title: Number of noun modified by coordinated PP: "the [X-sg] of [Y] and [Z] is", or "the [X-pl] of [Y] and [Z] are"?

text: I've tried searching Google and StackExchange for this one, but I find it difficult to state the problem generally and therefore have had no luck so far; apologies if the answer is already out there somewhere (and easily to be found given the right formulation). Now to flesh out the rather abstract phrasing in the title of my question - which of the following (if any) is correct: > (a) The performance of Y and Z is comparable. or > (b) The performances of Y and Z are comparable. My intuition is that both are at least commonly used, and perhaps even correct. But do you know of any grammar book that addresses the issue? And what is your intuition as a native speaker (if applicable)? Please don't argue by saying that (b) is more logical, language as a rule doesn't have to be logical :) I'm interested in a normative body's opinion and/or your native speaker's intuition. (If _I_ were a native speaker myself, I'd use whichever would feel most natural to me, not being overly fond of prescriptive grammar, but I don't have that choice.) Thank you!


title: What's the origin of the idiom "to cut your teeth on something"?

text: I understand that it means to acquire a new skill, but what does it refer to? It makes me cringe every time I read it!


title: Problem converting 'even though' clause to 'despite' clause: 'Despite losing...'

text: I stumbled across this question in 'Intermediate Language Practice' by Michael Vince: 'Even though they were losing at half-time, City won in the end. Despite________________________________' The answer given is 'Despite losing at half-time, City won in the end.' For me, the answer doesn't work. Something like 'Despite being behind at half- time...' would be better. However, I am having trouble explaining _why_ it doesn't work. Is it because the tenses for 'lose' and 'win' do not agree in the original 'even though' sentence so there is ambiguity when you try and reduce 'were losing' to 'losing' because the 'won in the end' makes us read the subordinate clause as 'they lost'?


title: Plural of  "presence"

text: What is the correct way to indicate multiple "presence"s in the sense of "I have a strong presence in this community"? For example: > I have multiple online presence[s?].


title: Use of "that" when proceeded by people, proper nouns, or pronouns

text: "I admit that I am a student in college" I came across this sentence in an online post one day when a comment below it corrected the user, saying "that" should not be used when it is preceded by people, proper nouns, or pronouns. Can someone explain this rule? Is there actually something wrong with this sentence? How should this sentence be corrected? Perhaps "I admit I am a student in college"? When should "that" be used? In my first paragraph, would it have been wrong to say "...corrected the user, saying that "that" should not be..."?


title: Comma placement: "Hi, my name is Joe and I work in a button factory."

text: Will someone please tell me where commas should go in the following sentence: > Hi, my name is Joe and I work in a button factory.


title: Where's the irony? Truth and falsity are reversed?

text: > Hamilton quickly focused on the last part of his opponent’s argument as > support for his attempt to introduce evidence of the truthfulness of his > client’s publications. Hamilton offered the following brilliantly ironic > response: > >> Well, suppose it were so, and let us agree for once that truth is a greater sin than falsehood: Yet as the offenses are not equal, and as the punishment is arbitrary, that is, according as the judges in their discretion shall direct to be inflicted; is it not absolutely necessary that they should know whether the libel is true or false, that they may by that means be able to proportion the punishment? For would it not be a sad case if the judges, for want of **a due information** , should chance to give as severe a judgment against a man for writing or publishing a lie as for writing or publishing a truth? And yet this (with submission), as monstrous and ridiculous as it may seem to be, is the natural consequence of Mr. Attorney’s doctrine that truth makes a worse libel than falsehood, and must follow from his not proving our papers to be false, or not suffering us to prove them to be true. I'm trying to apprehend why this rseponse is 'ironic' and confirm my reading comprehension. I'd summarise this to have reversed the importance of truth and falsity, so is this swap the irony? Here, Alexander Hamilton first hypothesises (for the sake of this argument) that truth is worse than falsehood, then argues that it would be a 'sad case' if judges by chance punish a liar more severely than a truthteller? Finally, Hamilton submits that this is a monstrous counterargument, because he's trying to confute "Mr. Attorney's doctrine." Did I read this 100% rightly? Source: P38, _America on Trial_ by Alan Dershowitz


title: Isn’t “Take hits” a well-received English phrase?

text: I came across the phrase, ‘ _Take hits’_ in the headline of Washington Post article (July 20) titled, ‘Federal workers will _take hits_ in any deal’ which is followed by the following sentence: > “No matter how the debt crisis ends, federal employees will take a double > dose of a bitter pill. Even the best-case scenario of Congress and the White > House agreeing on a plan to raise the debt ceiling would have federal > employees _taking a hit_ through whatever medicine is prescribed for > Americans in general, in addition to money-saving measures aimed directly at > the federal workforce.” From the context of the above sentence, I interpreted “take hits’ implies ‘take a hard blow or damage.’ As I was unable to find definition of ‘take hits’ in dictionaries at hand, I checked into online dictionaries, and found that there is no entry of ‘take hits,’ but ‘take a hit’ meaning ‘inhale through the nose’ with one accord in Free English language Dictionary, Audio English net and www. definitions net. Is my understanding of “take hits” in the sense of ‘get a blow’ right? Why apparently ordinary phrase like ‘take hits’ is registered in neither in ordinary dictionaries nor in online dictionaries, though ‘take a hit’ is registered in online dictionaries under sole definition, ‘inhale through the nose,’ which does not seem to me applicable to the above context?


title: Success or successes? Which is correct?

text: I am making a greeting card for our Client's Company Anniversary, which of these two is correct? "May you achieve greater success in years to come." or "May you achieve greater successes in years to come."? And is it safe to add "even" or "much" before the word "greater"? Thanks!


title: Affirmative reference for the origin of “caucus”

text: Etymonline gives a rather noncommitting origin for the word _caucus_ : > perhaps from caucauasu "counselor, elder, adviser" in the Algonquian dialect > of Virginia, or the Caucus Club of Boston, a 1760s social & political club > whose name possibly derived from Mod. Gk. kaukos "drinking cup." Do other references exist that give a different origin, or a more detailed one?


title: please suggest that if it is a correct sentence

text: Happy with the strong performance in the test, it was decided that Ram give himself a five day rest. here above is my Question ,please correct it.


title: Can 'trains' be used as a synonym for 'postponement'

text: Was solving a cryptic crossword clue recently which reads > Coaches for postponement (6) The answer is 'trains' obvious from coaches , but dont get the postponement reference. The solution mentions > Trains = postponement (collective noun) Is this correct? Or is it even a synonym reference or something else?


title: Does every countable noun have to be preceded by an article?

text: The usage of articles is a little tricky for me. My question is do we have to add an article to every singular countable noun? For example: _License is the credential for using various value-added features and storage capacity..._ My colleague says there has to be an article before "license".


title: Opposite of "qualifier"

text: What is the appropriate term for a modifying clause that generalizes, rather than limits, the preceding statement? For example: "It is crucial to bring a canteen on the trip, even if the sky is cloudy."


title: Satisfying Demand

text: Certain expressions rely on pairs of words. We have some word-pairs as such: > Quench Thirst   >  Sate Hunger   >  Satisfy Desire   >  Satisfy Demand It seems strange to me that _satisfy_ would be used for both _desire_ and _demand_ , though the two words are mostly synonymous. At the same time, _satisfy_ is a rather general term — we can _satisfy_ many things, but we can _quench_ only _thirst_. So is there a more specific word than _satisfy_ for either of these, a word that creates a word-pair that 'fits better'?


title: What is the origin of the noun "satellite town"?

text: A satellite town is a town that is located in the outskirts of a major city. What is the origin of this name, _satellite town_? What does "satellite" exactly mean here?


title: Is addressing a guy as "guy" rude?

text: Non-native here, is addressing a guy as just "guy" considered rude? Like, while addressing a pet-store clerk: "Hey, guy, how many mice will $13 buy?" Also, how long has it been in use?


title: Is "inbuilt" a word? Is it alright to use it or should I use "built in"?

text: I searched and found this: “Built-in” or “In-built”, which says _inbuilt_ is fine. But in a reddit comment, I was told that I should use _built in_ instead of _inbuilt_. Which is correct? I am using the word _inbuilt_ on http://www.inboundio.com/features


title: they are being removed or they are removed?

text: which one is correct **they are being removed from the black list?** or **they are removed from the black list?** i want to use a passive sentence to express the removal of something from the black list.


title: In the last hundred years and the last time

text: Should 'the last time' always be followed by past simple and **in the last hundred years** by present perfect? Eg., The last time I **went** to South America, I **visited** Brazil and Peru. I **spent** two weeks in the Amazon, **hiked** for a week near Machu Picchu, and **flew over the Nazca Lines.** Eg.,In the last hundred years, traveling **has become** much easier and very comfortable. Thanks


title: "False reasoning" psychiatric term

text: I am looking for a one word English equivalent for "false reasoning" of schizophrenia patients. There are two type of this - one is non pathological when low-educated people explain some phenomenon on a base of their own limited knowledge. The second type, is pathological - when people explain phenomenon as a consequence of a disease. Thanks.


title: What is the right preposition after "report"?

text: "He will report into Charles." or "He will report to Charles." ? "He will report into the Collectorate." or "He will report to the Collectorate." ?


title: Why are financial terms not self-descriptive or well-chosen?

text: There are some lingual debates about naming concepts correctly so that you can understand the real concept from its given name. I'm entering into financial markets (I'm a computer programmer who is going to analyse the financial market, in order to develop some applications), and I find it really hard to understand some basic, underlying concepts. I feel like the nomenclature isn't correct. For example:   1. Why do people call something a **Security**? Why not something as simple as a **Financial** or a **Monetary**? Why not **Financial Documents** instead of **Securities**?   2. What does **Instrument** mean? I expect the word **Instrument** to represent a physical tool that can be used for a specific purpose. I know that some words have different meanings, but **instrument** etymologically means **something prepared** and I can't figure out the connection between being financial and being prepared.   3. A bond is a solid, robust connection between people. Why is it the name of a kind of financial document? For each of these terms, I tried to find an alternative, which represents that underlying concept better:   1. Financial instead of Security   2. Legal Document instead of Instrument   3. Repayment Guarantee instead of Bond I know these terms might sound normal to you, but I do have a tough time learning them. For example, my mind doesn't accept the word **phone** to describe **something that can make food cold (refrigerator)**. I searched Google and didn't find good answers. Even this guy complains about it. The more I read Wikipedia about financial concepts and articles, the more I get puzzled. I try to find other examples too. Is there a good, lingual explanation for this?


