texts:
I came across this interesting question:

Would have done

I know that there are already other discussions about it. But, as you know, a different context often changes a meaning of a sentence,.. and I'm struggling on MIGHT/WOULD one more time.

I wondered whether the modal "might" can have the same meaning as "would"
in the following sentences:

  Lyn might have been sending texts consecutively for 15 minutes.

  We saw a police helicopter overhead yesterday morning.
  Really? They might have been looking for those bank robbers.
  [please see the article]

I'm not sure about the first one because "might" makes me think only of something
Sir Alex Ferguson doesn't know, but he thinks possible, whereas "Would" makes me
think that the Lyn's work (sending text) had been arranged before.
Therefore Sir Ferguson expected Lyn to do that. What do you think about it?


texts:
The night Esmeralda married Gringoire,
  Quasimodo had been the bell-ringer at Notre
  Dame for several years. This was thanks to his
  foster father, Claude Frollo. Quasimodo loved
  his job. He felt as one with the great church
  of Notre Dame. He’d grown up inside it. He
  was familiar with every inch of its walls,
  floors, and ceilings. The church had been his
  nest, his home, his country—his universe!
  But an evil fate seemed to stalk the poor
  orphan. The sound made by the huge bells
  had broken Quasimodo’s eardrums. He
  became deaf at 14. Before this, his hearing
  was the only thing that was normal about
  him. Now his soul was plunged into profound
  darkness. His sadness had become as complete
  as his ugliness! From the moment he lost his
  hearing, he decided to keep silent. In a way,
  this protected him from other people’s
  mocking laughter.
  His favorite activity was ringing the bells.
  When he pulled the ropes, the whole tower
  trembled. It was the only sound that broke
  through the silence.

Dose it mean: this sound just broke his silence.because he decided not to talk.


texts:
The two pictures are screenshots taken from a FPS game.
When I came to this, one of the marines beside me said to me, "That’s the ridge through there. We’ll buy you as much time as we can. See you at the victory parade, Sergeant."
Does he mean that you need to creep under the rock and get to the ridge, or the ridge is the rock ahead and you'll have to creep through it?
Why not say "There’s the ridge through there"? It seems clearer.


texts: What does "order" mean in "to the order of"?

texts:
I read a sentence in "The Hindu" which was:

It is estimated that since the barter trade commenced along two routes across the LoC in October 2008, employment to the order of more than 1.6 lacs days had been created.

I don't know what "to the order of mean" here.
Could the word "order" mean degree here?


texts: Asking the views of people about a past event

texts:
I asked a question on Quora:

  Who had to be the Caliph of Muslims in the view of Sunnis? W or Z?

Or

  In the view of Sunnis, who should have been the Caliph of Muslims? W or Z?

In both cases Quora's moderator says I should modify it with this message:

  Your question may need editing to be easier to understand. Please double check for spelling, phrasing, or other mistakes.

Which could be a fixed message for any question which is not follow English grammars or is not fluent.

What is the problem of each and which one is preferred?

As a context, it refers to a conflict happened 1400 years ago; and both Shia and Sunni have the same opinions over it.


texts:
I came across "means" in my studies. Here is excerpt out of my business course book.

For a fax the same rules apply as for a business letter,
"only the means of communication is different".

means @ Cambridge Dict.

"means" is singular here but a plural noun used with "is different"

Question 1: Do we see "means" always in singular in such context or others ?

Question 2: Would be "only the meanings of communication are different" similar to the use of "the means of communication" ?

Question 3: Can we use "only the mean of communication is different"? Singular

Cambridge Dict. says here:
Even though it ends in an ‘s’, means is a singular noun. We use a singular verb with it. We use it to talk about a method of doing something:

The most economical means of travelling to Aberdeen is by plane. (the most economical method or way)

Not: … most economical mean … or … most economical means are …


texts: Can I use the words constitutes and construe interchangeably?

texts:
Additional information:

I've heard these two words a lot of times and in different kinds of using and came up with the conclusion that these two words pretty close in terms of usage.

There's the video that includes these two terms:

  1 What constitutes a good life?

  2  And if we have misconstrued the relationship between biological complexity and the possibilities of experience

  3 Now, many of you might worry that the notion of well-being is truly undefined, and seemingly perpetually open to be re-construed

  4 There is clearly a range of materials that constitute healthy food

Questions:

  1) Can I use the words constitutes and construe interchangeably.

In case if I can use them interchangeably sometimes then when I can do it and when I can't?

  2) Can I use these terms interchangeably in the #1 and #4?

  3) Is it right expression: 'How to construe our life of itself'?


texts: How to explain that the sum was calculated from the numbers contained in the list?

texts:
I mean, how to say that "contained in the list" relates to the numbers and not the sum.

When I write "The sum of the numbers are contained in the list." Grammarly corrects me and says that I must write "is"


texts:
He has written to me for a long time and each time I have received his letter, I have felt  happy.
  He has written to me for a long time and each time I receive his letter, I feel happy.
  He has written to me for a long time and each time I received his letter, I felt happy.

Is it possible to use each with present perfect?  Are all these sentences valid?

Does the last sentence mean that my friend stopped recently writing to me?


texts: Weird commercial catchphrase of Seven Eleven Japan

texts:
I bought a cup of americano at the Seven Eleven Japan.
I found an English phrase written on the paper cup like below:

  Seven Cafe
  Delicious beverages and sweets are made fresh, with only the finest ingredients, to add satisfying moments to your day.

I feel somewhat weird about the above. For instance, 'be made fresh' is probably weird English.

I fixed grammatically incorrect expressions of this article. for the below thankful commentaries which correct the article, I archived what I modified.

a English phrase --> an English phrase
wroted --> written
some weird on --> some weird about
be make fresh --> be made fresh


texts:
He visits his grandparents once in every 2-3 years.

vs

  He visits his grandparents once every 2-3 years .

vs

  He visits his grandparents every 2-3 years.

What's the difference between the three of the above sentences? Which one is more natural?


texts:
Archaeologists have discovered a new tomb in Egypt.

A new tomb has been discoverered in Egypt by archaeologists.
A new tomb has been discovered by archaeologists in Egypt.

Which is correct? Please  explain to me.


texts:
In a post, I call the area pointed out by red arrow the tag of "LANGUAGE", because "LANGUAGE" is a noun.

 In another post, I call it "disapproving" tag, because "disapproving" is an adjective.

In fact, I don't know which one is more common. Are there some rules for this kind of situation?


texts: When to use 'at' or 'from' after an adjective

texts:
Yesterday, I asked the difference between at and from following the adjective relieved.  I was met with a great answer describing the differences between the prepositions following that particular adjective.
I now know this example is grammatically correct:

I was relieved at the news that my grandmother's surgery was successful.

However, I'm still confused as to what the differences between the two are after different adjectives.  Consider the following sentences (I don't know if these are correct or not -- I'm only basing them off what sounds the best to my ears):

I became hungry at the smell of the cookies.
I was exhausted from working all day.
I got excited at the sight of her face.
I'm broke from having spent all my money at the bar.

I know there are better ways to word these examples with altogether different prepositions, but I'm trying to understand these particular two.


texts:
I couldn't get the difference between these?

give me a two hour leave

give me two hours leave

What is more, when it comes to using the latter, which one would you rather use?
two hours' leave
two hour leave


texts: Do 'make a joke of' and 'joke around' have the same meaning?

texts:
As I found in the dictionary, to 'make a joke of' something means 'laugh or be humorous about (something that is not funny in itself)',
and to joke around means to act amusingly and without seriousness.

From the dictionary definition, I'm not sure whether they mean the same or not, but I guess they do have similar meaning..

What I want to write is :

1) He used to say with a bit of a joke(not seriously) that he was a genius.

And then both

2) He used to make jokes of himself that he was a genius.

3) He used to joke around with himself that he was a genius.

have the same meaning? So 1),2),3) all mean the same and are interchangeable sentence here?


texts:
I'm in discussion with a friend of mine and we can't seem to come to an agreement. We're specifically discussing a passage in the King James Bible in Revelation 1:4,

  John to the seven churches which are in Asia: Grace be unto you, and peace, from him which is, and which was, and which is to come; and from the seven Spirits which are before his throne;

The specific phrase, "which is to come". I've understood the words, "to come" to be an infinitive, but what is the aspect of it? I thought it would be a present tense infinitive and my friend is saying that it has to be a future tense infinitive because every time you see, "to <word>" it's referring to the future.


texts:
A non-native English speaker told me:

  Hope you are smooth in your plan.

What does it mean?

The only thing I found in Longman dictionary is:

  someone who is smooth is polite, confident, and relaxed, but is often not sincere

This meaning does not make sense here.


texts: What does "if not" mean in the given sentence

texts:
Let there be given this sentence (which came from an English-Chinese dictionary):

  The contest has become personalised, if not bitter.

Then what does the phrase if not mean?

Seeking after is a general guide or rule of such usage.


texts:
If I don't want a paper or a pen. What's the right way to say it out of these two choices?

  I do not want neither a paper nor a pen.

or

  I want neither a paper nor a pen.

I believe that do not + neither is double negatives, but I'm not sure about that and I'd like to ensure it before I'm going to use it in future.


texts:
Would you say

I came/was from a poor family
I come/am from a poor family

My family used to be poor but not anymore. Normally, you would say I am from this country because that is your native country. However for this question your origin has changed from being poor to not being one. I would use came/was from a poor family. But I heard someone say "I am from a middle class family" even though that person is rich now.


texts: "fruit juice" vs "fruit juices" How can such liquid substance as "juice" be pluralized unless it is contained in a can, bottle etc.?

texts:
While reading this article from Bangkok Post.com, I noticed the word "juice" and its plural form "juices" are both used.

Consumers have long regarded fruit juice as a healthy option,
especially when compared to carbonated soft drinks. But many credible
scientific studies have found that drinking fruit juice is not the
same as consuming fruit, because some commercial fruit juice
products contain as much sugar as soft drinks, sometimes even more.
Such findings have been bad news for producers of mass-market fruit
juices, as consumers are now looking for healthier alternatives.

 ... Many of these writers have noted the misconceptions about the health
benefits of fruit juices and warned about high sugar content in some
brands.

