title: Where did "the price of tea in china" come from?

text: Usually when someone does not think your current statement has to do with the conversation at hand they can ask, "What does that have to do with the price of tea in China"? Where did that form of statement come from?


title: Expression “if and when something happens”

text: What is the level of formality in the expression “if and when” while referring to a possible happening? Googling “if and when _X_ happen” gives me all sorts of entries, some formal some clearly informal.


title: "which" refers to which one?

text: In the sentence: "Great helm was worn with a hauberk which also covered the neck and the head of warrior." The word "which" refers to great helm or hauberk?


title: Wording an 'If-Then' Statement Tense

text: I need help phrasing the last part of this conditional sentence (assume I can't change the first conditional statement): > If I died tomorrow, I _would have wanted_ to go skydiving. or > If I died tomorrow, I _wanted_ to go skydiving.


Is there a word which describes the experience of not being able to comprehend new sensory input? Specifically, I am trying to find a word which describes my experience whenever I listen to a new Chopin piece: though generally highly harmonic and melodic, his pieces are often so complex that I cannot discern their harmony or melody at first, they sound disorganized. But after a few listenings, they comes into focus and I can see that contrary to being disorganized, their organization is so complex that I am unable to comprehend them at first. For those who are not musically inclined, I think a similar experience would be that of a ~~blind person who receives sight but is disoriented at first / not able to comprehend the new sensory input~~ person who has never seen or even heard of the ocean coming to it for the first time: I image they would not know how to process what they were seeing for some time.


title: Origin and meaning of "Action item"

text: Where was the term "Action item" was first coined, and isn't just a fancy and euphemistic way to say "task"?


title: "Copies of documents" vs. "copy of documents"

text: What is the grammatical difference between "copies of documents" and "copy of documents"? Same applies to other nouns. Also, an example will be very much appreciated.


title: What is the name of the grammar structure of the words in the sentences below

text: What is the name of the grammar structure for sentences or expressions in the examples below? Your **_coming_** here is always a pleasure!! Your **_talking_** to her made all the difference !! In these sentences the expressions : coming and talking are what? Verb , noun etc ?


title: Word for something that can be validated

text: What is a word to describe something that can be validated? From _verify_ we have _verifiable_. What is the equivalent for _valid_ or _validate_? Obviously _validifiable_ is not a word, so what is the alternative?


title: Is the suffix "-ize" particularly productive in the morphological domain of nouns ending in "-nym"?

text: On a recent question asking if _acronymize_ is a word, a comment caught my attention: > Why bother to _acronymize_? If I'm going to take such liberties, I might as > well just _acronym_ the text. This really got me thinking. I am quite certain I've never used either verb. But I am just as certain that if I had to verb _acronym_ , and do it quick, my brain would not so much as consider _to acronym_. There's just something about it that doesn't quite feel right. _To acronymize_ , on the other hand, sounds perfectly natural. So not only would I go with the latter, but I'd do so without giving it a second thought. On complete autopilot. Instinctively. Why would that be? That instinct has to come from _somewhere_. My first and only guess right now is that _-nym_ is the perpetrator here. That it outright attracts the _-ize_ rather than the null morpheme. Just like _-(o)log-_ attracts _-ical_ over _-ic_, that kind of thing. But is that really true, or is there something else at work here? And as a bonus question: are there other morphological domains in which _-ize_ is especially productive? For a suffix that common, I suppose it's not too unlikely that someone actually went to the trouble of compiling a handy list of them all.


title: Which is more strong in business, "complain" or " claim"?

text: Could you explain the difference between "complain" and "claim" in business, please? In case that I do not satisfy the ability or the capability of my business partner, which is suitable or appropriate word at the first letter or information to show my frustration? My image is "claim" is more strong than "complain".


title: Remind me of the word that fits this 'concept'

text: I'm a developer, and as part of the development process we'll often 'do something once if it hasn't been done before' in certain parts of our code. For example, if I require a connection to a database I will connect only if I'm not already connected, I will not try to connect to the database if I am already connected. I want the word that goes into these blanks: > I am acting or am coding [......] by checking for a connection first prior > to connecting. > > If I connected to the database twice it would not be [.......]. There is definitely a word for this, but it escapes me. Apologies for the example, but it's the exact context in which I'd typically use this word. Another example may be only assigning a value to a variable if it hasn't already been assigned a value. Basically, avoiding redundant and unnecessary action by checking it had already been done. **Word It's Not:**   * Efficient/ly, efficiency   * Optimal, optimisation   * Concise   * Singular, single   * Elegant, elegance


title: How do I explain “The man on the Clapham omnibus” to the man on the Clapham omnibus?

text: I have found that I had to explain what "the man on the Clapham omnibus" means to someone.   I had taken it for granted that the phase was in standard usage, as my parents used it when I was a child. So what is a good and short way to express the same concept in a way that "the man on the Clapham omnibus" can understand?


title: What is the difference between metaphysical and spiritual?

text: I'm trying to explain the difference to a group, but cannot describe it myself. Any analogy or anecdote will also help, in addition to the defining differences.


title: As much as "you" or "you do"

text: I came across this sentence in a blog.. "You'll receive no more than 1-2 emails per week, as we hate spam just as much as you. " While I appreciate the sentiment, i can't help but wonder if they hate me! So here's my question : Is this sentence correct? To me, it seems like it should be "we hate spam just as much as you DO". In the third person though, there are two different forms, owing to two different words for the subject pronoun and object pronoun (unlike "you")   1."we hate spam just as much as SHE". (girl + bloggers hate spam)   2."we hate spam just as much as HER". (bloggers hate girl + spam) Since this is not the case with "you", should there absolutely be a "do" at the end of the sentence, or are we supposed to just understand it based on context? Or is "we hate spam just as much as we hate you" the actual right way of conveying that they hate me, making me completely wrong (and a little paranoid)?


title: Where do we get the word "peanut"?

text: Alternative names, like groundnut and earthnut, make sense. In German, peanuts are called Erdnüsse, literally, earth nuts. Where did the word "peanut" come from, and how did it become the dominant English name for Arachis hypogaea?


title: What is a word for "experts' self-serving practice"?

text: Is there any word to refer to the practice of experts in a given field aiming at maintaining their position as experts, rather than producing anything that could possibly challenge their position? I would like to describe this concisely, if possible in one _-ism_ word, rather than as "experts' self-serving practice". Is there any existing word for this? If not, could you suggest a neologism?


title: How should one say times aloud in 24-hour notation?

text: A couple years ago, I switched all my personal clocks 24-hour notation. I live in the US, and 24-hour time is used very, very rarely. So, I haven't been able to listen to anyone say times aloud. Here's my question: **What is the proper way to say a time aloud in 24-hour notation?** "Fifteen o'clock" sounds bad to me. I think I like "Fifteen hours" best, but it sounds a little formal. "Fifteen twenty-two" sounds okay to me, but still strange. Is there a 'best practice' here?


title: 24 hour time. How to say it?

text: > **Possible Duplicate:**   >  How should one say times aloud in 24-hour notation? Which words can be used to say time in 24 hour format? If, for instance, for 4:00 one might say "four o'clock", is it also correct to say "sixteen o'clock" for 16:00? Is it different for a casual conversation and for a presentation of some kind? It is also probably different for US and UK, and maybe for Europe too.


title: "If you went" what tense is it? Is it a subjunctive mood?

text: I was watching an anime, and saw a sentence > **If you went, you will die** in translation. The context is _Some guy is forbidding his friend to go to some place_. My question: Is it a subjunctive mood?


title: Is this a proper usage for a semicolon?

text: > I enjoy kayaking, hiking, tennis, volleyball, skiing; and I really want to > learn how to snowboard this winter.


title: Etymology of wasteweir?

text: I would guess that this word is derived from waste (english) + weir (german)? Can anyone provide a more definitive derivation explanation? (couldn't find anything via etymonline.com) Will keep googling for more info and update if I find anything interesting.


title: Dear Dr. vs Hi vs none in E-mail communication

text: I am in contact with the my doctor by email. We exchange about 3 messages per week, today we exchanged 2 messages. Now I have a situation where I think it is a bit silly to write each time Dear Dr. Lastname. For example: I send him question > Dear Dr. Lastname, > > question here > > Kind Regards, > > FirstName LastName he reply me within 2 hours. Should I write again Dear Dr. Lastime? And the same each time? Or maybe just Hi or just short answer for example > Yes, I confirm.


title: Does it make sense to say someone is your senior, such as a sibling?

text: Does it make sense to say someone is your **senior** , such as a sibling? I'm writing an essay about myself and was wondering whether or not it is a correct usage of the word.


title: Adjective for "character" or "alphabet"

text: Imagine you want to say something like 'Men' are always inside 'Women'... and you want to add something like, _character-wise_ or _alphabetically speaking_. How do you go about it? The problem with _character-wise_ is, character is already associated with a person's character.


title: What is the name of the place trophies go?

text: My best guess is _trophy case_ but I'm assuming I'm wrong.


title: Use of "petri dish" as metaphor in non-scientific context

text: Can the word _petri dish_ be used as a metaphor in a non-scientific context?


title: Why do we use 'up' as adverbs for verbs?

text: Why do we use _up_ as adverbs for verbs? For example, 'wake _up_ ', 'throw _up_ ', etc.


title: Is it "house is on fire" or "fire on the house"?

text: What are the origins behind our use of "house is on fire" as opposed to "fire is on the house"?


title: What are the differences between "from" and "of"?

text: Both _of_ and _from_ are possible, with different meanings, of course.   * > ....a magnificent picture in a book, called **True Stories of Nature** , about the primeval forest.  This means that the stories are about Nature, they speak of Nature as a whole or they may speak of different happenings, a boa constrictor eating a prey, the birth of baby dolphin, the first flight of a sparrow.....and they are seen as manifestations of Mother Nature.   * > ....a magnificent picture in a book, called **True Stories from Nature** , about the primeval forest.  This means that the stories are about the different things that may happen in Nature: a story about a boa constrictor eating a prey, a story about the slow growth of a little pine tree, the story of a salmon that swims against the drift in a river, the story of the birth of a baby owl.....these are all pictures taken from Nature. Although one of my friends has already explained them, in fact I cannot yet understand this logic or argument well. Would anyone possibly readily explain the difference between _from_ and _of,_ considering the bold parts?


