texts: What is the correct word for a set of samples for experiments?

texts:
I'm writing a paper about an algorithm. The algorithm is qualitatively evaluated using empirical tests on sample data. I find it difficult to find a good word for multiple such data. It should be possible to put the word which describes this in plural form, describing multiple sets of multiple such data.

To be more precise:

My algorithm takes some input data (a "problem instance") and generates an output. Similar problem instances are grouped together, and for that I am looking for a word to describe this. And also, I need to be able to talk about multiple such groups: they have different properties, but within one such "group" the instances have similar properties.

For example (in which I call it "sets of instances"):

  We generated the following "sets of instances". Primarily, we need different sizes of inputs, so one "set" contains small instances, the second one medium-sized instances, and the third one large instances.

Note: the input data is automatically generated randomly, and as such artificially created (i.e. not an extracted sample of real data).


texts: A Word or Expression for "bad" book or "bad" literature by author's lack of technical competencies

texts:
I'm looking for a word for "bad" books, or "bad" literature, something that describes the book as "poor" not by being necessarily "bad written", but by author's lack of knowledge about the subject, or by being just a bunch of things the author took from his own mind and sold as "a general law" about that subject.

I have a teacher who once used the expression "airport literature", and it's cool, but I'm not sure people understand its meaning without proper explanation. I also thought about "cheap" or "poor" literature (or books), yet I'm not sure people get it, as they could think I'm talking about a low price book, or even worst: they might think I'm judging the people who are reading as "poor", and I don't want to take the risk of a misunderstanding about it.

I'll try to narrow the possible answer by giving more details about the kind of book I'm talking about. A "bad" book, in the way I'm trying to express, means:

A book written by a disqualified author in the subject (like Britney Spears writing about, i.e., neuroscience). Something the author think to know everything about, but he never deeply studied the subject.
A book meant to be a specialized content in a certain subject, but that is actually poor and filled with lots of clichés and common sense contents.

Do you know the word I'm looking for? Something that express what I said?

Thanks in advance.

PS: Edited. And I apologize for the huge change, but I wasn't framing my question in the right understandable way.


texts: Does an initialism count as one word? How about a hyphenated word?

texts:
I was playing a game over the weekend where you're allowed to give a one-word clue. Someone said "RNA" and a disagreement followed as to whether or not it's a single word. At the time, we misidentified it as an acronym, but reading here I see that it's an initialism, which to my mind makes the difference.

Made me wonder the same thing about a hyphenated word -- "mother-in-law" seems like a good example.

I know this is a silly question, but thoughts?

Clarification: the main question at hand is, "is 'RNA' one word or three?"


texts: English play on: (Chinese) "enemies and lovers are pre-destined to meet"

texts:
Wondering what phrases English has similar to this Chinese idiom.

ABC Dictionary (GoogleBooks):

  183.

  (lit) [If we/they/you were] not rivals/enemies, there would be no encounter. (fig) Enemies and lovers are pre-destined to meet; opponents always meet.

  (lit. "enemy" or "rival" or "opponent") is also a term of endarment commonly used by women to refer to their husbands or sometimes children

What play(s)-on the above are there in English?


texts: Question on "the fabric of X" in sentences

texts:
I see a lot of sentences with "the fabric of X" in them.

For example,

"The veteran feels trusted, respected and understood -- re-integrated into the fabric of his or her homeland."
"Half a century ago, working quietly in a New Orleans laboratory, Ruth Benerito helped smooth the fabric of modern life"
"A joint and concerted effort is needed to restore the fabric of communities..."
"This is the fabric of the social contract that each generation knows..."

Why did those authors choose to include it? In other words, what effect in a literary sense does it bring? How does the meaning change without "the fabric of"?

The reason why I asked is that if I removed "the fabric of,"  the sentences seemed perfectly fine, if not more concise. I might be wrong.


texts: "eclipsed public knowledge of all economists—better ones, he says— before Smith." Meaning of this sentence

texts:
Even Smith’s critics do not deny the book’s immense influence. Murray Rothbard levels the criticism
  that The Wealth of Nations, in fact, eclipsed public knowledge of all economists—better ones, he says—
  before Smith.

I understand that the writer is saying that the Wealth of the Nations, eclipsed public knowledge of all economists, which means that the book overshadowed the past knowledge of all economists, which were better than Smith. But what is the use of "Before Smith" here ?

Does it mean that these economists were good before Smith emerged?


texts: Is there any difference between "an epaulet" and "shoulder board" when speaking about military uniform?

texts:
When I had tried to google the images for the word "epaulet" most of the pictures that popped up were the very decorated ones - mostly oblong gold braided stripes or very massive ones with fringes.

I did the same with the word "shoulder board". The results looked mostly like this:

However, in both cases, there were also lots of other types. For instance, the epaulets were just plain boards (similar to the last picture).

You know, at first, I thought the epaulets are the ones that are more fancy but then I noticed that people use them quite interchangeably.
Moreover, Wikipedia says both words are equivalents + offers other 3 words with the same meaning: a shoulder mark, rank slide and slip-on.

My question is, is there any difference in appearence between the epaulet and shoulder board?


texts:
I overheard someone say "up something!" wherein something is a variable for... whatever.

Is this an English language idiom?

If so, in what dialect of English?

What are some examples of it's usage?


texts: Does 'extraordinary', 'exceptional', 'outstanding' always carry positive connotations nowadays?

texts:
When I take the word 'extraordinary', 'exceptional' and 'outstanding' literally, it simply means something 'out of the ordinary', 'rare and/or unusual', or something which 'stands out from the rest', but not necessarily conferring any positive connotations. And indeed this is reflected in the dictionary.

Extraordinary

  beyond what is usual, ordinary, regular, or established
  exceptional in character, amount, extent, degree, etc.; noteworthy; remarkable

Exceptional

  forming an exception or rare instance; unusual; extraordinary
  unusually excellent; superior

Outstanding

  prominent; conspicuous; striking
  marked by superiority or distinction; excellent; distinguished

However, very rarely do I see text use these three words, by themselves, without conferring a positive connotation (see the second definitions). If they choose to convey something as out of the ordinary without carrying a positive connotation, they'd use words such as 'striking', 'unusual', 'uncommon' or 'strange'.

You can of course attach negative connotations using, for example, 'exceptionally bad' to attach 'exceptionally' to the first definition. But if I say, this taste is 'extraordinary', you'd immediately associate it with being positive, while it might just be plain weird.

So are the 'literal' definitions of these words, in and of itself, now obsolete?


texts: The verb "to telescope" conveys in a picturesque way the meaning that an elongated object  slides into itself, so that it becomes smaller. I'm looking for an equally attractive verb to convey the opposite meaning, i.e., that an elongated object extends.


texts:
I was surprised to see that Wiktionary states few be pronounced as /ˈfjuː/ or /ˈfju/. I have always pronounced it as [ˈfjyu̯]. Furthermore, I've copied the pronunciation from what I've heard and when I pronounce few as indicated in Wiktionary – as [ˈfjuː] – it sounds wrong and different than what I usually hear. I barely even recognize few as [ˈfju(ː)].

My question: Am I pronouncing few incorrectly or is [ˈfjyu̯] an accurate description of the pronunciation of few?

Other possibly useful information:

I'm Dutch;
The sound [yu̯] is natively in Dutch and generally appears in words ending in uw.


texts: I hear or read both phrases regularly, and they seem to have the same meaning to me. But do they have different meanings? Or is “overly confident” even grammatically correct?


texts:
I was reading the blog Futility Closet today, and they mentioned a story of a Fillipino father naming his son 'San Ababis', after 'the patron saint of America' - because he heard soldiers repeating those words (and knew San meant Saint)

This was posted on Futility Closet with no explanation as to what he could have been mishearing - perhaps I'm just being silly (or the meaning is obvious to American English speakers and not me as a Scot)

I searched online for other mentionings of the story, however they also had no explanation.

The post is here http://www.futilitycloset.com/2011/05/21/apple-piety-2/


texts: Is there a word in English which expresses the idea of 'logicate' (which is not an English word)?

texts:
I am trying to translate the Greek word λογιξομαι, logitsomai,which is usually translated 'account' or 'reckon' which I do not think quite catch the meaning.

In English, we have words for numerical logic, for example 'calculate' and 'enumerate'; and we also have words for thought processes like 'reason', 'reckon' or 'estimate', some of which are financially appropriate, such as 'account'. 'Reckon' to me, is one of these - 'reckoning the books' used to mean reckoning up the double entry account ledgers at the end of a financial period.

But I cannot find a word which carries the idea of pure, intuitive logic.

'Reason' has connotations of disingenuity, a matter of a reason behind the reason. It is not intuitive logic. It reasons, often with an underlying motive.

But λογιξομαι, logitsomai, represents, to me, a logical view that is not cognitive, but intuitive. It views something conceptual, and immediately 'sees' what is right about it, logically.

The best I can come up with, after a long time considering it, is 'logicate' which is available in English it seems to me; but it is not an English word.

[Edit after post : I am translating a biblical word but this is a matter of translation into colloquial English, not theology. One of the main places
is "Abraham believed God - and there was XXXXX to him, unto righteousness".
From the very open structure of the wording (it is intransitive and so-called "deponent") it is clear that something is seen, logically, and it is attributed (a close word to λογιξομαι, logitsomai) to Abraham.


texts:
Possible Duplicate:
  What is the correct way to pluralize an acronym?

My company deals in Purchase Orders.

For years they have referred to multiple purchase orders as POs.  It seems, the proper spelling would be POes, because a P-O is referred to as a noun by everyone in the company, even though it is an abbreviated form of Purchase Order.

Which is correct?  POs or POes ?


texts:
Can the verb arrogate stand alone? http://www.oxfordlearnersdictionaries.com/definition/english/arrogate only publicises arrogate + to.