It isn't difficult to guess from the context that the "fruit juices" probably refers to fruit juice products, but if that is the case, I thought the writer should have written so.
Collins Dictionary defines "juice" and "juices" as below.

Juice:1. Juice is the liquid that can be obtained from a fruit. 2. The juices of a piece of meat are the liquid that
comes out of it when you cook it.
Juices: 1. the liquid that comes out of a piece of meat when it is cooked 2. the liquid that occurs naturally in or is
secreted by plant or animal tissue

I wonder which one of the four definitions above is applicable to the "juices" described in the article.


texts:
I didn't grow out of it.

or

  I haven't grown out of it.

Which sentence is grammatically more correct? I'd rather say the second, but  I saw in the text the first one.


texts: Whats the difference between upbraid and castigate?

texts:
They are synonyms but I want to know which is used when.

Can they be interchanged in any sentence?


texts: Difference between Let me go / Let me off

texts: What's the difference between the two or are they the same? are there any other similar words in terms of meaning? In the context where you're pleading someone, which is better?


texts: Do I have to add 'as' in 'It was (as) clear as water'?

texts:
Do I have to add 'as' in the following sentence?

  It was (as) clear as water

I ran a search on ngram and didn't find much difference between the two options.


texts: the accuracy of A vs. A is indeed accurate

texts:
First of all, I wanna thank everyone here and I felt so fortunate to find this wonderful forum.
Here is my question. What's the difference between the sentences below in terms of implications and tones?

I will be able to determine that this article is indeed accurate.

I will be able to determine the accuracy of this article.

Many thanks,
Leon


texts: Bride-to-be and groom-to-be are pretty much commonly used. My question is can we say father-in-law to be or mother-in-law to be? Or if that's not correct,  what do we say here?


texts: A question regarding the indefinite pronoun "something"

texts:
I'm having trouble with the following sentences. Which one is correct, or both are possibly correct too?

  1) Wow...something smells good! Is it hot dogs?
  2) Wow...something smells good! Are they hot dogs?

I understand that 'something'(also referring to the plural object; i.e. hot dogs) is a singular indefinite pronoun.

Should I use is or are in this sense?

Thanks.


texts:
Quoting this Wikipedia article:

  Another adjective with a special postpositive meaning is proper: in
  phrases like the town proper, Sweden proper, it means something like
  "strictly defined".

My question is: is it correct to use the noun in plural form here? For example:

def find_dir(args):
    '''Find the directory, which contains the compilers proper'''
    # ...


texts: how to differentiate between simple command and habit which which has been said in simple present tense?

texts:
consider sentence:-

"You do this."

i can interpret this in two ways:-

i am asking someone to do something it is command.
i am talking about his usual habit like "he always does this"

then how to indicate in which sense i am talking in?


texts: Correct usage of the prepositions 'for' and 'in'

texts:
Which of these is correct? Why is it correct?

It is natural for every man to wish for distinction.
It is natural in every man to wish for distinction.


texts: Which one can I use instead of the word ''proven''

texts:
In 1980 virus was ''proven'' to be the reason of disease.
We can replace the word ''proven'' in this sentence with the word ''considered'' or ''shown''.


texts: present perfect in relative clauses introduced by simple present

texts:
May I have your opinion on the following? I have been asked if this sentence should be:

  "this is the report I prepared"  or
  "this is the report I have prepared".

I would opt for the first version, my reasoning being that the audience supposedly know already about the document, otherwise why introduce it with "this is / here is the ...". That being the case, there is no need to use the present perfect, although the sentence on the whole is probably acceptable, as the situational context would have been be the start of a meeting. The speaker surely wanted to highlight the relevance of his work to the event about to begin.

However, a different article, as in
"this is a report I prepared/ have prepared"
would for me tip the balance in favour of the present perfect.

On the whole, I am now inclined to think that both pres. perf. and simple past could be acceptable in the original instance of the sentence. My judgement was probably skewed against the present perfect due to the student's placing undue emphasis on it in pronunciation (as in: "this is the report I HAVE prepared)

What say you?


texts: Is it idiomatic to say "Your XYZ Team" in English?

texts:
Like at the end of an email... Or is it not really used?

  Dear XYZ Customers,
  Thanks for everything.
  Cheers,
  Your XYZ Team


texts: what does "umbrage-taking characters from a Seinfeld episode" mean?

texts:
Can anyone explain this phrase for me, please? "umbrage-taking characters from a Seinfeld episode"?

This is the context it was in:

  On the other hand, some of us are easily triggered — and can’t resist our first impulse. We have to speak up. This is how ugly public scenes begin. These tiny annoyances should trigger bemusement over life’s rich tapestry instead of turning us into umbrage-taking characters from a  Seinfeld episode.


texts: Is 'to' a preposition or conjunction in the sentence?

texts:
I was preoccupied with getting cute girls to like me.

What is the role of 'to' in this sentence?


texts: "Russia's regions" or "Russian regions"?

texts:
In other words, if X contains Y, do you say "X's Y"? Does the fact that X contains Y constitute possession of Y by X?
"Russian regions" is 10 times more popular on Google Scholar, so "Russian" is probably correct, but I wonder if there is a concrete rule that can be applied in cases like that.


texts: Is "envisageable" a legitimate English adjective?

texts:
I am wondering If I can say (self-made example)
Given the growth rate of the job market, a better future is envisageable.
I searched about it and it looks, it is basically a French term. So, I am not very sure about its usage in English.


texts:
The derivability of a given statement can be justified by exhibiting a derivation tree [...] For example, if

  [ some definitions ]

  then the derivability of the statement

if t then false else false --> if u then false else false

  is witnessed by the following derivation tree:

(Types and Programming Languages by Benjamin C. Pierce)

Does witnessed here means the same as is justified from above?

More examples from the same book:

  Indeed, the derivation trees witnessing evaluation statements will always have this slender form: since no evaluation rule has more than one premise, there is no way to construct a branching derivation tree.

And

  In the simple type system we are dealing with in this chapter, every term
  has a single type (if it has any type at all), and there is always just one derivation tree witnessing this fact.


texts:
Consider the following sentence from this answer:

Had there not been modern communication platforms across the globe,
scientific progress would have been impossible.

Now I want to give more explanation to the cause and effect. I wonder if it is correct to add "due to ..." at the end of the sentence? I have to explain how lack of modern communication affects scientific progress.

Had there not been modern communication platforms across the globe,
scientific progress would have been impossible due to lack of
contribution.

Is it a good modification? Does it clarify the relation between the two or it just makes the sentence more complicated?


texts:
I am curious if study can be followed by a gerund or a infinitive or both?

I studied to be a doctor :)
I studied to pass the test :)
I studied to ... (hard to think of examples)
I studied playing the piano for years (seems odd to me)
I studied reading and writing in class (these seem more like nouns than gerunds)
I studied speaking Japanese with Taro (sounds weird to me)

Any thoughts?


texts: "[Bleep] talking" What's the offensive word that was bleeped out?

texts:
In this video, Dwayne Johnson appeared on The Tonight Show and was talking about himself being named the sexiest man alive on the cover of People Magazine.

This conversation starts at 12 seconds into the video:

  Jimmy Fallon: How much grief are you getting for being on the cover of the sexiest man alive?

  Dwayne Johnson: I mean, first of all, it's an honor. It's really, really cool, right, but, yeah, I am getting so much grief especially from my boys. Of course, as you can imagine, right, everybody's just...It's just a continuation of just -- What's that term? -- Oh, [bleep] talking.

Of course, you can't hear the bleeped word, but can you guess what the word was in context? I think it might be helpful to view the video from 12 seconds.


texts:
what's the meaning of this sentence?
 "here's our app as it currently stands"
Is it mean : our app is still here or something like that?


texts:
What's difference between 'hardly' and 'rarely'?
To the questions like, "How often do you go clothes shopping?"
Should I answer as,"Rarely" or "Hardly"?


texts:
Don’t spend your whole life working in order to get something that is
  probably beyond your reach anyway. It’s far better to live in a simple
  way. If your desires are simple they are easy to satisfy and you will
  have the time and energy to enjoy the things that matter. That was his
  recipe for happiness, and it makes a lot of sense.

A little history of philosophy, Nigel Warburton

What does "it makes a lot of sense" mean? I think it means "It is very reasonable" Is it correct?


texts: Talking about ideas: "slow change of mind/slowly changing her mind"

texts:
I'm trying to understand how to write a sentence about someone who change her idea over a topic, because of what a guy tells her over time.

But I'm really not sure how to correctly write this:

  Her searching of "strong opinions" drags her into a slow change of mind

maybe it would be more appropriate to say:

  Her searching of "strong opinions" drags her into slowly changing her mind

I'm also wondering if using "searching" instead of "search" is correct, here it says that if it's a subject it should be an -ing form.

Thank you kindly for your time.


texts: "to this end", "for this purpose", etc. in the end of a sentence

texts:
I'm sure that one may say:

  For this purpose you can use a hammer.

But may one change the word order?

  You can use a hammer for this purpose

(my uncertainty is caused by Google)


texts: Which tense to use asking questions about a person`s career whose career is over but the person is alive? Presnt Perfect or Past Simple?


texts:
My preference goes to number #1. But I am not sure which one is correct.

  She always calls me when she has to go to the hospital.

Or

  She'll always call me when she has to go to the hospital.


texts:
I need to publish new version of our product that has less capabilities. Shall we name it Product Light or Product Lite?

I read Lite instead of Light but I am not sure what to use. They said that Lite is incorrect but used in branding.


texts: A pronoun for an industry can be female?

texts:
In the movie Iron Man there is the following phrase:

  Today, Tony Stark has changed the face of the weapons industry by
  ensuring freedom and protecting America and her interests around the
  globe.

Why in this text "her" is used instead of "its"?


texts:
He interrupts time off to deal with a troubled horse.

What does "interrupt time off" mean here?


texts: "effort in answering" or "effort for answering"?

texts:
I want to thank someone for answering my question by appreciating his effort. What do have I to say?

