texts: Are these two words,'rampallian' and 'fustilarian',common to English native speakers?

texts:
I came across these two words in a video on youtube.(How NOT to swear in English 10:45 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=02hOrOrjjYw) It's said both of them come from Shakespear's works.And i haven't found them in OED.

So I wonder whether they are common words to the native speakers?Are they able to recognize them?And are English native speakers required compulsorily to learn Early Modern English in highschool?Or maybe Latin,Greek,French languages?And are these courses compulsory?


texts:
I've been searching for a word to mean a person who I know quite well, speak with but who hasn't been my friend. My friends are people I trust and can rely on, I have two or three of them. So, I found a word fellow which as I got it can mean it, but still not sure, and also all the examples show it's mostly referred to a male person.
So the questions is: what's the most widely used word to call a person who I know but who's not my close friend? And can I say a sentence like:

Oh, I know Marry she's my fellow    (she's not my colleague, let's say she's just my neighbor and we speak quite often)

Thanks.


texts: Does the following sentence have redundancy?

texts:
"There are loads you can lift by the strength of the natural power with which you are born"

Is the phrase "the strength of your natural power" redundant, or 'too literary?'

Thank you!


texts:
Which of the following sentences grammatically and meaningfully correct?

  what would the necessary and sufficient conditions for the
  distribution of A be the same as B?

or

  what would be the necessary and sufficient conditions for the
  distribution of A the same as B?


texts:
What more idiomatic in the following context, causes of or causes for?

I want to put a title in a work: causes of/ for this problem

Now, I know that I can put simply: "causes" and no more needed. But I'm asking also for the text itself where I can't just use the word causes but I have to elucidate and say: "The causes of/for this problem are: 1, 2, 3 etc.)


texts: Why are the syllables in "elephant" divided in two different ways?

texts:
When I'm using Merriam-Webster dictionary to confirm the pronunciation and I found out that the syllables divided in the word and its phonetic are different.

For example, elephant,  and experience.

Elephant is divided into el-e-phant which the l is the ending sound of the first syllable, but its phonetic is divided as \ ˈe-lə-fənt \ which the l sound goes the second syllable as the beginning sound.
Experience is divided into ex-pe-ri-ence and the letter r is pronounced as a consonant, but its phonetic is divided as \ ik-ˈspir-ē-ən(t)s\ which the r sound goes to the second syllable, and make an r-controlled vowel sound with the letter e.

How would this happen? I'm totally confused. I really need your kind explanation or some useful material for reference.


texts: How to understand this sentence (underlining blue), especially "the" and "that so"?

texts:
Machiavelli "The Prince" Chapter VIII

The Harvard Classics:

  Injuries, therefore, should be inflicted all at once, that their ill savour being less lasting may the less offend; whereas, benefits should be conferred little by little, that so they may be more fully relished.

I'm wondering:

1 "the" should either be deleted, or be corrected as "they" ("may they" is the inversion of "they may").

2 "that so" should be "so that" or "that".

FYI (the Harvard Classics is the last one of the four translations):


texts: What does "school lunch" mean in American English? Is it ambiguous between a lunch provided by a school and a lunch prepared at home like a bag lunch?


texts: "Sometimes astronomers find thing they ..." or "Sometimes astronomers find things they ..."

texts:
I read the following in science magazine:

  Sometimes astronomers find thing they weren't even looking for. Here's eight of the best ...

Why didn't they use "things"?

  Sometimes astronomers find things they weren't even looking for. Here's eight of the best ...


texts: Meaning of "a nasal buzzing sound" in this context

texts:
there is  a part of the sentence that I don't understand in my book: "When the bell rang, a nasal buzzing sound, a gangly boy with skin problems and hair black as an oil slick leaned across the aisle to talk to me".I wonder whether it means that bell doesn't work well or actually the sound came from the boy.
Thanks


texts: "as we make what we have do the job. " What does this mean?

texts:
I just happened to be reading this page, and there is a line,

We have another going due north mantra here in Boston. I cannot tell you how proud I am of our stewardship here. Our budget team and our staff — up and down the line — make us proud month after month as we make what we have do the job. In times like these, I can’t brag on that enough. Good people doing a good job on a good northern mission.

What does the bold line mean?
Thank you very much in advance.


texts: Which Tense is used here: "the loan agreement has (been) terminated"

texts:
This is  from a letter I got today, and it reads:

  We hereby confirm that the loan agreement entered into between XYZ bank and aforementioned customer, has been terminated. We request you to remove the hypothetication of XYZ bank on the said vehicle.

Whereas, I think it should be like this:

  We hereby confirm that the loan agreement entered between XYZ bank and aforementioned customer, has terminated. We request you to remove the hypothetication of XYZ bank on the said vehicle.

Which tense is used here and why?


texts: How do you ask 2 paralleling things if exist?

texts:
I want to ask,

  Why is there Chinglish and why is not there English style Chinese?

Or

  Why is there Chinglish but is not there English style Chinese?

What is the correct way to say that?


texts:
I came across the following example:

  Tick the box if you would like more details.

In the sentence, "tick the box" means mark the specific checkbox. If we have the following checkboxes

ticking the first checkbox means selecting it.

But what is the difference between checking the box and ticking the box? Can I assume that the phrases are equivalent?


texts:
The lighted dial of Dudley's watch, which was dangling over the edge of the sofa on his fat wrist, told Harry he'd be eleven in ten minutes' time.

In this sentence, what is the meaning of "he'd be eleven in ten minutes' time"?
Does it mean that Harry will be eleven years old after ten minutes?


texts: Interchangeability of 'vendor' and 'service provider'

texts:
My use case is variable and database table/column naming. The table will reference professional photography service providers. While appropriate unabbreviated naming is a must, a shorter name would be preferable.

My intuition suggests that a vendor is rather selling products than rendering services, but I am completely unsure about how real and how essential this difference is.

Is it appropriate to replace 'service provider' with 'vendor' for reasons of brevity in this and other cases?

Thank you


texts:
I am trying to figure out the usage of this word "greeting".

I've examined the cambridge dictionary.

is "greetings" just a Plural form of "greeting"? is "hello" a greetings or a greeting?


texts: I suggest that vs I suggest doing. Does one of these sounds more idiomatic than the other?

texts:
I'd like to know which one of the following sentence is used more?

I suggest doing your homework.
I suggest that you do your homework.

Edit:
Does one of these sounds more idiomatic than the other?


texts:
It's very nice of you to help me.
  That's very nice of you to help me.

I know the first sentence is correct. But how about the second sentence?


texts:
I haven't given up on my dream to study in Australia again, but for now, it will have to wait.

In this sentence, is "it will have to wait" an idiom? Thanks in advance.


texts:
I wonder if it has any special meaning or its meaning is just a combination of those three words.

"The Bank for International Settlements – known as the central bankers’ bank – highlighted the vulnerability of consumer, business and government finances to interest rate increases in its 174-page quarterly report. Claudio Borio, the head of the monetary and economic department, described this as “a defining question for the global economy”."

Source: https://www.theguardian.com/money/2017/sep/17/growing-risk-of-debt-trap-if-interest-rates-remain-low-bank-warns


texts: Does "fundamental essence" sound eloquent?

texts:
As essential and fundamental seems to be synonym I doubt whether I can use "the fundamental essence" expression. However I see its usage in the internet.  https://daveursillo.com/the-fundamental-essence-of-life-an-incredible-truth/

Does it enhance or on the opposite side damage my writing competency?


texts:
As I'm getting familiar with English grammar, I'm facing a few doubts. The word more is a comparative form of much (for non-countable nouns) and many (with countable nouns). However, I can use more with sentences which don't have comparisons. e.g.,

  As business grows more complex, I'm unable to handle it.

How would you explain this usage of more. Can this work as an adjective as well without having comparisons? Or the usage of than is implied. e.g.

  As business grows more complex [than did in past], I'm unable to handle it.


texts:
What is the difference between sprout, shoot, seedling and sapling?Can you make them in order of growing stage.

I guess sapling is relatively later stage of an embryo of a plant as far as I read.

And how do we use them  figuratively ?


texts: How can i express some personal attitude in english? If i take someone as a friend, deep in heart i have a friendly attitude towards him,and if i dislike someone i may have negative attitude towards that person.But i dont know how to express such attitude in proper way.  if i say ' i have good|bad attitude towards him', it sounds far from native tone. so what is the idiomatic way to express the feeling??


texts:
He [Harry] stopped a passing guard, but didn't dare mention
  platform nine and three-quarters. The guard had never heard of
  Hogwarts and when Harry couldn't even tell him what part of the
  country it was in, he started to get annoyed, as though Harry was
  being stupid on purpose.   (Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone)

What does ‘guard’ mean: 9 or 20 in a dictionary or any other?
9.a person or group of persons that guards, protects, or keeps a protective or restraining watch.
20. British . a railroad conductor.


texts:
I am experienced in and also willing to conduct/conducting fieldwork.

I want to express the meaning that I am experienced in conducting fieldwork (in the past), and I am also willing to conduct more fieldwork (in the future).

Is my sentence constructed correctly?


texts: Can present continuous (passive form) be used with future adverb of time?

texts:
Well, I was going through Cambridge Essential Grammar in Use book and in unit 22 I came across this sentence:
Football matches are often played at the weekend, but no matches are being played next weekend.
Ok, so does it mean that present continuous (passive form) can be used as future tense?


texts: "Since the time" or "from the time"? What should it be?

texts:
I waited for a word from you since the time I got the news that you had fled.

or

  I waited for a word from you from the time I got the news that you had fled.

Please help. Since or From?


texts: correct usage of preposition 'on' and 'with'

texts:
which of the following sentence is correct and why?

  1.The principal started his lecture with a pessimistic note.

  2.The principal started his lecture on a pessimistic note


texts: Does "my internal body clock is broken" sound natural?

texts:
I have sleeping disorder, and as a joke, I expressed it as

  My internal body clock is broken.

