title: Is there a difference between “introduction to” and “introduction into”?

text: “Introduction to” seems to be much more common than “introduction into”, but is the latter an acceptable alternative? If it is, is there some difference in meaning, tone, or connotations? I was inclined into thinking that “into” suggests a deeper introduction, going deep inside the topic, but is it just me? I mean specifically the use of “introduction” to mean an introductory presentation of a topic, such as in “Introduction to Linguistics”.


title: Plural Possessive of a Singular Noun

text: While browsing this SE site, I stopped to look at the "What kind of questions can I ask here?" section of the FAQ, where the following is written: > Questions on the following topics are welcomed here: > >   * Etymology (history of words’ development) > I'm not claiming the above is wrong, but I am asking if it's right! My question is about the combination of "words'" and "development". Since "word" is plural but their "development" is singular, does this imply that these words need to have a collective development? Alternatively, would it be more like the [possibly] intended meaning to have "development" in its plural form, leaving the words free to develop individually or in any combination?


title: Is there a formal phrase for saying that the location of an event changes between two places?

text: The context of my question is the following. I am involved in organization of a conference which is held every year but in two different places (every second year in each of them). What is the best formal way of saying that the location of a recurring event changes between two places? I want to put it on the conference web-page, therefore I need some nice solution.


title: Adjective "grim"

text: When we are talking about "grim", do you attribute these two meanings to people, "to look very serious" and "unpleasant and depressing"? Example: > He looked so grim. Would it be "He looked very serious" or "He looked unpleasant and depressing"? Perhaps the context would explain this, if these 2 meanings can be used with people.


title: Opposite word for “cursive”, as related to writing

text: I looked up the etymology entry at etymonline.com for _cursive_, which reads: > 1784, from French _cursif_ (18c.), from Medieval Latin _cursivus_ “running,” > from Latin _cursus_ “a running,” from past participle of _currere_ “to run” > (see _current_ (adj.)). The notion is of “written with a running hand” > (without raising the pen), as opposed to **_uncial_**. Now, the _uncial_ entry reads: > In reference to letters, it is attested from 1712, from Late Latin _litterae > unciales_ (Jerome), probably meaning “letters an inch high,” from Latin > _uncialis_ “of an inch, inch-high.” It seems to me that _uncial_ is not the most correct antonym for cursive writing, and _printing_ isn’t a very satisfactory alternative to me. Could anyone give me a word that denotes the style of handwriting where the letters don't connect/the pen is lifted in the process?


title: Is this sentence using tenses correctly?

text: > If such stage was completed based on un-signed English financial statements > (USEFS), the doer is to initial all pages of the USEFS. Is the above sentence grammatically correct with two different tenses? I have argued with my friend that the above sentence was wrong as the tenses used were different: "the if tense is in the past while the second part is in the present" and the sentence in this form would be awkward for English native speakers.


title: What is the correct term for this juxtaposition of words?

text: > He has a soft spot for playing hard ball Not really a pun, I think. What is the exact term? * * * And correct me if the title can be made better.


title: How to read parentheses equation

text: I have problems with reading mathematical equations in which there are parentheses; could anybody help me? For example: >   1. (x−a) (x+b) = 5 >   2. (x−a) + 2 (a+10) = z >   3. 2 + (10−a) d = 7 >   4. y = a/b (7c+11) > How should I read this kind of equations?


title: How to write word "hashtagged" using "#" symbol? #ed, #'ed, #-ed?

text: It looks like #ed would be correct way to write word "hashtagged", but this can be confused with hashtag – #ed. What would be another acceptable way to write word "hashtagged" using # symbol?


title: What is the rule for using a period on a game card?

text: For example: This appears on a card in a game: "Equipment worn by players on one hand to field baseballs." The answer appears immediately below it..."Mitt" Another example: "Black disk made of hard rubber that is used in ice hockey." Can I leave the periods as they stand? Is this a similar case as to use or not to use a period at the end of every bulleted line?


title: what's a close synonym for " sorted for Es and whiz"?

text: what's a close synonym for "sorted for Es and whiz"? and what does it mean in general? When And how can we use in conversation? is it polite or impolite or impolite?


title: Near in its verb form

text: Is it correct to say > David does not near women. Meaning that he does not go close to them or approach them.


title: Is this question grammatically correct?

text: Something seems off about this sentence, but I can't put my finger on it. The sentence in question: > Which countries is Nicaragua competing with? Alternatives I considered: > With which countries is Nicaragua competing? > > Who is Nicaragua competing with? Open to suggestions, including the "the first sentence is fine", but if there's a better way to ask this question, I'd like to know what it is and why it is preferred (what rules apply, etc.)


title: "Abandoned" as an antonym of "Abstemious" (adj) ?

text: Can we use "Abandoned" as an antonym of "Abstemious" (adj)? Please explain your answer.


title: What does an atomizer spray?

text: What does an atomizer spray? A spritz? A drop? Something else? I'm helping a friend write marketing copy, and we'd like to give the instruction "spray two drops onto your hand", and we would especially like to avoid the comical "spray two spritzes". Edit: the substance in question is essential oil.


title: What is the origin of the "Dear John" letter?

text: You might receive one of these when you are getting dumped by your erstwhile partner. I don't think it is a coincidence that the a recent movie called _Dear John_ includes a _Dear John_ letter as one of its plot points.


title: "To date" versus "until now"

text: Is there a difference between these two expressions? Are they perfect synonyms?


title: "To be an influence" or "to have an influence"

text: Is there a rule for when one has to say _to be a positive influence on..._ or _to have a positive influence on..._? For example, > The practice of singing songs **is/has** a positive influence on people.


title: What does “velvet-rope-poor” mean?

text: There was the following sentence in the New York Times (February 8) article titled, “Azerbaijan is rich. It wants to be famous.”: > “Oil-rich, **velvet-rope-poor** Azerbaijan, a country about the size of > South Carolina on the Caspian Sea, would very much like to be the world’s > next party capital.” Curiously enough, none of Oxford, Cambridge, Merriam-Webster online dictionary and English Japanese dictionaries at hand carries the word, 'velvet rope' under the heading of velvet as I checked, though some include 'velvet carpet' and 'velvet glove.' I understand velvet ropes are seen in airports, hotels and event arenas as well as a red carpet to receive dignitaries and stars. Please correct me if I’m wrong. It seems to me that Velvet, the symbol of the rich and Poor seem contradicting each other. What does “velvet-rope-poor” mean?


title: Comma after "as such"?

text: Is it correct to use a comma after _as such_? For example:- > and as such, it is not possible to verify the claim.


title: Difference between "affiliated" and "associated"

text: What is the difference between being _affiliated_ and being _associated_ with a group of people?


title: A word describing liking a part of something but disliking the whole entirety

text: In a (not so?) recent episode of the most excellent QI, Mr Fry talked about a word which meant liking a part of something although not liking (detesting?) the whole entity; e.g. liking the martial music of Hitlers Germany but detesting the Nazi regime in its entirety. Anyone know what the word is I am am looking for? I have been searching the internet for some considerable time trying to get the answer but without success. Grateful if someone can help.


title: What does this mean?

text: What does the following sentence mean? Self-serving bias beckons us not to false modesty but to a humility that affirms our genuine talents and virtues and likewise of others. closely looking at the word humility and its meaning in the sentence.


title: Meaning of "putting something up"

text: > teacher: " _put your books up_ " > > //meaning to _put away_ our books to be ready to take the tests What is the meaning of the example above? I am confused as it doesn't make much sense if you translate the words separately


title: What is the meaning of the quotation below?

text: > “Perfection is a trifle dull. It is not the least of life’s ironies that > this, which we all aim at, is better not quite achieved.” — W. Somerset > Maugham


title: Academic language doubts

text: I don't know If the title is right (feel free to suggest better name). I have to do search for resources write an article and I need to know how to say some expressions:   * What is the name of the work you do at the end of your degree? Similar to PhD Thesis but before doing a masters degree.   * Don't know if it exists a specific term to speak of the travel you do with your classmates the year you finish your studies.   * The same with the subject based on working for a while on some company in order to learn. This are situations found in Spain so maybe these terms doesn't exist.


title: Are there any other abbreviations in the set "sb." and "sth."?

text: In the context of foreign language grammar study, "sb." and "sth." serve as substitutions for "somebody" and "something", essentially telling readers that a person or thing can be placed in that part of the sentence.   * Are there standard or common abbreviations in this similar form which mean "somewhere" or "sometime"?   * Are there any other abbreviations belonging to this set of _some-_ words?


title: When can you pluralize uncountable nouns?

text: I have a two part question, the second depending on the answer of the first. I don't know if that is frowned upon, but I'm not sure how else to ask. Foil is an uncountable noun so it is not pluralized, but is it correct to use the plural when referring to several kinds of foils? Just like fish is plural but some people refer to several species of fish as fishes? For example, > That company makes aluminum foils Meaning, they make many kinds of foils out of aluminum If this is OK, then why is > "organic and inorganic **matters** " wrong but > "organic and inorganic **matter** " right? There are several kinds of matter being referred to. It seems to be following the same rule.


title: Is the word "Shinobi" an accepted English word?

text: I've been wondering if the word "Shinobi" is an accepted English word. As far as I know, its synonym "Ninja" is an accepted English word where "Spy" is the nearest common English.


title: Is "non-life-threatening" punctuated correctly with two hyphens?

text: The news reporter said, “The victim's injuries were _non-life-threatening_.” [Verbatim quote, so I cannot alter the wording to say "...were not life- threatening".] Is _non-life-threatening_ correctly punctuated with two hyphens as shown? Or should it be _nonlife-threatening_ in this particular context?


title: I went to jog / I went for a jog / I went jogging

text: Sorry if this is a stupid question to ask here, but I don't have much formal knowledge of grammar. I just want to know if "I went to jog" is grammatical, and if so, are there any differences between "I went to jog", "I went for a jog", and "I went jogging"?


title: Why is the answer “Again with the string?” funny when you pulled the string of a talking doll of your mother?