For example, would it be right to omit to in the following by Thomas Jefferson in July 11 1819:

  my opinions, given without intention or suspicion have been sometimes handed to the public, but always with out my consent, except in one or two special cases. I hope therefore you will be so kind as to accept of this my apology and reason why, after I shall have read the book, I shall not arrogate to myself the office of saying to the public whether they should read it or not.


texts: Why and when was the trilled R in middle English replaced by the modern untrilled one?

texts:
Most linguists agree that the letter R in middle English was trilled, but why and when did people replace it with untrilled one like ⟨ɹ⟩ in "red", or even become "almost" silent like in "her (British accent)"?
Also, why is modern R rounded? For example, rain and "rwain" are pronounced the same, proving that modern R actually has an invisible w after it.


texts:
«The FAIR Act would change federal law and protect the rights of property owners by requiring that the government prove its case with clear and convincing evidence before forfeiting seized property.» [source]

What I think this means: [...] clear and convicting evidence before seizing property.

What I read here: [...] clear and convincing evidence before returning already seized property.

Can you explain what's going on? Is this sentence in error and, if not, why?


texts: Word or phrase for a commonly-used clause at the beginning of a sentence, such as "It's almost as if"

texts:
I've been seeing a lot of tweets/comments/posts with the following structure: "It's almost as if [obvious observation]".

Ignoring how terrible this trend is, what is an appropriate word or phrase for the "it's almost as if" part?

I believe there's a term for this type of commonly-used subordinate clause at the beginning of a sentence. The fact that my example is idiomatic is probably relevant to what I'm looking for. The fact that my example is sarcastic/ironic is probably irrelevant.

EDIT: As pointed out by John Lawler in the first comment, this is actually not even a subordinate clause like I originally thought.


texts: Which is the correct 'apostrophe' to use when typing? ' (quote) or ` (backtick)

texts:
A recent discussion came up in GameDev that suggests that when you are using apostrope for abbreviations, that the correct apostrophe to use when typing is the backtick. On US Keyboards below the escape-key — left of the 1 key)

Questions about the difference between the single-quote, and the apostrophe have come up before, but they do not address whether the apostrophe should be typed as if it is a single-quote, or it should be typed as a backtick.

Which of the following are (more) correct:

  Itˋs common sense that a student darenˋt interrupt its professor!

or

  It’s common sense that a student daren’t interrupt its professor!


texts: In Cambridge dictionary， the pronunciation of responsibility is /rɪˌspɑːn.səˈbɪl.ə.t̬i/， but I am pretty sure p is not pronounced /p/, at least not the same way as /p/ in peach. So what is happening here?


texts:
How do I obtain a list of compound words as nouns?

Example: polar bear. I can only detect polar as an adjective and bear as a noun. But polar bear is actually a noun. How do I obtain a free list of such?

Another example is hot dog.


texts:
"With the utilization of very few resources, the problem is solved aptly and is demonstrated by simulation results"
I doubt if 'is' should be written or not.


texts: A word for something just within/under the surface

texts:
Sentence in question:

  For a moment Orpheus’s mind was blank save for the vision of Cora’s crimson fingertips--rouged with _____ blood.

My goal here is to describe the phenomenon where some people's fingertips look flushed for some reason, but the original sentence is ambiguous, giving the impression that the fingertips might be blood-stained rather than having blood on the inside.

I want a word in the blank that makes it clear that the blood in inside the skin, if only barely.

Rephrasing is also fine, but I want to avoid using the word "blush" or "flushed" since I used these a bit earlier and have a problem with reusing the same words too many times.


texts: When referring to a relationship with a blood relative who has died, would you say, for instance, “John is Sue’s father,” or “John was Sue’s father”? If he has passed, does he cease being her father, and she his daughter? Or would you still say she is his daughter, but he was her father, which seems asymmetric and wrong?


texts:
The English grammar says that we use there is when it's a singular noun and there are when it's a plural one.
But I often hear people saying something like "There's also some other words that I'm going to say..."

Could somebody explain what's the matter? Is it something colloquial?


texts: Word or words to describe type of garments relating to football strips?

texts:
I am looking for a word or phrase for use in filtering football strips in an on-line store that describe both of the following.

A word or couple of words to distinguish between home/away/third products
A word or couple of words to distinguish between shirts/shorts/socks

If you imagine each of those is a item in a filter, what could the name of the filter be?

The only phrases that we have been able to come up with is "Kit Type" or "Product Type" -- "Kit Type" is acceptable but ideally we'd like to avoid "Product Type".

e.g.

  Kit Type
  [x] Home
  [ ] Away
  [ ] Third

  Product Type
  [ ] Shirt
  [x] Shorts
  [ ] Socks


texts: which is the best preposition to follow "proprietary"?

texts: Is intellectual property "proprietary to" or "proprietary of" the company to whom it belongs?


texts: What does the phrase “ring around the roses” mean here?

texts:
Chapter 15 of A SHARE IN DEATH(mystery story)begins this way,
Suffolk to Sussex to Wiltshire to Oxfordshire, ring around the roses. It made Gemma dizzy to think of the past two days. And tired.
(Gemma: Gemma James, a female sergeant, in London.)

What does the phrase "ring around the roses" mean? No clues in the context. You would say it is a nursery rhyme or folksong and playground singing game….…..  But for lack of knowledge, I don’t understand the phrase in this context.
I’ve also come across it in the following passage.
I wonder the first phrase is the same as the second one in meaning.
Please give me your advice.

Dcfs has been studying us because we can’t get it together. I’m wacked out of my brain. I can see my day coming when I’m out of my situation. I can see my day coming when I’m out and I’m actually moving around. I can go on and on but by now it’s starting to make sense. It’s like Ring around the roses, people have been getting over and over and right now I’m just getting by. I need to make a change. (Taken from Hairology)
DCFS=Department of Children & Family Services


texts:
What's the correct usage?
This award is presnted to Mr.X on your outstanding performance
 or
This award is presnted to Mr.X on his outstanding performance

Thanks in advance!
Ranjith


texts:
It is => It's
I am  => I'm
That is => That's

Why do we say "This is " instead of "This's"?


texts:
I understand that [ didn't = did not].

But is it correct to write the following?

  Why didn't he come to work?
  Why did not he come to work?

And can it be written as follows?

  Why he didn't come to work?
  Why he did not come to work?

Are both ways correct? Kindly explain a little.


texts: To "put on the backburner" is to postpone, potentially indefinitely. The closest I can muster to its opposite is to "put back on the table". Is there a better way to to phrase the idea of assuming a line of work/inquiry that had been paused? "Move forward"/"put forward" isn't specific enough because it doesn't imply that the work had been once put off.


texts:
I'm looking for a (preferably single) word to describe a place where there are no people. Empty somehow implies that there's nothing at all there, deserted says that people left or abandoned this place.

I'm not sure about peopleless, seems like a weird construction and I couldn't find it in a dictionary.

For example:

  I looked out onto the street and it was ______
  I walked into the lobby and it was ______


texts:
What is the difference between expressions start work and start working?

Which one should I use in the following sentences:

I usually start work[ing] at 9PM.
I want to start work[ing] as soon as possible. [start a new job or business]


texts: What is the most common name for the floor above the ground floor in Canada?

texts:
I think the floor above the ground floor, in public buildings, is either called 2nd floor (in which case the ground floor is the first) or 1st floor. This is quite confusing since you need to know the name in each particular building, but it happens-see this university map .
Now what is the most common name for it in non-private buildings?  What is the name of it in regular homes?


texts: Close to the Chest or Vest. What does it mean?

texts: Hi fellow language enthusiasts, so what does "Close to the Vest" or "Chest" mean may I ask? Or more appropriately "Chest" or "Vest" because I also learn that Chest appeared First. But what does the phrase mean at all? Any help is eagerly appreciated.


texts:
In the sentence below, would this be considered a singular subject or a plural subject?

"Looking forward to the excitement, and the wonderful appearing of the great King and our teacher, Mr. Jones."

King & Mr. Jones = 1 person

King & Mr. Jones = 2 persons

** I've been told that the comma after "teacher" makes it a plural subject. Is this correct?

If true, is that the only thing that makes the sentence a plural subject?


texts:
I'm not sure "opposite" is the correct word, but I am searching for a word that is about remembering something unpleasant.

When I searched the Internet for an opposte of "to reminisce", I only found words about not remembering, and not about remembering something unpleasant.


texts: Word for "someone who does the same job as me"

texts:
Is there a word that means something like "someone who does the same job as me"?

I've thought of colleague and co-worker.  These both indicate that someone works at the same place, or some other kind of work relationship, but they don't indicate that the job is the same.

The best I've come up with is my fellow-X, but this feels cumbersome.


texts: Does the verb “ban” take a gerund or infinitive as its complement?

texts:
Which one below is correct while using the verb ban?

Plastic bottle using was banned by government in the country.
Government banned to use plastic bottle in the country.
Plastic bottle was banned from using  by government in the country.


texts: Which side of "as well as" is emphasised?

texts:
I am curious about which side of the expression is stressed when "as well as" is used as a conjunction. For example:

  brave as well as loyal

In this case, which adjective sounds highlighted more? Or do they sound equally important?

PS: For example, a friend of mine says the emphasis is put on the preceding/second noun since it sounds like an unexpected or surplus thing. As such, it is almost like saying "X person was loyal as much as s/he was brave."

Thanks in advance!


texts:
Knowledgeable and likeable and other other such words place an e before the a in able. However other words like writable and receivable don't.

Why is that? Is there a rule behind this?

Also the word writable just seems plain wrong because I keep reading it as rit-able not right-able; the e would definitely help in this situation. On the other hand, I am able read receivable as intended...


texts:
If I said:

  Yell only if I fall.

Would the person have to yell once I fell?

  Sources of confusion

  Wikipedia
  This
  guy


texts:
I'm looking for a word that describes the sound made when a person rubs their tongue on the side of their inner teeth. It's like a wet noise and it's supposed to denote a positive gesture rather than negative (tsking)

When I do it, I notice my lips bend upwards.

I wish I could remember a particular scene from a movie/tv show but I can't. However I believe when characters do it, they sometimes also make a gun gesture or point with their fingers.

I've searched quite a bit but haven't found a word that conveys this sound/gesture.

I need it for a scene in a book I'm writing so I can't just explain it, I'll need a word for it if it exists. If not I guess I'll have to change it.

