texts: 'Arsonist' is to 'fire' as what is to 'water'?

texts:
According to Merriam-Webster, an arsonist is a person that engages in "the willful or malicious burning of property (as a building) especially with criminal or fraudulent intent".

Flooding can also cause serious damage to buildings or other property.  Although it is probably significantly less common, I could imagine that a person might maliciously flood property with criminal or fraudulent intent.

For example, if the residents are vacationing away from home, it would be easy enough for a person to cause serious water damage to a house by turning on all water spouts and plugging all drains.  This occurs in the movie Home Alone:

  Harry: [Marv brings a load of stolen goods from the Murphy household to the van and Harry sees him laughing] What's so funny? What are you laughing at? You did it again didn't you? You left the water running. What's wrong with you? Why do you do that? I told you not to do it.
  Marv: Harry, it's our calling card!
  Harry: Calling card.
  Marv: All the great ones leave their mark. We're the wet bandits!

Is there a word for such a person?  In other words, arsonist is to fire as what is to water / flood?


texts:
Source: http://news.yahoo.com/little-sign-progress-obama-putin-speak-231431925--politics.html

  While U.S. officials denied those accusations, confirmation of Brennan's visit could provide fodder for Russian officials to create a pretext for further incursions into eastern Ukraine.

What are the authors trying to suggest and what does in this context the word fodder mean?


texts:
I was asked what I was working on last night and I only have one thing to work on so the answer was pretty obvious but before I could respond he said, "bar the question?", which apparently means something like "Or should I not ask".
Is this true? Where does it come from?


texts: How about 'play cute' or 'play adorable'?

texts: I wonder if 'play cute' or 'play adorable' is frequently used to stand for 'act cute/adorable' in spoken language. It seems easier to google out 'act cute/adorable' instead of 'play cute/adorable'.


texts: What is a single-word adjective to define someone in power by virtue of contacts?

texts:
If not a single-word adjective, then anything as concise that may define the following traits an individual possess:

They possess power, in terms that they can make other people do things at their whim.
It doesn't matter what the source of their power is: could be influence, ability to convince or confuse, threat, by virtue of age/experience/respect earned.
For instance, each example from different category: "Godfather" from that movie, politicians, subject matter experts, teacher, police.
They have the right contacts, each for a specific job. - Essencially a "Network of people at their disposal" (e.g politicians and businessmen).
They know somebody on whom they possess power (above point), and that individual is either authority, or empowered enough to pull in a favour (or their instruction).

Note: It'll be great to know an adjective that need not necessarily imply a criminal intent. A neutral adjective would be preferred.

An adjective I can think of closely resembling this would be "stature", however it requires context to be clear.


texts: I want to know a single word which denotes the idea of full or maximum utilization, such as the words exploit or milk. But the trouble is, they both have a negative tone to them. Is there a positive word which can be substituted for 'best use' etc.


texts: No direct object in 'give thee faithfully to follow' ? (1670 UK, Isaac Penington)

texts:
Source: Para 5, Isaac Penington to Widow Hemmings (1670), by Isaac Penington

  If the Lord would show thee but this one
  thing, -- that to use "thee" and "thou" to a particular person is
  proper language, and Scripture language; and that to say "you," is
  improper, and arose from pride, and nourisheth pride, and so is of the
  world, and not of the Father; and thou should bow thy spirit to him in
  this one thing, thou little thinkest what a work it would make within thee, and how strongly the spirit of darkness would fight against thy
  subjection thereto. The Lord lead thee as he seeth good, and give thee
  faithfully to follow; for else, if the Lord should lead in any thing,
  and thou not follow in that thing, his Spirit would be grieved and
  vexed thereby, and thy heart in danger of being hardened by the
  deceitfulness of sin.

What is the Lord giving thee faithfully to follow?

The grey claims that the reader thinks little of the significance of stressing 'thee' and 'thou' over 'you'. So I'd guess that the Lord is giving 'thee' this caution? If I'm right, why is there no direct object in the bolded? I recognise grammatical differences in the 1600s, but still want to learn.


texts: What's a word for the letter code used to identify the multiple choice answers of a question?

texts:
On an exam paper I have questions and each question has several answers. These answers are coded with characters A, B, C etc

I am trying to document this and I want to find a single word that describes these characters.  I don't want to use the word Id or Answer or Choice.

Is there some other word out there that would be better?


texts: My friends and I are discussing about a grammar question that hasn't reached a conclusion. We were at a birthday party last night and we ate pizza there. Immediately after eating the pizza, one of my friends said "It was nice! I have never had pizza before." I told him that it should be "It was nice! I ** never had** pizza before. I think the past tense should have been used because by the time he spoke about not having pizza, he actually had it. But I could not counter why he was wrong. Could someone please tell me "have never had" or "never had" which one he should have used?


texts: Some people say truth is not absolute but cultural and dependent on context. I think this is wrong. "Truth" should mean that which is the case. On the other hand I'd like to know a term for a proposition that, if agreed upon and treated as true, has value within a certain group or context although not in the absolute.


texts: 'The average person' or 'an average person'?

texts:
Which one is correct, or are both of them fine?

"It would take the average person 10 days to read this novel"

Or

"It would take an average person 10 days to read this novel"


texts: Meaning of "icing being this work" and "was done in whiff"

texts:
One of my colleagues is a very hard worker, he made software that was required by his counterparts, he got a very awesome response from the other side.

But our manager wrote the following statement in his email:

  About Sam, yes indeed I agree fully, and icing being this work done was done in whiff

I understood that this is a positive response for him, but I didn't understand the words like icing being this work and was done in whiff.


texts:
Is there a world that indicates the "zero-th" value in the series single, double, triple, ... ?

This came up in a humorous discussion of a double entendre. An interlocutor was accused of making a double entendre, to which they countered it was a "zeroth entendre", because there was no double-meaning, nor any straight forward ribald meaning (single entendre); therefore it was a _________ entendre, meaning that no improper interpretation could be made of the utterance.

I thought about "null", but I wonder if there is an official word in the series. Or, at least a word that fits the pattern better.

Edit Since a couple of comments have noted that a 0th entendre would technically have no meaning, please allow me to describe the context.

First, keep in mind that a double entendre is almost exclusively used to describe a situation where a phrase has a sexual innuendo meaning, despite the literal meaning of the phrase. In fact, it's probably a mischaracterization to describe a phrase with two possible meanings, neither of which are sexual, as a double entendre, according to common understanding. (I would be interested to see any references to the phrase double entendre used in a situation where neither meaning has sexual innuendo.)

The situation in which this question developed was one where it would be inappropriate to make any sexual remarks. Speaker A made a comment that, with some imagination, could be said to be a double entendre, by a stretch. Speaker B humorously noted this, and Speaker A quickly denied any sexual implications. Extending the joke, Speaker B then asked if it was a single entendre, meaning a straight-forward sexual comment, which would have been highly inappropriate in the situation, and perhaps indicate some negative consequences for Speaker A (please remember, the comment was only a double entendre by the longest stretch). Speaker A, wanting to end the conversation, stated emphatically that it was a 0th entendre, meaning that no sexual meaning whatever could be construed from the phrase.

As a humorous, playful use of language, entendre in this sense means "sexual meaning". "Zero-th entendre" would be "no sexual meanings whatsoever".


texts: Is the following use of the adverb 'immediately' accurate?

texts:
You will need to refresh your login details when you first access the new site and the process for doing so will be self evident immediately you try to login.

Is this an accurate use of the word immediately? Should it have a 'when' or an 'after' after it?


texts: correct preposition with the noun "contrast"

texts:
What is the correct preposition that goes with the noun form "contrast"? I know we can say there’s a contrast "between" two items. Is anything else acceptable? Here’s the sentence I'm working with:

  A resolution has been achieved, providing a clear contrast from where the journey started and now.

Is that okay? What about this: “... providing a clear contrast between the journey’s start and now.” Or maybe better: “ ... between the journey’s start and current phase.”


texts: What is a word for someone who engages in both activities in a two-activity environment?

texts: I am studying a simple educational environment where there are two types of activities (call them A and B). There are three types of students: those who only engage in A, those who only engage B, and those who engage in both. It's easy enough to name the first two categories (I name them after the activity types, e.g. "viewers" for those who view lectures), but I'm struggling to come up with a good way to refer to the third type of student. What is a relatively common word that roughly means "student who engages in both types of activities", but doesn't connote that he/she is particularly good at them?


texts: Is there a word for making two things indistinguishable?

texts: Suppose we have two objects which are different and can be distinguished. Is there a word for the operation of making them indistinguishable, or for the act of declaring that it is not allowed to distinguish them, or for the rule that it is not allowed to distinguish them?


texts:
In the lyrics of the song Cotton Fields by Creedence Clearwater Revival there is the following sentence:

  When I was a little bitty baby
  my mama would rock me in the cradle

I feel like I understand the meaning, but I can't find out why is would used in such way.

What is the difference to the following:

  When I was a little bitty baby
  my mama rocked me in the cradle


texts: Term for useful unreproducible keyboard shortcut

texts: Is there a expression that describes the situation where you accidentally hit some combination of keys in a software application, and you discover that it triggers some useful keyboard shortcut that you didn't know about, but you don't know what the exact key combination was, and you aren't able to reproduce it?


texts: I am working a narrative which is told by a five year old girl, and somewhere she says "Momma will pluck me out of bed and feed me bacon. I want to ask out loud but my teeth are too fuzzy." I could not understand what fuzzy means in this context. It somehow prevents her to ask the question out loud.


texts: Discontinuous noun phrase and apposition involving object complements

texts:
I was wondering whether these uses of discontinuity are valid. Here are two uses I would like to question:

The use of discontinuous noun phrase:

  [1a] He made the system useless that could have been revolutionary if
  developed by a better programmer.

"Useless" is an object complement while the italicized phrase is the noun phrase, or the object. As you can see, the object complement interrupts this long noun phrase.

If there was no discontinuity, it would've been something like this:

  [1b] He made the system  that could have been revolutionary if
  developed by a better programmer useless.

Which is quite clumsy.