text: I know it’s boorish and unsophisticated to ask why it is funny on a joke, but I venture to ask. New York Times’ theater review (May 20) of “Old Jews telling jokes” carried the following Jewish jokes; > ’They’re, going to sell a talking doll of my mother,’ goes a setup, ‘You > pull the string and it says, ‘Again with the string?’ Another one: ‘Why > don’t Jewish mothers drink?’ ‘They don’t want to dull the pain.’ . I understand the spirit of the second joke, but I don’t understand what ‘Again with a string’ of the first joke means, and why this line is ‘typically’ funny. Does it have something to do with the idiom, ‘no string attached’? It’s always difficult for a foreigner to get an idea of the meaning of foreign jokes, whatever it is Jewish, American, Irish, or Russian. Can somebody tell me what the essence of humor of ‘Again with the string’ is?’


title: "torrential rainfall promoted unhealthiness ..."

text: > During the monsoons, it rained heavily and continuously. The ditches, pits > and channels all overflowed with water... In the (....) I want to say something like: > _this whole scene of torrential rainfall promoted unhealthiness, due to > which the postmaster's health deteriorated._ Although it doesn't sound quite right, is there a better way to put this in? **EDIT** : The whole story takes place in a village. The protagonist, who spent all his life in a city, comes here for his first job. Although due to his background he's unable to mingle with the other residents of the area. As a result, he feels lonely and out of place. Due to the abundant rain of the monsoons, the whole place develops a very gloomy ambiance – which promotes illness (I hope you get the idea).


title: Most of the world thinks I'm awesome. The rest have not met me yet. have or has?

text: > **Possible Duplicate:**   >  When “most is” and when “most are”? I am having a dilemma here... "Most of the world thinks I'm awesome. The rest have not met me yet." - the rest of the world has not met me yet, so I'd think it's "has", but a friend of mine used "have" - could he actually be right?


title: An expression to define that "very little span of time"

text: I am referring to the context where you miss or don't miss something by a very short time, like when you miss or succeed in taking a train or a flight by just a few minutes or even a few seconds. What are the common expressions or sayings that can be used in such cases?


title: Is this an absolute phrase?

text: In the following example, is _more full picture_ a kind of absolute phrase? > He has given us a lot, _more full picture_ of dinosaurs of the East Coast.


title: adjective describing middle distance (neither near nor far)

text: Is there an adjective that is somewhere between near and far?


title: Why do English people pronounce 'sixth' as 'sicth'?

text: It's common practice in Ireland (and the US as far as I know) to pronounce the x in the middle of sixth: six-th _[sɪksθ]_. However, I've noticed from visits to England as well as watching British television, that a lot of English people pronounce it as 'sicth' _[sɪkθ]_. Why is this, and is it an accepted usage?


title: Is "a topic about which I could talk for hours" correct?

text: I'm a little bit confused whether the following sentence is correct or not. > It is a subject about which I could talk for hours. As far as I'm concerned with English grammar it should be correct but the part _about which_ just doesn't sound good to me.


title: Most is adjective or adverb, comparative or superlative in the following phrase?

text: In the following phrase, from the 1971 film "The Devils" by Ken Russell, what is "most"? An adjective or an adverb? And in what form, comparative or superlative? > I conjure thee, most frightful beings, by this most sacred substance. _Beings_ refers to demons and _substance_ refers to the blood of Christ. First, there's a very obvious mistake, in the first part of the phrase: should be "ye", not "thee", since it refers to several things instead of one. Isn't this correct? Second, the usage of "most". My initial interpretation was that "most" was used to mean "above everything else": _the most frightful beings of all_ and _the most sacred substance of all_. But in the way that's written one can also interpret it as "something very important" but not the most important: _very frightful beings_. My intention in creating the question was to elicit different opinions, views, interpretations about how "most" was used. I cannot make up my mind and wanted to confront my own interpretation with those of others to help me decide. Thank you.


title: Why is "back" used here even though it is the first action?

text: I knew I must reach the body for the key, so I raised the lid, and laid it **back** against the wall. This is the first time he has laid the lid against the wall, but why is _back_ used here?


title: Relation between "concept" and "conception"

text: > **concept** : an abstract idea; a general notion > > **conception** : the way in which something is perceived or regarded These two words are troubling me because it seems that there is a way that _concept_ and _conception_ can be used near-identically or near- interchangeably and in a way that differ only to the extent of some kind of _inflection_. I'm not a linguist, but I think _inflection_ , though very general, might be the grammatical idea most likely to address this problem. Is there a more specific way of stating the relation between these two usages?


title: Is this an incorrect use of the word 'Synonymous'?

text: "Robespierre is synonymous with the Great Terror in the French Revolution". As far as I know, when things/words are synonymous with one another it's because they have a similar meaning. However, I've heard statements similar to the above many, many times. Is this an alternative and correct way of using 'synonymous'. If so, under what grammaticality is it correct?


title: When indicating separate items linked by a common word?

text: Let's say my sentence is: > I am a part of Generations X, Y, and Z. In a case like this, should "generations" be plural or singular? I feel it should be plural, since singular makes it sound like "X, Y, and Z" are one item, but: > I am a part of Generation X, Y, and Z. I feel someone would argue that since there is context in the word "generation" (as in "everyone will know you mean three separate generations because no one generation is called "X, Y, and Z"), Y and Z do not need to be "counted".


title: Past perfect/simple question in an example

text: Talking about the trip I did a few years ago: > I have been there and it was amazing. I had not seen a frozen sea until that > time! Did I use past perfect correctly or should I just say "I did not see .."? Also is the "until that time" ok?


title: Is inverted word order such as "Anybody else does have any other concerns?" correct?

text: I know that if I was supposed to spin a grammatically correct sentence with the same meaning, I would probably say: > Does anybody else have any other concerns? However, is the sentence in the subject of the question correct as well, even if unusual??


title: Why can "bill" mean (almost) opposite things?

text: _Bill_ is somewhat of an auto-antonym, since it can mean either a piece of paper which has positive monetary value (i.e. a _note_ ), or a piece of paper which has negative monetary value (though it only applies to a certain person). Maybe I'm reading too much into the usages, but it seems strange that the two meanings of _bill_ are nearly opposite. Does anyone know why this is?


title: "Savings Account" vs "Checkings Account"

text: The correct form is "savings account". Why don't we say "checkings account"? Why is "checkings account" incorrect and why is "savings account" correct? We certainly wouldn't say "saving account". Please advise.


title: Use of personal pronouns in papers (research, etc.)

text: Back at university, I remember being told to never use personal pronouns in my dissertations. I was never given a reason, but I was told to avoid statements like > The evidence leads me to believe. or > After researching similar techniques I had settled on .... I remember spending a lot of time constructing sentences that used "the author" rather than "I" or similar. These are some very bad examples (as I submitted my final dissertation back in 2008). Since then however, when I've read research papers, scientific articles and dissertations the authors have referred to themselves as "I" or "us" (when collaborated on). This seems to fly in the face of what I was told at university. Is there a hard-and-fast rule to this, or is it down to personal preference?


title: pretend, imagine and suppose

text: An article about the msnbc political show with Chris Hayes is titled : > Let's pretend we had a functional Congress. The way I read this title is that it says that we are to pretend that we have a functional Congress now, as opposed in the past. Hypothetical past tense is used with "suppose" and I guess that "Let's suppose we **had** a functional Congress" would be as acceptable if not preferred to "Let's suppose we **have** a functional Congress", but what about the use of "pretend" and "imagine" with the past verb form the same way? In this sentence I'd understand that either pretend, suppose or imagine would imply that we don't have a functional Congress, but for the sake of argument we are imagining a situation in which we have. By using any of these verbs in this sentence the inference would be that the fact of the matter is different, and the situation we are imagining, supposing or pretending to exist is counterfactual. "Had" in this sentence thus refers to current state of affairs and not to the Congress in the past, that is, "had" is used to convey a hypothetical idea and not to place the situation in the past. I understand that unlike suppose, verbs pretend and imagine are not normally followed by hypothetical past tense verb, but I find examples such as the example I cited or with "imagine": Imagine if we had the McCarthy era right now. Imagine we had a studio right now. where the meanings of the three verbs seem to overlap, and I understand that the past tense verb following them can be rephrased as "we are imagining a situation in which something is true or is happening now" as opposed to imagining a situation that occurred in the past.


title: Is there a word for the comments that a news anchor makes about a story?

text: While watching the local news this evening, it occurred to me that while the news anchors were reporting stories, they often add their own comments between stories. For example: the news anchors were talking about how movie trailers before movies in theaters were going to start being shorter. The other anchor said at the very end, "Those trailers were starting to be longer than the movies themselves", then chuckles and continues with the next story. (I know, pretty corny) Is there a word that refers to these comments anchors make in transitioning between stories?


title: What would you call a person being coached?

text: I am looking for an intuitive one word description for somebody that is being coached, as in enjoying the services of a coach. I am thinking of something analogous to the oft used _mentee_ as somebody being mentored, or enjoying the services of a mentor.


title: What is the etymology of "dewclaw"?

text: A _dewclaw_ is a vestigial digit on the foot of some mammals, notably dogs. Here's a picture of a dog's paw with an arrow pointing to the _dewclaw_. ![dewclaw](http://i.stack.imgur.com/i77IK.jpg) The _claw_ part is obvious enough, but why _dew_?


title: On the right path?

text: Suppose someone is trying to solve some math problem and he has the right idea to attack it, but still need more time to figure out details. When I want to encourage him, should I use "You are on the right path" or "You are on the right track"? Or maybe some other more common expressions?


title: Using a comma — or other punctuation — at the start of a line

text: I was always told that, when writing on a page, you should always make sure never to start a new line with a comma. E.g. > The man was tired   >  , so he went to bed. Is this an actual rule, or just a trend for the sake of tidiness? Does it apply to other punctuation?


title: How does the apostrophe work?

text: I am under the impression that we use the apostrophe to describe ownership. Someone would say "This is Jennifer's coat" to mean that the coat belongs to her, as opposed to, for instance, "Jennifers are people who enjoy arranging flowers" implying there are multiple Jennifer. However I have been told that if I were to say "It's coat" I would not be saying (for instance) "The monster's coat" but rather I would be saying "It is coat". What is the difference here? Can you explain how the apostrophe works in greater detail?