title: What does the phrase "His mouth worked when he thought" mean?

text: “Jody was only a little boy, ten years old, with hair like dusty yellow grass and with shy polite gray eyes, with a mouth that worked when he thought.” (Steinbeck, 4) -The Red Pony


title: Using the word permeate

text: Does 'The two movies permeate pop culture' make sense or should it be 'have permeated pop culture'?


title: (out of the year) VS (during the year)

text: I read this sentence: > In the Arctic tundra, temperatures are below freezing for nine months out of > the year. Why didn't the writer use "during the year"? What is the difference between "during the year" and "out of the year"?


title: "In the market" or "on the market"

text: I am trying to help a friend of mine proofreading an English email and she has a preposition there that I am not completely certain is correct. The original sentence was this: > [Name of the competitor] had the lowest price in the market -- [the price]. This seems a bit odd to me, but I can not be completely sure if I am right about the proper usage. My intuition wants to say "on the market" at this point...


title: Is the computer-related term "character" understood by the general population?

text: The following kind message is common in programming: > Your password must be at least six characters long and include at least one > letter and one number Would an average person understand what that message means? Is it reasonable to assume they'd understand the distinction between a character and a letter? Is there a better, jargon-free, way to phrase this message that does not sound torturous?


title: Difference in meaning between create/make/have impact

text: Came across "create a great impact" today, and I have never seen "impact" used with "create" (as far as I can remember). Is there a difference in meaning and usage between:   1. create an impact   2. have an impact   3. make an impact


title: "to" or "of" or both whilst referring to cities and places

text: I saw these billboards today: ![enter image description here](http://i.stack.imgur.com/nJgr0.jpg) > Turkey home of Istanbul   >  Turkey home of Nemrut Nemrut is a mountain in Turkey with prehistoric monuments, and I think _home of_ is the new slogan for Turkey. My instincts shouted: "Turkey, home of Istanbul" was wrong, it didn't sound right. It felt it should be "Turkey, home to Istanbul", especially if the sentence is indicating a city. Of course I asked Google to see whether _home of_ or _home to_ was more often used for cities. And _home to_ is more common. For instance:   * France, home of Paris    * France, home to Paris My instincts tell me "France, home to Paris" and "France, home of the Eiffel Tower" are both correct usages, but "France, home of Paris" does not sound correct. Google concurs, "France, home to Paris" is more frequent. Perhaps the determiner makes a difference? If the sentence was "Turkey, home of the Turks", it would be correct; but, without the determiner, "Turkey, home of Turks" wouldn't be correct usage, but "Turkey, the home of Turks" might be; _the_ , the determiner, dictating the preposition. I feel "Turkey, home of" is therefore a bad slogan because some contexts will call for "Turkey, home of", while others will necessitate "Turkey, home to". Which one do you think is the correct usage? Is there some kind of rule for this? Are my instincts on to something?


title: Statements that are courtesies

text: When you say the sentence: > The two men **exchanged courtesies** before getting down to business. What are the examples of such a courtesies? May it be compliments (flattery)? Is it something formal like _Good evening my friend._ Can you show the contrast between statements that are courtesies and aren't courtesies and try to classify them if there are more types of courtesies-statements?


title: “It took me all of ten minutes to find out” - what does “it took me” mean?

text: I have a little confusion on understanding the sentence: > It took me all of ten minutes to find out . Why couldn't it be "I took all of ten minutes to find out"?


title: Where did the term "OK/Okay" come from?

text: I've heard lots of varying histories of the term "OK". Is there any evidence of the true origin of the term?


title: What's the reason behind using "innings" more frequently than "inning"?

text: > **Possible Duplicate:**   >  Where did the singular “innings” come from? Is there any difference between _inning_ and _innings_? I think both can be used interchangeably. But I haven't seen _inning_ frequently used by any news channel or English newspaper. Is there any particular reason behind using _innings_ more frequently than _inning_?


title: What is a common English expression for when you were very tired or out of it and said something extremely stupid?

text: I kept thinking of "spazzing out" but that doesn't quite seem to be it. An example is when you're very tired and kind of dozing off and you say something or ask a question that is incredibly stupid and makes no sense.


title: Term for adjectives attached after names

text: What is the term for adjectives attached after names? For example, there is _terrible_ in _Ivan the Terrible_. Are these counted as post-positive adjectives?


title: What does mean "pot commited"?

text: I cann't understand the meaning of "pot commited" in this phrase: **Law grads who lost their scholarships feel "pot committed," to use a poker term,** Any idea?


title: Where can I get a model / template English text that is translated in more than 30 languages?

text: I'm sorry for this off-topic question, but you guys could know and help me out. I created an application for language recognition and I need a model text to test with. The more languages the better. Any ideas please ? I was searching for that more than half an hour. Can't find anything appropriate


title: "I was gone" vs "I had gone"

text: What is the difference between the following two statements. > By the time you sent me the email, I was gone. > > By the time you sent me the email, I had gone. Both of them clearly expresses what had already happened.


title: "Can" or "may" and "have to" or "must"

text: There are two typical situations: when someone asks for a permission or for a obligation. I am totally confused, because there seems to be two ways to ask and to reply, and I don't know which one is right. PERMISSION: > Q1. Can I go play? > > Q2. May I go play? > > N1. No, you must not. > > N2. No, you may not. > > P1. Yes you can. > > P2. Yes you may. OBLIGATION: > Q1. Do I have to go to school? > > Q2. Must I go to school? > > N1. No, you don't have to. > > N2. (I guess there is no second possibility) > > P1. Yes you have to. > > P2. Yes you must. Which one of the two forms is correct?


title: What's the difference between "mistrust" and "distrust"?

text: Are **mistrust** and **distrust** synonyms? And if so, how have two such similar words coexist for so long? Google N-grams suggests the two words have coexisted since the 1700's. ![enter image description here](http://i.stack.imgur.com/YoOlW.png)


title: Why do we say that someone “practices” law or medicine?

text: I’m wondering why we refer to providing legal or medical services as a _practice_ of law or medicine, respectively. For example, we say that a lawyer _practices_ law or a doctor _practices_ medicine. This makes these fields sound like they’re some special art, but what is the historical origin of the usage of the word _practice_ in this context?


title: Can an abandoned software project "gather dust"?

text: I was reading a blog of someone who is trying to emulate Nintendo Gameboy hard- and software as a hobby project. In the oldest post, in the following sentence: > I eventually [...] bought myself a flash cardridge [...] to make a few > little test programs which are still gathering dust on an old HDD somewhere. the author says that old software he wrote is _gathering dust_ on a [Hard Disk Drive]. The meaning of this idiom is that something remains untouched for a certain amount of time, but I'm not sure whether this can be used if it doesn't apply literally, which it always seems to do. You can leave any _object_ sitting unused somewhere and it will gather dust in the physical world. Computer programs are digital, they have no relation to the physical world, as of such they cannot literally gather dust. Is the quoted sentence linguistically correct? If so, does that mean this idiom can be used for anything non-physical?


title: Past perfect sentence in "I would have killed the snake if I had hit him..."

text: Is the following a correct past perfect sentence? > I would have killed the snake if I had hit him hard with a stick.


title: Does calling an app "the Instapaper" with a definite article suggest a non-technical speaker?

text: Listening to an episode of a tech podcast with very tech-literate persons talking, I noticed them saying things like "I use the Tweetbot", for the iPhone app "Tweetbot", or "building the Instapaper", for the iPhone app "Instapaper". They don't use the definite article all of the time: they mostly talk about apps without "the". As a non-native English speaker, this sounds wrong to me. I interpret it as a parody of someone not very familiar with technology, but I'm not sure my intuitions are accurate. I certainly see how a tech-literate person would say "I used the calendar" for the iPhone app "Calendar", but with a less generic name like "Tweetbot" or "Instapaper", I get the impression they're aiming to be funny. Or that they were at one point aiming to be funny, and now they do it by rote, as with "funny" expressions like "What can I do you for?" Would you say I have this right, or does "the Instapaper" not suggest a non- technical speaker to you? I'm guessing users of this site are technical enough to tell.


title: What do “a bare foot” and “flat on his belly” mean in this context?

text: In the opening prologue to the novel _A Game of Thrones_ , two sentences left me with questions: > The great sentinel was right there ať the top of the ridge, where Will had > known it would be, its lowest branches a **bare** foot off the ground. What does _bare_ mean in that sentence above? > Will slid in underneath, **flat on his belly** in the snow and the mud, and > looked down on the empty clearing below. And what does _flat on his belly_ mean in that one?


title: Letter writing: Refering to enclosed items

text: I am writing a letter, in it I want to refer to other items enclosed within the letter, is there any proper way to do this? As an example of what I mean, I was thinking something like: > ... my id card (see item 1 enclosed) ... And then having an item within the envelope labeled item 1 I feel like I have seen or heard of a cleaner way to do this.


title: Which word meaning "someone who kills bad substances" can be used in an ad campaign?

text: We have an idea to post short ads like "our company is hiring" in company blog posts. The company develops software and one of duties of people we want to hire will be finding, locating and fixing bugs in programs. Can we refer to such people as "bug assassins"? Won't "assassin" word have some negative meaning?


title: Multiple 'as' (subordinate conjunction) in the same sentence

text: > Performance is poor as losses have increased and are projected to remain > negative going forward as the company works through problem assets and > realizes related expense. Is this sentence correct? If not, why? I couldn't find much on the internet in regards to utilizing multiple "because", multiple "as" or multiple subordinate conjunctions in general but I feel that this sentence is a bit "off".


title: Comprehensive list of grammar rules?