  Thanks for your effort in answering.
  Thanks for your effort for answering.


texts:
Could
a) I had four friends in high school and I don't know if they are alive or not.
be used instead of
b) I had four friends in high school who might not be alive as far as I know.
?
Does (a) necessarily imply that I had only four friends in high school? If that is the case then it cannot be used instead of (b). In (b) I might have had more than four friends in high school.


texts: Article "the" before the phrase "coolness criteria"

texts:
Tell me please why "the" was used before "coolness criteria", even though it had not been mentioned before by the author. Here is the context:

  Being regarded as cool is something that you might desire, but is this a quality you really have control over? University of Sydney psychologists Ilan Dar-Nimrod and colleagues put the coolness criteria to the test in their study of the traits that contribute to this seemingly desirable has out.

Have the author put "the" because he thinks the readers know what kind of criteria he is talking about?


texts: “The evening is spread out AGAINST the sky”

texts:
Let us go then, you and I,
  When the evening is spread out against the sky
  Like a patient etherized upon a table...

The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock by T. S. Eliot

What does against mean in this context? Why is it used instead of across?


texts: Any open position, positions, or either?

texts:
Is the following question correct in an email?

  I am following up to inquire about any current open positions at the organization.

When a countable noun follows any in sentences without to-be verbs, are they in the plural or singular?


texts:
Indians especially have a tendency to use the terms co-son-in-law and co-sister-in-law while referring to relations.

  The husband of one's wife's sister is called Co-son-in-law.
  The wife of one's husband's brother is called co-sister-in-law.

While introducing the relations to others they are called so.

The terms may be understood in the Indian sub-continent. But such terms are not understood by the native speakers.

I searched on the internet for the equivalent terms in English but I could not find them.

I here with attach two links so that you may understand what I mean:

“Co-brother” or “co son-in-law?”

https://en.m.wiktionary.org/wiki/co-sister-in-law

What are the equivalent terms used by the native speakers while introducing  them (the mentioned relatives) to others?


texts:
Is 'there is' grammatically correct in this sentence?

  There is currently no available on large-scale solution that ...


texts: The names of summer months: With or without "the"

texts:
This question is the last one for today :)

There is a sentence: "What are the names of (the) summer months?"
Is the article "the" necessary here, before "summer months"? Can the zero article be used here? The question means not specific summer months, but all of them - June, July, August.

Many thanks!


texts: What rule forbids "To boldly go where no man has gone before"?

texts:
I heard in an old British TV program (it was a funny sitcom, not an English teaching program) that it should be "To go boldly", due to some grammar rule about infinitives

Is it incorrect to say "To boldly go where no man has gone before"? What is the grammatical rule behind it if it is incorrect?


texts: Is there any difference between atemporal and tenseless?

texts: In the dictionary, 'atemporal' is often paraphrased as 'tenseless'. It thus seems that 'atemporal' is identical in meaning with 'tenseless'. Can we then speak atemporal language instead of tenseless language?


texts:
Should I use is or are in this sentence?

  100 apples are/is considered as a large number of apples.


texts: Word for changing abbreviation into text

texts:
On the Internet, I found the phrase

Function changes a short abbreviation into a text block

For instance, an abbreviation of "US" changes to "United States".
I feel there should be a single verb to express this act. But I can't find it.
In some other languages, e.g. in Russian, Ukrainian, there is such a word with the meaning of "open", "unveil", "open out", "open up", "release". Like a flower or locked box opening. What is it in English? Or would any of the mentioned words work?


texts: Trying to express a mind state - sentence correctnesss

texts:
I'm writing a letter to my employer regarding getting education assistance for my Master's program. My question: are there errors? what can I do to express this sentiment better? Should I split this in different sentences as in (option 2)
Option 1: The master’s program will keep me in a mind state of “active learning” which will enable me to learn the different <Company X's> systems faster.
Option 2: The master's program will keep me in a mind state of "active learning". This will enable me to learn the different <Company X's> systems faster


texts: plural or singular when using noun as adj

texts:
emissions data / services industry

I was told when using nouns as adjectives in compound nouns, the nouns should be in their singular form. But I've found many exceptions as listed above. Can you help me to understand the rationale behind?


texts:
Listen to her ___ the song and then tell us what you think of it.

A) to sing

B) to be singing

C) being sung

D) to have sung

E) sing

I think answer should be either "C" or "E" but I'm not really sure.


texts: did I match correctly both tenses past simple and present perfect

texts:
Can't finalize my order because I have forgotten my password, so I tried to recover it but did not manage to

will it be better to use forgot in that sentence even if at the time of writing I still have not recovered it OR use present perfect for try and manage


texts: check something out or check out something?

texts:
I think that term "check this out" is more natural than "check out this", while in contrast I think "check out this source code" is more natural than "check this source code out";

Would you please say is my feeling/conclusion right and is there a general rule for the verb "check out" or even some verbs like that?


texts: Clarifying "don't like you because" or "like you not because"

texts: 'I don't like you because you have money', this sentence is a little logically weird for me, though I know it conveys the same meaning of the sentence 'I like you not because you have money'. Can I directly say the second one instead of the first?


texts: How to describe the situation where there's a small problem but everything else is fine?

texts:
I can think of:

  The program works fine but there is one problem.

And that statement is plain wrong because if the program is fine then there shouldn't be a problem. But if there is a problem that means that the program doesn't work fine.

But I want to say that majority of the program works fine and some part doesn't.

How do I say that in a neat way?


texts: What is the meaning of 'N-SING' in the Collins COBUILD dictionary?

texts: N-SING represents singular noun according to the explanation in the Collins COBUILD dictionary. Can I interpret it as a noun that is countable but unable to be used in plural form and only able to be used in singular form?


texts:
Introducing the new service, which provides
support and guidance for those of you
with caring responsibilities.


texts:
1)So as promised by me , I would be doing it for you.
2)So as promised by me , I will be doing it for you.
A person said first sentence to me , when I did the work he asked. What happens if he used will instead of would ? What is the difference in meaning between these two sentences?


texts:
What is the difference?

He is not home.
He is not at home.

Can I use these two phrases interchangeably?


texts:
consider:

  Watercolor is by reputation an amateur's medium.

I think I can rephrase above sentence as below:

  From the reputation point of view, watercolor is an amateur's medium.

Am I right?

If the answer is yes, can we always use "Noun + be + By + Noun" to explain an especial aspect of the subject rather using conjunctive adverbs, "From the bla bla point of view".


texts: How and when we have to use sentence construction 'was/were to have+ v3' to create sentences

texts:
What is the meaning of following sentences?

  The work was to have been complete today.

(Can I also say: "The work was to have completed today" ? Or The work was to have been completed today" But why "been" has been used in above sentence?)

  If she were to have thought about it a bit more, she wouldn't have done that.

How and when we can use the sentence construction or structure was/were to + have + past participle or v3? Is it a causative form?


texts: How should I interpret "before" and "or" in this sentence?

texts:
Attach the platform entry chain, lower the platform mid-rail, or close
  the entry gate before operating.

Does it mean "Before operating, attach the platform entry chain, or lower the platform mid-rail, or close the entry gate"? Or does it mean "Attach the platform entry chain, or lower the platform mid-rail, or (close the entry gate before operating)"?


texts: Where does the phrase "I'm so shook/shocked/shaken" come from?

texts: I have often seen people say this phrase using these different words to convey the same idea of being surprised about something. I have debated with people about the proper word to use in the phrase. Some people say that "I'm so shook" is not the right way to say it because the use of "shook" is grammatically incorrect. However, some people say that it's not incorrect but just an informal phrase and that it's only wrong according to the conventions of Standard English. What I'm most curious about is how these three words came to be used in the same phrase? Did these three words descend from one word or idea which is why people use these words interchangeably or did these words descend from different words but are spelled so similarly that people became confused about the differences between these words?


texts: how does "not earlier than in [time period]" sound to a native English speaker?

texts: I noticed that this pattern is often used by English speaking Russians. How does it sound to a native English speaker? Usage example: "I could do that, but not earlier than in a month".


texts: Can we shorten explanatory "that is" to "that's" in speech and writing?

texts:
I've never seen or heard the explanatory "that is" shortened to "that's", but it wouldn't hurt to be sure if it's possible or not

  When you recount a story, you can either use past or present tenses, but consistency is key. That is, if you choose present tenses, for instance, to portray some of the events of a story set in the past, then you should stick with present tenses for the entire story.


texts: Here, does infinitive imply planed event?

texts:
There's a seminar being held. And one of the sessions is about the introduction of New Product, starting at 10 am. And I'd like to know which one is the best choice among followings and if these are right grammatically.

There will a session to introduce the new product at 10 am.

A session to introduce the new product is scheduled to take place at 10 am.

And I'd like to know if the infinitive 'to introduce', modifying session, is suggesting that the introduction of the new product is sheduled in the session.


texts: Consider the Cambridge English examinations, does "productive vocabulary" have a higher priority than "receptive vocabulary"

texts:
A Cambridge English vocabulary says

  The list covers vocabulary appropriate to the B1 level on the Common European Framework of Reference (CEFR) and includes receptive vocabulary (words that the candidate is expected to understand but which is not the focus of a question) and productive vocabulary (words that the candidate needs to know to answer a question).

If some candidates know only part of the receptive vocabulary, they may guess what the question is; if they know only part of the productive vocabulary, they may have enough vocabulary to constitute the answer.

So, consider only the examinations, does "productive vocabulary" have a higher priority than "receptive vocabulary"?


texts: Meaning of "As she'd be the first to admit"

texts:
Just recently, by air mail, I received an invitation to a wedding that will take place in England on April 18th. It happens to be a wedding I'd give a lot to be able to get to, and when the invitation first arrived, I thought it might just be possible for me to make the trip abroad, by plane, expenses be hanged. However, I've since discussed the matter rather extensively with my wife, a breathtakingly levelheaded girl, and we've decided against it--for one thing, I'd completely forgotten that my mother-in-law is looking forward to spending the last two weeks in April with us. I really don't get to see Mother Grencher terribly often, and she's not getting any younger.  She's fifty-eight. (As she'd be the first to admit.)

Dose it mean: They first had decided to invite his mother-in-law?

And dose "admit" mean: Alow to enter?

