texts: Using "beau geste" as an opposite of sin

texts:
Beau geste defined here seems to be a noble act and from what I know to be the definition of sin, which has the word "immoral" in it, "beau geste" should be its antonym. Even if it isn't the perfect antonym, but it is according to me, can I, or rather, should I use it as the antonym of sin?
I saw all previous posts but didn't find any settling answer.


texts:
I have come across few sentences with the phrase 'aside from' where I felt 'besides' would have been a good choice.

Is there any difference in the usage of the two or can both be used interchangeably?


texts:
Which phrase is more correct when I want to tell a client that I'm on Skype 24hrs?

I'm there all day.
I'm there whole day.


texts:
Is there a correct way to spell this idiom?

end to end
end-to-end

Or is both correct and the latter represents a three-word compound modifier when used as adjective before a noun?


texts:
I know that I should use an apostrophe if I want to show possession.

My questions:

Which form should I use?
Are the forms interchangeable?


texts:
Duplicate:
  Is the word 'whose' referring to an inanimate object correct in this sentence?
  Possessive connecting word for inanimate object
  Usage of “whose” not referring to a person.
  Referring to some attribute of an inanimate object — use “who's”?
  What is the possessive form of “what”?
  Other ways of saying “whichs”
  Possessive “that's”
  'Which', 'whose' or something else?

Let us consider the following sentence:

  Japanese language uses ideograms whose Chinese origin is not disputed.

Is it correct to use whose in relation to ideograms or should I use which better?


texts: Expression for "things we are responsible to share and work out together"?

texts:
Is there a word or phrase for "things we are responsible to share and work out together"?

For example, we are in a team, so we have to work together and responsibility for every member is the same. Spouses have to share housework. …


texts: Why the quotes in this sentence about Soylent: designed from the “ground-up”?

texts:
Why is "ground-up" in quotes here? As far as I understand this phrase means "from the beginning", so the company designed the whole recipe itself.

  But with the addition of a ready-made blend, which the company describes as being designed from the “ground-up” with a combination of the vitamins, minerals, fats, carbohydrates and protein that the body needs, Soylent is targeting a slightly different demographic.


texts:
Would his parents understand him the way you do?

-->

  Would his parents understand him how you do?

is the rephrasing above grammatically ok?


texts: What is the term that means to add an extra syllable to a word?

texts: This situation is most noticeable when a singer adds a syllable to a word like "Fuh-ree" instead of "free" or "Buh-rave" instead of "brave". It's not Melisma, which is intentional by the writer.


texts: What's up with "this," in Old English(Ænȝlıſ͡ċ/Anglo Saxon‽)

texts:
I am asking two things here, about Ænȝlıſċ (Old English)

First and foremost, see this picture here:

– which was taken from this page:

QUESTION 1:

What is the difference between these two words: "þisse," and "þisre," which, according to the aforementioned, both function, in the Old English tongue as "this"? Both are listed as both genitive and dative case feminine singular.

The same goes for "þissa," and "þisra", which are both listed as being "these" in the genitive plural case.

Are these variations used in specific cases? Or is one of the words classical, and the other newer, one developing early, and one after the Norman conquest? Or are they dialectal differences?

— e.g. the Ænglisc first person singular accusative pronoun was "mec", but toward the end of the language’s life, before Middle English came about, "mec" was replaced with the dative and instrumental first person singular pronoun "mé."

— e.g. in the West Saxon dialect of Old English, "hand," was the word for "hand," as in the human hand, but in another common dialect of Ænglisc, the word was spelled and pronounced as "hond."

QUESTION 2:

Old English is an inflected language, so all words must agree in some form, therefore one does not simply say "mín hand": the genitive singular pronoun does not agree with the noun it owns, "hand", which is feminine. One must say "míne hand", adding "-e", the feminine singular possessive ending, to the stem "mín-."

That being said, suppose a man wanted to show off his hand, and say: "Lo! this is my hand!" Would he say "Hwæt! þēos míne hand!" ("þēos" being the feminine nominative singular form of the article "this"), or would he say: "Hwæt! þisse/þisre míne hand"?


texts: Can an adjective make a noun a restrictive appositive?

texts:
Consider the example phrase "Their firstborn son". Without the adjective "firstborn", "Their son" could be non-restrictive if 'they' have multiple sons. However, there can only be one firstborn. In practice, which of the following would be correct or conventional?

  Their firstborn son, Michael, is alive

or

  Their firstborn son Michael is alive


texts:
I'm going to do a research with the title "The green effect in response to urban thermal environment". The content is about how vegetation can affect the temperature in the city.
Is this title understandable and grammatically correct?
Thanks in advance.


texts: Is "the worst is yet to come" a future form for inanimate objects?

texts:
I hope the answers to this question will benefit anyone who studies English.
I would like to understand the purpose of this future form in English:

  something + is/are + to + verb.

At school we were taught: "I will do something". At university the following structures were studied: "I am going to do something / I am doing something at 5:00 PM.".
These forms seem to be quite enough to talk about the future. My question is about this example:

  "The worst is yet to come."

Why can't we say "The worst is going to come yet"? I usually see this structure applied to inanimate objects, so is that its purpose?  Is this construct used when we want to talk about the future of inanimate objects?


texts: Legal name for "individual" vs. "company"

texts:
I'm creating an online service and I want both individuals and companies to use it. In the registration form, I want to ask the user:

  Are you an individual or a company?

Are these terms correct to refer to individuals (real persons) vs. companies and organizations? Are there any better legal substitutions for them?


texts: Should I use a capital letter after a code example?

texts:
I often write documentation related to code and it is normally in a similar format to the following:

You will be able to run this code:
     <code>
        <moreCodeyStuff>
            ...
        </moreCodeyStuff>
     </code>
And then what you want to happen will happen.

My question is, should the and after the code block be capitalised? The entire block (including the text before and after the code) seems like it is a single sentence but doing an and without a capital letter doesn't seem correct.

Should the and be capitalised or not? Maybe I am just structuring this kind of block in the wrong way.


texts: Is there a descriptive word for someone who allows things to happen, no matter the consequences?

texts:
For example, the head of a country who believes in his people's right of free speech, including those of critics or activists who strongly denounce his leadership, but will not do anything to curtail that right even if it threatens to cut his reign short.

Or a parent who believes experience is the best teacher and lets their kids learn through mistakes and failure, so does not do anything—lectures, physical punishment, etc. Short of risking imminent, permanent harm to the children, they allow almost anything even if their kids might become headaches later on (develop bratty behavior, resentful, etc).

In short, people who believe consequences are worth the risk if the principle is preserved.

Thank you in advance.


texts: Dedication to my grandparents where one is passed away

texts:
I would like to know the appropriate way to dedicate a thesis to my grand parents in the case where one of them is dead.

Somme possibilities:

To my grandparents
To the memory of my grandfather X,
and to my grandmother Y


texts:
Consider the sentence: "America's respected Institute of Medicine called for/on nurses to play a greater role in primary care."

Which is more appropriate on or for?


texts: "from one year to another" vs. "from a year to another"

texts:
Which one (#1, #2 or #3) is grammatical?

  This is calculated as...

  1) ...the price difference from one
  year to another.

  2) ...the price difference from a year
  to another.

  3) ...the price difference from one
  year to other.

I was about to write #1 in a document, when I thought that maybe I should not mix a numeral (one) with an article (an in another).

UPDATE:
In his answer below, FX_ says that he would say #1 and that thinks that #2 is also correct. I'm starting a bounty to check if there any different answers.


texts: Is "Legs would carry them no longer" a metaphor?

texts: Is it? And if it is or is not, can you include some explanation why? And in which case it would/wouldn't be?


texts: What is the collective noun for a collection of collective nouns?

texts:
murder : crows :: _ : collective nouns

Sorry, no multiple choice this time.


texts:
The creation of the mortgage bond market, a decade earlier, had extended Wall Street into a place it had never before been: the debts of ordinary Americans. At first the new bond market machine concerned itself with the more solvent half of the American population.-The Big Short by Michael Lewis-

I searched the internet for the meaning of "machine" and wasn't sure if the following is the appropriate one.

... 3. [COUNTABLE NOUN] You can use machine to refer to a large and
well-controlled system or organization.

[Collins Dictionary.com
]
Can you tell me what it would mean in this paragraph?


texts: Swear words in common usage by educated people in 1916

texts: What swear words might have been commonly used in conversation (and, in particular, oral argument) in and around 1916, by literate men? As sources from the time are largely written, it is difficult to know whether they accurately reflect how people spoke or whether words that were used in conversation were considered unacceptable in print. I am writing a play set in 1916 in Dublin - the characters were well educated and travelled, so I think an answer appropriate to urban Britain will be equally appropriate to Dublin.


texts:
Is the usage of the 's in the following sentence valid English?

  His mind is that of a child's.

This looks like a double possessive to me, but having read the relevant Wikipedia article, I can't tell whether it's valid.


texts: How strong is the meaning of the word "fine"?

texts: I am asking a recommendation letter from my mentor, and he describes me as a "fine candidate" followed by "!". I consider the word "fine" to be a very weak term, so does it mean that he only thinks of me as being an ordinary candidate?


texts: When subjects of dependent clause and independent clause will be same?

texts:
With the growing of grass, ....
With growing of grass, .....
With the growth of grass, ....

Please say the differences among them. I can't differentiate among them.

I think the clauses stated above are dependent clause, but I am not sure. If all of them are dependent clauses, are the subjects of independent clauses same to the dependent clauses? For which cases, subjects of dependent clauses and independent clause are different? And when will it be same?


texts:
I am learning this course Stanford CS224N: natural language processing with Deep Learning.

The professor is saying

  if you start getting into more technical and scientific English, it's
  easy to get to a million words.

what does the phrase "get to" in "it's easy to get to a million words" mean?

does that mean "have", "generate", or something else?


texts: Proper use of 'forestall'. Is this allowed?

texts:
Your attitude always forestalls us from enjoying.

Does the above sentence make sense?


texts: What's a word for a person who feels they are an outsider to their own life?

texts: I'm writing an essay on somebody who is writing in their journal in third person and was looking for a word/character trait that will describe a person who feels that they are an outsider to their own life?


texts:
How long will a man lie i' the earth ere he rot?

