind of review of a product that closely examines its design. In my case specifically a video examining the design of a level in a game.

  I regularly watch _____ of video games on YouTube to give me ideas for my game's design.

I think the word I am thinking of ends in "-spective", like the words retrospective and introspective, but I may be mistaken.


texts: Is there a word or term for "game with rules"?

texts:
Wiktionary defines "game" as "A playful or competitive activity". Chess would fit the latter part of that definition. It has clear rules which determine a winner and a loser. Lego fits the prior. You "play" with it, for entertainment value, but there's no rules, no winning or losing, you just do as you want.
This distinction isn't limited to the mode of play, either. Chess, specifically, is a board game, but soccer also has rules. Number of participants is also irrelevant, as playing house also fits the "playful activity" form.
I'm looking for a word or term where it wouldn't feel unnatural to say "I was doing X" ("I was engaged in a competitive activity" sounds more than a bit weird), but in which, without having to specify the exact game, it's clear I wasn't playing with dolls.
Changing the verb instead, and saying "I'm competing" gives the connotation of a final tournament. Like, you wouldn't say you're "competing in soccer" if you're just going out to play with friends. Also, it doesn't allow a sentence of the form "Soccer is an X".
Basically, some term where I could say "Chess is an X, Lego is not an X".
Any word/term/phrase for this?


texts: "This is joint work with ..." vs "this is a joint work with ..."

texts: I saw both sentences "This is joint work with ..." and "this is a joint work with ..." in many math talks abstracts. I wonder if they are both correct. Any help will be highly appreciated.


texts:
"All the world and his wife were at the ball." This is a sentence I found in a text book.
Does "all the world" simply means "everybody"?
China is experiencing a great change, all the world is looking at it, because it is also consequential for them (self-made). In the second sentence, is "people all around the world" better than "all the world"?
I tend to think that "all the world" is better than people all around the world, because the latter only refers to individuals ,whereas the former may mean Brookings Institute or the Pentagon.


texts: What's a verb that indicates a change from public to private?

texts:
I need this for a user-interface label on a button that changes a document's status from publicly visible to privately visible, meaning that it can thereafter only be seen by the creator and by administrative users. One idea I had was "hide", but that seemed to give the wrong connotation. When I searched for a term, the only one I found was "privatize", but that has a completely different context.
Example Usage:

Share Report (Private -> Pending)
Approve Report (Pending -> Public)
[Hide]* Report (Public -> Private)


texts: Is "have not worked here for a long time" ambiguous?

texts:
I have not worked here for a long time/for many years.

Is it ambiguous? Which of the two below is the correct meaning?

I have been working here, but only for a short period of time.
I once worked here, but I left a long time ago.

If it is ambiguous, how to express these two meanings unambiguously?

Another related expression:

  I have not worked here in a long time/in many years.

I think it unambiguously expresses the 2nd meaning so I didn't bring it up. But I want to confirm it with experts here.


texts: What does "skreeble", "glurp", and "grindlebloff" mean?

texts:
I'm trying to translate a computer algorithm book to Chinese (from English). But then I came across the following sentences. I know what the author is trying to say, but I have no idea what does "skreeble", "glurp", and "grindlebloff" mean...

For example, if the original input is a skreeble with n glurps, the input to each recursive call should be a skreeble with strictly less than n glurps. Of course this is impossible if the skreeble has no glurps at all --- You can’t have negative glurps; that would be silly! --- so in that case we must grindlebloff the skreeble using some other method.

The book chapter is available at http://jeffe.cs.illinois.edu/teaching/algorithms/book/01-recursion.pdf, you can find the above text on page 23 of the book (or page 3 of the pdf file).
Any help is appreciated!


texts: Is "where" the only relative pronoun that cannot be omitted from an adjective clause?

texts:
When using adjective clauses, the relative pronoun can be omitted when it is not the subject of the sentence. For example:
"She is the person I ran into."
In the above example, being the object of the sentence, the relative pronoun "who" (or whom) was left out.
BUT
This is true as long as the relative pronoun is not "where". In case of "where", even if it's not the subject of the sentence, it cannot be omitted from the sentence. It can only be replaced with "that" or "which", and that requires a preposition at the end of the sentence. For example:
"This is the building we met." is wrong, but
"This is the building where we met." is correct, as is "This is the building that/which we met in."
You don't have to do this with other relative pronouns. They can be left out from the sentence without a problem, as in "I'm thinking about the time we met." The pronoun "Where" is the only one that cannot be omitted from the clause altogether.
I just need to know if I'm right about this. Thank you.


texts: Word for "entity who/that decides whether to grant or deny a request"?

texts:
Checker comes to mind but I want something better.