For example in a scene where this gesture will happen it will be:

Character A: Can you fly this giant space ship?
Character B: Sure, easy! (then make the sound with his mouth to express it will be easy)

Hope all these ramblings help make it clear what I'm after.

edit: Here's the closest reference I could find, It's the sound Bender makes right around the 29th second mark - http://res.cloudinary.com/yoav-cloud/video/upload/futurama-word_z0jxlm.mp4


texts: What's the correct preposition for the word "rant"?

texts:
When I want to say "Stop ranting on him!", is this grammatically correct?

I am confused about which preposition I should use with the word "rant/ranting"


texts: Is there a transitive verb akin to "launch" that means "to make a plane take off"?

texts: We can say "We launched the rocket." We can say "We made the plane take off." Can we say "We launched the plane?" If not, is there an acceptable way to say it using a transitive verb like "launch"?


texts:
I'd like to know whether articles are a kind of pronoun. I believe that "a/an" should be an indefinite pronoun because "a" is similar to "any", and "the" should be a definite pronoun. For example:

I need an answer
I need any answer

The two words above are similar, but have some differences. In the comments and answers here, it seems that some grammars regard any as a determiner when followed by a noun, but as a pronoun when appearing on its own.
On the other hand some grammars and dictionaries regard any as a determiner all the time. But determiner is not a standard part of English grammar, and thus is not in the same category as pronoun.
So I believe that there are strong reasons to regard a/an as an indefinite pronoun and the as a definite pronoun. There is no need for article to be listed as a separate category. The bottom line is that a and any do not have to be exactly the same for them to be in the same category.
Update:
Now I believe that articles are listed as a separate category simply because they are the most frequently used pronouns. It is well known that most countable nouns need articles ahead of them.


texts: I am looking for a hypernym for trimester and quarter.


texts: Is "integrate against" a proper verb+preposition combination?

texts:
One of my colleague keeps using "integrate against" as in the following sentence:

  The component A is integrated against the platform B.

Google search shows several hundreds of the form. As far as I know, however, "integrate" is typically used along with the preposition "with" or "into".

Could someone guide me on what is the correct usage? If "against" can be used, in what context is it proper?

Thank you.


texts: How did 'gratuity' shift from meaning 'graciousness' to 'money given for favor or services'?

texts:
Which semantic shift is this? I'd guess Metonymy, as the money represents the graciousness?

  Meaning "money given for favor or services" is first attested 1530s.

I don't know why, but I still can't understand why the graciousness would be metonymized by 'gratuity', which feels farfetched, faraway from the key semantic notion of 'money'. Why didn't some noun more straightforwardly related to 'money', metonymize the graciousness?


texts: What’s the difference between “... a word you have said” and “...a word you said”?

texts:
Consider two sentences:

I don't understand a word you said
I don't understand a word you have said.

I know about usage of  simple past and present perfect, but these kinds of sentences baffle me. What essentially is different between above two?

I really have a problem with present perfect in some sentences.


texts: Is correct to say "solutions published tomorrow"

texts: Yesterday I got "The Telehraph" newspaper and was examining the puzzles section when caught a sentence: "Solutions published tomorrow". Is this a correct construction? Or maybe newspaper's slang?


texts: punctuating speech - comma versus period

texts: If I said, "I will go fishing John will I go shopping today." If I take "Will I go shopping today" to be a separate sentence on its own. Is there a way of punctuating it so that the first part "I will go fishing" is NOT being addressed to John? Or is this not possible and by default the first part "I will go fishing" must be addressed to John and therefore the vocative comma must be used, "I will go fishing, John. Will I go shopping today?"


texts:
What does "down" mean in soccer term?

Pérez is busy down the inside left channel again a moment later. He forces a corner, then heads the delivery just over the bar.


texts: Imagine that you are very experienced person, like Dorian Gray. You are tired of life, there is nothing new for you. And you are saying: "I’ve tried everything, and everything has bored". Is has bored correct?


texts: What do you call someone who obsessively thinks they are sick?

texts: Is there a single word in English to describe someone who is too worried about their health and even thinks they are sick, thus, taking frequent clinical tests or taking too much predictive medication,etc.


texts: Should I use past tense or present tense when writing check-in/commit comment?

texts:
This question is quite specific but I am not sure which verb tense I should use when committing/checking in code.

If I fix a bug and checking in the code, should I write:

Fixes bug on feature A
Fixed bug on feature A

I always use past tense because the bug was fixed before I check in but it looks a bit strange when I look at file history.

Should I use one over the other and why?


texts:
In the definition of USA PATRIOT, I read the following text:

  Many of the act's provisions were to sunset beginning December 31, 2005, approximately 4 years after its passage. In the months preceding the sunset date, supporters of the act pushed to make its sunsetting provisions permanent, while critics sought to revise various sections to enhance civil liberty protections. In July 2005, the U.S. Senate passed a reauthorization bill with substantial changes to several sections of the act, while the House reauthorization bill kept most of the act's original language. The two bills were then reconciled in a conference committee that was criticized by Senators from both the Republican and Democratic parties for ignoring civil liberty concerns.

What does sunset mean?
In which cases can the word be used with a similar meaning?


texts: Looking for an idiom that expresses something that looks bad at the outset but turns out okay

texts: For example: I heard a noise downstairs in the middle of the night and feared it was an intruder. When I checked it out, I found the noise was from a plant on my porch knocked over by the wind.


texts: Is there a word in English which refers to art that describes a place?

texts:
To try and make things a bit clearer, there is the word 'ekphrasis', which refers to a work of art which describes another work of art. Such as 'the ekphrastic poem' (a poem which describes another work of art).

What I am wondering is if there is a dedicated word for art or literature which describes as a place or location, such as William Blake's poem 'London', which describes the location of London. Is there a word which would essentially mean 'Blake's [word which describes art that describes a place] poem...'.

Thanks a lot for your time.


texts:
I believe, both variants are possible:

friendlier / more friendly; and
the friendliest / the most friendly.

I'd like to know what is used in every day speech more often and which is more formal.


texts: Words/phrases to describe the exhaust/lack of something?

texts:
Is there any other way of saying the following sentence, specifically the area of text marked in bold without altering its original meaning?

  I've spent my last dollars buying useless medicine...


texts: A single added word that changes the meaning of a question

texts:
At work today, I took an FSA test that asked the question:
"You can only give advice to a customer if they ask for it" True OR False?

Now, considering our organisation cannot offer advice under ANY circumstances, I could not see a correct answer to this. It turned into a big debate between me and the rest of my group. My argument was that for there to be a correct answer (False), the word "only" needs to be removed as it becomes the main focus of the question otherwise.

If it is True, it means we can only offer advice to those who ask for it. If it is False it means we can offer advice whether they ask for it or not.

I got very stressed as my entire group was trying to explain to me why I was wrong, when I was certain I was right. At the very least I was insisting that the question is unclear and needs changing. Please, am I right or wrong?


texts: Is it grammatical to say of some potential meaning that it is "able to be said" or "trying to be said"?

texts:
A recent commenter on a recent word-search question nominated a term as “an even better word for what is trying to be said.” This seems to me to attribute intention to something—a meaning—that is incapable of intention. I have also encountered this same fallacy, as it seems to me, with words such as able and ability followed by passive infinitive, in such a way as seemingly and absurdly to locate the ability in question in the patient rather than the agent. For some reason, passive constructions like “capacity to be [past participle],” and “capability of being [past participle],” which respectively locate the capacity and the capability in the patient, do not likewise bother me in the least:

  The 235U nucleus has the unique capacity to be split by a neutron into 89Kr, 144Ba, and three neutrons that can in turn split further 235U nuclei.

But I would never say or write that the nucleus is able or has the ability to be split.

To say that something “can be said” is unquestionably grammatical, and some instances of “able to be said” result from trying to put that into the future tense or conditional mood, as “will/would/could/should be able to be said.” To say that something is sayable is also unexceptionable: adjectives in -able or -ible normally tend to modify or be predicated of the patient.

A Google Books ngram of “able to  be said,” “trying to  be said,” and  “try to  be said” shows very low but non-zero frequencies for the former two. A plain-vanilla Google search for “able to  be said” turns up (besides a few instances where a comma and right-hand quotation mark separate be from said) a surprisingly high proportion of results from Google books, and a surprisingly high proportion of results that are products of translation from other languages. (Also and less unexpectedly I found among the top results one that resulted from a transformation of “can be said” as discussed above.) Searching for “passive infinitive” in combination with “able” or “try” led me to some on-line grammatical resources, but the only one to discuss this particular problem was a page I had written for my students a few months back.


texts: A word to describe Moriarty's character in BBC's Sherlock

texts:
A word that describe the following individual

"A person who commits crime but knows the law (how it works), always dodges the charges and because of this  never gets caught."
e.g. a man kills someone and everybody knows he did, but the police can't arrest him due to lack of evidence.
Or a hacker who hacks a machine and removes all logs and evidence so that he won't get caught for his crime.


texts: Present perfect vs present perfect continuous for past unfinished actions relevant to the present

texts:
John has stood there for 5 hours.

vs

John has been standing there for 5 hours.

Is there any difference in meaning between the two sentences? Both actions are unfinished. Both are relevant to the present (John is tired and sweaty and hungry). Are there situations where we'd prefer using one tense over the other?


texts:
1.I failed to persuade her.

Does the grammar see this to infinitive phrase as an object, if the 'fail' is a transitive verb, or as an adverbial, if the 'fail' is an intransitive verb?

The bomb is about to blow!

Does the grammar see the to infinitive as an object, or as an adverbial?


texts:
Is there any word for "obsession over mathematical constants" (like pi, golden ratio etc)?