Does this sounds natural? How would you say it in a natural way?


texts: What's meant here by "joy in the very heart of hell"?

texts:
In "The Worst Crime in the World" by G. K. Chesterton, Father Brown was talking about someone who said the truth by a very cheating way:

  Shall I tell you something that sounds like what they call a paradox? Sometimes it is a joy in the very heart of hell to tell the truth. And above all, to tell it so that everybody misunderstands it.

Does that mean Satanic joy or sinister joy?


texts:
Is the phrase "Editor in Chief JAMA" acceptable in English? Should it be "Editor in Chief of JAMA"?

JAMA (The Journal of the American Medical Association) tweeted:
Statement from Howard Bauchner, MD, Editor in Chief JAMA and The JAMA Network


texts: How to get rid of mistakes in spoken English?

texts:
I started to learn English about 15 years ago. I cannot say that I was learning it all the time but I use it almost every day (reading, listening, sometimes speaking).

My English level is not high, but I still have a solid grammar base. It happens to me quite often, though, that I make very basic mistakes while speaking to others (e.g. saying he instead of she, forgetting 's' in 3rd person, using present instead of past). After I make such mistakes, I usually notice them right away, and correct myself. Still, I am making them.

I would say that 15 years of experience should be enough to overcome this problem, but it is obviously not.

What is a good way to get rid of basic mistakes in spoken English?


texts:
This is the quote from a Choose of Games game I'm currently playing.

  Four days out of Puerta Ballena -- four humid, still days, with air
  so close you could cut it with your cutlass if Tinima weren't
  freshening the winds -- there's a break in the heat. The cool natural
  breeze is at first a relief.

  "Barometer keeps dropping," Caesar says.

  Tinima closes her eyes and breathes deeply. You can feel the tingle of
  her power stretching out beyond you. "There's a storm being born to
  our west."

What does "air so close" that I figuratively can cut it with cutlass? Is it so humid? So dense (what is so dense even mean)? So cold? So misty? So windy? So still?


texts:
Example with a context:

  In the United States, stand-your-ground law is a law that authorizes a person to protect and defend one's own life and limb against threat or perceived threat, and states that an individual has no duty to retreat from any place he/she has a lawful right to be and may use any level of force, including lethal, if he/she reasonably believe he/she face an imminent and immediate threat of serious bodily harm or death; as opposed to Duty to Retreat laws.

This is the first paragraph of the Wikipedia article on stand-your-ground law. The grammar looks rather strange. Do you think that kind of grammar is possible?


texts: What tense should we use in the present time (now) to refer to an event happening during a future other event?

texts:
I have planned a meeting, that will be the day after tomorrow.

If now I want to tell someone about the main point of the meeting, what could I choose?

  During the meeting we are discussing about XYZ
  During the meeting we are going to discuss about XYZ
  During the meeting we'll discuss about XYZ
  During the meeting we discuss about XYZ
  Something else...

Thank you.


texts: Is it right the usage of the word "certainly" in the following sentence?

texts:
I was discussing with a friend about possibilities and he told me:

When you have more certainly you should use "will" instead of "may",

but I am not sure if the word "certainly" can be used like this, I would like to appreciate any explanation of its usage, I got confuse since I believe that this word can be used in many ways, I am not sure if it is a verb or an adjective.


texts:
Can you use it interchangeably with 'perhaps' or 'maybe'?

Could I use it in an informal letter at the CPE writing part or is this an archaic form?

Edit: How about 'mayhaps'?


texts:
I know when we say "Can you...?", it represents you have the ability to do something.
But there is a situation:
Amy has drunk a lot of alcohol, and she wants to go home.
Bob asked her:"Can you drive?"
He means if Amy can go home on her own and avoid a car accident.
Is it possible?


texts: Does "especially one who does so constantly" makes sense?

texts:
Are these sentences correct?

A ____ is someone who grunts; especially one who does constantly.
A ____ is someone who grunts; especially one who does so constantly.
A ____ is someone who grunts; especially one who constantly does so.
A ____ is someone who grunts; especially one who constantly does.

so meaning in a manner

blank is for a made up word. grunt can be any verb. The structure is what's important.

Is the structure correct? Better options?


texts: What part of speech is this "to be grown"?

texts:
The original sentence is "The plant itself is the only variety of orchid to be grown on a commercial scale."
I only want to know the function or the role of to be grown here.
Is it the complement? like part of an infinitive clause? I'm no expert but I still want to know the answer~
Can someone help?


texts: Why is the word 'is' not considered as a preposition?

texts:
I am reading through the blue grammar book and the following is the definition of prepositions-

A preposition is a word or set of words that indicates location (in, near, beside, on top of) or some other relationship between a noun or pronoun and other parts of the sentence (about, after, besides, instead of, in accordance with). A preposition isn't a preposition unless it goes with a related noun or pronoun, called the object of the preposition.

If we consider the sentence- "he is honest", 'is' shows the relationship between 'he' and 'honest', it tells us he has the quality of honesty, I understand why it is considered a verb but do not understand how it is not a preposition as it satisfies the definition above?

Link for the relevant passage- https://www.grammarbook.com/grammar/probPrep.asp


texts:
Is "reconstruct" a verb here? If so, should it be "reconstructs"?

NYTimes retweeted:
JUST POSTED: The Anatomy of a Lie, a NYT reconstruct bringing readers behind the scenes of Trump's failed 77-day effort to subvert democracy and overturn the 2020 election.


texts: "past experience" or "past experiences"?

texts:
I need to learn from past experiences.

It seems to me it makes sense to say "past experiences", since here experience refers an event that happened in the past. However, I do see a lot of occurrences of "past experience".

For example:

  Does Past Experience Increase Empathy? (source)

Strangely, this same article also has another usage:

  Similar past experiences can both help and hinder our understanding of others.

Here is another one:

  How not to describe your past work experience in a job interview (source)


texts: Can I enquire of you [the/an] additional question of whether this is also correct? Can both 'the' and 'an' be applied?

texts:
Can I enquire of you the additional question of whether this is
  also correct? e.g. ___

  Can I enquire of you an additional question of whether this is also
  correct? e.g. ___

I'd like to assume one situation: I asked a question, which is answered by someone. But, making a thankful comment, I desire to ask a supplementary question. In this case, could those be possible?


texts: Questions about indirect object "me" being made into "to me" or "for me"

texts:
Here are two sentences where the direct object and indirect object is obvious for each, but then when I change the sentences to have the same meaning, questions come up:

  He gave me a shirt.

I understand that:

"shirt" is the direct object. (ie, the thing given)
"me" is the indirect object (or more precisely, the dative object). (ie, the recipient)

  He bought me a shirt.

Similarly, "me" is the indirect object, and "shirt" is the direct object.

It's curious when I try to change the forms of the above:

  He gave me a shirt.
  He gave a shirt to me.

Question #1: is "to me" still considered to be an indirect object?

  He bought me a shirt.
  He bought a shirt for me.
  ? He bought a shirt to me.

Question #2: Why does "He bought a shirt for me" seem ambiguous?

(that is, it could mean "He bought me a shirt" (ie, I'm the recipient of that shirt, and that shirt is now my own property), or it could mean "I needed that shirt but I was too busy to buy it, so he bought that shirt on my behalf".)

Does the preposition "for" often create ambigugous meanings?

Question #3: Why is "He bought a shirt to me" incorrect, but "He gave a shirt to me" correct?

I wish there was a simple rule about taking the dative object ("me" in this case) out of its usual position, and that you were allowed to put it at the end ("... to me").

Is English usually more regular, or this inconsistency common? Is there a hidden reason that explains this inconsistency?


texts: Can "which" refer to a part of a sentence?

texts:
When he went to Japan to meet his friends, he bowed a little to them instead of having handshakes, which is the Japanese way of greeting people.

Is this sentence correct?
It seems that the "which" refers to the action of bowing a little.
Can "which" refer to a part of a sentence like this?


texts: Where would we insert the commas in this sentence?

texts:
Consider the sentence:

Many people find the best times for meditation are in the morning when they first wake up or at night just before bed.

Commas after bolded words?
Change "times" to "time" and "are" to "is" to correspond to conjunction "or"?


texts: I need one word for adding and subtracting question

texts:
A kid asked me a question to say one word for adding and subtracting question. The question goes

  While adding and subtracting we put ____ in a correct place.

We have to use one word in the blank space.

I am confused if the answer is "operation", "sign", "operator" or something else.


texts: Am I understanding the use of these words?

texts:
READ FIRST: I was told to post my question here since it was put on hold from the other area of this site that deals with language. I have already looked up sentence examples, but it is still not clear to me. All I ask is for a CONFIRMATION that I am UNDERSTANDING the three words that I hear or read frequently. I did not get a good education like many others have. I have been in special ED up to 8th grade and then went to regular classes in high school going with the "tech prep" route instead "college prep" route. To makes things even worse, I am from South Carolina and many of the words that are spoken on the internet and printed in college level books, ARE NOT used much from where I am from. I simply want to cure any ignorance of my understanding of these three simple words that give me so much trouble. I don't think that is hard to do for this old 30 year old, ignorant southern man.

I need a sanity check to see if I truly understand what is meant when these words are used:

Examples:

Since.

"I have not seen her since yesterday".

"I have not been in special ED since the 9th grade."

This means that from yesterday to now, she was not around? The second sentence means that I have been in regular classes from 9th grade to now. (Yes, I was in Special Education many years ago. I am now 30 and have graduated from high school.)

Until.

"The store stays open until 5 PM."

This means that the store will stay open to 4:59 PM and closes at 5:00 PM. So you cannot enter the store when the clock strikes 5:00 PM in other words.

Follows.

Function name(X, Y) "The arguments to a function follows the function name in computer programming." (That was an actual sentence I read in a C++ programming book!)