The context I have in mind is in software development. What would you call the mechanism that will allow or deny user actions (based on users' privileges and the rules of what they're interacting to allows) like commenting, liking, flagging, rating, etc?

I'm looking for a generic term for something I'd go to to see if what I have is valid or invalid before I can proceed with whatever it is.


texts: Word that means "to be oblivious to" but not on purpose?

texts:
I searched for be oblivious to in Thesaurus but it only has synonyms of ignore (to disregard intentionally). I'm looking for something more silimiar to "to not to know".

Example sentence:

  Truth be told, he __ the answer himself.


texts: Can "meticulous" be used to describe inanimate objects?

texts: Can "meticulous" be used to describe a room or some other inanimate object, or is it only descriptive of behavior?


texts:
The chart that shows the value of every aspect of an entity. It represent properties of an entity visually, with areas so that we can easily regconize the strong/weakness, etc...

Here is an example:

What is the name of this kind of chart/graph?


texts: Serial commas where list items are linked

texts:
Should one use the serial comma in all lists, or only those where each list item is independent?

For example, where each item in the list belongs to the same noun:

'...we looked at the geology, petrology, mineralogy and element geochemistry of the region'
or
'...we looked at the geology, petrology, mineralogy, and element geochemistry of the region'


texts: What's the meaning of "flatlands of paper"

texts:
In the following paragraph, Edward Tufte speaks of "flatlands of paper."
I don't understand its meaning:

  Even though we navigate daily through a perceptual world of three
  dimensions and reason occasionally about higher dimensional arena with
  mathematical ease, the world portrayed on our information displays is
  caught up in the two-dimensionality of the flatlands of paper and
  video screen


texts: Question that someone answers in lies to be morally right?

texts:
There are questions you ask someone and most of the time they will just answer in lies either to not hurt other people, to prevent confrontation, or to not be seen as a shallow people. Is there any English word for it?

Here's some examples of such questions and answers:

Manager asking their employee

  Manager: Do you think I'm a good manager?
  Employee: Yes you are(although he feels like the manager is bad, but he lies to prevent confrontation with the manager)

An asian guy asking girl whether she likes asian guys.

  Asian Guy: Would you date an Asian guy?
  Some girl: Yes, if he's the right person(although she doesn't like asian guy, but she lies in public otherwise she will be seems as a shallow person also she want to prevent confrontation towards asian guy)

So it's questions that people will answer truthfully only if they can answer them anonymously, otherwise the truth will hurt other people or the respondent will be considered rude.


texts:
In the following example, would it be correct to replace both uses of 'upon'?

  Tom further encouraged Blain's team regarding the proposed trade deal, adding that before everything would be agreed upon, nothing would be agreed upon.


texts:
Is it just me or is there something wrong with the sentence below. I saw something like this recently:

  If I upload something from the backend, will it show under Latest?

I don't know but the word show sounds a bit strange here. Any thoughts?


texts: Phrase to describe a fix when you are not sure of the actual issue

texts:
I'm looking for a phrase you would use when you have made a fix to something but you are not sure what the problem is in the first place.

For example I pushed out a software fix today to address a problem but I was unable to find out what the problem was. What would you call that fix?

Thanks

Jonathan


texts: How can choosing to speak in English rather than French have an emotional impact on me?

texts:
I’ve grown up speaking two languages. I can seamlessly swap between French and English, but somehow I often feel like I can’t speak my mind when speaking French.

When it comes to things that are meaningful or things that are relatively important to me, I don't want to speak French: it just sounds wrong, like it’s not actually what I meant to say.

For example when speaking to my lover, or when writing an essay, or when I have to apologize, it will not come as naturally if I have to say or write it in French. It will even sound untrue. I feel free, liberated when speaking English.

Why is this so? I don’t think it has anything to do with my vocabulary because to be honest my French vocabulary is much richer. French is also the language I use the most, even though all my courses are in English.

Any ideas?


texts: what is difference between "on" and "about"?

texts:
which preposition is more suitable to use and why ?
1-To find more information about the available scholarship.
2-To find more information on the available scholarship.


texts: Is there a one word synonym for 'road condition'?

texts:
Specifically about road surface being wet, icy or damaged - transport related.

If there's no one word synonym, then shorter expression might help too.


texts: Are the expressions: "You needn't" and "You don't need to" different in meaning?

texts:
While doing some research on a comment I had read on ELL I read the following excerpt from a website called e.grammar

You needn't listen to him. (You don't have to listen to him.) x You
don't need to listen to him. (There is no need to listen.) These two
sentences are different in the form and meaning, too.

After reflecting, I started interpreting the two sentences like this:

"You needn't listen to him" = It is unnecessary to listen to that
man. If you want to listen that is your choice, but it's not
important.

