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3,200 | 153,060 | 76823_0 | He escaped several times but was finally caught. If the sentence has to be started with 'In spite of', which of the following will be correct? 1\. In spite of his escaping several times, he has finally been caught. Or, 2\. In spite of escaping several times, he was finally caught. Similarly, which is grammatically more correct? 'In spite of his being poor, he was happy.' or 'In spite of being poor, he was happy.' |
3,201 | 122,649 | 76823_0 | Are _despite_ and _in spite of_ interchangeable? I prefer _despite_ but the alternative sometimes scans better. |
3,202 | 146,388 | 76823_0 | ..."prostitute". Both words are suffixed by "-stitute", but obviously the meaning are quite different. "Substitute" is a conceptual, mental and intelligent activity, whilst "prostitute" is a profitable, body (mostly) and sensual activity. In my opinion, they don't have any reasonable relationships! So why do they spell so similar? |
3,203 | 159,121 | 76823_0 | I once read a story about a Navy man who, due to a bad childhood, never learned what emotions were. To him, there was no "angry", "happy", or "sad" — it was just "intense" and "not intense". Although most of us can differentiate between our feelings, there are many other such events in our daily lives that we experience, but don't necessarily have the language to talk or think about. For example: * Someone who doesn't know much about cooking might not know that their food is undersalted. To them, it would simply taste "bland". Or, for a more frequent example, someone who doesn't know about the taste of astringency might find that some cups of tea taste worse than others, but not be able to describe why. One more: how about beer? I only started drinking beer recently, and it used to all taste the same to me. Now I can differentiate between vastly different styles (IPA and hefeweizen, for example), but all IPAs still taste almost identical. Over time, I'm sure I'll be able to differentiate between even those. * Someone who's never encountered a discussion of framerate might not know why some TV shows look like soap operas and others don't. * Someone who never bothered to learn the rules of grammar might not be able to explain them, even though they'd still be able to use them in everyday speech. (Same with math.) I constantly surprise myself by becoming conscious of weird grammar rules in Russian, such as the fact that the words in a sentence can be rearranged without changing the meaning. * Someone who doesn't know music theory might not be able to explain why they have an emotional response to part of a song. A musician, on the other hand, can talk about chord progressions, tonality, melodic lines, voice leading, and various other techniques used to increase and decrease the tension. In each of these cases, once you know the trick, the explanation seems obvious in retrospect. How could you not know what "happy" feels like? How do you not recognize saltiness? But when you're in a position where you don't even know that you don't know something, it's easy to miss patterns among the noise. There's simply no conceptual foundation for you to grab onto. Is there a word that means, roughly, "taking something that was once understood in only a nebulous, ill-defined way, and acquiring the core concepts and vocabulary required to understand and talk about it specifically"? Or, more simply put, "recognizing that something is 'a thing'"? |
3,204 | 162,281 | 76823_0 | Is a comma needed in this sentence? Is _for which_ used correctly in this sentence? > We define message codes **for which** security is well defined. |
3,205 | 162,280 | 76823_0 | I get that _sorta_ , _kinda_ , _sorta-kinda_ (this one I quite like though) _oughta_ and _sposta_ imitate speech but it still annoys me to find them "in print", especially when the overall tone is formal. Occasionally, I have read detailed answers on EL&U in otherwise impeccable, faultless English, containing any one or more of these expressions. I have asked myself what was the aim of the writer, when the rest of ( _resta_?) the answer is formal and technical in style. Outside of EL&U are there examples of formal and technical texts which contain any of the above expressions? And ironically, are these forms considered ungrammatical/non-standard when used in informal writing but perfectly acceptable in formal? |
3,206 | 153,189 | 76823_0 | Suppose that there is a survey of people asking them their reasons for thinking or behaving a certain way. While analyzing the survey results, a researcher may discuss all the different reasons the respondents put forth, and compare reasons that were shared by multiple people. The researcher then writes: > There is a common set of reasons that are compelling. But I have a quibble with this: the sentence starts out with the singular subject _set_ (thus the matching _there is_ ), but surprises the reader by making _that_ modify _reasons_ instead of _set_ , as clearly indicated through the use of _are_ instead of _is_ that would match the singular _set_. Are my instincts correct? If so, what rule of grammar is this violating? _Bonus: please suggest a good title. It's hard to come up with a title when I don't know the answer, yet. I realized that "Sentence grammaticality" is not a good title, but I don't know if the current one is an improvement._ |