The quoted line is Hamlet's.
I wonder why the "rot" is not "rots".


texts:
"Fascist X" said a lawyer and sent to jail for insulting him.

There has been some discussion about this headline's structure. Since I intended to put the quoted speech in front of the sentence, I built it accordingly. However, too many people (especially native English speakers) objected to it by saying "that doesn't sound correct" without giving any grammatical explanations whatsoever.

So, What is wrong with that headline?

According to these resources, sentence's structure is correct:

I dropped "was" before the "sent". Since it was a headline, and I thought It was the correct thing to do exclusively for headlines: "Auxiliary verbs are dropped in the passive form."
I also built the headline according to inversion of subject and reporting verb rule: " In narratives, especially novels and short stories, when the reporting clause comes second, we often invert the subject (s) and reporting verb (v):"

I know there are better ways to build that sentence, but what is grammatically incorrect in it that leads native English speakers to find it incorrect?


texts: Can I add comma before 'and', which is used to connect two verbs

texts:
Is this correct?

  It is reasonable to modify the current model by stratifying on XX and XXX, and removing YYY.

Is it ok to add a comma before the second and, given how there is an and before it?


texts:
What term is used to describe a number of fishing worms?
Examples:
A covey of quail or
a pride of lions


texts: When did the meaning of epicenter (from Greek for 'upon the center') expand to just mean the center of something important or substantial?

texts:
My understanding is an epicenter is a position above the center of something, and that the term comes from seismology. Since the actual point at which an earthquake occurs is underground, when people refer to an earthquake being in San Bernardino, they actually mean the earthquake happened deep underground and the nearest point on the surface of the earth, the epicenter, is located in San Bernardino.

Recently, new reports from respected sources have called Wuhan, or Lombardi, or New York City, as the epicenters of the coronavirus outbreak. And Merriam & Webster gives "center" as the second meaning of epicenter.

When did the meaning of epicenter (from Greek for upon the center) expand to just mean the center of something important or substantial?


texts: Polite way to say: As far as I'm concerned?

texts:
Is there a way we can use the phrase "as far as I'm concerned" in a polite way in an email? eg:

As far as we are concerned the task was carried out according to stated standards.


texts: Grammatically, what is "It" in the following sentence?

texts:
I'm currently working at a private academy in Korea, and my boss just asked me a real head-scratcher.

In the sentence:

  It doesn't have to be hot and humid for players to lose too much water from their bodies.

I'm aware that "It" is a subject pronoun replacing "The weather." Besides that, however, I'm unsure.

Is it a false subject? I wouldn't think so since it's a pronoun. Is it some crazy kind of indirect object?

Anyway, thank you all for your help!


texts:
I'm looking for a word similar to nepotism or cronyism.

Here is an example:
A man applies for a job through a friend, and gets an interview. The man is then judged completely on his actual ability to do the work, and not favored because of the relationship.

The reason why neither of the above work, is because there is no advantage gained by the association, apart from the opportunity to display actual merit for the job one applies for. What would the word be for this use of friendship either through family or not?


texts: Verb confusion whether to use active or passive

texts:
Which of the following is correct?

computer games designed to involve many players

or

computer games were designed to involve many players

I assume the latter one is correct. Can anyone explain if it is wrong


texts: What is the figure of speech used in these lines?

texts:
Jacob's Ladder
Hearken! Trim that swagger a trifle, you wretched lump of earth!
Stamp those feet neither, nor act so haughty
Hearken! You are but a tiny figure on the grand scroll
A statistic, a number— a one-in-a trillion figure
Cometh before you a legion did
Hearken! You canst begin to count them graves!
The die was rolled eons back, and the die is cast
Hearken! Shrug off those epaulets of hubris, those self-congratulatory badges
You insignificant statistic you— ashes to ashes, dust to dust!

What is the figure of speech the poet has used in the highlighted parts? Also, what is the point of the poem and why is it titled so? I may be wrong but I thought the whole poem was rather a doggerel.


texts: What do Americans usually use instead of word scold ? For example parents scold their children when they act up . How would write same sentence but with American version of scold?


texts: What would "Garth Brooks" refer to in a multiple-choice Poll?

texts:
I noticed an online poll about marriage, where the person was curious to know what percentage of the current generation are interested in getting married, and the last option is: Garth Brook! I know this singer who has been too much on news these days for his canceled concert, and I also checked his Personal Life in Wikipedia out of curiosity, and still couldn't understand why he would be a poll item about marriage!
(P.S. Wikipedia says that he was married to someone and they later divorced, and that now he lives with someone else.)
This is the poll (the question and the options):

Do you want to get married?

I want to get married (I’m male)
I want to get married (’m female)
I never want to marry (I’m male)
I never want to marry (I’m female)
Very unsure
I’m already married
Divorced
Garth Brooks


texts: I was watching The Simpsons when Milhouse Van Houten says “Quote, unquote', but I don’t understand. Please have a look

texts:
The world is or rather the expression is quote,unquote.
The sentence that Mulhouse said was "Get a load of that quote-unquote Santa."
It was an episode where Homer get the job of Santa for Christmas. And Bart and their friends glimpse The Santa (who is Homer in reality) but Bart didn't knew it and he was going to humiliated his dad...


texts: "in someone's eyes" meaning "in someone's opinion" (AE) and punctuation with phrases of opinion

texts:
Is the phrase "in my/his/etc. eyes" as meaning "in my/his/etc. opinion" common in American English? Is it an idiomatic alternative to "in my view" "to my mind" etc.?

  This is, in his eyes, the most severe effect of this development.

As for punctuation with such phrases that express opinion: Is it ok to put them at the end of the sentence and which punctuation would be preferable?

  1) This is the most severe effect of this development in his eyes.

  2) This is the most severe effect of this development, in his eyes.


texts:
Example: There is a group of customers who “are of” a similar age, the same sex.

Does it mean “belong to”, and what else does it possibly mean in other contexts?


texts:
There are many typographical symbols, for example:

The pilcrow (¶) is used for paragraphs.
The asterisk, dagger and double dagger (*,†,‡) for footnotes.
The hurricane (§) for sections.

Is there any symbol for pages?


texts: Make sure you invite Jill herself(,)  [The syntactic function of 'too' and usage of comma]

texts:
The Cambridge Grammar of the English Language (Pages 438-9) has this:

An NP may contain more than one peripheral modifier, with multiple layers of embedding:
[8] i Make sure you invite [Jill herself too].
The bracketed NP in [i] has the NP Jill herself as head and the adverb too as peripheral modifier; at the next level, the NP Jill is head and the NP herself is peripheral modifier. A peripheral modifier is thus in peripheral position (initial or final) in the NP of which it is an immediate constituent, but need not be in peripheral position in a larger NP containing it.

I think traditional grammar would treat too in [i] as an adverb modifying the verb invite or the VP invite Jill herself.
Which analysis would you think is correct, and why?
EDIT
Is CGEL's analysis of the too as part of the bracketed NP attributable to the lack of a comma right before it?
I'm asking this because if I had intended the too to be modifying the verb or the VP, I would have put a comma there:

Make sure you invite Jill herself, too.

If so, does this mean that the lack of a comma there makes the traditional grammar reading less likely or even impossible? (Although I think comma usage is not strictly followed.)


texts:
I recently heard an American presenter using the phrase "discover what it is that is important to you."

What is the linguistic difference between saying "what it is that is," rather than "what is"?


texts: Is “ain’t” slang, or is it colloquial instead?

texts: Does using the word ain’t in a song make it slang, whereas using it in a speech make it colloquial?


texts: Capitalization of Attorney General Office

texts: I understand that "attorney general" by itself should not be capitalized but capitalizing attorney general should be done if it is accompanied by a name (e.g., Attorney General Stewart).  But how about the actual office.  Should "office of the attorney general" be capitalized as "Office of the Attorney General?"  Bureau of Alcohol, or Department of Homeland Security, if I'm not mistaken, are capitalized, so I would assume Office of the Attorney General would also be capitalized.


texts: Alternative for Challenge as section header

texts:
All,

I am preparing a technical document for a process. Another team will do the implementation based on the document.

I want to have a section which will outline some of the challenges they will face and how to overcome them. I am currently leaning towards "Challenges", but are there any better alternatives?

For the context, some other headers are 1. Requirement, 2. Analysis, 3. Technical Solution, 4. Dependencies etc.

Update: I was thinking of another heading as I will be telling about how to overcome the challenges also in this section - like "Challenges and how to overcome them"


texts: What is definition of "after a year’s worth of"?

texts:
There's a sentence:

After a year’s worth of design wrangling, we got down to business.

So the problem is I don't understand meaning of after a year’s worth of part. Some synonyms or definitions are appreciated.

Tried it on the Web but found only a couple of press article names.

Thank you.


texts: Looking for a word that means "a lack of listening skills"

texts:
This is my first time here, and I am hoping this community can help me out.

The context is as follows:

  I witnessed a slow transition from awareness and excitement to
  Wallace's "natural state" - irritability, discontent, and a lack of
  listening skills.

Could anyone recommend a single word, or perhaps a better wording, for the bold text?

Thanks,

David


texts:
When none is modified by almost it is difficult to avoid
treating the word as a plural: Almost none of the officials were interviewed by the committee.
https://ahdictionary.com/word/search.html?q=none

Why does almost trigger the plural agreement of the verb?


texts: What word will literally convey '52 times a year'?

texts:
If I do something twice a year, it's semi-annual. But what if I do something 52 times a year?

I have to send a reminder to my team about our weekly meeting (update their minutes, time, projects, etc). Traditionally, we all add some personal flavor to it. I'm looking to spice it up by referring to the meeting as a [word-meaning-split-into-52]annual meeting.

Additional commentary:

It has been suggested that 'duoquinquagensimannual' may be the proper term. However a search on Google has provided yields only this post, leaving me to believe there may be a more appropriate term.