title: University's vs Universities', correct spelling of the possessive

text: Something belongs to the University. Is it the _Universities' logo_ or the _University's logo_? I somehow don't think _University's_ exists.


title: Alternatives to "computationally expensive"?

text: The current version of a sentence I'm writing has the structure: > Computing [such and such] is the most computationally expensive part of > [algorithm]. At the moment, I cannot think of a better phrase to replace "computationally expensive". I know it is legitimate to say this ("computationally expensive" has been published numerous times). However, it sounds a little informal to me. What are some alternatives to "computationally expensive" in the above sentence?


title: The word to know when you don't know how to feel?

text: What is the word to use when you don't know how to feel? Such as instead of 'he didn't know how to feel' 'he felt ___ _'.


title: and would be a professionally paid engagement

text: Which is correct? "This would be a professionally paid engagement." or "This would be a professional paid engagement." Maybe "professionally" as paid is a verb and "professionally" is an adverb? Thanks


title: Catchy phrase to express or mean "always in stock/no back orders etc"

text: I'm looking for a neat phrase to coin the message of 'we're never out of stock of a product' or 'We always ship all of your order, no back orders' etc. Best I can come up with so far myself, is, 'Delivered In Full'.


title: Duplicate vs. replicate vs. reduplicate

text: What is the difference in usage between these three apparently-synonymous words: _duplicate, replicate, and reduplicate_. (Definitions from ODO) > _duplicate_ : make or be an exact copy of   >  _replicate_ : make an exact copy of; reproduce   >  _reduplicate_ : repeat or copy so as to form another of the same kind Why is it correct to say that the results of an experiment are replicated, but copies of a thesis are duplicated? How should I discuss the following: > Procedure X should work as though each node i in a graph were replaced with > v_i identical copies of it. Have the nodes been replicated, duplicated, or reduplicated? Should I reserve duplication for doubling in quantity?


title: Burst in or into laughter?

text: Which of the following phrases is correct grammatically? >   * burst **in** laughter >   * burst **into** laughter > Or are they both correct (this is my guess)? I'd think that to "burst in laughter" could translate to something like "burst in a state of laughter." Is this correct?


title: Is it a past event or present event?

text: Note: feel free to rephrase the title to be much better. I am still confused with determining whether an event can be regarded as a past event or present event. I will use a timer (format `mm:ss:pp`) to ease our analysis where `p` stands for `1/100` seconds. ## Case 1: an event completes before my speaking 00:00:00 - 00:02:00 : A boy is smiling at me. 00:02:01 - 00:04:00 : I want to say but I am not sure which one is correct?   * He smiles at me as if he felt happy.   * He smiled at me as if he had felt happy. From mathematical point of view, I choose the second option. Unfortunately, there are some people also use the first one. ## Case 2: an event completes at the middle of my speaking 00:00:00 - 00:02:00 : A boy is smiling at me. 00:01:51 - 00:03:50 : I want to say but I am not sure which one is correct?   * He smiles at me as if he felt happy.   * He smiled at me as if he had felt happy. I have no idea which one I should choose. ## Consideration It is impossible to say at a single point in a time interval. It takes some interval to do any action. The problem is how we can determine an event is a past or present. What is the width of present interval measured from the point we start speaking?


title: To bone up on something

text: What's the origin of this idiomatic expression meaning to study something thoroughly.


title: Why are checks cancelled when approved?

text: A friend of mine just asked if I had paid him back for some money he lent me. I told him the check was cancelled on the 9th. Concerned, he asked, "why'd you cancel the check?" I replied, "I didn't stop payment on it. It was deposited and so the bank cancelled it." This is obviously a source of confusion so I looked around online but didn't find anything satisfactory. What is the etymology of "cancelled check?"


title: A and B and C and D (comma)

text: There is a sentence:   "I am grateful to Mr. White for A and B[,] and to Mr. Black for C and D."   Should I put a comma before "and to Mr. Black" or not?   Thanks in advance.


title: What is the difference between "If I must" and "If I had to"?

text: I read a message from an American friend saying "If I must leave [place], [...]". What´s the difference between "If I must" and "If I had to"? Is there a subtle difference in meaning?


title: "Wednesday week"

text: I know that the English will say "Wednesday week" to mean a week from Wednesday. Is there a name for this sort of construction? Also, I have a friend from India who will say "today morning". Is this a similar English (as in people from England) idiom? Or is it an Indian-English idiom? Or just an individual idiosyncrasy?


title: What does this "expose" mean?

text: “The novelist must begin by playing the sedulous ape, assimilating the craft of his predecessors; but he does not master his own form until he has somehow **exposed** and surpassed them.”Source Does "expose" mean that the secrets of the predecessors are now revealed? Or does it have another meaning?


title: I want to divorce vs I want divorce

text: Is there a difference between > I want divorce and > I want to divorce. And concerning the second one should I rather say > I want to divorce my wife And is "to divorce" A verb here or or object of the verb "want"?


title: Alignment or alinement?

text: I was reading _Wonders of World Aviation_ the other day, published in the late thirties, and have found a couple of articles where _alinement_ is preferred to _alignment_. While this seems to make sense, it also appears to be rare:- ![Alignment vs Alinement](http://i.stack.imgur.com/IlFZE.png) (Google Ngram) Does anyone know how _alinement_ came into being? Was it a (doomed) attempt at spelling reform, or is it just a minority spelling (or mis-spelling)?


title: Is "What's your Islam question?" grammatically correct?

text: The placeholder text in the title input box here reads: > What's your Islam question? Be specific. Is that sentence grammatically correct? Islam being a noun.


title: Meaning of ‘draw out’

text: I’m translating an English novel into Italian but I’m stuck on the meaning of one sentence and I was wondering if you could help me: > Why—his voice **seemed to draw out soft and subtle** , it penetrated her > nerves—why, what do you think it is?


title: Is micropreneur or micropreneurial correct as an adjective?

text: A micropreneur is basically an micro-entrepreneur. In the following phrase, is micropreneur or micropreneurial correct? > A micropreneur software company


title: Improve translation of citation

text: I need to translate the following citation from French to English: > La seule révolution possible   >  c’est d’essayer de s’améliorer soi-même   >  en espérant que les autres fassent la même démarche I tried this: > The only revolution possible   >  is to try to improve yourself   >  hoping that others do the same approach How can I improve my translation? The meaning sounds different.


title: Etymology of "chain rule" (calculus)

text: In calculus there is a formula known as the _chain rule_ , used for differentiating composite functions. What is the origin of this expression?


title: What does "drop the beat" mean?

text: From Yahoo answers and other sources I could find, it is suggested this means that the beat of the song changes, however when it is mentioned in song lyrics it is usually mentioned as something someone does e.g. > Beastie Boys known to let the beat, mmm, drop! ... > Will.i.am drop the beat now What is someone doing when they "drop the beat"?


Why are names that begin with 'Mc' first in order over names that begin with 'Ma'?   For example,   in references sections in books, we see that "McGann, Anthony" is first and "Maddox, Graham" is second.


title: Where does 'cooling your heels' come from?

text: I can't think of a possible scenario where one would tell another to cool his heels (the very first time). Even if you walk a lot, only your legs hurt a lot. Why particularly heels? How did it come into existence?


title: Usage of "terrorist"

text: Has the word _terrorist_ evolved in meaning or context in recent times?


title: Is there any difference between these two sentences?

text: Is there any difference between these sentences apart from structure?               The tiger is a ferocious animal.     Tigers are ferocious animals.


title: Which verb should be used with self-control?

text: So I know that one _loses_ self-control, but what if you mean to say that someone is responsible for that? Which verb would be OK to use? Perhaps: > You **disturb** my self-control.   >  You **shake** my self-control.   >  You **take** my self-control.   >  You **vex** my self-control. I can't find any instances of the first or last and only a couple of the second example. I found a lot of accounts using _take,_ but it's part of a song so that taints the results. What sounds most natural?


title: Is "Create Product" a <Verb> + <Subject> or <Verb> + <Object>?

text: I am software developer and trying to develop a new language. I need to learn that basic information in English:   * _Create Product._   * _Update Page._   * _Stay Here._ _Create_ , _Update_ and _Stay_ are verbs, of course. What about _Product_ , _Page_ and _Here_?


title: what does "Not Hannah Samuel more" mean?

text: I'm reading _A Woman of No Importance_ by Oscar Wilde. Below is from Mrs. Arbuthnot to her son, Gerald: > [...] Gerald, when you were naked I clothed you, when you were hungry I gave > you food. Night and day all that long winter I tended you. No office is too > mean, no care too lowly for the thing we women love- and oh! how I loved > you. Not Hannah Samuel more. And you needed love, for you were weakly, and > only love could have kept you alive. Only love can keep any one alive. [...] Really, I couldn't understand "Not Hannah Samuel more", from a grammar point of view. What does it mean actually? Are some parts omitted? What is the complete form of this sentence? ### Background I suppose Hannah and Samuel are from Bible, below is quoted from Wikipedia: > In the biblical narrative, Hannah is one of two wives of Elkanah; the other, > Peninnah, who bore children to Elkanah, but Hannah remained childless. > > Nevertheless, Elkanah preferred Hannah. Every year Elkanah would offer a > sacrifice at the Shiloh sanctuary, and give Penninah and her children a > portion but he gave Hannah a double portion "because he loved her, and the > LORD had closed her womb" (NIV). One day Hannah went up to the temple, and > prayed with great weeping (I Samuel 1:10), while Eli the High Priest was > sitting on a chair near the doorpost. In her prayer she asked God for a son > and in return she vowed to give the son back to God for the service of the > Shiloh priests. She promised he would remain a Nazarite all the days of his > life. > > Eli thought she was drunk and questioned her. When she explained herself, he > sent her away and effectively said that her prayer would be heard and her > desire granted. As promised, she conceived and bore a son. She called his > name Samuel, "since she had asked the Lord for him" (1 Samuel 1:20 NAB). She > raised him until he was weaned and brought him to the temple along with a > sacrifice. The first 10 verses of 1 Samuel 2 record her song of praise to > the Lord for answering her petition. Eli announced another blessing on > Hannah, and she conceived 3 more sons and 2 daughters, making six in total.