Now, here is the use of discontinuous apposition:

  [2a] He made the system useless, an invention that could have been
  revolutionary.

"Useless", once again, is the object complement, and the italicized phrase is an appositive modifying "system", the object. This appositive, instead of being placed right after its antecedent, is disconnected by "useless".

If there was no discontinuity present, it should have been in this format:

  [2b] He made the system, an invention that could have been
  revolutionary, useless.

Well, it sounds stretched to me.

So I have shown uses of discontinuous noun phrase and apposition, which I do not know are grammatical.

Are these uses grammatical?

EDIT:

Some similar uses: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Extraposition (where it says examples).


texts: What does "I'll go you one better" mean?

texts:
I'll go you one better, seem as you were so polite to ask me for permission.

Can someone please explain this to me? I've never heard the "go you one better" part.

Does this mean that a person will do something better than asked for?


texts: The choice between the gerund and the infinitive in a certain construction

texts:
I am pretty much sure that for native speakers the issue I am going to bring up might look as an uncalled question as they can easily figure out which form of a verbal part of speech should be used, be it a gerund, an infinitive, or a bare infinitive. However, it can be pretty much misleading for a foreigner because the same construction works differently with different words and I don’t see a logical explanation. For example:

The purpose of this article is to analyze the issue…

My hobby is reading.
One may assume, and many foreigners really come to this conclusion, that it’s OK to switch the “gerund” and “infinitive” as the meaning will stay the same, that is:

The purpose of this article is analyzing the issue… (same as 1 above)

My hobby is to read. (same as 2 above)

However, as I was told, this assumption is erroneous.
Another example:
His task was watching after them. (not good)
His task was to watch after them.
Is there any principle which governs the choice of the right form in such cases?


texts: Dissecting an English sentence using a pattern

texts:
I am trying to make a script that can dissect an English sentence.

The problem is, I have no idea how to dissect an English sentence when the words are not familiar. I know what the nouns, verbs, etc are, because I recognize the words. I can give the script a large set of words so it can recognize them as well, but surely there are certain "patterns" that one can check to see what part of a sentence the noun or verb is, even though the noun or verb is not known at the time.

Are there such patterns for the English language? Can one dissect a sentence by only "recognizing" a few words?

Understanding the whole language is not necessary, as nobody really understands everything of a natural language.

Having simple patterns and "rules" should be enough. I understand that, because English is a natural language, every rule or pattern would have some kind of exception and mapping each one of those would probably take forever.
But ignoring those exceptions (apart from the most common), I could make the script understand quite a lot.

If necessary, I could theoretically then add exceptions until done (read: forever).

Here are a few examples of patterns. (I'm not sure if these are exactly what I need, but as an example they should be fine.)

Subject + Verb (S-V)
Verb + Subject (V-S)
Subject + Verb + Direct Object (S-V-DO)
Subject + Verb + Complement (S-V-SC)
Subject + Verb + Indirect Object + Direct Object (S-V-IO-DO)
Subject + Verb + Direct Object + Object Complement (S-V-DO-OC)

Recognizing in what pattern a sentence falls, is probably first thing I should aim for.
Of course, this is much easier said then done, also, for every pattern I find, questions seem to be missing for it, but that is another issue I can deal with later.

From what I can tell, the best course of action is to find the verb in the sentence, then check if the words before it match as the subject, then check the words behind it. Etc.

While finding the verb should not be that big an issue, matching a subject seems quite hard: it can't come from a database since, thanks to names, there are infinite possibilities.
Still.. shouldn't a subject follow a pattern just as well?

Also, if I were to go this route, wouldn't it end up being a maze of patterns(not that thats necesarily a bad thing)?


texts: What is the name for verbs applied to the wrong subject?

texts:
For example, when one says "that apple tastes good", obviously they don't mean that the apple is tasting anything - apples can't taste. Rather, the person eating it does the tasting.

You can also see this in the southern US when people say things like "I'm gonna learn you a thing or two". The person talking in that example is teaching, not learning. The person they're speaking to is learning.


texts: Describe someone who chooses the worst option for doing the work

texts:
How to describe someone who chooses the worst option (way) to do their work(s)and this puts he/she in trouble.

Persian speakers have an idiom for such a situation that its literal translation is something like:

  Blowing the horn from the opposite direction.

So, is there any equivalent idiom or phrase to describe the case?


texts: Is there a word spelled with a silent B at the start?

texts:
My dad and I were playing a game in the car where we picked a letter and then each alternated saying a word that started with that letter. We did it with b, for example, it might go:

  Dad: bath
  me: ball
  dad: buffalo
  me: bank
  etc.

As we were playing/debating the rules of our game, I noticed that there were no b-words that I could think of that started with a sound other than /b/. Whereas, for example, for words starting with the letter t, some of them begin with the sound /ð/ or /θ/ rather than /t/.

Am I missing some obvious contradictions to this 'rule'? Is there any sort of etymological explanation for this?

To clarify as requested by a comment:

I am looking for

A word that starts with a b that makes a sound other than /b/.
More broadly, whether or not there is an etymologically explained pattern among starting letters that shows whether or not there exists the non-phonetic sound at the beginning of a word for a certain letter (or the commonality of the existence of those cases).

From here I'm looking at which starting letters of words have a tendency to be pronounced non-phonetically.


texts:
Ok so I was watching an episode of Brooklyn Nine-Nine, where one of the characters made a grammar error on purpose. He said:

  "Some things might come easier to you when you stop being such a perfectionist. A concept you should become familiar with."

The other character replies:

  "A dangling preposition?!".

Now as a non-native speaker, I don't quite understand what the grammar error here is. For me, "becoming familiar with a concept" makes perfect sense. Why is this an erroneous sentence?

Being a duplicate: It's not a duplicate of that question, as that is about the general idea of dangling prepositions, and this was a specific one that I was not able to understand even when using the proposed duplicate answer. I know, I'm stupid.


texts:
The following sentence sounds normal, but I would like to ask if it has a correct structure or is it dangling participle because the subject of the main clause is "the doctor" whereas that of participle phrase is "the number of surgeries."

  The doctor says the number of surgeries he performs on people with
  cancer is now low, approaching the level before the incident.


texts: What is the correct pronunciation of the word “processes”?

texts: What is the correct pronunciation of the word processes? I am confused because my mother tongue is not English, and in my company some say it as "process-eez" and some say it "process-ess".


texts: Some clause structure about “SOURCE said that CLAUSE”?

texts:
Suppose we have the following sentences:

John believes that people are good.
Steve knows that France is in Europe.

Now, in these sentences we have some clause (e.g. People are good, France is in Europe), and some "source" testifying about this clause (John, Steve) which give different degrees of certainty (belief, knowing).
Is there some clause/sentential structure or syntactical pattern for this?


texts:
The King James Bible interchangeably uses 'spake/spoke', 'sware/swore' and 'bare/bore' for the simple past tenses of 'speak', 'swear', and 'bear', respectively.

Were their interchangeability an innovation of Early Modern English with nuanced  distinction in the periods therebefore or had they always been alternatives for the same things? How did the King James scholars decide which form should be used for which context?


texts:
Are they interchangeable? Do they really mean the same thing in this context?

As in the sentences:

  I really enjoy these already shelled pistachios.

  I really enjoy these already deshelled pistachios.

They are both saying the same thing.

Why are these terms ambiguous?


texts: A term that describes the "shoulder angel/devil" but on a broader scale

texts:
I am attempting to find a phrase or word equivalent to "shoulder angel/devil", but on a broader scale, that does not only refer to the idea of "good" versus "bad". The angel/devil concept is when a  character has an imaginary angel on one shoulder and an imaginary devil on the other, both telling the character what to do.

A shoulder angel/devil is a plot device often used for comic or dramatic effect. They are used to depict the inner conflict of character.

One of the key elements in the novel Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte is passion versus restraint; as in this sentence:

  Reason sits firm and holds the reins...the passions may rage...but judgement shall still have the last word (page. 282)

As such, passion and restraint are personified, like a shoulder angel/devil, thus I am looking for a term that can be used to explain this technique.


texts: Appositive phrase, participle phrase, gerund phrase and noun phrase. English is confusing

texts:
"Every English-speaking country is extremely sheepish towards
  mega-corporations and their puppet-governments. In continental Europe,
  France being an example, people stand up for their rights and
  protest, violently if needed, on the streets."

The little phrase "France being an example" is for a non-native English user very hard to categorise. I believe it's an appositive phrase, but I wonder which one: participle phrase, gerund phrase or noun phrase?
If I have to guess I would say it's a noun phrase with 'being' being a present participle modifying 'France'.

Or am I completely wrong in this?


texts: What is the right usage: Attend at gym or train at gym?

texts:
I want to ask a friend what is the name of the gym he is visiting. Which is the grammatically correct to ask

What is the name of the gym you attend?

or

What is the name of the gym you train?

or

What is the name of the gym you practise?

I do not want to ask him

What is the name of the gym you are visiting?
What is the name of the gym you are going to?


texts:
Suppose I've bought me some chickpeas and lentils, boiled them and have started chowing down.

Would you say I'm "eating legumes"? "eating pulses"? Something else?

Would your answer change if I added peanuts, beans, lupins etc.?


texts:
I haven't found an answer on any of the boards related to 'each' that seems to answer this specific question:

I have included the following in draft correspondence:

  Organization x and organization y are each responsible for nominating one member to the board.

My boss has amended this to:

  Organization x and organization y is each responsible for nominating one member to the board.

I understand he has done this because 'each' takes a singular verb; however in this case I think he is wrong, because the subject is 'organization x and organization y'.

Nevertheless, I am thinking of rewording to:

  Organization x and organization y are responsible for nominating one member to the board each.

or

  Organization x and organization y must each nominate one member to the board.

Of these, I think the last is clearest, the only problem is that it slightly more emphatic than I wish to be.

I would appreciate any views on the best construction.


texts: Word for something that threatens its own existence

texts:
As in the title: What's a word for something that threatens its own existence?

I know "self-destructive" is an option, but it doesn't actually destroy itself, just inevitably poses an existential threat to itself. I was thinking "ouroboric," like something that consumes itself. Maybe "apoptotic" ("apoptosis" being programmed cell death) would make sense, not sure what you guys think about that one.