text: Does anyone know of a near-comprehensive list of grammar rules? (Specifically those which a poor writer of English might violate.) The most amusing candidate I've found was http://www.listsofnote.com/2012/01/fumblerules-of-grammar.html but that doesn't count ;)


title: Two word phrase to refer to community of people who come together to exchange knowledge

text: I need a two word phrase to refer to a community of people (academia + non- academia) who come together to share/exchange their knowledge/ideas openly on topics of their interests/ specializations. I would appreciate the use of small and easier/common words for the phrase. Single words are also acceptable. Feel free to throw out your creative ideas and newly invented phrases.


title: "My ear hurts" Or "My ear is hurting"

text: Which tense is best suited to describe sickness and pain? In the example below, what are the differences between the two usages? Which one sounds more natural? >   * My ear hurts > >   * My ear is hurting > >


title: How would you express colons in speaking?

text: There are two colons in the following lines a radio personality is speaking. How does the speaker get his listeners to feel the existence of colons? Maybe intonation? or a shorter pause? (On the radio) > ”Listeners, that brings us to the end of another _Potterwatch._ We don’t > know when it will be possible to broadcast again, but you can be sure we > shall be back. Keep twiddling those dials: The next password will be ‘Mad- > Eye.’ Keep each other safe: Keep faith. Good night.” ( _Harry Potter and the > Deathly Hallows (7)_ [US Version p.444])


title: Is “Can’t wipe one’s ass if somebody don’t hand paper,” a pattern phrase, or just a one-off play of words?

text: In association with a couple of questions about unfamiliar expressions used in Jeffery Archers fiction, “The Fourth Estate,” I was amused by the phrase, “can’t wipe one’s ass if somebody didn’t hand paper,” appearing in the scene (Page 281) where one of the main characters, Dick Armstrong, British Army captain who rose from an illegal immigrant from the Czech in W.W. II and now controlling German newspapers published in British sector of Berlin bets with Max Sackville, American Army captain who controls German newspapers in American sector on Max’s capability of sacking Julius Hahn, the owner of Del Berliner, the largest German language newspaper in American sector. > “Julius Hahn claims he knows you.” > > “Yeah, sure does,” said Max. “He’s responsible for bringing out the paper in > this sector. Not that I ever read it.” > > “He seems pretty successful,” said Armstrong, dealing another hand. > > “Certainly is. But only thanks to me,” said Max. > > “What do you mean’ because of you’?” Armstrong asked. > > “He **couldn’t even wipe his ass in the morning if I didn’t hand him the > paper**. I issue his monthly permit. I control his paper supply, I decide > how much electricity he gets. I decide when it will be turned on and off.” I understand the statement, “He couldn’t even wipe his ass in the morning if I didn’t hand him the paper,” is linked with Max’s control of paper supply to Julius Hahn, but I wonder whether “One can’t even wipe one’s ass” can be used as an idiom or stand-alone expression in English, or it’s merely a one-off play of word. Incidentally, we have a Japanese word, ‘尻拭い- literally ' _wipe one’s ass_ ,’ which means to take one’s own or other’s responsibility in association of self-disposition of one’s discharge, e.g. We have to wipe our government’ ass - the national debts amounting to US$ 9 trillion being accumulated through their lax financial management over time. Archer’s “Can wipe one’s ass” is ability to do a job, Japanese “Can wipe one’s ass” is ability to take responsibility. The same turn of word, but different meaning by language.


title: wedding invite template

text: I sent the below wedding invite to few of my friends for proof reading               Born unknown to each other, we are stepping into a new beginning of wedded life,          with new dreams, new hopes, new aspirations          and a desire to reach new horizons.          Together with our parents, we invite you to share the celebration of          our wedding as we begin our eternal bonding with nuptial knot!!!      one of my friend said that the last line should be `eternal bonding with` **a** `nuptial knot`. Few say that "a" is not required. Which is correct? and are there any other grammar mistakes in the invite?


title: Does "effusive" have a negative connotation?

text: > He was very effusive in his praise of the features. The definition on wordnik shows a lot of words that gives me the feeling that _effusive_ has a negative connotation:   * unrestrained   * excessive   * extravagant And the related meaning of a volcanic rock that is pouring heightens that feeling. Is _effusive_ a negative word or can it express positive connotation, too? Does the connotation change if I replace _effusive_ with _gushy_?


title: What is the term for replacing one word/phrase with one that is more friendly/appropriate

text: I apologize for such a simple and stupid question but the word is completely skipping my mind and my google fu seems to be failing me for this one. An example would be something along the lines of _shit_ to _poop_ or _fuck_ to _fudge_.


title: which was given me VS which was given to me

text: I have come across occurrences of _which was given me_ on many occasions; mostly in 19th century novels, where the mark of the dative case, _to_ , was usually omitted. _Which was given to me_ , on the other hand, I have stumbled on, as it were, on the printed page especially in contemporary English. My question concerning these two is actually twofold: a) is there any semantic or stylistic difference between _which was given to me_ and _which was given me_? b) is _which was given me_ (or _which was given you_ , etc.) an old-fashioned way of expressing this? Example: I asked for water, which was given me, and she then retired. Why _given me_ , and not _given to me_?


title: What is/are the part(s) of "out of" in the phrase "move out of the way"?

text: In the phrase “move out of the way”, what is the part of speech of the word “out”? of the word “of”?


title: One word for "fierce passion"

text: I am looking for one single word to replace the phrase _fierce passion_. The entire sentence is: > I found in myself a **fierce passion** to understand the language of man.


title: "Normalise" or "normalize" (British English)?

text: Is **_normalise_** perhaps obsolete in British English, and **_normalize_** preferred instead? I **have** done some Googling, it seems British English dictionaries prefer **_normalize_** , but I haven't found any satisfactory answers from native speakers. I would like to hear about usage and "how it sounds" (the formality), maybe if there are any reasons to use both forms in different situations. (The question arose when reading something about _vector normalization_.)


title: Can we use all "nouns" as adjective?

text: can we use "truth" or "thought" as adjective for example; "truth" nurturing is through imagination or "thought sun", thought grove" &...? This question body meets the quality of words combination. it includes what you make as a new combination of words.


title: Wrapping with "of"

text: How should the following sentence be wrapped:               Data compression of     file system      or               Data compression     of file system      "of" should stay on the upper line, or should be placed in next line?


title: Is "I can't go on, I'll go on" an idiom or not?

text: What does the following phrase mean? > I can't go on, I'll go on. And is it an idiom or not? I've found it in a Gogol Bordello song. The text is in _Forces of Victory_.


title: Hex, curse, spell, jinx, charm

text: I'm listening to some Harry Potter audio books, and there are so many words describing the work of the spell. One can be _cursed_ , _charmed_ , _hexed_ or _jinxed_. What's the difference?


title: Listing three items where the latter two are in a group. Put two "and"?

text: I am trying to write a sentence similar to the following. This one looks dumb as there are many jargon in my original sentence. This is an example with simple wordings:               Our candidates include Tom, who is a boy and Betty and Mary, who are girls.       Clearly, Betty and Mary are in one group. However, the sentence is hard to read as there are two "and". What is the correct way to write it? Thanks in advance.


title: Lots of questions for a lot of clauses!

text: I am confused over the use of _lots of_ vs _lot of_. I am phrasing a sentence having the following clause : > [Article] [lot-of/lots-of] [noun singular/plural] [verb] ... As an example : > A lot of mail keeps arriving. Ignoring the structuring of the sentence for the moment, what are the rules for matching up the article, noun and verb when using either lot of or lots of?


title: Why does the 'i' in 'explain' disappear when written as 'explanation'?

text: The word 'explain' has an 'i'. Why does that 'i' disappear when we write it as 'explanation'.


title: Is 'damn you' abusive or offensive?

text: I would say in jest to someone, _"Damn you!, you always get your way."_ He insisted that I was being abusive. Since my tone or tenor did not convey it, I put it down to his studying in a Catholic school. My question is, in Christian dominated countries today, is 'damn you' offensive or can it be used in jest?


title: ‘The’ Days of Our Lives

text: In the show 'Friends' there is an exchange between Ross and Joey that goes like this: > _Joey:_ I'm in this show called 'The Days of Our Lives'.   >  _Ross:_ Dude, it's just 'Days of Our Lives'. There's no 'the'. Sadly, I fail to see humor in this and it's most likely due to my poor understanding of the many meanings of the article 'the'. I also think understanding this joke could make me understand how the reception of the name "The Facebook" differs from just "Facebook" (the site used to be called thefacebook.com in the past, there's even a mention of that in the movie "The Social Network"). Could you help me understand this, please?


title: What is differences between "Dear and Darling"?

text: What is differences between them? Are they similar or not? > Dear Mrs. Smith.   >  John, darling, could you pass me the sugar, please? Johnny dear, please > listen up. May I introduce my dear wife / May I introduce my darling wife What is the difference between those last two? Are the two interchangeable, or not, or sometimes?


title: For medicine we need a prescription; for having medical tests, what do we need?

text: A prescription is a written order, especially by a physician, for the preparation and administration of a medicine or other treatment. What do we call the written order the physician gives us, where he has written down what medical tests have to be run?


title: Word For: Didn't Find Anything Wrong

text: Working on some software, in the moderation we are using the word "ignore" for reported/flagged topics by users, but we didn't see anything wrong with what was reported. I don't really want to use the word ignore, because it sounds like an individual action rather than a group action. Choosing to "ignore" a flagged post, makes that post invisible to all moderators. What are some other terms that cane be used in place of "ignore".


title: Examples of Apheretic forms in English?

text: I am looking for a comprehensive list of Apheretic forms in English. I remember seeing in old books words being prefixed with apostrophes which do not require them in modern writing, but can't remember many instances. Wikipedia provides a list of apocopations but none for apheresis.


title: How often do people say "gotta", "wanna" or "gonna" in English speaking countries?

text: I learned these three words from _Collins Cobuild Advanced Learner's English Dictionary_. >   * got|ta /g'ɒtə/   >  Gotta is used in written English to represent the words 'got to' when they > are pronounced > informally, with the meaning 'have to' or 'must'.   >  Prices are high and our kids **gotta** eat. > >   * wan|na /w'ɒnə/   >  Wanna is used in written English to represent the words 'want to' when they > are pronounced informally.   >  I **wanna** be married to you. Do you **wanna** be married to me? > >   * gon|na /g'ɒnə, AM g'ɔːnə/   >  Gonna is used in written English to represent the words 'going to' when > they are pronounced informally.   >  Then what am I **gonna** do? > > Here are my questions:   1. How often are these words used in oral English?    2. Are they only used in informal speech/conversations?    3. Do educated people also use these words?