This means that "(X, Y)" follows "name". So what ever I read first from left to right is the leader, and everything after is a follower that follows the leader going in this direction <<----- (Since we all read words in a left to right direction). Can the word follow be used where the leader is moving to the right instead and the followers are going this way ----->>?


texts: "There is no something" vs "no something"

texts:
Is it correct in English to write:

No water
No apple
No dog

when there is no water/apple/dog?
Is there any rule when only one form is valid:

There is no water

vs

No water

Let's say I create a table and in one cell I want to write that there is no water in the pump:

Col1
Col2

11
red

12
blue

13
no water in the pump

In such context - is it correct just to say "no water in the pump"? Or do I have change it to "There is no water in the pump"?


texts:
I have two friends over and serve us a bowl of ice cream each. My friends barely eat anything. After that I take the bowls to the kitchen and puts them in the sink.

In this example where it's only three bowls (and three spoons) I carry out, would you use bowls, dirty bowls, dishes, dirty dishes?


texts: His talent was allied with an insdustry .. - precise meaning?

texts:
I would like to ask for help with the following sentence (from a short story by C.A. Smith):

The authentic talent of Francis La Porte, fiction-writer, was allied
with an industry no less than prodigious. Unfortunately, he was self-critical to an excessive degree.

I am not sure I got it right - especially the "allied with an industry" part.
My understand would be: His true, great talent was tied/linked/associated with an industry that was at least prodigious.
But the "industry" just does not make much sense to me, probably because it is used in a way I am not aware of?


texts: using "even if-clause" to express future

texts:
Here are three sentences with "even if". But what time does the action happen?

Even if he go to the U.S.A, his wife is still in England now.(This means the man will go to the U.S.A, right?)

Even if he went to the U.S.A, his wife is still in England now.(This means the man has already gone to the U.S.A.,right?)

On July,1st,1994 , even if he went to the U.S.A, his wife still stayed in England.(here plus "1994" to refer the old time, it means at that time the man would go to the U.S.A, but his wife was still in England,right?)

Thanks so much!


texts: "track bunches", "distant understudies" and "grown-ups"

texts:
This sentence is used in the context of pedagogy and here is it:

Distance education focuses on track bunches with extraordinary attributes and inescapable learning needs (grown-ups and deep-rooted learning, distant understudies).

Could you explain please this sentence in easier words and provide the explanation of such words as track bunches, distant understudies and grown-ups?


texts: Can anybody explain "one tweetstorm away from a crash" for me, please?

texts:
Are we just one tweetstorm away from a crash?

source:http://markets.businessinsider.com/news/stocks/interview-with-jp-morgans-head-of-us-equities-dubravko-lakos-bujas-2017-2-1001741933-1001741933


texts:
I am writing a business email asking for the submission of some technical information which has revision control. I have already had a copy of, say Revision 1, but would like to check and receive if there is any newer revision. I propose to write:
"Please submit the latest revision of XXX, if it is higher than Revision 1."

Grateful for comments.


texts: what is the difference between who vs who,?

texts:
In this game, the player, who keeps a cool head, wins.

or

  In this game, the player who keeps a cool head wins.

when to use comma before who and when not to use comma before who?


texts: What is the difference between the two sentences below?

texts:
My father's voice is hoarse since yesterday and we were shocked .
My father's voice is hoarse since yesterday and we were being shoked .

Based on my perception, the second sentence does imply that we actually were not shocked, but we pretended as if we were shocked. We acted like a shocked person.
When  want to make a verbal statement, I just make the second sentence, and if it means like that,that would be a lexical mistake, wouldn't it?


texts:
In my native language we have a construct where we can omit suffixes from combined words to compress a sentence. For example, something like this:

  The juice is banana- and apple-based.

Here the "-based" after banana is implicit. Is this legal in English too?


texts: Can I omit verb, preposition.... altogether in a parallel structure?

texts:
In the light of this statement, teachers live by selling knowledge, philosophers by selling wisdom, and priests by selling spiritual comfort.

In this parallel structure, can I rewrite it into

... teachers live by selling knowledge, philosophers wisdom, and priests
spiritual comfort.

If it is ok, could you tell me the general rule for such omission?


texts:
Which is right:

  1.The dog is friendly to/with me.
   2.My classmate is friendly to/with me.

How would I choose the right one.


texts:
What does 'politics of terminal exclusion' mean?

  Exploitation is now matched by a politics of terminal exclusion.

Sentence from a post:
https://www.facebook.com/henry.giroux.3/posts/10162361597175157


texts:
Man A is talking to another Man B :

  I might even make it worth your while to talk to me.

sentence is too confusing, My understand: B is telling: there will be useful to A if he tell his words to him(B).


texts: Is "to do as little as" correct in this sentence?

texts:
And if someone was to do as little as touch a single hair on his sister’s head, he would hunt him down and seek vengeance even if it will take him a lifetime.

Is the sentence correct ?

I'm unsure of the sentence structure and the tenses that are used.


texts: Which is the correct sentence? (is, is called, called as)

texts:
Which is the correct sentence?

The young cow is calf.
The young cow is called calf.
The young cow called as calf.


texts:
Drug dealer is my new calling

Can you say this instead of saying this:

Becoming a drug dealer is my new calling

I tried to see if this was idiomatic, but I couldn't find any example.


texts: Meaning of "...a few minutes out of a million..."

texts:
Here is a sentence from an article on http://www.bbc.com/:

The rocks also don't slide around very often - scientists estimate only a few minutes out of a million - which is why the event has not been noticed before.

I think the word "minute"  refers here to the unit of angular measurement and not to the unit of time. However, I am still puzzled by the phrase "scientists estimate only a few minutes out of a million". What does it mean?


texts:
I am looking for a word that describes the relationship between money and goods and services in a way that shows money is supported by goods and services.

Unless ____ with goods and services, additionally printed money accelerates inflation and leads to depreciation.

Back(ed)? Sustain(ed)? Supply(-ied)? What's the word?


texts: The ... the ... structure: Is this sentence correct?

texts:
I would like to know if the following sentence is a correct usage of the ... the ... structure:

The more the same products people can buy across the globe, the more
similar countries are becoming. I think it is a negative trend because
it might entail the loss of cultural diversity, which can be
considered an adverse impact.

Actually, I'm thinking more about the first part. I don't know whether it is better to say the first or the latter:

The more the same products people can buy across the globe
The more people can buy the same products across the globe


texts: Difference between present and past simple after 'suggested that'

texts:
These are the sentences that I found in Cambridge grammar books:

  I suggested that she bought a car.
  I suggested that he gives up golf.

Both of the sentences above start in the past simple but end in the past simple and present simple respectively. Why is that and what's the difference in meaning?

UPDATE: Now that I'm thinking about it, I have a guess about the differences between these two:

"I suggested that she bought a car" means:

  I suggested that she bought a car but at the moment it's not clear whether she has bought it.

"I suggested that he gives up golf" means:

  I suggested that he gives up golf but he hasn't given up it yet. Perhaps later. Or never.

Though I'm not sure about it and need someone to confirm.


texts: What's wrong with this sentence: "Travelling by train is healthier and safer while enhancing the passengers' comfort."

texts:
Travelling by train is healthier and safer while enhancing the passengers' comfort.

The intended meaning is that train travel is "healthier, safer, and more comfortable" than travel by car. Obviously the "while enhancing" phrase is ungrammatical, but why?

Other examples:

Cake is fun and delicious while making parties more festive.
Joan is smart and friendly while never showing up to work late.


texts: Why is the prefix repeated in brackets in the word "((meta-)meta-)meta-design"?

texts:
While reading an article about web design, I came across the following phrase —  "((meta-)meta-)meta-design systems". I'm well aware what meta-design is, but have problems understanding the usage of "((meta-)meta-)". My first thought was that it belongs to terminology or industry jargon, but google search didn't return anything to confirm this assumption. Are these repetitions of "meta-" used to create exaggeration? If yes, is there any particular reason why brackets are used? Please assist.

Context:

  In 2011 I had my a first quick shot at working on systemized algorithmic web layouts at Prismatic (RIP); then captivated by the 2014 article about Flipboard’s layout algorithm I resolved to shift my design career towards abstractions and work on ((meta-)meta-)meta-design systems and tools to enable more powerful forms of thought amongst human designers.
  Full article


texts:
Explain me some expressions, about relationships, please:

fancy someone;
go out together;
ask someone out;
fix someone up.

It's all about first contact, but can I substitute one for the other, without changing the meaning?


texts: A verb -- without negative verbs/adverbs -- that means "do/does not"?

texts:
Consider the following sentence:

  Alan does not intend to inform us.

So Alan is saying something and what he is saying is true, but he just does not intend to inform us, that is, he doesn't care to inform us but intends something else. So I tell a friend of mine that it is not Alan't intention to inform us.

Now, what should I do if I want to add an adverb to the verb in the above sentence?

  Alan secretly does not intend to inform us.

So, I now want to tell to the same friend that Alan does not reveal that he does not intend to inform us, that is, he does not reveal his real intention but he somehow let us believe that he just intend to inform us.

The above sentence with the adverb "secretly" seems problematic or ambiguous. Generally, it seems to me that adverbs before "do/does not" are ambiguous or at leas unidiomatic, aren't they? One way out of the problem is to find a verb meaning "does not" which does not have "does not".

Two verbs I have in mind are fail and cease. But these two verbs seem to add a sense to the negation. Fail to intend means not to be able to intend or do not be successful to intend. Source And cease to intend means stop to intend. Source

The other way out of the problem is to change the sentence into something like:

  Alan secretly lacks the intention of informing us.

But, again, lack the intention of has the sense of "be in need of the intention of" or some other related senses. Besides, "secretly lacks" is weird itself.

But I do not want such extra senses. So, I am looking for a verb without "not" to use instead of "do/does not" so that I can put the intended adverb before it.


texts:
Is there a ',' needed in this sentence?

  My chair which is broken is make of wood.


texts:
In Serbian, there is a nice way to say this and would love to find a way to do the same in English.

Basically, I would like to make two statements in one sentence, second (why) related to answer on the first (is). Still, I don't want to suggest that subject is but to show knowledge of high possibility that it exists.

On the bonus side, is my title grammatically correct? Does question mark comes after dot and double-quote? What is the right order?