Source: https://genius.com/Jd-salinger-for-esme-with-love-and-squalor-annotated


texts:
Mary was very busy. That, however, didn't stop her from checking
  (on/out) Mrs. Johnsons' research.

Is it necessary to add on or out in cases like this? If so, why?


texts: Cleft Sentence: "No one saw the thief" -- "It was anyone who did not see the thief"?

texts:
No one saw the thief.

If I rewrite the sentence as "It was anyone who did not see the thief", is it the same in meaning with the original one?


texts: How do I email a clinic to book a consultation?

texts:
I want to email a clinic to book a consultation about some cosmetic problem I've been dealing with.

Can I say

  I'd like to consult about ...(some cosmetic problem)

Is this the right way to use "consult"?
And does this automatically imply that I will come in person? If not, how should I specify that I want to come in person?


texts:
With his right arm raised, I was thinking ...

I thought with his right arm raising. Why use raised?


texts:
My recruiter started his email with phrase : I hope you're doing well.

Is it correct to reply : Thanks, I am doing well and I hope you're doing well too.


texts:
import {noun}:
1. (usually imports) A commodity, article, or service brought in from abroad for sale:
2. [in singular] The implicit meaning or significance of something

How do 'importance' and definition 2 of 'import' differ? I ask not about definition 1 above that 'importance' lacks.


texts: "I'm avoiding traveling" or "I'm avoiding to travel"

texts:
Is it correct to use two present continuous verb successively?
For example

I'm avoiding traveling

Or it should be

I'm avoiding to travel


texts: What role does the definite article "the" play?

texts:
What function does "the" have in sentences and  how do I use it correctly, effectively and appropriately?

Can I say the following:

  What is the real use of "the"?

Is the pronunciation of "the" always the same? I seem to remember hearing once  that the pronunciation of the can change. For example, in the sentence above is there any difference between the first and second "the"?

Why is a definite article needed before "real use"?


texts: Sentence struture - Reversing and starting with No

texts:
"No Software will be developed for this project".

What's wrong with above sentence?
I get a "Passive voice (consider reversing)" suggestion on the "will be" part from Word grammar checker. However, I don't see a need to reverse it when not sure who/when that particular action take place. Apart from that, Is it grammatically correct or not?
Can it be rephrased in better way because i feel it is bit harsh when read.
Is it generally ok to structure a sentence starting with no?

Please suggest.


texts: How understandable is "sans" as the opposite of with?

texts:
I use on occasion sans for without. It has the advantage to consist of the same number of letters (great for nice code formatting). Also, writing without is 75% longer and I don't like it.

Of course there's w/ as an abbreviation but partly I wish to use full words (albeit short ones) and partly, consider the below.

  Oh, so clever: with/sans $$$
  Plain stupid: with/w/o $$$

My fear's that people in general don't understand the context of sans and/or that they find my text unnatural, though.

Example from coding world.

public enum Equipment
{
  None,
  With,
  Sans,
  Full
}


texts: How to use 'my own self' in this sentence?

texts:
Would you say "My own self is doing his homework" or "My own self is doing my homework"? Or is it wrong to use "my own self" in this way?
Technically, I think it should be possible even if not widely used (searching on google gives no results; never read anything that resembles with this structure) and I'm more inclined towards the former. But both of them sound unnatural.
Context: I was writing a blog post when I happened to just write the following sentence down:

Deadline is knocking on the door like my own decrepit self banging his
head on the wall.

On rereading, I realized that it sounds off. I'm sure I can phrase it differently if it comes to that, but I'd like to know anyway.


texts: how to prevent 2 'on' coming together in a sentence

texts:
For the sentence,

Sharp changes are provided later on, on the casting rather than on the pattern.

Is it grammatically correct to have 2 'on' together. What would be a better way to phrase the sentence.


texts: why does present perfect sometimes fit with simple past and sometimes not

texts:
3: He decided that he had had enough and now he regretted it
(where Present Perfect he has had enough is invalid in conjunction with Simple Past regretted)

but in a song of Lou Reed "Pale Blue Eyes" I found this " I thought of you as everything I've had but could not keep," we have also a present perfect with a simple past, why in one case it is possible (my example) and not in Lecelot's example. Is it because regretted does not imply a single moment

I really don't understand the difference between these 2 examples


texts:
"He's on the fifth drink or something since we got here. It looks pretty intense/intensive. Maybe we should go talk to him."

Could both "intense" and "intensive" be used here naturally? Do they differ in meaning?


texts: What do you call the act of giving new meanings to old existing words?

texts: I am wondering if there's a word for it? I can't think of a word that means that, and yet it would be a useful words since a lot of people did that in the past, especially in the area of philosophy and science.


texts:
The first thing I did was buy the tickets to go to Europe.
  The first thing I did was to buy the tickets to go to Europe.
  The first thing I did was buying the tickets to go to Europe.

Can someone tell me which of the following sentences is correct and why?


texts: Is it possible in this case not to backshift

texts:
I wrote this request to a supplier:

  Please don't send the order before all records from the series have been out

I now want to write:

  After I ordered both records, I wrote you not to send the order before all records from the series have been available

Can I use present perfect with no need to backshift, as I know all records from the series (at the time of writing this message) have not been out yet?


texts: 'It's great fun to play with somebody.' vs 'It's great fun playing with somebody.'

texts:
I wonder if anyone here can help: 'It's great fun to play with him' and 'It's great fun playing with him'. Are they both correct? I feel the second one sounds more natural, but how about the first one?
Many thanks!


texts:
Do English speakers in UK or US use the term "iron" for the tool to press clothes to remove creases?

E.g. I had a problem to find pictures of iron like this:

What I find mostly was this:

How do the natives distinguish between these two "things"?


texts: "leave many [N] to look for…" vs. "leave many [N] looking for…"

texts:
SAT Grammar Question

  Others, like court interpreter Ludmila Baker, believe that technology will ultimately leave many translators and interpreters _______ for new careers.

  a) to look
  b) looking

Which of the two is grammatically correct and why?


texts: "the only tree not to be blown over" - How to explain this correct use of passive voice on a Cambridge exam?

texts:
I am working with some students on Cambridge First and in the second part of the "use of English" there is an exercise in Part 4 you have to complete the second sentence so that it has a similar meaning to the first sentence, using the word given. You must use between two to five words.

The example is

  All the trees apart from that big apple tree were blown over in the storm.

  I have to use the word ONLY to fill :

  That big apple tree was the ......be blown over in the storm.

My question is how do I explain the use of "was the only one not to be blown over"?

I know it is like that because it's like that, but how could I explain the conversion?


texts:
I have come across it in a  TED video . It is at 1 minute and 6 second. Here is the context:

  Agloe is a scrabblization of the initials of the two guys who made this map.

I have looked up the word on the internet and no definition came up. I suspect the noun scrabblization  derives from the verb scrabble, but still I cannot make head nor tail of the sentence.


texts: What does "be scattershot friendly to sb." mean? Is "scattershot" here an adverb?

texts:
I'm starting to read Steve Jobs today. I came across this sentence,

  He had been scattershot friendly to me over the years...

What does "be scattershot friendly to sb." mean? Is "friendly" here an adverb, or is "scattershot" here is used as an adverb? Is this an idiomatic phrase in American English?

p.s. I really want to know if the phase is "be friendly to sb." or "be scattershot to sb.". If it is “be friendly to sb.”，is it acceptable in English grammar using a noun or an adjective to modify another adjective? Can I say something like "You've been unusual friendly to me"?


texts: use of indefinite article (help with sentence example)

texts:
The job required an impressive intelligence and strength.

  The job required impressive intelligence and strength.

Are they both correct? What's their difference in meaning?


texts: What is the meaning of "a little cushion" and "at yard sales"?

texts:
Yes, money is our madness. Last year, we thought we had found a
  little cushion when I published a book about the life here in suburban
  America. It sold 12 copies——six of them to my mother. Four other
  copies went to various aunts and uncles, who used them for martini
  coasters (杯垫), then sold them at yard sales. The two remaining copies
  went to perfect strangers. (I think I owe you dinner, whoever you are.
  Call me, OK? We’ll arrange something.)


texts: What's the meaning of 'And wouldn't they be devastated?'?

texts:
Ferguson.

  Too old.

  Willis.

  Too stupid.

  Boyd.

  Too queer.

  Really? He's married with three kids.

  And wouldn't they be devastated? All right.

  What about Catherine durant? Cathy Durant? She was vocally
  anti-Walker. She's got the experience.

(from 'House of Cards')

I didn't understand the line 'And wouldn't they be devastated?'. I guess it is related to the subjunctive mood, but I'm not sure about its meaning.


texts: Does this compound sentence act as the object of the preposition 'after'?

texts:
In the  construction

  The decision to block Mr. Sondland from being interviewed was delivered at the last minute, after the ambassador had already flown to Washington from Europe, and lawmakers had returned from a two-week recess to observe the questioning.

does the compound sentence

  the ambassador had already flown to Washington from Europe, and lawmakers had returned from a two-week recess to observe the questioning.

act as the object of the preposition after?


texts: What does the phrase "in stark terms" mean?

texts:
It is from Crash Course World History. It is at 1 minute and 7 second. Here is the context:

  In the most stark terms, the absence of food led the deaths, difectly and indirectly, of 20 million peopledufing those years.

I  checked all the meanings of the words in the phrase, but still I cannot get what it means.


texts: Can we use tenses as we normally do to tell the listener the timings of the imaginary events?

texts:
When we talk about an imaginary scenario, can we use tenses as we normally do to tell the listener the timings of the imaginary events?

By the way, do different subjects like those in the examples (a person and I) affect anything regarding tense use and grammar (I mean, anything else from the subject-verb agreement)?

Example 1 is using present tense to indicate the imaginary present and past tense to indicate the imaginary past.

Example 1:

My friend: What are you doing?

Me:

  (Telling my friend an imaginary scenario) A person meets a beautiful girl. He is talking to her. Two days ago, they once met at a library. She was reading a book. He didn't know what the book was about. Now it seems like they can hang out because a moment ago, he found that she was reading a book he likes. They will have a lot to talk about.

Example 2 is using past subjunctive mood to indicate the different timings.