title: Pressed his fingers against/to the window

text: Which one is correct: "pressed his fingers against the window" or "pressed his fingers to the window"? Or is there no difference in meaning?


title: What does "thot" mean and when was it first used?

text: The word **_thot_** is all over Twitter. The @lovihatibot Twitterbot routinely finds it in searches for "I love the word [X]" and "I hate the word [X]", in fact it's the most hated word and third most loved word (presumably use in one category feeding the other). Similarly it's the second most common in @favibot's searches for "[X] is my new favorite word" (up from number 5 in October). What does _thot_ mean? Where does it come from and when was it first used? Was there a single person or event which popularised it, and when was it?


title: "his or her head in the clouds" meaning

text: > Horoscope: You'll make a risqué comment to a boss who lately has had his or > her head in the clouds… From the above sentence I can understand that a person is going to make an indecent comment to his/her boss. I couldn't get what the rest of the sentence meant. The above sentence is taken from an email I got.


title: "I would often tell you."

text: Can you have a sentence like > _**___ ___ __ ___ __ ___ __ ___ ____**, I would often tell you. and the part that's left out isn't in quotes?


title: Origins of the gaming term "cheese strategy"

text: In a gaming scene the word _cheese_ is used to describe strategies or ways of playing that are really powerful and do not require much skill from the players side at the same time. The term is widely used both in video games and tabletop games alike. It _is_ extremely subjective, there's no strict definition of what is "cheese" and what is not, but that's besides the point. What are the origins of it? What has cheese to do with "undeserved" victories, cheap strategies, etc.?


title: What's the etymology of "when the shit hits the fan"?

text: Where did this come from? It makes no sense to me...why is the shit even near the fan?


title: "Would" means something different in the past than in the future?

text: If you use _would_ to describe your action in the future, it means that you plan to do it. But if you use it to describe something in the past, it doesn't mean that in the past you planned to do it, it means you actually **_did_** it. Is that correct? For example: > Whenever I would go there I would often notice many suspicious things. It has nothing to do with planning or intention, even back then in the past. It's not even the past tense form of the present form. Am I right that the meaning changes? Also, is there any difference at all with that sentence and this one? > Whenever I went there I often noticed many suspicious things.


title: Is asking "come again?" to a complete stranger over the phone rude?

text: My Irish colleague told me that when talking to a customer over the phone asking:"come again?" is considered rude and even offensive since it is very informal and almost demanding. Now I did not really believe him, since I think there is more to words than just the words themselves, like the context and the tone of voice. Was it not 90% how you say it and 10% what you say? Anyway. In Ireland I witnessed several ways to ask a person to repeat themselves. Starting with "aha?" Or the "he?" Used by the Irish-man I talked to myself quite often. Next I'd put "what?" Compared to these I'd classify "come again" not as impolite and rude especially when I say it in a polite almost deferential tone of voice. For comparison. In Germany we have the "Was?" = "what" and the "Wie bitte?" = "How please?" the latter being the official polite way of asking to repeat. Which is quite short and since I find it awkward to say: "Can you repeat that please?" several times in a phone conversation over a bad line, I find "come again" quite similar to "Wie bitte?", just lacking the please, and appropriate. What do you guys say about this? PS: Compared to How do you decide which phrase to use when asking people to repeat what they said? I'm not asking about a ranking. I'm more asking if "Come again?" is more like "Fuck you" or more like "You are brilliant". The difference being, that one of them you probably have a hard time of making sound polite or appreciating. Though it can be done, but I guess not to a complete stranger.


title: Does this sentence remain grammatically correct?

text: If I change this sentence > We could not communicate through the phone. to > Through the phone, we could not communicate. Does it still remain grammatically correct? Is it OK like that? What's the difference?


title: What is the correct spelling: "filterbank" or "filter bank"

text: On Wikipedia, the usage is "filter bank" exclusively. A search on Google Scholar returns essentially the same number of both spellings. This is for a scientific document about digital signal processing, so I want to know which is correct.


title: What does “Has it come to this?” in “Republican leaders quickly voiced horror at these tactics. ‘Has it come to this?’ said John Boehner” mean?

text: There was the following sentence in July 19 New York Time’s editorial titled “Democrats Gain the Upper Hand”: “Senator Patty Murray, a member of the Democratic leadership, said Monday that her party was prepared to let all the Bush-era tax cuts expire on Jan. 1 if Republicans refuse to raise taxes on the wealthy. Republican leaders quickly voiced horror at these tactics. “ _Has it come to this_?” said Speaker John Boehner, accusing Democrats of holding the economy hostage for the sake of high-end tax increases. ” I don’t get the meaning of “ _Has it come to this_?” Is it a popular idiom? What does “it” represent for? Isn’t it just a typo of “How it come to this?”? P.S. I got many answers from you. I realized “Has it come to this?”? is not a typo, but I'm still not very clear. I feel like ‘scratching an itch through the sole of shoe’ in our local expression. What is the brief and clear-cut translation of this phrase? Can you paraphrase it just in a few words? Is it like an exclamation, “What’s a hell of this!"?


title: This / that week

text: In response to: > Only one week till I leave again. I'll miss you guys so much. Is it: > \--Let's just enjoy **that** week and not think about the goodbye or > \--Let's just enjoy **this** week and not think about the goodbye


title: Meaning of 'save as regards'

text: The following line is from a passage that I was reading: > If the Italian peninsula had been submerged in the Mediterranean after the > fall of Rome, we would still have been in possession of much documentary > evidence concerning growth and ascent of Roman empire, although the > ponderable remains of the civilization and its architecture and the soil > upon which the empire flourished would have been lost forever **save as > regards their colonial manifestations**. What is the precise meaning of _save as regards their colonial manifestations_?


title: "I used" or I've used"?

text: Which is the correct way of saying the following sentence (if there is a "right" way)   * I used different symbols to make it great.   * I've used deifferent symbols to make it great.


title: To refer back to "one or more", should I use "it" or "them"?

text: In one computer program, there is an option to specify one or more arguments (software packages in this case). I am writing the help documentation, so I'm wondering what phrase to use to explain that fact: > This option allows one to... > >   1. download one or more packages without installing them. >   2. download one or more packages without installing it. >   3. download one or more packages without installing it/them. > Is any of them the above three options correct? Are there better alternatives?


title: Word or phrase for a story that takes place over several years

text: What word or phrase should be used to describe a story that takes place over a long period of time (e.g. a few years, a few decades, etc.)? For example, Gabriel García Márquez's famous novel _One Hundred Years of Solitude_ takes place over seven generations of the Buendía family. What word or phrase could be used to describe the story? > _One Hundred Years of Solitude_ is a **____** , that is, it occurs over a > long period of time.


title: A term or phrase expressing the cheapening of a quality by measuring it in monetary terms

text: I am looking for a term that expresses something along the lines of _to measure something of value (especially an abstract, often positive quality such as bravery or effort) in monetary terms_ in a derogative/pejorative fashion. Essentially as a result of such a measurement, the value of such a quality's perceived to be cheapened.


title: Is “Thisness” an established English word? What is the alternative expression that sounds more natural and familiar?

text: I came across an unfamiliar word to me, _thisness_ in the following sentence of New Yorker magazine’s (April 19) article titled, What We’re Reading: Buzzfeed, “Pulphead,” Chekhov, and More” > James Wood explains why the selection and elaboration of seemingly > irrelevant detail is what makes fiction real. Details that appear true, he > writes, have a quality of “ _thisness_.” > > By thisness, I mean any detail that draws abstraction toward itself and > seems to kill that abstraction with a puff of palpability, any detail that > centers our attention with its concreteness…. > > By thisness I mean the moment when Emma Bovary fondles the satin slippers > she danced in weeks before at the great ball at LaVaubyessard. Thisness is > often used to puncture ceremonies like funerals and dinners that are > designed precisely to euphemize thisness; what Tolstoy calls making a bad > smell in the drawing room. Though none of Oxford, Cambridge, and Merriam Webster English dictionary registers the word, _thisness_ , I found the definition of _thisness_ , in Wikipedia which defines it as the translation from Latin, _haecceitus_ meaning the qualities, properties or characteristics of a thing which make it a particular thing. Is _thisness_ , a popular English word? If _thisness_ has currency, can we say _thatness_ , _theyness_ , or even _I-ness_ , _we-ness_ , _here-ness_ , _there- ness_? Isn’t there smoother and more familiar word than _thisness_ , which sounds somewhat crude to me?


title: Is there a difference in meaning between "from the beginning" and "since the beginning"?

text: > He’s been with us **from** the beginning. Is there a difference between _from_ and _since_ in the context of the above sentence?


title: Which of these two should be preferred: "sinification" or "sinicization"?

text: Which of these two options would be considered most elegant / correct? Personally I think Sinicization (or Sinicisation) has a more natural ring to it, but I have seen Sinification used also. Also, can anyone give an answer as to when either of these neologisms came into usage?


title: When independent clauses are not truly independent

text: If I write _My car can go pretty far and it gets good mileage_ I have combined two independent clauses to create a compound sentence. I might just as easily write _My car can go pretty far. And it gets good mileage._ But if I write _Surprisingly, my car can go pretty far and it gets good mileage_ , meaning that it is a surprise my car has both of these attributes, then the independence of each clause seems diminished, because one without the other is not surprising. In other words, I cannot write _Surprisingly, my car can go pretty far. And it gets good mileage._ Is there a way to describe this difference? Is there an overriding term for two or more independent clauses that actually do not mean the same thing when not joined?


title: Words like "do/does/did" to emphasize, but for "am/is/are"

text: So X said to Y: > I did tell you yesterday! As far as I know, the word _did_ there is to emphasize my point or tell him that I'm so sure I've told him the story yesterday. What I want to ask is, what's the word we may use to emphasize our point like that in a sentence with no verb? Like > You ARE the one who breaks it! For emphasis, I capitalized the _ARE_ , but is there any word that functions like _did_ does in the previous sentence?