Additionally, I sent the reminder this morning using the phrase 'Hebdomadal' as suggested. It does accurately convey what the meeting is, while still making it less boring than 'weekly'. (Pff, how boring is weekly?) However, despite its usefulness at solving my business concern, it fails to meet the specific criteria set forth by the request. So it will indeed be useful for anyone else potentially seeking the same phrase I seek, we're unfortunately left with an unanswered question.


texts:
John has been doing work. Work has been being done by John.
Can we make the passive of Present perfect Continuous tense?
I read in different books that we can not make?


texts: Is there a term for when a politician sends an anonymous idea to see whether the public is receptive?

texts:
In any democratic country, I guess, sometimes politicians want to see whether an idea is  acceptable in the prevailing public opinion, but at the same time  they don't want to reveal their position on an issue until they are sure of the outcome.

Something like this happens in case of controversial issues where politicians want their action placed in a positive perspective and where to express an unpopular idea may be problematic.

So, my question is, is there a term for when a politician sends an anonymous idea to see whether the public is receptive?


texts: Why "motherboard" is used to refer to main board of computer

texts: Why is motherboard used to refer to the main board of a computer? What is the relationship with the word mother here?


texts: IN and ON: Confused as to what is the logic here?

texts:
Why is the preposition in used for ‘the mountains’ but on for ‘the beach’?

They wish to live IN the mountains or ON the beach.

Go IN the air ON the Plane.
Go IN the Car ON the Road.

Why is it ‘in the air’ and ‘in a car’, but on when we talk about a plane and a road?


texts: Meaning of a mixed metaphor from "The Gift of The Magi"?

texts:
This is from The Gift of The Magi by O Henry (William Sydney Porter).

  Oh, and the next two hours tripped by on rosy wings. Forget the hashed
  metaphor.

(part 4, paragraph 5 in the reference above)

I fail to understand what the hashed Metaphor is, in the context of this story. Apart from this line, the rest of the plot is clear to me (and so is the context). I found a reference according to which the metaphor was actually a mixed metaphor, but I am not well-versed with the types of metaphors and their relative differences (or meanings). I also went through a reference which stated that this metaphor might have stemmed from the fact that this story was written while meeting a strict deadline. I fail to see the connection between the meaning of this metaphor and the haste with which it might have originally been written.


texts: Opposite of "trendy" without a negative meaning

texts:
I am looking for an opposite to the word trendy without giving a meaning that those who adopted the trend are old-fashioned in hindsight. For example,

  Service Oriented Architecture is the trend as of now. But what is trendy in 2014 can become ______ in 2015.

So in 2015, the trend becomes widespread to the extent that it is no longer trendy, but not necessarily old-fashioned.

Edit: I am currently thinking of using mainstream. But still any other thoughts are welcome!


texts:
Which of the following is correct?

  How much time do we have until class starts?
  How long do we have until class starts?


texts: “Is there a way you could/would accept?”

texts:
Is it correct to write this in a formal letter:

  My certificate is not valid anymore. Is there a way you could accept my expired certificate?"

Or should I use would instead of could? And what is the difference between those two?


texts: On a scale from Optimist to Pessimist, what would be exactly in the middle?

texts: I am exploring the theoretical character differences between an optimist, pessimist and an idealist. Originally I had thought that an idealist would really sit in the middle of the other two, but now I'm second guessing myself. I am basically looking for a noun of a person that tries to make things the best they can possibly be, but also is not blind to or fearful of tackling any obstacles needed to overcome to get there, ultimately trying to achieve a balance, harmony, equilibrium etc. Would that be an idealist or something else?


texts:
My wife is going to get her first tattoo and she chose a phrase in English. As English is not our first language, I would like to double-check if this sentence has any bad connotation. I did some research on the internet and I didn't find any problem so far.

This is the sentence:

  Against the odds.

Any bad connotation or something to know about?


texts: Is there a name for the kind of sounds commonly found in profanities?

texts:
Fuck. Shit. Bitch. Cunt. I remember reading somewhere -- a very long time ago -- that these "hard" sounds are virtually necessary in profanities. The explanation I roughly remember is that because these "hard sounds" are unmistakable, that is, because  there is no half-hearting them in phonation, that lends to them to use in words that one wants to be unmistakable in intent, e.g, in profanities where one wants to intensify a phrase or rile someone up.   I remember these being called fricatives.

Unfortunately I'm not a linguist, not even a fair amateur one, and when I went to check Wikipedia for the definition of fricative, I really couldn't make heads or tails of the lingo.  I have no idea what those weird letters or the adjective "voiceless" mean.  Moreover, I think I'm just plain wrong about those sounds being fricatives -- the examples I found on that page don't seem correspond very well to the hard sounds I mentioned above. My memory about what I read is obviously horribly dashed. Am I in fact correct in observing that profanities tend to have "hard" sound somehow, and if so, could someone give me a name for them so I can go about content I know something really cool?


texts:
I have two dictionaries which variously give the pronunciation of the Old Irish word lough as læk or lō.

How is it actually pronounced in Ireland?


texts: Do I use a dash or a semicolon here, or something else entirely?

texts:
Is it

"In other words, you can compare my existence in the dating world with living in the Sahara--bone dry with the occasional oasis appearing"

or

"In other words, you can compare my existence in the dating world with living in the Sahara; it is bone dry with the occasional oasis appearing"

Thanks!


texts: How to parse this NP containing the structure "help somebody to do something"?

texts:
I'm trying to analyze this long noun phrase (NP) syntactically:

  The assertion that an understanding of human nature
  in the light of evolutionary theory can help us to
  identify the means by which we may achieve some of
  our social and political goals, including various ideas of
  equality, as well as assessing the possible costs and
  benefits of doing so.

I don't understand why "assess" is used with "ing" here. I understand the NP in this way:

  The assertion that A can help us to identify B and [can also help us] to assess C.


texts: A phrase that describes each member of a group

texts: There are small units and each unit has its own clear mission. Each unit has only one mission. "Only one clear mission" is important and I need to emphasize it. I'd like to express the situation with a phrase and use it as a title of a presentation. I have made some candidate phrases. "Small units with a clear mission", "Small units with their own clear mission", "Small units with clear missions", etc. I think no one of them carries my intention properly. For example, "Small units with a clear mission" means that there is one mission and all units execute the mission. How can I express the situation with a phrase appropriately?


texts: Mixing up "quiet" and "quite": spelling or grammar error?

texts:
Look at this sentence:

  It wasn't quiet what I wanted

And this one:

  The music was too quite for me

Obviously quiet and quite are mixed up. Is this considered a spelling mistake? In both cases the words are valid, but used in the wrong place.

Is there a special name for these mistakes? Or are they simply grammatical errors?


texts:
Could someone please tell me if "That" should be capitalized in the following title:

Learn the Winning Formula That Ironman Triathletes Use to Create Unstoppable Sales Success


texts: Why is 'sort of' pronounced /sɔːrdəv/ in AmE though /t/ is not between vowels?

texts:
Sort /sɔːrt/

of /əv/

Why is "sort of" pronounced /sɔːrdəv/ in American English even though /t/ is not between the two vowels /r/ & /ə/?


texts: Where To Find a Descriptive Word for Human Facial Impression?

texts:
I am trying to build a semantic search system which retrieves corresponding search result upon given "text" queries which describe human facial impression.

For example, if one queries "slight sexy but mostly pure (face)" then the Database being looked up and my search engine retrieves those kinds of face.

This kind of search engine could be implemented mostly with model agencies, where they need to quickly search the database fast and efficiently.

My question is, as I am not a native English speaker, can't find the most exhaustive set of descriptive word used for human facial impression, such as a VocaSet = {sexy, pure, clean, modern, cheap... etc }

Where could I find this VocaSet? Any advice would be appreciated.


texts:
In this sentence, In the pursuit of my computer science degree at WUSTL, I have mastered.... Should there be a the in front of pursuit?
In other words, should the sentence be changed to In pursuit of my computer science degree at WUSTL, I have mastered....


texts: How to say "Go ahead, I will follow you later" in other ways?

texts:
My friends are going out for lunch and ask me to go with them.

I haven't finished my work. I will follow them 10 minutes later.

Normally, what will you say? beside "I will follow you later."


texts: Single word **or phrase** for somebody who feigns deafness when contradicted?

texts:
There is a cranky person in this town who will suddenly 'become deaf' if we contradict him. AS IN,

I say, "how do you like the weather?"
He says, "quite nasty weather!"
In fact it is very fine weather and I say so.
and he says, "what did you say? Can you speak up, because I cannot hear you" etc.

Now I know this is an extreme literal case but many a person goes figuratively deaf if we say something that he/she does not want to hear.
Is there a single word for such a person in the literal/figurative sense?
Note: I googled it and found idioms such as these but not a 'single word for such a person'.

fall on deaf ears
Fig. [for talk or ideas] to be ignored by the persons they were intended for. Her pleas for mercy fell on deaf ears; the judge gave her the maximum sentence. All of Sally's good advice fell on deaf ears. Walter had made up his own mind.
See also: deaf, ear, fall, on
There's none so deaf as those who will not hear.
Prov. If you tell someone something that he or she does not want to know, he or she will not pay attention to you. I tried repeatedly to tell my supervisor about the low morale in our department, but there's none so deaf as those who will not hear.
turn a deaf ear (to someone or something)
to ignore what someone says; to ignore a cry for help. How can you just turn a deaf ear to their cries for food and shelter? Jack turned a deaf ear to our pleading.
See also: deaf, ear, turn

(Source: http://idioms.thefreedictionary.com/deafness)


texts: Refer to the state of something "at the time"

texts:
I want to communicate this:

  I didn't think the zoo would attract visitors in its state at the time.

What can I replace "state at the time" with? Perhaps something like "then-state"? I can't say "current state", because that would refer to the present state, not the state at the time I'm referring to.


texts: Is "out" a preposition or an adverb in these sentences?

texts:
Is out a preposition or an adverb in these sentences?

"We need to get the hell out of this place."
"We need to get out and leave this place."


texts:
This is a general English question. A friend asked me and I have no reason for it.
All men are created equal - Why don't we say created EQUALLY?


texts:
I find so many different "rules" on the internet that it is really hard to understand when to use these words: dependent and dependant.

In these examples, what would you pick and why?