title: What are the differences between the etymology of "ingenious" and "ingenuous"?

text: As a matter of fact, I don't know whether there is any difference between the source words in bold below: From Latin **ingeniosus** (“endowed with good natural capacity, gifted with genius”), from ingenium (“innate or natural quality, natural capacity, genius”), from in (“in”) + gignere (“to produce”), Old Latin genere. Compare French ingénieux; see also engine. From Latin **ingenuus** ("of noble character, frank") And I wanna know the help of discerning the Modern meanings of those two words with the grammatical suffixes in Old Latin or Greek above.


title: Is corrosion an onomatopoeia?

text: I mean, obviously _"corrosion"_ isn't _actually_ onomatopoeic, because corrosion doesn't make a sound (or at least not one that humans can hear). Yet it seems to me that the word _corrosion_ sounds like its meaning, in some hard-to-define way. Is there a term for words that suggest their meanings, without necessarily recreating the sound, but that aren't quite onomatopoeic? There are a lot of similar ones, e.g. grind, shuffle.


title: ”voice controlled” versus ”voice activated”

text: While researching a computer game, I came across the terms “voice controlled” and “voice activated”. What is the difference between them?


title: What does it mean by "Is that still a thing"?

text: Someone asks "I want to know about your girl friend. Is that still a thing?" to his friend. What does he exactly ask about? I don't understand. Please help me understand.


title: Is “zzzzz” the most common spelling to represent a person sleeping?

text: What is the most common or correct spelling of "zzzzz"? > (1)    _zzzzz_ (5 letters)   > > > (2)    _zzzz_ (4 letters)   > > > (3)    _zzz_ (3 letters) My question stems from when I first wrote it as "zzzzz" (5 letters) in an English text, but a friend told me it should have been written as "zzzz" (4 letters) so I decided to ask here. More confusion arises from the following source because Susan Ince, the journalist, uses "zzz" (3 letters): > People who get too little sleep (six hours or less a night), plus have poor- > quality rest, face a 65% higher risk of heart disease, a Dutch study of > 20,400 people found. So take your **_zzz_** 's seriously. Tell your doctor > if you're having trouble sleeping or if you're waking up without feeling > refreshed. And adopt good sleep hygiene — no caffeine after lunch, regular > bedtimes and wake-up times, plenty of exercise in the early part of the day, > no television or computer in bed — to help you get the rest your heart > needs. (For more tips, read 25 Ways to Sleep Better Tonight.) Before that I had checked it out on some online English dictionary and Google search but I wasn't able to clear it out. I've seen this and this, but neither answers my question.


title: If the result of creating is creation

text: then what is the result of getting?


title: Word for someone quick to blame others

text: What is a single word to describe a person who is quick to blame others or the system in almost any situation, regardless of whether that is legitimate or not?


title: When I should use "assure" vs. "ensure" vs. "insure"?

text: When is it appropriate to use _assure_ vs. _ensure_ vs. _insure_?


title: "Could not happen" vs. "could have not happened"

text: Which one is correct? > These changes **could have not happened** without outstanding help kindly > provided by the queen. > > These changes **could not happen** without outstanding help kindly provided > by the queen. The changes happened last year and thus the process of changing is done.


title: Why is this sentence correct? “She suggested that he go to the cinema.”

text: Why is this sentence correct? > She suggested that he **go** to the cinema. I would definitely use _goes_ instead of _go_.


title: Why is this a correct sentence? Her uncle prefers that she speak with him personally

text: An native English speaker said the correct grammar should be ... 'she speak,' rather than ...'she speaks.' What is the grammar rule?


title: "If he is polite, then he gets the job", or "if he be polite, then he gets the job"?

text: > **Possible Duplicate:**   >  When should I use the subjunctive mood? Which sentence is grammatically correct? Which sentence make sense (apart from syntactical analysis)? First? Second? Both of them? Are they patterns of conditional statement about future (if something happen now, it will have an effect in future)?


title: When should I use the subjunctive mood?

text: In which cases should I use the subjunctive mood? > I suggest that every applicant fill out the form carefully. > If she were rich, she would live on Long Island.


title: Do I use "be" or "is" in this sentence?

text: Which of the following is correct? >   1. I request that my proposal _is_ communicated to the team for necessary > action. >   2. I request that my proposal _be_ communicated to the team for necessary > action. > I would appreciate further discussion on the topic so that I do not make similar mistakes or face this indecision in future.


title: I do not OR I not

text: In the below sentences, **_do_** is not present. > My doctor insists that I ( ** _do_** ) not eat donuts with chocolate sauce > and hamburger patties for breakfast. > > It's imperative you ( ** _do_** ) not sing when your voice hurts. Why is the **_do_** not present in the sentences? Which grammatical rule would be violated if **_do_** is included in the sentences?


title: Under what circumstances can the word "be" be used directly without any change?

text: > **Possible Duplicate:**   >  When should I use the subjunctive mood? 2 examples first: 1.It is announced that the accounting class of the 3rd and 4th hours on the morning of this Wednesday **be** cancelled 2.It is expected that everybody and each household **be** on guard Someone told me this kind of examples above appears in the textbook as strict sentences to be taught in the classroom, so is that right for the usage of **be** Meantime I looked up the word **be** at thefreedictionary.com and found one piece of interpretation says that way: > Archaic Used with the past participle of certain intransitive verbs to form > the perfect tense: "Where be those roses gone which sweetened so our eyes?" > (Philip Sidney). So is there any connection between the archaic usage & the examples above? BTW, how to understand the short phrase "the 3rd and 4th hours". Many thanks!


title: "I thought it was important that he say it in his own voice." – That he say it?

text: > **Possible Duplicate:**   >  When should I use the subjunctive mood? I have often come across constructions such as the one highlighted below and wondered how to explain the grouping of a third person singular subject with a plural verb. > _I thought it was important that **he say** it in his own voice._ My question is about the subject-verb agreement. If I'm not mistaken, the above sentence has two clauses: 1) _I thought it was important_ 2) _that he say it in his own voice_ How does the subject in the second clause, _he_ , agree with the plural verb _say_? Shouldn't it be _says_ since _he_ is the third person singular? > Another example can be: > > _Personally, I'd recommend that **he speak** in public as soon as possible._ I am curious to know how these constructions are not rare despite _seeming_ ungrammatical.


title: Using an infinitive

text: "It is imperative that he **writes** a letter to his sister as soon as possible." In this case, is the correct form **write**? If so, why?


title: Is "ask something be done" grammatical?

text: > **Possible Duplicate:**   >  When should I use the subjunctive mood? > The city council has asked a comprehensive survey **be performed** in order > to determine the measures to lessen the serious traffic congestion during > rush hours almost everyday. Could you please explain why "be performed" is used here?


title: "Important that John bring/brings"

text: > **Possible Duplicate:**   >  When should I use the subjunctive mood? Given the sentence > John brings his lunch to school, is it correct to say > It is important that John **brings** his lunch to school (using the third person singular present form of _bring_ ), or > It is important that John **bring** his lunch to school (using the infinitive form of _bring_ )? [ **Edit** : The answers indicate that this is actually the _subjunctive_ form, not infinitive.] I have been told that the infinitive form is correct, but if this is correct I would like an explanation. It doesn't seem like adding _it is important_ should modify the tense of the rest of the sentence.


title: Why doesn't the singular verb “pass” take an “-es” suffix in this sentence?

text: As I was studying Peterson’s _Master TOEFL Writing Skill_ , I saw the sentence: > Teamwork requires that a player **pass** the ball whoever is in the best > position to make the goal. I wonder why _pass_ does not take an _-es_ suffix in the sentence cited above. Is it a mistake? If not, could you please explain under which particular circumstances we don’t add _-es_ suffix to a present tense verb that’s in the third-person singular?


title: What's the difference between England, Britain, and the United Kingdom?

text: I'm a little confused over which regions of the world these terms are really referring to. Also, when is it appropriate to refer to someone as British vs. English?


title: What is the word that means conversation where no important information is conveyed?

text: I believe there is also a computing or physics theory that contains this word. (i.e. "Something Theory") It's definitely at least two syllables long and I'm pretty sure there's at least one 'b' somewhere in the word. Thank you!


title: Correctness and spelling of "misscheduled"

text: I'm sure I've heard the word _misscheduled_ used multiple times in my life. But just now, my spell checker threw a fit. Since I wasn't sure if it should be _misscheduled_ , _mis-scheduled_ , or _mischeduled_ I started searching - but I'm not finding it in any of my digital dictionaries. Is _misscheduled_ a proper English word? If so, what is the proper spelling? If not, what is a concise word that means someone scheduled something at the wrong time?


title: A one-word verb meaning to "make use of"

text: I'm struggling to find a concise one-word verb (for a paper title) that means "to make use of". The context is that I have a material—let's call it "Thulium"—that people don't think is very useful. I'm writing a paper that discusses how Thulium can be quite useful. I would prefer the title to be of the form " _[verb]_ **ing Thulium** ". I have thought of the following:   * " **Leveraging Thulium** " (sounds too mechanical and is clichéd in my area)   * " **Harnessing Thulium** " (refers too much to controlling, not enough to making use of; plus since my Thulium is quite boring, it sounds a bit like "Harnessing Grass")   * " **Consuming Thulium** " (doesn't clarify a benefit)   * " **Exploiting Thulium** " ("exploiting" has too many negative connotations) Any other suggestions? Ideally the verb should convey a sense of excitement about using Thulium.


title: Origin and exact meaning of "taken to the cleaners"

text: I know the meaning of this phrase by context, but the German analogs are no literal translations of this phrase and very dissimilar metaphors, meaning roughly: > being tricked into something being pretty unprofitable for you (deal, duty > or else) A short Google search didn't show in-depth explanations. What is "cleaners" referring to here? Is this American or British English and in which branch arose this phrase?


title: Is "anecdotally" a proper adverb?

