texts: Structuring sentences without using the word "but"

texts:
I seem to have a habit of using a lot of sentences that involve the word "but": "I haven't tried it yet, but I think it should work"; "I could easily resort to chicken, but I want to see how far I can get with alligator" etc..

It's probably deeply rooted in my style of thought, but (there I go again) I'm starting to get bored of seeing myself use this structure so often. Is there anything I can do to break free?

I know one way is to use "though" or "although", as in "Although I could easily resort to chicken, I want to see...". Anything else I could do to diversify my sentences a little?


texts: Which is correct, "to take refuge in" or "to take refuge with"?

texts:
Concerning refuge with a higher existence such as an Omnipotent being, what is more befitting to use, English wise:

To take refuge in [Omnipotent being]
To take refuge with [Omnipotent being]

Grammatically, which is correct?


texts: How common is the idiom "No great shakes"

texts: How common is the idiom “no great shakes” in spoken English, especially among native English speakers? Will I sound natural if I use it in general conversation?


texts: Use of the word "literally" in the definition of literally

texts:
Recently, the word literally has come to be used for emphasis, rather than to express that something definitely happened.

If you look up the definition of literally on Google, the second definition is:

  used for emphasis while not being literally true.

It feels wrong to me that the word literally is in the definition. It seems like this could be interpreted as circular logic since we don't know which definition of literally the definition refers—it could refer to itself.

I am not aware of any such convention where if you use the word you are attempting to define in the second definition, then you use the first definition.

It seems to me that it would be perfectly valid to leave out the word literally from the second definition altogether, and everything would be fine, i.e.:

  used for emphasis while not being necessarily true.

Is it wrong that the word literally has been used in its own definition?


texts: To purchase a course or to enroll in a course?

texts: Can the verb "purchase" be used with an abstract concept such as language course, considering that money is actually paid so it isn't a free course? Is it okay to use it in a formal email or better to write "enroll in a course"?


texts: HP TouchPad vs. iPad vs. Xoom vs. PlayBook: the tale of the tape.


texts: Word/phrase for a task that must be done in the current sprint

texts:
Some tasks are important but can be pushed off until the next sprint (period in which we add developments to software).

But some tasks are essential and aboslutely must be completed in the current sprint.

Is there a word or expression for these kinds of tasks (can be from other contexts as well)?

Example sentence:

  Please classify these tasks as ____________ that must be completed by November.

EDIT: I know that in other languages the word "iron" is used to express the strict nature of the task. But I'm not familiar with a similar English expression.


texts:
Does the expression pick up something from some one's lap sound natural to you? if not what would you suggest?
Context:

  She was supposed to be mollified now. In compliance, she delivered a wide, reassuring smile and picked up the bag of hot dogs from Martin’s lap.


texts: Meaning of the statement "Are you playing thick or just are? "

texts:
Somebody told me

  Are you playing thick or just are?

in the middle of a conversation. and I didn't know its meaning. I searched for "play thick" in Google, but I didn't find anything.

Is “are you playing thick” slang?
What does it mean?


texts:
What does "he’s sneaking in a cheeseburger" mean?
Context: Now I have a very unhappy stepdad, but at least he’s sneaking in a cheeseburger so that should keep him amused while I write you a letter.


texts: Is there a one-to-one relationship between word and meaning?


texts: What do you call two words that contradict each other in a sentence?

texts:
I'm having trouble as to what you call two words that contradict each other. For example, "That was weirdly normal." I think this kind of word play is used in puns and jokes. But I do not know how you call this king of word play. Also, I think this can go beyond just using two words, like two phrases in a sentence or two clauses in a sentence that contradict each other.

My questions are: How do you call this kind of weird play? Is this type of word play used in Jokes(Well, I think it is but I'm asking you guys)? Lastly, can you give me examples of this kind of word play?


texts:
How do the following options differ in what they imply?

Option 1

The real question is: what do you want to achieve?

Option 2

The real question is, "What do you want to achieve?"

Is there an existing convention for this pattern? If so, what is it? My options are specifically quotes and colons.


texts:
Although short sentences tend to be dismissed as amateur or juvenile, there are times when short sentences work well, when a work can even demand such a style.

I come across sentences like this often and I'm not sure how the italicized bit above is added to the sentence. Isn't it a run-on sentence?


texts: Meaning of a sentence in A History of Britain about Edward I

texts:
I faced this paragraph in "A History of Britain" by Simon Schama:

In the summer of 1263 the situation became critical. De Montfort and
his allies had captured most of southeastern England. Henry had
retreated in fright to the Tower of London, doubtless relieved that he
had added those new walls to its defences. To raise money to pay the
mercenary troops in the royal army the queen had pawned her jewels to
the Templars. On the pretext of inspecting or possibly redeeming
them, Edward talked his way into the New Temple, where he proceeded to
stage a bank robbery, smashing the treasure chests and relieving the
Templars of their gold and silver. It was a classic Edwardian stunt,
but its effect was to convert the mayor and burgesses of London from
cool sceptics of the Montfortians into unreserved allies. What, after
all, was the point of supporting the forces of order if they were
themselves the leading criminals? Taken off their leash, the citizenry
expressed its displeasure against the royalists in the usual ways. The
fact that the queen was not only the patroness of the hated
‘foreigners’ but also enjoyed the proceeds from several prime tolls in
the city made her an especially choice target. Fearing the worst,
Eleanor attempted to break out of London by river and get to Edward’s
army at Windsor. But her boat was recognized and pelted with stones
and ordure from the crowds standing on London Bridge, the site of her
most lucrative toll stations. Mortified by the humiliation, she was
forced to take refuge in St Paul’s. It was an affront that neither she
nor Edward would ever forget or forgive.

What exactly the emboldened part means? I don't want to know just the meaning. A bit more information on: how does it mean what it means?
Isn't it a bit ambiguous for the native speakers too?
Also I think I need a very brief background/foreground info about the incident for a better understanding.

Edit:
For the ambiguity:
I wasn't sure what Edward I actually did. How Did he robbed the jewels? Did he stole them secretly or with force or what? Did he acted like it was some thieves (What's "smashing" for)? How they found out it was him (if the text suggests something)?
Also, "redeeming" means?


texts: Ambiguity of a phrase in the Java specification documentation

texts:
I have met the following text in the Java Specification

  Lines are terminated by the ASCII characters CR, or LF, or CR LF.
  The two characters CR immediately followed by LF are counted as one line terminator, not two.

It is unclear whether the bolded text means the following combination of  the line termination symbols CR LF CR LF or just CR CR LF.


texts: Word for a hole in the ceiling of a cave?

texts:
I've already come up with the term 'shaft', but that's a rather long and narrow opening it seems.

Visualise a cave with an opening in the ceiling that lets rays of light through.

What would you call such a hole?


texts: Other words to describe the relationships between pieces of data with a common parent/child

texts:
I'm writing a program that makes/utilizes arbitrary relationships between pieces of data, and I can't think of more generic terms for the user interface than:

Co-parent: The relationship between A and B
Sibling: The relationship between D and E
Should I stick with these? Or are there better names? The relationships defined by the arrows in the diagram aren't necessarily hierarchical, they're more along the lines of 'A is like C except for X'


texts:
I'm reading an article about phonetics and phonology, and it clamis that they are different. But I can't locate where the difference is located. Referring to my dictionary, I can see:

  Phonetics:
  study of speech sounds: the scientific study of speech sounds and how they are produced

  Phonology:
  study of speech sounds: the study of the system or pattern of speech sounds used in a particular language or in language in general

See? Both are described as study of speech sounds. The only difference I see here is that, phonology is related to patterns, while phonetics is related to how sounds are produced. Is it right? How they are different?

PS: I know that this question is related to linguistics. But we don't have linguistics.stackexchange.com. Thus I had no other choice, but to ask it here.


texts: Does "would" indicate intent but not possibility?

texts:
Please correct me if I'm wrong, but if "would" implies intention but not possibility, then, generally, it must only refer to persons not events. If such is the case, then this sentence, "Would it be right to kill innocent animals?" must be rewritten to sound like,"Is it right to kill innocent animals?"

Am I correct?

And if my understanding is true, does it also apply to "will", such that the sentence, "The next world war will happen in the next three days", be rewritten to sound like, "The next world war probably starts in three days"? Please enlighten me on this issue.


texts:
I think in the first one, I don't need a comma before "and" cause they are short sentences. In the second however, I'm wondering whether I need the comma before "and" since it is a coordinating conjunction separating two main clauses... What do you say?

1) Yesterday, I went fishing,and John played cards.

2) In 2007, many people worked on the XY-Project, and several people were included in that process.

Thank you! ;)


texts: Singular or plural verb with a list of three items

texts:
I have seen the following sentence in a published book:

Sentence A
There were a toothbrush, a piece of floss, and a tube of toothpaste.

It sounds wrong to my ear. I would write

Sentence B
There was a toothbrush, a piece of floss, and a tube of toothpaste.

This is because I believe the verb should agree with the nearest noun, i.e., "a toothbrush".

Is the original sentence correct, or are both versions correct?
Many thanks


texts:
Which is grammatically correct for a diploma,

  Full qualification at level seven of the Polish Qualifications Framework

or

  Full qualification at the seventh level of the Polish Qualifications Framework

?


texts:
I have been trying to see what is behind the hyped-up phrase "Go Green" and have asked friends to rephrase that buzz-word/cliche, but nobody has given me a satisfactory explanation of what it actually means, in terms of grammar.

When I searched Google for "Go Green & Grammar", I got webpages where they are trying to spread Environmental messages, while teaching English. When I searched for "etymology of go green", I got a wiki entry for "Gringo". When I searched for "what does it mean to go green", I got "Going green means implementing certain lifestyle changes designed to help you live in a more eco-friendly way". I get all this, but I want to know about the grammatical correctness and analysis and etymology.

So here I am , on ELU, asking about it.

I see business PR statements like, "Every year, we have been conducting this event, but this year we decided to go green".

Specifically, I have two Doubts (1) What is the grammatical & Etymological Deconstruction of the sentence "Go Green !" or the phrase ". . . go green . . ." ? & (2) What is one actually supposed to do to "go green" ?