title: "I and others" or "others and I"?

text: I have traditionally learned that a first-person pronoun should always come last in a list, e.g. > Bob and I found this to be interesting. However, it sounds awkward to me when this rule is used with 'others': > A couple others and I found this to be interesting. I would be more inclined to go with: > I and a couple others found this to be interesting. Which sentence is (more) grammatically correct?


title: What does "not even close" mean?

text: I was watching a Matt Damon interview on YouTube. In it, the interviewer asked Matt > Do you remember? Can you speak any of the languages you spoke? Matt replied > Not even close What does that mean? Of course, I can guess that it means "never" or "not at all". Is my guess right? Can I use another word or sentence instead of that? Lastly, is it slang?


title: Is there a term for "capable of transferring"?

text: I am a software developer and am having trouble with naming an entity. In my project, by convention, we give our code objects capabilities by extending them with a module named with an "-able" suffix. This implies: > capable of, susceptible of, fit for, tending to, given to Some examples include:   * Movable   * Trashable   * Visible I need to express a capability meaning " _able to transfer_ ". Transferable doesn't seem to fit because I'm not transferring the object, rather the object is doing the transferring. **What is a good term for " _able to transfer_ " ending in an -able suffix?**


title: what does "lost a shilling and found a penny" mean?

text: I am translating a British story and I came across this expression "you look like you lost a shilling and found a penny". I am not sure I understand what it means.


title: Word meaning "has ability using physical objects"

text: Looking for a word to describe ability using physical objects. For example, someone who is particularly adept at using a computer, or nunchuks, or any physical object, could be said to have a lot of -----.


title: What is the proper English term for polycopié (de cours)?

text: In French, several universities use _polycopiés_ instead of course books for teaching. The term _polycopié_ can be translated as _handout_. Is it correct to use it in this case, in which a _polycopié_ constitutes a thin paperback book, with bound cover? I've only seen the term _handout_ used for small sets of sheets, usually stapled. By the way, if there are specific American/British variations of the term, I'd be interested in both.


title: Should there be a "were" instead in "till there was you"?

text: Rachael Starr has a song titled "Till there _was_ you". Shouldn't it be "Till there _were_ you"? Why did she use it that way?


title: An expression meaning the feeling you get seeing something so beautiful it hurts

text: I'm trying to find an expression (a single word, not a phrase) that means simply that! I'm sure I can't be the only person to feel this. I'm sure I heard it mentioned in a radio programme once but now I can't remember! This is particularly in relation to something rather than someone - like looking out at a beautiful view of the mountains and feeling that ache in your stomach. (Although I have been known to get it over a pair of shoes!)


title: What is a clustermug?

text: What is a clustermug? I could not find the word in a dictionary. > Duke stopped laughing, but he was still smiling. Unabashed. "It's a > clustermug," he said. The quote is from the novel _Under the Dome_ by Stephen King.


title: Is the phrase "Traffic Revision" generally used to describe temporary or permanent changes of traffic flow?

text: When I first moved to Washington state, I would see mystifying traffic warning signs that would announce "Traffic Revision Ahead" as I was driving and then be in the midst of roadwork and lane changes a few seconds later. I don't recall exactly what signs said in my home state of Nebraska for this situation but I think they would post a sequence of signs, a "Roadwork Ahead" followed by a "Lane Changes Necessary" indication. Either that or a display of "Detour Ahead" before the work. Once I understood by context what I was in for when I saw such signs, I used to imagine a civil engineer sitting at a desk thinking "I have a vision; No... I have a revision". Is this usage of "Traffic Revision" known anywhere else in the English speaking world, or is this a coinage specific to Washington state in the United States?


title: Usage of italics in writing

text: In which cases is a word, or a group of words written in italics?   Is italics used in specific contexts, or it is quite normal to write words in italics?


title: What is the popper's business?

text: What is the popper's business? I don't know what the popper is. I heard somewhere the phrase. "He's in popper's business." please let me know:)


title: Does anyone know where “crack down” comes from?

text: There’s _crack up, crack down,_ and _crack on_ (?). I am curious about the origin of the phrase _crack down_. Also, what does it literally mean?


title: Why did "sceptical" become "skeptical" in the US?

text: Compare the following two Google Ngram Viewer charts for _sceptical_ vs. _skeptical_ in American English and British English: **British English** ![enter image description here](http://i.stack.imgur.com/OW9WF.png) **American English** ![enter image description here](http://i.stack.imgur.com/3PqRP.png) My interpretation of these charts is that:   1. Before the 1910-1920's, _sceptical_ was used in both American English and British English more than _skeptical_.   2. Something happened in the 1910's in American English that made the usage of _skeptical_ become much more common than _sceptical_. This change never happened in British English. Why did this change happen in the US? What was its trigger? Note that while etymoline.com states that the _sk-_ spelling is preferred in the US, it does not explain why it became so more common than the _sc-_ spelling, in particular since the 1910-1920's. > **skeptic** also _sceptic_ , (...) The sk- spelling is an early 17c. Greek > revival and is preferred in U.S.


title: mixed functional and non-functional requirement

text: Some background. Functional requirement of a web service is concerned with the correctness of the web service's function — say, the service will always return a number that is less than two. The non-functional requirement of a web service is concerned with the performance of the web service — say, the service will respond in 5 ms. Now, given the phrase: > The mixed functional and nonfunctional requirement concerns both — say, the > service will return a number that is less than two in 5 ms. Is "the mixed functional and nonfunctional requirement" grammatical?


title: Word for something that is available/accessible all the time

text: I was just wondering if there was a single word to represent the phrase "something that is available/accessible all the time"


Who verbally uses the title "Miss" with a female's first name (regardless of the female's correct title) and why? Example: > Meet with Miss Debbie in the conference room at 2 o'clock.


title: What’s the meaning of ‘we will emerge’?

text: One of ‘we’ is under his Invisibility Cloak, not both of them. It seems I can’t see the meaning of ‘emerge’. Or is it ‘we’? I’d like to know the meaning of ‘we will emerge’ in the following context. **What’s the true meaning of the part?** > ”It was carefully planned. My father led me and Winky up to the Top Box > early in the day. Winky was to say that she was saving a seat for my father. > I was to sit there, invisible. When everyone had left the box, **we would > emerge.** Winky would appear to be alone. Nobody would ever know. ( _Harry > Potter 4_ [US Version]: p.686)[Bold font is mine] **N.B.:** The speaker was a wanted person. He is confessing the truth after arrested **N.B.2:** He went watching the World Cup of a magical sport with his father and a servant called Winky while at large. **N.B.3:** The speaker was wearing his Invisibility Cloak, but Winky wasn’t. ## Why am I asking? A dictionary defines _emerge_ as 1-3. Italicized lines are my thought. >   1. to come out of something or out from behind something > _Likely, but wait a sec, the sentence says ‘we’, not ‘I’._ >   1. to stop being involved in a difficult situation or period of time > _Likely, but I don’t know for sure what the whole sentence means. Does it mean, by any chance, everyone’s leaving the box means their emerging from the difficult situation?_ >   1. to become known > _Impossible_


title: Other ways to say "I'm rooting for you?"

text: What are other ways one can say that have the same meaning as, "I'm rooting for you?"


title: Does ‘dislodge’ mean removing accidentally or intentionally?

text: I’d like to focus on one of the meanings of ‘dislodge’, to remove something. A dictionary says it means _forcing_ or _knocking_ something out of its position. What I’d like to know is if the word of itself contains two meanings, removing intentionally and accidentally, and waits for a specific context. ## Here are my collection of examples for ‘dislodge’ that means removing something. Italicized lines are my thought. > a). The wind **dislodged** one or two tiles from the roof. (From a > dictionary) _It might be accidental, but if the wind is personified, strong wind would intentionally remove the tiles. So the meaning seems vague to me._ > b). Ian **dislodged** a few stones as he climbed up the rock. (From another > dictionary) _Either is likely. Maybe accidentally._ > c). When Hermione returned from the trolley and put her money back into her > schoolbag, she **dislodged** a copy of the _Daily Prophet_ that she had been > carrying in there. ( _Harry Potter 4_ [US Version]: p.726)[Bold font is > mine] **N.B.:** Hermione is on a train. She just returned to her compartment after buying something. _I have no idea._ ## Questions   1. Which are correct in the above three examples, accidentally or intentionally?   2. What determines the meaning (accidental or intentional) of ‘dislodge’? Or is there no point worrying about it because ‘dislodge’ is undifferentiated in terms of the two meanings, like a stem cell? ( _Um, what should I say… I’m not sure if I can make myself understood._ ) ## Why am I asking? My mother tongue requires different words respectively for removing accidentally and intentionally.


title: Term for "Free to play" Videogame that Isn't Free

text: What is a term for a videogame that, while labeled "Free to Play", is impossible (or **extremely** slow/tedious) to progress in without spending money on in-game content? Edit: Freemium is a decent answer, but I'm looking for something with more of a negative connotation. To further elaborate, an example of the type of game I'm thinking of might be an MMORPG that, without purchasing a special stat boosting potion for real world money, requires an excessive/unrealistic amount of grinding/leveling in order to progress through the game.


title: Comma or semicolon?

text: Which of the following is correct? >   1. This not only produces higher success rates, it increases our energy > and morale instead of depleting them. >   2. This not only produces higher success rates; it increases our energy > and morale instead of depleting them. >


title: Can "kitchen" be used as an adjective? eg: Mother painted the kitchen wall

text: My little sister was to identify the adjective in this sentence: "Mother painted the kitchen wall purple and green". I understand how _kitchen_ can be an adjective as in _kitchen sink_ , but I'm not sure if kitchen describes the wall.


title: What is the proper/formal names for these rooms?