  Can I write something like this: "I found an answer on is and why is
  it important to do that."?


texts: Difference between 'try to do' and 'try doing'

texts:
What is the difference between 'try to do' and 'try doing'?

My textbook says, that if you want to make suggestion, you must say 'try + doing':

  A: Fred isn't answering his phone. What shall I do?

  B: You could try phoning his office.

Can I say:

  You could try to phone his office.


texts:
Never Let Me Go

  What I want to do now is get a few things down about Ruth,

"is get", it seems strange to me.


texts: Which are correct: the centre west or west centre? West central or central west?

texts: In which order are these phrases used to locate an area or a place that is in the centre of a region or country and to the west?


texts: Is it grammatically incorrect to say "I speak a bit German"?

texts:
Do they all mean the same?

I speak a bit German
I speak a little bit of German
I speak German a bit.
I speak some German.
I speak a little German.

I have been told 1 is incorrect.
I am trying to learn English through online resources and apps and all these little things are driving me crazy. Any help is appreciated. And I apologize if its been already asked before.


texts: Is the verb or verb in ing form is suited here?

texts:
I have two ideas and want to put them into one construction.

  The clusters representing objects are then extracted by introducing
  set of shape constraints.
  shape constraints describe the global shape
  of an object.

after combining them,

  The clusters representing objects are then extracted by introducing
  set of shape constraints (describe/describing) the global shape of an
  object.

So, I am not sure what verb form should I used. i.e. either describe or describing. Any suggestions please.


texts:
Are these two usages correct?

  My sister and I have last texted each other at 4 o'clock, I haven't heard from her since then.

  My sister and I have last seen each other in the past year. We haven't seen each other ever since.

Do I use "since then" for shorter period of times and "ever since" for longer periods?

If they're not correct, would anybody please explain to me why they aren't?


texts: What is the English name for the "sign" that is put between words to add another word?

texts:
There is a sign like "roof" or two "two hands asking something" which used in handwriting and in case that someone forgot to write a word, then he put this sign and above it the missed word or the adding.
What is called in English?

I attached an example. The sign here is in red color.


texts:
what is correct:

What kind of car would you like to buy? OR What kind of car you would like to buy?

I know that there can't be 2 questions in 1 sentence. For example: Can you tell me where it is (not is it), but I always though "What kind of" is also a question). Please advise. Thanks.


texts: to think better of something vs to change one's mind

texts:
I'd like to want to know if there is any subtle difference between them in terms of meaning  ?

We were going to go to the beach, but we thought better of it when it
started to rain.
We were going to go to the beach, but we have changed our mind when it
started to rain.

(or any example you think they would imply different meaning a bit)


texts:
How you can express that you felt stupid for a thing you told but without using the term "stupid", like in a nicer manner?

For example:

She felt "stupid" for the things she told to her friend.


texts:
I always thought the verb "want " requires "to", whether it's a verb or an adjective. But I heard a lot of people just saying the adjective without " to be."
I wonder whether this is grammatical or it's just dropped in casual settings.

ex)

I want (would like) the beef to be medium.
I want (would like) the beef medium.


texts: 'It was the only mine still in operation'. Where do I insert 'of six' in that sentence?

texts:
It was the only of six mines still in operation

? No, 'the only' cannot be used as a pronoun.

  It was the only mine of six still in operation

, maybe? But then it's not clear whether 'still in operation' refers to 'the only mine' or 'six'. Also, note that I would like to avoid saying 'mine(s)' twice. Can it be done without rephrasing?


texts: Something + "now and then" + colon + "a journey...": just standard adverbs?

texts:
I noticed from some1 Books output some entries(example) where "now" and "then" are used as adverbs to compare something now with something then(not unlike "before and after"); or to identify a period of time when events related to a person/topic/place unfold. Often this appears within titles and is followed by a colon:

  [a person/topic/place] Now and then: the journey from Z to A/a review of
  an era in the field of strange... etc.

Obviously in context this doesn't mean "occasionally". At the same time it seems to "mean a lot" with very little, so to speak, as in it's shorter/simpler than since then until now, and the order is not chronological as it would be with then and now.

Is that simply considered the literal meaning of those adverbs modifying the preceding noun? Or is that some kind of competing "idiom" as in "the now and the then" of something; are those two adverbs some kind of group ? Why is the preposition "of" not required between the noun and "now and then"; and why isn't the syntax rather "Now and then: [a person/topic/place], the journey... etc."?

1. I was curious about the usage of a few idioms which use the "every" determiner to introduce a frequency i.e. every + now and then (see here, here).


texts:
How do I answer this type of question?

  "When did you last have your hair cut?"


texts:
I was under the impression, that high school is typical AmE while in UK secondary school was used. However, I was confronted that in British English high school is also used, and I was provided with this link www.macmillandictionary.com/dictionary/british/high-school as confirmation.

This feels rather odd to me, however I haven't found any sources to verify it one way or another so the question is - is high school allowed in BrE?

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Education_in_England#Schools_and_stages mentions High school in "State funded schools" at the same level as secondary school however the article left me non the wiser...


texts: Word request for "someone meant to do something doesn't do it"

texts:
Talking about a surgeon, one said that Dr. Sam never did any surgery himself, rather he get it done by his assistants, that is to say, he is a surgeon only in copy and pen.
In our native language we use the phrase "only in copy and pen."
What are the natural ways of expressing this?
Thanks in advance.


texts: Meaning of "one bit glinting more than the rest"

texts:
People liked the idea of our being together,
  leaving the city for the country. So many people visited, and the fireplace made all of them
  want to tell amazing stories; the child who happened to be standing on the right corner
  when the door of the ice cream truck came open and hundreds of popsicles crashed out;
  the man standing on the beach, sand sparkling in the sun, one bit glinting more than the
  rest, stooping to find a diamond ring. Did they talk about amazing things because they
  thought we'd turn into one of them?

Dose it refer to diamond and mean: finding the diamond is better than finding anything else.

This context is from a short story named: snow by Ann Beattie


texts: Is "coincident" followed with "as" or "with"?

texts:
I was looking at examples of the word usage of "coincident", and I saw that most "coincidents" were followed by "with".

dictionary.com then says that coincident is "happening at the same time", so rather than "with", is following "coincident" with "as" also acceptable?

For example:

Coincident with/as the cutting of the tree, the edge of the axe dulled.

Which one would be the correct/common way of following "coincident" with?


texts: Is there any other set of rules for articles besides the one taught in school?

texts:
My question is a bit hard to explain, but I'll try to do it properly.

It's known that articles can be a mess for the people whose native language doesn't have a concept of articles.

I know all grammar rules for them but still having constant troubles with them. As you can see from the text the troubles I'm referring to are not usual cases, otherwise you would notice a lack English ability by this far already.

When I write or speak I don't think about grammar at all, yet it goes pretty well. A certain kind of feeling just pops up. I call it "to ask the heart". Sounds ridiculous, but somehow it works for most cases.

When I start to think about what I actually do when I'm asking my heart it gets crazy.

At first I thought that articles just fill the space between words, which actually make sense, because if you omit all articles completely some phrases become very hard to pronounce.

Then I was trying to explain it to myself like some kind of memorizing of short sentences, for instance: I have a (in 90% of cases it will be a after have), Let's go for a and etc. Or if a noun at the start of a sentence it will be with the definite article in most cases.

Then I came up with different explanation: articles are being used to empower or diminish a value of word within a sentence.

I'm pretty sure that next 3 sentences are grammatically correct:

I have a reason for that. (Nothing serious)
I have reason for that. (You'd better do what I want)
I have the reason for that. (Shit just
got real. Run.)

You can also apply the idea for meals and parts of a day:

Let's meet at night. (No article, because "meet" is the point)
The night is beautiful today. Let's go for a walk. (Not sure if it's completely proper grammar, but i would expect something like this from a native speaker.)
They are the creatures of the night (And again we empower the word night and put a focus on it).

So, I wonder if there's any unconventional theories on how we naturally use articles? There's got to be a simple explanation for articles, because otherwise we couldn't use them subconsciously. Or do you really think that your subconscious process all the grammar rules in background, or even worse getting all the cases from memory?

Native speakers make almost no mistakes with articles. There's got to be a key to this. I comprehend all other concepts which I don't have in my native language, like the words though and yet (in Russian those words are used the other way around), or putting s at the end of verbs. I don't believe that articles are hard only because English is not my native language.

Also do kids make mistakes with articles? If yes, at which age do they disappear?


texts:
Is the collocation "the usual thing" correct?

"I saw his wide scared eyes darkening as he saw me. “The usual thing” I thought. People did not expect a young woman be able to rescue someone in war."


texts:
She had cried all night long. Even now, her eyes were still swollen.

I wrote the sentence above, someone said that I should remove 'were' from the sentence, so it became:

  She had cried all night long. Even now, her eyes still swollen.

My reasoning for using 'were' is because 'swollen' here is describing her eyes. It's like saying, "Her eyes are big", for example.

But the correction is read smoother. And somehow, I agree it is the correct one. I have read this kind of sentences before in novels I have read, but I hesitate to use it in my own writing because I didn't know what is the rules.

My question is why it is wrong if I add 'were'? Is there any grammar-related explanation for this?

Here is a follow-up question.

One of the answers mentioned about Compound Sentence and Modifying Clause. I have tried to find the rule for this on my own, but instead of finding the answer, I'm getting more confused. So please help me to figure out.

I took some examples from my favorite novel.

  Her eyes were soft with sleep, her silver-gold hair all tousled.

  His mare was staggering as she approaches the city gates, her sides pink with blood and lather, her eyes rolling in terror.

In the above examples "was/were/etc." are absent. While in the below examples, the author used "was/were/etc.".

  Her eyes were red and puffy, but the child was in her arm, bundled tight.

  Her lip was trembling, her cheeks were wet, her eyes were red-rimmed.

I know if I use "but, yet, and, which, etc." I should use "was/were/etc.". But in the last example, the structure is, in my opinion, the same with the first set of example.