text: And if yes, is it common or rather odd? Example sentence: > Anecdotally, we do see instances of customers buying both our products at > the same store. The Chrome spellchecker doesn't seem to know it, by the way: ![enter image description here](http://i.stack.imgur.com/euani.png)


title: What does "The weather naturally also matters" mean?

text: > **The weather naturally also matters.** Fewer spectators will visit your > arena in bad weather, but those who come will be more interested in buying > more expensive tickets and sitting under aroof. It is therefore possible > that your total income will be similar in any weather, provided there enough > appropriate stands. What does it mean ?


title: Is this saying grammatically correct?

text: Is the phrase _seat well and hold steadily_ grammatically correct? If it is, why does it use _seat_ instead of _sit_? PS:the instruction will be used on the bus.


title: What does this mean: To be thus is nothing; But to be safely thus

text: This is taken from Shakespeare's Macbeth, and I am having difficulty comprehending what this means. Can someone please put it into normal English, with all explanations?


title: The pose of a model

text: Is there a term for the pose when a woman covers her breasts with her hands (like for a photoshoot or movie)?


title: Word or phrase indicating incompetence or unsuitability?

text: This may be as simple as a synonym for _hallmark_ , but with a negative connotation. An example: A security consultant publishes an article on security practices that is so egregiously erroneous that it reflects poorly on 3rd parties who cite the article or author. The poor reflection is what I'm trying to describe. _Black mark_ is close, but I'd like to find a word taking a stronger stance - one could have multiple black marks that are overcome by strong qualities, while _this word/phrase_ is effectively the end of the discussion. Maybe _deal breaker_ , but less vernacular.


title: What lexical relationship lies between the days of the week?

text: I'm confused, What is the lexical relationship between "Monday" and "Tuesday"? I mean is the relationship hyponymy, prototypes, polysemy, homophones, metonymy etc?


title: The term "No problems" meaning?

text: For example you send an email to an acquaintance or friend. "I've been busy. Recovering from unexpected surgery. My recovery is going well. I will send information on that hobby, could email it soon. Hope you're day is wonderful." Their response. No problems. Thanks for the note. Hope surgery went well.... Rest up... The term "No Problems" What does it signify? Means no worries? Difference between no problem and no problems?


title: How come you say "best part" if meaning "most of something"?

text: When I read the first time that someone _spend the best/better part of the day doing something_ , I took _best_ literally. Although I now know its meaning, it's confusing me over and over again whenever I read such a sentence. What's the reason for saying _best part_ and not, for instance, _most part_?


title: 'idiot smile' vs. 'idiotic smile', idiomaticity and usage

text: I observed that 'idiot' is sometimes used as a modifier, which, as grammar.ccc says, ' _are like teenagers: they fall in love with whatever they're next to. Make sure they're next to something they ought to modify!_ ' Some instances of real English usage I found, among others, are the following: > What kind of _idiot teenager_ agrees to baby-sit on a millennial New Year's > Eve, anyhow? > > They tried a plastic slide, but some _idiot teenager_ broke it. Wood? It > splinters as it ages. Other than those there are a lot of other example, especially in reference to children, boys and girls. So, I would like to know whether the English language has some limit in using 'idiot' as a modifier outside those cases. I ask because I want to say that a friend of mine has an 'idiot smile', but after searching a bit I didn't find a lot of occurence of that expression and it seems that 'idiotic smile' is preferred.


title: Phe- prefix - etymology

text: What is the meaning, origin and usage of the " ** _phe-_** " prefix? According to one source, it means "to speak".


title: What do I call it when a word is "with the"?

text: Wiktionary's definition of "open" as a noun includes two that say: >   1. _(withthe)_ Open or unobstructed space; an exposed location. >   2. _(withthe)_ Public knowledge or scrutiny; full view. > **What is that " _(with the)_ " called?** It's not a scope, is it? Note that I know it means to use "open" with "the" before it, as in "the open". I'm asking what one would call that usage.


title: Is correct this expression " The exercise consist of making something"?

text: I posted the following sentence in a blog and the majority of people could not understand it. > The exercise consist of making the buffer A dynamic so that the application > is able to read and print an arbitrary long string. I am wondering if the sentence structure is correct. In particular, I am not sure whether I am correctly using "consist of". What I am trying to say is that to correctly solve the exercise is required the use of a dynamic buffer.


title: Is a "To Do List" familiar to other countries?

text: I'm researching if a "to do list" is a familiar term or concept to English speakers around the world. I found this related question on how to **spell** _to do_. Specifically, Hugo's answer hints that _to-do list_ may be familiar at least to the US and UK. My specific scenario is explaining the idea of a "task" (for example, what Microsoft calls a task in their Outlook program). Would a _to do list_ be an okay comparison for English speakers of various countries (the US, UK, Netherlands, and Japan could be the primary audiences)?


title: Names of some months don't make sense

text: I'm not a native English speaker but I'm always trying to do my best. Unfortunately I have a real problem with dates for some odd reason, I couldn't learn when was my birthday until I was 12 years old. Anyway, as I was learning names of the months on English, and since I know some Latin from high school I noticed that English months don't match up with their Latin numeral counterparts. For example: September - 9. month October - 10. month November - 11. month December - 12. month While on latin septem, octo, novem and decem are words for 7, 8, 9 and 10. So, does anyone know why is that. At first I thought it had something to do with switch from Julian to Gregorian calendar but I figured it's too small of a difference. Anyone? :)


title: "Approach to" or "approach for"

text: When do you use _approach for_ , and when do you use _approach to_? (How can I answer questions like this? In which dictionaries should I look? How do I google it?) * * * The reason to ask this question is an argument with my friend: what's right, _approach to caching_ or _approach for caching_? (Caching in the software engineering sense) (But I'd like to hear _more_ general answer.)


title: A formal way to say "I don't want to sound too cocky..."

text: Allow me to clear the situation. I was talking with my professor about a piece of software that I had developed. While we were discussing, I _wanted_ to say something like > I don't want to sound too cocky, but my code is way much more efficient than > what we have right now. But I didn't because I thought _"I don't want to sound too cocky"_ is too informal. What is a formal way of stating such a phrase?


title: Synonyms for small in stature

text: With "big in stature", we have large, tall, rotund, huge, mammoth-like, towering and so on. What would be valid (and if possible, comical sounding) words that would be able to describe somebody who is small in stature, short, petite?


title: Using a period… the mean way?

text: Should you put a period after one-word "sentences?" For example, my boss frequently emails me this way: > Name. > > Content content content. > > Thanks. It feels very angry, rude, and standoffish to me and I feel a bit as though it's backed with a dismissive/sarcastic undertone. As if she's not TRULY thankful for my help but rather following some societal requirement for her to at least appear to be grateful. In other words, I really don't like it. Thoughts?


title: Difference between "meaning of life" and "purpose of life"

text: I have seen and heard both, but I cannot tell the difference between "meaning of life" and "purpose of life". Could anybody explain it to me? When to use which?


title: "I have to" vs. "I must"

text: When would you use the following?   * I have to go the market.   * I must go to the market.   * I need to go to the market. If I replace 'have' with 'had' would you have any other way to say it? E.g. I had to go the market.


title: Modal verbs (must or to have to)

text: As far as I know, When you speak about yourself and you refer to your own feeling of necessity of doing something you use **must** and not **to have to**. If I am talking about outside command or necessity I should use **have to**. But what when you are talking about someone else (the third person singular or plural)? Eg. She has to take this pill, She has to go to doctor, she has to study better, etc which would be a better choice 'must' or 'have to'? How to show that you are talking about either one's own feeling of necessity or about outside command when you speak about a third person and not about yourself? I must be at the meeting at 10:10. (I require myself-must should be used and not to have to) I have to be at the meeting. (I am required to be there by someone else, only to have to and not must shoud be used here) My textbook says that when you are not talking about your opinion you shoudn't use 'must'. When you refer to a fact **have to** is used but not **must.** At the same time I came across this example; 'Students must pass an entrance examination to study at this school.' This is not someone's opinion, but a fact and if so **have to** should be used here instead of **must** I would be grateful for explanations.


title: "have to be moved" or "must be moved" or "must move"?

text: > **Possible Duplicate:**   >  "I have to" vs. "I must" Which of these is correct? > The camera have to be moved sideways instead of rotate to track the scene. or > The camera must be moved sideways instead of rotate to track the scene. or > The camera must move sideways instead of rotate to track the scene. Should these read “instead of rotate” or "instead of rotation"?


title: Why are Australian redheads often called 'bluey'?

text: From Wikipedia's article on Virgin Australia: > Virgin Australia was launched as **Virgin Blue** in August 2000, with two > Boeing 737–400 aircraft, one leased from then-sister airline Virgin Express. > Initially offering seven return flights a day between Brisbane and Sydney, > this has since been expanded to cover all major Australian cities and many > holiday destinations. The Virgin Blue name was the result of an open > competition; it was a play on the predominantly red livery and the > **Australian slang tradition of calling a red-headed male 'Blue' or > 'Bluey'**. This is confirmed on other sites such as this one. How did _blue_ come to represent _red_ in Australia?


title: What is a term to refer something in the middle of a list just like "former" and "latter" is used in a list containing two things?

text: In a sentence, if someone says the _former_ , they are talking about the first thing they listed, and says the _latter_ for the last thing they listed. What would be the term to refer something in the middle of a list? Consider the following two scenarios: > I like to eat burgers and hot dogs, although I like to eat the _former_ > more. > > I like to eat burgers, hot dogs and ribs, although I like to eat the **___ > _** more.


title: Is the "live" in "He only lived a few days after the accident" intrasitive or transitive?

text: An example sentence from the Cambridge Dictionary: > [I] He only lived a few days after the accident. [I] means "intransitive verb". He (subject) + lived (verb) + a few days (noun). What part of speech is _a few days_? From the Longman dictionary: > number 5 > >   1. way of life[intransitive always + adverb/preposition, transitive] to > have a particular type of life, or live in a particular way > used 'transitive verb' like 'She lives a very busy life.' From the ELU question Adjective pluralization: > She is 16 year old. '16 years' as acting as an adverb. My questions are:   1. In "He lived a few days.", is _a few days_ an object (noun) or an adverb?   2. How is it different from "He lived for a few days."?   3. "I walked ten miles." Number + measurement — how can I deal with 'part of speech'?