"Your dependants ..."
Is your dependant over the age of 12?
Are you a dependant of John Smith?
What is the name of your youngest dependant?


texts:
I found the expression “Check and mate!” in the following sentence describing furious exchange of words between CNN host Piers Morgan and rightwing radio host and anti-gun-control propagandist Alex Jones on gun-control in the video titled “Shoots off his mouth on Piers Morgan” in Time magazine’s (Jan 8) Entertainment Section.

  When Morgan managed to work in a question like, “How many gun murders
  were there in Britain?” Jones answered, “How many great white sharks
  kill people and yet they’re afraid to swim?” Check and mate!

From the definition of ‘checkmate” in Cambridge English Dictionary, "noun (2) a situation in which someone has been defeated or a plan cannot develop or continue", it is obvious that “check and mate” here means Jones’s answer was the finish blow that shut Morgan’s mouth up.

However, I was unable to find “check and mate” in any of Cambridge, Oxford, and Merriam-Webster English dictionary, though they all register “checkmate.”

Google Ngram registers “check and mate” at an average 0.00000006 incidence level since circ 1850, but I don't know how significant this number is.

Can I use “check and mate” interchangeably with “checkmate” to mean being driven into a corner?


texts: Grammatical usage of prepositions: before or after "not only ....but also...."

texts:
Which one is more universal, before or after "not only...but also..."?

I saw a sentence in an article:

  ...masters were responsible not only for teaching their apprentices
  a trade but also for providing them some education...

But I thought omitting the second "for" would be fine:

  ...masters were responsible for not only teaching their apprentices
  a trade but also providing them some education...


texts: reduction the number of "of"s in a sentence

texts:
I have below sentence that contains many "of"s. How to reduce the number of "of"s without missing the original meaning?

  The investigation of the effect of the value of a variable on the function has motivated us to give B=A^2.


texts:
Is this sentence correct?

"The analysis of ... has been initiated by ... and settled in full generality by ..."

Or is there a synonym for either "analysis" or "settled in full generality" such that the sentence is correct?


texts:
Ludwig Wittgenstein's Tractatus Logico-Philosophicus introduces a way to constrain language, and I'd like to take an approach inspired by the concepts defined in that work.

What is the correct way to label such an approach? Are there best-practice guidelines for creating adjectives from nouns? These are some that seem legit:

a Tractatian approach
a tractatian approach
a Tractalian approach
a Tractatusian approach
a Tractacus approach
a TLP approach


texts: Are there nuanced differences between the following expressions?

texts:
"Close the door."
"Latch the door."

I realize both verbs are synonymous and can be used interchangeably, but I'm struggling to explain and emphasize the minor difference.

Edit: My apologies for miswording the question, what I'm looking for is the difference in "emotional ties" aka "feeling evoked" when utilizing the above phrases.

SECOND EDIT (I'M A MESS): Let me present this excerpt from Church Going for those questioning the "emotional ties" part;

"Once I am sure there's nothing going on I step inside, letting the door thud shut."

A thud can be interpreted by a muffled noise as a weighted object strikes a solid surface. Since it’s not a sharp sound, thud evokes the feeling of confidentiality.

My question is, how does closing the door versus latching the door change the connotation?


texts: I'm looking for a way to describe a small shop that sells single items to few customers, such as pieces of art, antiques, etc. Is there any umbrella term for this kind of business?


texts:
From Legend by Marie Lu:

  It’s early evening, but it’s already pitch-black outside, and the JumboTrons’ reflections are visible in the street’s puddles. I sit on a crumbling window ledge three stories up, hidden from view behind rusted steel beams. This used to be an apartment complex, but it’s fallen into disrepair. Broken lanterns and glass shards litter the floor of this room, and paint is peeling from every wall. In one corner, an old portrait of the Elector Primo lies faceup on the ground. I wonder who used to live here—no one’s cracked enough to let their portrait of the Elector sit discarded on the floor like that.

What are the rusted steel beams here ? I can't imagine what the the author is saying here.


texts: on reducing a that-clause to a non-finite clause

texts:
I saw a basic sentence but i was confused while trying to type its reduction. I have a question born from the sentence below.

It was not surprising that he was elected President.

How can I reduce this sentence using a non-finite clause?

It was not surprising for him to be elected president.

He was not surprising to be elected president.

Is either of these grammatically correct ? If not, what is a correct alternative?


texts: "It feels so good when you solve a problem that at some point you found it impossible." Does this make sense?

texts: I am not a native english speaker and i want to know if the sentence is correct.


texts: Why is there an 'it' in "I find it very difficult to do this"?

texts:
I find it strange that one has to use the pronoun it in sentences like

  I find it very difficult to do this.

I would like to know the grammatical reason (if there is one) for this, if it has name, and how bad it is if you omit it.


texts: What is the difference between weight and heft?

texts: There’s a dictionary saying heft means weight, but what does heft mean in the phrase of “weight and heft”? Is it "weight and weight"? I think there might be some difference between weight and heft, but I don’t know for sure. I’d be happy if you could help me.


texts:
I work for an ESL Teaching School and I was asked to make an application form for all students who wish to apply to study at our school.
I have some questions about the following questions I've created:

Identify any incorrect sentences in this list, EXPLAIN THE ERROR and SUPPLY the corrected version:

What is your preferred learning style?

Outline your reasons for wanting to learn English, what you hope to gain from it, and how it fits in with your plans for the future. (200-300 WORDS)

As far as I'm concerned, the grammar structure is fine, but I just want to know if you guys can encounter some vagueness on those sentences, any suggestions would be really appreciated,
Greetings from Mexico
Vanessa


texts:
I've seen both spellings many times, i.e. on Wikipedia, Dictionary.com and dozens of papers. I was wondering if there is a difference between US, Canadian, Australian and British spelling or if you can just use whatever you prefer?

(There was no good search engine result on this and it took me too long to figure out, hence this Q&A.)


texts:
I know that the common plural form of "market share" (the percentage of a market) is "market shares."
However, I found a sentence containing "markets shares."

  In the last decade, several papers have enriched the theory of the
  dynamic limit pricing. Kamien and Schwartz (1971), Gaskins (1971), and
  Baron (1973) have made major contributions. In the Gaskins
  oligopolistic structural model the dominant firm sets prices. The
  behavior of the dominant firm allows potential competitors to enter in
  response to prices, with the outcome depending on the markets shares
  of the dominant firm and its competitors. In Gaskins’ dynamic model, a
  low-cost dominant firm does not drive out the competing firms in the
  long run.

from http://www.ams.usda.gov/AMSv1.0/getfile?dDocName=STELPRDC5108810

Is this correct, or wrong?


texts: A journey from Yekaterinburg to Moscow takes 28 hours by train - or "the journey" - or "journeys"?

texts:
Could we use all three following sentences to refer generically to a "typical journey":

  The journey from Yekaterinburg to Moscow takes 28 hours by train.
  A journey from Yekaterinburg to Moscow takes 28 hours by train.
  Journeys from Yekaterinburg to Moscow take 28 hours by train.

I want to know whether the use of articles in these three sentences is fully analogous to the use that makes the noun phrase "bull terrier" generic in respectively:

  The bull terrier makes an excellent watchdog.
  A bull terrier makes an excellent watchdog.
  Bull terriers make excellent watchdogs.

... or maybe some of my examples "would not work" generically, or would sound awkward.

What I'm interested in is native speakers' comprehension of these sentences.


texts:
I belong to an organisation which consists of volunteers. We do voluntary work. Would one describe this as a volunteer organisation or a voluntary organisation?

I have seen both expressions used widely, but am uncomfortable with the latter.


texts: Can we split English Tenses into 2 * 2 * 2 matrix?

texts:
I seem to remember

Simple vs continuous
Past vs present (no future tense, that's present)
Perfect vs "normal"

Okay, if we multiply that, we got 2*2*2=8 tenses in English.

Am I correct?

For example, say I want to express I kick a cat in 8 tenses I will got:

Simple past imperfect tense

I kicked a cat.

Simple past perfect tense

I had kicked a cat

Simple present tense

I kick a cat

Simple present perfect tense

I have kicked a cat

Continuous past imperfect tense

I was kicking a cat

Continuous past perfect tense

I had been kicking a cat

Continuous present tense

I am kicking a cat

Continuous present perfect tense

I have been kicking a cat

Am I correct here? Only 8 tenses right?


texts: Word-Search: describe the inherent link between an action and its "trade-off"-property

texts:
I'd like to form a sentence to state, that a particular action inherently involves a trade-off (balance) decision between two benefits (which are mutually exclusive, but in-betweens exist).

"The design of a controller involves a trade-off between robustness and performance".
I am seeking a good formulation for "involves" a trade-off. How can I say, that it is an inherent and inevitable part of the action? The word involves is too weak in my eyes, since it does not convey my point, that it is inherent/inevitable/intrinsic to the action of spending money.

"The design IS a trade-off ..." is (sadly) wrong in my opinion, since it states an equality. However, the action of designing is not EQUAL to the trade-off, but the trade-off decision is made by the action (no equality, but strong inclusion)!


texts:
This is the quote from Linux sort utility manual:

  -R, --random-sort           sort by random hash of keys

Isn't this a form of oxymoron? How can you sort by random, if usually random lists are not in order?

In other words, is that a proper wording?

Searching in Google "random sort" gives >190k results, so it seems it's quite popular expression to say that something is sorted by random ("sorted by random" gives also >187k results).


texts: "This is a book" what is the role of "book"?

texts:
What is book in this sentence ?

This is a book.

Is that an Object?

What are the nouns that come in the sentences with to be's?

Like my friend in He is my friend?


texts:
I wonder if a sentence is still correct if you use an introductory adverb as well as an introductory phrase in front of it? If this is the case would you have to use two commas?

  Moreover, according to the text, Thomas is the one who breaks down
  after the infanticide took place and his heartbreaking cries resound
  through the house and even the neighborhood  (6).

It sounds weird to me...

There is another reason why I find his sentence strange: it kills the reading flow of the sentence. If you used parentheses, it would sound much better from my point of view, but I don't know if that is a wrong thing to do because I have never seen it before in writing: "Moreover, (according to the text), Thomas is the one..."