3,207 | 64,086 | 76823_0 | We say _semimonthly_ when we describe something happening twice a month. for example "a semimonthly publication", "a semimonthly meeting", etc. Is there any word we can use to describe something that happens three times a month; preferably one word? |
3,208 | 64,084 | 76823_0 | Erroneous means containing errors. I wanted to say about files that generate errors in a computer program, so I posted on a public mailing list: _errogenous files_. Could it be better? By better I don't mean more amusing. Maybe the construct I used is correct, but unfortunate. Is it? Actually you won't find any "errogenous files" on the net except those of mine :) > The program scans files, and the files in question contain characters which > trigger error messages in the scanning program. |
3,209 | 153,181 | 76823_0 | I heard that the announcer, Tim McGuire reported that; > “ **A first** for U.S. Ice Dancing team, Gold. Meryl Davis, Charlie White > taking the top spot in Sochi.” in February 17 AP Radio News. I also found ”a fifth / sixth term” in Jeffery Archer’s fiction, “Prodigal Daughter”： > “It was from George that he learned that Henry Osborne had been re-elected > to Congress **a fifth term**. - P57 > > At least he had been right in stating that Henry Osborne was returned to > Congress for **a sixth term**. - P89 I wonder why it is “ **a** first” instead of “ **the** first” for U.S. Ice Dancing team, Gold. and “ **a** fifth / sixth term” instead of “ **the** fifth / sixth term” for Congressman, Osborne. I’m under impression that the ordinal number usually takes “the” like “the first time,” “Elizabeth the Second,” and “The Third man.” Is ‘the’ and “a” interchangeable for the ordinal number? If not, what is the difference between “A first” and “The first” in the context of U.S. Ice Dancing team winning Gold medal in Sochi? |
3,210 | 64,080 | 76823_0 | How should I greet between 12pm and 2pm? Should I say 'Good Afternoon' or 'Good Noon'? Is Good Noon commonly used or not? |
3,211 | 21,480 | 76823_0 | Is the usage of the word _couple_ (as in, _"I want to ask a couple of questions..."_ ) to mean 'some' or 'few' correct (as in, interpreting given example to mean _"I want to ask a few questions"_ )? As a follow-up on the example, when someone says _"I want to ask a couple of questions..."_ , does the usage of 'couple' necessarily mean the two questions have to be related to each other, or can couple just mean 'two' in that context? |
3,212 | 125,568 | 76823_0 | I'm polishing and redrafting my novel. But grammar is not my strong suit. I need help with tenses, specifically. As you may already know, stories are usually told in the past tense. But it's not always simple past. There's past perfect, as well. Could you please help me with this particular sentence: > Megan couldn't remember how long she has been sitting in her armchair, > staring at the empty wine glass in her hand. Should it be "she has been sitting" or "she had been sitting"? |
3,213 | 125,567 | 76823_0 | Someone told me that this phrase is grammatically incorrect, but I do not understand why? > XYZ is a fellowship of adults sharing a devotion to encourage students. |
3,214 | 125,564 | 76823_0 | An old fashioned word or phrase that describes a meditative walk. It's not a constitutional but it's something that Ben Franklin, or Thomas Edison would do to clear their mind, rejuvenate, reconnect, invigorate, rebalance etc. I think there is a noun for this activity. They might say "I am going to take my ...." |
3,215 | 42,288 | 76823_0 | In the recently published ‘Oxford Modern English Grammar’, Bas Aarts classifies pronouns with nouns and not as a separate word class. In this, he follows the authors of ‘The Cambridge Grammar of the English Language’. Is this now a widely accepted practice in pedagogic circles on both sides of the Atlantic? |
3,216 | 125,561 | 76823_0 | We are specialized in packing, and I have a client Email to me as below: > . . . do you over shrink-wrap service or is it included in the price? He uses _over_ here, what does he mean? |
3,217 | 158,457 | 76823_0 | I am reading stories by Jack London, and I have noticed that often wild animals are referred to as _game_. It sounds funny to my non-English-native speaker ear. Is there some reason why the word _game_ is used? Or did the word have a different meaning 100 years ago? |
3,218 | 45,683 | 76823_0 | I found the answer to this question interesting in that he referred to a "75 cent word". I would have called it a _50_ -cent word, not because I undervalued his answer but because that is how I have heard the phrase. I thought at first that am old enough that inflation caused the difference, but I found a 1976 reference to 75-cent word from 1976, the earliest reference to the phrase I found in a quick ngrams search. What is the "right" value to use in the phrase "?-cent word" (or, what was the original)? Has it changed over time? Do non-American English speakers have alternative expressions in local currency? |