So, please help me to figure this out? Thanks!


texts: He dropped by my house so that he gave me the invitation card

texts: I live in Korea. But I lived in the US for 4years and I probably know English as much as I need. My friend asked me if that sentence was wrong or right. And I said it was wrong. I thought if the sentence wanted to be right it should have been written as 'He dropped by my house so that he could give me the invitation card.'


texts: Does a passive sentence have to include an explicit agent?

texts:
If the passive voice of the sentence

  Police caught the thief.

is

  The thief was caught.

what is the passive voice of the sentence below?

  The doctor cured the patient.

Possible answers:

  The patient was cured.
  The patient was cured by the doctor.


texts: Not only negative A but on the contrary B

texts:
Not only does she not support this plan, but, on the contrary, (she?) tries to prevent it.

Not only will the change not deteriorate the conditions, but, on the contrary, (it?) will improve them.

Not only do boosters not reduce speed, on the contrary, (they) increase it.

Where to place not in the above sentences?
Is the subject (she, it) in the second part of the sentence necessary?
Regular clause goes like "Not only .. but also". But here also sounds awkward since it somehow should go in pair with a positive.


texts:
When cohesiveness is low or lacking entirely, compliance out of fear
  of recrimination is likely to be strongest.

I do not understand the bold part, because of the word "out". Does "out" belongs to "compliance" or "fear"? (In other words, is it "compliance out" of fear or compliance "out of fear"?)


texts:
If we use an adjective for a countable object so it makes it specific, then can we use "the" before it?

For example to me "the green color" or "green", means "the color that is green among the known colors". As another example "the green continent" to mean the continent which is green (Europe)?

I asked a similar question when to use "the" before abbreviation,for example DOM is the abbreviation for Document Object Model, as I checked some documents, they may use the DOM tree but DOM trees. it seems DOM make the tree specific.

I borrowed these examples from the answer of the question, as he suggested to ask more details in another question.

  The Asian elephant has smaller ears than the African elephant.

If I am correct, then I would like to know a general rule about when an adjective can cause a definite article and when it can't.


texts: Help me make a sentence with a figurative meaning

texts:
But everything will shatter when life puts into one equation a great problem, ambitions and a million of dollars. And this story won't be about mathematics.

I am trying to describe the life of one mathematician. He solved a great problem and was awarded a million dollars for it. But there were a lot of scandals, disappointments. He refused the prize and everything was bleak.

I am using figurative speech and it sounds fine in my language, but what about English? Of course, the equation mentioned is imaginary, it is just a way to say that his life changed when all those things got mixed up in his life. And since it is about mathematics, I used an equation as a figurative object.


texts: Is it correct to use the phrase "it´s about finding the city´s DNA"?

texts:
The phrase:

  It's about finding the city's DNA

is used in a CNN promo for its program "Quest´s Worlds of Wonder". I can see what they want to express, but does it make sense in terms of language use?

Promo CNN


texts:
As in Longman Dictionary, it is said "last" in an intransitive verb , but there is one example :

Each lesson lasts an hour.

(http://www.ldoceonline.com/dictionary/last_4)

If "last" is an intransitive as stated, then "an hour" is not the object. Then What is the function of "an hour"? Is it adverbial?


texts: "There is no ‘my’ neighbor who/whom I don't like" - Can I use a possessive pronoun after "there is no"?

texts:
I wanted to know if I can use possessive pronoun  after "There is no".

Example:"

  There is no my neighbor who/whom I don't like.

I also wanted to know which word I should use - "who" or "whom"?


texts:
I have a sentence like:

  to allow the machine compute the...
  Should it be: compute, or computes, or to compute?


texts: Using "in all sorts of unexpected ways" for something that happens once to someone

texts:
I am not sure if we can use the expression "in all sorts of unexpected ways" when we talk about something that can only happen once to a living thing. Is there any other similar expression we can use instead?

For example:

  The cow warned "It's a place where you get killed in all sorts of
  unexpected ways" to its friend as they were headed towards the
  slaughterhouse.


texts: What do you do with a show: 'shut down' or 'close'?

texts:
There's the word 'cancel' but it doesn't fit my needs as only the company that airs a show can cancel it. In my case, it's, let's suppose,

  There were numerous attempts by Christian activists to [the word] the controversial show as they deemed it immoral.


texts: Expression request for a person who says things unrelated to topic being discussed

texts:
Is there any expression in English about a person who tells things unrelated to the topic being discussed? E.g., when you are talking about grammar, she suddenly starts to talk about a party she has been to.

The main reason I asked this question is that in my mother tongue we have an expression for such a person and I am trying to find a good equivalent in English. It is "a malapropos rooster." It is said because this person acts like a rooster which doesn't know when is the right time to crow. I searched a lot, but it sounds there is no such expression or idiom in English.


texts: What does the phrase "run roughshod over gems" mean here?

texts:
Please help me figure out the meaning of the phrase "run roughshod over gems" in the following sentence from the description of the game Harry Potter: Puzzles & Spells:

Bathroom trolls run roughshod over gems.

Please see the photo of gems below:

For more context, this is a match-3 game. Please see the following description from a different source:
Prove your Match-3 skill by beating levels to upgrade and unlock new spells and magic abilities which will aid your quest to conquer more difficult Match-3 puzzles. Get a chance to upgrade your spells as you prepare for the magically mischievous challenges ahead. (Google Play Store)
Here is a photo of a bathroom troll:


texts:
So, it kind of works out in a really sick and fucked-up way.

I've come across with the sentence above, and I didn't understand the meaning. I know the meaning of work out(to think carefully about how you are going to do something and plan a good way of doing it OR to calculate an answer, amount, price etc) and the meaning of kind of (used when you are trying to explain or describe something, but you cannot be exact) but I don't understand all together.

So could you please explain it to me?

The fuller text is here:

  Other people’s God Value is another person. This is often called
  “codependence.” These people derive all hope from their connection
  with another individual and sacrifice themselves and their own
  interests for that individual. They then base all their behavior,
  decisions, and beliefs on what they think will please that other
  person—their own little personal God. This typically leads to really
  fucked-up relationships with—you guessed it— narcissists. After all,
  the narcissist’s God Value is himself, and the codependent’s God Value
  is fixing and saving the narcissist. So, it kind of works out in a
  really sick and fucked-up way. (But not really.)


texts:
Is it right to say "Only somebody can do something the best"? Or instead, we should  say "Somebody can do something the best" or "only somebody can do something well"?

e.g.

"Only mathematics can give the most clear explanation to the question."

"Mathematics can give the most clear explanation to the question."

"Only mathematics can give a clear explanation to the question."


texts: Why 'was' used instead of 'were' in this sentence

texts:
Was he imagining it, or were Snape's eyes flickering towards Lupin more often than was natural?

As I understand, the sentence is saying: were Snape's eyes flickering towards Lupin more often than Snape's eyes were natural. That's why I might think 'were' should be used in the original sentence, because "Snape's eyes" is plural. But I'm not sure if my understanding is correct. How should we understand the sentence?


texts: Requiring a grammatical explanation for the following sentence

texts:
The source

  Often we think that great leaders are those who are gregarious, always in the middle of a large group of people; yet, as Mahatma Gandhi and many others have shown us, leaders can also be introverted.

Shouldn’t the conjunction “yet” be placed before leaders to show the contrast?

  Often we think that great leaders are those who are gregarious, always in the middle of a large group of people, as Mahatma Gandhi and many others have shown us; yet leaders can also be introverted.

Edited

Good observation taken from comments, by @joiedevivre

The parenthetical prepositional phrase can be moved around within the clause, but it can't go before yet. Yet must head this clause.


texts:
Why do we use passive present perfect like in this sentence?

  If the bribe were given, it must have been given to officials.

Can't we use passive simple past?

Also, why  can't we use past perfect 'had been given' instead of 'have been given'?


texts:
I am wondering whether it is better to say:

  You would think that I was a thief.

or

  You would think that I am a thief.

and

  I wouldn't say one was more correct than the other

or

  I wouldn't say one is more correct than the other


texts: What's the meaning of thinking they not?

texts:
South African fast bowler Dale Steyn  made a statement on Twitter recently:

"Apologies to Virat and a billion people for thinking they not"

What is he apologising for? What's the meaning of the phrase "thinking they not"?


texts:
Can I use carry out in this context:

  The app uses the Google maps Android API v2. To edit the application in Eclipse, several steps must be carried out:


texts: What does 'human and financial alike' modify?

texts:
What does 'human and financial alike' modify in this passage?

human and financial are adjective, so I can infer that an omitted noun is costs, but I am not sure.

  The old maxim “I’ll sleep when I’m dead” is unfortunate. Adopt this
  mindset, and you will be dead sooner and the quality of that
  (shorter) life will be worse. The elastic band of sleep deprivation
  can stretch only so far before it snaps. Sadly, human beings are in
  fact the only species that will deliberately deprive themselves of
  sleep without legitimate gain. Every component of wellness, and
  countless seams of societal fabric, are being eroded by our costly
  state of sleep neglect: human and financial alike. So much so that
  the World Health Organization (WHO) has now declared a sleep loss
  epidemic throughout industrialized nations. It is no coincidence that
  countries where sleep time has declined most dramatically over the
  past century, such as the US, the UK, Japan, and South Korea, and
  several in Western Europe, are also those suffering the greatest
  increase in rates of physical diseases and mental disorders.

  Source: Why We Sleep: Unlocking the Power of Sleep and Dreams
  By Matthew Walker


texts:
Which is correct:

  In this glass, there is two times as much water as in that glass.

or

  In this glass, there are two times as much water as in that glass.

Note: I know water is uncountable, but why do we say:

  There are two liters of water.

Liter and time are both countable nouns.


texts: Articles in "If you are the art I'll be the brush"

texts:
If you are the art I'll be the brush.

"The" is used for definite and specific things, so shouldn't it be

  If you are an art I'll be the brush,

or

  If you are an art I'll be a brush,

or

  If you are an art I'll be your brush?


texts:
Recommendation of the qualified personnel and device to be utilized to
  perform the activity.