Revised version after discussing this in the comments:

Moreover,(according to the text) Thomas is the one who breaks down after the infanticide has taken place, and his heartbreaking cries resound through the house and even the neighborhood.

or

According to the text, moreover, Thomas is the one who breaks down after the infanticide has taken place, and his heartbreaking cries resound through the house and even the neighborhood.


texts:
This has been bugging me for a while but throughout our company technical documents there's regular use of this type of sentence: The (user interface component) displays.

Displays being the important word. For example: 'The Color Picker displays.' or 'The popup window displays.'. Meaning that it appears.

Now this is fine grammatically (the sentence has a subject and a verb), but it feels wrong. Perhaps it's the ambiguity caused by 'display' also being a noun (more obviously seen in 'The window displays.').

Perhaps it's also that 'displays' tend to prefix a noun in this context. Such as 'The florist displays flowers'.

Is there a grammatical rule that having 'displays' at the end of a sentence is breaking? Or is just poor style? Or perhaps it's absolutely fine. Grateful for advice.


texts:
AFAIK the correct grammar for "speak slow" is "speak slowly" (slowly being an adverb). Please correct me if I am mistaken.

But in daily life I have not heard anyone saying "Speak slowlier".

I think I heard folks saying "Speak slower" but I also think it is incorrect.

Which is the best or correct form to convey the message?

Could that be the longish "Speak more slowly?"


texts: Is there such a thing as "Injective Relief" (as a legal term)?

texts:
I was recently given a nondisclosure agreement to sign.  On the form it stated that the company may seek "injective relief" as needed in order to enforce the agreement.  Now, I'm quite familiar with the concept of "injunctive relief."  Googling around I did find quite a few places where "injective relief" is used, but I couldn't find anything that looked like a proper legal definition for it.  (Also it's waaaaay less common than "injunctive relief".)

So I ask those who may have better google-fu or more in-depth legalese knowledge, is this just a misspelling on the company's part, or can they shoot me up with truth serum if the need arises?


texts: Could you please tell me what “whipped fish” means in the following text (from Hemingway’s newly discovered short story "Pursuit as Happiness")?

texts: There was no question anymore of catching the fish as a world’s record or any other sort of record, since the rod was broken. But he was a whipped fish now and on the heavy gear we should get him. The only problem was that the big rod was too stiff for the fifteen-thread line. That was my problem and I would have to work it out.


texts: When is E at the start of the word pronounced as /iː/ ? (as in 'Ego')

texts:
Words beginning with e usually be pronounced as /e/ or /ɪ /, for example:

egg  /eg/
effort /'efət/
explicit /ɪ k'splɪ sɪ t/

Very rarely,  words are pronounced with /iː/, for example:

epoch /'i:pɔk/
ego /'i:ɡəu/

My question is in which situation, the word begin with e will be pronounced as /iː/?


texts:
What's the correct form?
"Fabrication cannot resume before corrective actions be taken."
or
"Fabrication cannot resume before corrective actions are taken."
Tks!


texts: When to use commas after name and description of a person?

texts:
My best friend is Florian, an old school friend.
I was still going out with Jame when I met my husband, Ben.

May I use commas like that?


texts: Word that is to "sexual orientation" as "racism" is to "race"?

texts:
The widely used word "homophobia" clearly doesn't fit the criteria.  For example, "racism"  can mean discrimination towards any race, black,  white,  Asian,  etc. Similarly, the word we are looking for should also be able to describe people who have prejudice towards asexuals,  bisexuals,  heterosexuals, pansexuals, etc.

Also,  phobia means fear,  or negative feelings. If someone assumes a black man is a fast runner, loves water melon,  and is a great dancer before they have even met him or heard anything about him, simply because he is black,  I would argue that that is racist.  But those are all positive traits,  and therefore there need not be any "phobia"  involved.

Similarly, if one assumes a gay man speaks in a feminine voice, is very knowledgable about fashion,  interior design, etc. and listens to Village People, I would consider that [insert the word we are looking for here]. But there need not be any "phobia" or negative feelings involved, since those traits can all be seen as positive traits.

Repeating the earlier point, the word we are looking for should also describe prejudice against asexual, or even heterosexual people. Asexuality can also be considered a sexual orientation. Clearly,  the word "homophobic" can not be used to describe prejudice against asexual or heterosexual people.

Edit: While the linked question is quite similar, this question is wider and more detailed.


texts: "Continue existing there" or "continuing existing there"

texts:
I wrote the following sentences:

Eyed closed, he imagined the moment disintegrating, returning to the
stars, and continue existing there for eternity.
Eyed closed, he imagined the moment disintegrating, and returning to the
stars to continue existing there for eternity.

Now, I'm not sure if I should say continue existing there or continuing existing there.


texts: Correct way of saying I want a list of the names of each individual entity in a group?

texts:
I'm a programmer and in a program I'm currently creating, I want to get a list of all the accounts names that can access a database.

I have no idea if I'm supposed to "get account names", to "get accounts name" or to "get accounts names".

My best guess is that "get accounts names" is the correct answer as it seems more logical to say it that way, but I see the first case used the most, which makes me doubt about this.

The way I see it, "get account names" would refer to multiple names given to a single account and "get accounts name" would be the name of the group of accounts, but I'd like some clarification on this.


texts: Synonyms for the phrase "stop at nothing"

texts: I am writing a report about someone and would like to convey the sense that he was desperate for success and overly ambitious. I've used phrases like "stop at nothing" to capture the ambition and the willingness to do set aside morals and/or break the law. I would like to use different expressions as I think "stop at nothing" is a bit cliche.


texts: How "head & shoulders" sounds for native english speakers?

texts:
Translating "Head & Shoulders" (the shampoo brand) in my mother tongue (Bulgarian) it sounds really dumb.

But is it sounds dumb for native english language speakers as well?
Or it sounds some kind of more reasonable?


texts:
I'm looking for the "outward" name for a relationship between two items. One is a request item, the other is the item created in response.

Other examples of are:

Name - Outward Name - Inward Name
Depend - "is required for" - "depends on"
Duplicate - "is duplicated by" - "duplicates"
Subtask - "parent for" - "subtask of"

The one I'm looking for would be:
Response - "????" - "response to"

Looking for something a little better than "Request" or "Inquiry".


texts: Why is there no definite article in this sentence?

texts:
So today my Japanese student asked me why there is no "the" before "turnout" in the following paragraph.

  But Becker said that while turnout in purple states like Florida and Pennsylvania had a slight uptick this year, at least 19 other states saw lower turnout rates compared with 2012, a scenario that is antithetical to presidential-year voting that tends to increase each cycle when an incumbent is not a part of the race.

(Source: What does voter turnout tell us about the 2016 election?, PBS Newshour, 11/20/16.)

I ended up saying that we can add "the", but it's not necessary, so it's a case where you can add "the" or exclude it. My student became confused, and I feel like I provided a bad explanation. ( or a wrong one at that )

Can someone please help me explain this to him?

Thank you to whoever is willing to help out!


texts: A word/phrase for someone who changes the world

texts:
For a fantasy writing project,1 I am looking for a title or epithet for a character that emphasizes that the character has changed the world. Either a single word, or a phrase that could reasonably be used as an epithet, is what I’m looking for.

The title should also be reasonably neutral as to whether the changes made are good or bad: the emphasis should be on how significantly the world has been changed by their actions, and how impressive that is regardless of what you think of the changes. It should be focused on the accomplishment of such a change; it could apply to someone who changed the world unwittingly.

Lofty, grandiose titles are appropriate, even ideal, and being immediately recognizable is less important than sounding impressive and having the correct meaning.

In particular, the project is a character class for a role-playing game. This title would be the reward for reaching the highest level in the class (and would convey certain benefits, which are not relevant). But this is the reason for the neutrality requirement, since this has to be able to describe any member of the class, rather than a particular character.


texts:
I was kind of dismayed last week when the news outlets reported the dropping of "the so-called 'Mother of All Bombs'." They were quick to point out the official name was "Massive Ordinance Air Blast," but that almost seems like an acronym some pencil-pusher came up with after it was already unofficially called the Mother of All Bombs. It's just a terrible nickname for such a frightening weapon. (It put me in mind of "Big Bertha" -- what is it with big bombs being female?)

Anyway, I read an article somewhere saying that the phrase "Mother of all __" became wildly popular after Saddam Hussein used the phrase "mother of all battles" in a speech he gave in the 90's (referring to his war vs. the United States), and that he probably got the phrase from its usage in the Quran. So I tried to google "quran mother of all" but did not come up with any results. Does anyone know if this phrase is actually used in the Quran, and if there were any other significant usages in the 90's?

I can think of similar usages with "daddy" and especially "grandaddy" -- but not "grandmommy" or "grandmother."


texts: Is there a word for other fractions analogous to whole, half, quarter?

texts:
I have been trying to google it for the past half-hour and I cannot come up with anything. I also don't know how to phrase my question properly.
Do we have words for other fractions analogous to
1=whole
1/2=half
1/4=quarter
1/3=?
1/8=?
If there are, I figure they are archaic, but I need to know.


texts:
I know that we can normally use the combination "adjective+to do smt".

He is close-minded to talk to.
That topic is very hard to argue on.

How about adding "for" to those sentences?

He is close-minded for me to talk to.
That topic is very hard for my family to argue on.

Are they correct? Thank you.


texts: Is the phrase "I will infatuate you" correct?

texts:
Can I say "I will infatuate that girl" or "I will infatuate you", meaning that I will do something to someone and then that someone will become infatuated with me?

Does it make sense?

Thanks for the attention!


texts:
I've just passed one of numerous English grammar online tests. And I agree with all the mistakes I've made except  this one:

  You ______ put it back before the boss comes back, won't you?

  will have
  won't have
  will
  have

The system has marked my answer 3 as incorrect, and 1 as correct.

And I'm still confused about it, the phrase with 1 makes no sense for me.

So — is 1 really the correct answer? If so — why is it, and not 3?


texts:
'Not to be taken as a standard to evaluate somebody or something'

Is this correct to say or is there another idiom or saying for it in English?
For example if a team who wasn't expected to lose a friendly and preparatory game, did end up losing, but because it was a friendly game it shouldn't be taken as a standard.. or shouldn't be taken by something else?


texts: What is the function of "one of my favourite xxx"?

texts: When people say "XXX is one of my favourite restaurants", what do they want to express? Why they don't just say "I like XXX"?


texts:
One can use 'except' as a preposition, as in the following sentence:

  I gave everyone except Mary a present.