title: "Cater to" vs. "cater towards"

text: I've heard both "cater to" and "cater towards" used, but I was wondering which one was correct. For example: >   * The event's theme seemed to cater to the artistic crowd. >   * The event's theme seemed to cater towards the artistic crowd. > Are there rules for this? Which is correct?


title: What's a collective name for the states of Alaska and Hawaii?

text: Wondering if there is a common name for the "Dis-contiguous" states of Alaska and Hawaii. If not, what would be a good single word label to describe these two states, especially in context of dividing the country up into time zones. Context: this is for a web application that presents data based on various filters. One of these filters is time zone. I want to use Pacific, Mountain, Central, Eastern, and some other word that encompasses both Alaska and Hawaii, even though they are really in two different time zones.


title: to have + verb in the context

text: I wanted to tell my friend that he should do something nice today (it's his birthday): > You should do something nice, you do not want to have your birthday ending > this way. I know it is wrong but is there a way how to say it still with the "want to have" in the sentence? Or is the "have" here entirely incorrect?


title: When to use trust and believe?

text: What is the difference between trust and believe , and when should we use them . For example "I don't believe him " is correct or "I don't trust him " .


title: Placement of 'always'

text: Which of the following is the most appropriate usage   * "You have to be _always_ logical in your analysis."    * "You _always_ have to be logical in your analysis."    * "You have to be logical in your analysis _always_."  Thanks.


title: How to write the date of an event that lasts a few days

text: What is the correct way to write, in American English, that something will happen over a date range?   * The event will take place through July 1-10, 2011?   * The event will take place from July 1 to July 10, 2011?   * The event will take place starting on July 1 through July 10, 2011? Any other suggestions are welcome.


title: Is "Give you into trouble" correct

text: My wife often uses the phrase "I'll give you into trouble if you do that again" and it seems to be reasonably common in western Scotland, however I can't find any way for it to be grammatically correct. I can understand "I'll give you trouble" which means the same, or "I'll get you into trouble" which is obviously a bit different.


title: What is the origin, and correct spelling of, "shtook"?

text: I quite frequently use a word that sounds like "shtook", to mean, trouble with the law or other authorities, as in, "You'll be in dead _shtook_ if you do that" or "you'll be in real _shtook_ if you don't finish your homework", but I have never seen it written, and don't know how it is spelt. Can anyone shed some light on the matter. A search like this doesn't get very far; the real dictionaries don't recognise it and the Urban Dictionary here has only a typically obscene interpretation not in the least bit like I remember it.


title: What's the opposite of "happy to"?

text: When I need to deliver someone an unfortunate news, what would be the opposite phrase to: > I'm happy to inform you... or > I'm delighted to give you this news...


title: What is the plural of "BlackBerry" (as in the handheld device)

text: Is the plural of "BlackBerry", _BlackBerries_ or _BlackBerrys_? I am asking, because I'm altering the underlying brand name to look more like the food and less like the product, leaving the reader to infer it from context.


title: Terms for collections of animals

text: As I watched the murder of crows sitting on the line above my house this evening, I got wondering where all of the collective nouns for animals (pod of whales, gaggle of geese, pride of lions) came from and why we need so many. If sheep can be a flock, why can't whales, geese, lions, and crows?


title: Etymology of seemingly weird collective nouns

text: > **Possible Duplicate:**   >  Terms for collections of animals In the collective names _unkindness of ravens_ , _shrewdness of apes_ , _murder of crows_ , I cannot find any remote relation to a _group_. What is usually the reason for such collective names to have originated?


title: Difference between "change is constant" and "change is a constant"

text: The boss asked me the other day whether it's more correct to say > In our business, change is constant. or > In our business, change is a constant. Both of these sound perfectly correct to me, which is what I told him; but there's a slight difference in meaning that I just can't seem to articulate. Help? Definitions, not that they're much help: > **constant** (noun): a quantity that does not vary   >  **constant** (adjective): unvarying in nature; steadfast in purpose or > devotion or affection; uninterrupted in time and indefinitely long > continuing


title: Definite article in the beginning of a sentence

text: I'm confused with the usage of the definite article. > During the development the following tasks were accomplished: > >   * Software with a graphical interface was created; > >   * [some other things] > > I know exactly the software which was developed, and I am writing an annotation for my work. Should I use _the_ before _software_?


title: "consumers may not trust producers for (??) enforcing the property"

text: Here's an example sentence: > "consumers may not trust producers _for_ enforcing the property" Should it really be " _for_ " there on the middle? Or should it be some other word?


title: "Outside" or "outside of"?

text: > The word rarely turns up outside that context. and > The word rarely turns up outside **of** that context. Which one is correct and why?


title: Outside of usage

text: Is it ok if I use _outside of_ like this: "It can do much more outside of a gaming machine".


title: Appropriate preposition to go with "outside their comfort zone"

text: Is the preposition "of" necessary in the phrase "outside their comfort zone"?


title: Does one consider "vs." or "versus" when alphabetizing?

text: I work at a game store, and my manager insists that "versus" is to be considered when alphabetizing, and is not in the same league as "a, as, the, and, of, or," and the like. Although I do deem it more important a word than those other smaller ones, I don't think it should be considered when alphabetizing. What's the right way?


title: How broad is the definition of sodomy?

text: In this article, a top French official is in trouble for sodomizing a maid. Yet, the article says that he forced her to perform oral sex. I always understood sodomy as involving anal as that seemed to be what was going on in Sodom in the Bible. Then I looked at this definition on Onelook.com and found that it includes bestiality. Did other taboo sex acts just get lumped in with sodomy over the years, or did it include all those from the beginning?


title: Talkies, Motion Pictures, Movies, Films and 3D Films

text: The term, talkies, i.e. _talking pictures_ , I was surprised to learn was not coined in 1927, after the release of _The Jazz Singer_ , but in 1913. The term is now obsolete whereas _motion picture_ , meaning _moving pictures_ on a screen, has existed since 1896, although nowadays it's become very dated. Movie, its shortened and more modern version, dated possibly from 1908, is still very much in vogue in the US. The Online Etymology Dictionary says that _film_ (the more popular BrEng equivalent for _movie_ ) was > First used of "motion pictures" in 1905. British speakers will say: > Have you seen the new James Bond film?   >  We watched a film about prison life.   >  The film was made on location in India. American speakers, if I'm not mistaken, will use _film_ in sentence number two, and _movie_ in the others. _Movie_ is connected more with entertainment, whereas _film_ is considered more of an art form, an undergraduate will take _Film & Media Studies_, not _movies_. My questions:   * I'd like to know when the term _talkies_ as in "talking pictures" died out. When was it no longer considered a novelty and people reverted back to saying _motion pictures_ /movies*?    * Why the term, film, was adopted by British speakers and most European countries, when _motion pictures_ is arguably the authentic expression and therefore, the more accurate term.    * Lastly, which term is more common, _3D film_ or _3D movie_? (The latter does sound odd to my ears.)


title: Adding "re" prefix

text: Can all verbs have "re" attached to the front of the word? I play Scrabble with a friend who feels that in the English language you can put "re" in front on any verb, and not just the ones listed in the dictionary.


title: How did the letter Z become to be associated with sleeping/snoring?

text: In cartoons and comics it's not uncommon to see a series of Zs to indicate that a person is in deep slumber, such as in the following political cartoon. ![enter image description here](http://i.stack.imgur.com/LVs33.jpg) How and when did the letter Z become to be associated with sleeping?


title: What's the point of omitting the "e", as in "sceptered" going to "scepter'd", in English poetry?

text: These are a few of my favorite lines of Shakespearean poetry: > Methinks I am a prophet new **inspir’d** ,   >  And thus expiring do foretell of him:   >  His rash fierce blaze of riot cannot last,   >  For violent fires soon burn out themselves;   >  Small showers last long, but sudden storms are short;   >  He tires betimes that spurs too fast betimes;   >  With eager feeding food doth choke the feeder:   >  Light vanity, insatiate cormorant,   >  Consuming means, soon preys upon itself. > > This royal throne of kings, this **scepter’d** isle,   >  This earth of majesty, this seat of Mars,   >  This other Eden, demi-paradise,   >  This fortress built by Nature for herself   >  Against infection and the hand of war,   >  This happy breed of men, this little world,   >  This precious stone set in the silver sea,   >  Which serves it in the office of a wall,   >  Or as a moat defensive to a house,   >  Against the envy of less happier lands,   >  This blessed plot, this earth, this realm, this England. What I don't understand, though, is the removal of the 'e' by Shakespeare, and other poets who do this, like Tennyson. I've always read diacritics are applied by some poets to change the pronunciation, so as to keep the meter, but how on Earth is _inspired_ pronounced differently from _inspir'd_ , or _sceptered_ from _scepter'd_? Why are they doing this?


title: Why do they call a murder a "red ball" case?

text: Not being a native speaker, I wonder why they call a murder a "red ball" case ("redball" or "red-ball") in certain TV-shows and films. Specifically this expression is often heard in TV-shows like The Wire and not least in the film Minority Report (2002). Where does the expression come from?


title: "Do you still want me to do X" vs. "do you still want that I do X"

text: Which is correct? >   * Do you still want me **to** do the project for you? >   * Do you still want **that** I do the project for you? >


title: What is the meaning of "is must to "

text: I have read this sentence but I can not understand it. Under which circumstances is this type of sentence is? Also, please tell me which grammar rule has been applied. > they will open our salary account so it is must to bring the originals Can anyone explain it?


title: An abundance of knees

text: Terry Pratchett is particularly fond of knees. More than once, he has used an expression describing an abundance of knees, or an excess of knees, or suddenly growign extra knees, to describe his characters. While the concept is, visually, one I can understand, I feel like I am not quite getting the exact meaning of this 'knee-abundance' he writes about so often. Particularly in Mort, where the main character has an abundance of knees, and in Jingo, where a camel grows 'extra knees' as it speeds up. The former being used to describe an unfortunate trait that I don't quite get, and the latter simply describing the camel's sudden increase in speed. Is this a regular expression in British English, where a person grows or has an abundance of knees? Or is Pratchett just making up an expression that manages to fly over my head?