3,219 | 24,729 | 76823_0 | In school, I learned to use 10 cent words, so instead of saying: (updated: from a paper that says a scientist doing experiment with fish would make it complicated to say:) > All biota exhibited 100% mortality rate. just say: > All fish died. which is plain and simple, and gets the idea across, so that people understand what you are saying. But in the real world, time and time again, verbally or written, I see people higher up purposefully using $2 words, to convey that they are educated, and to convey they can use difficult words that you don't understand, and suggest possibly they can do things that other people cannot, so they have power over you (maybe to write something like that to the CEO or board of directors, and if you are against him, the board of director probably won't believe you or not on your side when you write something all with 10 cents words versus his $2 words every where). So, was I too naive to believe "use 10 cent words"? The world may not be simply about "getting ideas across"? What might be an more accurate descriptions of the use of 10 cent words versus $2 words? |
3,220 | 146,668 | 76823_0 | I've often been wondering where the phrase in the title comes from - I always picture it as coming from an early television era game show, but more likely it has to do with pricing of telegrams or news paper advertisements? In particular, I'd like to know if there is a more subtle meaning to the numerical value being used; at least, moreso than "higher value means more sophisticated." From memory, I've seen it used (at least) with 0.10$, 2$, 3$, 4$, 5$ and 10$. Which values are commonly used to indicate what? Would a native speaker intuitively spot someone who's just making up numbers (e.g. "8$ word")? I've searched ELU and found a few usages, but no discussion about it: Should I use 10 cent words or $2 words? Is "autodidact" too obscure to use in a resume? Numbers and units Are these phrases too posh-sounding for conversational English? |
3,221 | 158,455 | 76823_0 | What is a single word for _best known function_? I'm trying to say, for example, that lumber has been the best known function of timber? |
3,222 | 176,973 | 76823_0 | In "Great Expectations" by Charles Dickens, when Pip returns after his meeting with the escaped convict, how come it says that he had dinner right afterwards? Did he skip lunch? Or did his meeting take all day? Can someone explain this for me? |
3,223 | 158,450 | 76823_0 | What is the single word to describe someone who doesn't appreciate what another person has done for them? For example, let's say someone has sacrificed a lot of things and gone through a very hard life to make their spouse happy but the spouse leaves the person for very minor selfish reasons. In other words, someone who is not appreciative of what the other person has done for them and never thinks twice to hurt the other person in exchange for the smallest benefit. |
3,224 | 190,075 | 76823_0 | On my security card at work is written "Contractor" in big, bold, capital letters. A thought just crossed my mind (as I work for a medical company): If I am the contractor, am I the one passing the disease to others? Is it correct to call the other side of the contract the Contractee? And what does it say about our work relations, if this is how they see me? :-) |
3,225 | 149,775 | 76823_0 | I have had a look at some examples on here, but I am still not sure. Should I hyphenate "up-to-the-minute" in this sentence? > We can supply you with up-to-the-minute intelligence on distributors, > companies and geographical locations, allowing you to make an informed > decision. OR > We can supply you with up to the minute intelligence on distributors, > companies and geographical locations, allowing you to make an informed > decision. I am leaning toward hyphenating as it is an adjective for _intelligence_ , and also a longer sentence so possibly misread, but I am not sure. |
3,226 | 46,900 | 76823_0 | I sometimes write university projects for students and fix friends' computers, sometimes for money. I call things I do for myself _personal projects_ , _personal work_ , _personal act_ , etc. What adjective should I use to call those things I do for others? _Impersonal_ and _nonpersonal_ do not sound good. |
3,227 | 133,399 | 76823_0 | The prefix _arch-, archi-_ “chief, principal; extreme, ultra; early, primitive,” derives from Latinized Greek _arkh-, arkhi-,_ the combining form of _arkhos_ “chief.” Usually, _arch-_ is pronounced like “arch” (ɑrtʃ), and _archi-_ sounds like “ark” (ɑrkɪ), although _archangel_ (ɑrkeɪndʒəl) is a notable exception. Is there an etymological or other reason for pronouncing the two prefixes differently? Did they perhaps enter English at different times? Likewise, is there any pattern to which nouns use _arch-_ (e.g., _archenemy, archfiend_ ) versus _archi-_ ( _archiepiscopal, architect_ )? Why is _archangel_ an exception to the pronunciation rule? |
3,228 | 149,771 | 76823_0 | So, I want to ask the students to contact me if they are interested in topics A and B. Which one is better? Please contact me if you are interested in any of the following topics: ... or Please contact me if you are interested in either of the following topics: ... Or, do you think there is a better way to put that? |
3,229 | 158,459 | 76823_0 | I've seen in an online shop the following sentence "Windows is isntalled by default.". I'm not a native speaker and was wondering, is "isntalled" correct or it's a mistake and they wanted to say 'installed'? Thanks! |
3,230 | 46,905 | 76823_0 | I have a forum where you can Like a reply. After you press that button it changes from Like to Liked. Now I want to add a Dislike button so I would like to replace the "Liked" text for something that would also include "Disliked". I think the word should be close to something like "Done", "Voted", or "Pressed" but also related with the original text. Do you have any suggestions? |