I want to use it like this:

  He was obsessed with the golden ratio.  This [term for obsession] was the outcome of ....


texts:
In computer science especially, a brute-force algorithm is one that is naive and straightforward. It may succeed but only in a primitive way—trying all the obvious operations one by one. This wastes time and memory.
By contrast, the algorithms enabling our social media are quite smart. However, I do not know the terminology for it. What word, describes such thought-out approaches?
The word ideally takes both adjective and verb forms. The more widely applicable, the better. Does "smart" fit the bill?


texts: Pronunciation of words ending with “-tion”

texts:
As far as I can recall there are just a few words in the English language which end with the spelling -tion after an 'S' which have a pronunciation ending as 'chan'. But in South Asia, 99% of the people pronounce such words as 'shan'.

I am referring to words like digestion, suggestion, combustion, congestion, indigestion, exhaustion, etc.

But people pronounce the word question correctly as 'chan'.


texts: English equivalent for Spanish "atrilista" (orchestra musician)

texts:
In Spanish "atrilista" is an special orchestra musician. What is the equivalent in English language?

  El músico atrilista solo toca lo que viene escrito en la partitura, el
  intérprete toma este nombre porque es capaz de dar su interpretación
  personal de una pieza.

Since I am very aware that there are strict rules for single-word-requests, to ensure my question is not closed as off-topic, I do hereby provide below a specific about the intended use of the word. I am including a sample sentence demonstrating how the word would be used:

  The atrilista musician only plays what is written in the score, conversely, the interpreter takes this name because it is capable of giving their personal interpretation of a piece.


texts: the implied subject of "looking down into a valley"

texts:
Human beings like a prospect from which they can survey a landscape, and at the same time they enjoy a sense of refuge. A cave on the side of a mountain, a child’s tree house, and the king’s castle are situations with appeal. Protection afforded by an overhang of some sort (trees, cliff face, roof) is preferred, along with a sense of being “safe” from observation or attack from behind. The most attractive landscapes tend to combine some of these elements, in pictures as much as in reality. In fact, most landscape representation in the history of painting places the implied viewer at some desirable vantage point — a cliff edge, perhaps, typically looking down into a valley.

Q. I was wondering what would be looking down into a valley. Would the implied subject of "looking down ~" be the "implied viewer" or the "vantage point", which rephrased as a cliff edge in this sentence?


texts: Verb chaining: ambiguous or not? ("Please wait until installation finishes to continue")

texts:
Every time I see this message in Android Studio (a free google app) I ask myself whether it is proper English or not?

  Please wait until the installation finishes to continue

While it is definitely grammatically correct English, it is ambiguous because continue can refer to both wait and finishes, or is it just me?

I am tempted to link to continue with finishes primarily because of their proximity, and I might be able to conceptualize as something finishes to continue which would be the same as to stop or to complete. If alternative interpretations of a sentence do not make much sense does it mean that a statement is not ambiguous?


texts: Why is "Theresa" pronounced with the plosive /t/?

texts:
Judging from the spelling I always thought Theresa was pronounced with an interdental fricative. On the German news I often heard it pronounced with a /t/ as initial consonant. I thought this was due to the fact that German does not have interdental fricatives which often results in Germans replacings those with plosives (/t/ or /d/) or sometimes with the dental fricatives /s/ or /z/. The other day, however, I watched BBC World News and heard the prime minister's name Theresa May being pronounced with the plosive /t/. On the German Wikipedia page for Theresa May the IPA pronunciation is also given with the plosive sound.

Is there any reason for this pronunciation and, if so, are there other exceptions where the th-spelling is pronounced with a plosive instead of with the usual interdental fricatives?


texts: Single word for delaying an unpleasant task

texts:
I'm looking for a single word that means delaying an unpleasant task, or perhaps delaying a task to the point in which delaying became unpleasant (or noticeably excessive).

Postponing is not a good word because it could simply mean rescheduling.

Delaying is also not a great term for what I'm looking for, since it doesn't imply anything necessarily unpleasant.

I think dragging has a similar vibe to what I'm looking for, but I can't use it since I haven't really started the task yet.


texts: "the town ( where/ which ) I was born" vs. "the town ( where/ which ) I was born in"

texts:
This is the town ........( where/ which) I was born.
This is the town ........( where/ which) I was born in.

Which word in parenthesis is correct? As we can see, the second one has " in " at the end, and I want to know if it makes any difference.


texts: what does it mean to be cheerleading a project when you are the boss?

texts: I've heard the expression "the boss is cheerleading a project" where the boss is not really managing the project, but is just encouraging their people for the project to happen. Where does this come from and why would the boss be the cheerleader when he/she is still the superior?


texts:
Could you please write an example where skin would be used as a countable noun?

I have just learned that it can be used both as a countable and an uncountable noun.

Thank you.


texts: To trust someone as far as you can throw them

texts: Does anybody know the source of this idiom or have an explanation of how it originated? I know it means that the speaker does not trust the person in question, but I want to know the etymology of the idiom. How did it mutate from something literal into this? Obviously trust is not measured in the same way as distance, so I want to understand the correlation in this context.


texts: Is it all right to say "all men have one head"?

texts:
I've just found this quote, "All things have two handles: beware of the wrong one." (Emerson, The American Scholar; after Epictetus, The Enchiridion, 43)

My questions are:

Why shouldn't it be "Everything has two handles"?
Is it grammatically correct to say "all men have one head"?

I mean, all the men cannot share the same head. Right?


texts: Which are the main and subordinate clauses in this sentence?

texts:
Which are the main and subordinate clauses in the following sentence?

  Individual components do not directly depend on other components,
  which means that they can be more easily developed in isolation.


texts:
What are the similarities and differences? I had always believed in the first, that 'pray' admits only an indirect object. Yet Google Ngram refutes this.

For example, does the following admit of  'prayed to me' instead? Why or why not?

  During the reign of Alfred the Great (871–900), for example, a man
  was accused of stealing a belt, and one of his accusers tried to claim his land. One writer of
  the time recorded that the defendant ‘sought me and prayed me to be his intercessor. Then
  I spoke on his behalf and interceded for him with King Alfred’.

Source: P47, How the Law Works, Gary Slapper


texts: Is the term PoWs (POWs) inconsistent with typical acronym pluralization?

texts:
Prompted by recent remembrance day celebrations, it seems to me that the term PoWs is inconsistent with pluralization conventions.

Runs Batted In --> RBI
Prisoners of War--> PoW (shouldn't this be the plural?)

I read that laser appears to have become a noun unto itself and is thus pluralized as lasers.
Is PoWs an accepted noun or is it an oddly pluralized acronym?

Other acronym pluralization questions that don't address PoW(s) directly:
What is the correct way to define an acronym when its first appearance is plural?
Should acronyms that are actually hidden plurals be treated as plural?


texts: Can somebody say where I should put the adverb in this phrase:                                "I’m going to thoroughly teach you a lesson." or "I’m going to teach you a lesson thoroughly." And which adverb is better: "thoroughly" or "properly"?


texts: Do I use "the" or "a"? How do I decide which article to use?

texts:
Do I need to put "the" in front of correlation and negative?

  We performed a correlation analysis to measure a correlation between job satisfaction and the shortage of nursing. We found that a negative correlation between job satisfaction and the shortage of nursing was indicated.


texts: Is there a word for the ability to see through deception?

texts:
Is there a word for the skill, talent, or ability (or the study of being able) to detect lies, observe/identify tells (like in poker), and see through deception with relative ease?

Whether inexplicable, or simply by studying and interpreting human behaviour, micro-expressions, etc.


texts:
"The car hooks up really fast, grabs that road, and just propels us forward."
What does "hook up" mean in this sentence?
The sentence is spoken by a man who runs a test driving of a certain brand of a car. And he said this during his drive on the track.


texts: Name of phenomenon when you place a word(s) between 'will' and the verb?

texts:
When you split 'will' away from the verb that it is putting into the future tense, what do you call it?

For example:

  We will then analyse this information.

This is similar to splitting the infinitive, or tmesis - I guess.


texts: What is the correct way to collocate something average and a period of time?

texts:
I want to translate "average monthly salary" into English, in relation to a specific period which is "from September to April" (non-inclusive).

Will it be correct to just concatenate these two phrases? Or do I have to use a different preposition? Or maybe even change April to March and make it inclusive? (I think I could use "through" in that case, but I doubt I need to go that far, and I'm still not sure if that's the right way to do it.)

Update: if there's a difference between American English and British English in this instance, I need British English.


texts:
What's the English plural of Anted? The name appears on coins issued by Antedios (or Anted), an ancient king of the Iceni. I need to know the plural for making an equivalent of this category for Anteds at Wikimedia Commons.

Anteds? Antii?

Later edit: It looks like Anted is the name on both currency coins and units (challenge coins)

File:Reverse of stater of Anted (FindID 75086).jpg
File:An Iron Age Unit of Anted Iceni Celtic Coin Index reference, 68.1236 (FindID 294666).jpg


texts: Alternative to 'hype' for an academic paper

texts: I am working on an academic paper, and I want to describe the scientific community's hype regarding a certain technology. The word 'hype' is concise and describes exactly what I mean, but I'm not sure the word has the proper tone for an academic document. Is there an alternative term or concise phrase that gets the same idea across in a more academic tone?


texts: What does 'rat' mean here? How does this makes sense?

texts:
"The rat fights the tigress underwater and kills her but takes pity on the cubs and tends them lovingly - I don't know how to do the scene," the producer would say and Subbu would come out with four ways of the rat pouring affection on its victim's offspring.

..........................................................................

In the above sentence what does rat means? Does it mean "a rodent" or "a disgusting person"?

By the text, it looks like rat means "a rodent" i.e the animal Rat.

But what I don't understand here is that how does this scene makes sense?
How is a rat being portrayed to fight a tigress, and that to be underwater?

The above scene is supposed to be of an Indian movie in the industrial times, when normal movies were shot with primitive technologies and ideas.
So, how does this scene makes sense? Is it really what it is  said in the lines? or there is something else that these lines want to portray?

Thanks to all the wonderful people on this website, helping me like their own child :)


texts:
How can you tell if an introductory comma is used correctly? Here is an example.

  Outside, the rain was coming down hard.

I do not know how to tell whether it's correct or not; is there a way to tell a difference?


texts: Are when it comes to and with regard to always interchangeable? Is there any difference at all?


texts:
I am currently proof-reading a technical manual and am coming across numerous instances of sentence structure which I believe to be incorrect. Here's an example:

  After filling in a custom field, this will add a new field to the
  Add Person screen...