Is it a hyped-up buzz-word/cliche devoid of meaning ? Are we currently in some other colour and we have to physically move to some green zone ?

I thought , maybe translating between languages will help. So I converted "go green" to French to get "mettre au vert" and back to English to get "go green". Now I converted "mettre au bleu" to get "put blue" and "mettre au rouge" to get "put red". It seems (from this very small inconclusive experiment) that the "go green" hype has entered French too, such that some colours "go", while other colours "put".


texts: what does the logical fallacy "shifting issues" mean?

texts: what is the meaning of the logical fallacy "shifting issues"? I have tried a web search on many different forms of the question "what is the definition of the logical fallacy shifting issues.  I have tried purdue owl and texts such as The Little Brown Handbook. I cannot find either a definition or synonym for "shifting issues".


texts:
I was solving a grammar exercise from the book, Word Power Made Easy, when I came across this question

  A feeling of one's worth is one of the principle/principal goals of
  psychological therapy.

Going by the same rule which has been taught in every school that:

  Principle : Rule, standard
  Principal : Head( Usually a person)

I marked principle which is wrong, the correct answer according to the book is Principal.

Pondering over the question for a few minutes, I came to this conclusion that principal is not always a person and can refer to the "head or main" point, as in referring to the sentence "the main goals of psychological therapy"

I also looked at this question here "Principal” or “principle”, but it didn't help me either as it says principal usually refers to a person.

My question is, is it necessary to use principal as a person or it can mean something else as well?


texts: What's the meaning of 'so as' in 'so as to go past'?

texts:
I am struggling with this sentence, I have googled it but am not satisfied.

I am not a native english speaker which is why I am facing this problem.

What is the meaning of the word 'so' and the words 'so as' in the following sentence.

"so as to go past".


texts:
According to the following source the expression coming-out refers to:

a debut into society, especially a formal debut by a debutante.

an acknowledgment of one's homosexuality, either to oneself or publicly.

(dictionary.reference.com)

It appears that it was originally used to refer to a debutante and in recent decades it has been used to refer to homosexuality. The metaphor of "making publicly known" is quite clear in both cases

My questions:

Was the 'the debut in society'  the origin of its usage.

When was its earliest usage with reference to homosexuality?

Is the expression commonly used also in other contexts besides the two mentioned above?


texts:
The term DRM-free, with DRM standing for digital rights management, is commonly used online to refer to content which can be downloaded and transferred by the user. Content which is not DRM-free cannot be downloaded and is only accessible on the particular app or website of the content provider. My question is, what is the antonym of DRM-free? A single word term would be desired as the phrases I considered sound quite clunky and verbose. An example usage would be:

  Sadly, Jack could not transfer his music files to his friend as they were _______


texts: What is the definition of "cousin" when used as a verb?

texts:
What does the word cousin mean when used as a verb?  By context I take it to mean that someone is putting someone else on or being difficult with someone else.

For example, in The Dark Tower (Stephen King) series Wizard and Glass, a character, Eddie, is pressuring another character, Roland, to tell a story of his youth and of the troubling things that happened to him.  Roland has been reluctant to do this until now.  When Eddie reminds him of his promise to tell them, he responds thusly:

  "Would you think that I was cousining", he said, "if I asked for one
  more day to think of these things?"

In other examples I have taken it to mean lying or being decietful.  Spoilers below:

  Later in Wolves of the Calla, Eddie shoots the "eyes" of a robot named Andy, effectively blinding him.  Andy beings frantically yelling for help, interspersed with "You cousining bastard!".  Eddie previously had lied and tricked Andy into entering a confined space where he would be easier to deal with.

Regardless of instances, the word appears to have a pretty negative connotation of falsity or deceit. I would really like to know a more accepted definition, although I suspect that this use of the word is wholly Stephen Kings doing.


texts: Use of -esque in compound-adjective phrases

texts:
I know the suffix '-esque' can be used in the following situations:

  Ever since he showed up on the music scene as a marvelously talented teenager, there’s been a hint of Sinatra-esque swagger around Harry Connick Jr. [New York Daily News]

or

  In large part that’s because Bates is brilliant at juggling Kelley’s Capraesque mix of the whimsical and the weighty. [Belleville News Democrat]

with the hyphen optional in most cases.
But can '-esque' be used after a phrase? For example:

  The super-chicken model follows the ‘David and Goliath’-esque notion that the ones who have succeeded in the past are the ones that must succeed in the future.

If '-esque' can be used after a phrase, what would be the proper way to format it?


texts: Does English have a name for padded/insulated trousers worn over your regular trousers when outside in extreme cold?

texts:
I'm currently travelling in Northern China and Mongolia and about a month ago I spent a few days hitchhiking with some local truck drivers.

I've been wearing long johns under my regular jeans because the temperatures are getting to -20 celcius and below. But one of the drivers when he had to be outside for longer periods had something the opposite of long johns, special trousers that were worn over his regular trousers that were padded with insulation.

I'm from Australia where it never gets so cold so hadn't seen anything like them before. But I know in other English-speaking parts of the world such as parts of USA and Canada it can easily get this cold. So I have to assume these trousers are also used in such areas and therefore must have a name.

What do we call these in English?

(Sorry I don't have a photo. I don't care if it's a single word or a phrase.)


texts: What does it mean to mind your P's and Q's?

texts:
During office discussion two turns of phrase came up in close proximity: "peace and quiet" shortly followed by "mind your P's and Q's".

What is the meaning of P's and Q's?  I wondered if it might be related to peace and quiet.


texts:
What is the meaning of "up and kicking"?
Is it similar to "up and running", but with the former one describing people and the latter one describing machines?
Thank you!


texts: Difference between "tournament", "competition" and "match"

texts: I was just reading the article about TopCoder. Before this article I thought a tournament and a competition is the same. What is the difference between tournament, competition and match?


texts: Usage of past participle in "He said he thought it having had seen my medical record"

texts:
I'm trying to work out if this sentence is correct, especially the usage of "having had seen".

  He said he thought it having had seen my medical record.


texts: Word to describe an action that divide groups

texts:
Greeting,

I am looking for a word that I can use to describe a method that divides a single group into similar smaller groups (not opposing groups).
Something like "schismatic", but without the negative connotation coming from the groups being opposing.

EDIT: the context is I am trying to name a mathematical method using a somewhat distinctive adjective. For example: Calling it the "schismatic method".

Thanks,


texts:
In English, is it correct to use the term 'reservability' for the ability to reserve a room?

Or is the term 'bookability' preferable?
Or anything else?

Context: I'm translating a room reservation software system, where you can set whether a room in a building is bookable in a selection field named 'bookability' with choices yes and no (and null/void).


texts:
Does the following sentence seem natural to native English speakers?

"I have been gearing up for a career in XXX since then."

Also, does this sound formal?
 If not, what do you recommend instead?

Thank you in advance.


texts: What's a word to describe how someone talks differently to someone who's disabled?

texts: For example, if Person A is talking to someone who is differently abled (Person B), they may do something like attempt to give reasons to Person B why being differently abled has its benefits to make them feel special, even if Person B doesn't need the reassurance. I feel like there is a better word than "condescending" or "patronizing," since in a situation like this, there was no malicious intent.


texts: In terms of betting, how would you say "You will get 5× in return if you win"?


texts:
Good evening everyone and sorry for the question which I am not even sure how to ask properly. Here is the sentence:

In this context, gene drives have been proposed as providing a new means of tackling a disease that still infects 200 million people and causes half a million deaths each year. [Gene Drive Research: Why it Matters, The Royal Society]

I am used to see a noun after "proposed as", not an ing form of a verb. Is it even a gerund? What is it? Why is it there? And more importantly which part of English Grammar I have to brush up to avoid being traumatized like this in the future? Just kidding. I am intrigued.


texts: What's the name of this kind of workers and of this equipment?

texts:
This goes back early 1900s I imagine. In this NYTimes video https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tly8abRH4ws (2'05'') there are five men on a railroad equipment. I tried looking for pictures and on americanrails.com, but found no clue to get to the name of that kind of workers and to the thing they are giving motion to.
Any idea?
Thanks


texts: Is there a name for an adjective that cannot precede a noun?

texts:
I accept that my premise may be incorrect, but here it is.

The word alone, when used as an adjective, seems only to fit in sentences of the form:

  The X is alone.

and not in the form:

  The alone X...

I can't think of any other adjectives that have this property, that is, that are allowed in constructions like (1), but not in (2).

Question 0: Am I right in thinking that The alone X is not correct English?

Question 1: Are there any other such adjectives that have a similar behavior?

Question 2: Is there a word for such an adjective and is there any rationale for their existence?


texts:
I'm trying to simplify this sentence, but I can't figure out how. The string of "was when even after" makes it sound very odd, especially when you read it out loud.

  The most unusual situation I have faced was when even after I
  technically became a consultant at Infosys, no one was willing to give
  me a project for six long months.

What I am trying to say is that even though I had completed the course required to become a consultant, I was sitting on my haunches without a project for 6 months. The rest of the essay details this situation.

Edit:

  The most unusual situation I have faced was when no one was willing to
  give me a project for six long months, even after I technically became
  a consultant at Infosys.

Thanks to @SomethingDark. I think that's what I'm going to go with. Thanks!


texts:
Please oblige me by giving me a lift to the museum.

Please explain the meaning of this sentence or give me some other examples!

I've searched but I can't find a satisfactory answer.


texts:
I found the following sentence in this article and was trying to understand it. I could get the meaning from the context, but I cannot deconstruct the sentence at all.

  They introduced pugnacity, backbone and bottle, the latter in the old
  cockney rhyming slang sense of "bottle and glass" – arse.

I understand that cockney rhyming slang refers to the way London East Enders use multiple phrase words in place of single words, but other than that I am completely at a loss in understanding the sentence.

So,

What does "bottle and glass" mean in London dialect?
How does one understand the use of 'arse' in this sentence. (I mean
grammatically, not the sense in which it was used)?

P.S. If the question seems to be muddled, it is because I could not understand the sentence enough to even ask a coherent question.