3,231 | 32,750 | 76823_0 | This is not a duplicate of "anymore" vs. "any more". I made sure. In that case, the two terms being compared were noun phrase (any more) vs. adverb (anymore). In this case, the two are both noun terms. I know which is more often used, but is "any thing" incorrect? The question was raised in my mind when I saw "any thing" on a post, and wondered whether to edit it to "anything". |
3,232 | 13,488 | 76823_0 | I was reading Rainbow Six by Tom Clancy this morning, and he compares his characters to the 'pros from Dover'. This was a phrase that I also remember hearing in the movie M*A*S*H - so it seems to be a phrase in use in 1970 (and possibly 1950s, although the historical accuracy of the movie could be put into question). So - where is this Dover? And who are the pros and why are they held in such regard? |
3,233 | 10,666 | 76823_0 | Which sentence do you find more natural? > Your last actions only prove me that you're not worth my trust. > > Your last actions only prove **to** me that you're not worth my trust. or maybe some other form like > Your last actions only confirm (my belief / me in the belief) that you're > not worth my trust. ? |
3,234 | 53,070 | 76823_0 | Does a person run or stand for election? I have a sentence that reads: "Now is the time to start thinking of standing for election to a lodge office." I have been told that it should read: "...run for lodge office." Is that true? |
3,235 | 983 | 76823_0 | This song by The Rolling Stones, "(I Can't Get No) Satisfaction". As a non-native speaker, I always wondered what's the exact meaning of this phrase? * **Is it "I'm not getting any satisfaction"** (this seems to be the most widely met translation; double negation used where single negation should have been used). * **Or is it "I want my satisfaction, I cannot leave without getting some"** (makes much more sense to me). Or is it something else? I've always had troubles understanding double negation as applied to English. First I was taught it's a mistake to use double negation at all, and then I see it everywhere. |
3,236 | 68,433 | 76823_0 | > **Possible Duplicate:** > What is the difference between "I can't get any sleep" and "I can/'t get no > sleep"? Some people, who have little knowledge of grammatical correctness, would say _Don't go nowhere_ , telling the person to stay where they are. Of course, literally and technically, _Don't go nowhere_ is telling someone to go somewhere, as you are telling them to not go nowhere, which means they should go somewhere. Is there a technical word for this way of saying something? (Bear in mind that I am very aware that this is grammatically incorrect, considering the meaning of the statement that I have stated). |
3,237 | 29,564 | 76823_0 | > **Possible Duplicate:** > "I Can't Get No Satisfaction" -- what's the correct meaning? I know this is a popular song and they might have twisted it a bit. but is it the legal use? I mean we see so many places where these things are used like "I don't have no words", "There ain't no use" |
3,238 | 181,755 | 76823_0 | I have seen the following sentence: _I can't get no satisfaction_. Can we say _''don't/can't [verb] no...''_? I would like an explanation about this _expression_. |
3,239 | 114,250 | 76823_0 | How should the following sentence be understood? > "There isn't no happiness". > > a) meaning: There IS some happiness . (Because the two negations cancel each > other out) > > b) meaning: There is NO happiness. In daily-life conversations, which of the two would most likely be meant by the speaker? (Why would one want to use a double-negation anyway?) |
3,240 | 114,998 | 76823_0 | Is this phrase grammatically correct? > Is you is or is you ain't my baby? It's from a Tom and Jerry cartoon: http://vimeo.com/40283242 (at 1:30, 2:00 and 3:00). |
3,241 | 53,301 | 76823_0 | > **Possible Duplicate:** > There is no headache strong enough, that a good coffee won't relieve > There is no headache strong enough, that a good coffee won't relieve. I know that this sentence is grammatically correct, but I still can't find a suitable grammar rule that would explain why _strong enough_ is used after the noun in this sentence. Why don't we say "There's no strong enough headache, that a good coffee won't relieve"? It doesn't look like a reduced relative clause that usually occur with past participles, such as "the people skilled in design" ("the people which are skilled in design"). We usually place such adjectives like _possible_ , _available_ , and few others after the noun. This is not the case. Can anybody explain the word order to me? It would be even better if someone provides a proof from a grammar book. |
3,242 | 90,211 | 76823_0 | I am in doubt about my sentence. I am trying to describe around 73% accuracy that can be obtained using a mentioned method. So, I have written: > The study of Sen et al (2012) has shown that a tree canopy can be detected > **with about** 73% overall accuracy. Can I use _with about_ together, one after the other? |
3,243 | 195,779 | 76823_0 | Are lists preceded by a colon, semi-colon or something else? > * Today, I'm grateful for a few things: family, health, and work. > > * Today, I'm grateful for a few things, specifically; family, health, and > work. > > |
3,244 | 140,984 | 76823_0 | I hope that I gain skills in three areas: critical thinking, writing, and collaboration. I am looking to see if the colon should be used in this sentence at all. |