My problem is with the use of the word "this" after the first phrase. I re-worded to say,

  After filling in a custom field, a new field will be added...

I think this is a case of active vs. passive voice. Am I right to note the first statement as incorrect grammar?


texts:
I am trying to find examples of words that were classified as spelling errors when they first appeared, but over time gained legitimacy and are now accepted as valid words.  Is there a name for this type of word?

(I am attempting to "spice-up" some old classroom material.)


texts: Word for somebody who wants others to bootlick them

texts:
A bootlicker is somebody who tries to curry favour with somebody by flattery/acting friendly with them.

Is there a word for somebody who wants others to booklick him?


texts: What do you call the behaviour where someone is a bit too hasty and takes an action without any preparation

texts: For a very specific example, say you have a software developer who makes some changes to a product, then does no testing of the changes and then releases the product only to find that the customer finds the product no longer works.  The person is too hasty and not diligent enough to follow a careful process.


texts:
The word it’s seems to be a good substitute for it is. Yet it doesn’t sound correct to substitute it’s for it is in: “That’s just the way it is.” To make it: “That’s just the way it’s.”

Is it grammatically correct to make that substitute? And why doesn’t it sound correct? Is there any instance where the word it’s sounds correct and is grammatically correct at the end of a sentence?

The discussion in the answer to Is there some rule against ending a sentence with the contraction "it's"? does not seem to be on point because the premise of that answer is that "it is" at the end of the sentence has a stranded object, but it doesn't. Here the second "it is" has its distinct meaning precisely because there is no object. See first OED definition of "Be":  1 "Without required complement: to have or take place in the world of fact, to exist, occur, happen."


texts:
I would like to write a sentence to thank a number of colleagues. I would like to express the idea that it was a pleasure to spend time with them. Which of the two sentences below is better?

  I also take this opportunity to thank a number of colleagues with whom I had the pleasure of spending time these past two years.

  I also take this opportunity to thank a number of colleagues I had the pleasure of spending time with these past two years.

Can you think of an improvement?


texts: Adjective to describe the intentionally slow U.S. legislative process

texts:
In the U.S., it's often said that the legislative process is intentionally slow. It was designed that way so that laws could be changed, but not capriciously. Changing a law is supposed to require significant thought, deliberation, and justification.

I'd like an alternative for "intentionally slow." I'm looking for one adjective (a short phrase would be acceptable, but not preferred) to express two important aspects:

The slowness of the process
The intentionality of this design (the slowness is a feature, not a bug)

In case it helps, when I think about the first aspect, I think about viscosity. The normal use of viscosity has nothing to do with legislation. However, I think it's useful to think of the legislative process as neither an immutable solid nor a watery liquid, but rather a very viscous liquid. The shape of the law can and does change, but only very slowly.

Therefore the word(s) I'm looking for connotes something like "intentional viscosity." It should be easily understandable and would ideally require no explanation. I'd also like something that is more frequently used in the context of politics than the given example of "viscosity."

Does such a word/phrase exist?


texts: Larry Trask says commas should not come after dialog tags - do you agree?

texts:
Larry Trask says:

"[A] quotation is set off by quotation marks and nothing else. A sentence containing a quotation is punctuated exactly like any other sentence apart from the addition of the quotation marks. You should not insert additional punctuation marks into the sentence merely to warn the reader that a quotation is coming up: that's what the quotation marks are for."

eg:

Here is the sentence with proper punctuation:

President Nixon declared "I am not a crook."

Adding more dots and squiggles to this perfectly clear sentence would do absolutely nothing to improve it. No punctuation mark should be used if it is not necessary.

.........

Based on Trask's example, could we omit the comma after the dialog tags in the examples below - or should we always include them?

Joe said 'I hate dill pickles.'

Alex asked 'Where did she get that idea?'

Sam replied 'There's no point in going.'

Frank said 'I'm done with Debby. On Monday I'm filing for divorce.'


texts: "It would not do to confuse the nurses with the patients"

texts:
From http://www.debate.org/debates/School-uniforms-ought-to-be-worn-in-primary-and-secondary-schools./1/:

  For many of these, the reason for wearing a uniform is clear: so that they are easily recognizable. In a hospital, for example, it would not do to confuse the nurses with the patients.

What did the author mean by "it would not do"? Can anyone parse this sentence please? Or is it a typo?


texts: Meaning of the phrase "the wrong side of history"

texts:
I've just realized I don't understand what this phrase means. What does "Gaddafi is on the wrong side of history" mean?

Does it mean he's about to die, or something else? Here's the relevant quotation:

  The Libyan leader, Muammar Gaddafi, is "on the wrong side of history," said U.S. president today. In a joint press conference with President of Mexico, Felipe Calderón, Obama said his country is studying "a whole range of options" to apply in Libya, but downplayed the possibility of military intervention, saying that "what want is to have potentially the capacity to intervene quickly if the situation deteriorates".


texts: meaning of "shifts of activity" in this context

texts:
I'm currently translating a paper into Spanish for an assignment and I'm having trouble understanding this small paragraph:

  Constraints (C1) and (C2), respectively, constrain shifts of activity
  on each processing line and on each packaging line in each plant
  during each period.

My question is, does that "shifts" mean?
a) something changing into another thing or
b) work shifts (i.e. night shifts)?

Let me know if you need more context to this question and thanks for your help!


texts:
Are these both correct?

Tom was wearing a hat that was too big for him.

The hat Tom was wearing was too big for him.

Thanks in advance.


texts: Wonder's hood end, or is it wonderhood's end?

texts: -hood is the suffix  indicating a place or condition, i.e. childhood, neighborhood, etc.  At times I have considered the title of the Arthur Clarke novel CHILDHOOD'S END and have wondered if CHILD'S HOOD END might have been the better choice?  Please entertain me with your conjecture or proof.


texts: Can I delete "while doing so" in this sentence？

texts:
"Worse, should you attempt to diet but don’t get enough sleep while doing so, it is futile, since most of the weight you lose will come from lean body mass, not fat."
what function or meaning does it in the sentence？


texts: What is a good word for someone who "gets the joke"?

texts:
Grandmother recently passed, I'm having a hard time with adjectives

Edit: She was incredibly smart, witty and quick with words. She was a wiz at puzzles, games and cards. She could remember long passages of books. I just can't seem to find the right adjectives to describe her.


texts: Need some help with articles in a simple list (please see the actual example below)

texts:
This is the list of topics and their tasks. Do I need to put articles in the following cases?

THE meeting:

Discuss achievements
Find solutions

THE brand's problem

Find the strategy
Set tasks

In general, is it necessary to put articles in headlines or names of list items/clauses when there isn't a full sentence. Example:
The Insight Some description
I'd be extremely grateful for any help.


texts:
Which one is correct?

a)Thank you for the time you spent on reading this letter.

b)Thank you for taking the time on reading this letter.


texts:
Hippocampus, a tiny organ in the brain  - named after its resemblance to a tiny sea creature, the sea-horse (the genus of which is led to the original coinage of 'hippocampus') - has been some source of confusion.

Hippocampus = hippos (horse) + kampos (sea monster), effectively making it "sea monster horse"

However, there is also the word camp or campus, which means "flat land or field", which comes from Proto-Italic "kampo-"

Wiktionary entry for Hippocampus links the suffix to κάμπος which turns to be a synonym for "campus". "Sea monster" and "field" seem nowhere related in context. How did it come to be so?


texts:
Context

In the 1920s, on the surface, the British Empire seemed as self-confident as ever. Some sense of its swagger is given by the Viceroy's new house in Delhi, A British architect working on a Mogul scale.

Source: History of the world by Andrew Marr - Episode 8


texts:
This book inspired me to be a writer vs This book influenced me to be a writer.

How are 'to inspire' and 'to influence'  different from each other? I know they are different, but am not clear on this. Can you please clarify with examples? Thanks in advance.


texts: What is the difference between "dichotomous", "binary", "boolean", etc.?

texts:
To classify species we use a method called: dichotomous biological key. It works base on true and false cycles. In computer sciences true and fulse working is called boolean and binary is a 0 and 1 system (which is like true and false).

What is the difference between them? Can I use term "Binary biological key"? Are these really different?

(I have edited this question following Daniel's and MT-Head's comments.)


texts:
I am developing a sort of recruitment app. It shows potential candidates.
Currently there is a button which toggles, when clicked between "Show/Hide X unemployed candidates".
I added a date range slider, and want to make the button text refer to the date range. E.g. from 2010 to 2020 there might be 30 unemployed candidates, but from 2018 to 2020, only 4.
I am trying to succinctly say "Hide/Show X candidates who are/were unemployed during the selected date range".
How can I phrase it tersely, but still convey that meaning?


texts: Are linking verbs a species of intransitive verbs? Also, is there any difference between linking verbs, stative verbs, and copular verbs?


texts:
I received an email from my team lead, which says:

  Kindly make sure to let's know the challenges you faced while working on the project.

It was the reply to my email which presented challenges.
I think the above reply from my team lead doesn't sound correct (I may be incorrect).
I would like to rephrase it:

  Kindly make sure to let us know if you face any challenges.

Am I correct about the contraction here? And is the rest correct?


texts:
How do you say using an adverb that you know something for sure?

For example: There are two people, John and Fred. John is suspected of a certain crime, but there is not enough evidence. He may have done it, but we can't prove it.

But there is evidence of Fred committing the crime.

How do I express "there is evidence that Fred committed the crime" in an adverb?

Sample sentence:

  Whereas John allegedly committed the crime, Fred X did it.


texts: Like the word hometown is used to refer to the place you are originally from, what is the word for the place you're working? Is worktown a legit word?


texts: Where does the phrase "wild horses won't keep me away" come from

texts:
I've heard the phrase "wild horses won't keep me away", as is if wild horses were dragging me away, I wouldn't be kept from going where I was going.