Context: I'm talking about a novel that portrays writing (and literature) as fundamentally meaningless. Further analysis of this novel shows that this isn't actually a problem, so the novel's representation of literature isn't inherently self-destructive. But it poses a threat to itself—it undermines its own relevance and meaningfulness (since it is itself a piece of literature). So I'm trying to describe this particular characteristic of the novel.


texts: What is the word for repeating an act over and over to the point of insanity?

texts: I don't recall that word but there is a very commonly used word for that if I recall correctly. What is it?


texts:
Is it right to write

  There is no money needed, but only time.

when I am trying to express that money isn't required for a particular thing, only time is required?


texts:
Boss tells his workers:

(1) You are to finish this project by the end of next month.
(2) You are to have finished this project by the end of next month.

After a while, one of the workers tells his boss:

(3) You said we were to finish this project by the end of next month, but we encountered problems and so can't do it in time.
(4) You said we were to have finished this project by the end of next month, but we encountered problems and so can't do it in time.

Are (1) & (2) both natural?
Are (3) & (4) both natural?
Hope to hear both Britain and American speakers. Thanks!


texts:
Is it appropriate to use phrases such as the following in technical prose?

The road runs south.
The river turns to the west.

While I understand that literary texts often use such constructions, roads technically do not "run" and rivers do not "turn" since they are inanimate objects. Can these constructions be used in technical writing?


texts: What's the meaning of "stained with a blue bag" in this text?

texts:
In a story titled "Prelude" written by "Katherine Mansfield", I came across the following  paragraph:

  After tea Kezia wandered back to their own house. Slowly she walked up
  the back steps, and through the scullery into the kitchen. Nothing was
  left in it but a lump of gritty yellow soap in one corner of the
  kitchen window sill and a piece of flannel stained with a blue bag in
  another.

Please somebody shed some light on the meaning of "a piece of flannel stained with a blue bag".


texts:
there:
Anybody can give me a kind reply for the preposition that could be properly used after "finding".
My sentense is: I will give you feedback on findings of/on/about/in any significant change of risks.
Thanks!


texts:
In a sentence involving a string of verbs as a list (as opposed to modifying each other), the standard American English tonal pattern for that string almost always begins high and decreases in pitch with each item. (Perhaps this is true of lists of other parts of speech as well.)

Example:

  The activities included dancing, swimming, biking, and cheese-making.

I have heard a semi-consistent violation of this rule in which the second list item is of higher pitch than the first, and then the rest follow the usual descending pitch rule. I know very little about formal sonority theory so I am speaking more or less straight from the gut.

Is the "standard pattern" I inferred really standard?

Is this deviation from it meaningful?

Is it a regional preference to which I am not sensitive?


texts: How to reffer to Planet Earth using just "Planet"?

texts:
Could you please advice should i add 'the' before planet when referring to our planet Earth? And should the words "the" and "planet" be capitalized?
So is the sentence written in the following way: "Work for The Planet." (meaning planet Earth) written correct?
Thanks,
Luk


texts:
Is there any difference between saying

  Only my condemnation harms me.

and

  Only my own condemnation harms me.

The second sentence feels like is more assertive and enforces the fact that it is my own condemnation that harms me, but is there any other difference in these two ways of expressing the above?

I was recently reading the following page on which one can find the following quote

  Only my condemnation injures me.
     Only my own forgiveness sets me free.

and was wondering why would the author add my own in the second sentence yet skip it in the first.


texts: Can I mix up plural with singular to resolve pronoun ambiguity?

texts:
I have here a sentence with an ambiguous antecedent.

Computers have larger screens than smartphones, the reason why they are still necessary.

The pronoun "they" can refer back to "computers", "screens" or "smartphones".
Is it possible to resolve this ambiguity by mixing up plurals and singulars?

Computers have a larger screen than the smartphone, the reason why they are still necessary.

Or can't I avoid to restructure the complete sentence?

The reason why computers are still necessary is that they have larger screens than smartphones.


texts: What’s the difference between “by its” and “for its”?

texts:
I can't see the difference in meaning in the phrase below. Both are correct?

Cambridge is famous by its university.
Cambridge is famous for its university.

I found this phrase in a book named 'Essential Grammar in Use' Second edition (Murphy, Raymond) In this book the autor used 'for' in this context.
But there's a lot of references in internet using 'by' and it confuse me a lot.
There's an example using "by"
"Cambridge may be said to be sufficiently famous by its University"
Pigot and co.'s pocket atlas, topography and gazetteer of England
by James Pigot  (page 54)
https://books.google.com.br/books?id=RwgHAAAAQAAJ&pg=PA54&dq=cambridge+is+famous++%22by+its+university%22&hl=pt-BR&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwiguNL184HLAhWCGpAKHejvAZIQ6AEIJTAA#v=onepage&q=cambridge%20is%20famous%20%20%22by%20its%20university%22&f=false
Could you guys help me to solve this doubt, please?


texts: What is meant by "a carriage that returns"?

texts:
http://www.parashift.com/c++-faq-lite/big-picture.html#faq-6.17:

  And '\r' is the carriage return, even though your computer might not
  have a carriage that returns.

I know that he is trying to play with the words. Does anyone know what exactly the author means by "a carriage that returns"?


texts: Does this sentence have an adjective clause?

texts:
In the below sentence, is the part the time of... an adjective clause? If it is, why does it not have a relative pronoun? If it is not an adjective clause, what is the name of it?

  There it enters European literature around the thirteen-fifties, the time of Petrarch’s “Phisicke Against Fortune.”


texts: Equivalent for "personify" that's not human-specific

texts:
I'm looking for a word that is similar to personify, but that would imply it has life-like qualities, rather than human-like.

For example, I am discussing the fact that a self-driving car, if involved in a crash that takes a human life, may be hunted or ostracized in the same way sharks or bears are hunted after they kill a human. We are getting closer to treating AI as life, and I am looking for a word to describe that. We are not strictly personifying the AI, but we are doing something similar.

Might not be a word for this, but I am curious if there is.


texts: Is 'I had it sent him' an appropriate sentence?

texts:
(1) I had it sent to him.

  (2) I had it sent him.

I thought the first one is right, and the second is wrong. Yet Google Books has the second example’s graph. Is the second also an appropriate sentence?


texts: When and how to use the "be + they + noun" structure

texts:
Can you please explain this structure?

  I can't forget the looks on faces of people who've lost hope. Be they gay, be they seniors, be they blacks looking for an almost-impossible job, be they Latins trying to explain their problems and aspirations in a tongue that's foreign to them.

*This is also from Harvey Milk's "The Hope Speech"


texts:
Does two orders of "egg in a hole" become two "eggs in holes" or two "egg in a holes"?
Thank you.


texts:
Is there a single word in English describing a sideway movement when one is walking with his back along a ledge?

One can see this frequently in movies. A person is high up on a building or in mountains and the ledge is so narrow one has to be with his back to the building/mountain and move slowly sideways.


texts: Single word for "Expanding and Contracting"

texts:
Specifically expanding and contracting without the connotation of rhythm that comes with pulsate. Oscillate, librate, undulate might all be synonyms but lack association with expanding and contracting.

e.g. There is a theory that the universe ______.

Fluctuates (but specifically for expanding/contracting).


texts: Is saying "He was well thought of" ending a sentence with a preposition?

texts: If not, is there any other way to say this? (I'm looking for synonyms, not rewordings such as "Others thought well of him.")


texts: A better alternative to 'segment' denoting the part of daily academic routine

texts:
The definition of 'segment' from English Oxford Living Dictionaries:

segment (noun)
1. each of the parts into which something is or may be divided.

I hope we can say "segments of the community"; "a segment of a television program", but is it okay to say "a segment of an academic daily routine"?
For instance, there's an English Language Academy, and 3pm to 6pm is its timing, which means duration of 3 hours.
Following are the 3 segments of their academic routine in that English-language academy:
Segment 1.  From 3pm to 4pm, the teachers teach Grammar.
Segment 2. From 4pm to 5pm, the teachers teach the students to read English-written Books and Newspapers.
Segment 3. From 5pm to 6pm, the teachers let the students make their own Speeches.
Here, there's question in my mind that, is it appropriate to use the word 'segment' here, or there are other better alternatives to it? I suspect that 'segment' is commonly used in TV programs.


texts: What are some give-type verbs that cannot undergo straight dative alternation?

texts:
The following dative alternations sound off to me:

I want to donate my clothes to charity.  --> I want to donate charity my clothes.
He has to submit his paper to his teacher. --> He has to submit his teacher his paper.

If these words cannot undergo dative alternation, is there a rule explaining why?
Also, if members of this community would like to contribute to the list of give-type words that cannot undergo dative alternation either in the comments or answers, that would be greatly appreciated.


texts:
Fowler's Dictionary of Modern English Usage, page 852 reads

The construction ordered + object + past participle (often expressed
in the passive) is first recorded in 1781 in AmE ( These things were
ordered delivered to the army—J. Witherspoon). BrE normally requires
the insertion of to be before the past participle.

OED reads: Also with ellipsis of 'to be' (chiefly U.S.), but every example is in the form ordered too.
What is the reason behind this structure of ? I cannot recall anything similar in grammatical terms.


texts:
Definition from Google, Living Below Your Means is defined as:

  Spending less than what you're making. Ideally you're spending less than your last month's pay checks so you're not living pay check to pay check

What would be a good word to describe this?


texts: Is it not repetition to say "semantic meaning"?

texts:
I was going through an article on wikipedia and somewhere it said, "the semantic meaning of [noun here] is twofold ......"
When I look up the word semantic, to me, it is like a defining word that implicitly implies "meaning". Is this not a grammatical mistake?


texts: Is "this 'Joshua' character" a crude way of talking about someone?

texts:
I am writing a letter to a friend (Joshua) for his birthday and I want to recount all I had heard about him before we met. An excerpt:

Since I got to know Aditya, I had been hearing about this 'Joshua' character, who ..

My question is, is this 'Joshua' character a crude way of going about it? If so, can you suggest an alternative.