3,245 | 168,639 | 76823_0 | I often heard people say the word "gotta". I have read in this web site that gotta is a contraction of "I have got to" and that that phrase means "must", is my understanding correct? Regarding the use of "gotta", what does the following phrase mean: 1. I gotta get something thanks. |
3,246 | 163,628 | 76823_0 | How can the word _forlorn_ be used in a sentence? i know it is an adjective but i hardly see it being used in a passage and really do not how to use it. How can it be used correctly in a sentence to depict its meaning? |
3,247 | 112,809 | 76823_0 | > sanctuary (Oxford) /ˈsæŋktʃuəri ; ˈsæŋktʃueri/ It is /k/ that I don’t hear in the website’s pronunciation. Do they drop /k/ under some pronunciation rule? - it happens that /ŋ/ and /k/ all are velar sounds. |
3,248 | 168,632 | 76823_0 | Normally, pie charts are circular and each piece of data is shown as a slice of a whole. However, for some purposes, it makes more sense to display the same kind of data as a rectangle divided up with vertical lines, with each horizontal "slice" of the rectangle representing a piece of the data. It would look like **one** rectangle cut into multiple slices along **one** dimension. For example, suppose my data was different types of transportation used in the United States, and the data was the following, then the plot might look like the ASCII depiction below the data. Bicycle,25% Plane,25% Car,50% ________________________________________________ |_Bicycle__|____Plane___|_________Car___________| Note that the intent of the above depiction is to have one long rectangle cut into 3 pieces. Two are `25%` of the total rectangle and one is `50%` of the rectangle. Is there a word for this kind of "rectangular" pie chart? |
3,249 | 58,629 | 76823_0 | I've seen a few ways of discussing the age of a person. For example: > aged 11 > > age 11 As well as: > college aged students > > college age students When should I use "age" and when should I use "aged"? What is the difference between the two? |
3,250 | 158,981 | 76823_0 | > **At/in** this section, you must enter your shipping details. Should I use _at_ or _in_? |
3,251 | 164,936 | 76823_0 | What is the correct form of this question ? I travel by my car Vs I travel with my car ? Is it correct to say I drive to office in my car ? |
3,252 | 96,908 | 76823_0 | "And so is everyone else." What is this kind of sentence called in English? For example: > Man 1: “You are human.” > Man 2: “and so is everyone else.” Is there any specific name for the kind of sentence Man 2 is saying? |
3,253 | 164,933 | 76823_0 | I am starting a blog focused on software development and trying to come up with some catchy name for it. The theme of the blog should be "putting things together", or to "connect all dots of complex programming problems". Is there a one word or a simple phrase that would mean the same thing? I was thinking about words like "fusion" or "link", but the resulting names (codefusion, codelinking, codelinker) don't feel right somehow. |
3,254 | 96,901 | 76823_0 | When a customer represents a company, not a person, and a pronoun is needed to refer back to that customer, should one use _he/she_ , or should one use _it_? |
3,255 | 12,872 | 76823_0 | When I was in school, strictly every abbreviation had a period after each (capitalized) letter, as in U.S.A. These days, it seems ok just to capitalise, as in USA. Is this a new rule? It does look jarring to have those periods everywhere, and it's annoying to type. Related: Omitting periods after title abbreviations (Mr, Mrs, Dr). |
3,256 | 20,680 | 76823_0 | > **Possible Duplicate:** > Is it OK to drop the periods in abbreviations? Okay, so in School I was always tought that when we want to abbreviate, we must use a full stop "." inbetween each letter, and if it's at the end of a sentence, a full stop at the end also (duh). But, everywhere I go now, I am faced with having to put up with bad grammar, incorrectly-spelled words, and just total rubish. And I believe marketing is to blame! Think about it... When was the last time you saw a major company with a nice looking logo like AVC use dots inbetween each letter? It's become so widely accepted that everybody does it now - all the time. Now I'm getting confused because all I've seen for a long time is just total rubbish, and now I don't remember which way is correct or not. Say for example the following letters stand for "Another" "Silly" "Word", which version of abbreviation is correct? > A.S.W > A.S.W. > ASW Or are they all correct? |
3,257 | 503 | 76823_0 | For example, if I wanted to write the equivalent of > There are many automated teller machines in this city. Would it be > There are many ATMs in this city. or > There are many ATM's in this city. > (could get confused with possessive form or contraction). or just > There are many ATM in this city. > (assuming the final s is included in Machines represented by M). Maybe something else? |
3,258 | 20,603 | 76823_0 | I'm writing a technical report and must use the plural form of LASER. Seeing as it is an acronym, how does one add the 's'? |