Example 2:

My friend: What are you doing?

Me:

  (Telling my friend an imaginary scenario) I met a beautiful girl. I (was or were?) talking to her. Two days ago, we had met at a library. She had been reading a book. I hadn't known what the book had been about. Now it seemed like we could hang out because a moment ago, I just had found that she had been reading a book I like. We would have a lot to talk about.


texts:
I wanted to borrow a cable from someone and said:
"Can I get your cable?"
I wonder if 'get' can be said instead of 'borrow' or are they used in different contexts?


texts:
The question is "If you could be any age, what age would you be?"

The answer: (assuming I am teen)

"If I could be any age, I would be 20 because I can/could drive a car."

"If I could be any age, I would be 30 because I want/would want to see my baby."

Are both answers correct?

Does the conjunction "because" change the verb tense (after it) to present or does it remain future tense?

How does this conditional work?


texts:
Is the usage of with in the sentence below correct?

  The user ensures the correctness of the program with considering the model.


texts:
I was reading a novel and in the novel I read a sentence, which did not sound fine to me.

From the novel:

  He always escaped to go study.

But I knew it was perfectly (as I trust the writer and I am a non-native English speaker) fine there, but I need to know where and when should I avoid to before some words (maybe they are adverbs)?
 I also know that we do not use to before them (as they are adverbs):

  Home, out, outside, somewhere, anywhere, nowhere, abroad, downtown,
  downstairs, upstairs, underground, there, here, in, inside.

We do not use to before them as well (I think study comes in this category):

  go play, going shopping, go shopping.

My question is that are they also adverbs? if yes then please let me know the list when I should avoid to before them.


texts: What's the difference between "at the end" and "by the end"?

texts:
If the subject is the (end times). What would be the difference between the following:

At the end of the (end times)
By the end of the (end times)


texts:
One philosophy class and one art history class alone add up to
  fifteen pounds in books.

And what is the usage of "pounds in sth"?


texts: What is the meaning of "A is the good, B is the bad and C is the ugly"?

texts:
If A is the good, B is the bad and C is the ugly, what does this statement imply? That:

C is even worse than B
C is something intermediate, not good, not bad
C is "outside of the box" and can't be measured on A -- B scale
C is good, but low on aesthetics ("ugly"), which lowers its value
C is not just bad, but also unbeautiful, which makes it even worse than B

Examples

The one that triggered that question (link):

  In a good world, this implies that we can effectively find a canonical form. In a bad world, this does not even imply that we can effectively find graph ids. In an ugly world, it implies that there are graph ids in FP, but none of these are of the canonical form kind.

Here I suppose it means "between good and bad".
The place where I first saw these words together, the GStreamer documentation:

  gst-plugins-good   a set of good-quality plug-ins under our preferred license, LGPL
  gst-plugins-bad    a set of plug-ins that need more quality, testing or documentation
  gst-plugins-ugly   a set of good-quality plug-ins that might pose distribution problems

Here I suppose it's "not on the good-bad scale".
Go: the Good, the Bad and the Ugly

  The Good

  Go is easy to learn...

  The Bad

  Go ignored advances in modern language design...

  The Ugly

  The dependency management nightmare...

Does it actually correspond to "good", "medium", "bad" here? Or is the division into "bad" and "ugly" simply arbitrary?


texts:
My nephew was given to transform a sentence using verb form of 'dress'. The sentence was:

  Her dress was poor.

I suggested him the following sentence.

  She was dressed poorly.

But it occurred to me that here "dressed" is a participle. I desisted from from using a sentence like this:

  She dressed poorly.

Because 'dress' seems to me more like a causative verb. Please suggest the best possible answer.


texts:
As a learner I always use:

Make something adjective, as in,

  I need to make it clean.

But today I saw:

  You need to rub hard to get it clean.

Are they both valid to a native speaker?


texts:
Yesterday, I saw a sentence in my textbook. It goes,

  As people change, so languages change.

To me, it also means: The language changes in the same way people change.

However, what makes me confused for so long is the difference between the above sentence and the following saying.

  As you sow, so shall you reap.

To me, it also means: you reap what you sow.

Notwithstanding, why does the saying below have the structure of inversion but the sentence in my textbook doesn't?

Don't their "as……, so……" mean the same thing? Can you tell me how to use it and when to use it? Does it need inversion behind?


texts: Is it correct to say “He was breaking his own record.” after ten minutes of victory?

texts: Context: The car race has just ended ten minutes ago. He not only won the match but broke his own record. Breaking a record in sport takes only a moment. And it just makes sense to me that we are not allowed to use the past continuous ten minutes after someone has broken a record. Is it correct to say “He was breaking his own record” ten minutes after a victory?


texts:
What differences are there between using the present tense 'have', future tense 'will have', and the future progressive tense 'will be having' in the following two sentences (one statement and one question):

1) I HAVE/ WILL HAVE / WILL BE HAVING a test tomorrow morning.

My thoughts: 'Will have' seems to be the least likely option as it indicates a sudden decision of wanting to take a test as opposed to sitting a scheduled event planned in advance. 'Have' is definitely more common than 'will be having', yet I don't see any problems with the latter. So why is that the case???

2) Does anyone know when we WILL BE HAVING / WILL HAVE/ HAVE the test?

My thoughts: My ear tells me using 'have' here is grammatically incorrect, as the sentence calls for the usage of future tense in that position. What I find hard to distinguish however are the other two. When should I choose 'will be having' over 'will have' and vice versa???

Many thanks in advance.


texts: How do I ask for the buzzer code when I move to a new apartment

texts:
I am moving to a new apartment this weekend and I need to go to a person who mostly likely is sitting in the lobby of the apartment and works for the apartment for the buzzer code that can connect to my phone.

I wonder in this case how the conversation would go? Should I go up to him/her and say some like

  Hi are you working for this apartment? I am a new tenant living at 2009. Can I request a buzzer code?

Please please free point out anything that sounds unnatural and also please suggest any alternatives.

Also the room number I am living at is 2009. How do we normally say it? Do we say

two thousand and nine
twenty zero nine
two double zero nine


texts: How should I write the abbreviation for "okay"? (ok, Ok, OK)

texts:
How should I write abbreviation for "okay"?
The options are: ok, Ok, OK.

I've never took any notice of it, but recently someone (that he's not a native English speaker) told me that I should write OK. Is that true?


texts:
(My english is bad, pardon me if i do any mistake in framing the question)
i am always confused b/w active and passive sentences .

Can some one elaborate me about active and passive,

For eg: If i run a test on my PC (I am a software tester) and it gets failed

What should be the form of sentence : Active or Passive
1)My test is failing
or

2)My test is being failed.


texts: A student who runs away from the school by making false excuses is said to be? what is the proper word for a student who is not interested in studies and tries to stay away from school/college etc


texts:
Going through an exercise in a book I found the following allegedly correct sentence:

  Far better to do that than buy presents for everybody!

Is it correct? If I can replace "buy presents for everybody" with "this", does that mean that the correct form of the original sentence should be "buying presents for everybody"?


texts:
How your room would light up if you won't shift the curtains aside and let the sunshine come in.

Is the word shift correct when used about curtains in this context?


texts: Stuck writing a sentence because tea is a 'beverage' and water is not!

texts:
I am writing an article on tea. I want to say that...

  Tea is the most consumed _____________ after water.

The problem is tea is a beverage but water is not. So, if I come up with this sentence, it's incorrect.

  Tea is the most consumed beverage in the world after water -incorrect, because water is not a beverage.

Being a doctor, I think it's possible to have water be a beverage because when water is fortified with some other nutrients it turns into a beverage. Having said that, bottled water can be considered as a beverage but water itself is often not classified as a beverage.

Another way is...

  Tea is the most consumed thing in the world after water -incorrect, because tea is not a thing.

Yet another try...

  Tea is the most consumed drink in the world after water -incorrect, because water is not a drink.

I'm skeptical about using drink as a noun here. I'm utterly fine with the verb drink, as you drink water.

I'm stuck on this, because they both are consumable liquids. But one is a beverage and I'm not very sure about the other. But in a common sentence, I want to include them both as 'the most consumed _______' in the world.


texts:
Owing to his illness he could not come to school.
  It was due to his illness he could not come to school
  Due to his illness he could not come to school

I know that the statements 1 and 2 are correct. But what
about the third one? Is  it acceptable in standard English?


texts:
I have a question about what preposition to use with the phrase "make a delivery":

  The mailman made a delivery at the house.
  The mailman made a delivery to the house.

The justification for "make a delivery at" in sentence 1 is that the mailman had to arrive "at" the house to the make the delivery.  So "make a delivery at" seems more correct than "make a delivery to".  What do native speakers think?


texts: Someone who loves to live a luxurious life

texts:
What do you call a person who doesn't prefer the simple life and instead prefers a luxurious life? I'm looking for a term which can be discussed in sociology and even psychology. This is a phenomenon which can be considered all around the world these days. A great tendency to live luxurious life and toward luxuriousness.

You can clearly see the conspicuous consumption in their lives.

I have no idea what such a person can be called and cannot explain anymore.

What would you call them?

  He is a .....???..... person.


texts:
Let's suppose someone's goal is to get a better job, better salary and so on. Would it be idiomatic for them to say:

  I want to reach more than I have now.


texts: Present perfect continuous tense vs simple past tense

texts:
I have some problems with the present perfect continuous tense, as presented in Cambridge English Grammar in USE By Raymond Murphy.

It says:

  We use the present perfect continuous for an activity that has recently stopped or just stopped. There is a connection with now.

What is the difference between the sense of the present perfect continuous and the simple present?

You're out of breath. Have you been working? (you're out of breath now)
Did you work? (simple present)

Why are your clothes so dirty? What have you been doing?
What did you do?

I've been working hard. Now I'm going to have a break.
I've worked now I'm going to have a break.


texts:
This is a source.

  Nine out of 10 Americans say it’s important to control the information collected about them and who can see it, but fewer than 1 in 10 Americans are confident that either the government or corporations can provide that control.