"You don't need to listen to him" = It is not necessary to
listen to that man. If you do you will only be wasting your time.

Is the second sentence more forceful, perhaps precluding the possibility of choice? Or is my mind playing tricks on me and in reality the two phrases have identical meanings?
I must admit to feeling bemused. Before reading the passage I would have said there was no difference in meaning between needn't and don't need. On the BBC Learning English I read this:

Needn't and don't need to
There is also a difference in use when
these verbs are used to describe present situations. We can use both
needn't and don't need to to give permission to someone not to do
something in the immediate future. We can also use need as a noun
here:
You don't need to water the garden this evening. It's going to
rain tonight.
You needn't water the garden this evening. It's going
to rain tonight.
There's no need to water the garden this evening.
It's going to rain tonight.

This would confirm my initial belief; that there is no real difference in meaning but now... I'm not so sure. And if there is no difference, except for structure, why do the two forms exist side by side? Why or when did "need" become a modal verb?


texts: "Sun rises in the east" or "The sun rises in the east"

texts:
I am really confused about the usage of articles with proper nouns like sun. Which of the following is correct?

Sun rises in the east.
The sun rises in the east.


texts: What term means for something to be 'in place' in literature or screenwriting?

texts:
I am trying to recall a very specific word that..

Is typically used in the context of film/tv/screen writing
Describes something that the writer has put in their imaginary world (usually but not necessarily physical)
Means that this something is 'in-place', 'sympathetic to the imaginary world', 'consistent'
When used usually implies that this thing would otherwise be very out of place or noticeable, that the screen writer has done a good job of integrating it

Examples:

"The {} telephone-like device didn't break my suspension of disbelief, like it could have if done wrong."

"The X is very {}, considering they've obviously had to include it for didactic purposes"

Does anyone recall such a word? I am fairly sure I am not imagining it...


texts: Is there a word or phrase in linguistics describes the patterns of English in common use?

texts:
The crux of my question is how do we get from descriptive linguistic grammars for English to the often confusing contradictory and tedious grammar rules taught to native speakers and esl students?

Note: I've edited the original post for clarity, I apologize if that leaves the very useful comments below without context.


texts: Measurements without a dimension (raw number)

texts:
I'm translating some documents to English which deal with some measurements. Most of the measurements have a unit dimension (length is in meters, weight is in kilograms, etc) but some of them do not have a specific dimension, e.g. Number of samples.

What word to use to describe such measurements? The direct translation of the original terms leaves me with "undimensional", but I don't think that's it.


texts: Can "as matter of fact" be used to express a contradictory opinion?

texts:
I'm aware you can do that with actually:

  actually
  ...used when expressing a contradictory or unexpected opinion or
  correcting someone. "‘Tom's happy anyway.’ ‘He isn't, actually, not
  any more.’"

Source: Google.

Can I do the same with as matter of fact?

Example:

  I looked at the sky and searched for constellations.

  Matter of fact, I wasn't an expert. My knowledge was limited to
  horoscope columns and astronomy documentaries.


texts: Please help me with these sentences with coordinate conjunctions

texts:
(A) Descriptive information. (1 ) A narrative summary and analysis of the information in the report;

  (2 ) An analysis of the 15-day Alert reports submitted during the reporting interval (all 15-day Alert reports being appropriately referenced by the applicant's patient identification code for nonvaccine biological product reports or by the unique case identification number for vaccine reports, adverse reaction term(s), and date of submission to FDA); CFR - Code of Federal Regulations Title 21

Could you please help me with this structure? I can't figure out which elements are combined by "or" and "and".

I assume it means:

by 1) the applicant's patient identification code for nonvaccine biological product reports OR by 2) the unique case identification number

and the unique case identification number for 1) vaccine reports, 2) adverse reaction term(s), and 3) date of submission to FDA

Am I correct?

  (3 ) A history of actions taken since the last report because of adverse experiences (for example, labeling changes or studies initiated);

  (4 ) An index consisting of a line listing of the applicant's patient identification code for nonvaccine biological product reports or by the unique case identification number for vaccine reports and adverse reaction term(s) for ICSRs submitted under paragraph (c)(2)(ii)(B) of this section; and

And here again, why is there "by" after or? Is this "an index by"?

And lastly, is "adverse reaction term(s)" paralleled with vaccine reports?


texts: Is there a term for noises which CAN'T be written as normal text?

texts:
Hard to give examples, as if I'm able to do it, I won't be asking this, but consider some sounds made by the tongue.