3,259 | 100,918 | 76823_0 | > **Possible Duplicate:** > What is the correct way to pluralize an acronym? I am helping a former intern ready their resume for distribution. The candidate used an abbreviation I was unfamiliar with: > B.S.s in Physics, Computer Science, and Mathematics I am familiar with the student's educational background so after a moment of thought realized "B.S.s" was their attempt to indicate multiple bachelor of science degrees. That said I can see those unfamiliar with the student's background being confused. Unfortunately, I do not know how to provide the correct punctuation to indicate the correct grammatical number for multiple degrees in the same discipline. What is the correct plural form for multiple bachelor degrees? Additionally, are there variations for other degree levels: associates, masters, Ph.D, etc.? In addition to the abbreviation what's the correct way to indicate plurality for the unabbreviated form? |
3,260 | 23,589 | 76823_0 | > **Possible Duplicate:** > What is the correct way to pluralize an acronym? What's the plural form of the acronym POC, short for _proof of concept_? > ...for his contributions to many POCs or > ...for his contributions to many POC |
3,261 | 31,450 | 76823_0 | > **Possible Duplicates:** > What is the correct way to pluralize an acronym? > Plural form of the acronym LASER I was just writing an email asking a supervisor about downloading multiple Dynamic-link library files. The acronym for these is dll, and the full spelling, _Dynamic-link library_ , is never used. How would this be pluralized, because normally I would just add an s, but _dlls_ is difficult to understand. Sometimes I add an apostrophe to make it _dll's_ , but I know this isn't grammatically correct. So my question is, how do I make the acronym _dll_ (and acronyms in general) plural? |
3,262 | 139,409 | 76823_0 | Every time I see "PC" (as in personal computer) written as "PC's", I feel like the comma should not be there (as it is simply plural rather than possessive). What is the technically correct way to write this, and why? (Incidentally, it seems the _most common_ way this is written is "PC's".) Any advice would be much appreciated! |
3,263 | 3,348 | 76823_0 | > **Possible Duplicate:** > What is the correct way to pluralize an acronym? I was answering something on Super User and wrote `OSes` as part of my normal flow without really thinking about it. On a re-read I decided that it didn't look right, so I changed it to `OSs`, which still felt incorrect. I also considered `OS's`, but that didn't feel right either, so I thought I'd ask on here. In this specific case, what is the written plural form for `OS`? The intention is to mean multiple `Operating Systems`. And, is there a general rule for the plural form of an initialism that ends with the letter S? |
3,264 | 76,557 | 76823_0 | > **Possible Duplicate:** > What is the correct way to pluralize an acronym? I am defining an acronym which will be substituted for some unwieldy term in a document. > One thing Gary has talked extensively about is his inclination towards > extracting domain objects into Plain Ruby Objects (PRO). The trouble is that the first time I use the unwieldy term (Plain Ruby Object), it is plural. However, the acronym is more useful in the singular. Should I just hold off defining the acronym until I use its singular form further down the page? |
3,265 | 38,434 | 76823_0 | > **Possible Duplicate:** > What is the correct way to pluralize an acronym? How would you make the plural form of an acronym? For example, if you have two of Nintendo's game console, the DS. Would you say, "I have two DSes," "I have two DSs," or something else? |
3,266 | 109,925 | 76823_0 | For example, is it FAQs or just FAQ? I guess it's either: > Frequently Asked Questions or > "Frequently Asked Question"s |
3,267 | 11,216 | 76823_0 | > **Possible Duplicates:** > What is the correct way to pluralize an acronym? > What is the proper way to indicate possession when using an abbreviation > such as Dr.? An example: > Most DD's have good packaging skills. How did things come to that instead of: > Most DDs have good packaging skills. Compare that to: > Most Debian Developers have good packaging skills. [ **update** ] This question was asked with the presumption that the first example is correct, so I was surprised to find that it isn't the case. |
3,268 | 108,237 | 76823_0 | We use the acronym "CERT" to represent "Critical Error Reduction Techniques" quite frequently, but when we use CERT in a sentence should it be CERT or CERTs? For example, "Using CERT to Prevent Sprains & Strains" is the title of one of our training modules. Because there are four critical error reduction techniques, does the acronym, CERT, automatically identify it as plural or should we add the "s" to make it CERTs? |
3,269 | 89,682 | 76823_0 | > **Possible Duplicate:** > What is the correct way to pluralize an acronym? I was in Middlesbrough yesterday and spotted: **CJ’s Cafe** So far, so good, I thought. A selection of the delights within were listed: > Pizzas Parmo’s Breakfasts The second, on the face of it, looks like a standard greengrocer’s apostrophe, surprising in a sign where everything else is correct. But _parmo_ is an abbreviation for _parmesan_. Is it correct to use an apostrophe there to indicate missing letters? Or would one normally expect to see _parmos_? When forming other words from _parmesan_ one would write _parmesanish_ or _parmesany_. Would one then write _parmoish_ and _parmoey_ or _parmo’ish_ and _parmo’y_? |
3,270 | 58,990 | 76823_0 | > **Possible Duplicate:** > What is the correct way to pluralize an acronym? > Plural of an initialism that ends with the letter S What is the correct plural form of an abbreviation whose last word starts with 'S' (thus making the last letter in the abbreviation an 'S')? The example I keep running into is "CMS", an abbreviation of "Content Management System". How would I refer to a group of these beasts? |