What is the meaning of this phrase? Does it mean zero or anything else? Please clarify this phrase. Thanks.


texts: What's the grammatical explanation behind these sentence?

texts:
Please bear with me, I'm not a native speaker and I'm struggling with English.
I wanted to ask about the bolded parts in the paragraph below. First, what's the grammatical explanation behind the phrase "intrinsically contrary"?.
Second, in the other bolded part, shouldn't they say "his verbal skills were inferior"?, I know it's not a mistake, but it got me confused.

"Madison, Jefferson's lifelong friend, collaborator, and political ally was quizzical and skeptical. His mind was less capacious and less elevated than Jefferson's, but more … original, and instinctively contrary. Less learned than Jefferson, his verbal skills inferior, he was almost pedantically alert to inner complications, and so, Though less adept a politician, he was more consistent."

thanks


texts: What are the meaning of "put to bare" in the sentence and the meaning of the sentence?

texts:
the context is as follows

  ...or complex moment where ethical reasoning skill will be put to bare where they will have opportunity to discuss online their reactions to that particular film...

First, what does "put to bare" mean?

Second, why do they need to put to bare ethical reasoning skill


texts: Words choice in math related question: "Is this notation [ valid / correct ] for [ showing / expressing ] this summation ?"

texts:
I was studying math and while doing some summations I made a notation and I don't know if it's valid/ correct so I was about to ask that on the StackExchange Math Community when I realized that I didn't actually know how to ask it:

  Is this notation valid/correct/other for showing/expressing/other this summation?

I searched "valid notation" and "correct notation" and both seem to be right, so
1) Can I use them interchangeably? Any other option?.
About showing/expressing I've founded that at least in math, show seems to be used just to request a proof, so
2) Should I use express or other verb?

(metaQuestion: If any part of this question(not just the math one) sounds strange to you and you want to make some comment about it, I'll appreciate it too)


texts: What is the meaning of "muffed" in "muffed music"?

texts: What is the meaning of word "muffed " in sentence "muffed pop music" ?


texts: Undressing someone and other equivalent verbs for that

texts:
For me, both the sentences bellow sound quite correct and natural:

  Undress the baby.
  Take the baby's clothes off.

But from among the following pair, first one doesn't sounds incorrect and one cannot use the verb 'undress' in this sense when they need to mention a piece of clothing:

  Undress my coat.
  Take my coat off.

Does my understanding sound correct to you?


texts: "They have lived here for 10 years" Vs "they have been living here for 10 years"

texts: Do both of them tell us that they are still living here.i am not sure if second one is correct and if it is,please tell me what is the difference between the two in terms of current situation.


texts:
I cannot fully understand the bolded sentence. Thank you in advance.

  About the closest any research has come to supporting the tiredness theory is to confirm that adults yawn more often on weekdays than at weekends...


texts:
I have been reading a book and found a meaning of the verb to play with, which is not in the dictionary, but I bet I've heard it couple of times before.

The context:

  Adam explained how, years ago they had played with genetics to try and ...

The meaning:

  to play with something = to experiment with something

Could the verb to play with be used having such a meaning?


texts:
Could you comment on these? Are they correct?

Do you agree that there should be a new article written on this?

Do you agree that there should be a new article to be written on this?

Do you agree that there should be written a new article on this?

Do you agree that there should a new article be written on this?


texts: What does "A dream is, so to speak, an additional helping of experience for which, in my opinion, we are never sufficiently graceful." mean?

texts:
A dream is, so to speak, an additional helping of experience for which, in my opinion, we are never sufficiently graceful.

As the title says, I can't figure out what the sentence means. I would appreciate it if you would answer my question.


texts: When I put 'is' instead of 'be' in: "If she be found guilty"

texts:
If she be found guilty… (YBM #8)

I got a curiosity what difference there is when I put ‘is’ instead of ‘be.’ The dictionary says ‘is’ is used in spoken language. Is that all? Is there no semantic difference at all?


texts: "What do you do IN / AT / ON the music lessons"

texts:
My younger relative sent me a question that he has in his homework:

  "What do you do_______ the music lessons"

a) on b) in c) at

I told him that I think the correct answer is the preposition "in" and that what I would say. But he sent me that his book says that the correct answer is the prepositional "at". What's the explanation for that? and also am I wrong if I say "in"?


texts:
Regrettably/Unfortunately he didn't come to the class.
Which one is more strong? Is there some differences between the meaning of the above sentences?


texts: "Household chores" is a common phrase, what about housework chores? Is it also used anywhere?

texts: I know the phrase "household chores" is much more common. Tell me if the phrase "housework chores" is also used anywhere in the English speaking world, most probably in Australia or New Zealand or somewhere else?


texts: The intransitive use of preposition 'up'

texts:
The preposition 'up' can be used intransitively:

  a. Put your hand up if you know the answer. (toward a higher position)

  The prepositional phrase 'up' here functions as complement. It's both syntactically and semantically obligatory.

However, consider these examples from OALD and Macmillan:

  Our profits are quite large when you add them up.
  She got angry and started smashing things up.
  Did you lock the house up before you left?.
  The straps are all tangled up together.
  He spent the evening wrapping up the Christmas presents.

I'm curious about the use of 'up's here. Unlike the first example, these five 'up's are optional, contributing little extra meaning to the whole sentences.

I think we could just omit these 'up' with the meanings unchanged. However, the real question is not all verbs could be paired with an omissible 'up'. In other cases, 'up' is just part of an idiomatic phrasal verb, as in 'let up', 'own up', etc.

It seems to me that these 'up's could be only paired with certain group of verbs when used in such a way.

Is there a common semantic factor licensing this particular use of 'up'?


texts:
My grammar book told me that when a participle functions as an adjective, normally it should be used before nouns. But I still saw some sentences like:

The experience gained will be of great value to us.

They decided to change the material used.
(And they also said, the meaning is different with the prepositive"used" here means something which is used nowadays, but the prepositive one means second-hand)

When can we put participles after nouns and these different meanings of participles can be predicatives?


texts:
1-They denied that they had stolen the money.

2-They denied stealing the money .

3-They denied having stolen the money .

My textbook says I can use the second sentence instead of the first one . I think I should use the third one because "the action of stealing" happened before they denied it. Or am I wrong ? in the second sentence isn't the "stealing" a present participle  ?


texts: i want to use this term as someone who is kind of swooned and throw rationality to the wind because of the impact of someone else. Would that expression do?


texts:
You won't able to see the light of day ever again.

You won't able to see the light of day never again.

You won't able to see the light of day ever.

Which one is correct?


texts: What is the reference of "from" in this sentence?

texts:
Below, you can see page 77 of ST_Lite_JxE081_v00.02 .It is a Security-Target (a document that indicate some security specification of an IT production) for JCOP Smart cards.

TSF = Target Security Functions

In the sentece that I underlined above, what is the reference of "From"? It refers to interpretation or it refers to to TSF data? In the other word, which of these below interpretation is true?

using another trusted IT product to interpret the TSF data
interpreting the data of TSF that comes from another IT product


texts:
When would native speakers utter "dammit to hell"?
Would it be natural to use if you hurt yourself in some way?
(This is a serious question)


texts:
In the following example, should I use a, any, the, it, or one?

Yesterday my friend told me someone had parked a truck in our playground but when I reached there I did not see a truck/it/any trucks/the truck/one.


texts: "he talks as if he were there" or "he talks as if he had been there"

texts:
Tom has never been to Madrid, but he talks as if he were there himself.

I think it is "were", but the key is "had been". Which is true?

  I was most appreciative of his efforts to help me during the crisis.

Is it the same as "appreciate" ?

sr for my bad english.


texts: Should an article be added before "federal government revenues"?

texts:
The federal government revenues are continuing to fall.
  (Aussie ABC News, 0:03~0:06)

It seems the is said by the news presenter; yet, I am not so sure the script uses articles. Does the sentence need the article before "federal government"?


texts: For whom has the pronoun "his" been used for here?

texts:
This is a quote from "The Tempest" by Ariel:

  My master through his art foresees the
  danger
  That you, his friend, are, and sends me forth—
  For else his project dies—to keep them living.
  [sings in GONZALO’s ear]
  While you here do snoring lie,
  Open-eyed conspiracy
  His time doth take.
  If of life you keep a care,
  Shake off slumber and beware.
  Awake! Awake!

I want to ask for whom "his" has been used there. And shouldn't there be "conspirator" instead of "conspiracy"? Mind you, "time" has been used here in the sense of "favourable opportunity".


texts: A 'noun' defining a person who believes in 'luck' or 'time'?

texts:
I am in search of some term that defines a person who firmly believes in 'luck' or 'time' (good time, bad time etc.). In other words, someone who thinks that all events happen in one's life is due to luck or time. You simply cannot change it.

There may not be one single term for it, but anything close will work. Do we have a portmanteau for it?

Again, my question is, I want a noun for a person who believes in 'luck' or 'time' (I'm the one!). If you think that 'luck' and 'time' are entirely different, it's okay, get me a term for any of them.

And yes, two words (hyphenated) are okay as far as they meet the requirement! Also, even if we don't have any term, how do I introduce myself as a firm 'luck-believer'?


texts: Neutral accent or a neutral accent (countable or not)

texts:
In the context of the sentence below, which should be applied so it's grammatical.

  The only thing that is good about our country (as a single noun) is our spoken English, we've got neutral accent.

Or

  The only thing that is good about our country (as a single noun) is our spoken English, we've got a neutral accent.

P.S.: should it be countable or uncountable?


texts:
From Maroon 5's “Girls Like You”:

Roll that Backwood, babe, and play me close.

Slang websites show the phrase means “trick” or “deceive” but I'm not sure this is what the singer means.


texts: are general assumptions in simple or passive way?

texts:
If I want to say a general assumption in my process, then should it be in simple present tense or passive form like

  Small segments locate isolated or close to each other are taken and updated their label.
  Small segments located, isolated or close to each other are taken and updated their label.
  Then which form should we generally choose?

Here, can I use isolated as a noun?


texts:
A reporter interrupted the broadcast with a hot flash from Washington.

Does hot flash/hot flahses mean news? I searched dictionaries, but all the definitions are related to medical condition.


texts: "John threw Mama from the train a kiss." This statement is used as an example of poor syntax. It sounds as if John threw Mama off the train, followed by a kiss. How would one arrange this statement into a syntax that expresses John's action correctly?


texts:
What’s the difference between “in a few days” and “a few days later”? Thanks.