In the example above, I'm not sure if the bold part means:

(qualified personnel to be utilized to perform the activity) and (device to be utilized to perform the activity)

or

(qualified personnel) and (device to be utilized to perform the activity).

Which meaning is correct? Can the verb "utilize" be used for a person? In a dictionary, it's used with something, not somebody.


texts:
Is there a difference between these two? Which one is more common?

  I was wondering if I ( needed / need ) to take my own towel.


texts:
Can anyone please tell me, if I change words' order, then will it change meaning of sentences?

you can share me with details mentioned in David’s e-mail  and later we can consolidate and send to David.

Or

you can share details with me which is mentioned in David’s e-mail and later we can consolidate and send to David.

Thanks


texts: To emerge as a pioneer/leader for sth. VS to become a pioneer/leader for sth

texts:
I am not sure if those above mentioned key phrases are correct. Can you help me?

What I would like to say:

  "How Germany emerges as a pioneer/leader for sustainability in Europe, finding innovative solutions for challenges in the energy sector."

Is there a more attractive way to express what I'd like to say?


texts: What does the "the point is moot " in the context mean?

texts:
I'm reading a book about the structure of Python. In Python, when you copy a list by using the syntax:

  new_list = list(a_list)

This causes a new list to be created and this is known as shallow copy.  However, Python's lists are referential, and the new list represents a sequence of references to the same elements as in the first.

Then the author wrote a sentence:

  With immutable elements, this point is moot.

I looked up dictionaries and found some explanations:

If something is a moot point or question, people cannot agree about it.
A "moot" point is debatable and open for discussion but may not come to any satisfactory conclusion or whose conclusion may be meaningless.

But I don't think these explanations are proper. I think the meaning of moot here is that the effect of shallow copy can be acceptable because if you modify or change the new_list resulted from shallow copy, it won't affect the original list.

Am I right, or there is other correct explanation?


texts:
a) Do come in! Must come in!* Should come in!*
  b) Don't cry! Did'nt cry!* Haven't cry!*

  (the asterisks represents a wrong answer.)

How am I able to explain that an imperative has an understood second person subject from the data above?

Also, how am I able to prove it by subjecthood test? For subjecthood test, it is meant by test that can prove a particular subject in the sentence. There are 5 tests: Agreement test, Case test, Tag Question test, Position test and Subject Verb inversion test.


texts:
Tell me please which one of the following sentences is correct.

  Why can't I use this app, but I can use the other one.

  Why can I not use this app, but I can use the other one.

I suspect that both sentence could be correct, if so, then which one is more formal?


texts: Use of assimilate vs imitate in a sentence

texts:
Today I took an English test , in which I was asked to choose between assimilate and imitate  as a word which closely resembles the  phrase ‘to make a copy of’. I chose assimilate , because in my opinion imitate means ‘to copy someone or something’ . It probably does not stand for ‘to make a copy of’ . The word assimilate , in my opinion is very close to ‘to make a copy of’. I also saw the definition of assimilate in the Collins English Dictionary , which has one of the meanings as :

“to become or cause to become similar.”

According to me , the difference between the definition of ‘assimilate’ and ‘imitate’ is that when we use imitate , we do not ‘make a copy of something’ , we ‘try to copy that thing’. However , there is quite similarity between these two meanings and I would like to know your opinion on which choice is really correct.

Thank you !


texts: Why is 'love' used in the present continuous form here?

texts: I am reading a book called 'High School grammar' by P.C Wren and H.Martin. We know 'love' falls in the category of stative verbs, but they have used the word 'love' in the present continuous/present perfect continuous. Is there something wrong with the book or my understanding?


texts:
In the following paragraph, what does the last sentence mean?

Accounts like these are sometimes copied into English and American
journals. They lead the reader to infer that the arts and customs of
civilized life are rapidly refining the natives of the Sandwich
Islands. But let no one be deceived by these accounts. The chiefs
swagger about in gold lace and broadcloth, while the great mass of the
common people are nearly as primitive in their appearance as in the
days of Cook. In the progress of events at these islands, the two
classes are receding from each other: the chiefs are daily becoming
more luxurious and extravagant in their style of living, and the
common people more and more destitute of the necessaries and decencies
of life. But the end to which both will arrive at last will be the
same: the one are fast destroying themselves by sensual indulgences,
and the other are fast being destroyed by a complication of disorders,
and the want of wholesome food. The resources of the domineering
chiefs are wrung from the starving serfs, and every additional bauble
with which they bedeck themselves is purchased by the sufferings of
their bondsmen; so that the measure of gew-gaw refinement attained
by the chiefs is only an index to the actual state of degradation in
which the greater portion of the population lie grovelling.
— Typee by Hermann Melville

I don't understand the “an index to the actual...” part. What does it mean?


texts: What job should I have or What job I should have?

texts:
I want to ask myself what kind of job I'm gonna do. I want to know which one should be ok:

What job should I have?
What job I should have?

Thanks,


texts: What is the difference between "had had to" and "have had to"? Please provide examples and elaborate explanations. What do each mean in the sentence?


texts: "I would dare say that" or "I would dare to say that" ?

texts:
http://www.linguee.fr/anglais-francais/traduction/i+would+dare+to.html

I would dare say that in addressing the themes ....

I would dare to say that it is consensual. ....

I guess both of the phrases " I would dare say that..." and " I would dare to say that..." are correct and there is no difference between them. am I right or not?


texts:
I don't know much about microphones and audio programs, but I think everybody knows this slight problem that sometimes appears in recordings when you don't hear anything in the background during the breaks, it's like the microphone turns itself off when you stop talking. After that you start talking again and your voice appears very suddenly? Is this a correct way to explain this problem?

I framed some sentences that should convey this message. Which of them are correct and is there a better possibility?

Your voice appears very suddenly. (Not sure)
Your voice starts very suddenly. (Probably not)
Your voice sounds very abruptly. (Probably not)

I can't think of an alternative way to say this.


texts:
After six months of arguing and final 16 hours of hot parliamentary debates, Australia's Northern Territory became the first legal authority in the world to allow doctors to take the lives of incurably ill patients who wish to die.

In the above sentence, the to allow doctors to take the lives of incurably ill patients who wish to die is a complement? or post attributive? What's the difference between post attributive and complement？and to allow is a infinitive？


texts: What's the best way to end an email/letter?

texts:
We end an email with several options. I find 'Regards' the best one. I feel anything other than this reflects affection than greeting! See the example:

Sincerely yours (Yes, I don't pay heed to anyone else!)
Yours sincerely (I'm all yours. I'm pretty sincere!)
Truly yours (My soul is yours, truly!)

Is there any alternate way to end the mail? Using 'Regards' all time is not done!


texts: "Everyone at school was looking at what I wore" - why not "Everyone at school looked at what I was wearing"?

texts:
When I was a teenager, I used to think that everyone at school was looking at me and judging what I looked like, what I wore, and how I acted.

Why "everyone at school was looking at me and judging" in the sentence above, was used? Can we say I used to think that every one at school looked at me and judged what I looked like, what I wore, and how I acted. Or every one at school was looking at me and judging what I was looking like, what I was wearing and how I was acting? if not, why???


texts:
Here is a sentence from a file sharing app:

  You can see details about a folder or file and edit permissions in
  app's Inspection view.

Here I am confused if the word "edit" is a noun or verb. There are two possibilities:

You can see details of "edit permissions."
You can edit permissions in the said app's Inspection view.

Which of the above mentioned options is correct here?


texts: What is the difference between “admit stealing” and “admit having stolen”

texts:
What is the difference between
They admitted stealing the money.
They admitted having stolen the money.


texts:
I have been in Europe for 2 years

Does this sentence mean I was in Europe for 2 years?

What's the difference between these two sentences?

  I have been in Europe

Can this mean I am still in in Europe?


texts: Most as an adverb: before or after the main verb?

texts:
Is it acceptable to place "most" before the main verb like the sentence below?

I will remember you for being strong but I will most remember you for being kind.


texts:
Let's say there were men who went to school. Each student was at least obtained only 1 diploma (undergraduate). Then which sentence is grammatical?

  The figure for Australian men who studied at school obtained an undergraduate school diploma was 37%.

Or

  The figure for Australian men who studied at school obtained undergraduate school diplomas was 37%.

Should I use the singular or plural?


texts: English equivalent for French “la rentrée"?

texts: In French we use “la rentrée" to mean the return to work after the slack period of the summer break in France. It is used by students, workers and pretty much anyone else. Is there any English expression to convey a similar meaning?


texts: Is there any rule to use nouns in the sentence, the rule like subject verb agreement? Is It any rule for verb-noun agreement, one noun to another noun agreement, and noun-preposition agreement?


texts: Still permitted vs. It is still permitted

texts:
Which one of these sentences is correct?

It is still permitted, though violates the idea behind the Continuation Lines section.
It is still permitted, though it violates the idea behind the Continuation Lines section.
Still permitted, though it violates the idea behind the Continuation Lines section.

In my native language, the best option is the 3rd one, but I'm not sure whether it is correct in English.

The 2nd option looks OK to me from the grammatical side, but is somewhat cumbersome, isn't it?


texts:
What's the difference between "cannot find the file specified" and "could not find the file specified"?

I've seen both of them when a software is reporting an error. What's the difference between them?


texts:
As per my knowledge:

A transitive verb takes a direct object.

  Some examples:

  I watched a movie.

  He played cricket.

An intransitive verb does not take a direct object.

  Some examples:

  I watched.

  He goes to school.

My question is that:

  Why this sentence(He goes to school) is an example of intransitive
  verbs? Because school is a direct object of the subject(he) here.


texts:
I have something similar to this sentence:

  However, more than third of the students that select math courses in
  the first term pass with higher grades.

Which is correct:

  More than third

Or

  More than a third


texts:
Does the following sentences have the same meaning?

  I don't know if/whether she will come to our meeting.

  I don't know about her coming to our meeting.


texts: Are dependency territory interchangeable in some situations?

texts:
According to wiki (Crown dependencies),

  The Crown dependencies are three island territories off the coast of Great Britain that are self-governing possessions of the Crown: the Bailiwick of Guernsey, the Bailiwick of Jersey and the Isle of Man.