Thanks!


texts:
glitch /ɡliCH/

  noun: glitch; plural noun: glitches

  1.
  a sudden, usually temporary malfunction or irregularity of equipment.

  "a draft version was lost in a computer glitch"

  1.1 an unexpected setback in a plan.

  "this has been the first real glitch they've encountered in a three months' tour"

  Verb

  1. suffer a sudden malfunction or irregularity.

  "her job involves troubleshooting when systems glitch"

  (Oxford Dictionaries)

According to Google:

The word "glitch" was used more widely known in the late 1900s, in the US, of an unknown origin. The original sense was ‘a sudden surge of current,’ hence ‘malfunction, hitch’ in astronautical slang.

'Glitch' has an unknown origin but was more common in the US.

What is the origin of the word glitch?


texts: Can you add emphasis by ending a sentence with "even"?

texts:
Can you end a sentence with "even", or is considered incorrect?

He even smiled at me.
He smiled at me, even.


texts: Meaning of suffix ''- ic'' in relation to ''materialist'' vs ''materialistic''

texts:
If there are any, what are the differences in meaning between the statements ''I am a materialist person'' and ''I am a materialistic person'' ?

*Context: In a conversation on philosophical materialism that concerns matter and the universe I want to describe my viewpoint, which leans towards materialism due to its properties. However my viewpoint also has some properties which I am not sure can be considered materialist.

Due to being unsure whether my entire viewpoint fits with straightforward materialist understanding I want to avoid describing myself as ''I am a materialist person'', instead I am using the phrase ''I am a materialistic person''. Is using the word ''materialistic'' in such context correct?

So far I've received feedback that I must avoid using ''materialistic'' because it can be misunderstood with excessive material possession in pejorative way. However context is a scientific and philosophical discussion about universe and it is clear for everyone in the conversation what materialism means. The word ''materialistic'' is also used in such context in philosophical/ontological area:
enter link description here
There are many Google hits as such ''materialistic scientist'', ''materialistic scholar'' etc. as well.

Common description of suffix ''-ic'' is ''of or pertaining to or relatedeness''. Description below also indicates ''having some characteristics of opposed to simple attributive use'' :enter link description here
For example the
word ''metallic'' doesn't have to imply substance (objects made of metal). Any sort of resemblance to metal is enough to describe something as ''metallic'' as such ''metallic vase'' (no metal substance) or metallic voice: enter link description here

Therefore, in the context above

Does ''materialistic'' strictly mean ''materialist''? Why, why not?

Can I add suffix ''-ic'' to the word ''materialist'' when there is any resemblance to ''materialist'' such as materialist-like viewpoint?

Thanks!


texts: "There IS/ARE an even number of rules" - What is the correct verb and what is the subject?

texts:
What is the subject in the following sentence and is the verb agreement correct?

"There is an even number of rules."


texts: According to Oxford Dictionaries, contretemps means "an unexpected and unfortunate occurrence". What is the plural of it, if it exists, and how do I use it in a sentence? Do I say "contretemps startled me"? Can the word be used with an article?


texts: What's the name of this pronunciation guide

texts:
In dictionaries I see two guides for pronunciation. for example, for the word "ambiguity":

 [am-bi-gyoo-i-tee]
AND
  /ˌæmbɪˈgyuɪti/

I know the second one is named IPA. My question is, is there a special name for the first one? and is there probably any difference between them?


texts: Word for ubiquitous and seemingly unimportant?

texts:
I need a word to describe something that is ubiquitous and seemingly unimportant (even though it's actually quite important).

Example:

  Despite its [word], music is influential in affecting mood, making it a perfect tool to use in therapy.


texts:
We know that "ambidextrous" describes (roughly) the ability to use both hands. Are there words in English the capture the idea of something that is "suitable for use by either hand"? Similarly, is there a word that captures the idea of something that is "suitable for use on either foot"?

Examples:

For shoes, we distinguish between left and right feet. For skis, as far as I can remember from the last time I went skiing, each individual ski can fit on either boot.
Scissors come in left-handed and right-handed varieties, whereas tongs generally can be operated by either hand. (As a side remark: I've seen scissors marketed as "ambidextrous". Is this use of the word correct?)


texts:
be the face of something: to represent the nature or character of an organization, industry, system etc, and the way it appears to people

This is the sense I came to using the Longman definition. However, “represent” is not part of the definition. So I want to make sure I got it right.

What is the definition of this phrase? I have tried to look it up in numerous dictionaries, but I can't find it as a phrase.

For example in the title of this article: Should You Be the Face of Your Business?

Or as in: He was the face of popular music.


texts: What do you call a computer window when it is not maximized or minimized? I have been using unmaximized, but I feel there is a more precise way.


texts: Can some kind of [uncountable_noun] outnumber another kind of [uncountable_noun]?

texts:
While talking about anonymous feedback on Stack Exchange, I wanted to say that there was more anonymous feedback than registered feedback, so I considered saying:

  Anonymous feedback outnumbers registered feedback

This seemed not quite right, so I said:

  Anonymous feedback... er... instances outnumber registered feedback instances

This seemed not really to be an improvement at all, aesthetically at least.

Perhaps talking about one kind of feedback outnumbering another is alright, or has some justification since the feedback comes in discrete units (votes). But trying this with other uncountable nouns seemed worse...

  Helpful information outnumbers useless information

That feels wrong...

So, can and should some quantity of an uncountable noun ever be said to outnumber another quantity of the same noun? Is there a better alternative than forming some compound countable noun (perhaps replacing outnumber with something else)?


texts: Word/phrase to describe someone skilled at using/combining raw materials to make something impressive?

texts:
I am looking for an adjective to describe someone skilled at taking raw materials and combining them and turning them into something beneficial. Relevant professions here include a cook/chef, a materials engineer, pharmaceutical scientist, perhaps even an explosives/demolition expert if they have to combine certain materials.

Originally I was thinking something like "crafty" but I feel that word also has other negative connotations.

Example: Give Joe any material or substance and he can create something great, he's so ________.


texts:
Do you say “All but one person forgets something” or “All but one person forget something”?

I'm assuming that if all means five people, for example, then the example can be rewritten as Four people forget something, so the latter sentence would be correct, but I'm not sure.


texts: Looking for an idiom opposite to "the more the merrier"

texts:
I am looking for an idiom or a phrase that expresses the opposite idea of "the more the merrier".

Context:

  Five persons are taking a class in gymnastics with a private
  coach. Only two show up for the training session. Person A: "Hey, [the
  opposite of "the more the merrier"!"

The intended meaning is the two persons will receive more attention and useful advice from the coach, so the session stands a good chance of being more productive.

Ideally, the idiom should be usable in the example sentence above.

Note: I'm aware of "less is more", but I've heard it in the context of minimalism, and it doesn't sound like a good candidate here (correct me if I'm wrong.)

EDIT: "The more the merrier" is actually abbreviated. Originally it was "the more the merrier; the fewer, the better fare", where "fare" means food. One could of course simply say "the fewer the better", but I'd like something more colorful, if possible. And "the fewer, the better fare" sounds a bit opaque (again, correct me if I'm wrong.)


texts: What is Germanic about English -- and incomplete list. Can others add things I missed?

texts:
I attempted a list of features of the English language that are clearly Germanic, and wrote only what came to mind off the top of my head. Doubtless it is woefully incomplete and has other flaws. What should be added or emended?

Only two verb tenses in English are simple (as opposed to compound, i.e. requiring more than one word to express the verb). And they're the same two that are simple in German. In typical European languages, maybe six or more are simple.
With many English verbs, the vowel changes with the tense: He sings/He sang/He has sung, He gives/He gave/He has given, He keeps/He kept, etc.
One particular sequence of three vowels is often used in such "strong" verbs: He sings/He sang/He has sung, He swims/He swam/He has swum, The bell rings/The bell rang/The bell has rung. That same sequence, i/a/u is used in that same way in many verbs in German.
As in German modal auxiliary verb is used to form a sort of future tense: He will sing/Er wird singen.
"Reader", "singer", "runner", "worker", etc. In both English and German, that same suffix is used in that same way to make a noun from a verb.
In English and German, the "-er" suffix on an adjective forms the comparative degree: "bigger", "cheaper", "slower", "healthier". And "good" is an irregular adjective in that its comparative is not "gooder" but "better"; likewise in German "gut" and "besser".
In English and German, unlike most European languages, the infinitive is formed with an initial monosyllabic word rhyming with "who": "to sing", "to read", etc. ("to" in English and "zu" in German, with "z" pronounced as in "Mozart")
In English and German, some verbs when used catenatively require the following verb to have "to" and others don't, thus:

  "I make him sing." versus "I force him to sing."
  "I let him sing." versus "I allow him to sing."
  "I must sing." versus "I have to sing."

The plural of "he", "she", or "it" is "they". The distinction between masculine, feminine, and neuter pronouns is present only in the singular number, never in the plural. In English I think this is the last vestige; in German it effects all nouns and adjectives and many pronouns.
If you know what "give" means and what "up" means, that doesn't tell you what "give up"  means. English has many such phrasal verbs. So does German. (But in German the particle that completes the phrasal verb is a separable prefix.)
Words like "herewith", "therefrom", "hereby", etc. are Germanisms, although their counterparts in German are used not only in somewhat formal writing but also in the most informal speech and writing.
A certain amount of vocabulary. (But in English you hardly ever utter a sentence that isn't very short without also using words that evolved from French words or other sources. German has also borrowed from French and Latin, etc., but nowhere near so much.)

So how should one improve and complete this list?


texts:
I was interested in the following sentence which appeared in an article by Andrew C. Rewkin titled “Misperceived Paths to Energy Savings" in The New York Times, The Opinion Pages, (August 17, 2010).

  It is difficult to identify the actual energy someone saves by turning
  off the light each time they leave the room, for a few reasons: the
  types of lights people use varies, it’s difficult to measure how
  many times the lights are turned on and off per day, and if the
  behavior has been maintained over the long-term.

Can someone clarify if the fragment "the types of lights people use varies" is ungrammatical, as I think it is?