Changing 'Mary' for a pronoun we get:

  I gave everyone except her a present.

Clearly the following is wrong:

  *I gave everyone except she a present

So my question is: does except always take the objective case in English?
Consider the following sentence:

  All except him agreed

To me, "he" sounds more elegant here, so maybe the noun affected by 'except' keeps the same case it would otherwise have in the sentence. But then:

  Except I, we all agreed

sounds definitely wrong compared to "Except me, we all agreed." Perhaps it is not a matter of case at all, but something else? I found this question very hard to google for, so that's all I've got to bring to the table.


texts: Can a concerted effort be made by one person?

texts: I believe that, in the same way as a concert is a performance of a group (if it's a soloist, then it's a recital), a concerted effort is also a collective business. But I'm not quite sure. Maybe, when you "force your heart and nerve and sinew" (If by R.Kipling), it's also a concerted effort?


texts:
Going off this question, where the sole answer put forth a rule of thumb:

  Grammatical reason: it is considered best for clarity's sake to place the emphasizer ("even," here) closest to the entity of interest.

The placement of the adverb "even" has piqued my interest with these sentences, some of them from various online dictionaries:

  ...declined even to consider the idea.

  her mother didn't like her even to walk past the barroom because she was worried that there might be drunk people inside

  For it is shameful even to mention the things being done by them in secret.

  ...to pay for things such as groceries, or even to purchase a cup of coffee.

These sentences do not accord with the aforementioned rule. I am wondering:

What stylistic differences do "even to" and "to even" make?
Is this an AmE/BrE thing? Is one way more preferable in any English language tradition?
My hypothesis is there are sentences where either one will do just fine and has the exact same meaning without nuances. But there should also be sentences--even among the handful examples listed above--where one way is more preferable than the other. What are the rules?


texts:
A storm of hail hammered down on the carport, leaving chunks of ice in its wake.

What is the meaning of 'wake' in that sentence? I don't really understand, since English isn't my first language.

Please explain it in simple way.


texts:
Is this sentence right?

  My grandmother drinks tea as much as juice.

I’m mostly concerned with the correct usage of as much as.


texts: Word for a group or series of stories that do not relate but are published under the same name?

texts:
I am looking for a word that describes a collection of short stories that are published either in a single book or under the same series name. They will all have been published by the same author.

I have been operating under the pretense that the word was non sequitur (much like the comic) but have found that this is wrong.

I am not thinking of an anthology.  Similarly, florilegium is too complex/obscure for what I am looking for.

Update to provide more context: The stories may or may not have any connection to each other, but were always meant to be published together. When I think of an "anthology" I get the feeling that the stories were published a separate time and compiled later.

I am looking to ask the author some questions to see if there there is over-arching connection that I may have missed...

  Are the stories in this book {insert word I am looking for}, or are they actually connected?


texts: What is the difference between “scream” and “shriek”?

texts:
I’m now curious because while I was updating the Wikipedia page for Onomatopoeias, I saw two different sets of sounds for scream and shriek. The sounds listed under these two sections seem to overlap.

According to Google, both words are synonyms:

  scream noun
  a long, loud, piercing cry expressing extreme emotion or pain.
  shriek noun
  a high-pitched piercing cry or sound; a scream.

They both seem to have almost identical meaning. (They are identical to me.) Is there any difference between these two words?


texts:
Which of the following is a usage of the past continuous tense?

Action in progress at a specific time in the past. *(Correct)
A completed past action
An action that was completed before a past time.
An action that began in the past and continues up until the present time.

I got this question wrong and selected 4. Can someone explain why the correct answer is 1? To me, it doesn't seem right since we can write non-specific sentences like "he was cooking".
Thank you!


texts: Analysis of this sentence and the "through via" usage within

texts:
I had a class today and discussed the usage of these two adjacent prepositions (Can two prepositions be used one after the other? "my guideline and reference in this case")  with a student who believes it sounds OK to him when two prepositions are used in the following way and he doesn't see any errors in the syntax of the sentence.
The context of the sentence:

AWS doesn't leave us unequipped to secure ourselves. For example, every domain that the customer has control over, they have provided us with the necessary tools to achieve optimum security.
A brief list:
Network Security
Network firewalls - giving us the ability to create VPCs (Virtual Private Cloud) with private networks.Connectivity options which enable private, or dedicated, connections from our office or on-premises environment.DDoS mitigation technologies that can be applied to layer 3 or 4 and layer 7.Automatic encryption of all traffic coming through via AWS global and regional networks."

The text/sentence:

Automatic encryption of all traffic coming through via AWS global and regional networks.

I have two issues with it:

adjacent prepositions
redundancy

Source: https://hackernoon.com/devsecops-and-devops-a-deep-dive-j62k34r3
Thanks!


texts:
In a scientific context I have a sentences of the form

  By doing ..., we yield ...

Now, I am trying to neutralize it to something like

  By doing ..., one yields ...

Unfortunately, I cannot find this formulation anywhere else. Is it a valid formulation anyway?

Example:

  By multiplying the equation with (x+1) and applying standard solving techniques for ODE, [one yields/we yield] the identity sin²(x) + cos²(x) = 1.


texts: What is the role of "every" in idioms like "every so often"?

texts:
There are a couple of idioms whose meaning is from time to time or occasionally.

  Every so often
  (Every) once in a while
  (Every) now and then/again

Every actually is a determiner (or, broadly speaking, an adjective) specifying a noun or noun phrase and means that everybody or everything of the referred group is addressed, as in every day, every man, or every student.

Obviously, every is also used when referring to a period or range of time, e.g., every thirty minutes or every week but, again, the time frame is given as a noun.

I was looking at the entry in Etymology Online, as well at Merriam-Webster and Oxford dictionaries to get further information.

Etymology Online doesn't address the matter at all. While the dictionaries at least define these phrases and list a couple of examples, they do not give any clue to answer my questions: what part of role is every playing in these expressions (from both a grammatical and logical point of view) and where did this usage come from.


texts: Meanings of 'killing moon' and 'killing time' in song by Echo and The Bunnymen

texts:
I was wondering what the meanings of the expressions killing moon and killing time on the song Killing moon by Echo and The Bunnymen are.

  Under blue moon I saw you So soon
  you'll take me Up in your arms Too
  late to beg you or cancel it Though I
  know it must be the killing time
  Unwillingly mine

  ...

  In starlit nights I saw you So cruelly
  you kissed me Your lips a magic world
  Your sky all hung with jewels The
  killing moon Will come too soon

I assume the song does not refer to some sort of ritualistic murder on full moon. What then are the meanings intended for these expressions?


texts: Ambiguous transitive verb whose meaning is determined by its subject

texts:
I am looking for an example of a transitive verb with an ambiguous meaning that is determined by its subject.

To explain what I mean, here is an example of a transitive verb whose meaning is modified by the object to which it is applied: to bend. You can bend a bow or you can bend the truth. Arguably, these give two different meanings of the same verb.

Now, can you think of a similar effect induced by the subject that performs the action of a verb? I am looking for a similar case where the change of meaning comes from the subject.

I hope this is clear. Thanks!

(For those interested in why I need this, I am researching a specific model in computational linguistics and want to test it on such a verb, if it exists.)


texts: Naming the relation of a competition and its sports

texts:
I'm trying to find a word for the relation between a competition or an event and its offered sports.

Let's take the Olympic Games for example:

The event would be the Olympic Games. You can participate in different sports like boxing. A specific match would then be associated to a [insert word here] which identifies its event and sport.

In my case I have eSport competitions which offer different video games (here equal to sports) you can participate in.

Combinations are for example:

ESL One 2015 - DotA 2
ESL One 2015 - CS:GO
ESL One 2015 - Hearthstone

How would you call these combinations?


texts:
When do you use hierarchical and when hierarchic?

For example, hierarchical database sounds much more native to me, even as a non-native English speaker. But why isn't it hierarchic database?

Edit: I just realized there are more words this question applies to: acyclical/acyclic, aesthetical/aesthetic, cosmetical/cosmetic,...


texts: Is it "me sitting at a table" or "I sitting at a table"?

texts:
The sentence is

  I can recall vivid images of my first atlas; I sitting at a table, finding all countries and their capitals on the atlas, and jotting them down on a paper.

This is the first line of a paragraph, and the atlas hasn't been mentioned before this line. I feel that this sentence doesn't sound right, and it seems to have an error after the semi-colon. How can I correct this sentence?


texts: The word/term for a series of bad/negative events turning to a positive outcome

texts: I tried on google every word and phrase I could come up but I just couldn't find it. I'm pretty sure I've seen this word before and it's english.


texts: A more acceptable word to replace the word "rectum"?

texts:
I wrote in a short paragraph describing how a cartoon character, after being eaten up by a shark, swam through the shark's internal body and fled from its rectum. It was meant to be a cartoon/game-like kind of idea.

A friend read and thought it was not very nice of me to have written it in this manner. I suspect it could be the word "rectum" that has made him feel uneasy.

Seriously, is it really crude of me to have written it that way?

What could be a better phrasing or word to replace "rectum" so that the meaning remains and does not sound too offensive?


texts: Is capitalisation required for quoted speech after 'He said that...'

texts: I'm confused as to whether or not I need to start quoted speech when following 'He said that'. The sentence is, 'He said that 'Writing a novel is like heading out over the open sea in a small boat.' Does the W of Writing need caps?


texts: A word for an acronym that doesn't stand for anything

texts: Some brands or product names take the form of an acronym, but the letters don't actually stand for anything. An example would be Windows XP--the "XP" was chosen for its sound and connotations rather than any particular words starting with X or P. Is there a term for this sort of formation? My first thought was "initialism", but it seems too broad since it includes terms that are meant to stand for things.


texts: What are the treads on the side of the highway called?

texts:
On the sides of most highways (in the U.S. at least), there are rough treads just outside the travel lanes to snap a driver to attention if the vehicle is drifting off the road. Is there a name for these things?