I'm giving examples of sounds which CAN be written to give you an idea:
Dog growling - Grrrrr
Sneezing - Aaccchhhhoooo

I need a word for sounds which can't be written.


texts: A verb for when we actively extract information from others?

texts:
Sometimes, others just inform us about things without us asking them, other times they do not do that even if we ask them. I want a verb for when others do not give us information — whether because they do not like to or they just don't give it, but we cannot directly ask them to — but we actively extract the information from them sometimes without them being aware of it.

So the word I am looking for shouldn't be only for cases where we coerce or force others to give us information, and it shouldn't be only for cases where others do not like to give us information.

Example:

  I needed that information. But I couldn't ask her for it, or most
  probably she would not give to me even if I asked her. So, I ....
  the information I wanted.

It could be a phrasal verb and so not just a single word, but I couldn't devise a  blank suitable for all possibilities!

Two verbs I've already had but I think are not suitable:

to give someone the third degree Source

To prize something from/out of somebody Source


texts: What is the unit measure used to detect magnetic indentations in a hard drive?

texts:
As the title states, what is the unit measure used to detect magnetic indentations in a hard drive?

To clarify, what I mean by indentation is, what is measured to determine if a byte is a 1 or 0?


texts:
Which of these two is correct, and why?

two kinds of televisions
two kinds of television


texts:
So I was walking in the hallway at my business, and one of my co-workers said excuse you to me. He said excuse you, when we kind played "footsies," where he was trying to go past me and I was trying to go past him in a corridor and almost but did not bump into each other.

What irked me was how he said excuse you, which I believe implies it is my fault. Shouldn't he have said excuse me, or rather both of us should have said excuse me? Instead, he said excuse you and it left a foul taste in my mouth.

I am confused about this excuse me because he said it in a "gentle" manner. Most of the time (at least my experience) when excuse you is said, it is said in a mad or annoyed tone, but he gently said excuse you. Did he think it was my fault for stopping him?

Edit*
I didn't think it would be related but after hearing about the situation, I do believe he implied it was my fault. Yesterday my fellow co-worker was angry at my for confirming information. So I had to ship out a cushion and we have multiple colors, I asked for confirmation if it was the tan color and he just blew up and started saying how he already told me and ranted on me. Usually he's quite nice and after that situation when we "bumped" into each other he said excuse you nicely. Most of the time I wouldn't have thought anything about it because he is rather nice, but given the situation and the responses, for this particular situation I believe he thought I was wrong.


texts:
I'm a programmer and I'm combing through some code and entering comments to help other developers. I wrote the following sentence and got confused by the (possibly) dangling verb. I've spared you the the jargon by replacing with [tech fix].

I've put in this [tech fix] to make future modifications easier.

It didn't look right, so changed it to try to make it follow make:

I've put in this [tech fix] to make future modifications more easily.

or

I've put in this [tech fix] to make future modifications easy.

My reasoning is that if the sentence could be rewritten as the following, then case 2 above would be correct.

I've put in this [tech fix] to more easily make future modifications

In the above sentences, which is more correct, easier or more easily? Please help me understand the difference by decomposing the sentence.


texts:
While doing some formal writing at my office,  my friend told me that in is more apt than with in the following sentence. However, my understanding says when we talk about tools of action, we generally use with.

  A gazetted officer is required to sign with/in green ink.

So which is more apt here?


texts: how can i write it You username has been updated or Your username has been updated

texts:
Which is correct?

You username has been updated or Your username has been updated

or something else i am not sure i dont speak very well english so making sure i am writing right


texts: Is it okay to omit an article after the word "or" because it is redundant?

texts:
Example 1: I will bring a pen, eraser, or pencil.

Example 2: I will bring a pen, an eraser, or a pencil.

Are the above two examples both correct grammatically? If so, which is better to use in academic/professional/technical writing? Does Example 2 seem redundant?
How about in the following cases?

Example 3: I will select a black, yellow, or red shirt.

Example 4: I will select a black, a yellow, or a red shirt.


texts: When to use "verb to be"/"do" in question?

texts:
When I ask questions like "Are you tried?", "Is he usually come on time?", is it grammatically correct or not?

Can I ask "Do you tried?" and "Does he usually come on time?" What rules apply when I ask questions like this?


texts: What is the origin of "settle your hash?"

texts:
I understand the phrase "settle your hash" means to subdue someone through the use of threats or violence. For example, a heated argument between two individuals where insults were being lobbed to and fro might lead one to exclaim:

  If you keep disparaging my mother like that I am going to settle your hash.

What is the origin of this idiom?


texts: Is effect pronounced as /ɪˈfekt/ or as /əˈfekt/?

texts: This page ( https://www.oxforddictionaries.com/definition/american_english/effect ) lists it as /əˈfekt/ for American English, but when you click on the pronounce button it is pronounced as /ɪˈfekt/. Can you say it both ways in American English? Do you always say /ɪˈfekt/ in British English?