title: What is a catchy word that means (non-)self-descriptive

text: I'm having fun with paradoxes, and I'm trying to come up with a catchy word for non-self-descriptive. Maybe "autosemantic" fits the bill for self- descriptive (definitely open to other suggestions!), but I'm having a hard time negating it in a natural way. For an example of the sentence I'm trying to construct: > Is "inautosemantic" inautosemantic? It just isn't flowing.


title: Is it correct to say "quantitative zeal" to mean an enthusiasm for maths?

text: If one was wanting to say that someone had a passion/enthusiasm for something like mathematics, can it be said that "they have [a] quantitative zeal" or "they are full of quantitative zeal"? I normally think of zeal to mean excitement or enthusiasm; however, I felt that saying something like: "they had a zeal for mathematics" seemed awkward, and I would probably look for something else if I couldn't use the first usage I mentioned.


title: Term for someone who has experienced many hardships

text: I was speaking with an acquaintance recently and a discussion came up in which I desperately needed a word to describe someone who has experienced many hardships throughout his life. Does such a word exist, or would I have to make do with a phrase? **EDIT:** Thank you all for your answers; it is greatly appreciated. This question has gained popularity, but none of the current answers provide a word that matches the description I was looking for. I'll elaborate a bit based on the comments on this question. The person experiencing the hardships gained much knowledge and wisdom from them. Their life was not necessarily affected negatively or positively by the hardships that they faced. Good luck in searching for the word (and even though I no longer need it, I'm dying to know).


title: comma before subordinating conjunction "where"

text: I have three examples **where** I am confused about comma usage with the subordinating conjunction 'where': a) The primal algorithms broadly correspond to implicit congestion control mechanisms **where** noisy feedback from the network is averaged at some sources using increase/decrease rules, which are commonly found in ..." b) For relatively explicit algorithms, they broadly correspond to congestion control approaches **where** sources can adjust their sending rates according to certain algorithms in response to the congestion information fed back by links." c) The fully explicit algorithms broadly correspond to the explicit congestion control protocols **where** the links directly allocate their capacities to the passing flows by feeding back the allowed sending rate back to sources. My question is this: Should I precede the subordinating conjunction 'where' with a comma in the above cases? In addition, is it always the case?


title: The condition for saying “You’re the door on the right.” etc. and its construction

text: This question is a spin-off from “Is _you’re the door on the right._ grammatically correct?” . After the original question, some ideas came to me, about its conditions and construction. I opened this question to see if my ideas are worth considering and to organize them. > "There." They had reached the second landing. " **You're the door on the > right.** I'll call you when it's over!" And she hurried off downstairs > again. ( _Harry Potter 5_ [US Version]: p.62) [Bold font is mine] **N.B.:** The speaker is Mrs. Weasely, who led Harry to his room. **Questions:** **1\. Just from the sentence _You’re the door on the right._ , would you have an impression there’re other people than _you_?** (I believe that the form of the sentence implies **the existence of a group of people**.) **2\. In new situations** (This time, the subject is _I_ ) **1) There’s no assignment.** The rooms are available on a first-come-first-served basis. Mrs. Weasley brings Harry upstairs just to let him know where the rooms are and to tell him he can choose whichever he likes. In this case, can Harry say like this? :“Oh, I see. Thanks. I’m the door on the right (meaning ‘I’ll use the room on the right side’)” **2) There’s an assignment.** The guests including Harry knew the layout of the rooms and already decided the assignment of the rooms by themselves. Mrs. Weasley, who doesn’t know which room is assigned to whom, brings Harry upstairs just to let him know where the rooms are. In this case, can Harry say like this? : “Oh, I see. Thanks. I’m the door on the right (meaning ‘my room is at the door on the right.’)” (I believe that **some assignment in advance** is one of the most important conditions of this form, whether the subject is I or you. Therefore if such assignment doesn’t exist, the acceptability of this form, I think, is lower or zero. I would think 1) is less acceptable than 2).) **3\. Can Mrs. Weasley in the top citation say “You’re the room on the right.” instead of “You’re the door on the right.”?** (I believe that **the subject of this form includes the thing which assigned to him or her.** I wouldn’t think she can say you’re the room on the right. because the subject you already has room in it.) I know these questions are not enough to understand the form completely, but I hope I can get some clues about its conditions and construction. Thank you.


> **Possible Duplicate:**   >  Origin of the phrase, "There's more than one way to skin a cat." what is the origin of the expression "there is more than one way to skin a cat"? I can't find a good reference for it.


title: the phrase "to skin a cat"

text: i've been informed that this is actually an incorrect rendition of an old english nautical term (there is more than one way to swing a cat) referencing the use of a cat-o-nine tails under different circumstances (below decks/limited height, etc.) Any verifications?


title: "As the song says"?

text: I want to quote something from a song and say something like "this is just like in this song." What is the correct phrasing between the following sentences? > But, as song says, "now you have it, now you don't."   >  But, as THE song says, "now you have it, now you don't." Based on some answers I added an extra question. Would the following sentence be more correct? > But, just like in the song, "now you have it, now you don't"?


title: A word for the feeling of not being able to stand the smell of alcohol

text: Is there a word for the feeling someone may have who recently had a blackout or was so hungover that they can't even stand smelling something alcoholic? You know what I mean; the feeling that makes you throw up if you smell or drink an alcoholic beverage. Something like alcoholo-phobic?


title: We can see the shrine "become/becomes" big

text: I'm correcting some writing and the student wrote, > We can see the shrine **become** big, little by little, from the ferry. As far as I'm concerned, it's grammatically okay, but I'm having trouble explaining why it shouldn't be 'becomes big'. For the life of me I couldn't find the correct way to refer to the grammar involved here. Also, I feel like _becoming bigger_ or _getting bigger_ might convey her meaning more accurately, but that _become big_ still gets a pass. Am I right? I appreciate any help you can give me.


title: Reasons why is English the best language for scientific papers

text: **Can you help me with some good arguments to prove that English is the best language for scientific writings?** (some hard-core scientific articles would be nice). I'm from Slovakia. Few weeks ago I receive a response from my University which states that I am not allowed to write my "pre-dissertation" thesis in English. I have a plan to write an "open letter" to the University. note: _I am fully aware that my English is not as perfect as of native speaker. But writing thesis in international language is a way how to easily train to write articles to scientific journals._


title: Putting “interested”  before the noun

text: Why can’t words like _interested_ and other similar past participles, which are adjectives, be placed before their noun? I was taught an adjective can be placed before noun to describe it. When asked, my teacher does not seem to give me a clear explanation why I cannot put an adjective like _interested_ before noun.


title: What happened to the “‑est” and “‑eth” verb suffixes in English?

text: What happened to them, and how were they once used? Straining my mind to sound archaic, I came up with the following: > Dost thou **thinkest** thou can escape thy sins? and > **Bringeth** me mine armor and favorite sword. I’d like to use these suffixes intelligently, so my questions are: how are _‑est_ and _‑eth_ properly appellated in conjugations, and when and why did they disappear?


title: Is the expression "What hath alienators wrought" correct, concordance-wise?

text: I have seen the phrase "What hath alienators wrought" in the name of an article. Searching throught the web I learned that "hath" is the version of "has" in old English, but in the singular case (mostly used in the phrase "What hath God wrought", I guess it's biblical). Therefore, I am guessing that the phrase "What hath alienators wrought" is wrong and should be "What have alienators wrought". Can someone tell me if I'm correct in my guessing or nor, and why? Thanks.


title: How the English verb conjugation does not have different suffixes?

text: > **Possible Duplicate:**   >  What happened to the "-est" and "-eth" verb suffixes in English? How were > they once used?   >  How do you conjugate Early Modern English verbs (other than present tense)? In all the languages I know about, including German - the cousin of the English language, all the verbs use different suffixes for conjugation. English uses a far simpler conjugation method (only add s for he/she) and has some irregular verbs. My questions are: Are there other languages with similar grammar for conjugation? How this special feature of the language came to light? Is there info about the time/way/reasons it was formed?


title: Using "must have" in the past

text: I know the must have/must had thing has been asked before but I have yet to see it in the context of this question. Does "have" make grammatical sense in the following? It sounds like it conflicts with the "at that point in time." "I remember clearly my seventh birthday (and my subsequent trip to the hospital). At that point in time, I must **have** been told a thousand times not to stick things in the toaster." The main problem I'm having in my head is that if you take out the "must" then it would be grammatically correct to say "At that point in time, I had been told a thousand times..." Yet once you put the "must" in, it seems incorrect to use "had." This is my main question.


title: Proper term for "ending punctuation"?

text: Proper English sentences can end with various types of punctuation characters: periods ("."), question-marks ("?"), exclamations ("!"), etc. **Is there a proper terminology for these kinds of sentence-terminating punctuation characters?**   * Ending punctuations?   * Terminating punctuations?   * Finalizers? Thanks in advance!


title: Adverb of "English"

text: Dictionary.com defines _Englishly_ as _in the manner or style of the English people_. Is there an adverb for the word _English_ in the sense of English language? Is there one word for saying _in English_?


title: GRE reading comprehension

text: The following passage is given: > Recently an unusually high number of dolphins have been found dead of > infectious diseases, and most of these had abnormally high tissue > concentrations of certain compounds that, even in low concentrations, reduce > dolphins’ resistance to infection. The only source of these compounds in the > dolphins’ environment is boat paint. Therefore, since dolphins rid their > bodies of the compounds rapidly once exposure ceases, their mortality rate > should decline rapidly if such boat paints are banned. Then there is the question: > Which of the following, if true, most strengthens the argument? > >> A- The levels of the compounds typically used in boat paints today are lower than they were in boat paints manufactured a decade ago. >> >> B- In high concentrations, the compounds are toxic to many types of marine animals. >> >> C- The compounds break down into harmless substances after a few months of exposure to water or air. >> >> D- High tissue levels of the compounds have recently been found in some marine animals, but there is no record of any of those animals dying in unusually large numbers recently. >> >> E- The compounds do not leach out of the boat paint if the paint is applied exactly in accordance with the manufacturer’s directions. The "answer" is **C** , but I don't understand why that is? Doesn't **C** have the opposite effect? Since boats don't directly come in contact with sea water after being painted, and the fact that they are exposed to the air for some time before use reduces the chances of these compounds to contaminate the sea. The only choice that seems to me to be relatively correct is **B**.