Also, I searched google and ngrams for the usage of "bottle and glass", but came a cropper.


texts: How would you say something like "telling important information to others" with one word?

texts: I'm not a native english speaker, and I don't know the exact phrase or word for the action of telling important information to others on a flyer/website/etc. I'd say announce but I think this is not the perfect word for it. E.g.: if I shout "wow, I've seen that xy is on discount at abc shop, check it out" I'm not just announcing, I'm "warning" someone but in a positive way. Or If I say "did you know that you must wear your seatbelt" I'm also informing someone but not really announcing.  I appreciate your help in advance. :)


texts: Name for a person who is always trying to beat the system?

texts:
Someone I know is always finding a way to beat the system, for example:

Getting fake records to get his children into college, contacting people in the system to find him a way to bypass waiting for official papers, etc.

A word like conman or scammer would be used for someone who actually drafts fake records, not the one who orders them. What would you call the person who frequently buys forged documents?


texts: How to reference to a numbered list item

texts:
In my language when I need to add more context/explanation to an item in a numbered list, I write it like so:

  First.
  Second.

  ad 1. [text augmenting Item 1].

The ad is from Latin; thus, I figured it was used in English as well, but when I did use it, some readers were puzzled and asked me what I meant.


texts: Where did the term "strawberry blonde" come from?

texts:
The term strawberry blonde refers to a person having reddish-blonde hair, or the color of the hair, usually used specifically for females (thus blonde and not blond).

When checking a couple dictionary websites, I found that they estimated when the term started being used:

M-W.com:

  First Known Use of STRAWBERRY BLONDE (n)
  1880

  First Known Use of STRAWBERRY BLONDE (adj)
  1884

Dictionary.com:

  Origin of strawberry blond
  1875-1880, Americanism

Both terribly unhelpful:

But OED online has this as the earliest example (specifically for the adjective form):

  1884   B. Nye Baled Hay 98   That is what is..sprinkling my strawberry blonde hair with gray.

The matches up with one of the MW date's, but not the other, earlier dates.

My question is:

Where and when did the term "strawberry blond" originate, and when was it's first known use in print?

Use of the term as a noun or adjective is fine. If the origin is truly American, I would prefer a narrower, regional origin if at all possible.


texts: Correct spelling of "can too" in response to "you can't"

texts: If someone says "you can't do that" there's a colloquial response of "can too". Is it "can too" or "can to"?


texts: What is the significance of "single" in "single greatest" (or similar)?

texts:
People always say "The single greatest ...". But I think "The greatest ..." is also correct. Is the latter correct? If yes, what's the significance of adding "single"? By definition "greatest" is already singular.

Edit:
I think the confusion usually comes from the part after "greatest". As commenters have noted, "the x greatest y" is quite common. You can tell singularity/plurality apart by looking at y, but also by looking at x. So my initial point, that "greatest" is already singular, is invalid. But I still don't understand the significance of forcing the subject to be singular with x, even though y will never be ambiguous about this.
I'm not a native speaker. So to me, adding "single" is just confusing.


texts: Is "Order" an appropriate name for attribute of photo to determine its position within an album, or is there more adequate noun to name the attribute?

texts:
Background: I'm designing a (data) model for a photo album. And, I've got stuck on naming attribute determining an ordering of a photo within an album.

Photo has following (technical) attributes:

AlbumID - identifies an album to which the photo belongs,
Order - determines own position within the album,
Name - user friendly name of photo
Description - user friendly description of photo
Image - image data for the photo

I'm quite unsure, whether the word Order is a correct noun to name the attribute. I've though of words, number and position, as alternatives, but they doesn't feel to be adequate either.


texts: "2 times", "twice" and "2X", when to use which and why?

texts:
I am not sure if 2X is even a valid word.

What are the proper usages for each of the three?


texts:
Possible Duplicate:
  Can a word be contracted twice (e.g. "I'ven't")?

What is the correct way to contract "should not have", if there is one? "Should have" becomes "should've", "should not" becomes "shouldn't". Is "shouldn't've correct? It seems very strange to have two apostrophes in one word, but it also seems incorrect to skip an apostrophe where letters are omitted.


texts: There is no hardware issue or There are no hardware issues?

texts:
Situation:
I asked a customer to run a diagnostic test on a drawing tablet because he had a problem of using it on this computer. The customer ran the test on his tablet and gave me the data from the test. I see no issue/issues with the tablet hardware. So, I'm writing an email to him and not sure if the "issue/issues" should be singular or plural in the given situation.

  We're quite sure "there is no hardware issue" or "there are no hardware issues" with the tablet.

Which one is correct here?
If, they are both grammatically correct, which one would be more preferred to use normally?

Thanks for your help.

Edit:
Would the sentence below be more appropriate or sounds more natural?

  We're quite sure "there is no hardware issues"


texts: What is ungrammatical about "that's them"?

texts:
I was reading 3rd short story in Agatha Christie's "Poirot Investigates" when I stumbled on following sentence:

  "That's them," I declared in an ungrammatical whisper.

What is so ungrammatical about that's them? What would be considered grammatically correct instead?


texts: Is it correct to say "I associate my ringtone with a headache"

texts:
The idea is that it is very annoying and I'm tired to hear the same tune over and over again. Please see the full sentence where the phrase is used.

Aren’t you tired of your old boring ringtone that you almost associate with a headache?


texts: Word to mean "iterations that are different"

texts:
I'm trying to find a word to complete the following phrase:

  The experiment went through several [blank]s prior to the final design.

I'm simply trying to say that the experiments went through several different designs; several different formats etc. Previously I had settled on the word incantations, although I now realise this is incorrect usage.

Any ideas?


texts: "It is" used as "there is": what is the origin?

texts:
Ok, this is a somewhat nonstandard English question. In the Southern US, or at least in Central Virginia, there is an idiomatic use of the phrase it is that is equivalent to the expression there is, as in

It is not enough gas in my tank to make the trip.

Not being from the South myself, I'm puzzled by this particular usage. I thought the proper (not to mention, less ambiguous) way to phrase the sentence above was

There is not enough gas in my tank to make the trip.

Compare these two sentences:

Is it anything for dinner?
Is there anything for dinner?

How did this expression originate?


texts:
Recently I happened to watch Married With Children Ep 507. In that episode, the dad (Al Bundy) was explaining why he took a header by a granite statue in the wishing pond:

  ...when I slipped on some wishing-pond slime, and took a header
  right into the granite statue of the goddess of the malls: Half-Offeus.

I don't understand what 'half-offeus' means.
Could anybody help me out on this?


texts: What does "to be dead to {something}" mean?

texts:
'She was still in love with her husband; frequently she glanced at him with furtive wistfulness. She was able to enjoy the summer weather. She was not quite dead to the common phenomena of the roadside. But the last resistances of departing youthfulness and vivacity against the narcotic of a dull, unlovely domesticity were taking place. In a year or two she would be the typical matron of the Lower middle-class.'

A Man From the North, Arnold Bennett.

[Split off from this question, which originally asked about both "dead to" and "roadside".]

What does dead to {something} mean? Internet research brings up:

"dead to the world" meaning "sound asleep"
"dead to rights" meaning "in the act, guilty without question"
"dead to me" meaning "as far as I'm concerned, we are no longer friends (or family). In my mind, it's as if you are dead"

None of these seem relevant to the quoted context.


texts: Is there a term for removing contractions?

texts:
Is there an English verb for removing contractions from a body of text?

Like changing "I wasn't there" to "I was not there".


texts: Which is correct? "I do not feel good" or "I do not feel well"

texts: I was reading through a few short stories when I realised that one of the stories had these two sentences:" I do not feel good" and "I do not feel well" I was quite puzzled and I would like to know if they are both correct. If they are different in anyway, please provide a specimen sentence for the two sentences.


texts: What is the technical description of the pronunciation of the "t" in "countdown"?

texts:
I've looked up the pronunciation of "countdown" in a few different dictionaries and they all give it as some variation of
/ˈkaʊntˌdaʊn/.
However, the "t" is clearly not pronounced as /t/ in casual speech because of the following /d/ which is another stop differing only in voicing. The "t" is only pronounced as /t/ when said as two very separate words. I can't work out if it's:

/ˈkaʊnt̚ˌdaʊn/ (no audible release)
/ˈkaʊnʔˌdaʊn/ (glottal stop)
something else

Are either of my guesses correct? Both in different environments? Neither?


texts:
Which of the following is correct?

Himalaya is home to diverse flora.
Himalaya is home for diverse flora.

Or is there a better third possibility?


texts: Why and when did "crack" come to mean "tell"?

texts:
Cracking jokes is to me the most familiar contextual usage of this term.

Why would anyone say they were cracking jokes, not just telling jokes?


texts: What do you call the type of affection in Bruno Mars - Grenade?

texts:
I'd catch a grenade for you
  Throw my hand on a blade for you
  I'd jump in front of a train for you
  You know I'd do anything for you
  Oh, I would go through all this pain
  Take a bullet straight through my brain
  Yes, I would die for you, baby

  Bruno Mars - Grenade

These lyrics imply some sort of deep affection for the girl in question, but is there a certain term for it?

I'm hesitant to use the word desperate because it also implies that he is trying in despair with little hope of success. However, this just seem like deep affection to me.

I'm also hesitant to use infatuated because it implies that the affection is short lived, although there is nothing here to indicate such.


texts: "cross this line" versus "cross the line"

texts:
This is written on a railroad platform:

Is the English text OK?

Or "cross the line" is better?