You can receive the product in a few days.
You can receive the product a few days later.


texts: The article choice in the instruction / programming code commentary

texts:
I'm writing the commentary to a programming code / instruction which should give the reader an idea of what is happening at the corresponding step and can't understand if it's an abstract or concrete object I'm commenting about. The code goes like this:

Instruction:

  If this website is of type A then send the appropriate message to the website's owner

Abstract commentary:

  Send a message to a type A's website owner

Concrete commentary:

  Send the message to the type A's website owner

Which one is more appropriate for a code commentary and what is the difference perceived by a reader between these commentary alternatives?


texts:
I have never seen" like " with present perfect  why ?

Is it possible to say I have liked that book or should I say I liked that book
for me these have different meaning first one I still like it and second it is the past it doesnot give any info we don't know if I like it


texts: does "are you still riding that old car" sound ok?

texts:
If I want to joke about my friend's old car, is the sentence correct?

are you still riding that old car?


texts: 'Will transfer' or 'will be transferred'?

texts:
I was notified you will transfer to the marketing division.
I was notified you will be transferred to the marketing division.

My colleague said that no 1 is correct, but I argued because it sounds strange to me. Which one is grammatically correct?


texts: Is it possible to call a child "Jack Watson Junior" if his father is called "Charles Watson"? Is it necessary that the father and the son have the same name to be called "Junior" and "Senior" or is it possible to name a child "Jack Watson Junior" in honor of his uncle, for example, or his grandfather who would be called Jack Watson? Are "Junior" and "Senior" only to be used for fathers and sons without any generation between them?


texts: .....(Name of the Town), which may become the panoramic spot from where looking to/at Gran Sasso (mountain) and the valley in which the village is situated.


texts: Are there places where we can't use 'much', but 'very much' is OK?

texts:
I think there are cases when you can use very much but not much:

  I would very much like to meet him.
  *I would much like to meet him.

I don't know what grammar rule addresses this difference. This is quite bizarre for me; all very does is intensifying much, so very much should be the same as much, yet it isn't!

Why is this difference? And where exactly are these two different and where are they the same?


texts: By what name do you call this phrase starting with an adjective?

texts:
Fearful, however, of losing this first and only opportunity of relieving my grief by imparting it, I, after a disturbed pause,
  contrived to frame a meagre, though, as far as it went, true response.
  (Jane Eyre)

The highlighted phrase has the very similar function of participial constructions. But fearful is not a participle, then what do you call this phrase?


texts:
Can I omit "so" in "so as to do"?

like this:

  Post-market clinical studies are not intended to replace the pre-market data necessary to make the decision as to approve the device.

here, "as to approve" means "in order to approve"?

If so, is "so" omitted in "so as to approve"?


texts:
It's she who had to leave her family.
It's hers who had to leave her family.

What's difference in between? Are they grammatically correct?
I'm not sure about the use possesive pronouns in the second sentence.


texts:
Source: http://rt.com/news/171188-russian-hacker-kidnapped-america/

  The US has a record of taking drastic steps when it wants people held in custody. The methods may vary from the widely-criticized practice of “extraordinary rendition,” or the blatant kidnappings of terror suspects during the Bush era, to putting pressure on foreign governments to allow American agents a free hand on their soil.

What would you refer to held in custody as? Can it be thought of as an adverbial construction that describes how the US wants people? The answer, I suppose, could be: it wants them held in custody.

Could you please give me some more examples of this pattern?


texts:
Source: p 142, If I Was You..., Lauren Sussman, 2014

  Faulty coordination occurs if you join (combine or coordinate) two clauses in an illogical way:

  [1.] Joey and Micah made their way to the head of the checkout line, yet Joey realized he had forgotten his wallet.

  The word yet (the word that joins, combines, or coordinates the
  two clauses) is used incorrectly. The sentence could read:

  [2.] Joey and Micah made their way to the head of the checkout line, but
  then Joey realized he had forgotten his wallet.

How and why is yet used incorrectly in 1? Both 1 and 2 look perfectly right to me?


texts:
Is it ok to use "according to" in the following way?

  Our firm have different solution programs according to customers' needs or expectations.

  The school provides variety of books according to the student's age and
  education level.


texts: replacement for "as they are getting older"

texts:
I am writing a formal essay and I would like to know a formal synonymical pharse or an equivalent replacement for the structure "as they are getting older".
Can somebody can also come with a consistent formal expression for the word as with the meaning from above?


texts: Why doesn't "John said that he killed the snake." use the past perfect?

texts:
Why don't we use past perfect in the sentence below? As you see, it is clear that snake had been killed before John's saying it and there is no time adverb that help us infer that snake was killed before. Shouldn't we use past perfect there? The sentence is quoted from a grammar book.

  John said that he killed the snake.


texts: Use or non-use of the definite article before a proper noun in an appositive phrase

texts:
This study compares the immunotoxic effects of repeated administration of two monoclonal antibodies, the ABC-12 (RusBio, lot #1023) and Herceptin (Hoffmann-La Roche, Switzerland), to rhesus macaques (Macaca mulatta).

Do I need the definite article here?

I'm tempted to use it because I feel an elision of the words "monoclonal antibody", that is, "the ABC-12 monoclonal antibody".

But since it's a proper noun, maybe the version without "the" would be more proper.

  This study compares the immunotoxic effects of repeated administration of two monoclonal antibodies, ABC-12 (RusBio, lot #1023) and Herceptin (Hoffmann-La Roche, Switzerland), to rhesus macaques (Macaca mulatta).


texts: Name of a game / activity where one communicates with gestures

texts:
In the 3rd round of the game Celebrities, one has to communicate a celebrity to his partner by acting/gesturing without words. Is there a name of that activity?

Is it maybe possible to use play mime as a phrase outside the context of theatre?


texts: 'I don't believe that is who betrayed me.' Is this sentence mistaken?

texts:
I see the sentence in the book:I don't believe that is who betrayed me..
I can not understand its meaning and I think it is wrong. Am I right?


texts: He left on Sunday (arriving/to arrive?) on Monday

texts:
He left for Mumbai on Sunday arriving there on Monday.

This sentence is from an error spotting exercise which suggests to replace arriving with to arrive. Is it correct?

If yes, then how will I have to modify the tense after pronoun He if I want to use arriving? Because replacing arriving with to arrive conveys a sort of uncertainty, the reader is not able to ascertain whether he was able to arrive there on Monday or not but if I use arriving then this voids that ambiguity and clearly conveys that He was able to successfully arrive there on Monday, will this be correct:

  He had left for Mumbai on Sunday arriving there on Monday.


texts: Is “I have had to take a leave” correct?

texts:
I am little bit confused about English grammar structure about "Have had to" and its uses and needed some clarification on the same.

For example:

  I have had to take a leave.

Is it grammatically correct? If yes then what does it mean?

If not then what grammar structure should I use to show my compulsion for taking a leave against my will? I.e. I don't want to take a leave but my circumstances are making me to take a leave.


texts: Most of something is plural or singular?

texts:
I am writing a literature review.
My question is which sentence is correct?

Most of the existing work focus on...
Most of the existing work focuses on ...
Most of the existing studies focus on ...

Thanks


texts: Is using gender-specific language when talking about inanimate things can be wrong in any sense?

texts:
Talking about a game called Starfinder and comparing it to an older game by the same publisher called Pathfinder, I used words "older brother" implying the latter:

  Starfinder also reduces the list of AoO triggers greatly, comparing to its older brother...

A community member changed this phrase in order to "remove gender-specific language":

  Starfinder also reduces the list of AoO triggers greatly, comparing to its older sibling...

That seems wrong to me, so I've changed the phrase again:

  Starfinder also reduces the list of AoO triggers greatly, comparing to its ancestor...

Can you really say "older brother", "older sibling", "ancestor" talking about inanimate things?
Is there any reason why one may be more preferable than other?

I normally use gender neutral language myself when talking about people, primarily because I don't know their gender and don't want to assume. But a game has no gender at all so I have no idea why someone can be offended by this particular choice of words.


texts: Singular vs. plural in "interest rates and investment"

texts:
I found this sentence in a dictionary:

  The tenuous link between interest rates and investment.

Why is interest rates plural here but investment not? I know investment is a countable noun, so shouldn't it be investments (or both just use singular nouns with no article, like interest rate and investment) in order to match before and after and?


texts:
I have bought this jacket earlier.
This is wrong because the action of buying a jacket is already finished.

However, you can say I have had this jacket for 4 years (present perfect here indicates that you still have the jacket.)

Did I get this right?


texts:
Can we use "this" to refer to several things?

  There's a new attachment added to the gun. There's also a monopod with
  a hinge on the back for increased support and stability. We replaced
  the old scope with a new one that can see targets at a much greater
  range. We also replaced the trigger mechanism with an electronic one
  for greater security. This sums up all the changes we've made to the
  gun.

I am not sure if we can use "these". I thought about it, but it sounds weird and for some reason "this" sounds better, but it also seems to be grammatically incorrect.


texts:
A. When she grows up, she we will be beautiful
  B. When she will grow up, she will be beautiful

I have got a couple of doubts about this sentence:

Which one of them is correct?
Can I use the 2nd half of the sentence in the beginning e.g.:

  She will be beautiful when she grows up.

If I say:

  She grows up to be very beautiful

will it mean the same as above sentence?


texts:
From other's conversation,I found out they mentioned I was and sometimes they also mentioned I were.
Is there any rules for I was/were?


texts:
I'm having doubts regarding the usage of "commiserate." One meaning is that people who commiserate have the same negative feelings about something. Is the usage okay in the following sentence, where one person is sharing his problems with another, or is it necessary for both persons to be involved in the same situation?

Sam commiserated with his best friend, Jim, about how his parents had mistreated him.


texts: How to express "to move your palm over your face from top to down when you're tired, you may squeeze your nose on the way doing it"?

texts:
When we're tired due to long-hour-work, we often move our palm over our face from top to down, we may squeeze our noses as well on the way doing that.
And, if we're very tired we can do it hard or else we do it gently.
Is it natural to say "I stroke my face whenever I am tired"?

stroke: to move your hand gently over something. Eg, He reached out and
stroked her cheek tenderly


texts:
Which of the following sentences is correct (if any)?:

  1) a man with a green card can enter.