title: Should I use the past tense for things that are still the same as before?

text: I am writing a personal statement for applying to a school, and I have a question about past tense. The following paragraph describes things that happened several years ago: > My school is located in a rural area and has an extremely small Asian- > student body. During my first semester, I did not have a car and could not > go anywhere outside of the school. My question is: since I am describing things which happened in the past, should the first sentence be past tense? But I think the first sentence is describing something that has not changed now, so present tense is okay as well?


title: What’s a word for someone who dislikes language change?

text: A couple of weeks ago I came across a word meaning someone who dislikes language change. Despite my joy at learning that English has a word for this, I can’t for the life of me remember what the word actually is. I’ve Googled many variants, tried reverse dictionary, and am now crawling through a list of more than 1200 words ending in _‑ist_. Does anyone know a word (ending in _‑ist_ ) that means a person who dislikes changes to language?


title: Style of this sentence

text: > **Possible Duplicate:**   >  Is there a name for inverting word order to accomplish a different meaning? I came across this sentence recently and I was wondering what is this repetitive style called? Also, can anyone provide me with another few interesting examples of sentences like this? > I wish people would say what they mean and mean what they say.


title: Name of literary device and examples

text: > **Possible Duplicate:**   >  Is there a name for inverting word order to accomplish a different meaning?   >  “Some champagne for my real friends, some real pain for my sham friends.”   >  Style of this sentence I recall once knowing a name for a statement like "I love to hate and hate to love." What is the name? I am also interested in other examples of this from popular poetry, music lyrics, etc.


title: What type of a literary device is this?

text: > A murdering thief or a thieving murderer. I have looked up all possible literary devices, and can't seem to find one...


title: Is there a name for this kind of phrase?

text: > **Possible Duplicate:**   >  Is there a name for inverting word order to accomplish a different meaning?   >  "Some champagne for my real friends, some real pain for my sham friends." Is there any one similar kind of phrase here, what are they called? For example : > 1) Why do we park on Driveways and Drive on Parkways ? > > 2) Why are apartments together? What are these phrases called?


title: What is “Build We Won’t” in complete form?

text: New York Times (July 3) carries an article written by its Op-Ed columnist, Paul Krugman under the title, “Build We Won’t.” in which the author claims; > “In prosperous times, public spending on roads, bridges and so on competes > with the private sector for resources. Since 2008, however, our economy has > been awash in unemployed workers and capital with no place to go. Putting > those idle resources to work building useful stuff should have been a no- > brainer. --- Everyone from progressive think tanks to the United States > Chamber of Commerce thinks we need good roads. Yet the combination of anti- > tax ideology and deficit hysteria that mostly whipped up in an attempt to > bully President Obama into spending cuts means that we’re letting our > highways, and our future, erode away. > > http://www.nytimes.com/2014/07/04/opinion/paul-krugman-build-we- > wont.html?hp&action=click&pgtype=Homepage&module=c-column-top-span- > region&region=c-column-top-span-region&WT.nav=c-column-top-span-region I can understand the point Paul Krugman argues, but I’m not clear with what the caption, “Build we won’t.” means. I thought it can go like “Build what we will not build. But it doesn’t make sense as a sentence. How can I parse “Build we won’t”? Is it common to save the word to such a few words in writing, particularly in journalism English?


title: Does "living in squalor" necessarily imply poverty?

text: Some definitions of _squalor_ and its adjectival form _squalid_ : Merriam-Webster > _squalor_ : the quality or state of being squalid   >  _squalid_ : marked by filthiness and degradation from neglect or poverty Collins > _squalor_ : the condition or quality of being squalid; disgusting dirt and > filth   >  _squalid_ : dirty and repulsive, esp as a result of neglect or poverty Wiktionary > _squalor_ : Squalidness; foulness; filthiness; squalidity.   >  _squalid_ : Extremely dirty and unpleasant Compact Oxford Dictionary > _squalor_ : the state of being extremely dirty and unpleasant, especially as > a result of poverty or neglect   >  _squalid_ : (of a place) extremely dirty and unpleasant, especially as a > result of poverty or neglect (Ok, now that y’all are suffering from the same word glare/semantic satiation as I am …) If someone is described as _living in squalor_ , does that automatically imply that they’re doing so because they’re too poor to do otherwise? I know that context can override the usual connotation of words, so for example if I’ve established that someone is a reclusive millionaire, the fact that she’s living in squalor would not necessarily be a contradiction. But if I encounter this phrase on its own, am I wrong to assume poverty?


title: Preposition: "[In] Which city are you located [in]?"

text: >   1. In which city are you located? >   2. Which city are you located in? >   3. Which city are you located? > I know the first is grammatically correct, and the second used frequently in conversation, but my question is this: I know you would answer using the preposition such as “I live _in_ Denver”, but is the preposition _in_ necessary when asking the question as stated in the third sentence? Case in point: “What time is the meeting?” This is something I’d say in conversation, but am having doubts as to whether I need to say, “ _At_ what time is the meeting?”


title: Should computer game screens show "you lose" or "you lost"?

text: > **Possible Duplicate:**   >  Why "I win" instead of "I won"? My friend and I are designing the "game over" screen for a game we are developing, and I'm thinking of putting "you lost" into the screen design but my friend said it should be "you lose" instead. I'm a bit confused because since the screen is shown after the player lost the game, shouldn't it be in past tense? Yet, I found many images on the web showing "you lose" instead. Should it really be "you lose" instead of "you lost", and why? Similarly for victory screen, is it "you win" or "you won"?


title: Usage of "even when"

text: In my understanding, a sentence of the following form > A requires B, something that may be difficult even when C means that > A is difficult since a necessary condition B is difficult. While B appears > to be easier (to obtain or achieve) in the case of C, it is indeed not. However, I came across the following sentence in a law paper (Lemley, M. A. (2007). _Ten things to do about patent holdup of standards (and one not to)_. BCL Rev., 48, 149.): > ... proving an antitrust violation requires detailed evidence of both > causation and intent, something that may be difficult even when, as a policy > matter, a patentee should not be permitted to extend its rights. I don't understand the latter part of the sentence. Could you please help me to clarify the meaning of the sentence. Thank you. (a little context: a patentee can violate antitrust laws if it abuses its patent rights)


title: Why is walri not the correct pluralization of walrus?

text: Why is _walri_ not the correct pluralization of _walrus?_


title: Do we capitalize job titles after a person's name?

text: Should professional, occupational and official titles be capped after a person's name? _Mike McCormack, Human Resources Director for the XYZ corporation, resigned on Friday._ If we use the definite article _the_ , do we go lowercase? _Mike McCormack, the human resources director for the XYZ corporation, resigned on Friday._ _The human resources director, Mike McCormack, resigned on Friday._ But: _Human Resources Director Mike McCormack resigned on Friday._ Are the four variations of the same sentence punctuated correctly?


title: What is the distinction between "among" and "amongst"?

text: It seems _amongst_ is quite often used as a synonym for _among_ but it is supposed to sound more _distinguished_. Is there any difference in the meaning?


title: Why are numbers usually written twice in contracts?

text: In contracts numbers are usually written twice: in numerical and literal form. I understand the vast majority of text in a typical contract can be safely deleted without impacting the core message due to the typical insane amount of repetition and unnecessary verboseness, but I don't really understand what's the point of writing some (not even all) numbers twice. For example: > You agree to these Terms of Use on behalf of yourself and, at your > discretion, for **one (1)** minor child for whom you are a parent or > guardian and whom you have authorized to use the account you create on the > Service. It's very inconsistent, sometimes they appear in only numerical form: > [...] WOULD CONSTITUTE A VIOLATION OF SECTIONS **1, 2 OR 9**. Sometimes only literal: > [...] includes **two** components [...]


title: Should Kyle be corrected, and if he doesn't, why?

text: In a recent blog entry, Jeff Atwood quotes his sysadmin Kyle: > "Should the developers have access to the production environment, and if > they do, to what extent?" My understanding is that this sentence is only perfectly grammatical if it's parsed as: > "Should the developers have access to the production environment, and if > they do [already have access to the production environment], to what extent > [is it okay for them to have it]?" However, that is not what Kyle is actually asking. It's fairly obvious that he expects the question to be parsed as: > "Should the developers have access to the production environment, and if > they ~~do~~ [should], to what extent?" And sure enough, that's exactly how I parsed it when I first read it. As in, I didn't even blink at the "do" kicking out a modal verb. It was only upon reading the sentence for a third or fourth time that it struck me as odd. It should also be noted that Kyle is a native speaker. So the construction can't be _that_ ungrammatical after all, does it? Must we correct Kyle, and if we don't, why? * * * **Edit:** some of the people who have answered/commented say that they do, in fact, read Kyle's question as: >   1. Should the developers have access to the production environment? >   2. If they already have access, to what extent is it OK for them to have > it? > It looks like I have to explain why this reading makes little sense — at which I only hinted above — even when no context whatsoever is provided (and Kyle's post is well over a thousand words long). This interpretation means that if developers already have access, the first question doesn't apply. We will throw it away just for them. But the first question is universal, it must not be thrown away. It is more general, more important. If we come to the conclusion that developers, in general, should not have access to the production environment, it also applies to those developers who already do have access. In fact, it applies to them _more than to anyone else_. So, Kyle cannot possibly be asking: "Should the developers have access to the production environment? Oh, and if your developers already have access, never mind, forget that question, let's just discuss how much access is okay." Much rather, he is asking: "Should the developers have access to the production environment? And if and only if the answer to that question is 'yes', how much access should they have?"


title: Present tense vs. future tense following a conditional

text: >   1. If you ask without any background, many people _are_ likely to assume > you are just too lazy to do the work yourself. >   2. If you ask without any background, many people _will_ likely assume you > are just too lazy to do the work yourself. > Shouldn't (2) be better than (1)? I searched for "future tense vs. present tense", but didn't find anything helpful in reference to the posed problem. Furthermore, I found on grammar.ccc that an ' _if_ \+ present tense' clause should be followed by a main clause of the form ' _will_ \+ infinitive/present tense/imperative'; so, at least according to that reliable source, (1) would be wrong.