Or both are equally correct?


texts: Using "will" in a sentence vs not using "will"

texts:
I'm an ESL teacher.  A student asked me a question regarding this sentence.
"Don't phone Ann now.  She'll be busy."
The student asked me why we have to use "will" in the sentence.  Why shouldn't the sentence just be:
"Don't phone Ann now.  She's busy."
I told her sentence one is predicting what is and the second is reporting what is, but I feel like I short changed my student.  Perhaps there's a more detailed explanation someone might have?


texts:
I work part-time for a local public transport company translating diversion notices and other announcements to English to help foreigners in general and tourists stay up to date with the changes, road works etc.
I often struggle when choosing a particular expression to use: in general I prefer the UK English in my everyday communication and also this is what I tend to use when doing this work, but I do acknowledge some terms used in the UK are UK-specific and are not widely recognised or known outside of it.
One of such terms is call at. I’ve not used it yet for describing route changes, because I (as a non-native English speaker) remember myself being a bit confused about it when I heard it for the first time, so I usually write:

services to X are diverted via Y and Z stopping at Stop 1, Stop 2 and a temporary stop Temporary Stop

Sometimes I use the verb serve:

diverted via X serving all stops along the diversion route

the following stops are only served by services to X: …

Sometimes I use both:

Services to X don’t serve Y, stopping at the Z stop

However, when I check announcements e.g. TfL publishes, they often use terms such as calling at X, Y, Z, missing P, Q, R (I use skipping for this one).
Should I continue avoiding calling at (and maybe missing) or are my fears of the readers not understanding this unsubstantiated?


texts: Which is correct: "Filename", "File Name" or "FileName"?


texts: One who welcomes new challenges and new opportunities

texts: What is a person who welcomes new challenges and new opportunities for success and nothing can stop him called?


texts:
I suspect my verbs do NOT agree =) In the following sentence, I'm trying to say that I've asked this girl out for drinks in the past. However, every time I'd ask, she would agree at first and later bail out.

  I've asked this girl (BTW, she is a lawyer) out for drinks several times; she is 7, nothing special. She would express  interest at first, and later  bail out.

The source of my post: http://www.reddit.com/r/seduction/comments/e3m3g/dealing_with_a_flake/


texts: What is the term for this? In my language we have a special word for it, not just mask.


texts:
I'm in the process of purchasing a house and reading through the contract, I can't find a single instance of the comma. (As if legalese wasn't hard enough to read already!)

This includes the segregation of sentence clauses, separating lists, following certain leading adverbs (however, therefore, etc.), etc.

Are commas considered superfluous in legal documents? Perhaps just property documents?


texts: What is the difference between "deterrent" and "deterrence"?

texts:
Can they be used interchangeably?

Today I wrote "deterrences" but my spell checker underlines it. Did I use it wrong or is the plural simply missing here?


texts:
A phrase has started to be used somewhat frequently over the past few years: "hot mess".

I have heard it in professional journalism (albeit, admittedly, mostly entertainment and/or gossip journalism).

There seems to be some confusion over what it means, though.  Here are some of the varying commonly held definitions:

A person who is seemingly emotionally or mentally unbalanced who yet remains alluring, esp. one whose unbalance derives from social debauchery (excessive partying)

Or one such who does not remain alluring

A person who is disheveled who yet remains alluring

Or one such who does not remain alluring

An item that is dizzyingly chaotic in appearance
A situation or incidence that is extraordinarily bad

Is this an older phrase that has gained new life, or has it come into being in the last decade?  If the latter, what was the original definition?


texts: The use of prepositions in one sentence. (Incorporate xxx into xxx as xxx)

texts:
I recently wrote a social science paper, and the title I want to use is "Incorporating Fairness into Contracts as Boundaries" The question is, the part "contracts as boundaries" is a title of another paper which I improved on, but I feel bad to use quotation marks like "Incorporating Fairness into 'Contracts as Boundaries'" or to use "Incorporating Fairness into Boundary Contracts"(Or maybe this is a good idea?).

However, "Incorporating Fairness into Contracts as Boundaries" sounds like
I am trying to incorporate fairness into contracts, and this "fairness"  works as "boundaries" instead of the meaning I intended. So, can you give me some clues about how to resolve this problem? Or, maybe I have some misunderstanding about this title(e.g., It is actually fine to use the original title without causing ambiguity.) Please help.


texts: Is there a short term for "without a date of expiry"?

texts: Is there a short term for lack of a date of expiry when talking about documents? I'm specifically interested in identification document (ID).


texts:
Is there a single word which describes the following activities:

Studying (i.e. being an academic student), possibly including memory, research, writing, and perhaps expecially concentration
Supposedly-cerebral professional work, for example being a software developer or scientist

I'd like a noun, or an adjective; and preferably not too idiomatic, i.e. I'd prefer a word that's understood by English-as-a-second-language speakers.

Not too general a word however, e.g. not "thinking", "mindfulness", or "concentration": I'd prefer a word which emphasizes the applied, practical, maybe career-oriented nature of this mental activity.

For context, I'm looking for a word I could use as a tag for the set of questions listed in this meta-answer, Want a new tag, e.g. for office work and academic work?, which include:

  Software programming/Art and Buddhist Practice - Pursuing creative activity
  Scientific Problem solving and Wu Wei
  Is Buddhism against scientific attitude?
  Can meditation help students in exams?
  How to be mindful while studying?
  Can meditation help me in my academics?

These are topics from "students" and from "scientists" asking whether e.g. meditation can improve their performance, so I'd like to tag them accordingly.

Because it's to use as a tag I might also (instead of only a single word) accept a pseudo compound/hyphenated word, e.g. "white-collar".


texts: Word for presenting facts, but also being at pains to not infer anything beyond those facts

texts:
"They only stated heavily ???? facts"
They were careful to only state facts and were even at pains to explicitly clarify that those facts did not imply other things that people might usually infer.   AKA, they were scared of getting sued.
Closest I can think of is 'clarified' or 'tempered' but I think there must be better.


texts: Word for person prying on my personal stuffs

texts:
which adjective can I use to describe my neighbor, who is always trying to keep eye on my personal matters like what am I bringing from market or what am I cooking etc?

Regards,


texts:
Yesterday, I got an email from Yahoo notifying me that the glitch had been fixed.
Yesterday, I received an email from Yahoo notifying me that the glitch had been fixed.

They all mean that I have got an email from Yahoo yesterday, is there any subtle difference between them?


texts: Which form is correct? Listen on/with/ through/in your headphones? (for instance music)

texts: Which  form is correct? Listen on/with/ through/  your headphones? Have you ever used IN ?


texts: What is the name of the grammatical device where 18th and 19th Century sentences started with 'which'?

texts:
In the movie Master and Commander - we see the following two dialogues between Jack Aubrey and his servant Killick:
Dialogue 1:

JACK: Killick? Killick there.
KILLICK appears.
JACK (CONT'D): What do you have for us tonight?
KILLICK: Which it's, Soused Hoggs-Face.
JACK: Aah! My favorite.

Dialogue 2:

KILLICK: That's the last of the cheese and like as not they'll leave it seizing to their plates with their tweedly tweedly tweedly.
JACK (O.S.) Killick? KILLICK THERE!
KILLICK (projecting) Which it will be ready when it's ready!

This tendency to start a sentence with Which is echoed in the books.
My question is: What is the name of the grammar where 18th and 19th Century sentences started with 'which'?


texts:
What's a word for using one's motivation to accomplish something? I tried passion driven but it doesn't seem to fit. The sentence is:

  Motivation fosters the dedication needed to ____.
  or
  Motivation fosters dedication needed to [be good at what you do]

If the question I've asked doesn't make sense, just complete the sentence that describes the importance of having motivation in a career.


texts:
Suppose I have gone to the movies(cinema). There is a man behind me that cracks sun-flower seeds open, talks with the next person, and also talks on his cell phone. I want to say that these behaviors are annoying when I am watching a film in the theater. If I say, "When I am in the theater, it really bugs me if somebody behind me starts cracking seeds, talking with somebody, or answering his phone,” does this convey what I mean to say?

Is "to bug" a proper usage here?

Is to crack seeds open a proper usage here?


texts: What's a word for the opposite of Accountability?

texts:
I'm trying to say something to the effect of:

"While practitioners before the war were in an environment of ____, practitioners after the war were in an environment of accountability."

Meaning the previous era's practitioners weren't holding themselves to the results of their contributions.

Anyway, something other than "unaccountability" would be appreciated, of course.


texts: Does this sentence "iPhone 2G has Photo Geotagging capacity of No" make any sense?

texts:
Ok, this is the original sentence:

  iPhone 2G does not have Photo Geotagging capacity.

I want to rewrite it as iPhone 2G has Photo Geotagging capacity of No.

So my question is does the sentence

  iPhone 2G has Photo Geotagging capacity of No.

make any sense (that is correct grammar & can be accepted by the reader)?


texts: Has "mother" become politically incorrect?

texts:
Has mother become politically incorrect? The word mom now seems to have replaced mother throughout popular news articles.

Is there some reason besides political correctness, which until now has always seemed to have been connected to racism, no matter how tenuous the connection, or have I missed something?


texts:
Please help settle an argument.

There is a expression used by parents and teachers to threaten children who are pulling faces:

  If the wind changes, you'll stay like that!

or simiarly

  If the wind changes, your face will stick!

A friend insists the origin of this expression is Ruth Park's 1980 children's book, When the Wind Changed.

I suspect the expression pre-dates 1980 by decades, probably centuries. It may have been popularised amongst 80's children by Ruth Park, but she used an existing expression.

Who is right? Does this expression pre-date 1980?


texts: Where did the "art" in "Our Father who art in Heaven" go?

texts: What happened to the art in "Our Father who art in Heaven"?  And why is it art, and not is?


texts:
Is "I am extremely smarter than you." a grammatically OK sentence?

It sounds awkward, but is there a grammatical issue?

Please note that I am not asking if it could sound better, nor am I asking for suggestions on an equivalent but better written phrase. Is this statement grammatically acceptable?


texts: What word describes a person's worst flaw?

texts:
Is there a word or phrase to describe the worst flaw that someone has? The closest thing I have found to what I'm looking for is fatal flaw (technically called hamartia), but that's a bit too specific:

In tragedy, hamartia is the protagonist’s error or flaw that leads to a chain of plot actions culminating in a reversal from his/her good fortune to bad.
Wikipedia

I'm not looking for a flaw that necessarily reverses someone's fortune, just a flaw that is worse than all of one's other flaws.
For example, John is disorganized, forgetful, and dishonest. If you think that dishonesty is John's worst flaw, you would say that dishonesty is John's __________.


texts: What is an example of "where" in an adverb clause?

texts:
All the sentences I can think of are anything but an adverb clause. For example:
"Where I'm going is none of your business." (A noun clause as the subject)
"No one knows where he is." (A noun clause as the object)
"It's interesting where these things have come from." (A noun clause as an adjective complement)
"This is where I want to be." (A noun clause as a subject complement)
"This is the park where we first met." (An adjective clause)
"She was surprised by where I had gotten the magazine." (A noun clause as the object of the preposition)
Can you please make an example of an adverb clause with "where"?
Thank you


texts: Word for firm logo sign installed usually in front of building

texts:
I am looking for a word to describe the big logo sign that one normally can see in front of a headquarters building, for example here:

I tried to google the words people use for this sign, but found nothing but "a sign".


texts: What do you call a language spoken with a thick accent?

texts:
If one speaks a foreign language making bad mistakes so that his speech sounds strange and broken, then he is speaking the word I'm looking for English (Spanish, Russian, etc.). Is there such an expression in English?