So, dependency is some kind of territory.

Another wiki page (The Football Association) says

  The Football Association (FA) is the governing body of association football in England and the Crown dependencies of Jersey, Guernsey, and the Isle of Man. Formed in 1863, it is the oldest football association in the world and is responsible for overseeing all aspects of the amateur and professional game in its territory.

Is it still idiomatic if I substitute dependency for territory?

How about another case?

  Jersey is a self-governing dependency of the United Kingdom.

substitute dependency for territory, we get

  Jersey is a self-governing territory of the United Kingdom.


texts:
He admits that there must be something which continues to exist when
  we go out of the room or shut our eyes, and that what we call seeing
  the table does really give us reason for believing in something which
  persists even when we are not seeing it. But he thinks that this
  something cannot be radically different in nature from what we see,
  and cannot be independent of seeing altogether, though it must be
  independent of our seeing. He is thus led to regard the “real” table
  as an idea in the mind of God. Such an idea has the required
  permanence and independence of ourselves, without being -- as matter
  would otherwise be -- something quite unknowable, in the sense that we
  can only infer it, and can never be directly and immediately aware of
  it.

Problems of Philosophy, Bertrand Russell, Chapter I

What does "altogether" in the context mean? "In total" or "Completely"?
"Such an idea has the required permanence and independence of ourselves". What is the differences between "independence of" and "independence from"?
"as matter would otherwise be". Does matter here refer to a PROBLEM or SUBSTANCE? and What does "as matter would otherwise be" mean? Does "as" mean "because"?I really don't understand the use of it there.
Many thanks!


texts: What does 'for which' here refer to? Does it mean 'because of which'?

texts:
I read a sentence from a text. I somehow can understand the sentence, but I found that I couldn't analyse the structure of it:-(

  Included among such Lipschitz paths are all piecewise smooth paths, for which the generalized definitions of path integrals (with respect to Lipschitz paths) are thus seen  to reduce to the definitions given earlier (with respect to piecewise smooth paths)

In this sentence, the words in parenthesis are added by myself, i.e., the original sentence doesn't contains those words. I added them to provide context for you. 'Lipschitz path' and 'piecewise smooth path' are two concepts in math, on both of which we can define 'path integrals'. I think the real meanings of those math concepts don't matter. You can see it this way that 'Lipschitz paths' is a larger class of 'paths' which contains 'piecewise smooth paths'. I also think I can understand the sentence right. It means,

  Lipschitz paths included all piecewise smooth paths (in other words, piecewise smooth paths are a special class of Lipschitz paths), so the definition of path integrals on Lipschitz paths can be seen to reduce to the definition of path integrals on piecewise smooth paths given earlier.

After transformation, I found that I couldn't find a subject or object that 'for which' refers to in the latter sentence. But 'for which' must refer to something so that we can transform the second part of the latter sentence to a clause in the first sentence, right?

In my opinion, 'for which' is a bit redundant, or it just means 'because of which'?


texts:
From the beginning of chapter 10 of The Just Men of Cordova (1917) by Edgar Wallace, the narrator was describing someone, saying:

But he certainly lived like a gentleman, as all Somers Town agreed, for he went to bed at whatsoever hour he chose, arose with such larks as were abroad at the moment, or stayed in bed reading his favourite journal.

I found that "rise with the lark" means " wake up with sunrise", but I can't get the whole meaning of this bolded statement.


texts: Classes where boys work with their hands

texts:
There are special kind of classes in Soviet and now Russian schools where boys work with their hands, building some stuff, e. g. starling-houses.

There are also classes for girls, where they learn how to cook and sew.

How should I name that subject and teachers who teach that?


texts:
I'd like to know the difference(s) between the verbs go over, go through, look over and look through.There are other words  that have similar meaning to these verbs too but I chose to compare these verbs because they contains the same prepositions, which are over and through, so this is very confusing for learners.

Here are the definitions by Oxford Dictionary

Go over :Consider, examine, or check (something)

Go through :Search through or examine methodically

Look over : Inspect something with a view to establishing its merits

Look through : Peruse (a book or other written material)

What I observe is that dictionaries cluster their synonyms as  search and examine.

I am familiar with the verb go over that is used to mean study before exams and I think the verb go through implies more detailed examination whereas look over means more like check out (appearance of something) quickly or superficially more than a office document which contains financial figures.

I read also these verbs may have an ambiguous meaning without a context but let's go over them.

Some examples from various dictionaries:

In the competition, the judge goes over each dog and assesses it.

Dave went through his pockets looking for the keys.

Customs officers went through all my bags.

Forensic scientists are going over the victim's flat in a search for clues about the murderer.

We're are still going over the details of the contract.

It's a good idea to get someone to go over your application form before you submit it.

Do you have a few minutes to look these samples over?

Students were given five minutes to look through the examination paper before they were told the start writing.


texts: Is the following all right in formal English?

texts:
There are a few modern approaches that describe how to design a robust architecture for Android application. I am going to analyse them and develop a sample application that uses an apropriate architecture according to my analysis.

So, is the following sentence all right to be the title of my analysis?

Analysis of modern approaches to building (an) android application architecture (,) and (an example of) prototype implementation.

I've emphasised and put into the () the moments in that I doubt. I am pretty sure that "an" that goes before

  android application architecture

should be cut off, because in this case we are about to design an application architecture that is good for the application we develop, but might not be good for any other application. As well as I am pretty sure that "an example of" is not necessary in this case. Also I am not sure whether this title sounds good or not.

Clarification:

@farnsy, thank you. It's a really helpful answer. I am actually going to consider and describe the existing approaches to building architecture of android application. I saw you got an active account on stackoverflow, so I'll provide more technical details. I am going to write about things like Clean Architecture, MVVM, SOLID, Dependency Injection, etc and other general recommendations that are helpful to develop a robust, testable, easy-scalable android application.

Why was I sure that there is no need in "an" article? Because I think architecture in my case is a general thing. You barely can just pick up an architecture for your app, because in more cases an android application has got few (not a few) appropriate architectures. And that's why you should build it, not just pick up.

If replace words like this

  ...modern approaches to building architecture of android application...

I still think there is no need in "an" even before android application as well, because as I mentioned I am going to write general recommendations for most apps. In the analysis part I am not going to just pick up a random app and build architecture for it, In the analysis part I'll try to consider general design approaches that fit most Android apps.

Though, in the second part I am going to pick up a random app and try to build appropriate architecture for it. That's why I got no doubts with "an" before example implementation.

If after this clarification, you still think that "an" is necessary, I'll put it in.

Thank you so much for your time.


texts:
I read a sentence, in Oxford English dictionaries, as an example of the word "vape" which was:
I'd rather people vaped indoors than smoked outside.

What is the meaning of "rather people vaped"?


texts: "account to a website" vs. "account on a website"

texts:
To use Gmail, I need to create **an account __ ** Google first and then I can sign in.

In the description above, should I use the preposition "on", "to" or "for"?


texts: How is it correct to use the word "being" in "Shouldn't the items have disappeared instead of the writings on them being changed?"?

texts:
"Shouldn't the items have disappeared instead of the writings on them being changed?

The event in the second part of the sentence happened in the past. How is it correct to use "being"?


texts:
Please help me in below conversation.

One of my friends returns to his office from long sick leaves. I want to ask him whether or not he had been hospitalized.

  Me: Hi How you feeling now?  Friend (Patient): I am fine now.  Me: Had you been to admitted in hospital or not? Or Were you admitted in hospital or not?  Friend (Patient):    Yes i was in hospital for 10 days.

What should I use -had you been or were you or anything else??


texts: The person was made particularly understood not to enter the premise due to its extensive renovation

texts:
Is the phrase

  made particularly understood?

grammatically correct?

Apparently, my grammar checker checked it correct.

Or is the correct sentence

  That person was particularly made to understand?

Thank you for the guidance


texts: Using nonetheless - "Her view of life seemed a little offbeat. NONETHELESS, I couldn't judge her."

texts:
Is nonetheless used correctly in this paragraph?

  Her view of life seemed a little offbeat. Nonetheless, I couldn’t judge
  her. My intentions had never been good, either.

If nonetheless is not the word, what's a better option?


texts: I want to get rid of 'article' confusion once and for all!

texts:
I know there are innumerable questions about 'articles' on this and other sites on the Internet. I always try to learn them but some or the other way, they play tricks on me. In other words, I am never positive when I use them, in short. If two articles weren't enough to spin my head, the concept of 'zero article' or 'anarthrous' served as another nail in the coffin! :)

At times, I understand them perfectly but sometimes, I commit blunders! I want to solve this once and for all. I thought a lot and then am finally coming up with some sentences that would help clear my (and many others'?) doubts (hopefully).

Help me understand the subtlety of these sentences.

  A crown cork of a bottle
  A crown cork of the bottle
  The crown cork of a bottle
  The crown cork of the bottle

My understanding about those sentences:

  Any crown cork of any bottle (but then is that crown related to that bottle is the question!)
  I'm going to a shop with a bottle in my hand and asking for a crown cork that fits the only bottle in my hand
  There is only one crown cork in front of me. I'm telling that this is the crown cork that can fit any bottle
  The bottle and the crown cork both are right in front of me. That crown cork fits to only that bottle.

Answerers, please mind that I haven't introduced any bottle or crown cork previously! I'm ready for detailed answers. :)


texts: When do you omit 'it' in phrases such as 'would appreciate it if you shared'?

texts:
What's the difference between

If you have any ideas about how to improve one's efficiency in studying
math, then I would appreciate it if you shared them

and

If you have any ideas about how to improve one's efficiency in
studying math, then I would appreciate if you shared them

?


texts: Where did 'are going to' come from? Is there in official dictionary? How if we want to tell 'I am going to learn something' (present continuous tense).


texts: Can "every time" be used with present continuous

texts:
At school it us taught that "every time", is a marker that shows that some simple tense should follow. However, I wonder, if in some contexts continuous forms can be used as well.