I would reword "varies" with "vary", but I'm not sure on this correction because I'm not able to identify the subject of the verb.

(Apologize in advanced if the question is not good for this site. If so, please delete. Thank you.)


texts: I'm writing about a new technology "Input Optimised Filtering" (not the actual name but a good example). I'm wondering whether this can/needs to be hyphenated (Input-Optimised Filtering), or not.


texts: What does "the way of" mean in "To the deer it is a reminder of the way of all flesh ... "?

texts:
What does "the way of" mean in:

  A deep chesty bawl echoes from rimrock to rimrock, rolls down the mountain, and fades into the far blackness of the night. … Every living thing (and perhaps many a dead one as well) pays heed to that call. To the deer it is a reminder of the way of all flesh, to the pine a forecast of midnight scuffles and of blood upon the snow, to the coyote a promise of gleanings to come, to the cowman a threat of red ink at the bank, to the hunter a challenge of fang against bullet. … Only the mountain has lived long enough to listen objectively to the howl of a wolf.

Context: Thinking Like a Mountain By Aldo Leopold


texts: What is the difference between "I am able to" and "I can"?

texts: Please, tell me the difference between these two statements.


texts: Repeatable superior letters "a" "b"... at the place of footnote, what do they mean?

texts:
I'm reading a book(ISBN:978-0942299519) where there are occasionally superscript of lower case letters at the place of footnote indices. It appears they:

1) run parallel with footnote

2) are repeatable(there can be two a's)

3) don't usually go beyond "e"

I checked the original French text and there's no superscript in it whatsoever.

What do they mean?

Answer: They are translator's notes

Text:

Note section of the English text

Original French text


texts:
I've compared these words in a few contexts; there is a difference between them, but I can't make it explicit. What do you think it is, or know it to be?

(I know these words are very close, and in actual use it might not matter. I'm asking to satisfy my own curiosity.)

Dissimulation

From Wikipedia:

  Dissimulation is a form of deception in which one conceals the truth. Dissimulation differs from simulation, in which one exhibits false information. "Dissimulation, in the negative; when a man lets fall signs and arguments, that he is not, that he is... Simulation, in the affirmative; when a man industriously and expressly feigns and pretends to be, that he is not." In the animal kingdom a predator giving the impression that it is harmless is an example of dissimulation, such as the leaf fish. An animal that is typically prey giving the impression that it is dangerous is an example of simulation, such as the frill-necked lizard.

Definition from AHD.

  To disguise (one's intentions, for example) under a feigned appearance. See Synonyms at

From Vocabulary.com

  The noun dissimulation describes the act of faking your true feelings. Your dissimulation of happiness might fool strangers but your close friends can tell it's all an act.
  The word dissimulation implies that the wool is being pulled over someone's eyes, or they're being fooled or tricked by someone's deceit. The origin of dissimulation is the Latin dissimulationem, which means "a disguising or concealment." Don't confuse dissimulation with dissimilation, which describes the act of making something different or less similar.

In context:

  In war, practice dissimulation, and you will succeed.
  I lack the cunning and the dissimulation,” she says, “necessary for a normal affair.
  Uncertainty, fear, dissimulation and layerings of identity permeate the novel.

Wordnet: says dissimulation is a type of falsification and a type of misrepresentation

Dissemble

From AHD

  1) To disguise or conceal behind a false appearance.

  2) To make a false show of; feign

  1) To disguise or conceal one's real nature, motives, or feelings behind a false appearance.

From Vocabulary.com

  To dissemble is to hide under a false appearance, to deceive. "When confronted about their human rights record, the Chinese government typically dissembles."
  Dissemble is a little more complicated than a straight lie or denial. When you dissemble, you disguise your true intentions or feelings behind a false appearance. To dissemble is to pretend that you don't know something, to pretend that you think one way when you act another way. "My boyfriend was dissembling the whole time. He was a married father of two."

In Context

  Or, worse, he’s giving them the idea that it’s OK to dissemble this way with your own kids.
  Why is the government trying so hard to muddy and dissemble even this modest data?
  Senna painted himself as the wronged man, but in seeking to justify the crash he dissembled.
  -He didn't dissemble; the gist was "we do because we can".

Wordnet says dissemble is a type of belie and a type of misrepresent.


texts:
I have the following sentence:

"Section 4 demonstrates the benefits of the developed methods with  three case studies"

Is 'with' correct here? Or do I have to use 'by'?

I'd appreciate every comment.


texts: "I know a man with a wooden leg named Smith"

texts:
The 1964 Walt Disney film Mary Poppins features the following famous lines:

Bert:  I know a man with a wooden leg named Smith.
Uncle Albert:  What's the name of his other leg?

It is a joke that exploits a common ambiguity in English communication.
Obviously, naming a wooden leg is absurd, and so most listeners understand that the intention of Bert's reply, upon hearing it, is to explain that the name belongs to the man. This discrepancy makes Albert's reply into the punchline.
Assuming, for argument, that naming a wooden leg were not absurd, is either interpretation, of naming the man versus naming the leg, more fully supported by English grammar?


texts: What does "sprawling" mean in this sentence?

texts:
"He wrote a sprawling novel Thillana Mohanambal with dozens of very deftly etched characters."

Sprawling generally means - spread out over a large area in an untidy or irregular way.

What does it mean here?


texts: Difference between "technically possible" and "physically possible"?

texts: Do you think these expressions can be used interchangeably? I find little or no differene between the two meanings. Does this question need more context?


texts: Suitable synonyms for "migrate", "migrated" based upon the supplied context

texts:
I recently asked a question on meta.stackoverflow.com (please see it for the context; I didn't copy it to this question in order to avoid unnecessary duplication context quoted below*), so the damage (repetition) has been done, however I'd still please like to request your learned assistance and opinions on whether or not I could have used another word(s) that would suit the context? Move / moved was the best I could come up with after way too much internal deliberation.

Edit
*Repetion in the partial quotes emphasised:

However, the first time a question I answered got migrated (to Pro
Webmasters), I registered ..
.. their question has been migrated to and I ..
.. due to their questions being migrated. As it stands now, a lot of the answers to migrated questions ..
.. new answers on a migrated question until they've registered an account on the site their question was migrated to either, and the message they're greeted with
upon migration itself is very perfunctory ..
.. a link to where it was migrated to,
I'd like to make a feature-request that there's a little more prodding
and cajoling for the OP to register an account on the site their
question was migrated to ..


texts:
Why does the first blank say "rate" rather than "speed"?
Why does the last blank say "trained" rather than "taught"?


texts: Single word for "divine healing" or "spirit healing"?

texts:
I need a single word which can represent below phrases or meanings:

  Divine healing
  Spirit healing

like there are phrases for Long journey i.e.  Voyage.


texts: Is there a word for knowing the definition, but not the pronunciation of a word?

texts: The word chimera for example. When encountered for the first time in a book, it comes with a description of the beast. There is however no help on its pronunciation. So in your mind,  you may pronounce it the same way the start the word cheese. Is there a word for this situation?


texts: What does it mean: "Of no mean beauty, ..."?

texts:
what does the first part of the sentence mean?

  "Of no mean beauty, she stood out above all by reason of her abundant knowledge of letters."

What is "mean beauty"? I have a hard time to look it up in a dictionary.

The sentence comes from this story: http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/basis/abelard-histcal.asp


texts: Is the tense of the latter part of the sentence correct?

texts: "He couldn't foresee devoting himself to anything other than that passionate desire, even if the fire eventually burns him down." Is 'burns him down' correct? The speaker is okay with the fire burning him down in the future if that is the consequence of following his passion.


texts:
Most of the synonyms for self-righteous are deprecating.

One of the wonderful things about the English language is that most ideas have a word for the positive connotation, and a word for the negative connotation.

I'm trying to find the positive connotation for someone's behaviour being self-righteous. (In the context of trying to work with them in a team).

My question is: What's the polite way of describing someone's behaviour that appears to be self-righteous?


texts:
Possible Duplicate:
  Which is correct, “dataset” or “data set”?

When writing about sets of data produced and analysed for a scientific experiment,  which of the two forms is most adequate for a piece of international scientific writing? Is it "datasets" or "data sets"?


texts: What are the possible part of speech combinations for compound nouns?

texts:
I am currently working through allowable part of speech combinations for the first two words of an English sentence.  It seems troubling to me to allow the first two words of a sentence to both be nouns, but that may well be valid.  One such circumstance is with compound nouns where it is rendered as two separate words (I am neglecting hyphenated and one-word versions here).

If I were to have the following sentence:

  Tea time is at 3:00 every afternoon.

I would naturally think of time as a noun of course, but I might describe tea as an adjective in this case.

So which combinations of parts of speech can a compound noun take and how would one distinguish which is the correct labeling for the compound noun?


texts: What is the relationship between the words debtor and debitor?

texts:
My question is - "are there any differences between the meanings, connotations and usages of the words debtor and debitor?". The context in which I intend to use the word is a business budget, where it is used as an antonym to the word "creditor"; I wish to find the most appropriate word for this context.

My instinct would be to use debitor where referring to a party who owes a debt to another specified party, and to use debtor to denote a party which is in a state of debt e.g.:

"Purchaser A is debitor to supplier B"
"Mr. C is a debtor, and urgently needs to turn his financial state around"

This would make debitor the more appropriate word for my usage. Collins Dictionary appears to support the use of "debitor" in this way. However, debtor can also be used to mean a party which owes a debt to another specific party. So is my instinct correct in this case?

Secondly my text editing software flags debitor as a misspelling, and Collins states that the word is used rarely. Is the word debitor so rare as to be likely to be taken as a misspelling, or seen as an anachronism?


texts: How to write "looking suspicious" in a way that is not ambiguous

texts:
I want to indicate that a gathering of people who witnessed an activity appeared to be suspicious of what was going on around them.  I'd like to write a sentence along the lines of:

  A group was standing on the corner looking suspicious.

However, the sentence as-is could mean two separate things.

The group appeared to be suspicious of the activity
The group looked like they deserved suspicion for the activity.

See the first two definitions of suspicious in Merriam-Webster.

Of course, I first consulted a thesaurus to see what possible candidates would only mean suspecting others, and not deserving of suspicion.