text: Question 1: We just moved into a new house with a very unique layout. I'm wondering how to describe some of the rooms using formal definitions. The main floor has an open-air space that is pretty versatile — it could be a living room, or it could be a dining room, we haven't decided ourselves yet — and extends upwards two floors. The term _atrium_ seems to fit as there are windows that go up one whole side of the area, but I wasn't sure if that term was traditionally reserved for non-residential uses. _Great room_ also seems to apply, though it's not necessarily a vaulted ceiling and therefore doesn't fit Wikipedia's definition. What is the difference between an atrium and a great room, or is there another word that would describe this room more formally? Question 2: The upper level of our house contains three separate areas — a landing/den, a wide space used as a bedroom in the past, and another space that is currently my office. These upper rooms are bordered by a half-wall on the sides that face the great room/atrium/whatever. This area seems too big/complex to be considered simply a _loft_. Is there another term to describe it?


title: What's the linguistics term for "Schubertiaden" and similar words?

text: What's the linguistics term for "Schubertiaden" and similar words (that refers to a group of people based on a person's name)? "Schubertiaden" refers to the group of people of similar interest and activity with musician Schubert. What are some other examples?


title: What is the appropriate punctuation to indicate the final phrase applies to both of the preceding requirements?

text: What is the appropriate punctuation to indicate that the phrase "or agency- recognized equivalent" refers to both _instruction_ and _examination_ in the following phrase? > X has successfully completed Y instruction and passed the Z examination or > agency-recognized equivalent.


title: Term for people not in any way involved in a crime/incident

text: I'm looking for a word that refers to the people (general population) who were not involved in an incident. To be particular let's say the incident is a "crime". That is, one you take away the perpetrators, the victims, the witnesses, lawyers, judges, cops, etc. you're left with the greater part of the population that has nothing to do with the incident or the surrounding proceedings. Is there a term for this group? _Something similar to, but not quite "party", as in "party to the crime", as that wouldn't include the people who are part of the proceedings._


title: Past-tense of "concept"

text: What is the past tense word of the word _concept_? In MS Outlook, I used this sentence and it's complaining to me. > The peer tool was initially **concepted** in 2006 for Dr. T.


title: A thesaurus with archaic and obsolete words

text: Can you point me to any online thesaurus that contains obsolete, archaic, out- of-use synonyms for contemporary words? Google search is horribly unhelpful, yielding hundreds common thesaurus and dictionary entries for the word _archaic_ , usually in dictionaries that have been pruned of obsolete words.


title: Article usage on word 'default' when the context is known

text: This question excludes 'default' used in court or 'a default' for an indefinite future (e.g. setting a default option). My question pertains to circumstances where the context behind the question or sentence is known and 'default' means using one option over other options. I found that sometimes people use indefinite articles, but I could not figure out the reason behind it. For example, how would you interpret these three questions differently? > 1) "Is this a default behavior?" _vs_. > 2) "Is this the default behavior?" _vs._ > 3) "Is this default behavior?" What if I were to drop the the noun? Is that going to change anything?


title: Serial commas in quotations

text: If the publication you are proofing for uses the serial comma, and an essay you're proofing includes a quotation from a biography that does _not_ use a serial comma, is it permissible to silently add serial commas for readability? The relevant rule in _The Chicago Manual of Style_ (13.7.5) explains: > Obvious typographic errors may be corrected silently (without comment or > sic; see 13.59), unless the passage quoted is from an older work or a > manuscript source where idiosyncrasies of spelling are generally preserved. In my case it is not. Obviously this is ultimately up to the editor. The essay is a work of history and literary criticism.


title: What does this quote by Anaïs Nin mean I think I know but I'm not sure

text: > There came a time when the risk to remain tight in the bud was more painful > than the risk it took to blossom.


title: Is "the photo I had taken" correct?

text: Which of the following sentences is correct: > I've just uploaded the photo I had taken on Monday. > > I've just uploaded the photo I took on Monday. I guess that this sentence > Yesterday I uploaded the photo I had taken on Monday. is correct but has different meaning than the first two.


title: Phrase for costs/ consequences so abstract/ distant/ high you cannot reason about it

text: I hope you intuitively understand these examples:   1. A person who starts with a small credit card debt believing he can keep the **consequences down to a few months** ; but within a few months faces unmanagable credit card debt, **without being too aware**   2. A software project where the spec-writers pile on too many features and otherwise make it too ambitious; that its **many times more complex and costly** than if they had designed it properly, minimally and with checked ambitions. But the spec-writers cannot **forsee the consequences** of their unchecked ambitions.   3. A person who believes a white lie can make him escape a **small situation** , but unforseen to him, he has to manage a **snowball of lies** to many individuals   4. A country decides to arm mercenaries to **quickly fix** a temporary strategy, but decades later the mercenaries evolve into terror outfits, drug cartels and warlords, making a **costly war** necessary In all examples, the person takes an action (take on debt, add gratuitous features) that seemed innocent enough, but soon proved to be extremely costly to him. * * * Please suggest phrases for:   1. an **action** that seduces you as being innocent and quick, but later causes serious harm   2. future **costs** so abstract (credit card debt in future, development time and mistakes for clumsy specs) that the person cannot reason about them and the harm they present to him   3. **blindness** to such costs and **ability** to wisely avoid such actions


title: A good word for additions to a written work that is already published

text: Let's say I have already published a book. Now, on the website for this book, I want to post additional documents, numbered like 1, 2, .... What word is best to use to describe each of these documents? Would "Addendum" work? Like "Addendum 1", "Addendum 2", or is Addendum more for things at the end of the book itself? Feel free to suggest other words. I suppose "Supplement" is another alternative.


title: Rationale for expression “Fixer-upper”

text: I have encountered the expression _fixer-upper_ : > A fixer-upper is a real-estate property that will require maintenance work > (redecoration, reconstruction or redesign) though it usually can be lived in > as it is. But why is it called _fixer-upper_? I imagine the expression means that ‘fixing’ will ‘up’ the value of the property, but does it relate to other similar expressions with the same double-word construction?


title: Justifying one wrong thing by comparing it its opposite which is also wrong

text: Is there a word or name for the phenomenon or syndrome in which people try to defend one wrong thing by comparing it something that is total opposite of it but also wrong? For example: > Drone attacks are the right thing because they are against terrorism which > is wrong. A more general but abstract kind of example could be: > I want to kill all the sharks because they are dangerous for human beings.


title: Monthly , bi-monthly , quarterly and

text: Is there a word to define a period of four months?


title: Can Whilst only be used in mid-clause?

text: According to this entry in the Urban Dictionary on "Whilst" (2nd definition on this page: http://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=whilst), it can only be used in mid-clause. I have skimmed other questions on this exchange regarding the use of "whilst" and "while", but they more or less arrive at the conclusion that they can be used interchangeably, with the only distinction being in style. Nowhere have I found anyone pointing to a distinction in correct semantic placement. However, come to think about it, I've never encountered a single sentence that starts with whilst. You always find it in the middle.


title: "Lodged a complaint to the Authorities" or "Lodged a complaint with the Authorities"

text: I have a question regarding the usage of the words _to_ and _with_ in the sentence "He lodged a complaint to/with the Authorities". Which is correct? Note: _Lodge_ in this context is "to present (a complaint, appeal, claim, etc.) formally to the proper authorities". I have been told that, in the said sentence, _with_ is correct and not _to_. But, I am confused as to why _with_ is correct and used more often than _to_ , especially since the definition of _with_ is "accompanied by (another person or thing)", while _to_ is defined as "identifying the recipient or intended recipient of something". How could someone lodge a complaint _with_ the Authorities? In my mind, _with_ denotes that a person is lodging a complaint together with the Authorities. Could someone explain this to me?


title: The meeting IS TO take place at 10 pm

text: The meeting **is to** take place at 10 pm Should "Is to" be mean here as "have to" or "going to"? Another example: Those of you, who sign up **are to be** commended. This kind of sentences confusing me a bit) What rules in action here?


title: "Methods to do" vs "Methods for doing"

text: I have to write a title for an article. Which will you choose beetwen these two options:   * "Methods to do something"   * "Methods for doing something" Thanks.


title: What is a person who hallucinates called?

text: What do you call a person who sees illusions or hallucinates?   * _Crazy?_   * _Hallucinator?_ (Is this even a word?)   * _Insane?_   * _Freak?_   * Something else?


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

text: The following is a tip from a poker strategy article: > When it comes down to it, poker is always going to be about making the best > out of situations that present themselves, and not about forcibly creating > profitable situations where they otherwise would not likely exist. What does _present_ mean in this context? From OALD, there are four definitions I think that could be related, but I'm not quite sure which one is the most appropriate. They are: > Def. #2: to show or offer something for other people to look at or consider > >   * **present something (to somebody)** _The committee will present its > final report to Parliament in June._ > >   * **present something (for something)** _Eight options were presented for > consideration._ > >   * _Are you presenting a paper at the conference?_ > >   * _He presents a convincing case._ > >   * _The banks will begin to present their arguments today._ > > > Def. #3: to show or describe something/somebody in a particular way > >   * **present something** _The company has decided it must present a more > modern image._ > >   * _It is essential that we present a united front_ (= show that we all > agree). > >   * **present yourself + adverb/preposition** _You need to present yourself > better._ > >   * **present something/somebody/yourself as something** _He likes to > present himself as a radical politician._ > >   * _The press presents this as a kind of victory._ > >   * _The article presents these proposals as misguided._ > > > > Def. #4: to cause something to happen or be experienced > >   * **present somebody with something** _Your request shouldn't present us > with any problems._ >   * **present something** _Use of these chemicals may present a fire risk._ > >   * _Irradiation presents environmental dangers_ > > > > Def. #5: (of an opportunity, a solution, etc.) to suddenly happen or become > available > >   * Synonym: arise > >   * **present itself** _One major problem did present itself, though._ > >   * _As soon as the opportunity presented itself, she would get another > job._ > >   * **present itself to somebody** _Thankfully, a solution presented itself > to him surprisingly soon._ > > Or does _present_ here mean something else that's not included in this dictionary?


title: The article: communicative function

text: Okay, this might come across as a fairly stupid question, yet I have to know this. Does anyone know what the communicative function of 'the article' is? For example, if we consider 'must' and 'have to', the communicative function could be 'Talking about obligation'. I need something similar to this for the article, but I can't come up with anything. Any help is appreciated!


title: Can semicolon be used between interrupted quotations?