For example, if I want to point out that something happens every time I am in the process of doing something.


texts: Difference between "matching" and "overlapping interests"

texts:
Is it possible to say that interests "overlap?" If it is, what is the difference between "overlapping interests" and "matching interests?"

Consider following examples:

  My interests are matching in particular the research of Mr. X

  My interests are overlapping in particular with the research of Mr. X

Which would be the better, more clear version?


texts:
I wrote the following sentence:

  In our village, there is a man that would/will help anybody in need.

I want to say that helping people is a characteristic or the habit of that man so I tried to use would or will yet I wonder  which one is more fit would or will in this simple present tense?

Also, is there any difference if we omit would or will altogether?

  In our village,there is a man that helps anybody in need.


texts: What's the meaning of "less informed prey"

texts:
What is the meaning of the phrase "less informed prey"?

  However, there are best practices to hinder and frustrate attackers, pushing them to look elsewhere for more vulnerable, less informed prey!

Here is the tutorial that contains the phrase.


texts:
I have learned that each sentence needs to have a subject. In the sentence below, I don't need the subject or I can't identify it there. So, I add the subject using there.

Is the first sentence correct or better is the second? If the first sentence is correct, what is the subject then?

  In the table below is an error.

or

  In the table below, there is an error.


texts: Is it logical to use "be+selective+infinitive"?

texts:
I'm supposed to fill in the blank in the following sentence:

  Herbicides used to clear railways and railway embankments are not selective ______ all plants with which they come into contact.

in the above sentence, the correct answer is "and kill".

But I want to know if "to kill" is correct too or not?

Do we have this structure: "be+selective+infinitive"?

in my view,
"to kill" means "in order to kill all the things..."

"and kill" means "so they kill all the things..."

So both of them are correct!


texts: "follow the tutorial" vs. "follow along the tutorial"

texts:
From a tutorial

  Follow along the tutorial to build an automotive user interface and create a #UI like that of your very own embedded device!

Ngram Viewer shows writers only use "follow the tutorial" rather than "follow along the tutorial"

Is that because "follow along the tutorial" is a colloquial expression?


texts:
He was everywhere: he was at the communion rail,

  the fifty-yard line

, he played the oboe with the Chamber Music Club, drove the fire truck, served on the school board and rode the 8:03 into New York every morning


texts: why "beer" in first sentence is considered specific?

texts:
Many people think that the beer they brew in Germany is the best in the world.

  Many people think that German beer is the best in the world.

Both sentences have exactly the same meaning, and given that using "the" is based on the meaning of the sentence, I can't see why native English speakers use it only with first sentence. In other words, why "beer the brew in Germany" is specific and "German beer" is general?


texts:
Last paragraphs] On our last night in Norway, the sky finally began to clear. Even if glimpsing the sun at midnight was completely arbitrary, I still wanted to see it. I scurried up a small mountain, just reaching its crest at 11:58 p.m. I had low expectations; I was ready to be disappointed by whatever I saw.
  The clock struck midnight, and there it was: the sun, unimpeded, resplendent.
  The same sun as always.
  But what a sun.
  And what an earth.
  I imagined myself at the top of a swiftly spinning planet, tilting its head in salutation to that distant solar body.
  It was what I had seen every day but I had never seen it before today.

http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2014/09/19/travel/reif-larsen-norway.html?smid=tw-nytimes&_r=0

Does the author Mr. Reif Larsen say that he sees this view every day, but didn't appreciated it before he saw it from Norway that day? Even if my surmise is right, isn’t his diction (use of ‘seen’ twice) baffling?


texts: Difference in meaning betweeen "has been" and "is"

texts:
Here is a sentence I'd like to fully understand.

  The main change has been the shift from domestic vacations to ones overseas.

I think this sentence is more likely to emphasize the duration even though there's nothing referring to it. It implies that the change started in the past and exists even now.
So, it would be natural for a reader or listener to think this change is nothing unexpected.

  The main change is the shift from domestic vacations to ones overseas.

This sentence is more likely to focuse on now. It doesn't matter if the change was the shift in years gone by. It just gives information emphasizing nothing.

I'd like to know if I'm right to think this way.

Thanks in advance.


texts: This house has been furnished with a peculiar style. Is this use of 'peculiar' correct?

texts:
I was trying to give an example for a new word I was trying to learn, "peculiar". Is this correct?

  This house has been furnished with a peculiar style.


texts: would have + past participle presumption

texts:
Could we use "would have +  past participle" to express the speak's belief about something ?

For example :

I'm sure he would have killed her.
He definitely would have been listening when we fought yesterday.


texts:
This is a sentence in present tense, how could change the tense, when another verb is needed to use?

  I want to see it.(Present)

  I will want it to see.(Future)(because I know I can't stop seeing her and maybe this is my weak side.)


texts:
If I want to say that: I will be listening to the lecture being delivered carefully and won't be busy scratching body parts, hair or beard,etc showing that I am not attentive to the lecture, can I say:

I will avoid playing unnecessarily with clothes, body parts, or hair of beard or head...

What image appears in a native's mind when he hears the sentence mentioned above?

Secondly, would you native add 'hair of' before the word 'beard' if you meant that you are scratching beard? I mean, doesn't the word 'beard' itself mean 'hair of beard'?


texts:
While traveling to the spa's remote location could be hectic, visitors to the spa more than made up for the stress by unwinding in a supremely Pacific environment.

I found this sentence structure very difficult to understand. Please describe it and suggest me how to get this type of sentence structure for practice?


texts:
Is it OK to just say "I'm came back!" or 'I came back!' as alternative to "I'm back!" when you were away for a while?

  Alice: I'll be back in a minute.
  Bob: Ok.

Alice has just returned and says..

  Alice: I'm back!


texts:
I  ..... him since we met a year ago.

options:

a) didn't see b)haven't seen c)hadn't seen

MyApproach:

Here,I am confused between didn't see VS haven't seen

  Also,Which Tense usage is used in this example?


texts:
From my understanding, when given a sequence of items, second-to-last designates the item preceding the penultimate item on the sequence. Example:

If we consider one item of the sequence as the current one, what adjective would we use to designate the item preceding the previous item in the sequence? Is "second-to-previous" the correct adjective to use in this situation? Example:


texts: handled (past tense used for future events)

texts:
Why is this sentence correct: If not handled well, it may result in a fire.
Why use past tense? How to know when to use it?


texts: I have arranged to discuss "to buy" his house

texts:
When we have three verbs in the same clause. And we need to decide whether use "ing" or "to" with the third one.

Should we choose based on the main verb  (first one) or the second verb?

In the following example, arrange should follow with "to + infinitive" verb and discuss  should follow by "ing" very. so should we use "to buy" or "buying"?

  I have arranged to discuss to buy his house.

  I have arranged to discuss buying his house.

Another example:

  I never considered offering buying his car.

  I never considered offering to buy his car.


texts: Can a preposition modifies a prepositional phrase?

texts:
Unless an order from the Reading Nook's online store is paid for by the deadline indicated, the books cannot be shipped and the order will be canceled.

Can a preposition modifies a prepositional phrase like the above sentence? I have learned that preposition phrases are adverbs or adjectives and prepositions modify nouns only.


texts: Is this grammatical? Couldnt find an answer browsing web.Or do I have to say "the way you love me" ? I thought the way and how were pretty similar but doesnt look as this is the case. You cant say "I love how this looks." but I think "I love the way this looks" is fine. Now Im confused here because apparently a song is called like this as well so Id like to have an explanation as to why its possible here.


texts: What is the meaning of "lay nestled" in the following sentence?

texts:
What is the meaning of "lay nestled" in the following sentence,

  Glazed with barbecue sauce, the rack of ribs lay nestled next to a
  pile of sweet coleslaw.

?


texts:
I want to ask about a article before a position of job, because I have problem for using it. My sentence looks that:

  My position was the/a/an/none e-shop back-end  and  front-end  software developer.


texts:
What are the means of "hands full of gimme" ? What means gimme ?

this from a song

Republicrats and Democans
It ain't no surprise
Got their hands full of gimme
Got their mouths full of lies

-- Don Edwards - Hard Times In The Country


texts: But interesting all the same - how to understand this?

texts:
How one would understand a phrase:

  But interesting all the same

What is it's usage? Really puzzling.


texts:
Can anyone explain the difference between 'at the swimming pool' and 'in the swimming pool'.
I believe that 'at' is used to explain why you go to a particular place, however people say.
I'm going to the swimming pool.
It is the same for 'Anne is still at school' and 'Anne is still in school' ?
It is very confusing
Thank you, Marie-josey


texts: Is there any difference between 'cannot' and 'could not' when using them to talk about negative deductions?

texts:
For example:

  He is very handsome. He cannot be your brother.

or

  He is very handsome. He could not be your brother.


texts:
I eat pizza, and I eat chicken.

If the clause contains 'and', should it be called a subordinate clause or coordinate clause?


texts: Does "Entering a room" and "When he entered a room" have the same meaning in this context?

texts:
I know there are many similar topics but I can't still realise could I either use the following sentences in the same meaning:

"Entering a room he saw Ann where he had left her".
"When he entered a room he saw Ann where he had left her".


texts:
I have two sentences:

  data suffers from some artefacts.
  this step is needed to reduce effect due to artefacts.

I'm struggling to choose the proper clause. In this case, would from which be suitable or not?

  this step is needed to reduce effect due to artefacts from which the
  data suffers.

What is the rule of thumb for selecting a proper clause?


texts: Differences between "the USA", "the US" and "the States"

texts:
Are the any differences in formality or context between "the USA", "the US" and "the States"?

I've tried NGram and it seems that "the US" is by far the most common expression and "the States" is the least common (would you sound like you are from the 19th century if you used it?). Of course, the search doesn't include spoken language.

Finally, in a conversation, would you say "the US" or "the United States?


texts:
Is it ok to say, 'And then he had a child', meaning that his child was born?
Suppose I'm telling a story about a man, and the person I'm telling the story to doesn't know that the man has a child.