In Russian we say "ломаный русский (английский)", which is literally translated as "broken Russian (English)".


texts: What is American English for "cross-party"?

texts:
I came across the word 'cross-party' while reading the newspaper. I didn't know this word so I looked it up in a dictionary. (Denoting interaction between two or more political parties).

I noticed that I didn't find this word in an AmE dictionary, it only seems to exist in BrE. I have done an advanced search in google and it is almost never used on CNN (3.000  results in 0,46 sec), but BBC seems to use it quite often (45000 results in 0,46 sec).

Now my question is next: Is there a synonym for this word in AmE?


texts: How to request someone to start a process?

texts:
I am an engineer dealing with other companies(vendors). Our company has to sign a Non-Disclosure agreement(NDA) with the vendor before we start any discussion. Now, the NDA signing is a process that takes a few days of discussion on the clauses and multiple exchanges of mails.
I have to request our legal department to start a NDA process whenever we shortlist a vendor. My typical request mail goes like this:

Hello Legal team,
   Please initiate a NDA with XXX Company  (contact:Mr. YYY, YYY@XXX.com).
   Our company will share technical requirements and we may buy products and
   services from them.
Thanks and regards

Jay

I am sure there is a better way of requesting someone to start a process than saying 'Please initiate'.
Your suggestions would be appreciated.


texts: Appropriate synonym for lights brightening gently

texts:
I'm trying to think of a verb to describe lights gently turning on. I feel that "brighten" is too generic, but I haven't been able to come up with a good word.

Have you ever been in a dark room and then someone turns on the lights and the immediate change in lighting hurts your eyes? That's a glaring type of "brighten."

On the other hand, have you ever been in a dark room and then someone turns on the lights but they slowly glow brighter so that it doesn't hurt your eyes? That's a weaker type of "brighten" and I'm trying to find a verb for that. I'm hoping for a stronger phrase than "slowly glowed brighter."

Imagine you are at a moderate dance in the evening (age group is around 20). The lights are currently very dim during the dance. Then the last song, which has a sleepy and nostalgic feel, ends and the lights brighten again. The type of "brighten" I'm thinking of is soft, smooth, relaxing, and like the changing levels of light during a sunrise sped up to, say, 10 seconds.

The sentence to complete is just

  "... the lights [brightened]."

The closest question I've been able to find is Is there an antonym for "dim"/ synonym for "lighten?" but the word choices offered were more appropriate for descriptions relative to a bright room rather than descriptions relative to a dark room.

Would anyone be able to help me? I'm also happy to accept a strong phrase, metaphor, or simile, but I found saying something such as "the lights brightened like a sunrise sped up to 10 seconds" to sound erratic. Thanks for your time!


texts: When are you "fascinated with" something, and when are you "fascinated by" it?

texts: Am I fascinated with consumer technology or fascinated by it? What about a book, an object, or a philosophical idea?


texts:
Background

hopefully (adverb): in a hopeful manner
Presumably (adverb): used to convey that what is asserted is very likely though not known for certain.
While fully acknowledging, as noted in the discussion about the correct usage of hopefully, that hopefully is accepted in standard usage as a sentence modifier and as a disjunct; I wonder about the etymology and more precise historical differences in the usage between hopefully and presumably.

Question based on background

Why is it correct to say:

  "Presumably it is true..."

and incorrect to say

  "Hopefully it is true..."

In other words, why would the latter sentence be corrected to:

  "I am hopeful that it is true..."

which does not mean the same thing;
whereas the former could be changed to:

  "I am presuming it is true..."

which does mean the same thing?

Put one other way, why is it standard (and I believe acceptable) English to assume an implicit verb when using presumably:

  "I think presumably that it is true..."

where presumably is modifying the verb think to mean that the thought is one which is thought presumptuously or in a presuming manner.

Yet it is not accepted that "I think" is assumed as in:

  "I think hopefully that it is true..."

Where hopefully is modifying the verb think to mean that the thought is one which is thought hopefully or in a hopeful manner.

Or is it the case that presumably is just as frequently misused as hopefully and that both are incorrect? If that usage of presumably outlined above is accepted as grammatically correct, is there some etymological reason for this usage?

Presumably someone must know the answer to this question. I await members' replies hopefully.


texts: Meaning of "There as a man, if that he was a man, not that his manhood could be call'd in question" in Byron's Don Juan

texts:
From Byron's Don Juan:

  There was a man, if that he was a man,
       Not that his manhood could be call'd in question,
  For had he not been Hercules, his span
       Had been as short in youth as indigestion
  Made his last illness, when, all worn and wan,
       He died beneath a tree, as much unblest on
  The soil of the green province he had wasted,
  As e'er was locust on the land it blasted.

What is the meaning of the phrase in bold, especially if that he was a man?

"If he was anything at all, he was first and foremost a man"? But why then the next line begins with Not that his manhood could be called in question?


texts:
The exam is marked out of 50.

Hi,
The sentence above is British. How can I say the sentence above in American English?

Thank you.


texts: If I were to write down "101" (as in the introduction to a course) in letters, how would I do it?

texts:
At first I thought that "101" was a prononciation of "One-Null-One", but then I found out that someone had wrote it down as "One-Ow-One". I'm confused.

Also: when I hear people pronouncing years like "1902" pronouncing the first two numbers first, are they saying: "Nineteen-Null-Two"?

I would be grateful if you could also provide me with other examples in which the number "0" is pronounced differently than "zero".

PS: I am a non-native speaker.


texts: Is it correct to use the word "birthday" for the deceased, or is there a better alternative?

texts:
How does one refer to the birthdate of someone who is no more, we usually say

Today is my uncle's 80th birth anniversary (Common in Indian English, not sure if it's correct)

or

Today would have been my uncle's 80th birthday

Is it right to say

"Today is my uncle's 80th birthday" for an uncle who is dead?


texts: word for one who thinks in many ways than others

texts: words for one who thinks in different and unique ways than others think and has many solutions to a problem . when a person thinks the same problem in many ways and solve the problem in their mind many times and always be one step ahead of others , what is he called.


texts: Here is the scenario. A colleague who is working remotely is working on a review of my design for some work item. We came up with a comment several weeks ago but I just haven't got a chance to update the design document until today. Eventually I updated the design document and submitted it for review. But I also want to write an email to him to apologize for taking so long before contacting him again. So I want to start the mail with "Sorry for contacting you back so late. But...". My question is, is it proper to say "contact you back"?


texts:
When I was doing my English homework, I came across this question:

  In his research paper Dr Brown suggests that snacking, if done properly, makes people healthier and __ helps control weight.
  A. as well as       B. namely       C. even       D. yet

I chose A, but my tutor said the correct answer should be C. But she did not give me a satisfactory explaination. Could you kindly tell me why I can't use as well as in this sentence?


texts: Looking for a single word that means "I am redoing the typesetting of this document"

texts:
I have been using the word "retypeset" or rather "I am retypesetting this document", but I cannot seem to find those words listed in the dictionary.  I am wondering if they should be written with a hyphen, as in "re-typeset" or "re-typesetting", or if there is another word that would carry the same meaning.

Sample sentence:
"I am redoing the typesetting of this document in a larger font so that it will be easier to read."


texts:
In different books, I've encountered different examples:

LEAVE - leave, leaves, left, and leaving

TAKE - take, takes, took, taken and taking

BANK- the shore of a river   and   a particular kind of financial institution

What would we call a lexeme then?
Leave, take and bank - thinking about a lexeme in terms of a 'set of grammatical words'?

Or perhaps both the 'base' words and the inflicted forms (or the meanings), which are derived from them?


texts: An aeroplane, when it leaves the ground, 'takes off'. What does a bird do?

texts:
My daughter recently had the experience of a large bird hitting her car windscreen, and smashing it, when she was doing about 70mph on a motorway. Fortunately the bird did not come through the screen, and there was no damage to life or limb (other than presumably to the poor bird).

As she was near Liverpool her first thought was that it had been a seagull, and later a pigeon. But the person who fitted a new windscreen said he thought it was a pheasant, as they are apparently notorious for this problem. The reason, he explained, is that pheasants have a shallow 'take-off' path. They run along the ground to get airborne.

But it made me wonder whether birds 'take-off'. Is there no other way of describing their going from rest into flight? Should it be 'take flight'?


texts: What does it mean ((feeling flatter than a fritter))?

texts:
Please tell me the meaning of ((feeling flatter than a fritter)) in this paragraph:

  It is different every day. My whole day’s plans might go out the window because a teacher’s lesson plans change. Someone might snag me in the hall and open up a new opportunity for me. I love that part. I always go in wondering what will happen. I’m always challenged and surprised. And just like teaching, some days I expect trouble, and things work out beautifully; other days I expect smooth sailing, and I end up feeling flatter than a fritter.


texts: Identifying the subject of a complicated sentence

texts:
This sentence took me a lot of time to parse:

  For migrant birds, which habitats are suitable during the non-breeding
  season influences habitat availability, population resilience to
  habitat loss, and ultimately survival.

(from Blackburn, E. and Cresswell, W. (2015), “Fine-scale habitat use during the non-breeding season suggests that winter habitat does not limit breeding populations of a declining long-distance Palearctic migrant”. Journal of Avian Biology, 46: 622–633. doi: 10.1111/jav.00738)

Finally I figured out that the predicate is influences and the subject is hidden somewhere behind the "which. But is this correct English? What is the subject of this sentence then?


texts: When comparing two or more, is it "chart of accounts" or "charts of accounts"

texts:
Company A has set up its own Chart of Accounts, as has Company B. I am going to write about the ways we can compare them. It seems to my ear they should treated like 'mothers-in-law,' with the 'chart' also plural, but open like 'attorneys general.' So:

'The two companies may use quite different charts of accounts.'