Words like apprehensive, doubtful, or mistrusting don't match the intention of the sentence.  The closest word I could find is leery.  According to both OED and Merriam-Webster, "leery" is usually used with a preposition ("of" or "about") as in "He was leery of strangers."

To me, it looks awkward to write:

  A group was standing on the corner looking leery.

What word or words can describe "appearing suspicious of something" without possibly implying an appearance that is itself suspect?  Phrases are fine with me as long as they can fit into the structure "A group was standing on the corner... ______"


texts: Is "rewirings" a word? I recently found myself at need for its use and every location I search says it's spelled incorrectly / doesn't exist, yet I'm fairly certain this would be the correct word to express multiples rewires.


texts: When to use or omit periods in acronyms, abbreviations, and initials

texts:
Possible Duplicate:
  Is it OK to drop the periods in abbreviations?

I don't understand when or where to use or discard a period when writing short forms.

For example, my college is the Malaviya National Institute of Technology. Should I abbreviate it as M.N.I.T. or is MNIT better?

A second example, for Windows Portable Executable, is it "P.E.", "PE", or "PE."?

Lastly, if I write out my project's name UNMP, should I capitalize all words or just the first one? "Unified Network Management Platform" vs. "Unified network management platform".

I often have this question when writing papers/resumes.


texts: Word for when a subclass label would be a valid label for a parent class

texts:
Words like "book" cover a class of object, whilst "textbook" covers a subclass encapsulated by "book". That said, a literal interpretation of "textbook" suggests that it would be a valid label for the parent class. The prepending of "text" seems to narrow the scope of meaning without narrowing the literal meaning of the string.

Is there a name for this phenomenon? I.e. when a subclass label would be a valid label for the parent class.


texts: The difference between 'gonna have to' and 'will have to'

texts: Can anyone explain the difference between 'will have to' and 'gonna have to', please? I'm not native speaker and these statements seem exactly the same to me.


texts: "Go to the country", "go to the countryside"

texts:
I'm a non-native speaker of English. A lot of people say although you would say 'I went to the country,' meaning 'I went to a rural area,' you wouldn't likely say 'I went to the countryside.' Is this true?

Addendum: They say 'the country' is a location whereas 'the countryside' is the scenery or landscape, and that that's why you normally wouldn't say 'go to the countryside.' However, some insist that a few people, if not many, nonetheless say it.

Addendum2: I was just wondering if 'go to the countryside' was used. Could I conclude, then, reading all your answers and comments, you could say 'go to the countryside' if you meant 'go into the beautiful rural space'?


texts: Is "act like a mensch" too localized for ELU readers (U.S. and/or British English)?

texts:
This question was motivated by an interesting comment that was made at https://academia.stackexchange.com/posts/comments/123681?noredirect=1

  Part of Answer: I don't think that particular research team would be a healthy place
  for you. The guy behaved badly. You need an advisor you can trust to
  act like a mensch.

  Interesting Comment: Your "be a mensch" comment might be a little localised for American
  English, I (as a British English / German speaker) wondered why you
  were telling them to "be a human" before realising it was probably a
  Yiddish import from the American Jewish community with the appropriate
  semantic shift.

(I was using it in the decent human being sense; I checked the Wikipedia List of English words of Yiddish origin, and mensch does appear, in case that's helpful.)

Is "act like a mensch" too localized for ELU readers?  Please say which variety of English you speak: American, British, Indian etc.

-- Edited to add: I would also like to know if the context made it clear enough or if I should go back and edit the Answer over on Academia and avoid using the word in future.

(If the conclusion is yes, then I will write a separate question asking for alternatives.  So, please, no alternatives here—thank you!)


texts: Must a comma be used after the word "similarly?"

texts:
Which sentence is correct?

In graphic design, I consider the use of color. Similarly in photography, I also consider...

In graphic design, I consider the use of color. Similarly, in photography, I also consider...

I know that there's usually a comma after "similarly" but the sentence in the second sentence sounds too long and has too many pauses. I prefer the first option because it flows better, but is it grammatically correct? If not, is there a way to write that sentence in a way that flows better?


texts:
I am talking to a friend on the phone and the conversation is somewhat incomplete but we decide to hang up. Before hanging up, he says "I'll see you tomorrow". Would it be grammatical to reply,

  OK, talk to you then then!

The two thens are not a typo, in fact that's my whole question.


texts: What is the word to describe something that has hidden meaning?

texts:
I'm writing an essay (yay) on I'm the King of the Castle, by Susan Hill.

I am trying to explain how the description of the atmosphere may have hidden meanings (e.g. the fact that Warings is a solitary house could show how Kingshaw feels). But I can't think of the word!

So my question is: What is the word used to describe a phrase which has a hidden meaning?

Oh, and also: What is the word for something that represents something else, e.g. a cat chasing a Mouse could represent a bully and a victim.  Is it just symbolism? Metaphor?


texts: "The population is 57,000" or "the population is 57,000 people"?

texts:
I'm having a devil of time googling this, so my apologies if this question has been answered before. Internet searching has been all but worthless, what with boolean cues being imprecise as they are.

Which of the following sentences would be the usual choice?

  The population of Greenland is 57,000.

-or-

  The population of Greenland is 57,000 people.

The first sentence seems incomplete to me somehow, like it ends abruptly. I think it's just one of those indescribable feelings of wrongness.

The sentence would be used in an informational piece for children 10-11. I wonder if the addition of "people" would clarify what the sentence means to a younger audience. I also wonder if the audience might also find it abrupt if the sentence is used verbatim.

Thanks in advance!


texts: What is a word for someone who follows out of fear?

texts:
As in the title, what is a word for someone who follows some person, concept, or idea out of fear of what will happen if they don't follow?

For example, a person who follows some god or religion out of fear of what will happen if they don't.

I'd love a "religious" word ala zealot, fanatic, devout, etc.


texts: "in" vs "on" vs "at" with "rarely used code paths"

texts:
Which of these alternatives is the best one?

Bugs are often found on rarely used code paths
Bugs are often found in rarely used code paths
Bugs are often found at rarely used code paths

I have a hunch that either on or in are most appropriate but I have no idea which one to use here. A path is something you can stand on top of but a code section is something that the bugs can be inside of.


texts:
Thesis-writer and native speaker here.  My advisor did not like my use of the phrase "embellish on the theme of," insisting that the verb "embellish" cannot be used that way.  I think I first learned the phrase during piano lessons as a kid, and I've used it in my brain-thoughts thousands of time, but now I'm not sure if it's too jargony for a math thesis.  Can anyone point me to non-musical sources that use this phrase?  Or perhaps another version of this phrase that requires less musical knowledge?

Additional context: I searched for "embellish on the theme of" (with quotes) in Google and it returned only 3 results.  That surprises me.


texts: Can renegade and rogue be used interchangeably?

texts: I've looked up the definitions for both words and they seem different, yet similar -- especially renegade defined as 'a person behaving in a rebelliously unconventional manner' and rogue defined as 'a person that behaves in an aberrant way.'


texts: "'Hello', says he. 'Hello', says I" — is this correct?

texts:
I'm reading a novel in which once in a while a character says something like "I are", "He do", and similar stuff. I understand the author is just reproducing the way people talk on the streets.

However I've found a piece of text of which I'm not sure if it's proper English. One of the characters, who almost always speaks proper English, is reproducing a conversation that happened many years ago using the present tense in the following manner:

  I was with this guy and "Hi", says he, "how are you", says I...

and so on.

My question is if the "says I" is proper English (a special case in which "I" is treated as a third person because we are relating in present tense something that happened in the past) or it's just kind of slang.

I was also a bit surprised by how the usual order is switched ("says he" instead of "he says") but to me it's secondary to the "says I" issue.


texts: What's the proper phrase for " way behind~"

texts:
I am trying to write a sentence like

  Country X is way behind in terms of animal rights compared to other
  countries.

I think the phrase way behind is colloquial but I cannot think of a “proper” alternative phrase for it.


texts: Subordinating Conjunctions and Conjunctive adverbs

texts:
Is there way to identify which words are Subordinating Conjunctions and which are Conjunctive adverbs, or do we need to memorize it? Both seems similar to me

Subordinating Conjunctions: Although, Because, While etc.
Conjunctive adverbs: Also, Finally, Similarly, Moreover etc.


texts: Sequence of tenses when some temporary action is still true

texts:
I got confused with the rule of the sequence of tenses.
I found that when the action in the subordinate clause is a habitual action or general truth, we can use the present tense in the clause even if the time it the main clause is Past.

"I knew you are a kind man"

But what if I want to express an action that is still true, but is not a habit/truth, but a temporary process expressed with the Continuous Tense:

"I knew you are reading a book now"

Is it correct too?

Thanks.


texts: What does the word "wind" mean in this John Donne poem?

texts:
“Go and Catch a Falling Star”, by John Donne

Go and catch a falling star,
        Get with child a mandrake root,
Tell me where all past years are,
        Or who cleft the devil's foot,
Teach me to hear mermaids singing,
Or to keep off envy's stinging,
                And find
                What wind
Serves to advance an honest mind.

The obvious answer is that wind is wind with a short i, as in weather patterns, but every performance I've heard says it like a word that would rhyme with find and mind, as in "winding an old-fashioned watch." Even Richard Burton, who was a seasoned actor.

Basically I am asking to exclude that it has another meaning in this 400 year old poem, or song if you will.


texts: Are sentences still Grammatically Correct when nominative cases are omitted?

texts:
(Also known as subjective cases)
For example:
Samatha stared down at the broken shards, [her] eyes welling with tears.
In this sentence, would the nominative case of 'her' need to be added in order for the sentence to be correct?
Another example:
He glowered down at Samantha, who stood at a measly 5’1 height. Samatha felt squashed by the glare; [she] felt unable to breathe.
Is the latter part of the last sentence grammatically correct without the nominative case 'she'?
I really want to drop these words so I can increase the pace of the scene I'm writing, but I'm unsure if it's correct English to do so.
Thank you so much in advance!


texts: I found this phrase in a book and intuitively I understand what does it mean, but I want some explanations on how to use, what does it mean exactly and is it deprecated; most of dictionaries translate me 'tum' as a stomach


texts:
I really tried to find an answer in Internet but turns out I've found two different answers for the same question: how do you say the plural of a number (used as noun)?