text: This is my last question for this week. Are both sentences punctuated correctly below? _'It cannot be done,' he said; 'we must give up the task.'_ (Can we use a semicolon after 'he said' above, and then resume the quotation with a lowercase 'we'?) _'It cannot be done,' he said. 'We must give up the task.'_ (I'm assuming this is correct as written.)


title: Near, near to and nearby. What's the difference?

text: Why isn't _near_ , _near to_ and _nearby_ always interchangeable? They can precede the noun.   * I live **nearby** the railway station    * I live **near** the railway station    * I live **near to** the railway station When they are _adverbs_ they can follow _noun + be_   * The railway station is **nearby** (my house)   * The railway station is **near** my house   * The railway station is **near to** my house But we don't normally say: > ?Meet me at the **near** railway station   >  or   >  ?Meet me at the railway station **near (to)** The accepted version is: > Meet me at the railway station **nearby**   >  Meet me at the **nearby** railway station Why?


title: Why and when did the practice of successive punctuation marks such as periods (...) originate in English sentence structure?

text: Ex. "* The MS. is here deficient; but ....b for 'byrig' is discernible." ---Ingram. Source: Bede's Ecclesiastical History and the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle; Edited by J.A. Giles D.C.L.; London: George Bell & Sons, 1890, p.506


title: If you use a prefix for the first item in a list do all item in the list keep the prefix with out stating it for each one

text: If you use a prefix for the first item in a list do all items in the list keep that pre fix or should each item restate the prefix. This is my example. "This excludes pre-approved sick, vacation, compensatory time, and personal leave." Should all items that need to be pre approved be stated clearly, or is this ok?


title: Dropped the pen and threw up the sponge

text: This was said by one of my mates while retelling a story. The story runs that there was a court being held, and there was a recording-clerk as well. But this was a humor story, and the story continued that everybody was telling the recording-clerk to take out what was previously said, to the point that the clerk lost his temper and "dropped the pen and threw up the sponge." Does this saying mean that he resigned?


title: "May I come in?" is misleading?

text: Yesterday I saw a lesson of English on TV. The teacher asked to some people to translate (from Italian) some expression. One is: "What can you say to a person to invite him into your office?" and lot of people answer: "Can you come in my office?". The teacher said that it is wrong, because it sound like an erotic invite and the correct sentence is "Can you come to/into my office?" Is it correct? Because here: What do I have to say when I enter into a house? someone answer me to say "May I come in?". Is it misleading?


title: "To which extent?" vs. "To what extent?"

text: Is there a difference in meaning between "to which extent" and "to what extent"? Are they used in different geographical areas?


title: Correct usage of (n)fold, where n is any integer greater than or equal to one?

text: Writing a rhetorical piece for my high school english class, I wanted to emphasize the sheer increase from 10 million to approximately 2 billion. Conveniently, 10 million is 200 times smaller than 2 billion. That makes a nice, clean number to work with, even though it really doesn't have any significance on the quesiton I'm asking here. What I wanted to do is to say something like this:               two hundredfold      or               two hundred-fold      Just as               twofold      means two times as many. The pattern appears to be placing the number before `fold` like `threefold`, `fourfold`, `fivefold`, etc. Yet, with something like two hundred, how should I space, hyphenate and spell it correctly? Just wondering because I'm a little ocd about this and would like to get it right.


title: Scottish vs. scotch

text: I looked up the dictionary, and both gave me definitions that refer to a people from Scotland. Is there a difference between these two words?


title: Is there a word for someone who you've not physically met but know well?

text: I have met many people online, but not physically. Like a boy who's like my brother. They're no less than my real-life buddies. So I have to create a group of contacts devoted to those people only. What can I name that group? Virtual people would be geeky, I need something that's also respectable.


What is the antonym of 'virtual machine'? A virtual machine ( **VM** ) is a piece of software pretending to be a piece of hardware. There can be virtual servers, virtual desktops... I googled around a bit and did not find anything. I am creating a list that has Servers, Desktops and Virtual Machines; where Servers & Desktops are understood to only include non-VM's I need to add two more items to the list   * Severs VM & ( _virtual machine antonym_ )   * Desktop VM & ( _virtual machine antonym_ ) I need a word to replace "( _virtual machine antonym_ )" I was thinking "Hard" but not sure that is appropriate. The Audience is IT Professionals.


title: "After-midnight" as adjective

text: A recent CNN report reads: > In an **_after-midnight_** session the U.S. Senate passed a bill Saturday > ... Google returns few results for _after-midnight_ , other than references to a certain horror film, (another earlier film), a Clapton song, and things related to one or the other of these. _**Q_**. Has _after-midnight_ been used in this sense in popular writing? Will it be considered ungrammatical/ incorrect to do so? CNN uses it again down the report "In a previous _after-midnight_ vote, the Senate overwhelmingly passed a non-binding resolution ..."


title: What does "I'm sure you understand" mean? Is it rude?

text: This expression seems to be used even when the speaker does not expect the other person to agree with them. What would the intention of the speaker be? Is the expression considered rude?


title: "in" vs. "on" a YouTube channel?

text: Which one is the correct term, or can I use both?   I want to use it in a sentence like: " _Please stay on/in the channel_ "


title: Is there a word for false false friends?

text: How would you call a translation which resembles a false friend, but is acutally correct? A false friend resembling translation here is one where the target-language word or phrase:   * is not frequently used    * parallels the word or phrase in the source language very closely (or vice versa) Here are some examples of false false friends (German/English):   * to hinder -- hindern   * to stutter -- stottern   * to heave -- hieven   * to flutter -- flattern   * to swindle -- schwindeln   * to cower -- kauern and examples of translations which parallel the way in which the words are used figuratively:   * gaping emptiness -- gähnende Leere   * ~~sth falls flat -- etw. fällt flach~~   * writing sth off -- etw. abschreiben   * sth is in order -- etw. ist in Ordnung


title: "Even though" vs. "even if"

text: Are these two totally synonymous? Can one be used in place of the other anywhere? Are there any differences in nuance, or anything at all?


title: Why is it "The King's Speech" but "Le Discours d'un Roi"?

text: In the movie's Wikipedia article, there is a French poster of the movie, which says "Le Discours d'un Roi". This is interesting to me because the French title uses the indefinite article "un" to refer to the king, which in my view makes more sense because he's just a king and from the title alone it's not obvious which king we are talking about. Is it more appropriate that the English title use the definite article? Is it because the king is British?


title: Change is the only constant – antithesis or oxymoron?

text: * * * _Change is the only constant_ – Isaac Asimov * * * Can the above quote be called an example of _antithesis_ or that of _oxymoron_ , or neither of these? I am confused because both _antithesis_ and _oxymoron_ have a _contrasting effect_. > **Antithesis:** A rhetorical term for the juxtaposition of contrasting ideas > in balanced phrases or clauses. > > **Oxymoron:** A figure of speech in which incongruous or seemingly > contradictory terms appear side by side; a compressed paradox. > > Source: About.com


title: what does this "from" mean?

text: What does the bold part mean? Thank you. http://www.newyorker.com/online/blogs/closeread/2013/08/going-to-congress- obamas-best-syria-decision.html Or it might go badly. Obama is certainly taking a risk, but that’s what the Presidency should be, and this one is worth it. The worst outcomes would involve either Congress or the President dodging this moment and its meaning. Congress might do so by constructing some legislative monstrosity, as it did during the debt-ceiling crisis, that relies on a complicated series of mechanisms that assure nothing—except that whatever happens is Obama’s fault—or too-sweeping powers. And the most disastrous thing that Obama could do is not admitting that he’s lost if he does, and bombing anyway. **Perhaps it’s too optimistic to say that today’s decision might be what keeps some future President, our country, and who knows what other nation and people from the sort of tragedy that destroys cities.** But it will certainly help, in an area where the world needs all the help it can get. And that makes this a morally important moment for the President as well.


title: When is creating punctuation appropriate?

text: I recently saw the character '‽' (the interrobang, a mashing of '!' and '?') in an answer's comment and it got me thinking about another character I've seen recently: the sarcmark. In my estimation neither are 'official' punctuation characters; nevertheless the former must be part of Unicode for it to be used in my browser so easily. At what point is the creation of punctuation appropriate? Is it a matter of popularity, or is necessity the mother of invention?


title: Rules for forming adjectives from Latin nouns

text: I read a paper today that kept using "multistrata" to describe an object with multiple layers. For example: > I love multistrata cakes. This sounds wrong to my ear, I think "multistratum" sounds better, even though the plural of stratum is strata. Certainly "multilayer cakes" sounds better than "multilayers cakes", which is the analogue to "multistratum" and "multistrata". Are there definitive rules for forming adjectives from Latin nouns?


title: "Room" versus "space" (in the sense of unoccupied volume)

text: > **Space** : Place, having more or less extension; room.   >  **Room** : Unobstructed space; space which may be occupied by or devoted to > any object (…)   >  (from Webster's) The general guiding his troops wants _space_ to manoeuvre, but most people want _room_ , breathing _room_. There's no _space_ for a new file on my hard disk, but no _room_ for a new book on my shelves. Maybe there's _room_ for argument here. (Are my examples idiomatic? I am not a native English speaker.) What guides the choice between _room_ and _space_ in this sense? Are there other words to consider (such as _place_ , which I would have thought to be a Gallicism)?


title: Synonym for a specific usage of "after all"

text: Is there any other word or phrase that could be used instead of "after all" in a case where it comes at the end of a sentence? For example: > Running away was in his nature, after all. (If you can think of a better example sentence, please let me know.)


title: Why do many forms ask for initials instead of full names?

text: I have seen a lot of forms that ask for the name (first name, middle name, last name) and then **initials**. Why does anyone want to ask for initials? Isn't initials the first letters of the name? For example, `name = john doe => initials = J D`. Isn't this always true?


title: Difference between "synopsis" and "plot"

text: After commenting on this question, I started wondering what the difference between a _plot_ and a _synopsis_ is, or if they are exactly the same. I'm mainly looking for common usage, but anything else (such as dictionation) is also welcome.


title: Is the word "wareful" archaic?

text: I have a sentence that runs, "My sense of reassurance was wareful." Is this word archaic? Should I use _wary_ instead? Or is the meaning of the sentence just plain ambiguous to begin with?