I can't find it readily in Merriam-Webster. What's your view?
Many thanks!


texts: Can one observe an absence of something?

texts:
It seems to me that because there is an absence of something, it should be impossible to observe it. Therefore, if I wanted to say

  This is supported by the experimentally observed absence of...

what word would I use instead of observed? I need to keep the implication that no experiments have observed this particular phenomenon, but the word observed itself seems oxymoronic.


texts: What's the difference between "ghastly" and "hideous"?

texts: How would a native English speaker use ghastly and hideous? Is there any difference in context?


texts: what is a better choice - “preferred to” vs “preferred over” vs. “preferred than”, used in a passive voice? (transferred from ELL)

texts:
[edit: the original question was posted in ELL but failed to elicit any response. As a similar question was posted here at ELU "Prefer to" vs "prefer than", I think it is appropriate to transfer my question from ELL to ELU in hopes of getting some answers. The original question in ELL was deleted.]

In both ELL and ELU, there are many postings about the choice of "prefer to" vs. "prefer over" vs "prefer than" and the "correct" English is - always use "prefer to" as in "prefer banana to orange".

However, there is no discussion of "to prefer" used in a passive voice. While google Ngram viewer suggests the expression "is preferred than" is incorrect, a simple google search suggests all three expressions "A be preferred to B", "A be preferred over B" and "A be preferred than B" are probably fine. Are these three expressions equally grammatically correct and acceptable ?

  Example: Bing is preferred to Google by people who are not like me

[https://statmodeling.stat.columbia.edu/2013/10/07/bing-is-preferred-to-google-by-people-who-arent-like-me/]

  Example: Why CodeIgniter Development is Preferred than Other PHP
  Frameworks

[https://yourstory.com/mystory/why-codeigniter-development-is-preferred-than-othe-vno0vcio4a]

  For Capacity, a lower value is preferred than a higher value
  A higher composite score is preferred than a lower scoreList item

[https://www.va.gov/QUALITYOFCARE/measure-up/SAIL_definitions.asp]

  Example: Where how is preferred over what

[https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2004-mar-20-et-pagel20-story.html]


texts:
The phrase is a bit of a cliché so I'm looking for something that doesn't sound so obvious.

  I have done xyz, which I believe will stand me in good stead for this job.

Can you provide another phrase meaning the same thing?


texts:
As I was reading some of the responses on Should I use “the wife” or “my wife”?, I agreed with many of the posters stating that using the wife as opposed to my wife was slightly less personal and contained a hint of disdain.

To me, the person utilizing the instead of my is distancing themselves from the object, for example:

  The dog is humping the lawn chairs again.

Or, more in the case of wives, the use of the might be in reference to the wife's status in the relationship, with husbands comparing it to the warden, a figure to be feared.  This case is definitely a bit derogatory, but I don't think there are any absolutes.

One answer says that using the wife takes the person out of it and objectifies the wife.

Since I think I would be rattling a wasp's nest by playing devil's advocate to that poster, I'll ask here instead...

Do you objectify or depersonalize your children if you refer to them as the kids, or is ARE the kids all right?

I'm of the opinion that this does nothing to diminish anyone's perception of the kids, real or imagined, but I'd like to hear what others think.

And I am sure there are plenty of questions about the effects of the on nouns, so we'll leave those where they are.

UPDATE:

As FumbleFingers put it in the comments below, no one will fight to their dying breath trying to prove that "this is a great question, or that it has (or even could have) a great answer."  However, I do think I got what I desired, which was a bit of discussion on the topic.

Regarding my reluctance to stir up any wasp's nests, it looks like I did so anyway, if the stretch of comments is any indication of people's diverging views.

As such, I've given the tick to CandiedOrange due to the astute phrasing of "This smacks of political correctness."  Creatively referencing the wife and lawn chairs from my post didn't hurt, either.


texts: Why is the Dostoyevsky novel "The Brothers Karamazov" not translated "The Karamazov Brothers"?

texts:
In most cases I would say that the family name should come first, as in "the Ringling Brothers circus" or "the Bronte sisters", but then there is the Dostoyevsky novel "The Brothers Karamazov".

Why does the family name come after the brothers in this case?


texts: Punctuation question: quote within a quote at the end of a sentence

texts:
This is something I've always been a little bit unclear about. When writing dialogue where a person is quoting someone else, and that quote is at the end of a sentence, I'm not quite sure how the punctuation works. Here's a specific example from what I'm working on:

a) "The victims are showing what the doctors described as 'adverse symptoms.'"

b) "The victims are showing what the doctors described as 'adverse symptoms'."

Does the single closing quote go before or after the ending punctuation? Or does it actually matter?


texts: English equivalent of Vietnamese "Rather kill mistakenly than to miss an enemy."

texts:
There was a Vietnamese political leader who said during the war, "Thà giết nhầm còn hơn bỏ sót," which translates to "Rather kill mistakenly than to miss an enemy."
I'm wondering if there is a similar saying to capture the spirit. Sayings like "leave no stones unturned" or "spare no expense" seem a bit casual to me.
Edit: Someone also commented about the phrase "Kill them all; God will sort his own". I think that's also very fitting.


texts: Name for the behavior of inappropiately hiding or misplacing objects

texts: People with dementia may hide objects, or put objects in strange places, such as keys in the sugar. Is there a name for such erratic behaviour? The lexical field could include verbs such as "wandering" or "rummaging."


texts: Comparing adverbs in comparative and superlative forms

texts: Comparing with adverbs in comparative or superlative form: When would us louder / loudest and when would you use more loudly / most loudly


texts:
My native english speaker boyfriend used the phrase:

  "I've been visiting with a friend"

to express a friend of his was visiting him, but I've never heard of this kind of use for present perfect continuous + the preposition with used as a passive voice (actually I was taught with isn't used as passive voice) in a sentence, kinda confuses me, because it doesn't goes according to what I've been taught of English.


texts: People never lie so much as after a hunt, during a war or before an election

texts: It seems to me that "never...so much as after" is a set expression yet I failed to find any credible, detailed definition on that. Plus, what does the quote by Otto von Bismarck mean? Any help would be appreciated.


texts: How are greengrocers referred to in American English?

texts:
How are greengrocers referred to in American English, assuming that they exist in the US?

Wikipedia and Wiktionary say that it's primarily a term in British and Australian English but don't give a definitive explanation of what Americans use, and Japanese for Busy People II page 129 defines "八百屋" as "fruit and vegetable dealer", which seems rather clumsy.

I'm primarily interested in the shop, rather than the person.


texts:
I'd like to know if the use of were is correct in the sentence below or if it should be replaced with was:

  As if X weren't hard enough already, companies now face the
  challenge to deliver Y.

For your response, assume that X is hard enough already.

Edit:

I'm aware that several questions related to the subjunctive "were" have been asked on this site. But they don't help me.

To clarify, I'm asking if the subjunctive mood is appropriate here. If so, I'd like to use the subjunctive. I'm not asking if it is OK to not use the subjunctive. (I know that in current English language it is more or less acceptable to not use the subjunctive even when it is called for.)

If it helps, I think my difficulty has roots in the negative phrase "weren't". I haven't found this negative subjunctive construction addressed anywhere.


texts: "through an analysis" vs "through analysis"

texts:
Through analysis of my studio work; which has explored and utilised precious materials, alternative materials, CAD and traditional bench skills, the journal pinpoints the positive and negative ways these factors have informed my work.

Would you say - Through analysis of my studio work or Through an analysis of my studio work?


texts: Can "the sort of justifications" take plural verb agreement? If so, why?

texts:
... the sort of justifications it does or does not get differ greatly.

In the above sentence, the verb differ agrees with a plural. Is the subject sort or justifications? And, if sort, why is that not with an s?

Can anyone please explain this verb agreement?
It sounds correct, but I seek an explanation of the subject, ideally providing grammatical terms.


texts: What do you call an unsupported roof that juts out over the entrance to a building?

texts:
Here is a sample picture:

Do we call this a cantilevered roof? Or is there a more apt description?


texts: Difference between "infirmary" and "sick-bay"?

texts:
What's the difference between "infirmary" and "sick-bay"?

Are they completely synonymous?


texts:
We know that "The bag is black." is a correct sentence.
But, a lot of people write "the bag is black colour". Is this sentence grammatically wrong or acceptable?


texts:
At first, I thought seamster is a word used to address a male person who sews clothes and seamstress is used to address a female sewer. But there are different explanations online. FineDictionary and MW describe seamster as a gender-neutral noun.

If these descriptions are correct, what is the male version of seamstress?
 Can someone throw light on this topic?


texts: What is the meaning of “If you can't sleep, don't count sheep. Talk to the shepherd.”?

texts:
http://hubpages.com/hub/How-many-Days-can-a-Man-stand-without-Sleep:

  “If you can't sleep, don't count sheep. Talk to the shepherd.”


texts:
Do we need to add a comma before "as" in the following sentence?

  I am writing to inform you that I would not able to attend the course
  from 19 February as my new shift timings match the course timings.


texts:
I need to know if the usage of the gerund form in the following sentence is correct:

The relations between the countries cold due to the piercing statements by the President in 2007, criticizing the party as violent.

I'm translating a text and I have to stick to a specific number of words. Is the previous form correct or shall I say: "in which he criticized the party as violent"?


texts:
I have a question regarding determining the sequence of events.

  "It is taking her a bit longer than usual to get back on the game because she had come back from Germany last night. So I gave her a friendly warning just now and she promised me that she would try her best to pull herself together.

"It is taking her a bit longer than usual..."—happening now, so I used present tense
"had come back from Germany last night"—about last night, so I used past perfect
"I gave her a friendly warning just now"—about what happened a bit before now, so I used simple past.

Is this logic correct? According to what I've learned so far, I think I must use "had come back", since I was talking about what is now ("it is taking her a bit longer than usual...") before talking about her come back from Germany, and I talked about what happened about 10 minutes ago after talking about last night. But then, I do think that I'm kind of reporting events in chronological order and "had come back" just sounds so weird to me. Can you please advise?


texts: "The development" or simply "development"?

texts:
Here is a sentence similar to the one in the text I'm proofreading right now:
Groundwork for (the) development and implementation of my cunning plan.