title: Favorites is/are empty

text: I'm not English native speaker and I'd like to know correct form of this sentence. If I want to say that my favorites folder is empty what's the verb I should use in this case? I mean when the sentence will be like 'Favorites is/are' empty. Could find neither singular nor plural mark in most of modern dictionaries.


title: What is the correct usage of the word "Contra"?

text: According to multiple sources (1 and 2), the word "contra" can be employed as either a preposition or an adverb. From my perspective, however, there is a dearth of clear examples featuring this word in context. I am looking for input on its general usage, in addition to whether or not "contra" can/should be used in conjunction with "to," a la "contrary to," "counter to," etc.


title: What do you call moving a word to change a sentence's meaning?

text: Prosodic stress is stressing different words to change meaning: _I_ didn't take the test yesterday. (Somebody else did.)   I _didn't_ take the test yesterday. (I did not take it.)   I didn't _take_ the test yesterday. (I did something else with it.)   I didn't take _the_ test yesterday. (I took a different one.)   I didn't take the _test_ yesterday. (I took something else.)   I didn't take the test _yesterday_. (I took it some other day.)   Is there also a name or phrase describing changing the same word's position to change meaning? ONLY she told me that she loved me. (She's the only one.)   She ONLY told me that she loved me. (She told me nothing more.)   She told ONLY me that she loved me. (She told no one else.)   She told me ONLY that she loved me. (She told me nothing else.)   She told me that ONLY she loved me. (No one else does.)   She told me that she ONLY loved me. (And nothing else.)   She told me that she loved ONLY me. (And no one else.)


title: What's a very long prosodic stress example?

text: I found this example in Wikipedia, but it's only 6 words long: _I_ didn't take the test yesterday. (Somebody else did.)   I _didn't_ take the test yesterday. (I did not take it.)   I didn't _take_ the test yesterday. (I did something else with it.)   I didn't take _the_ test yesterday. (I took a different one.)   I didn't take the _test_ yesterday. (I took something else.)   I didn't take the test _yesterday_. (I took it some other day.)   What's the longest reasonable **simple** sentence (not a compound or complex sentence using extra clauses or conjunctions just to create length) where stressing every separate word creates different meanings? Here's a few simple substitutions that gets me 11 words: _My_ youngest student didn't repeatedly take the oral test last week. (Yours did.)   My _youngest_ student didn't repeatedly take the oral test last week. (My oldest did.)   My youngest _student_ didn't repeatedly take the oral test last week. (A teacher did.)   My youngest student _didn't_ repeatedly take the oral test last week. (He indeed didn't.)   My youngest student didn't _repeatedly_ take the oral test last week. (He took it once.)   My youngest student didn't repeatedly _take_ the oral test last week. (He did something else.)   My youngest student didn't repeatedly take _the_ oral test last week. (He took a different one.)   My youngest student didn't repeatedly take the _oral_ test last week. (He took the written test.)   My youngest student didn't repeatedly take the oral _test_ last week. (He took something else.)   My youngest student didn't repeatedly take the oral test _last_ week. (It was another week.)   My youngest student didn't repeatedly take the oral test last _week_. (It was last month.)   (Although adding the adjectives "youngest" and "oral" are weak solutions, since " _youngest_ student" and "youngest _student_ " stress different meanings but still refer to some kind of person and " _the_ oral test" and "the _oral_ test" stress different meanings but still refer to some kind of test. Similarly, adding the adverb "repeatedly" is a weak solution, since it still refers to taking of some kind.) In any case, is there a good and significantly longer example?


title: Differences between "technic" and "technique"

text: Are those synonyms? Is one more acceptable in a certain dialect than the other? I checked their definition on The Free Dictionary but it's still not clear to me.


title: How to express this thought in English?

text: The words in bold in the quote below are meant to express something that I don't know how to put in English. The main idea is that someone is spending too much energy in many different areas thinking that he is going to achieve some considerable progress in all of them while in fact he is only going to enjoy a small amount of success (if any) in all those areas due to the enormous scale of area. > Jack: So what project did you choose for this semester? > > Linda: The children illiteracy in in-land towns in Uganda, The correlation > between humans' eating habits and their behavioral patterns, The possibility > of practical application of the Poincaré conjecture solution in the nearest > future, The affect of globing warming on blue whales migratory patterns... > > Jack: Wow! Isn't it too many? Why not focus on only one project and research > it thoroughly instead? I suggest that you should not **shallowly spread > yourself on so many** projects.


title: What’s the meaning of “fee-simple titles”?

text: What’s the meaning of _fee-simple titles_ in: > Late in the nineteenth century, Mexicans, whose claim to their land was > based on royal decrees of the Spanish Crown ( **rather than the fee-simple > titles familiar to North Americans** ), were confronted by shrewd traders.


title: Hypernym for "before" and "after"

text: What is the the hypernym for _before_ and _after_? What sort of prepositions are they?


title: Word to describe this kaleidoscope-like motion

text: I'm looking for a word which describes a certain motion, a way of moving. Namely, I'm searching for a word which describes how a kaleidoscope moves when you turn it, or how a web moves when you pinch it in one location and drag that point around. This motion is distinctive in that if one location in the object moves then every other point moves in a complicated but, nonetheless, a systematic and fluid way. I will be very sad if no such word exists. **EDIT** I'm going to ask that everyone ignore my web analogy. That motion is distinctive to the idea I'm trying to capture. Here are a couple gifs that exemplify what I have in mind:   * Sphere   * 4-d Rotation   * Kaleidoscope In addition to what I have said, this movement is interesting in that moving one point causes all the other points to move, but changing the root point you move does not alter how the other points were moving when you were moving the original vantage point. I think I'll have to give up and just go with kaleidoscopic.


title: word for a put-together system or solution

text: I am looking for a word to describe a system or solution that has been put together from pre-existing parts. For example if a computer company gets software from 3 different software houses and sells it together as a complete solution maybe with some integration work on their part. The company might even white-label the system/solution and the customer may not even be aware that the system has been put together from constituent parts. The word could be IT industry specific but it doesn't have to be. I always thought the word 'turnkey' meant this but I have found that 'turnkey' really means the opposite (ie an off-the-shelf system) and bespoke is a closer word but a bespoke system implies to me that it has been created entirely from scratch to the customer's specifications whereas the word I am looking for is more like 'assembled' really but that seems a bit weak.


title: Single word for "working without details"

text: I'm looking for one word that expresses lack of information, lack of knowledge and lack of guidance. The word is an adverb. It could be used in a sentence like so: > He was working on a project ... _Proactively_ is close, but it's not what I'm looking for.


title: In «In addition to *his being a great writer*,» what is «his being a great writer»?

text: Is that a gerund-like construction? A noun phrase? What kind of part of speech is that? I apologize in advance if there is some thread that already deals with this issue, but since I don't really know the name, I didn't know where to look. Have a great day!


title: In comparison with or when comparing?

text: Please let me know either **_When comparing_** or **_In comparison with_** should be used for cases like the following: > 1) _When comparing_ the existing methods that deal with segmentation using > space based point assignment methods (Wenki, 2012), the presented method in > this paper has increased the accuracy. > > 2) _In comparison with_ existing methods that deal with segmentation using > space based point assignment methods (Wenki, 2012), the presented method in > this paper has increased the accuracy.


title: Alternative to the phrase "not to mention"?

text: Despite knowing how the phrase "not to mention ..." is often used, it still grates on me to use it because I am in the act of "mentioning" even as I use it. I found it helpful to read the origins of the phrase here, but I would really like to use an alternative word or phrase that means the same thing. Any suggestions?


title: Term or phrase describing action occuring when not watching

text: I am an IT professional. More specifically in automation. I am looking for a term or phrase that describes the event when either: a. you are watching something closely and the issue doesn't occur or b. you are _not_ watching something at all and the issue _does_ occur


title: How to ask about one's availability? "free/available/not busy"?

text: Are the following equally appropriate to be used at work with a colleague or client? I don't want to be informal, but I don't have to be too formal either. > Let me know when you are free so that we can discuss this in more details. or > Let me know when you are available so that we can discuss this in more > details. or > Let me know when you are not busy so that we can discuss this in more > details. _Disclaimer:_ I'm not a native English speaker (as if I had to explain that)


title: Does the "elbow-handshake" have any relation to the phrase "rubbing elbows"?

text: This is probably answerable with a general reference (or a pair of such references), but I have not been able to find one. _Etymology Online_ does not cover the origin of "rubbing-elbows" as meaning _to socialize or mingle in a crowd_ in either the section covering rub or elbow. Other top search hits just cover the meaning of the phrase in discussions of synonyms for socializing (hob-nob etc.), without going into the history and origins. There is also the "elbow-handshake" (or less formally the "elbow-bump"), where literally rubbing elbows or forearms substitutes for a handshake greeting. Wikipedia traces this to a leprosy outbreak circa 1970 (in Hawaii, among peoples whose primary language may or may not have been English), but is very light on references. I first recall hearing of this handshake from watching a documentary about one of the 1990's Africa Ebola outbreaks, where it was presented as a de-facto greeting replacement that crossed cultures, creeds and nations. My questions are what is the origin and time period of the phrase "rubbing elbows"? And does the practice of greeting with elbows or arms instead of hand have a more definite origin? And if so, is there any evidence that it was adopted with any conscious awareness of a literal acting out of a the common idiom "rubbing elbows"?


title: break/burst into + '-ing' form

text: Is it possible to use a verb in the -ing form with these phrasal verbs? I mean, dictionaries I use contain only some exemplary sentences with a noun following the phrasal verb (break/burst into laughter, break into a smile, burst into tears), but in google there are also sentences with "break into laughing/smiling etc.). And my second question: are these two phrasal verbs always interchangeable or are there some restrictions? Are these two phrasal verbs identical in terms of their use?


title: "To mentor someone during a project" vs. "to mentor someone on a project"

text: >   * ..., whom I mentored during his final semester's project. >   * ..., whom I mentored on his final semester's project. > Which of these two is grammatically correct? Since I am not talking about the final semester but the _final semester's project_ , I am not very sure about _during_. Can someone help me with this?


title: Is verbing in "I medalled in volleyball" correct?

text: Is “I medalled in volleyball” a grammatically correct sentence? According to OED, _medal_ is a verb and a noun. I haven't seen any usage of the word as a verb, but I am assuming the above sentence is correct.


title: Is "banana" the shortest overlap word?

text: Banana, alfalfa, entente: these are words containing an overlap, that is, the pattern XYXYX where X and Y are replaced by letters or sequences of letters. The idea is that the two occurrences of XYX overlap. Is there any 5-letter English word like that? Any other examples besides the ones I mentioned?