3,271 | 44,810 | 76823_0 | > **Possible Duplicate:** > What is the correct way to pluralize an acronym? Let's say we're talking about PLCs (programmable logic controllers)? Or are they "PLC's"? I've seen it both ways! |
3,272 | 10,286 | 76823_0 | I often run into a case where I need to say I have a doctor's appointment, but how would I properly punctuate it if I wanted to use the abbreviation _Dr._ instead of the word _doctor_? _Dr.'s appointment_ looks strange to me. |
3,273 | 42,922 | 76823_0 | I work with a company whose name is frequently reduced to an initialism (acronym). Let's say the name is "Cool Computer Systems" (CCS). I am engaged in an ongoing, bloody battle with the marketing department, wherein they insist the following apostrophe use is correct: > Buy CCS' New Product. Reading that line brings visions of crying 4th grade teachers and librarians to mind. I am quite certain that it should be written: > Buy CCS's New Product. * * * UPDATE: The examples are in title case because the sentence is the subject line of an e-mail. * * * UPDATE: Their argument is that "Systems" is plural. I say that plurality doesn't matter, because "Systems" is part of the name. The name as a whole should be handled as a singular entity, because the company is, in fact, a single, legal entity. Thus, the possessive form should be written: > The Emperor's clothes > > Cool Computer Systems's clothes > > CSS's clothes |
3,274 | 133,648 | 76823_0 | The initialism is 'MSS' (meaning Market Sector Specialist). At present our house style guide does not specify that there should be full stops between each letter. List of problems: 1. Should I insert full stops between each letter (as it is an initialism) - even though it's less 'natural' to read this way? 2. How to refer to a group of Market Sector Specialists? 3. How to articulate when a group of market sector specialists collectively own something? |
3,275 | 53,579 | 76823_0 | What is the proper way to pluralize acronyms ending in the letter 'S'? The particular acronym under study in this case is T.A.R.D.I.S. The various forms I believe are correct are: * TARDISes * T.A.R.D.I.S.es (is it even correct to pluralize this) |
3,276 | 119,310 | 76823_0 | Do I have several GPSs, or several GPSes, or something completely different? What is the rule to remember (will be useful later when I can have a GPS2, a GPST and maybe a GPSX too). |
3,277 | 51,378 | 76823_0 | > **Possible Duplicate:** > What is the correct way to pluralize an acronym? What's the plural form of "SMS" (if X), like: > I'm concerned, I sent him over a million X but got no response. I usually use text message to get rid of that situation. |
3,278 | 67,121 | 76823_0 | > **Possible Duplicate:** > What is the correct way to pluralize an acronym? My company deals in Purchase Orders. For years they have referred to multiple purchase orders as POs. It seems, the proper spelling would be POes, because a P-O is referred to as a noun by everyone in the company, even though it is an abbreviated form of Purchase Order. Which is correct? POs or POes ? |
3,279 | 130,577 | 76823_0 | I want to know the correct use of apostrophe s? Is the 's' used either in small or capital letter. Which is right format either Ram's or Ram'S? Please answer me soon. |
3,280 | 103,996 | 76823_0 | Is it also correct to say FAQ's as some sites like http://transition.fcc.gov/oet/rfsafety/rf-faqs.html refer? Or is FAQs the right and correct way to say it? |
3,281 | 13,154 | 76823_0 | Would it be correct to merge with hyphens _one-third-contiguously_ in the following phrase? > I propose to elect by 3 quotas, each per one-thirds-contiguously of time- > zones. |
3,282 | 120,910 | 76823_0 | I'm a software developer, and making a peer code review, I've encountered with the word **unsetup** used in the context to uninitialize some stuff. I was wondering if this is an actual word in English, or it is just an invention. Thanks. |
3,283 | 120,913 | 76823_0 | I have received a parcel today, from Israel, and the box is branded "Israel Postal Authority". In Hebrew the same body has the word "Reshut" in its name, a term I believe originated from the Hebrew word for "permission" (the postal authority is a governmental body, thus it got a permission from the government to do what it does). So I can see why "authority" was picked as a direct translation (it is a government authorised body). Similarly, Israel has "The Broadcast Authority". I live in the UK, where we have the Royal Mail, or the British Broadcast Association, but I fail to think of a single business or body that has "authority" in its name. I can't help feeling "postal authority" being somewhat of totalitarian nature. Is it just a bad translation, or is it common and sensible for bodies as such to carry "authority" in their name? |
3,284 | 20,681 | 76823_0 | I want tell to someone "I love you", but not in that manner (indirectly but to get that idea). How can I do it in a modern way? |