The text is very formal and there're multiple instances of this "the" that to me appears to be doing nothing but the author is so insistent that I have lost my certainty :-) Googling gives no definite confirmation of whether I'm to take it out or leave it be so I decided to try and ask for advice. Should the definite article be used with nouns denoting process in formal texts and circumstances?


texts:
I am writing a paper titled: "A glance at Milnor-Thurston homology for metric spaces".

Does this title sound right? Or is it too informal?

Is the article 'a' at the beginning correct?


texts:
what does "17 times out of his nerdy sweater-vest-wearing league" mean?

I heard it in a drama called "This Is Us".

Kevin was taking about the moment his brother, Randall, got crush on a girl who is Randall's wife now back in college. Randall was a nerd back then. Does Kevin mean she was even nerdier than Randall??

The whole sentence is here.
"It was in college, and, you know, this girl at a party, this really really badass, dreadlocked girl, who was, by the way, like let's be honest 17 times out of his nerdy, sweater-vested-wearing league."


texts: Is it ok to write the American spelling of words on IELTS?

texts:
I took the IELTS exam a week ago and on the way home I started to remember to have written 'color' on one answer and then it came to my mind: Do I loose marks if I write the American spelling of words on the IELTS exam?
I did not see anywhere making it clear whether or not it is acceptable.


texts:
I'm trying to formalize What is the oldest still-in-use English word? which was closed as vague.

Consider the "age" of a word to be the length of time since it was first used with the (more-or-less) the current meaning and pronunciation.

Obviously, there are lots of words date from Classical Antiquity: Coitus, agenda, and terminus are among thousands of words that would mean the same to Julius Caesar as they do to us.
[Assignment for the under-worked: write a logical, grammatical English sentence consisting entirely of such words; extra credit if it also makes sense in Latin.]

There are even words preserved untouched from ancient Greece (echo, academe, halcyon, stasis).

Are there any word that pre-dates those, such as some word that a Mycenaean potter or a Hittite horseman would say that, I don't know, Matt Lauer would understand perfectly?

My guess is ma, meaning mother, but I have no proof.


texts:
I'd be most grateful to anyone who could tell me which of the following is right

xyz was born out of the desire to...
xyz was born of the desire to...
xyz was borne out of the desire to...
xyz was borne of the desire to...
xyz was born of desire to...
xyz was borne of desire to...

The context is is an explanation of how/why a software utility was created.


texts:
What phrases do you use to make the most nearest appointment with a doctor?

For example:

  When is the next available appointment?

or

  When is the (nearest, closest) appointment?


texts:
I am about 19 year old and go to college. Often I have to refer to myself in an introduction. What shall I call myself? 'Man' seems too old, 'boy' seems too young and 'guy' seems too informal. What shall I call myself?

Update: as a comment suggested, and I felt too, an example is needed. This is actually quite general. I want to use it, for example, in a blog, during conversations, or maybe in an interview. I am just looking for the most appealing noun.


texts: help me with a third question on beloved by toni morrison

texts:
Women stopped crying and danced; men sat down and cried; children danced, women laughed, children cried until, exhausted and riven, all and each lay about the Clearing damp and gasping for breath. In the silence that followed, Baby Suggs, holy, offered up to them her great big heart.

i know literal meaning of riven

https://www.thefreedictionary.com/riven

To rend or tear apart.
To break into pieces, as by a blow; cleave or split asunder.
To break or distress (the spirit, for example).

but it sounds odd to me to undestand it as To rend or tear apart.

can i see it as "spread over a wide area"? or are the really torn apart pieces?


texts:
Does Anything does not go mean that everything will not always go ahead as expected?
And, is it an independent sentence and phrase or is it referring to "critical" in the next sentence like X (Anything does not go) and B (the hopefully impartial views of other experts) are critical?
Context:

And all but the most corrupt share the same desire to find some kind
of truth about the structures, behaviours and contexts of the
phenomena they study within their specialisms, even if they have to
stay prepared for revolutionary changes of perspective. Anything
does not ‘go’ and the hopefully impartial views of other experts are
critical. And the quest for knowledge, real knowledge, drives everyone
before it.
Sian Ede


texts:
"That's a might/mite bit excessive, no?"
"He's more than a might/mite bit shy around the opposite gender."
"It just seems a might/mite bit offensive, is all."
Which of these is the proper spelling of the expression? I would expect it to be "mite" meaning "small," but I can't find any explicit discussion online, Google Ngrams isn't conclusive, dictionaries don't list either "might" or "mite" as potential adjectives, and internet searches seem to indicate the "might bit" usage is slightly more widespread.


texts: Why have the pronunciations of some foreign words been eschewed during the process of induction into English?

texts:
Some foreign-language words were reasonably naturalised to preserve pronunciation — e.g. cañón from Spanish to canyon in English. Other words came into English retaining their original spelling and pronunciation — e.g. noir from French. However, it quickly becomes clear that for other (similar) words different conventions have been employed — e.g. guillotine is spelt the same in French as in English, but the English cognate is pronounced very differently.

Is there any reason for this? Could any such reasoning be additionally applied to derivations like English together from Old English tōgædere?


texts:
I read the sentence below in a book, but do not understand correctly the meaning.
Would you please let me know what it means?
"all to win yet and to lose of course"

Thanks


texts: Is there a name for the fear of being hit by a meteorite?

texts:
I just finished reading the article 60 Years Ago Today: The Day A Meteorite Hit Ann Hodges (Bad Astronomy blog, Phil Plait)
and I couldn't help wondering what the medical term for the fear of this would be...


texts: Is it a pun to use an idiomatic expression where it is also literally true?

texts:
A friend is going to work for an environmental department focussed on green energy. I said she was leaving us for "greener pastures".
Is this a pun? It is a play on different senses of the same word.
(I am not ashamed to admit that I was very pleased with my word play, perhaps a little too pleased.)


texts:
Do both these sentences work? (British form)

she needs more English practice.

she needs more English practise.


texts:
I am struggling on how to say when someone is an expert on a certain topic or skill. Because it is not exactly the meaning I intend to give.

What I really want to say is like:
"When you want to know about IT, ask John. He is the __________ in this topic within our group".

Can I use the word "reference" to fill in the blank? is that usual?

Thanks everyone.


texts:
I have the sentence:

"They begin to recognize why so much discrepancy and confusion persists within this subject "

My question is: should it be "so much" or "such"?
Would I need to do something like "such discrepancy and so much confusion..."?

Thanks!


texts: General Rules for Creating Abbreviations

texts: Can you create an abbreviation for any word that has no commonly accepted abbreviation simply by dropping some or all the vowels (i.e., restore:  rstr or restr; replace:  rplc or replc)?


texts:
Which is correct?

Two-thirds of the food I eat are vegetables.
Two-thirds of the food I eat is vegetables.

The first one sounds right to me, but would the second be more "grammatically" correct?


texts: Meaning of 'has much to do with' and 'turn out'

texts: whether a father's interest in his sons has much to do with how well his sons turn out


texts: "Vouchsafe" defined as to give in a gracious or condescending manner

texts:
NOAD defines *vouchsafe*as

  verb [ with two objs. ] give or grant (something) to (someone) in
  a gracious or condescending manner: it is a blessing vouchsafed him by
  heaven. • [ with obj. ] reveal or disclose (information): you'd
  never vouchsafed that interesting tidbit before.

Aren't "gracious" and "condescending" antonyms?


texts: How do you refer to a hyponym that is the same word as the hypernym?

texts:
What word (or how do you phrase things) do you use when the ostensible word for the class is the same as the word for a subset of the class?

For example, in the United States, there are many brands of sugared, carbonated soft drink that one can buy: Coca-Cola (or Coke), Pepsi, RC Cola, Sprite, 7-Up, A&W or Mug Root Beer, etc). The first two are kinds of 'coke' or 'cola' (but no one says 'cola').

But in some parts of the US (namely the south), one asks for any type of such drink as 'coke'. How does one then ask for the particular kind of 'coke' that is 'Coke' (pronounced the same)? Does one reduplicate and say a 'Coke coke', does one repeat with emphasis (or without), does one use a different word like 'coca-cola' (co-cola), or what?

The (perceived) difficulty (surely those in the South are able to get the drink they want somehow) isn't limited to there. Where the drink is called 'soda', if you ask for a 'coke', you'll still sometimes have the choice among Coca-Cola, Pepsi, etc. "Can I have a Coke?" the response might be "Is Pepsi OK?". "Sure, Pepsi, Coke, whatever." You don't use 'cola', you just ask for the particular kind and hope the listener will help differentiate.

Given these multiple strategies for disambiguating, what do you do say to get a 'Coke' in the southern US?
are there any other examples of a hypernym being the same as the hyponym, and so creating a disambiguation problem?


texts: Should capitalization be preserved in loanwords?

texts:
The fundamental principle of gestalt perception is the law of prägnanz (German for pithiness).

In German, all nouns are capitalized. Should the above text be written as is, or with "the law of Prägnanz"?


texts:
I've seen questions framed in the following manner many a time:

  "Why the sun shines?"
  "Why hair grows?"

While the most correct way to frame these kind of questions is obviously:

  "Why does the sun shine?"
  "Why does hair grow?"