How did the phrase "hear you out" or "hear me out" come about? The phrase means "listen to whatever I have to say before you pass judgment on me," or "tell me whatever you want; I don't mind and won't pass judgment on you." First, why is it "hear" and not "listen"? Second, how is the "out" used in this context, and what is the purpose of the "out"? Third, how old is this phrase?


title: "Strike gold" but without the implication of searching?

text: Whenever I hear the phrase _I struck gold_ the fact the person had to have done a certain search is implied to me. Is this correct? For example, if I say: > Janet loves sex so much! I've struck gold with this one! In the above example, is the fact that I've been looking for a woman implied in the phrase or is it possible, from how the sentence stands, that I wasn't looking for a woman at all and she just came to me out of the blue? If the effort is implied, what would be the phrase for an "effortless gold strike"? EDIT: According to the current comments, I'd like to add that this question is not related to sex only. The example was just an example. I'm referring to the phrase generally as used in any situation.


title: What do you call a quote from an article that is displayed prominently in the article itself?

text: When you're reading an article, often you'll see a quote from the very same article written in large, bold letters. I guess it's supposed to entice skimmers to read it or some such. What is that called?


title: "On mind" vs "in mind"

text: Are these interchangeable? >   * Do you have anything _in your mind_? >   * Do you have anything _on your mind_? > The first form seems to be the most commonly used one. But the second form is also used in some instances. And I am not sure if there is any difference at all. If both are correct, what is the difference?


title: Would vs Will in future events

text: What is the difference between the following: >   1. Sorry, mate. I wouldn't be able to come for dinner. >   2. Sorry, mate. I won't be able to come for dinner. >


title: Equivalent for the Russian idiom "to write into the drawer"

text: There is following idiom in Russian "to write into the drawer" which is being used to describe situation when writer or scientist writes (sometimes prolifically) without publishing anything. Are there direct equivalent or some other idiom/expression which conveys the same idea in English?


title: What does Pope Francis “called out him (Pope Emeritus Benedict) on it” mean?

text: There was the following sentence in the article titled “Pope Francis tells Pope Benedict to stop rolling his eyes in meetings” in May 2nd New Yorker magazine - http://www.newyorker.com/online/blogs/borowitzreport/2013/05/pope- francis-tells-pope-benedict-to-stop-rolling-his-eyes-in-meetings.html > Pope Emeritus Benedict’s return to the Vatican began on a sour note today as > the current Pope, Francis, reprimanded him for rolling his eyes > sarcastically during meetings, observers said. > > The trouble started when the former Pope showed up at a meeting that > “Benedict wasn’t even invited to,” a Vatican source said. After about ten > minutes of suffering through Benedict’s sighing and eye-rolling, Francis “ > **totally called him out on it** ,” the source said, adding, “What Benedict > was doing was totally disrespectful. Plus, he is supposed to be retired, so > he shouldn’t have been wearing his Pope costume.” Though Oxford English Dictionary defines “call someone out” as   1. summon someone to deal with an emergency or to do repairs    2. order or advise workers to strike.    3. (archaic) challenge someone to a duel,  none of the above definitions seems to fit to “Francis ‘totally called him out on it.’”   There is no entry of the idiom, “call someone out” in either Cambridge or Merriam Webster English Dictionary. It looks like the phrase, “Pope Francis “totally called him out on it” to mean he was totally upset with Benedict’s presence accompanied with exaggerated gestures during the meeting, but I’m not sure. What does this sentence and idiom,'call sb out on stg' mean?


title: An International English Olympiad question

text: I had recently appeared for an English Olympiad, and this particular question confused me: Q) Choose the odd pair:   1. A. cat:feline B. monkey:simian C. horse:stallion D. cow:bovine Now, the problem is that, in the 1st two options, the animals look like each other; but in the last two options, the animals are pairs. Which is the correct option?


title: Punctuating an attribution

text: I'm editing a manuscript that has a lot of constructions like these: > _“The sound is almost deafening,” Amanda said as they continued down the > narrow lane._ > > _“Maybe I could come and work here,” Amanda said as she craned her neck > watching..._ > > _“So how is it going?” Bernice asked as Amanda walked to the lectern._ I instinctively want to put a comma after each “said”, but can't back my play with an explanation. Any thoughts? (There are too many of these too rewrite each instance.)


title: Difference between "ignorant" and "uninformed"

text: What is the difference between _ignorant_ and _uninformed_? In ordinary usage, is one considered a put down and the other considered a statement of fact? If so, why? Am I ignorant or simply uninformed?


title: Word for the habit of spending money on things that are not really needed

text: I know there is the word "spendthrift" — but what word denotes the habit of spending too much money or resources on things that are not essential?


title: What is the meaning of expression "zen and the art of.."

text: Over the years I have come across a bunch of book titles and blog posts that goes "Zen and the art of X", and X being any damn thing. What to deduct when you see such a title? My research lead me to this question, but it is not exactly what I am looking for.


title: -ness suffix etymology

text: What is the etymology of the suffix '-ness'? I have come across it in OE texts but always assumed it was a later borrowing.


title: "Attendance at" or "attendance of"

text: Should I use _at_ or _of_ in the following passage? > and through attendance **[at/of]** the regular video conferences has played > an active part in ... I guess my _attendance at school_ could be questioned here, but perhaps through my _attendance of an intensive English class_ I'd be able to figure out which one to use.


title: Should I use articles and capitalization in code comments?

text: When I watch programming video tutorials I noticed that different people (native EN speakers) use different styles of commenting the code when it comes to articles. Some use the headline style without article and capitalizing every word like:               <!-- Code To Set Right Block Color -->     background-color: red;       and some write it as a normal text:               <!-- The code to set the right block color -->     background-color: red;      My question is which of these two comment styles (or some other?) is more appropriate when commenting programming code when taking English rules into account ?


title: "Report by" or "report from"

text: Which is better? > A new report **by** (Company name) was released today. > > A new report **from** (Company name) was released today.


title: "Do (the) dirt(y) on/to you"/ "do you (the) dirt(y)"

text: Which of the following means _she harmed your reputation maliciously_ and sounds idiomatic?   1. She did dirt on you.   2. She did the dirt on you.   3. She did dirt to you.   4. She did the dirt to you.   5. She did you dirt.   6. She did you the dirt.   7. She did dirty on you.   8. She did the dirty on you.   9. She did dirty to you.   10. She did the dirty to you.   11. She did you dirty.   12. She did you the dirty.


title: Free as in 'free beer' and in 'free speech'

text: This phrase is all over the internet. They will say that something is free as in 'free beer' and free as in 'free speech'. I have never really understood this. Are these the examples of two different types of 'free'?


title: Is "hell of a" positive or negative?

text: I find it a very curious thing that the phrase "hell of a" seems to be suitable to describe both good and bad things. e.g. > It was a great party. We had a **hell of a** time. vs > We sold the house eventually. But we had a **hell of a** time. I certainly hear it more commonly used as in the first instance, but I imagine that this is a regional thing. But I wonder which sense came first. What is the etymology of the phrase? And, with this in mind, how should I interpret a sentence with very little context? e.g. > We had a **hell of a** time when we visited my parents over Christmas.


title: "At that school before"

text: Would it be right to say "I was at that school before," or do I have to say "I went to that school before/I studied at that school before"?


title: Is there an English word for the Japanese オブジェ?

text: The Japanese word オブジェ means something like “avant-garde sculpture”, it does not apply to things like classical sculptures or 18th century busts. Most modern art sculptures are called オブジェ by Japanese people. I am not totally sure オブジェ is always art, as a decorative interior dead tree with no further processing can also be an オブジェ. I can't find an equivalent word in English, is there any? Google Images might give you a better idea of what it is used for.   Strangely, the word actually comes from the French “objet”.


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

text: In most cases I would say that the family name should come first, as in "the Ringling Brothers circus" or "the Bronte sisters", but then there is the Dostoyevsky novel "The Brothers Karamazov". Why does the family name come after the brothers in this case?


title: Contextual meaning of "run out of"

text: This is from CSI NY. Two investigators are examining a victim's body. > Joe: Well, I almost **ran out of** here. Any idea who she is? > > Mic: No. Definitely doesn't work in the lab.


title: Word for one who does not eat onions

text: Is there a single word for someone who does not eat onions? I remember having heard this word somewhere but do not remember it now.


title: Total number of combination or combinations

text: May I know which sentence is grammatical? > Given n services in sequential composition, where each of them having l > candidates, the total number of combination is l^n. > > Given n services in sequential composition, where each of them having l > candidates, the total number of combination are l^n. > > Given n services in sequential composition, where each of them having l > candidates, the total number of combinations is l^n. > > Given n services in sequential composition, where each of them having l > candidates, the total number of combinations are l^n.


title: "Rumpus" vs "ruckus"

text: My brother thinks a _ruckus_ is more violent than a _rumpus_. I think most people normally only use one word or the other for _any_ disturbance/commotion. Apologies if this looks a bit like a "vote" type of question, but who's right?


title: Expression: 'Correct! J'?

text: > **Possible Duplicate:**   >  What does a single letter "J" mean in emailing? To q question that I had asked I got a reply as below: Correct! J Is there an expression like this in English. Just to clarify, neither my name nor the sender's name has the alphabet _J_ embedded. The sender's entire reply was as follows: Correct! J -Sender Name Also, this does not appear to be a typo since this is the second time I received this reply.


title: Does "not that you would know" make sense in English?

text: Today I was teasing a colleague of mine who keeps forgetting things. I said "You forgot because it's Friday today... Well, not that you would not forget any other day". I am not sure if it was correct. Also, would past tense be here, e.g. "not that you would not remember if it was Tuesday"?


title: Why use 'being' in this sentence?

text: I came across this sentence in my programming book: > There are a number of differences that need to be explained though, the most > important one being that read or write accesses to the file performed by > applications actually affect the target of the link and not the link itself. Why would it bother to use the following? > ...the most important one is that read or write...