3,285 | 120,919 | 76823_0 | When describing objects in telling a story, should the objects be referred to in past tense or present tense, if the effects of the story still hold true on them? Since it is a story it should be in past tense but if the objects remain the same to the present time from the story it should be present tense. Correct me if I'm wrong, but isn't it poor grammar to mix past and present tense in a sentence? I thought of this when writing the following: _I just bought something from the deli at the grocery store and was surprised my receipt had one number._ Should it be _had_ or _has_? I still have the receipt and it still has one number. A simpler example is "The man walked into a room that had red walls." vs "The man walked into a room with red walls". Assuming the walls are still red upon the telling of this story, which is correct? Furthermore, I notice when people are unsure if something is untrue they tend to use the past tense. For example if there had been a car crash and someone observed the backed up traffic but left the scene before they saw the traffic resume to normal flow, they would say _There was a car crash and traffic was backed up. I'm not sure if it is flowing again._ Is common to speak of things in the past tense when unsure, for example why not replace _was_ with _is_ or is either acceptable? |
3,286 | 13,159 | 76823_0 | When I started to learn English, I was used to write _phantasy_ instead of _fantasy_ , and I was always corrected. I recently noticed that _phantasy_ is an English word too. Do people give to those words a different meaning? |
3,287 | 13,158 | 76823_0 | For example, In 1990 Portuguese alphabet was extended by 3 foreign letters which are K (capa, pronounced as "kappa"), Y (pronounced as "ípsilon or "ipsilão" or "i greg"), W (pronounced as "diáblio"). Hmmm, Portugueses certainly hate W. There are many English dialects. For example, I know about existence of British English, American English and I guess there are a couple of hundreds more dialects. Does any of them include or plan to include foreign letters? |
3,288 | 10,593 | 76823_0 | I was wondering why does something _goes off_ , when it in fact does the opposite * _bomb goes off_ \- it blows up * _alarm goes off_ \- it turns on Why not _goes on_? |
3,289 | 93,407 | 76823_0 | So there is a picture of three boys lifting weights. Tom is lifting the heaviest one. > "Tom is the strongest boy of them." Is this sentence correct in describing the picture? And if not what exactly is the reason it is not? How about > "Tom is the strongest of them." Adding the word 'all' to the end of the sentence seems to fix the problem to my ear but I'm not sure the grammatical reason of why that is. |
3,290 | 10,598 | 76823_0 | _(I apologize for the silly question ahead)_ I've lost some weight recently, and I was able, for the first time today, to close my belt buckle using a notch higher than usual... For the life of me I can't figure out if I "went up a notch" or "down a notch"? Is this phrase even applicable for an actual belt? |
3,291 | 176,811 | 76823_0 | I would like to make smooth-sounding sentences and slogans, so it is important to me to find words with similar pronunciations. Is there any dictionary that can help me find words like that? |
3,292 | 176,810 | 76823_0 | I saw the following sentence from Time, and have been wondering whether 'which could have had an impact' is the correct choice rather than 'which could have an impact'. > The first study did not control the intake of the participants, which could > have an impact on their findings... http://time.com/2838453/everything-you-know-about-breakfast-is-wrong/ |
3,293 | 1,935 | 76823_0 | In a CMS I am using, when a user with the right permission tries to delete a comment that is not found, the CMS outputs the following warning message: > There do not appear to be any comments to delete, or your selected comment > was deleted by another administrator. Is the sentence correct? Is it the accepted way to write such sentences? What is the difference with _it seems there are no comments to delete_ , or _there are no comments to delete_? |
3,294 | 94,463 | 76823_0 | Given this question: > Dude the rock band was awesome. > Which one of _sound_ or _noise_ is correct here? > 1. Yes, I know — I was able to hear the concert’s **noise** from my > balcony. > 2. Yes, I know — I was able to hear the concert’s **sound** from my > balcony. > |
3,295 | 94,466 | 76823_0 | Consider this sentence: > Who founded the Academy circa/around 387 BC? Is "circa" the best word to write, or is it "around"? Or does there exist another word that is more appropriate? |
3,296 | 20,352 | 76823_0 | Is it right to say **sensual music**? What is its meaning when used like this? |
3,297 | 94,465 | 76823_0 | I'm occasionaly came across the phrases: * "sitting still"; * "standing still"; * "lying still"; * etc. For most cases the usage is clear (humans for example). But sometimes it is not clear what verb to use with "still": * for an spherical objects - I have no idea; * birds - I think they are "standing"; * fish - again, no idea; * and so on. Is there any advice on how to choose an appropriate answer? |
3,298 | 122,511 | 76823_0 | I am writing an essay on nature and I need to somehow slip in the phrase "I shit you not" Not to seem vulgar or anything, it just seems like the most appropriate thing to add in that context. If this is off-topic or anything of that sort I can easily delete this question. Edit: It needs to be somewhat offensive. |
3,299 | 143,639 | 76823_0 | Sometimes I want to tell someone stop from doing something, can I just say: > I want to get Jack rid from smoking. |
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