Let me elaborate:

Suppose I'm explaining to a child how to add (in Math). I'd say:

  Four twos make an eight.

Or I could say:

  Four two's make an eight.

On one webpage I found the first one to be correct. I asked to an online tutor about this and she told me the second one is correct. So, which one is correct? Is that a general rule? If the second one is correct, would that mean it applies to all numbers?


texts: Generic, Inclusive Term for HMI (Human Machine Interface) Feedback to User

texts:
I'm looking for a noun in a military setting whose meaning would capture all the feedback a user gets from a digital dashboard/controller (the HMI mentioned in the title).
For example, much like the interface of a smartphone or a dashboard on a vehicle, the user can use the HMI to send commands, check the status of things (like a speedometer or tachometer), and more.  Some feedback the user gets is like a text message.  No intervention is required.  It's simply information.  Other feedback is like the "Windows Update" notifications on a computer that ask "Would you like to update now?"  It requires a decision and an action before the notification goes away.
I'm looking for a term that would describe both the passive notifications and the "active" notifications (for lack of a better term).  I've thought of "readout," "instrument," and "feedback."  However, none of them seem to quite capture the spirit I'm looking for.
Note - I apologize if I've tagged the question incorrectly.  This StackExchange has some pretty cool, complex rules for what gets sorted where, and I did my best!


texts:
Should I use coordinate or coordinates for a single point in space consisting of multiple numbers that describe a location?

Often I hear "Give me the coordinates" when someone requests a single point in space. That would suggest to me that the values belonging to these coordinates are a coordinate on there own, yet meaningless on there own. Therefor I assume that in this case the correct way would be "Give me the coordinate". Otherwise the request is about multiple points in space.


texts: Are there any rules of English grammar that can describe this structure?

texts:
My specific question is, why is not any auxiliary followed by coming?

I've seen a lot of sentences as following one, but this time it made me wonder if there was any grammar behind that like omission or participle clause, or it was just an informal spoken English.

  You feel another one coming?

I thought it could stand for 'Do you feel that another one is coming' or '... that another one comes' or '... that another one is going to come' or '... that another one will come'.

In this sentence one refers to a bird, but I don't think this makes any difference.

Here is another example:

  Doctor to a pregnant woman: "(Do) You feel another one coming?" (one refers to contraction)

How about this example:

  (Do) You think he (or him) coming?


texts:
Is there a word for the feeling of growing old? Or the feeling of becoming more mature?

Something that describes the way you feel when you wake up in the morning and notice how much has changed:

  When the man woke up, he saw his wife, his daughter in the crib, and finally, himself in the mirror, and felt [feeling] as he pondered how fast time had gone by.

It's not really yearning for the past, though, so it's not quite nostalgia. It's a bit more like the way someone would feel when they say: "the days are long but the years are short."


texts: Is there a specific name for an intentionally trivial or flippant answer that is designed to elicit a necessary clarification in a question?

texts:
Fully recognising this is a somewhat passive-aggressive approach to take (:p), one often encounters incredibly ambiguous questions where the responder is either indirectly expected to, or passively forced to ask clarifying questions, e.g.

  I'm trying to put together a chair by IKEA but it's not working. Any ideas?

or, the facebook classic:

  Ugh, why me?

One approach is to simply attempt to clarify before giving an answer proper, by asking questions like "What is the problem exactly; did you take it out of the box; do you have enough screws; are you missing any parts?" etc etc ad nauseam. Or "sweetie what happened; are you ok; is it about work; did someone hurt you?" etc.

Another (admittedly, not better) approach is to answer the question with a trivial answer (or a series of trivial answers) that makes lots of specific assumptions which may well not be true; forcing the questioner to clarify further. e.g.

  - "You need to take it out of the box first, silly"
  - "Oh, I did. But I still can't put it together"
  - "Ah. Well, there's probably not enough screws in the box then; call IKEA to complain!"
  - "Oh it's not the screws"
  - "Then what is it?!

or

  - "It's ok, lots of people can't handle work pressure".
  - "Oh this isn't about work"
  - "Ah. Don't worry, I'm sure you'll find someone better"
  - "Oh we haven't broken up"
  - "Ah. Well, care to throw me a friggin bone here then?"

Ethics of taking the latter approach aside, I was wondering if there is a name for this kind of technique, as I feel there should be one.

"Leading answer?" perhaps? "Nudge answer?". "Disambiguation-by-sarcasm?". I'd love to hear your thoughts :)

(edit to address comment by MetaEd: The above phrases are what I researched hoping to find an the answer, but I did not find something relevant.)


texts: Should one pronounce THE [in this case, THEE] when the following word begins with a vowel and THA when the following words begin with a consonant

texts: THEE Apple, THEE Engine, THEE Imbecile, THEE Orange, THEE uncle and THA...for all [most] words beginning with consonants


texts: Why do more sentences start with 'data' as a plural, than when it is within the sentence?

texts:
I recently put together some Google n-grams for a short piece on the transition of the word data into a singular (mass) noun: Data are Beautiful: Data's story in grammar.
There was one peculiar finding:

When starting a sentence, the trend reverses. "The data are" and "Data are" are approximately twice as common as "The data is" and "Data is". (n-gram)

The best suggestion for why, is that the writer is more careful at the beginning of the sentence (reddit comments).
Are there any actual grammatical reasons? Or, do you have any other guesses as to why the trend reverses?
If so, I'll add them to the story - and link back to here.
meta:* I'm not asking about the difference between data is and data are, so this question is not related to the earlier ones on ELU.


texts:
Here is a quick question. In the following two sentences, which one is correct?

XXX changes the syntax of software while keeping the semantic equivalence.

XXX changes the syntax of software while keeps the semantic equivalence.


texts: The name of this "incredulous" face expression?

texts:
A very similar expression to the one I mean can be seen here (the girl at 1:38).

Mouth slightly open (upper teeth showing), eyes almost or at least slightly closed, head also slightly tilted to one side, and a small head shake.

What's the name for this expression, or a way to quickly describe it?

E.g.

  "What?" she asked as she shook her head in disbelief.

(Don't think that's accurate though.)


texts:
A friend and I were debating on the origin of the word "compiler". A quick google search led me to discover that Grace Hopper coined the term. But I'm not sure how or on what basis did she coin the term, which is what I was wondering.

As far as I know, a "compiler" would sound like something that brings or put things together. But  that's not a very accurate description of what a compiler does, which translates one computer language into another. So one would think that the term "translator" is more suited than "compiler". Despite that, the compiler term was coined, and I would like to understand why.


texts:
Recall preposition. For example of preposition, there are "on", "in" and "about" etc. Note that they has a front position of noun, e.g. in bag, about book.

So pre means front. For instance, by considering word "previous", whose meaning is front of fixed time, we can know that pre means front.

I have a question about word pronoun. Here by considering him, he, and you etc, we know that pro means instead of. So I want to know the well-known word like the above case containing pro whose meaning is instead of.


texts: Has the pronunciation of ‘heretic’ changed over time?

texts: One says ‘HERetic’ and ‘heRETical’ and I was wondering if ‘heRETic’ is or has ever been correct, or v.v. ‘HERetical’ (doesn’t feel ok’)


texts:
I'm confused how to describe one of my feelings.

For example, I don't like drinking coffee, but I don't hate it either. I just can live without it. In my country, we would probably say "I don't have any feelings about coffee". Could you please tell me what's the common way of saying "I don't have any feelings about coffee" in English? Thanks for your time and effort.


texts: What does ‘Point Omega’ mean? Is it becoming a popular English word?

texts:
I found the word ‘Point Omega’ in the article of New York Times (February 17) titled “My life with boxes” written by Anne Biattie, the author of recent work “New Yorker stories,” who loves to collect free cardboard boxes to store her valuables and non-valuables including family albums, books, manuscripts, stained letters, a long ago invitation she couldn’t attend, underwear, socks, 15 nightgowns and so on:

  There are actually more socks since last I looked, they’ve expanded
  in the dresser drawers, and the family albums have apparently been
  keeping pace with them: my parents’ (deceased; this makes everything
  more difficult, of course) trip to St. Martin, with no photograph
  showing their presence. It could be a Don DeLillo novel; it’s my own
  “Point Omega.” I understand that what I have is the absence of that
  presence I wish to have. Still: what monster could drop the album in
  the garbage?

Thanks to her mention of Don DeLillo, I was able to locate where the word, ‘Point Omega’ came from, but I don’t know what it exactly means only from the following quote online as a clue:

  If you reveal everything, bare every feeling, ask for understanding,
  you lose something crucial to your sense of yourself. You need to know
  things that others don't know. It's what no one knows about you that
  allows you to know yourself.― Don DeLillo, Point Omega.

Does “Point Omega” mean the core of self-identity i.e., my being? What does it exactly mean?

Is it becoming as popular English word as 'big bang,' '1984' and 'big brother,' or a buzzword as being proudly used in a newspaper article?


texts:
What is better English:

"We describe some extensions to the basic model" or
"We describe some extensions of the basic model"?

In a Google search, I found both of them, so maybe both are legal in different contexts?


texts: What is eponymous in the other direction?

texts:
Prince Hamlet is the eponymous character for Shakespeare's 24th play.

Did Shakespeare write soumynope plays for any other royals?
Yes, Julius Ceasar and the Henry plays are amoung them.

note: I'm looking for the word that is soumynope (eponymous backwards)


texts: can we use 2 " 's" in a sentence like this?

texts: I wonder if this sentence is rightly or wrongly punctuated : 'It's "How I Met Your Mother" 's time'.


texts: Where did the phrase "I don't give a rat's ass" come from?

texts: I would love to know the origin of this saying.


texts: Is the use of "be VERB-ing" acceptable in order to suggest a continuous action after "so as to", "in order to" etc.?

texts:
Example sentences are as follows:

"In order for it to be happening it is necessary that the circumstances be right."
"So that it may be happening it is necessary that the circumstances be right."
"The sky has been too clear for it to be raining now."


texts: Is "to shanghai" now politically incorrect?

texts:
"to Shanghai" refers to the historical practice of literally kidnapping someone to force them into working as crew on a ship, a practice that was allegedly common in the city of Shanghai. Nowadays, it's colloquially used when unwillingly pressed into service, as in "I was Shanghaied into helping arrange Emily's surprise party".