I was discussing this last night with my girl friend... How do you describe the taste of an onion? Specifically the growing "spicy" sensation after taking a bite. I'm just talking about the standard yellow onion.


title: Punctuation help

text: I need help with the correct punctuation for the following: > Every empty box symbolizes a child's wish unanswered, and a dream > unfulfilled. I think the construction of the sentence is more powerful as is than if the adjectives appeared before the nouns "wish" and "dream," but is the punctuation correct?


What does it mean to have a 'saucy facial expression'? I came upon a comment saying that and I have no idea what it means.


title: Is "I am optimistic that <something will happen>" correct?

text: Is it grammatically correct to say the following? > I am optimistic that compilers will improve their error messages in the > future.


title: Direct and Indirect Objects with the verbs: Give, Buy, and Bring

text: Both these phrases are correct, >   * Give me it >   * Buy me them > so why are these sentences wrong? >   * Give John it >   * Buy John them > In these sentences, "me/John" are both indirect objects, and the sentence format is same. So, why are former sentences correct and latter ones wrong? Also, _Do it for me_ is correct but _Do me it_ is wrong. What is the reason for this?


title: Is there an antonym for the word dislocation?

text: For my PhD research I am writing about the metaphorical displacement of people (as in "they drove me out of their group", "he was snatched away before his time"). Essentially there are a variety of synonyms I use going from dislocation, to delocalization, deportation, forced migration, and exile (though exile is a bit different). The one I use most often is delocalization. So here is my question   1. Is delocalization an understandable term?   2. Does it have an antonym? That antonym would have to mean something as 'the attachment of people to a place.' I have been using the word _localization_ so far, but somehow I feel might be more about locating something or someone, rather than attaching oneself to a location.


title: Meaning of a quote from "The Quiet American"

text: > Innocence always calls mutely for protection when we would be so much wiser > to guard ourselves against it: innocence is like a dumb leper who has lost > his bell, wandering the world, meaning no harm.   >  —Graham Greene, The Quiet American Does the part 'when we would be so much wiser to guard ourselves against it' mean that we should stay away from being innocent? or stay away from the notion innocence itself? Does 'Innocence is like a dumb leper who has lost his bell, wandering the world, meaning no harm' mean that innocence is harmful although it does not intend to? What was the author trying to imply?


title: Is the expression 'more alike' awkward or does it work in an interface?

text: I want to create a button on an interface that will show me more items (cars) of the same kind (or similar in characteristics). I was thinking of 'more like this' but this is a bit too long and the interface is already crowded, thus I came up with 'more alike', but I don't know if people understand this. Alternatives are 'see similar cars' and 'other similar cars' but they are also too long. How would it be more appropriate to say, in a short form?


title: Accept and change

text: Is there any word which accumulates the meaning of both words "Accept" and "Change"? Example : I accepted and changed myself from the feedback given.


title: Is there an idiom for “can take truth unprettified whatever it is”?

text: Here's the scenario: I screwed something and that caused some real harm. Now another person could just tell me, “Dude, you screwed X and this caused this and this harm," but instead he will try to be supe- diplomatic and vague to “not hurt my feelings.” I’d like to tell him, “Dude, stop that diplomacy and prettification — I can take the ugly truth, whatever it is.” Is there a widely recognized idiom for conveying that message?


Where does the phrase "to get on like a house on fire" come from? (Meaning "to immediately get on very well with someone", particularly a new acquaintance.) It's quite common here in the UK, but even as a native speaker it strikes me as bizarre.


title: what does over-ridden means?

text: I got a email from my lecturer saying > You have over-ridden the design document with a progress report. What does this mean?? Cheers for your help.


title: What is a proper word for time slowing down

text: I've been trying to figure our a proper single word for the phenomenon of time slowing down . Is there any such word ?


title: Can we say "Had Einstein used his spare time on something more useful for the society, ..."

text: The complete sentence is : > **Had** Einstein used his spare time on something more useful for the > society, the improvement of our knowledge of the nature of the universe > would have been greatly delayed. I move "Had" to the head of the sentence to make it a little uncommon.


title: Synonyms for "ease of use"? Preferably shorter

text: I'm currently copywriting a description for a facebook page. Unfortunately it imposes a limit on me of about 200 characters. To get to the point, I'd need a synonym for "ease of use" that's a bit shorter to trim it down. (Also, I currently end two sentences with "use" and it's not pretty)


title: What is "desysopped"?

text: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Rollback_feature: > Standard rollback may only be used in certain situations – editors who > misuse standard rollback (for example, by using it to reverse good-faith > edits in situations where an explanatory edit summary would normally be > expected) may have their rollback rights removed. Since rollback is part of > the core administrator tools, an admin could theoretically be desysopped in > order to remove those tools. I couldn't understand the last sentence, I was wondering what's "desysopped" ?


title: What term has replaced the term “microcomputing” from 1986?

text: ![enter image description here](http://i.stack.imgur.com/ggkRx.png) Why has the term "microcomputing" been used less and less since 1986-87 (ngram)? What term has replaced the term "microcomputing" since 1986?


title: "Merge a with b" and "Merge b with a" or "Merge b into a"

text: I might be having a dumb day but today after looking over my code I ran into a meaning issue with my own syntax, and the comments explaining that syntax...something I've never actually thought about until I decided I need to be clearer to myself, as this application gets larger and larger and I'm the only maintainer on this project...so here is the question. If I were to say **merge hash1 with hash2** _what would that mean to you_? Would it be more proper to simply say "merge hash2 into hash1" since this is what I actually mean? I'm not the the only one reading this so I want to be as clear as possible to people who aren't programmers what exactly is going on. For anyone who wants elaboration on entities:   hash1 = {a: "default", b: "default", c: "default"}   hash2 = {a: "new", b: "new"}   Where in this case hash2 is being merged into hash1 so that hash2 overrides hash1.   **For anyone who doesn't program, think of it as two lists, list2 merging into list1.**


title: Usage of "cowardly" and "coward"

text: I recently discovered that _cowardly_ , which looks like an adverb, is actually also an adjective. So far so good. Then what is the difference between _cowardly_ and _coward_ , and is there any preferential usage of either?


title: People's names as names for genitalia?

text: How did Peter, the surname, Johnson, and the nicknames for William(Willy) and Richard(Dick), come to mean penis? Was the first instance of these usages, related to a specific person? Are there more examples in this area? Is this exclusive to English?


title: What's the distinction between "nonessential" and "inessential"?

text: I'm revising a text that uses the word "nonessential", but my ear is telling me "inessential." Usually when there are two very similar words like this, there is some subtle (or not so subtle) distinction between them. Does anyone know what it is, and if so, can you cite any authorities who discuss the distinction?


title: "Any" followed by singular or plural countable nouns?

text: This question has troubled me for ages despite my several attempts of looking it up in dictionaries or usage books. Do we say, "Do you have _any ideas_ " or "Do you have _any idea_ "? I do see an example where "any" means "it doesn't matter who/which/what", therefore "You can borrow _any book_ you like." Also, does it matter between using it in questions and negatives?


title: What do the allusions in this poem mean?

text: This is a poem **Across** by **Vikram Seth** :               Across these miles I wish you well.     May nothing haunt your heart but sleep.     May you not sense what I don’t tell.     May you not dream, or doubt, or weep.     May what my pen this peaceless day     Writes on this page not reach your view     Till its deferred print lets you say     It speaks to someone else than you      I'm having trouble understanding the meaning of the last four lines. Can someone explain the exact meaning of the last 4 lines?


title: The word describing being in a steady & boring situation for long time

text: What word describes the situation where you have to stay in a boring condition for a long time? For example when a doctor tells you you have to stay in bed for two days without leaving it at all! The words that come to my mind are "boring" and "tedious". I just thought there might be a better word choice.


title: Etymology of "sh**hole"

text: What is the etymology of _shithole_? Did it originate from A) the orifice through which excrement is passed, or B) the hole in the ground intended for the disposal of such excrement? (This is a serious question for professional research. You don't want to know the details.)


title: Current / Previous / Previous -- A term to describe this state other than tense or currency

text: I'm looking for a term to describe a state. Ordinarily I would use the word "Currency" to describe the state of "Current", "Future", "Previous", however in the context, this would be too easily confused with a monetary currency. What would be another good word to use to describe a "currency" state? "The currency of the address" sounds and reads horribly, and certainly "tense" in this context doesn't work.


title: Is "grit and resolve” a popular phrase?

text: In the article of Time (May 5th) titled “Obama aspire to do Big Things,” I noticed Press Secretary Jay Curney used the word, ‘ _grit and resolve’_ followed by “(and) not in a John Wayne way, but in a commitment and focus,” when explaining Bin Laden death in a press interview held on May 2nd. I guess _‘grit and resolve_ ” simply means “resolute” from the component words. But I’m curious to know whether they (grit and resolve) are often put together like this as an idiom. Can you teach me? The Press Secretary’s remark containing ‘a grit and resolve’ is as follows: “Obama has discussed this thematic connection with his aides in the West Wing, explaining that the death of bin Laden signals something far greater than a national security accomplishment. “He views this as a demonstration of this country’s capacity to overcome skeptics and do things that people had decided were no longer doable,” explained Press Secretary Jay Carney, in an interview Monday afternoon. “There is sort of _a grit and resolve_. And not in a John Wayne way, but in a commitment and focus.”


title: What is a "bernie"?

text: Proper nouns are not playable in Scrabble, but I know (from studying words) that "bernie" and "bernies" is playable in Scrabble. But I cannot find a definition for the lowercase version anywhere online. Help?