"I love this version the best" or "I love this version the most"? Are these both normative constructions? I have come to the realization that I am not sure whether "love this the best" is natural-sounding English, at least in the US. Thanks for your help!


title: Which one is correct, 'I like this more' or 'I like this better'?

text: I feel that using 'I like this name more' is more correct than 'I like this name better'. Since English is not my mother tongue, I am not sure.


title: Off center rotation

text: I want to describe a circle that is rotating, but the center of rotation is off center, thus giving the circle a sort of "wobbling" motion. Is there a word or term to describe this?


title: "The supervisors can better monitor employees" vs. "supervisors can improve the monitoring of employees"

text: Can we say "the supervisors can better monitor employees" rather than the mouthful that is "supervisors can improve the monitoring of employees"?


title: Saxon Genitive vs. Adjective Noun (Model Parameters vs. Model's Parameters)

text: The suggestions in this same forum say that the use of the phrase "the car's antenna" is correct. Questions:   1. Nobody mentioned the use of "the car antenna" -- which to me would be much more natural, although not perfectly precise. It is clear that the particular "car's antenna" may be borrowed from e.g. a transistor radio, so that in that case "the car's antenna is a transistor-radio antenna". [Please correct all that is wrong here, and comment the use of the hyphen.]   2. I want to write a short and elegant title in a computer program that would describe "the parameters of a model". Is it correct to use: 2.a The Model Parameters, or for short, and because it is in the title: Model Parameters; 2.b The Model's Parameters, or for short, in the title: Model's Parameters. By definition of the Saxon genitive, the more precise would be 2.b, correct? But when you Google "model parameters" and "model's parameters", you get about 3 millions for the (a) choice and 30 times less (a hundred thousand) for the (b). And I bet that most of the people wanted to say the same thing: "the parameters of the model", and were trying to abbreviate it. Was there anybody who wanted to say something like "the model-like parameters", or "modelish parameters" -- I guess no one! The same thing applies to: 3.a The user password; 3.b The user's password. Please comment heavily on the question 2. It would be nothing strange that most of the people just write what is common or simpler, but what woul the experts suggest? In cases like this, where the distinction is almost negligible, is it OK to go for the simpler solution. It also concerns another example from this pages: "The ProductName's Desgin" or "The ProductName Design". Thanks in advance.


title: Use of the definite article "the" before "church"

text: I was in a Teacher's selection for a school in my country, and one of the coordinators said that she heard a mistake from another teacher that was unacceptable. I tried to figure out why was that, but I thought it was silly and forgot about it. Then I was asking about the weekend in my classroom and one of my Ss said the same sentence. I corrected him according to the coordinator, as she is way more experienced than me, but I couldn't actually explain why to him. The sentence was: > I went to the church. I can't see the mistake in this sentence if the church had been previously mentioned in the context of the conversation. I understand, as a non-native speaker, that if you are talking to a person that doesn't have any idea of where you were and doesn't have any previous information about the specific place, the article 'the' should not be used. Also, I am assuming church as a count noun. So instead, we would say: > I went to a church. Is it correct to use the indefinite article since I don't have any idea of which church he is talking about? I made a research about it and found that places that people use in common (like school, church, hospital, work) but are not necessarily the same, we would omit the article, so we would use the sentence that the coordinator accept: > I went to church. Like this sounds strange to me, but since I am not a native speaker, I think that it is OK. I really don't think that it was an unacceptable mistake, since the use of the article will depend on the context. So, if I am talking to my student, asking what he did last weekend and we were not talking about anything before, which one should he use?


title: Onomatopoeia for Physical Objects

text: Here's something I was thinking about the other day: is there a word like "onomatopoeia" that can be used to describe words that sound like what they describe? This can include, for example, seeing a picture of a bear's head Photoshopped onto an elephant and calling it "belephant", but I am also interested in a word to describe the sound someone makes when naming a new object. Food for thought!


title: Where did "duck, duck, gray duck" come from?

text: Duck, Duck, Goose is a common children's game but a typical Minnesotan calls the game a slightly different name: Duck, Duck, _Gray Duck_. I have never talked to anyone outside of Minnesota that knows of this game as Duck, Duck, Gray Duck. Wikipedia merely notes that it is a Minnesotan variant: > "Duck Duck Gray Duck" is a variant played by children in Minnesota. The core > gameplay difference is that the picker taps the heads of the other players > while calling out variant colored ducks and then calls "grey duck" in place > of "goose". There are no notes on why the game is named differently or why Minnesota seems to be the only region that uses Gray Duck. My question is: When did Duck, Duck, Gray Duck diverge from Duck, Duck, Goose and is there a particular reason why it did?


title: Thanking for scheduling meeting

text: I am going to send a email to a secretary of a CEO thanking her for scheduling a meeting. What would be a good phrase for the opening of email? Should I write: > Thank you for scheduling the meeting or would it be more appropriate to write: > Thank you for accommodating our request


title: Responding with a basic fact to imply a point of view is clearly flawed or wrong

text: What is a word or concept that describes a situation where one person puts forth a point of view, and another person does not directly address the position, but instead responds with an obvious, basic fact whose implications cast doubt on the correctness or strength of the point of view? This is intended to belittle the point of view.


title: Equivalence of "A except that B." and "Except that B, A."

text: > 1: _He is nice_ except that _he is a little shy_. > > 2: Except that _he is a little shy_ , _he is nice_. Are these sentences both correct? If so, are these two sentences identical?


title: How did “pumpkin” come to be a term of endearment?

text: The logic of some terms of endearment is fairly clear. _Sweetie, honey, cupcake_ all refer to food treats. However, the use of the term **pumpkin** as a tenderness seems somewhat counterintuitive. While reasonably tasty and the basis for making some treats (pumpkin bread, pumpkin pie), on its own it is a rather prosaic vegetable. Its appearance is also not obviously in the category of beautiful flora. Dictionary references are not much help. Only two of the online dictionaries in _onelook.com_ list the affectionate definition. Collins offers, without etymology or example, > _often capital (mainly US)_ a term of endearment Wiktionary gives one definition as > _(US)_ A term of endearment for someone small and cute. It cites only to the lyrics of a song by John Prine from 1991, _Daddy’s Little Pumpkin_. A search on Google for the term _little pumpkin_ (a search for _pumpkin_ is beyond my patience) shows a fair amount of usage in the later 20th century and the 21st century as an affectionate nickname. One of the earliest, in that period, appears in the 1951 novel by Myron Brinig, _The Sadness in Lexington Avenue_ > _Let me hear it. Frieda, my little pumpkin, my little sugarplum_ There are few 19th century references using pumpkin, somewhat sweetly, but not quite as an endearment. In 1867, _The Little Corporal_ , a children’s magazine published a story that included > _for Matie was almost as round as a little pumpkin_ This appears to be a straightforward description, not very complimentary, about shape. In _Forrest’s Illustrated Juvenile Keepsake_ ,1851 there is reference to another apparently roundish child > _If a little pumpkin, like Dumpy Dorcas, had rolled upon the snow, what harm > would have come of it?_ In _The Child’s Friend and Family Magazine_ from 1858, there is a reference to an American Indian character in a story whose English name appears to be _Little Pumpkin_. So, whence the acceptance (by some) of **pumpkin** as an affectionate reference for the apple of your eye?


title: What article should be used in such sentences?

text: What article should be used in the following sentence? > He was English by [a/the/] blood. I feel there should be a zero article here, but I was taught that the zero article is impossible in English.


title: Pinpointing British accents

text: After having watched British TV and movies for a while, I came across several accents I liked. But I'm not completely sure what they are, so I need your help :)   1. David Tennant as The 10th Doctor (skip to 0:39 if it doesn't for you).   When he speaks more calmly, he sounds almost RP to me, but when he's more agitated, I hear something else.   2. David Tennant in real life — (skip to 1:24) — sounds more Scottish (?) to me.   3. Charlie McDonnell. He sounds fairly "neutral" to me, but I doubt it's RP. * * * **UPDATE:** Dancrumb and ShreevatsaR provided information that apparently The Tenth Doctor speaks Estuary English. But to me it's a very confusing revelation. I can't find similarities between his accent and that of other notable Estuary speakers, such as David Beckham, Nasser Hussain or Jamie Oliver. The Tenth Doctor **doesn't** have:   * glottal stops (he pronounces _daughter_ as door-tsah, not as door.ah — sorry for the lame transcription)    * intrusive R (either that or I just didn't notice)    * L-vocalization (same comment as above)    * A deeper "i" (that sounds almost like "oi" with Estuary speakers) Overall, The Tenth Doctor sounds much more RP than the other Estuary speakers, and they, respectively, sound much more Cockney. I can't find a single Estuary speaker on the web that would sound like The Tenth Doctor.


title: "as she did X" vs "while she did X"

text: Another question related to correctly conveying a sense of time: > Who will be held accountable for the costs incurred **as** the managers > dragged their feet? vs > Who will be held accountable for the costs incurred **while** the managers > dragged their feet? Are both of these correct? "As" sounds better to me, but I am not a native speaker.


title: When is it necessary to use "have had"?

text: I have read few sentences which has "have had". I would like to know in what kind of situations we will have to use this?


title: Varieties of racism

text: What is scientific racism? What is institutional racism? Are there any discernable differences between the two, or can they be used interchangeably?


title: What is the *best* way to express that an email contains an attachment?

text: I'm wondering what is the _best_ way to express that an email contains an attachment. I'd like to have a formal example, and an informal example. For example: Is this informal? > Attached you can find the document... Is this too formal? too old school? > Please find enclosed the document...


title: when can you substitute 's for is

text: What is the rule that you have to follow to be able to use **'s** instead of **is**? For example, you can say _Jill's very happy_ , but you can't say _However happy Jill's I'd still like to tell her another joke_.