Where does this come from?


texts: Noun form of "scared" for "feeling of [blank] "

texts: Which form of the word scare would complete the phrase feeling of .. It might be something like afraidness. I don't think scariness works here.


texts: does "sluggish" have a negative connotation?

texts:
Context:
The Processing Speed for situations requiring immediate attention is sluggish

I'd like to know if this sounds acceptable in a neuropsychological report, or if there's a more suitable word.

Thank you!


texts: sound and noise from across a wall dividing two rooms

texts: What is the word used to describe the disturbing sound/noise hear across an adjacent wall where a couple are engaging in sexual intercourse?


texts:
"Tom said to Sam that he should go to the shop."

In the above sentence, 'he' refers to whom? There is ambiguity here,right?. It can mean either tom or sam.
So is the sentence above correct? If not, how to write it properly?


texts: Is there a word that best describes food and drink taken at the same time? I've thought of refreshments and consumables but neither seem right to me.


texts: Noun to describe a person who wants to please everybody, but sort of in an obsessed manner

texts:
I'm trying to describe a character who dances for her husband so that he doesn't get mad, apologizes profusely even if she hasn't done anything wrong. However, she is also strong-willed and determined.
I considered using the word "altruist", but the character is not selfless.


texts: Can a non-literary object have a "subtext"?

texts:
Dictionaries associate--with more or less affirmation--that subtext is "the implicit or metaphorical meaning (as of a literary text)".

Can a subtext however apply to meaning conveyed by something other than literature, i.e. through aesthetics?


texts: Is it "regular sports training" or "regularly sports training"?

texts: Should I say "regular sports training" or "regularly sports training"? Are we dealing with "sports training" as a one noun and then modify it by an adjective or  should it be modified by an adverb because sports is an adjective?


texts: The instrument that measures the consumption of water

texts:
What is the English name of this instrument, that measures the consumption of water?

In Hebrew we call it "Sheon Mayim" (literally: "water clock"), but in English, water clock is a clock for measuring time, based on the flow of water.

Another Hebrew name is "Mad Mayim" (literally: "water measurer"), but in English water measurer is an insect.

Google Translate says "Hydrometer", but a Hydrometer is an instrument for measuring some properties of water.


texts: Terminology for diagonal line that also indicates orientation

texts:
Suppose a grid of items, as you would have in a game. In this grid there are four types of lines of items:

Horizontal Lines
Vertical Lines
Diagonal Lines oriented under 45 degrees
Diagonal Lines oriented under minus 45 degrees

Note that such a line has no particular direction, they can be seen going either way.

The problem is that when writing material that has to be precise (such as code), the terms as above for types 3 and 4 become rather long (when succinct terminology is actually preferred).

Is there a "specialized" term that means "Diagonal" but also indicates orientation?

I've racked my brain to get an answer myself. There's not really a way to incorporate "Clockwise" and "CounterClockwise" to fix things. The terms from cardinal directions are too specialized as they also indicate a direction (e.g. "North-East Lines" suggests there's also "South-West Lines" but those are actually the same thing).


texts: What do you call it when you profess inauthentic sympathy for past behavior when that behavior has directly benefited you? Hypothetical Example: my family members from 175 years ago burned down some rival family's house so that my family could build a house in that spot, and, 175 years later, I discover oil on that land. Of course, I would be very wealthy etc.. What is the word to describe this action: I say to people that the house burning from 175 years ago was a "tragedy." Of course, in my mind I would say to myself "I am really glad that they burned that house down! Otherwise I wouldn't be rich!" How do you describe that type of hypocrisy?


texts: Can I end this sentence with "also" or "too"? Which one is right?

texts:
Please see the sentences:

  I scheduled to stay after school with you today, but yesterday I was assigned a detention for today too.

  I scheduled to stay after school with you today, but yesterday I was assigned a detention for today also.

The sentence ending in also sounds better to me, but I am not a native speaker, and I don't know it it's correct to use also at the end of a sentence.

Which one is the correct form?


texts:
Under which grammatical rule does this fall?
Which is grammatically correct:

  (1) A teacher might find it difficult to explain a lecture in the past.

or

  (2) A teacher might have found it difficult to explain a lecture in the past.


texts: A noun for phenomenon experienced by wave-particle duality

texts: We have known for centuries that elementary particles exhibit both wave and particle properties. Does the English Language have a word that describes this wave-particle duality?


texts:
Are birthdays holidays?

Or if not, is there a general term for all celebration days, including birthdays as well as public holidays (especially in AE).

Festivities? Festival days? Feast days? Revels?


texts: Is there a noun that expresses the act of presenting false appearances?

texts:
I want to write about the Chinese Government during the Cultural Revolution and argue that whilst they created the appearance of more political openness, it was merely a façade.

Is there a word that expresses the inauthenticity of their actions? Like the 'falseness' of their policies but referring specifically to the fact that they pretend to be something they're not and that they hide something more sinister.


texts: Phrase that means "gaining money for someone" in a negative context

texts:
In German, we have a phrase "jmd. in die Tasche spielen", literally "to play into someone's pockets". I am looking for a fitting English equivalent.

The phrase means, you are causing a third party financial gain with your actions.
These words are nearly always used in a negative context.

For more details read on:
In a story, a character is asked to do a small favor, but by doing so an unnamed third party would gain money. Sarcastically, he responds: "Sure, I'll play into their pockets".
I'm looking for an actual phrase that keeps the meaning but is valid English.


texts:
We use could to show that something is possible in the future, but not certain:

  If we don’t hurry we could be late. (i.e., perhaps/maybe we will be late)

Why is it incorrect to say this:

  I couldn't be present tomorrow'? (i.e., Perhaps I won't be here tomorrow).


texts:
I recently visited Jordan on a business trip. Read the following in a newspaper:

  Bleeding profusely, she pleaded with the alleged attacker, Mushataq, to
  take her to a hospital.

My understanding is that if we accuse someone of committing a crime but the proof of the wrongdoing isn't yet found, use the verb allege.

Is the phrasing correct or it's a misuse of the verb allege?


texts: Singular or plural verb after a list containing three items?

texts:
I'm trying to clear this up for a client. He's using the slogan
"When Time, Quality and Value Matters – Count on TEAM."

"Matters" sounds completely wrong to me so I changed it to "matter" on his graphics temporarily, but he's insistent that it's "matters". I know that when you break the sentence up into parts, the verb used would be "matters", but does that change when the 3 items are together in one list?


texts: Is it correct to use plural, then define it in singular form?

texts:
For example:

  Snow leopards, another mammal with a relatively large tail, are also known to [...]

Edit: changed from big cat to mammal to emphasise that it's a definition, not a noun.


texts: Is or Are? --> Every year, about 800,000 tonnes of food waste are generated

texts:
I need some help with the following sentence:

  Every year, about 800,000 tonnes of food waste are generated.

Should it be "are" or "is"? (as bolded above)


texts:
Does Therefore always have the same meaning as So in the beginning of a sentence?

Here is an example:

  The trend in the present-day world is towards travelling by car rather than using public transport. Evidently, this results in higher rates of pollution. Therefore, what can the government do so as to curb the use of this means of transport?

Evidently, so would sound better there instead of therefore/consequently. However, is this change possible?

I researched this topic - How to Use 'Consequently' in Academic Writing - however, I believe the answers are not clear enough, therefore I provide a more specific example.


texts: What is a word that means "to make sane"?

texts:
Hypothetical: there is something that is pretty convoluted or difficult to understand. It is described as insane.

What is the verb that would be used to describe what someone would do to make the something sane?


texts:
I found the following lines from a book written on philosophy:
"The love of a mother for her child is neither Buddhist nor Christian: it is mother love."
Is it possible to express "mother love" as it is? Shouldn't the word 'mother' be subjected to Possessive case and make it "mother's" love? Or is it just a proofing error?


texts: Description for a person who lives in their imagination

texts: Specifically:  is there a name or description for a person who actually believes they are doing something, performing a task, work, etc., whereas in reality they are not acting on these tasks etc. at all?


texts: Perfect continuous tense with the verb "have"

texts:
What is the difference between

  Do you have a good time?

and

  Are you having a good time?

Thanks


texts:
Examples:

It's cold, I know.

She's awesome, I know.

Are these comma splices? If not, what is the name of the I know clause?
Is there a name for the whole structure?


texts:
This got me in a big fight
:

  Mostly I don't want to be hated, for things I wouldn't consider doing, again.

Having the last comma I thought it would refer to being hated again, the reader sent it back with no comma.

  Mostly I don't want to be hated, for things I wouldn't consider doing again."

The reader was under the impression I have already done things i would never consider doing.

Does the comma make it about being hated?
Was there a better way to write the sentence?


texts: need help interpreting a word from this primary document

texts:
consider the following excerpt from a document i am reading for ap us history, called "A Mexican Description of the Conquest of Mexico" (from the Florentine Codex):

  It seemed that everything became confused; people went this way and that, scattering and darting about. It was as though everyone's tongue were out, everyone were preoccupied, everyone had been taking mushrooms, as though who knows what had been shown to everyone.

the text in bold kind of confused me, considering how this would be perceived in modern day (as in taking psychedelic mushrooms). however, i feel like the text is meaning something else and i have a few definitions from wiktionary to consider:

"one of the mushroom-shaped pegs in bar billiards"
"one who rises suddenly from a low condition in life; an upstart"
"something that grows very quickly or seems to appear suddenly"

all of these seem like they may work, but i'd like to know what you guys think. thanks in advance!


texts: Is it correct to use the phrase "With only"?

texts:
I want to describe an event, which is taking place after a few days, and I believe there is something wrong with the use of the word "With only".

My sentence goes like this:

  With only two days remaining for the tournament.


texts: suffix -ems (in slangy/hip-hop context): what special meaning (if any) does it convey and how commonplace is it?

texts:
One of Shaquille O'Neal's numerous nicknames is "Extra-Tallems".

It's mentioned in a text I've been asked to translate and I'm trying to be somewhat creative.

Any sort of informative background would be greatly appreciated.


texts: What is the antonym of the prefix retro-?

texts:
A coworker and I are discussing the word "retromingent", which means urinating backwards.  We are wondering what the opposite would be: the word that means urinating forwards.