title: "Based on" vs. "based upon"

text: Should I use _on_ or _upon_ in the following sentence? > I remembered the story years later when I investigated the incident it was > based on.


title: How to correctly capitalize words inside of brackets/parentheses in article names and book titles?

text: How do I correctly capitalize words inside of brackets/parentheses in names and titles? A few examples: > Captain America (untold stories)   >  Captain America (Untold Stories) > > Madonna (written by E. Cales in 1998)   >  Madonna (Written by E. Cales in 1998) > > My Summer Vacation (with my family)   >  My Summer Vacation (With My Family)   >  My Summer Vacation (With my family)


title: Is the expression "quote you happy" accepted English grammar? What is its history?

text: I'm editing a document written by someone who grew up in the UK, which contains the phrase "We'll quote you happy". That doesn't parse for me (I grew up in New Zealand), but a quick search about the web suggests it is used with regard to cars or car insurance in the UK, and thus might derive from an advertisement that I have not seen. Is there a specific meaning? Would I be advised to leave it as-is or change it?


title: meaning of Republic

text: I've been thinking what might be the real meaning of the word `Republic`? As far as I know the prefix `re-` gives the base word the meaning of `again`; as in `renew, replace, reclaim`. I am wondering what kind of a meaning does it give to `re_public`?


title: What is the meaning, or fun of the pun in the line, “H.D. was the youthful butt of excruciating jokes, or eggscruciating yolks”?

text: I came across the line, “In the orphanage he shared with Puss, _H.D. was the youthful butt of excruciating jokes (or eggscruciating yolks_ ).” in Time magazine’s review of the newly released animation, “Puss in Boots” under the headline “Antonio Banderas in Puss in Boots: One Cool Cat.”(October 28). > "Humpty is Puss’ childhood frenemy: pal, rival and seemingly inept marplot > to our hero’s suave efficiency in a crisis. In the orphanage he shared with > Puss, _H.D. was the youthful butt of excruciating jokes (or eggscruciating > yolks)._ Ever since, he has sought revenge against the world, Puss possibly > included, as he searches for the magic beans from yet another fractured > fairy tale." I don’t understand the meaning of the line “H.D. was the youthful butt of excruciating jokes (or eggscruciating yolks).” Though I think it is a pun of “excruciating jokes” and “eggscruciating yolks,” it is difficult for a non- native English speaker to grab the fun or gist of this phrasing. What is the connection of “excruciating jokes” and “eggscruciating yolks”? I mean, what is the fun and humor of putting “ excruciating joke” and “eggscruciating yolks” in juxtaposition but for rhyming? After all, what does this line means? Besides, I can’t find the definition of “ _eggscruciating_ ” in neither Cambridge nor Merrimu-Webster Dictionary. Is it the writer’s coinage in an attempt to make a play of word?


title: "Most every" and "almost every"

text: What is the difference between "most every" and "almost every"? Do they differ in amount?


title: What does 'high-shouldered' mean?

text: for example a quote from the haunted house: a high-shouldered young fellow.


title: Using "such" + article form

text: When we use the word 'such', is there a rule to dictate whether we need to add article a/an behind? For example: > I did not expect such cold weather. and > I did not expect such a cold weather. Another example I found is > She has such a marvellous voice! All three examples are in the such + adj + noun form, only difference is the article 'a'. I would like to find out if there are any rules or is merely a usage issue?


title: What is the abbreviation for 'century'?

text: I _remember_ being taught in history classes to abbreviate _century_ by writing a large capital C followed by the ordinal number as in: `C18th` without the full-stop (period). Recently I have noticed on ELU (it wasn't something I paid particular attention in the past) the lower-case c _after_ a cardinal number and with a period, as in: `18c.` and `18c` without the period. Would either `18th c.` or `C18` be considered incorrect? I checked online and The Oxford English Dictionary says century is abbreviated thus: **c.** but no indication if the number preceding should be ordinal or cardinal. On the first page of Google results I also found the Monash University recommended symbol, ![enter image description here](http://i.stack.imgur.com/iq1Zl.gif) but without _th_. In _The Chambers Dictionary_ 12th Edition, it lists both C and c as abbreviations for century: > **C** (preceding numeral, eg C21, twenty-first century) > > **c** (following numeral, eg 21c, twenty-first century) It also lists: > **cen.** _abbrev_ : central; century > > **cent.** _abbrev_ : centigrade; central; centum (L), a hundred; century. Why is the ordinal number e.g. 18th, 21st ignored? And finally, which is the most commonly accepted and recommended abbreviation?


title: Suppose that one were to concatenate *-ology* and *science* to derive a new word, what rules would determine its spelling?

text: I've asked this specific question as a means to learning about the rules that determine, or patterns that describe, the spellings of derived words. Suppose that someone were to concatenate _-ology_ and _science_ in order to derive a word that denoted [[ **the study of science** ]], and that she wanted to spell it as an authority would probably spell it had he derived the word; how should she spell the word?


title: Linguistic differences between these two sentences

text: Consider these two sentences:               When we go home, we can then watch a DVD      or               When we go home, then we can watch a DVD      Both mean the exact same thing but do they differ in linguistic terms?


title: Which one sounds better: schedule at a time slot or schedule to a time slot?

text: Which one sounds better? > schedule something _at_ a time slot or > schedule something _to_ a time slot


title: Term for "over stimulation"

text: I'm looking for a certain word, usually being said about the current generation, something like _attention deficit caused by over stimulation_ (like people don't want to wait for more than 30 seconds for a video, etc).      **Update:**   The word I was looking for was desensitized


title: Why is "Chop Gate" pronounced so strangely?

text: I was passing through the hamlet of Chop Gate (in North Yorkshire) the other day, and heard it referred to as "chop yat" (tʃɒp yæt). This source here concurs with that pronunciation. Does anyone know why it is pronounced in that way (or, alternatively, why it is spelt that way)?


title: Is it possible to use “Go Galt” beyond political or business context?

text: I came across the expression “Go Galt” in Paul Krugman’s article titled “The Twinkie manifesto” appearing in November 20 New York Times. The phrase appears in the second paragraph of the following interesting remark: > The data confirm Fortune’s impressions. Between the 1920s and the 1950s real > incomes for the richest Americans fell sharply, not just compared with the > middle class but in absolute terms. According to estimates by the economists > Thomas Piketty and Emmanuel Saez, in 1955 the real incomes of the top 0.01 > percent of Americans were less than half what they had been in the late > 1920s, and their share of total income was down by three-quarters. > > Strange to say, however, the oppressed executives Fortune portrayed in 1955 > didn’t **go Galt** and deprive the nation of their talents. On the contrary, > if Fortune is to be believed, they were working harder than ever. I learned from Freedictionary that “Go Galt” means “to cease working in response to punitive taxes as a form of protest.” What is the origin of “Go Galt”? Is “Go Galt” used only for describing the business owners’ giving up business to protest heavy tax? Is it the wealthy’s or employers’ counter version of workers’ “strike”? Can I use “Go Galt” for simply meaning “stop working / business” without a heavy-tax connotation?


title: in order to [gerund] or [infinitive]?

text: There are few questions and answer on the choice of gerund versus infinitive. From what I understand, when conveying a purpose the infinitive should be used: > I use my key in order to open the door. [correct]   >  I use my key in order to opening the door. [incorrect]   >  I use words to describe my dream. [correct]   >  I use words to describing my dream. [incorrect] Yet I read the instruction on an English lesson book: > "Use similes to describing the animals here below." Could you please confirm what should follow "(in order) to": the gerund or the infinitive?


title: How to pronounce the resolution 1280×800 in English?

text: How do I say "1280 × 800" in English? I'm not sure how to pronounce the "×" between the numbers. I'm talking about screen resolutions.


title: Difference between "at someone's face" vs "in someone's face" vs "to someone's face"

text: What is the difference between 'to my face', 'at my face' and 'in my face'? I searched it on google books and got results for all of them with various hits. Does one seem more accurate over the other? Which one would a native speaker use and why? > He pointed a gun at my face. > > He pointed a gun in my face. > > He pointed a gun to my face.


title: Can "quarry" mean "notebook"?

text: I am looking for this definition because of the book _Quarry for Middlemarch_ , which my lit professor said was George Eliot's notebook for all her research for her novel, but all of the definitions I have found so far don't really talk about quarry meaning anything like notebook.


title: Grammaticality of differently worded quotations

text: In crafting a "homemade" quotation, and after considerable time, I've come up with a few versions. I'm not sure, however, if any of them is correct grammatically, not to mention memorable stylistically. **This task is not a school assignment**. I simply like to craft my own quotations. This one happens to be the figure called _antithesis_. (You know, JFK's "Ask not what your country can do for you; ask what you can do for your country.") The context is the difference between a sin of commission and a sin of omission, and the possible relationship between the two. Ordinarily, one might say in this regard, "A sin of commission is doing what you know is wrong, whereas a sin of omission is not doing what you know is right." That's fine as far as it goes, I guess, but there are other possibilities, too. To wit: A. Failure to do the right thing is the gateway to success in doing the wrong thing. B. To fail to do right is to succeed to do wrong. C. Failing to do right is succeeding to do wrong. D. To fail to do the right is to succeed in doing wrong. E. Failing to do the right thing is succeeding in doing the wrong thing. I've toyed with idea of using "failing in doing right" or "failure to do right," but they could sound as though someone tried doing the right thing, but failed, which is not a sin of omission. Any thoughts?


title: Is "off to somewhere with a car" correct?

text: I wonder if the structure of the following sentence is correct: > I'm off to my place with my car. I'm the one driving the car, but I prefer not to use the verb _drive_. Would the following alternative make sense? > I'm off to my place in my car. If anyone can help me handle this sentence without using _drive_ , I'd really appreciate it.


title: Name of the used mins during time other than night and weekend in cell phone plan?