EDIT (post-answer for clarification, needed the answer to find the picture)
From the U.S. Department of Transportation's webpage:


texts: With passion for ... or with a passion for

texts:
I am looking at the following sentence and can not understand whether I have to use a or not.

I am a ... with [a] passion for ... . From my point of view passion is a noun and therefore it should have an article. But on the internet I have seen people using it with and without an article. Can anyone tell the correct way? (also would be nice to tell why).


texts:
I understand the usage of the two, but I'm looking for how to describe these types and rules for when you drop y and add ied. If that makes sense

Thanks


texts: What do we say for consulting a doctor as a continuation to our previous diagnosis

texts: What term do we use for consulting a doctor as a continuation to our previous diagnosis, is it a review-consultation or a follow-up consultation?


texts: What would be the word equivalent of paperwork in the digital age?

texts:
The classic definition for paperwork says

  Routine work involving written
  documents such as forms, records, or
  letters.

Now, given that we are in the digital age and computers have taken many tedious tasks away, we still have to cope with clutter... What would be the equivalent word for

  Routine work involving electronic
  documents such as forms, spreadsheets, or
  emails.

The equivalent will be used in the context of phrases like

Spare me the paperwork
Take the clutter away

p.s. It seems that Woody Allen is still using a typewriter.


texts:
I'm reading a romantic story, all written in letters to each other.  I'm now at the part where the female writes "Hello my paramour in waiting"; I looked up the word paramour and one definition is "the lover of a married person".

Since this is in the beginning of the story, and the characters background hasn't been fully unveiled, what might I infer about her / him?


texts: "He has been learning to swim" implicates that he doesn’t know how to swim

texts:
The Cambridge Grammar of the English Language, page 164, reads

  He has been learning to swim implicates that he doesn’t know how to
  swim

Is this true for most English dialects?

In my native language, Spanish, it would imply just the opposite in the following situation:

A: Is that Mike going into the deep side of the pool?

B: Oh, don't worry Karen, he's been learning to swim


texts: "Class, open your books TO/AT page 13!"—Is it a matter of dialectal difference?

texts:
My original notion was,

A) If there's a movement and a destination (as in the case of thumbing a book to reach a certain page), it should be to:
Class, open your books to page 13!
B) If there's none, then at:
There on the counter rested my cookbook, open at page 13.
The tome fell open right at the middle page.

Then I asked around and rummaged in corpora and found out that my reasoning was flawed. [IMO, there's either something wrong with logic or with language—or both. Somebody fix the whole mess please.] In fact, when it comes to opening or being open, the preposition is almost always to in AmE, whereas BrE is probably mixed, and (sometimes?) there is even a strong preference for at (especially in cases like B above).

I'll close with some of the search results that I mentioned, and leave the rest to others to hash out. Speakers of other dialects are more than welcome to chip in as well!

shut the book for a moment, then open it back up to page one and begin again – COCA
Students, if you could please open your math books to page two  – COCA
Open your grammar at page fourteen   – BNC
every time I took up the book it opened at page 92, although I have never deliberately read that page   – BNC
I happened to open the Rome Treaty at page 89 of the English text – Hansard Corpus
his first act on sitting down to breakfast was to open the tabloid at page three, fold it and prop it against the sugar bowl  – BNC


texts: Word for the next generation that you treat like your siblings

texts:
In academia, it is your responsibility to guide the students to get familiar with the academic environment, such as advising them to write their dissertations. Although it is a responsibility, because these students are in the situation exactly what you used to be, and in the spirit of paying forward, you want to share with them your most experience with enthusiastic. In my language, these students are named as a kind of sibling. Is there any word that is equivalent to this?

I have thought about junior, but I'm afraid that the readers will mistake it with third year student. And I think that inferior is not a positive word.


texts: "Shaded with green" vs "shaded by green" as adjective?

texts:
I'm really not sure what's the difference, both seem right.

The meaning is that the object has a shade of green upon it.


texts: What is the origin / reason for adding asterisks within swear words like f**k?

texts:
Several variants of this topic have already been covered here, such as:

What name for bowdlerisation with asterisks (e.g., “f*ck”)?

What the #$@&%*! is that called?

However, these deal with the naming of this convention or with replacing whole words with asterisks / obscenicons / grawlixes, not with the partial censoring of still-visible and understandable words.

My question is: Why and when did we start censor words such as fk with partial-asterisks** but still retain the same word length/structure/opening-closing letters so the word is still understandable but yet deemed 'safe' in this way? What is the origin of such a method (and, more of a separate question, is the same thing done in non-English languages?)

Google NGram seems to show the first instance of f**k from 1959 but doesn't show any context, or where this actually was used.


texts: Word or phrase to describe an activity that is "used to pass time"

texts: Aside from pastime, what is a word or phrase that can be used to describe an activity that is not pleasurable and used only as a diversion while letting time pass?


texts: As you may know the word "the" never appears on the label of products made in any country except the USA. I've found both "Made in USA" and "Made in the USA" on product labels, but which is the right one?


texts: Is there a word to describe the positioning of words directly below other words, as in translations

texts: I was hoping to use a word to say that in a song lyric, the translation of the original language appears directly below the original language throughout the song, without having to say all that.  I thought "subscribed" made sense (sub=below; scribed=written), but can't find any dictionaries that give that definition to the word.


texts: Is there a word for something not feeling real but it is real?

texts:
Is there a word for something not feeling real but is real?
When you go somewhere or see a picture of someplace and it feels as if it isn’t real and for a moment you are wondering if it’s just a dream and it’s just your imagination but really it is real it just looks so amazing for example the glowing water in the Maldives and the glowing water fall in Puerto Rico.
Examples:
Puerto Rico

Maldives

This is the picture I am trying to say feels this way, I am talking about how the water looks and makes me feel like that=  https://images.google.co.uk/imgres?imgurl=http%3A%2F%2Fi.dailymail.co.uk%2Fi%2Fpix%2F2015%2F04%2F30%2F19%2F2828D3A900000578-0-image-a-1_1430420241031.jpg&imgrefurl=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.dailymail.co.uk%2Fnews%2Farticle-3063104%2FChemical-reaction-causes-ghostly-fog-sweep-Welsh-beach.html&docid=XuTLMpcaeK57YM&tbnid=2yEnOznM5l0iiM%3A&vet=1&w=962&h=645&hl=en-gb&source=sh%2Fx%2Fim
This is not the only thing I mean I also mean just anything that feels that way.I would like to use it to describe the setting of a place saying that it feels unreal yet it is real, however I would like to say that without saying it like that.


texts: Which is correct: 'as beautiful as her' or 'as beautiful as she'?

texts:
From what I have understood from reading about she/her, I understand that 'she' is to be used as a subject (with the 'be' implied) and 'her' as an object, but I am confused about the usage with similes or comparisons.

eg: 'The Moon is as beautiful as her/she.'

Or are both correct but the subject and object interchanged?


texts: What’s the word for when someone tells you to do something and that same person reprimands you for it?

texts: I know that there’s a word for it but I cannot remember what it is. I know it can be used in the law e.g. it’s illegal for a police officer to tell a store owner to sell alcohol to a minor and then arrest them. What would be the word for that?


texts: Another word or words for "purpose driven"?

texts: What is another word or words for purpose driven?


texts: What is the scientific name to humour that is based on surprise

texts:
I remember browsing through Wikipedia one day, and coming across an article defining surprise-based humour. The article had a very specific scientific name, which doesn't have the actual word "surprise" in it.

To give an example of this kind humour, consider the following sentence:

"I have the body of a 20 years old model, it really takes a lot of space in my freezer."

I'd like to know the actual name of that kind of humour, and particular the link to the long gone Wikipedia article regarding it.

Thanks!


texts: What are you, laughing? vs. What, are you laughing?

texts:
Please watch this clip of the movie Ant-Man, starting at 1:29.
In the clip, the girl laughs at Ant-Man, who then retorts:

What are you laughing?

Where should you put the comma, after What or you?

a. What, are you laughing?
b. What are you, laughing?

Is there any clear way of knowing which is correct?
And what's the meaning difference, if any?


texts: Is there a word for someone who enforces rules using a double standard because of some bias?

texts:
An example would be an officer choosing to give person A a speeding ticket and choosing to not give person B a speeding ticket, even if both persons were speeding in identical situations on different instances. Person A might be a different race or gender to person B, for instance, or the officer might have had some other bias.
Another would be say, a park has a sign up that says "no pets on grass" which goes ignored regularly by many people. A citizen might choose to oppose a particular person for breaking said rule while choosing to ignore it for others. The underlying reason is that the citizen simply doesn't like the person they are confronting because of some bias, and projecting that through "being right" about some rule.


texts: Can I write different spellings of the same word in the same context?

texts:
Can I use "color" in one paragraph, but write "colour" in the next one?
Yes, I just did it. But is it acceptable to do so when not talking about spelling differences?


texts: Relative and demonstrative pronouns "that" and "those"

texts:
I think the sentence

  the difference between the behaviour of young people today and that of those in the past

is correct, as that (relative pronoun) replaces behaviour and those (demonstrative pronoun) refers to young people.

Can we also say:

  the difference between the behaviour of young people today and the one of yesterday (or and the one of youth in the past)

Can you help me explain why the first one is correct. I can't quite construct the argument, but I know the first example is correct, whilst I'm not sure the second example (using one instead of that to refer to the behaviour) is correct in this case.


texts: Why is it that modern English readily accepts forming the adjectival form of some family member's names (e.g. motherly) but not others (e.g. sonly?)

texts: We have motherly and fatherly. There is the city of brotherly love, and the girlfriend whose love for you is sisterly, or worse yet daughterly. According to the Collins Dictionary's trend line, sonly was in use during the 18th century, but has flatlined since, and auntly enjoyed a brief period of use in the last half of the 20th century. I suppose Uncle Sam's love for you is avuncular, but not unclely.


texts:
When writing a letter, should I use

  "Waiting for your approval"

or

  "Kindly awaiting for your approval"

?


texts: Why in Britain were the police called "rozzers"?

texts:
I've just watched all six episodes of the BBC historical drama "The Trial of Christine Keeler".

It was marvellous for the way it presented London life of the 1960s - the lovely old cars, the suave John Profumo with a gold cigarette case and lighter, elegant house parties at Cliveden, and the slightly dated idiom and slang.