title: What is the origin of "Robbing Peter to pay Paul"?

text: I know what this means: "To pay one debt by incurring another" or other variants of it, but where did the saying come from. I'm not aware of any biblical instance of this. Deep down I want this to somehow involve Peter, Paul and Mary... :)


title: What Emotion Do You Experience When You Feel "Honored"

text: There are a ton of situations where it would be appropriate to start a sentence with the phrase "I'm honored." For example, "I'm honored to receive this award." "I'm honored to be a guest at your wedding." Etc. However, try as I might, I can't put my finger on what emotion the person who feels honored is actually feeling. Is there a better way to refer to this feeling other than "feeling honored?"


title: Can 'area' be called 'plot'?

text: Can _area_ from mathematics be called _plot_?


title: When should we expect an answer

text: What is the proper way to ask this question? When should we expect an answer or When can we expect an answer


title: Difference between "acquire" and "own"?

text: I read an article about the difference between _get_ and _have_. There is a explanation: > This is a major difference between the two verbs ‘have’ and ‘get’. The verb > ‘get’ gives the meaning of ‘acquire’ as in the sentence ‘I want to get it > now’. The sentence actually means ‘I want to acquire it now’. On the other > hand the verb ‘have’ gives the meaning of ‘own’ as in the sentence ‘I want > to have it right now’. The sentence actually means ‘I want to own it right > now’. However, I don't still understand it because I don't know the difference between two sentences: "I want to acquire it now" and "I want to own it right now". What's the difference between the two sentences? * * * sorry! I supposed that my question might be unclear. I know the meaning of the word acquire and own and the difference, definitely. But I don't know the difference 'want to acquire' and 'want to own' If you were a native speaker, you might not understand how I can't understand the difference between 'want to acquire' and 'want to own' although I know the difference between acquire and own. But in my first language, there is no difference between 'want to acquire' and 'want to own(or have)'. That's the reason I have a trouble to get it.


title: Complaint of vs Complaint for

text: Another one _of_ vs _for_ question, here _for_ would be the right choice, because its use denotes the function of purpose as I think it's the case here, right ? > When customers complaint _of_ an error scenario.


title: Singular and plural forms of abbreviations of expressions with "of" in the middle

text: Is it grammatically correct to abbreviate expressions with _of_ in the middle? If so, what will be the singular and plural forms of such abbreviations if the word that changes is not the last one in the expression? In particular, I am interested in _quantity of interest_. My guess is _QoI_ for singular and _QoIs_ for plural. And here is yet another question: should _o_ for _of_ be capitalized as well?


title: Meaning of "I am not for you to look into all issues"

text: A question asked by a team member to a party outside team.. In response to that.... **Manager:** (Addressing me) This is the area where we need to be self sufficient. Please think about this, how to achieve this. **I:** Sure. I was busy looking into another issue. I’ll look into this now. **Manager:** I am not for you to look into all issues. I am looking at how we get people to look into issues themselves. In last sentence, "I am not for you to look into all issues", Does she mean, she is looking into all issues and she can't do it anymore?


title: Is "great" used by native speakers to describe calamities any more?

text: I know that "great" used to be used to indicate "very large" for disasters and other calamities, such as the Great Fire of London, the Great Chicago Fire and the Great War. Is it common for native speakers of English (as opposed to say, the government of Japan in using the term "Great East Japan Earthquake") to use "great" for calamities these days?


title: What does "reeling" mean in "difficulties have left budgets reeling"?

text: After reading this sentence: > A near-decade of two simultaneous foreign wars, topped off by the most > brutal recession in two generations, has left federal and state budgets > reeling. I was left wondering about the meaning that was intended to be given by "reeling" in the sentence. From the definitions in Google, I don't know which one to choose (1 and 2 don't seem to apply):   1. Lose one's balance and stagger or lurch violently   2. Feel very giddy, disoriented, or bewildered, typically as a result of an unexpected setback   3. Walk in a staggering or lurching manner, esp. while drunk


title: Is "iterate over" being used correctly in "we briefly iterate over related work"?

text: Is this a correct use of the phrase "iterate over'? > In Section Three, we briefly iterate over related work.


title: Punctuation of a dependent clause for strong emphasis

text: Which of the sentences below is correct if I want to strongly emphasize that the pencil is not is **not white**? >   * This is a black instead of a white pencil. >   * This is a black, instead of a white, pencil. >   * This is a black—instead of a white—pencil. >


title: What is the origin of the phrase "Too busy chopping wood to sharpen the axe"

text: I am writing an article and would like to attribute the phrase correctly.


title: Why does "big cheese" mean someone important?

text: This is one of those common phrases that I have never really questioned until now. According to the free dictionary, "Big cheese" means an "important person". But what on earth does "cheese" have to do with being important? Where did this phrase come from?


title: If the prefix "a-" means not, shouldn't "await" or "awaiting" mean, "Not waiting?"

text: If:   * _Apolitical_ means "not political"  and   * _Amuse_ means...well, it should mean, "not thinking"  then why does _await_ or _awaiting_ not mean "not waiting?" I read this earlier question (Is there a real difference between wait and await?) but this seems interested in the meaning. One co-worker passed it off as "another example of why English makes no sense." I'm hoping for a better explanation or at least some literary historic context.


title: What is the plural of proof of concept? Is it proofs of concept, proof of concepts or proofs of concepts?

text: Can someone please clarify what is the plural form of proof of concept? Is it proofs of concept, proof of concepts or proofs of concepts?


title: Is it ok to use "Why" as "Why do you ask?"

text: Is it grammatically correct to use one-word sentence "Why?" as "Why do you ask?", for example in such context: – Did you visit that shop yesterday? – Yes. Why?


title: “rather than” vs “as opposed to”

text: > We do not know whether X will have an effect on element Y as opposed to > others.   >  We do not know whether X will have an effect on element Y rather than on > others. The first version is the first one I wrote, but it doesn't convince me at all. The second one should be more correct, but it doesn't sound too natural. Is one preferred over the other? Is there another way to express the same thing?


title: Is “of” indispensable to the sentence, “’Is it true,’ asked Josef of his mother ‘that he is not our brother?’”

text: To non-native English speakers, usage of preposition is always a headache. When I consulted the definition of “of” with an English Japanese dictionary at hand, it gives 16 different patterns of usage starting from 1. possession, 2. attribution / belonging, 3. relationship / contents / limit, 4. equality / apposition, to 13. distance / range, 14. subject of action, 15. object of action, 16. causes / motives. It's far beyond my ability to master all of them. With that said, I was interested in the function of ‘of’ in the following paragraph of Jeffrey Archer’s “Kane & Abel”: > After the feast Wladek enjoyed distributing gifts from Christmas tree, laden > with candles and fruit, to the awestruck peasant children –a doll for > Sophia, a forest knife for Josef, a new dress, a new dress for Florentyna – > the first gift Wladek had ever requested **of*** the Baron. ‘Is it true,’ > asked Josef **of**** his mother when he received a gift from Wladek, ‘that > he is not our brother, Matka? ‘No, she replied, ‘but he will always be my > son.’ I can understand the use of ‘of*’ The dictionary gives an example – He requested of his guests that they sit down. But with the second ‘of,’ the Kodansha’s English Japanese Dictionary defines “ask A of B” as “demand A (thing) to B (person) as in ‘That’s asking too much of John.’ However, in the above quote, Josef is simply asking a question to his mother, not demanding a thing. Is ‘of**’ indispensable in the sentence -‘Is it true,’ asked Josef of his mother ‘that he is not our brother? Doesn’t it make sense at all, if I wrote ‘Is it true,’ asked Josef (to) his mother,’ by omitting ‘of’?


title: Abbreviation for current

text: I am looking for an abbreviation for the word "current" to match the similar abbreviation "prev" for "previous" (it is being used specifically in the context of a sequence of items: previous --> current --> next). I'm considering "cur" and "curr", but the former brings to my mind the slur and the latter, as far as I can tell, isn't in widespread usage. I'm also aware of "cnt" occasionally being used, but it doesn't really match the style of abbreviation in "prev", and it can be ambiguous as to whether it abbreviates "current" or "count". Am I just being paranoid about "cur"?


title: " I don't know what you are saying"

text: During my seminar when my teacher asked a question, rather than saying that "I am not able to understand what you are asking", I said > "I don't know what you are saying" due to anxiety of being on stage. Was I totally offensive?


title: English compound

text: Is there a grammatical rule to compound a set of words such as a single one? _e.g._ word1 word2 --> word1word2 or word1-word2? Bye.


title: Name for the cognitive bias of seeming to not need something when you have it, but needing it when you don't?

text: An example of what I'm talking about is buying a snow blower because the past few winters have been very snowy, only to find that the next several winters after buying have hardly any snow, i.e. "it stopped snowing because I bought a snow blower". Another example is finding yourself often carrying an umbrella just in case it rains, but forgetting it once it actually does rain, i.e. "it rained because I forgot my umbrella today".


title: Word meaning "nearby in time"

text: I am looking for a word that has a similar meaning to "adjacent," except referring to time instead of space. For example, maybe I'm at a film festival and I'm watching three movies in a row, and I want to refer to the three "adjacent" films. "Subsequent" gets close to the meaning I want, but that word focuses on one thing following another in time, whereas I would like a word meaning "next to," either before or after.


title: Passive auxiliary verb or progressive one?

text: > Uncle Vernon made another funny noise, like a mouse **being** trodden on.   >  — _Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone_ Is ‘being’ a passive auxiliary verb or a progressive one?


title: Can we use should /would and /could in Future perfect tense

text: I would have finished my home work by evening . He should have been more careful. Can these be used as future perfect tense ?


title: Use of couple and meaning

text: Couple - Can I say I have a couple of kids meaning that I have a girl and a boy, or it is only for number, not gender?


From Etymonline > "Showing the fig" was a vulgar gesture made by sticking the thumb between > two fingers, a display which vaguely resembles a fig, itself symbolic of a > vagina (sykon also meant "vulva"). What does "fig" mean in "showing the fig"? I looked up the dictionaries, which say either a kind of fruit or nothing, which doesn't fit the context.