text: My current cell phone plan includes 200 minutes, and free calling at night (from 6PM to 7AM) and on weekends. Is there a term in the mobile industry to mean the minutes used during time other than weekends or nights? Is "airtime" exactly for that purpose? Similarly, what is the term for used minutes during weekends and nights? For example, in my latest bill, I used 30 minutes at nights and weekends, and 108 minutes during times other than nights and weekends. Since 108 is less than 200, I don't have to pay extra money other than my basic plan fee. If I had used more than 200 mins during other times, I would have had to pay additional fees for the extra minutes.


title: Is "reduce" transitive or intransitive?

text: Is the verb _reduce_ used incorrectly in the sentence below? Would you personally choose to replace _reduce_ with an alternative such as _drop_ or _fall_? > The birth rate has **reduced** over the past 10 years.


title: Where did "I lost it" come from?

text: People on Reddit often comment "I lost it" while quoting the funniest part of a joke to highlight how funny that part is. As I don't speak English much, I am not sure if this is Reddit-specific, but I guess not. Where does this come from? Is it related that laughing from a joke is similar to "losing your mind"? That seems far-fetched. "I lost it" would intuitively mean "the joke stops making sense here" (i.e. "I lost track of the joke here"), which is the exact opposite of what it actually means. What is the etymology of this phrase?


title: What's the deal with "fiery"?

text: How did English end up with the adjective _fiery_ (instead of * _firy_ ) from _fire,_ but _miry_ from _mire_ and _wiry_ from _wire_? Are there any other words where the noun is _-ire_ and the adjective is _-iery_?


title: Is it grammatically acceptable to drop "to" in constructions such as [to cater "to" someone] and [to entitle someone "to" something]?

text: Back when I was a student, I was taught as a rule that verbs such as "cater" and "entitle" should be followed by "to" before "someone" and "something" respectively. Yet, I was kind of puzzled the other day when browsing the Net I came across instances of prepositionless constructions around these verbs, and so I wish you could tell whether or not these sound grammatical to you. > Utah will cater you all that you have wanted in a perfect vacation. source > > I started sideRACK.net at the beginning of the 2009 recession and a means to > cater you the group of people who love boutique clothing. source > > There are also special toilets available to cater physically challenged > individuals. source > > Geriatricians cater the elderly people. source > > Black men endured as slaves entitled them the right to vote before women. > source > > The right of citizenship merely entitles them the right to return to their > homeland. source > > The First Amendment constitutionally protected free speech in 1790, but the > right to free speech in those days merely entitled you the right to... > source > > FERPA entitles you the right of confidentiality. source > > Workbook entitles you the right to download, mix match and print as many > copies as you need for the current school year. source > > And entitles you the right to be in the running for board positions. source > > whether at governmental offices or in private sector, and to reside as long > as you want also entitles you the right to set up your own business. source > > Your payment of the investment to us entitles you the right to a seat. > source _Cater v. tr. [to attend to the wants and needs of]_ > http://www.thefreedictionary.com/cater


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

text: I was playing a game over the weekend where you're allowed to give a one-word clue. Someone said "RNA" and a disagreement followed as to whether or not it's a single word. At the time, we misidentified it as an acronym, but reading here I see that it's an initialism, which to my mind makes the difference. Made me wonder the same thing about a hyphenated word -- "mother-in-law" seems like a good example. I know this is a silly question, but thoughts? Clarification: the main question at hand is, "is 'RNA' one word or three?"


title: Correct use of "but", "however" and "although"

text: I am not sure which conjunction to use in the following context: >   1. I know about programming **but** I have a little bit of confusion in > Java programming. >   2. I know about programming **although** I have a little bit of confusion > in programming. >   3. I know about programming **however** I have a little bit of confusion > in Java programming. >


title: Beggars on Horseback

text: Near the end of Book I, chapter 17 of _Our Mutual Friend_ , Charles Dickens writes: > There are the beggars on horseback too, in another sense from the sense of > the proverb. These are mounted and ready to start on the highway to > affluence. When I read this, I thought that the "proverb" Dickens was alluding to was "If wishes were horses, beggars would ride." But a note in the Everyman edition of the book says that the relevant adage is "Set a beggar on horse-back, and he'll ride to the devil." I have two questions: 1. Which of these two expressions is older? 2. Did they arise independently, or is one in some sense a retort to the other? A quick survey of Ngram Reader results reveals an instance of "if wishes were horses" from 1719, in the translator's preface to _Monsieur Bossu's treatise of the epick poem_ : > ...language from his royal majesty ensued, and then we were formally > introduced to the fraternity by their assumed titles. "If wishes were > horses," says the proverb, "beggars would ride;" and, as if in > exemplification of the adage, these ... [snippet] From W. Goodall, _The Adventures of Captain Greenland_ (1752), we have this: > But there is an ancient saying, that, set a Beggar on Horseback, and he will > ride to the Devil. Now, whether that Saying was verify'd here or not, we > shall not presume to understand. But we also seem to have a truncated version of the saying in John Trapp, _Solomonis Panaretos: Or a Commentarie Upon the Books of Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, and the Song of Songs_ (1650): > The Crown of the wise is their riches; but yet give them a foole, you put a > sword into a mad man's hand; the folly of such fools will soon be > foolishnesse. Why? was it not foolishnesse before they were rich? yes, but > now it is become egregious foolishnesse. [Greek quotation omitted] the earth > cannot beare the insolencies of such. Set a beggar on horseback, &c. All three of these quotations suggest that the adages are already thoroughly established at the time of the writers' citing them.


title: Are there any names of food that are associated with political correctness other than Fried chicken?

text: The word Spanish golfer, Sergio Garcia used in answering a reporter’s question about the status of his current relationship with his rival, Tiger Woods on May 21st – “We’ll have him ‘round every night. We will serve fried chicken,” was bitterly criticized as an offensive and retrograding remark by media and most of audience, and he apologized. This reminds me of the classic episode that Japanese Prime Minister, Hayato Ikeda made a slip of tongue in the Diet on December 7, 1950, and was forced to resign by saying “The poor are better to eat barley-mixed rice,” in reference to the administration's austerity policy. But this blunder wasn't about the race, but was about the class. Until post WW II, barley-mixed rice had been considered as the poor’s staple in our country. Are there any other foods that carry political correct implications that non- native English speakers should be mindful in speaking / writing English than fried chicken?


title: Circle is to cylinder as ellipse is to what?

text: What do you call the geometric shape obtained when you give an ellipse thickness? Or in other words, a circle is to a cylinder as an ellipse is to what?


title: What do you call those fenced grassy areas that people own in the countryside?

text: Example: ![enter image description here](http://i.stack.imgur.com/wcTrO.jpg) I thought of _fenced plot_ , _land lot_ but I'm not sure. They are usually used for farming or raising livestock. But sometimes for nothing at all.


title: Etymology of term "Rubberbanding" (video games)

text: As long as I can remember, "rubberbanding" has been the way of the machine giving the computer an advantage when the player is leading in video games. For instance in Super Mario Kart, you are in the lead by half a lap when suddenly a computer character zooms past you as if you were connected by a rubber band. This is a form of dynamic game difficulty balancing. Lately I have noticed an increase of using the term "rubberbanding" when talking about a type of "lag" where the player is returned to a place they were moment ago because of packet loss/server synchronization issues. First reference I could find was this log from a Ultima Online Expansion beta test from 1998. Which leads me to my question: when/how was the term "rubberbanding" coined when talking about video games or computer technology in general?


title: One who objectifies women

text: Is there a single word or short phrase to describe someone who treats women like objects?   Is there a similar word/phrase for who objectifies other people in general?


title: What is wrong with mixing “taller” and “tallest” like this?

text: > Although the towers appear identical, the west tower is the tallest, > standing 16 feet taller than the east tower. What might be wrong? Does it have to do with comparative and superlative degrees?


title: Acronym or initialism presentation

text: When creating an acronyms/initialisms in a document which will be referenced throughout the document, what is the proper way to display it for the first time? ("Word") or just (Word)?


title: Is there a word that means both "is compliant" and "is aware"?

text: For example, a person that knows a rule exists and is following that rule. (sorry if I'm doing this wrong- first post in this StackExchange)


title: What word conveys "accounts", "identities" or "registrations" for signing up to things?

text: I'm attempting to set up a new email address for signing up for accounts on- and offline. I like the following but each has its own problem:   * accounts: implies financial, as in accountant   * identities/identity/id: seems the closest, but not quite right   * registrations: too easily misspelled when given over the phone


title: What's the meaning of "pence" in this context?

text: This is a comment from a discussion on The effects of exercise on depression: > For severe depression, this actually is pretty much the treatment routine. > Pills to get just the tiniest amount of motivation, cognitive behavioral > therapy to **pence** that motivation towards positive activities like > regular exercise instead of suicide. > > Sounds severe, but that's how problematic deep depressions often are. What does _pence_ mean mentioned above? I've looked it up, but I couldn't find an entry in the dictionaries that defines _pence_ in verb form.


title: Why is "threshold" pronounced "thresh-hold"?

text: Why is _threshold_ pronounced "thresh-hold"?


title: Literary and colloquial readings in English?

text: Some Chinese languages have the concept of Literary and colloquial readings, where the pronunciation of words, if you will, change between literary readings and vernacular readings. Does English have this concept at all?! (Perhaps something like want to vs. wanna?)


title: Should the verb of the independent clause come before or after the dependent clause?

text: Which of the following is correct? >   1. The Boeing 777 crashed, carrying 227 passengers and a crew of 12 > members, into international waters. > >   2. The Boeing 777, carrying 227 passengers and a crew of 12 members, > crashed into international waters. > > Any elaboration would be very much appreciated.


title: What is the Pronunciation of "-sts" at the end of the word?

text: How can we pronounce words ending with - **sts**?     * lists   * costs    * tests I often heard people pronunce its like,   * lɪsts and kɒsts   * lɪsː kɔsː   but which one is acceptable?


title: Different number of sub-levels in different chapters

text: Is it considered bad form to have a different number of sub-levels in different chapters in a technical report? Or would something like the following be admittable? > Chapter 1 - Introduction > > Chapter 2 - Theory > > Section 2.1 - Explosions > > Section 2.2 - Drag Loads > > Section 2.2.1 - Drag Loads on Piping > > Section 2.3 - Compressibility Effects > > Chapter 3 - Simulations > > Section 3.1 - Stationary Simulations > > Section 3.2 - Transient Simulations > > Chapter 4 - Conclusions And, do each heading has to be followed by text, as in the following? > **Chapter 2 - Theory** > > In this chapter we will consider... > > **Section 2.1 - Explosions** Where I work, we try to stick to the IEEE Style, if that in any way affects the answers.


title: What do you call someone who has a 'problem'

text: I need one word(or two) for somebody who has a problem. Any problem. For example, when the person to whom an address belongs (in a letter) is called an addressee(not entirely correct) So in similar terms, what's the person with a problem called?