I was wondering if the former two sentences are grammatically sound. They are not something I would personally say, and it doesn't sound right to me (I've always thought they're wrong); but is it wrong to frame questions in that manner?


texts: During my project I have many new friends and followers in a city, and I am about to go there. I want to meet them in a group talk. I think the correct word for it is "fan meeting", but I feel quite ashamed for using that word, as it sounds like I'm arrogant. Is there a more neutral way to describe that? I don't think "follower meeting" is natural, and people can see through it that it's just another way to use "fan meeting".


texts: "I hope I can" vs "I wish I could" proper usage

texts:
I hope I can go to the beach
I wish I could go to the beach

Am I right to assume that both of these sentences are grammatically correct? And that their difference only lies in the meaning you want to convey?
For example, I will use "I hope I can" when I'm trying to say that there is a future possibility that I can go, or that there is a strong possibility it can happen (just not now).
But for "I wish I could", I will use that when I know that there's no chance I could go, or there's no chance it will take place.
...Or am I wrong?
I do know that grammatically, the following are wrong:

I hope I could go to the beach (because 'hope' usually uses the present tense)
I wish I can go to the beach (because 'wish' usually uses the past tense)


texts: What kind of verb classification is "causative"?

texts: I understand why "causative" verbs like "let" and "allow" are described this way, but I don't understand how this classification relates to other verb descriptors. Is "causative" a peer or child of "transitive" classification, more related to classifications like dynamic, stative, auxiliary, and modal, an attribute that is a part of aspect or mood, or yet another dimension? If the last, are they are other peer classes to "causative"?


texts: Single word for "level of revealed knowledge"

texts:
I'm looking for a word that can be used to describe the amount of knowledge that has been revealed to a person or population.

For example, if I was studying a culture that didn't have access to computers, and I wanted to describe the "level of knowledge" that the population had been exposed to (as opposed to the level of knowledge that they actually had), is there an academic term for describing this concept?

Another example: if I wanted to talk about, how the level of knowledge that a culture had been exposed to was slowly changing traditions around child brides, what word could/should I use to describe the "measure of revelation?"

I considered the word revelation:

(dictionary.com)

  noun

  1.
  the act of revealing or disclosing; disclosure.

  2.
  something revealed or disclosed, especially a striking disclosure, as of something not before realized.

However, that particular word has obvious religious connotations, and it is more often used to describe a surprising discovery in my experience.

Honestly, the best phrase I have so far is, "measure of revelation."


texts: If it is feed when one gives food to a person, what is it when water is given?

texts: When a person, say a guest, comes into a house, the host might think "I will feed my guests." But what if the guests need water, would the host say "I will water my guests" -- Because that sounds a bit odd (since water is generally used for plants). Which leads me to my question, is there a word for giving water to a person?


texts: A word for indescribable pain; melancholic longing?

texts:
"Have you ever experienced a brand-new feeling that welled up inside of your heart and filled you with indescribable pain?"

A quote from the English translation of Cowboy Bebop: The Movie. Two characters are discussing a sort of painful, melancholic longing, like love but perhaps a new feeling entirely.

The Portuguese word saudade seems close, but I am aware that it does not have an English counterpart.

Is there a word I haven't heard that fits this description?


texts: Need a word for someone that makes requests of others, but doesn't do that for the other person

texts: Like, your husband asks you to be quiet when you come in late, then is loud when he comes in late.  Or not to talk across rooms, but is constantly yelling from other rooms himself?  Sentence I would use it in:  I wish that you would follow your own rules, as I find your behavior very XXXXX and not fair.


texts: can I replace "data" with "pieces on information"

texts: "Pieces of information are transmitted across the Internet in packets of limited size called datagrams."


texts:
I’d like some clarification on the use of these three words. First-rate has positive connotations and its meaning is manifest, but the meanings of second-rate and third-rate are relatively muddy in comparison.

I know that both of them have negative connotations, and that third-rate is even more forceful in the claim it’s making than is second-rate, but when would it be appropriate to use either?

Is second-rate a better choice of words when doing an explicit comparison like

  Prof A is better than Prof B.

When I say Prof B. is second-rate, I’m in fact implying that Prof. B is less than stellar, but not necessarily bottom of the barrel.

And conversely, is third-rate a better choice when making some sort of global claim — like for example, when I say Prof. C is third-rate, I’m implying that he’s the worst, worst professor I’ve ever encountered, and that when Prof. C is juxtaposed with any other professor, he will almost assuredly be found lacking in comparison.

If anybody has insight or clarification on all this, that would be great. And also, if anybody wants to try at the etymology of these three words, then by all means please do so, as I’d be really interested to find out more about their history.


texts: I know some people who can fall asleep pretty fast, but the term "fast asleep" doesn't seem to mean that. When I looked it up, all it showed was "someone sleeping tightly". How did fast come to be associated with sleeping?


texts:
I read this sentence from the book "REVOLUTION 2020"

  I remained under a banyan tree, exhausted by my daily ritual of
  hauling up the  men every two hours".

I got the meaning for haul up as "to come to a halt" . but i dont thhik this will be fit for this sentence. can anyone explain this.


texts: Please explain Portia's soliloquy from "The Merchant of Venice"

texts:
The quality of mercy is not strain'd,
  It droppeth as the gentle rain from heaven
  Upon the place beneath. It is twice blest:
  It blesseth him that gives and him that takes.


texts: There is a verb 'cap' which means to limit value from the top. Like cap at 100, which means every value above 100 would be changed to 100. Is there a similar short word for the same operation, but from the bottom?


texts: Looking for concise and precise terms for feedback rating options

texts:
I am designing a user reputation system that will be an essential piece of an online marketplace for peer-to-peer item rentals. The user reputation system is based on the collection of feedbacks given by users reviewing the transactions they had with other users. Each feedback is consisted of a three-valued rating and an optional detailed comment. The three rating options are:

Beyond expectations
As expected and with understandable/tolerable hiccups, if any. (implicit)
Terrible

Our approach is to ask users to leave rating only for those experiences that are beyond expectations or terrible. That's why I have labelled, above, the neutral rating as implicit.

I am leaning towards using the term bummer to denote terrible experience. To a reviewer, **bummer* represents her disappointment while having less negativity, comparing to the word terrible, to the viewers.

Is bummer an appropriate term choice for my case?
If yes, what is a better alternative for "beyond expectations" that would go well with bummer?


texts: What is the best use of the apostrophe in a church name when the church also "possesses" something?

texts:
Possible Duplicate:
  Possessive of a word that’s already possessive?

For example, would it be correct to write St. Marys' basketball team for the basketball team belonging to St. Mary's church?


texts: Is the act already finished in second conditional?

texts:
First conditionnal :" If I slap him what will he do.?" We're questionning about a future where if the slap happens ( not happened yet) what the person in question will do.

Second conditional: " If I slapped him what would he do."  We're questionning about a hypothetical future where the slap already happened and the consequences of the act Or if the slap were to happen (not happened yet but we're wondering if we do it what will happen meaning the same as first conditionnal ) ?


texts: What is the old term, or terms, for "designer stubble"?

texts:
Wikipedia has this to say about it:

  Designer stubble is a short growth of a man's facial hair that became popular in the 1980s. This style was worn and reinvented by
  singer George Michael, actor Don Johnson and, in the 2010s, singers
  Craig David and Jason Derulo and was adopted by many others including
  Tom Cruise who restarted this trend among his Hollywood peers &
  members of the music industry after attending the Grammy Awards in
  2005. Several companies manufacture beard trimmers designed to maintain the designer stubble look, being created by short trimming of
  the beard to (typically) 1 to 3mm designer stubble is distinct from
  five o'clock shadow which is the much lighter, stiffer growth which is
  the first sign of the return of the beard after shaving.

Here's the picture they provide:

This type of look has existed since time immemorial, which leads me to believe that there must have been a term for it prior to the 1980's.

What was it?


texts:
I can't recall term used for duplicating extraneous words e.g. VIP person (Very Important Person Person), first question what is this term?

Second question, is the same term used when the duplicated term is a synonym?


texts:
Is it correct to say: "I got plunged into a mass of struggling bodies that were swimming...". My doubt is about the correctness of the expression "to get plunged".
Thank you for your help!


texts: What is the meaning of "partisan estrangement of impeachment"?

texts:
I took the expression from this paragraph:

  But earlier this year -- even amid the partisan estrangement of impeachment -- no one could have foreseen how his reelection race will now be shaped by a nation that is battling deep health, economic and social crises at the same time.

I suppose partisans are Trump supporters here.

All occurrences of "estrangement of [noun]" I found on the web are often followed by "and/from [noun]":

The increasing estrangement of German and Anglo-Saxon feeling
ESTRANGEMENT OF GREAT BRITAIN AND JAPAN
I agree estrangement of adult children from their parents [...]

Thats why estrangement of impeachment (without complement) sounds odd to me.

Maybe partisan estrangement of impeachment means "Trump supporters disagreeing with (or rejecting) the idea of impeachment"?

Thanks!


texts:
When I read the words "yea" or "yeah", each spelling can mean two different things.

An exclamation of joy, as in,

  Yea[h] for ice cream!`

Assent, like "yep" or "yes", as in,

  Yea[h], Mom, of course I fed the dogs.

The two meanings not only have different pronunciation, but they're also not differentiable using context clues. For example, folks will commonly say "Yeah" as a one-word answer in a chat or a one-word comment in a forum.

Is there a better way to spell these so as to differentiate them without context?
Or, perhaps, do these two different spellings have two different meanings, and I just didn't notice?


texts: What to use after "when" present simple or continuous?

texts:
For instance:

a) When you sing, I feel like I hear angels sing.

b) When you're singing, I feel like I hear angels sing.

They are most likely both possible, if so, what are the differences?


texts:
What is the correct preposition to use after improvement? For example,

  The successful candidate is expected to contribute with an improvement
  of the current calibration.


texts: Is a *by-law* the same thing as an *in-law*?

texts:
When I was a student (over fifty years ago) I had a landlady who used to talk about her 'aunt-by-law'. I wish I had been bold enough to ask her the nature of the relationship, but I have always assumed it was either her husband's aunt, or the wife of one of her parent's brothers.

Has anyone else ever heard the term by-law, used and is it synonymous with in-law?


texts: 'Is too many', 'are too many' or something else?

texts:
"I decided to go on holiday for a week. I think 10 days is too many for me."

Am I correct using 'is' instead of 'are'? Or the only way is to change the phrase to '10-days period is too long for me?'


texts: Looking for a word to describe the burden of initiating a task

texts:
I'm trying to find a specific word to describe the act of putting the burden of initiating a task upon the person who has an interest in it.

Whereas delegating is giving the task to someone else--a subordinate, for example, what is a word which describes handing the burden of initiating a task to another person?

An example: if someone wants afavor from me, but I am busy and have minimal interest, I might ask the person in question to email me about the specifics of that favor. Instead of having to write it down, I have the other person write it down, I receive the specifics in an email, and the becomes part of my workflow.