Considering the practice was usually done by European ship owners and crews, and not by the people of Shanghai, would the term be considered politically incorrect now?


texts:
I have a question on word usage...

  Example: I don't like eating beef.

Is there another word I can use to express the same meaning without using "don't like"? For example, would the following sentence be appropriate?

  "I despise eating beef."

If not what would be a better way of saying it please?


texts: Why is pronunciation of rough and though different?

texts: Why is "ough" pronounced so differently in rough and though and thought?


texts: Looking for word that means "Ignorant of Consequences"

texts: Usage: My son was playing with his food. He dropped it on the ground and the dog ate it and he cried. He was ignorant of the consequences of playing with his food.


texts: What is the word for "to do something one considers to be beneath oneself"?

texts:
I looked up this word before, and I got a definition which sounded something like "to do something one considers to be beneath oneself," but I can't remember exactly what the word was.

I can think of a would-be sentence, though, save the tenses:

  She displayed a ... as she finally picked up the trash bag and flung it into the waste bin.

Thank you :)


texts: Why is ‘i’ in milk pronounced differently from ‘i’ in find?

texts:
As far as I know, in words of the structure CVCC, the vowel is usually short. Examples include milk, front, clamp, wasp, sport, etc.

However, with some CC types, the vowel seems to always be long (kind, mind, old, climb), which surprises me. Why is there such a difference?


texts: What's the word for withholding medicine from a sick person?

texts:
I've heard a single word before that means "withholding medicine from a sick person" or "withholding food from a starving person" or "refusing to alert an airplane pilot flying in the dark that he's about to crash into a mountain". The basic idea is not taking some action knowing that inaction will later lead to harm for another person.

I thought for sure there was a single word for this (and it's more malicious than "negligence"). What is it?


texts: Why do we say "Eastern Europe" but "East Asia"?

texts:
My girlfriend, who is not a native English speaker, asked me this yesterday: why are some geographical regions prefixed with the nouns North, South, East and West, but others are prefixed with the adjectives Northern, Southern, Eastern and Western?

For example, it's far more common (to my British ear at least) to hear people talking about "Eastern Europe" and "Southeast Asia" than the alternatives "East Europe" and "Southeastern Asia."

Why is this the case? I couldn't think of a convincing explanation. Is there a hidden logic that I can't fathom, or is it just one of those wierd idiomatic things?


texts: The fire finally got/was got under control

texts:
Which sentence is grammatically correct?

The fire finally got under control.
The fire finally was got under control.


texts:
What is the right verb to describe someone's extreme liking of something trivial?

For example, someone really likes pictures of vegetables (not even sexualized pictures) and he's a super nerd of vegetable pictures, how do you describe his behavior when he starts babbling about those boring and trivial pictures?

In other words, what is the right word for this sentence "Bob ___ over his vegetable pictures again"?

Is there another word other than "nerd-out"?


texts: Can "let us" always be used in place of "let's"?

texts:
Me: Perhaps we need to make a left
  turn at Albuquerque
  Him: Let us try that

Now I would have said, "Let's try that". "Let us" sounds wrong to me in this instance. Is it? Are there contractions which are improper to use in their full form? I've always thought that in formal writing contractions are avoided. Are there any contractions that should be used even in formal writing?


texts: What is another word or way to say "can't be helped"

texts:
An example scentence:
It can’t be helped that some dog breeds have more potential to cause serious harm to a person, if the dog were to decide to attack.


texts: Does this type of watermark have a more specific name?

texts:
Companies often put a URL watermark on their images to prevent reuse/abuse, as shown in the following two images:
Image A

Image B

This seems different than the watermark often added to professional photoshoots because the purpose of this watermark is to promote the photographer's business, and because it's typically URLs instead of logos:
Image C

Is there a particular term for the former kinds of imprints or watermarks that distinguishes it from the latter?
Sample sentence (to fit the requirements of the single-word-request tag):

This image is perfect for my final paper, but it has a _______ on it and no indication of how to secure rights to use it.


texts: "What place is this?" vs "What is this place?"

texts: Are they different? To me it seems that there is no difference at all, an they are merely constructed differently.


texts:
I read recently that was describing a cavalry, full of "horses champing on their bits, eager to rush forwards into the fray."  I have always known it as "chomping". Is "champing" a typo?
Is "chomping" or "champing" correct?


texts:
I want to know if there's any difference in meaning between the two sentences below:

"I pretended like it was a small confusion."
"I pretended that it was a small confusion."

I'm not a native speaker, but both somehow sound correct. However, I can't really pin down the difference, although I feel there is one.


texts: A word that describes someone who doesn't have a home/place to belong

texts: I'm trying to describe a character that doesn't fit in anywhere despite giving off the appearance that they do.


texts:
Kim frequently exhibited her vast knowledge of baseball before complete strangers.

Before is usually used to depict a time line, so this use is confusing for me.


texts: Adverbs, prepositions, nouns, "home", and "about"

texts:
I'm confused about how the following sentences should be analyzed, in terms of which words are prepositions and adverbs, how the phrases break up, etc.:

She was going home.
She was home.
She was at home.
She got home.
My height is six feet.
I am six feet.
I am about six feet.
He is my height.
He is about my height.
I saw a man my height yesterday.
I saw a man about my height yesterday.

For instance, is it possible that my height falls into different categories in #8 and #9?

EDIT: Ok, now I have one answer from Daniel δ and a some requests for more specific questions.

I'm most concerned about home, about, six feet, and my height.
Daniel δ says that home is an adverb in #1, #2, and #4. I'm assuming this is just a special quirk that happens with home?
I'm not convinced that my height is always a noun phrase, or there's something I'm missing. In #8, if my height is just a noun phrase, that would mean that He, the subject, is actually a height, but he's a person, not a height any other form of measurement (Same for six feet in #6). Daniel δ suggests that #10 is short for "I saw a man who was my height yesterday", but something seems special about this construction. If height is just a noun, then why does switching it for some other noun like lawyer fail? We could say "He is a lawyer" but not "I saw a man a lawyer yesterday". But my height does make sense as a noun in #9, since we can call about a preposition that just takes my height as part of a prepositional phrase...
As FumbleFingers noted, #11 can be interpreted in at least two ways. I'm interested in the sense that fits the analogy #8:#9 :: #10:#11.


texts: How to ask for a report separated with 1 hour?

texts:
I want to send an email to someone to provide me a report for a full working day, however, I want him to send the report for each hour, for example, a report from 8 till 9, from 9 till 10... so how to say this in a proper email?

  Dear X, Please send me the report of yesterday with an interval of 1 hour?

or

  Dear X, Please send me the report of yesterday but separated with 1 hour?

Is there a better rephrasing or word for that?


texts: Origin of the negative connotation of "boy"

texts:
Recently I stumbled on a discussion where the word "chico" in Spanish is translated to "boy". To my knowledge, using "chico" to refer to someone younger is considered normal. But in English, calling an adult "boy", even if younger, would be considered rude. I believe "garçon" in French is also rude.

Can someone confirm my understanding of the connotations of these words in French and Spanish?

Did "boy" in English always have a negative meaning? (when used to
refer to adults)
Is there a record of these words gaining/losing
their negative connotations?
Why is it different between Spanish and French, despite both being Romance languages?

The closest I've come to any answer here is the definition that Merriam-Webster has:

  boy
  2 - often offensive : a male servant

and my understanding that "garçon" is an outdated way of referring to waiters.


texts: Is it possible to omit a relative pronoun as subject?

texts:
When Casals laid eyes on cello music he never knew existed....

I thought the verb 'existed' belongs to the antecedent, 'cello music', and 'he never knew' is just an embedded clause in the sentence. So the sentence could be 'When Casal laid eyes on cello music which/that he never knew existed...'. Is that correct?

Here, I need an explanation. I've learned relative pronouns as subject cannot be omitted. If it is right, how is it possible to omit 'which' or 'that' in that sentence? Shouldn't I put 'which' or 'that' in the sentence?
If the relative pronoun 'which' cannot be put between 'cello music' and 'he never knew existed', the clause 'he never knew existed' has two main verbs, which looks like a pretty weird sentence to me...

Please help me figure out how this sentence works.
Thanks.


texts: Alternative to 'portfolio' covering non-visual fields?

texts:
It seems that the word 'portfolio' is mostly used in the context of representing work in field of visual art, even, if it technically isn't restricted to that by definition. Are there other alternative words that would cover someone in Sciences, Social Sciences as well as the Arts when representing or showcasing their work? What would anyone in those fields call a collection of their work?

The only alternative that comes to mind is 'Showcase'.


texts:
I'm translating some russian weather forecast related phrases to english, but I'm not sure whether those are right

Sudden temperature changes. Not a good day for a walk.

Storm warning. Don't forget to take an umbrella.

Ordinary day(calm day?)

Rainy Season

No precipitation

Are those terms used in such a way in english?


texts:
The bronze idol, her hair pinned up with a crescent-moon tiara,
  gripped two massive torches, one in each hand, their flames rising
  past the level of her shoulders. A skeleton key dangled between her
  bare breasts. At her feet was a basket of hissing snakes, copper
  tubing in their coils feeding down into the 'guts' of the fountain.

This is from the description of a fountain in the atrium. I'm not sure about the meaning of the 'gut' here. Does this mean narrow passage or inner parts of the fountain?


texts: Is it suitable to use my native name 'Dong' in English environment in account of its special meaning in English?

texts:
As an alien whose first language is not English, I sometimes am in a very strange situation, is it suitable to use my native language name, Dong? I by chance know Dong has a little bit negative meaning in English.
Though I could choose an English name, such as Tom, to use, but I still prefer to use my native name.
Any recommendation? Thanks.