Where does "patching through" come from? And what did it originally mean? Usage: "I'm patching through a call from Mr. X"


title: What are the differences between "mimic" and "copy"?

text: I found this thread on wordreference.com in which it is claimed that "mimic" has frivolous connotations and "copy" has derogatory connotations. Specifically I am wondering how this distinction may relate to interpretations of Wittgenstein. If one can mimic another's gesture or expression, can one also copy it, and vice-versa?


title: Why do we "scotch" a rumour?

text: The etymology of the verb _to scotch_ is unclear. Here is the origin note from Oxford Dictionaries: > _early 17th century (as a noun):_ of unknown origin; perhaps related to > skate1. The sense 'render temporarily harmless' is based on an emendation of > Shakespeare's Macbeth iii. ii. 13 as ‘We have scotch'd the snake, not kill'd > it’, originally understood as a use of scotch2; the sense 'put an end to' > (early 19th century) results from the influence on this of the notion of > wedging or blocking something so as to render it inoperative In contemporary English are there any other common uses of _scotch_? I'm interested in whether there used to be wider use of the verb beyond just that relating to rumours.


title: Using "its" after "both"

text: Sorry for the vague title. I came across this sentence while reading the book _A Dash of Style_ : > The gracious semicolon wouldn't exist if it weren't for the failure of both > the comma and period to fulfill **its** task. Could you explain to me how _its_ is correct up there? In my view it should be _their_.


title: Does MLA require intext citations to include author's last name if you introduced his name earlier in your work?

text: I'm a bit unsure if I can go about excluding author last names in citations for a paper I've been writing. I have to compare two characters from different stories in the same anthology. I have quotes from the two stories throughout the work, but introduce the authors+characters at the beginning of the essay. I was always under the impression one introduction of the author is enough to exclude ever having to include their name in in text citations, but a peer is telling me otherwise. I went through an entire class last semester following my original style without losing marks which also adds to the confusion. The MLA rule sites tend to be generic and don't provide information outside the context of one sentence, so I wonder if anyone can clarify. Thanks.


title: Noun to use for a person who has commissioned work from a contractor

text: Let's say I'm an independent software developer who gets paid, by the hour, to create tailored software for solving one person's particular problems; I'm a _contractor_ and a _service provider_. What's a good noun to use for the person who commissioned work from me? _Employer_ came to mind, but that sounds very… "permanent," and _client_ is a very loaded word in software development. _Customer_ could work, but is there a more accurate noun that I could use?


We have a car dealer around here with an ad that reads "No Fake Lures". Now, as I understand the concept of a lure, if it doesn't attract attention, it's not a lure. And if a lure does attract attention, it's a lure, so no matter what is used to make the _fake_ lure, it's a an _actual_ lure. Therefore, it's not possible to have a _fake_ lure. What do you call a statement like "No fake lures"?


title: "Stressful to" vs. "stressful for"

text: Which preposition, _for_ or _to_ , is correct in below sentence? > It is less stressful [for/to] a child than an adult to learn a foreign > language.


title: 'To' vs 'that'?

text: We have a suite of software products. Should our tagline be: Tools **to** bring content to life or: Tools **that** bring content to life


title: A word for an entity that gives rise to something else

text: I'm looking for a word that describes an entity that is the reason for another entity to exist. If that original entity stopped to exist, the other entity wouldn't exist because its right to exist would vanish with it. for example: citizens to government. without the citizens, government wouldn't make much sense. Its right to exist comes from the fact there are citizens. The pattern: A would be meaningless if B didn't exist. B is the **word_i'm_looking_for** of A. Any ideas?


title: "Fudge" vs. "dodge" (an issue, question, etc.), and "fudge" as another term for "cheat" in AE

text: In AE, can "fudge" and "dodge" be used just about interchangeably to convey the sense of circumvent [= avoid or try to avoid answering, fulfilling, or performing (duties, questions, issues, etc.)]? Are these terms acceptable in whatever register of the English language but the most formal prose? Also, Does "fudge" have any currency in modern day colloquial AE to mean "cheat or welsh [fudge on an exam, fudge on one's promises, etc.]?


title: Is there a word for when a problem's understood complexity grows exponentially as you work on it?

text: Example: > Hey Joe, can you fix simple problem A?   >  Sure, Sally, no problem! After all it's simple, right? But A is then found to have dependent sub-problems B and C; B to have dependent sub-problems D, E, and F; and C to have dependent problems G and H. > The problems have to be removed in alphabetical order. Context: As a software developer, I run into problems like this while working on bugs in complex programs. I wonder whether there's an English name for this concept.


title: I'm just here to help is all

text: I came across the following sentence in an American novel: > "Hey, sugar," he says. "I'm just here to help you is all." I take it that the sentence means, "I'm just here to help you and that's all." It is there something missing in the sentence or is this correct grammar?


title: Do I need a comma?

text: Note that I'm supposed to use Oxford comma. Now do I need a comma at the place of the question mark? > When such change adversely affects the system, vulnerability increases[?] > and a banking crisis becomes more likely.


title: What does "prod issues" mean in computer science and software engineering?

text: > DevOps engineers are those who are good at debugging, troubleshooting, > analyzing **prod issues** and providing solutions. Who have good hands on > technologies like unix shell scripting, perl, SQL etc. > > Software engineering is typically involved in designing, writing code and > fixing the bugs reported What "prod issues" means here? I have google it but still confused.


title: Use of 'agendum' today

text: A wild guess tells me that _agenda_ vs _agendum_ is like _data_ vs _datum_ (former is a collection of the latter), but what is the use of _agendum_ in today's English? If part of my party's agenda is to get rid of all vegetables and to bring loud mufflers to the whole country, would each of those be a single **agendum**? How would the word get used nowadays?


title: Is it appropriate to use "sport", "champ", or "kiddo" to call a child (e.g. your son)?

text: I'm Spanish, just in case some of you think this question is kind of silly. I watch TV series in English very frequently to practise my listening skills. The words I've heard in relation to children are:   1. _Sport_   2. _Champ_   3. _Kiddo_ I wonder whether they are used in everyday speech or not. I looked up the meaning of _sport_ in a dictionary and it says: > (old-fashioned) used when speaking to a boy in a friendly way. However, the Urban Dictionary says: "the name your dad calls you by that makes you feel like a total loser". As for _champ_ , I think it's a shortening for _champion_ , but according to Urban Dictionary it can be used in a pejorative way, "sarcastically to disparage someone's ability". And the last one is _kiddo_ , so that would be "(spoken informal) used by adults to address a young person". I like this one because it seems that it's always used with endearment. So, what's the _actual_ usage of these words? Do you ever use any of them? What words do you suggest I use for this purpose?


title: "A guy whose job is to" vs "a guy whose job it is to"?

text: I've been hearing the phrase "whose job it is to" quite often lately. Consider these two sentences: >   1. We have a guy whose job _is_ to clean windows. >   2. We have a guy whose job _it is_ to clean windows. > I would prefer the first one because of the less redundancy, though both sentences seem to be grammatically correct (are they?). What do you think about the grammar of these sentences? Is there any (subtle) difference in meaning (accentuation)?


title: Would certainly have or certainly would have?

text: I have these confusions sometimes. Firstly, which among the following are grammatically correct to use in sentences- >   1. She would certainly have loved that. >   2. She would have certainly loved that. >   3. She certainly would have loved that. > Can you provide a sentence each for the correct one(s)? If any of them is wrong please enlighten the reason. Secondly if they are correct for specific sentence patterns then please elaborate with an example.


title: What is a good word to describe someone who is empathetic, quick, and witty in conversation

text: I’m looking for ideally a single word that describes with positive connotation a highly empathetic and witty person — the type of person who’s a fantastic conversationalist as a result of these qualities. What describes that person who can masterfully pick up on the subtle nuances of a conversation, and then respond appropriately, empathetically, quickly, and keenly? After scraping the thesaurus around empathetic, witty, smooth, sharp, sagacious, etc I could not come up with anything that fit the association well. Empathetic didn’t imply the good-to-talk-to, conversational properties. Witty in the context of conversation brings up thoughts of interesting facts, word puns, and trite remarks without much association with one in tune with the nuances of how the other person is thinking. As an aside, I feel like this word would be extremely useful to me. Anyone who exemplified in the qualities that this word is trying to convey would be an interesting person to talk to.


title: Correct adjective form of the word "disperse"

text: I am writing an article related to the ionosphere and I would like to ask what form of the word _disperse_ is right in the sentence: > A significant majority of the error can be easily removed using two or more > frequencies due to the **disperse** nature of the ionosphere. I looked at few dictionaries and googled the combination "disperse nature". Here is what I found: > ▶adjective: Chemistry denoting a phase dispersed in another phase, as in a > colloid. – derivatives dispersal _noun_ , > > disperser _noun_ , > > dispersible _adjective_ > > dispersive _adjective_. * * * And for example http://www.yourdictionary.com/disperse-system > **disperse system** > > A disperse system is a two-part system made up of microscopic particles and > the medium in which they are suspended. (noun) Here, if I am not mistaken, the word _disperse_ is used as an adjective. * * * I am not an English native speaker and I have no sense in this. What is the right form for my sentence?


title: In/With regard to are informal?

text: Her Ladyship's Guide to the Queen's English by Caroline Taggart       suggests that all the forms in _regard_ be informal ![A](http://i.stack.imgur.com/cFK5X.png) Are you in accord with her ? I use it in my future article and wish to be formal.