What is the opposite of the prefix "retro-"?


texts: Can "or else" be replaced with "as otherwise"?

texts:
I just had a doubt regarding the actual usage of "or else" and "as otherwise", while joining sentences.

Henry should hurry up. He will miss his bus.

Please tell me which of these answers is correct for joining the above sentences:

Henry should hurry up, as otherwise he will miss his bus.
Henry should hurry up, or else he will miss his bus.
Henry should hurry up, he will miss his bus otherwise.
Henry should hurry up, he will miss his bus or else.

Also, can a workaround be suggested, so that no ambiguity remains?


texts:
Would you kindly tell me a word for representing our department?

I have two guesses: system management department, and system supervising department (but both may not be correct here.)

I am working in a department where we survey the systems in our compamy continuously by a surveillance equipment.

If we find out some failure in them,  we replace the malfunctioned component and also make further investigation whether the failure is inherent in other devices so as to fix all of them. We also make plans to replace or augment the systems to extend their lifetime or improve theirs performances and ability.

We have a business meeting next week with engineers from oversea and I'd like to introduce my department to them.


texts: Why do so many people insist on using incomprehensible, obscure, ambiguous acronyms all the time?

texts:
I work in clinical healthcare. I won't be able to step away any time I
  want and we are already having problems getting PPE.

Okay? "PPE"? Then I have to manually look that up on Wikipedia, and get this page: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/PPE

And that's not even one of the worst ones. They can often be full of things it could refer to, in a huge list, impossible to know from the context. My above example is just what I read just now which prompted me to ask this.

Do they think it makes them sound smarter to use an acronym that only they know what it means? Do they like wasting the readers' time? I don't get it. Unless the context is crystal-clear, and it's been used before in the same text, it seems idiotic to use these random acronyms that just slow down and confuse the readers.


texts: word meaning "beyond the letter of the law"

texts: The words "extralegal," or "extrajudicial" mean outside the law in a negative way-illegal actions not sanctioned by law. But what is a word for a practice not mandated by law, but praiseworthy nonetheless. In Judaic Law, for instance, there is an entire tract dedicated to enumerating practices that are not required, but are adhered to by the pious.


texts: Is it correct to use 'domestic animal' instead of 'livestock' (cattle)?


texts: A different sort of antonym for Schadenfreude?

texts: Schadenfreude is the joy or pleasure derived from the misfortunes of others. What is the word for the feeling of discomfort derived from witnessing the misfortunes of others?


texts: Name for words that have 3 or more syllables?

texts: A word with one syllable is "monosyllabic". Two syllables is "disyllabic", three is "trisyllabic", and so on. "Polysyllabic" refers to any word with more than one syllable. Is there any single term for words that have more than two (including three, four, five, and so on)?


texts: “in you_ and your family’s best interests”

texts:
I’ve seen this picture of a leaflet being tweeted today. It’s supposedly issued by the UK government and distributed widely:

Am I overlooking something or does it really contain the grammar error discussed in "You and your" vs. "Your and your"?

I could see the possessive ’s applying to the whole phrase

  it is in (you and your family)’s best interests,

because the plural interests wouldn’t properly match singular your, i.e. it’s a short form of either of

  it is in your best interest and in your family’s best interest
  it is in your best interest and in your family’s best interests

instead of

  it is in your best interests and in your family’s best interests


texts: Are any of the t-glottolization, th-fronting, h-dropping, etc. in English a phonological complex?

texts:
Wikipedia gives the following, with plenty others ommitted by me, as some of the features of Cockney English:

  T-glottalisation: Use of the glottal stop as an allophone of /t/ in various positions,including after a stressed syllable. Glottal stops also occur, albeit less frequently for /k/ and /p/, and occasionally for mid-word consonants. For example, Richard Whiteing spelt "Hyde Park" as Hy' Par.

  Th-fronting:
  /θ/ can become [f] in any environment. [mɛfs] "maths".
  /ð/ can become [v] in any environment except word-initially when it can be [ð, ð̞, d, l, ʔ, ∅]. [bɒvə] "bother," [dæɪ] "they."

  H-dropping: Sivertsen considers that [h] is to some extent a stylistic marker of emphasis in Cockney.

  Rhoticity: A rhotic (pronounced /ˈroʊtɨk/, sometimes /ˈrɒtɨk/) speaker pronounces a rhotic consonant in words like hard; a non-rhotic speaker does not. That is, rhotic speakers pronounce /r/ in all positions, while non-rhotic speakers pronounce /r/ only if it is followed by a vowel sound in the same phrase or prosodic unit.

My question is, are all these myriad features independent? Or do they form something of a phonological complex, where a dialect gaining one feature would predispose it to gaining all or some of the others?

(I ask because I wondered if there might not be a simpler characterization of these accents in terms of only what the lips, teeth, and tongue are doing.  For example, I feel like Cockney speakers tend to spend a lot of time with the tongue near the back of the throat; could that be a passable explanation for all the features of their speech? My simple method of generating my approximation of Received Pronunciation is just keeping my teeth more "stiff" as compared to my American accent. I was wondering whether such simple "rules" as above -- not likely to be correct, but the point still stands --  could generate all the differences between American and British dialects, which would require a phonological complex. I think.)


texts:
In Arthur Conan Doyle's The adventure of Black Peter, Watson casually refers to a previous exploit of Holmes:-

  In the memorable year '95 a curious and incongruous succession of
  cases had engaged his attention, ranging from this famous
  investigation of the sudden death of Cardinal Tosca...down to his
  arrest of Wilson, the notorious canary trainer, which removed a
  plague-spot from the East End of London.

According to Green's Dictionary of Slang a canary might be

a mistress
a prostitute
a thief's female accomplice
a female singer

among other less-likely definitions. So it seems possible that a canary trainer was a brothel-keeper.

Online I turned up The Canary Trainer, a Sherlock Holmes pastiche, revolving around Opera singers, which doesn't seem to fit in with the previous definitions. I realise that actress and harlot were pretty nearly synonymous in Victorian times, but  don't think the same stigma attached to opera singers, in which case training of singers can hardly be said to be "a plague-spot".

So, does anyone know what a canary trainer did?


texts: Can you limit something to a state of complete reduction?

texts: If I were to limit something, does that mean I could limit it to a state of non-existence or none? Like if someone limits your abilities to talk can that entail that they prevent you from talking altogether? Does limit entail any reduction of whatever noun that comes after it or any reduction with the exception of a complete reduction.


texts: What is wrong with the word "motorsporting"?

texts:
I was reading a book where the author is discussing the BBC buying the rights to show Formula 1. He quotes the press release by the BBC announcing the acquisition.

The book's quote is "the biggest motorsporting [sic] event is returning home after 12 years".

What is wrong with "motorsporting" here? I googled "motorsporting event" and got almost 6,000 results, so it seems to be used fairly commonly.


texts: A word for an opinion phrased as a question

texts:
Is there a name for a request or opinion re-phrased into a question? Sentences like:

"Would it be a good idea to start cleaning up now?"

"Do you think we should complete this project in time?"

"Do you think we should follow basic hygenic standards in this team?"

Note: This question is similar to Suggestion phrased as a question , but not identical in my opinion, since the formulations in this question are (subjectively) more covert.


texts: Is there a proverb, idiom for "those only who in line of fire only understand the agony"?

texts:
Is there a proverb, idiom for Those who are in line of fire only understand the agony. For the freewheeling back-seaters it is far too easy to sit back and say "Why do you worry so much?"
Example:

Jim: I think I made a big blunder in our report to the client today, think my boss will sack me tomorrow when he finds out. I am feeling suffocated due to the stress.
Joana (his wife): Relax Jim, you take too much stress. Nothing will happen. Come let's go for shopping you will feel pumped up.
Jim: How can I feel pumped up with your twisted logic. I am sure to lose this job. It is only those in the line of fire, who understand the agony".

Indians have a saying in marathi language "Jayachi jale tyala kale" which means "who is burnt only understands the pain"


texts: Capital letters in "Theorem", "Conjecture" etc

texts:
This is my first post and as you can probably guess I am a mathematician so I have no clue about grammar. I am writing a mathematical document at the moment and I would appreciate some advice on my usage of capital letters. Can somebody please confirm if the following are correct?

1) "We know by Theorem 4.6.1 that..."

2) "the following conjecture, due to..."

3) In order to prove the "Mckay-Stevens $k$-covering Conjecture, once needs to show that..."

I'm particularly confused about 3).

Many thanks for any help


texts: Is "seminal" safe to use in a formal text?

texts: I am writing an academic text, and I want to describe an important book as "seminal", since it has made a profound impact on the field. However, the first entry on the dictionary.com page is "pertaining to, containing, or consisting of semen". Entry number 4, "highly original and influencing the development of future events" is the meaning I want to convey. Should I be worried about people confusing the two?


texts: What phrase can be used to describe a decision that was hard to make?

texts: I'm looking for something along the lines of "tough decision" but want a phrase which emphasizes on the degree of severity of the toughness of the decision.


texts: word or phrase for a smell that sparks nebulous memories of times or places past

texts:
I sometimes catch a whiff of something that reminds me very strongly, but very vaguely, of a time in my past. Different whiffs for different times. It's not a single identifiable smell and a single identifiable memory (i.e. chicken soup --> that time in Grade 10 when I had mononucleosis and my aunt took care of me). It's more of a vague smell that takes you back to a general time in your life.

How would you describe this? I'm open to both scientific and creative expressions of this phenomenon.

Allow me to add that this is not deliberate nor always positive. And I am not asking broadly about remembering the past, but about how smell, in particular, sparks a sense of past time or places.


texts: Singular and plural possessive of "species"

texts:
I need to construct a sentence, in which I'm referring to a feature of each of the animals in a given species. I don't quite know what the possessive of species should be, both in singular and plural.

Example:
(Talking about a single species with fuzzy ears.)

The species' ears are notably fuzzy.