Christine, at one point says "It's the rozzers…", which took me back in time.

Why "rozzers"?


texts:
Can the phrase "once more" be a noun in American English?

I'm wondering if it can, as the two Japanese online dictionaries I'm using for my translation of 今一度 both say that the entry, -which only translates to "once more" in English- is a noun.

https://jisho.org/search/今一度

https://www.tanoshiijapanese.com/dictionary/entry_details.cfm?entry_id=27580&j=%E4%BB%8A%E4%B8%80%E5%BA%A6

I want some advice as to how to properly translate "once more" across the different grammar styles (I.E. from the noun to a adverbial phrase) so that it still retains its original meaning as a noun, in English.

Edit:
The phrase in question is in the following line of dialogue spoken to Ms. McCunnen by a pretentious, egotistical character who enjoys using higher-diction when possible. The pair are speaking about a guy captured by their organization.

“Please do have some appreciation. Ms. McCunnen, I can say with utmost confidence that this is a mercy. He had the excessive misfortune of happening to be present at the scene of the crime. By all rights as a suitable eye-witness he should have been erased. Yet as for myself, I want to bestow on him the chance for him to once more walk a rewarding human life. Even you have not similar thoughts as well?”

EDIT: The answer I have come up with after reviewing commentary on this question is the following:

"Please do have some appreciation. Ms. McCunnen, I can say with utmost confidence that this is a mercy. He had the excessive misfortune of happening to be present at the scene of the crime. By all rights as a suitable eye-witness he should have been erased. Yet as for myself, I want to bestow on him the chance for him to once more lead a rewarding human life. Surely you must have thought the same, have you not?”


texts: Troubled by a sentence in a Reuters article

texts:
I am troubled by the following sentence

  According to Khanh, Vietnam has 0.7 passenger aircraft for every 1 million people in its population, compared with 7 in Malaysia and 15 in Australia.

which appears in the following Reuters article

http://www.reuters.com/article/2013/09/27/us-vietnam-dreamliners-idUSBRE98Q12H20130927

I don't think it's my fault however. In this case, it's fairly obvious that Malaysia and Australia have 7 and 15 aircrafts for every 1 million people respectively.

But assume the statistic is slightly different so that the statement becomes

  According to Khanh, Vietnam has 1 passenger aircraft for every 1 million people in its population, compared with 7 in Malaysia and 15 in Australia.

And assume we have no idea about the economy of the 3 countries, then the trouble becomes

Is it

  Malaysia and Australia have 1 aircraft for every 7 and 15 millions people respectively.

Or

  Malaysia and Australia have 7 and 15 aircrafts for every 1 million people respectively.

Do I have a valid point here?


texts: "Would" in subordinate clauses after wish-constructions

texts:
I'm reading about the correct usage of wish-constructions, and my English grammar book says:"Would + infinitive may be found in the subordinate clause only if the subjects in the clauses are different. It makes the wish more emphatic. The use of "would + infinitive" often implies that you want a situation to change and you talk about things that annoy you". As an illustrative example the book this:

I wish it would stop raining. It rains all the time.

But I have several questions regarding it.

The book says that "would" in wish-constructions is put in subordinate clauses if a person is annoyed by something. However, it writes "often implies" but not "always implies". So I'd like to know if "would" can be used in wish-constructions when a person isn't annoyed.

Also, I'm puzzled with the second sentence of the example( "It rains all the time"). They first wrote about annoyance, but put a form of Present Simple. Wouldn't it be more logical if they wrote the second sentence in emotional Present Continuous instead of Present Simple ("It's raining all the time), so that it can express a stronger emotion?

Finally, I would like to clear up another thing. What if I ommit "would" and formulate the sentence  in a different way: "I wish it stopped raining."Will it be correct from the point of view of grammar?


texts: You have the watches, but we have the time

texts:
This quote is associated with the Taliban in reference to the US occupation of Afghanistan.
I understand the metaphorical meaning of the quote — i.e. the point that it makes.
But I am intrigued by the literal meaning. In particular, I can't work out what it means to "have the watch", nor what the "watch" refers to metaphorically.
Anybody know?
For the record, I've done some searches, but have only turned up explanations of the metaphoric meaning, nothing about analysis of the literal meaning.


texts: What do you call a **person** who is capable of doing anything and everything, humanly possible?

texts: What do you call a person who is capable of doing anything and everything, humanly possible?


texts:
What is the meaning of astrung? I’ve read it from this passage from Of Human Bondage:

  She was terrified. She wanted him to reassure her; She looked at him pleadingly, not daring to ask for words of comfort but with all her nerves astrung to receive them: he had none to offer her.

In the dictionary I have there is no word such as astrung. What does this word mean?

Actually, I am afraid it’s just misprinted.


texts: What does the phrase "For long, in need" connote?


texts:
The usual flow of electronic communication is added to at Christmas by many written notes and greetings hand-written in haste, among which are mistakes. “Xmas Peas and Love” comes to mind.
We term such slips typos when in printed or electronic form, a shortened form of

typographical error
Merriam Webster

Other than the long phrase slip of the pen, do we have a similar short term for a hand-written error?


texts: That persistent feeling / memory that stays with one after a profound dream?

texts:
I feel rather bad asking this here, as I am fairly certain there is no extant word in the English language to describe this; however, since we borrow words freely from other languages, may I inquire as to possible choices?

I have looked on these sorts of lists but have not found anything as specific as I'd like. The closest I have come across thus far is saudade. But it is, I think, not quite the same thing.

EDIT Following Tushar Raj's first attempt: This is a feeling of being transposed, almost; the persistent memory of the dream-that-was seems to keep one in the powerful feeling of the dream even once one is fully awake. My personal experience is that it can go on for a full day, or until one's next sleep. Usually, it's only for an hour or two after waking. For me at least, there is often a sense of melancholy or "out-of-placeness" associated with it. It is often not a pleasant sensation, even a little disturbing. But there certainly can be pleasant instances. I imagine it depends on the psyche.

P.S. I'm looking for a noun.


texts: Is the T in "the" capitalized when referring to a royal house mid-sentence?

texts:
Every example I've been able to find has it at the beginning of the sentence, but while it seems like, unless it's actually part of a book title or company name or something, most proper nouns don't call for capitalizing the T in a preceding "the" mid-sentence, like people write "...the Beatles," not "...The Beatles," "...the East Coast," not "...The East Coast," and "...the President of the United States," not "...The President of The United States," I've seen that when Queen Elizabeth is referred to as a... I guess... pronoun of sorts, it's written "Her Majesty The Queen," the T in "the" getting capitalized. So I'm wondering if that's true of a royal family name, too, any royal family, not just the British one, for example:

The current British Royal Family is of The House of Windsor.

Or if that's not correct:

The current British Royal Family is of the House of Windsor.

So what's the proper way to write a royal family's name or house that's preceded by a "the" when it appears mid-sentence rather than at the beginning of a sentence, like was Tsar Nicholas II of the House of Romanov or of The House of Romanov?
The reason I'm asking is I think it is supposed to be capitalized, like I think I remember seeing that, but I'm not sure and I can't find anything that says, so maybe I'm just imagining it. I don't now.


texts:
What is the origin of the phrase "Bob's your uncle"? Is it used internationally or is this just a term used in the UK?

I have often heard an extension of this phrase: "Bob's your uncle and Fanny's your aunt", can anyone shed any light on this variant?

An example of how it is used:

"Put it in the oven for 20 minutes and Bob's your uncle, your dinner will be done".


texts: What will be the best word in this situation?

texts:
He knew it was a very ___ operation but he was determined to carry it out.
Available options are:
a) Difficult
b) Dangerous
c) Risky
d) Troublesome

It seems that all the options are valid. Could you please explain, what should be the best answer?


texts: I would like to know which of "ZIP Code" or "ZIP code" is correct. One of our contributors has alerted me to the  fact that the term is a registered name owned by the US Postal Service, but, to my mind, it has become a generic term over time. What is the majority view?


texts: Love of Home and Friends—like the ridge behind a Bunker! (Meaning)

texts:
I'm translating a fable by George Ade called "The Fable of the Visitor Who Got a Lot for Three Dollars." In the following extract, the phrenologist is telling his customer how he is based on the form of his head:

"Well, well!" said the Learned Phrenologist "Enough Benevolence here to do a family of Eight. Courage? I guess yes! Dewey's got the same kind of a Lump right over the Left Ear. Love of Home and Friends—like the ridge behind a Bunker!"

My issue is with the phrase "Love of Home and Friends—like the ridge behind a Bunker!" I assume "like the ridge behind a Bunker" is a metaphor, but I feel like I can't get the meaning. Would you please help me with this?


texts:
What do you call something that is smaller than a mountain but bigger than a hill?

  There is a small mountain near my hometown.

"Small mountain" sounds better than "low mountain" to me but I got confused on which word to use because some songs use high/highest mountains.

If both "small mountain" and "low mountain" are correct, which one sounds more natural to you?

"There is a low mountain near my hometown." sounds a little odd to me. I had a conversation with a non-native speaker (just like me) who likes hiking. In relation to hiking, would low mountain be better?


texts: What's the word for something scary but actually harmless?

texts:
What's a noun (or noun phrase) for something scary but actually harmless?

I've thought of "bugbear" but it's not very accurate.

An adjective somewhat the opposite of insidious (as in "deadly while appearing to be harmless") would be welcome too.


texts: Why do people in the scientific community use terminology such as renal, hepatic, and cardiac instead of kidney, liver, and heart?

texts: Why is there the need to map these everyday words onto another set of words when it seems to complicate matters?  Is it just done out of tradition, or is there some underlying logic to it?


texts: Is it possible to rephrase "we're going to bring back that hulking hunk of bumbling brawn"?

texts:
The context of the following quote is from the comic book Avengers.  In a circus, the ringmaster introduces a brawny guy by saying:

  First off today, we're going to bring back that hulking hunk of bumbling brawn you've all been waiting for.

I would like to translate this sentence to Portuguese, but I was not able. It is extremely difficult to translate hulking hunk of bumbling brawn. I asked it here. Is it possible to rephrase that sentence without losing the meaning of it?