Is the above correct? What if I had to mention multiple species all having fuzzy ears?


texts: Connection between the thou/you thee/ye forms of you and the confusion between the thorn (þ) and the letter 'y'?

texts:
There's a lot of good information in the answer to an existing question about thou/you and thee/ye, and many are familiar with how shops with the affectation of "Ye Olde Shoppe" get that "Y" from a corruption of the letter þ. This might be nothing more than a coincidence, but is there any connection between these two phenomena?

It seems unlikely to me, given how far back the forms of thou/you and thee/ye go (pre-printing press), but one way that coincidence might be explained is if the "y" in you and ye used to be pronounced something like the thorn (which would then make me wonder how the thou and thee were pronounced).

So, can anyone shed any light on whether there's a possible connection here, or can anyone definitely demonstrate that this is purely coincidence?


texts: Can the word 'centerpiece' be used figuratively?

texts:
The word 'centerpiece' refers to the decorative piece in the center of a dining table. In the German translation ('Kernstück'), we can also use it figuratively, e.g., to refer to the central point of a text or theory. For example, we may say:

  Comparative advantage is a centerpiece of theories on international trade.

Does this usage also exist in English? If not, what would be a better translation ('mainstay' perhaps)?


texts:
It's on the tip of my tongue.

I think there's a word (possibly ending in -ate) which means, loosely, "to make excuses".

Not in the sense found here of "decline", but meaning to try and justify something.  It doesn't necessarily have to have the connotation that these excuses are bad ones, or that the action was in fact unjustified, but it could do.

For example, "I accused him of not delivering, but rather than apologise he X"


texts: Name for a person hired to bring life to the party

texts: What is the name, or job title, for a person hired to attend a party, such as a wedding reception, for the purpose of bringing more life to the party, by dancing, encouraging others to dance, by being friendly, and generally being a visible and positive influence on the party? This is a separate role from the DJ or band.


texts: What is the proper usage of "quite a few"?

texts:
I found the following definitions of "quite a few" in dictionaries:

Merriam-Webster: many

Wiktionary: An indefinite and somewhat large number; more than a few but fewer than a lot; a fair number of.

Is "quite a few" less than "many"?  My understanding is that "a lot" and "many" are synonyms. If that's the case, then the dictionary definitions above conflict. What's the actual meaning of this expression?

For example:

  She's sweeter than all the girls and I've met quite a few.

Note: I'm also curious about the origin of this expression. The last thing that a non-native English speaker would expect was that "quite" and "few" combined would result in "somewhat large number" or "many".


texts: Why did the meaning of “garble” change so much?

texts:
Originally the word meant to sift, for example to remove refuse from
  spices. With time its meaning became distorted to what it is now. From
  Old Italian garbellare (to sift), from Arabic gharbala (to select).
  Earliest documented use: 1483.
  http://wordsmith.org/words/garble.html

I found the two meanings are quite different: the old meaning is to remove usually visible impurities from something (clear) while the new meaning is to distort (not clarify). Why did the meaning change so much?

Some dictionaries have removed the old meaning 'sift'. Is the old meaning still used now?

e.g. Google translates the "garbled" in "Garbled spices are less likely to contaminate a recipe. " into "mixed" while I think it means "sifted" in this context. Does "garble" still have its old meaning?


texts:
i came across this word- 'austerity' and I wanted to know whether it made sense in this sentence.

W.H. Auden’s Refugee Blues laments the plight of Jews in the years before World War 2 while suggesting the austerity and antagonism they faced when seeking asylum in the democracies of the period.

Also, if the sentence can be improved, can you tell me how.


texts: "What can have happened?" - valid or unnatural?

texts:
In a language forum frequented by Russians and me as the only native American English speaker, the question was raised whether "What can have happened to change him so much?" was a misprint. One of the Russians immediately changed can to could. I noticed this and asked her why she had changed it since I considered it correct with can. That prompted another Russian to inform me that since he hasn't found examples of the present perfect with can in any grammars, it's unnatural and invalid and that the only correct form is could with the present perfect.

As a native speaker, I've heard questions like "What can she have done to piss him off like that?" and "Where can she have gone?" all my life. However, I'm hard put to explain the difference, and, to be frank, I've gone back and forth with this man so much on this that I can't see the forest for the trees.

A few days later, I came across a book review in the New York Times – a publication that I have always respected for its excellent editing and style – and there, in the second paragraph of the article, the author posed the question "What can have happened to this woman?"

Although this type of question makes perfect sense to me, I'm having a hard time explaining it. In terms of how I perceive it as a native speaker, all I can say is that it seems to have greater present "validity" than it would with could. By definition, the present perfect is used to refer to an action that took place in the past but has a bearing on the present. As such, I feel it can be questioned from a past or present perspective, depending on the speaker's point of view. For instance, if Billy was supposed to be here at 3:00 to unlock the door, I could ask "Where can he have gone?" at 3:00 from the perspective that he IS not here, or "Where could he have gone?" at or after 3:00 from the perspective that he WAS not there at the appointed time.

Perhaps my interpretation is off and someone will have a better explanation. But one thing I'm sure of is that this construction is by no means unnatural and no less English than the construction with could.


texts: Must I use "infinitive" or "gerund" form in the following examples?

texts:
"To know her and to live with her are two distinctly different situations". or
"Knowing her and living with her are two distinctly different situations".


texts:
First Q here. If this has been asked before sorry (Did search)

Term for a choice that you like and you dislike? And you can/would probably only take the choice you like.

For example:

A justice department lawyer says to you "Either testify or go to prison for 25 to life". Or "Enter witness protection or Vito is going to put you in the ground".

In the above statements, we have two choices. But only one choice is viable. "To testify", or "Enter witness protection".

What is such a choice called? (It can not be called a dilemma).


texts: Does "of what" phrase need to have commas?

texts:
I came across this writing. I was told that the second version is grammatically correct.

Donald oversaw the construction, of what he would deem, a "fortress".
Donald oversaw the construction of what he would deem a "fortress".

Why do we not include commas? Thank you.


texts: What is the correct word order for a temperature sensor that is put on the skin but is able to estimate the core temperature?

texts: Should it be "skin core temperature sensor" or "core temperature skin sensor"?


texts: Is Double room the same as master bedroom?

texts: I am translating a touristic text and I have encountered this difficulty. In Spanish, we say "habitación de matrimonio", which means something like "the room of the couple of the house, the room for the parents". I have found too that in English you use "double room" and "master bedroom", and I would like to know if they can be used interchangeably or if they have different meanings. Thanks in advance, and please excuse my English, I am not a native speaker.


texts:
I remember when I was in Edinburgh my English teacher taught me an expression that was supposed to be Scottish. It was something like play the duffie lassie which should mean "that a girl plays dumb".

Anyway, I have Google around but cannot find it.
Does this expression exist? At least, in Scotland?


texts:
Possible Duplicate:
  Is it correct to use “their” instead of “his or her”?

I, and many people I have heard, occasionally use 'they' and 'their' in the singular when gender is not known. For example,

  Someone burgled our house yesterday. They must've cut their head on the broken window, because there is blood there.

I would like to know:

Is this incorrect or not used in some places?
If not, I have read, such as in style books, the awkwardness of not assuming certain people are a 'he' or 'she' and using 'his' and 'hers' with them respectively, thereby having to say 'the reader... he/she should...his/her'. Why don't they simply use 'they' and 'their'?
Is this a recent development in English?
Is this type of usage present in other languages (pronouns for both genders)?


texts: Idiom or phrase associated with a person who blame others for his or her fault?

texts: Is there an idiom or phrase associated with a person who can't do some work or something but he or she blames something or somebody else?


texts:
I have a sentence where I'm unsure about my grammar when discussing planets:

"Branch Technology is revolutionizing the use of 3-D printing to create architectural elements and structures that will enable new home designs not only for Earth but maybe even for the Moon and Mars."

Is this grammar and capitalization correct usage? I always get stuck on "the earth" or just "Earth."


texts:
Can I use "estimate" to express a rough calculation of the time length? For example:

  Since all the materials are in stock, I estimate the two weeks' time is enough to complete this order.

Is there any mistake in the above, please explain.


texts:
Is this sentence correct?

  This is something we were not notified of.

Or is using of unnecessary in the sentence?


texts: "At the beginning" or "in the beginning"?

texts:
Are both expressions

"At the beginning"
"In the beginning"

valid and equivalent? The first "seems wrong" to me, but it has more Google results.


texts: Is there a nuance in meaning between 'non-managed' and 'unmanaged'?

texts: Context: I am writing about 'devices not managed by professionals' and debating the subtleties between non-managed devices vs. unmanaged devices


texts: An adjective to replace "work-with-able"

texts:
I saw a YouTube video and in this video, he says

  [...] and makes your hair more manageable and more work-with-able, if that's a word.

(emphasis added)

Now I think it's perfectly fine to say something like that because, in daily conversations, you can make up words as much as you like. However, it's definitely not a word in a dictionary.

So my question is, what adjective is a good replacement for "work-with-able" in this context?


texts: Using capital case on every word of a title

texts:
I have to write a post for my college website and it is the format of a "listicle". An introduction followed by short paragraphs with each paragraph getting a heading. My question is regarding these headings and the article title.

I am doing research on the listicle format and I see most have titles where every word is in the capital case. Even are headlines through the articles are given the same treatment.

For example,

20 Crushes Who Made Your Heart Soar In 2018
Who Said It: Harry, Ron, Or Hermione?
Choose Your Dream Wedding And We'll Reveal How You'll Meet Your Soulmate
Eat A Ton Of Food At A Buffet And We'll Tell You Which Disney Channel Star You Actually Are

Why is this done and more importantly is this correct?


texts: Is this "hung" an intransitive verb or a linking verb?

texts:
From the ceiling hung the chandelier.

I could not decide whether hung in the previous sentence is a linking verb or an action verb.

Should we rearrange this sentence to see it more easily?


texts: Derivatives of "ea" in the sense of "river"?

texts: "Ea" is a largely archaic word still used in some dialects to mean a river or watercourse.  The Online Etymology Dictionary mentions "ealand" as a term formerly used to mean a watery place or meadow by a river.  Are there any similar derived forms of "ea" still in use?