  2) men with green card can enter.

  3) men with green cards can enter.

  4) All men who have a green card can enter.


texts: Why do news stories tend to use "robbery" when they mean "mugging"?

texts:
robbery (noun): the crime of stealing from somewhere or someone. Cambridge Dictionary
  mugging (noun): an act of attacking someone and stealing their money. Cambridge Dictionary

robbery is stealing only, but mugging is attacking and stealing.

But I noticed most of news websites use robbery instead of mugging, even when it is include attacking.

  A woman has been assaulted with a hammer during an attempted robbery outside a south Belfast restaurant. BBC
  On-loan Marseille winger Florian Thauvin was reportedly "violently assaulted" on Monday evening as he fended off an attempted robbery. CNN

Why shouldn't they use mugging instead of robbery? it will be more accurate.


texts:
Why not many greater quantities or a much greater quantity?

More land is being diverted from local food production to “cash crops”
for export and exchange; fewer types of crops are raised, and each crop is raised in much
greater quantities than before.

Biodiversity and Environmental Conservation


texts: Is the "or otherwise" here in this sentence correct or not?

texts:
original sentence:
It is the contractor's responsibility to locate all trees adjacent to or otherwise affecting the works prior to the commencement of works.
clearly, the correct sentence should be:
It is the contractor's responsibility to locate all trees adjacent to prior to the commencement of works, otherwise they will affect the works.
I have two questions:

In the above sentence, can 'otherwise' be substituted by 'or otherwise'?

Can the complete "subject+verb+object" sentence after the 'otherwise' be simplified as a present participle phrase , i.e. Ving phrase?


texts: Difference between "get out of" and "get away with"

texts:
I have two questions:
First question: what is the exact meaning of "get away with"? For example in this sentence "Do you think I can get away with wearing pants?". Does it mean "I don't feel like to wear anything else"?
And the second question is: What is difference between "get out of" and "get away with"?
For example, in the sentence "My boss called me a meeting, and I couldn't get out of it", can I use "get away with it" instead of "get out of it"?


texts: I have seen both to and on after the word attention. Is there any rule, when to choose one over another ?


texts:
It was this situation that someone keeps going on about himself, like where's hes' been to, what are his extraordinary life events have been, all sorts of basically boring and dull stuffs.

In this situation, I heard someone say "Everyone else is getting lazy at it."

What does it mean?


texts:
I am not sure if and in which cases I have to use a comma before "that". Consider the following examples:

  The first point is, that [...]

  One major problem about financial returns is, that they are [...]

  In [...] one can see, that both tails are heavier.

  The model implies, that the returns insist of a [...]

I am not sure about the commas in this context.


texts:
She has made us all something to eat.

To me, it has two meanings...

a) She assisted us all to eat something (like the mother made her kid study). OR   b) For everyone, she has made something to eat

The question rose as I read that "we can put all after pronouns used as objects."


texts:
What does there now mean here?

"There now! What did I tell you?"

And when can I use it like this?


texts: Difference between "beyond his knowledge" and "above his head"

texts:
What is the difference between these expressions:

The explanation I gave him is ...

"beyond his knowledge"
"above his head"


texts: "America's scrod basket" vs "America's crud bucket"

texts:
What is the meaning of "America's scrod basket" and "America's crud bucket"?

  Bart : When the hell are we gonna get to- Where the hell are we going?

  Marge : It's
  called Little Pwagmattasquarmsettport. It's known as America's scrod
  basket.

  Bart : I thought Springfield was America's scrod basket.

  Marge : No.
  Springfield is America's crud bucket at least according to Newsweek.

Source : The Simpsons S07E25

http://www.springfieldspringfield.co.uk/view_episode_scripts.php?episode=s07e25


texts: Is there an idiom that expresses the convenience of something you need to happen happening without the idea of luck?

texts:
Let's say that there's a 80% odd of something happening and it happened. Is there an idiom that expresses the general idea of convenience of such thing happening in your favor?

I don't think "by a stroke of luck" is appropriate or any term related to luck, because it was highly probable in the first place.


texts:
From the movie Union Depot (1932)

A woman tries to pick some fruits at a stand, but she buys nothing saying

  I should think you might handle fresh fruit once in a while.

The store clerk replies

  I'm too busy... I leave the handling to my customers.

You can see the video here. The dialogue starts at 1:57.

What exactly does "to handle fruit/handling fruit" mean?


texts: "not only... but also" VS "not only... but..." VS "not only..., ...also..." VS "not only..., ...."?

texts:
It is known that "not only...but also" is a set phrase.
However, I frequently encounter cases where it is not used the way it is:

Kindness not only does not belong, it gets relegated to family life, religion or volunteer work.(not only, ....)

Not only will the quantity of drug candidates increase, but their quality should, too.(not only, but...)

Then again, not only doe sThoros not burn people, he also raises people from the dead.(not only, also....)

Note: All examples are from FORBES


texts:
Can I use the verb "possess" in describing a person's level of proficiency in some language?

  Just like his brother Henry, he possesses some amount of Japanese that
  enables him to handle simple conversations and express himself more or
  less correctly.


texts: Should adverb come after where clause or before if it is the end of the sentence

texts:
What is the grammatically & meaninfully correct sentence to use in the following case:

  ... we deal with the special cases where [description of what we mean
  by "special case"] seperately.

or

  ... we deal with the special cases separately where [description of
  what we mean by "special case"]


texts: Proper phrase for "ending someone's curiosity"

texts:
I'm looking for a word or phrase to be used with the word curiosity which will mean that someone's curiosity ends after obtaining enough information on the thing he was curious about.

Example:

  He was curious about what is inside the box. His friend opened the box. He saw inside the box and that ......... his curiosity.


texts:
She died quickly, shortly before she was to have married.

In the above sentence, what does it mean by "she was to have married"?

Does it mean "she was to get married"?


texts:
How I escaped my certain fate by Stewart Lee

  When Richard Thomas’s songs were arranged and underscored by
  professional, commercial musical theatre arrangers, hot from Mamma
  Mia! and such like, they necessarily made interpretive choices about
  [...]

Does the author mean that these arrangers were excited about Mamma Mia! musical?

Thanks in advance


texts: Help with choosing the appropriate phrasal verbs

texts:
How do I say these, could someone please tell me the appropriate phrasal verbs here?
1.  toddlers don't spare their moms even a second.  They run after her like a tail

They are always looking for their moms to feed them, to get anything they want.  (here I want to what phrasal verb would fit here?)


texts:
From NPR, SOURCE HERE

  The British government evacuated its citizens from the resort town of
  Mombasa in response to what it said were reports of a planned attack
  there by Islamic extremists.

Is the sentence grammatically right? This sentence sounds right to me. But I couldn't figure out the construction of it. Because I find words after "in response to" is a sentence itself:

  What it said were reports of a planned attack there by Islamic
  extremists.

Yes, it has every component a sentence should have, which is weird to me. Take another sentence:

  I suggest you do something in response to what he says.

Of course, "what he says" itself isn't a sentence, which is different from sentence quoted. And I've searched many examples in my dictionary, I couldn't find a sentence like the original one from NPR. How to explain its grammar?

By the way, this sentence sounds grammatically right to me.:

  The British government evacuated its citizens from the resort town of
  Mombasa in response to what it said about reports of a planned attack
  there by Islamic extremists.


texts: Is 'the tedious' the same as 'tedious things'?

texts:
I mean, does it mean 'tedious tasks' in the context?

  According to the consulting firm McKinsey, knowledge workers spend up
  to 60 percent of their time looking for information, responding to
  emails, and collaborating with others. By using social technologies,
  those workers can become up to 25 percent more productive. The need
  for productivity gains through working harder and longer has a limit
  and a human toll. The solution is to enable people to work smarter,
  not just by saying it, but by putting smart tools and improved
  processes in place so that people can perform at enhanced levels.
  Think of it as the robotassisted human, given superpowers through the
  aid of technology. Our jobs become enriched by relying on robots to do
  the tedious while we work on increasingly more sophisticated tasks.

Stretch: How to Future-Proof Yourself for Tomorrow's Workplace
By Karie Willyerd, Barbara Mistick


texts:
My name is Sósimo Romero Domínguez. I want to know what is the correct way to write the following sentence.

before going to bed

or

before going to the bed

What is it correct?

Greetings.


texts: meaning of "Dvd box set" in this sentence

texts:
I am watching the show, 'Diners, drive-Ins and Dives' and I wonder one expression.

The show host, Guy Fieri said like below in on bakery eating a Cinnamon Pecan Roll.

  This is like "Cinnamon Rolls Gone Wild."

  DVD box set.

  Gooey, tender, nutty, cinnamonamony. It's outrageous.

I think it's a kind of humor or  figure of speech, but I don't know what it means. Could anybody help me, please?


texts:
What does ‘crack on’ phrase means. I've heared it in following use cases.

Boss is saying to us: 'Let's crack on' - and we start discussing projects.
Man is discussing with sombody: 'We've cracked on with that girl'

Can somebody explain it please.


texts:
I use this link but don't quite understand it: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Numbers_game
What does the author imply here?
"What separates and sets apart these 18 emerging market economies from the rest? For some, it’s a numbers game, as they started to grow at extremely low levels. Yet for some, there are four specific policies, according to the same study, which contribute."

Source:https://www.forbes.com/sites/panosmourdoukoutas/2018/10/01/18-emerging-economies-lifted-a-billion-people-out-of-extreme-poverty-what-they-did-right/#6d062ebc4c84


texts:
I want to know if it's correct to say "you neither"  in the context below

This is an informal conversation between "A" and "B"

  A: You didn't wake up early.

  B: You neither (meaning B is saying that A didn't wake up early)

I know B can say to A “Neither did you" or "You didn't wake up early either"

My question is can B say to A "You neither” (or “You either”) in that context that B is telling A that A also didn't wake up early?

I've never heard "you neither" as a response, and I want to know if it's grammatically correct to say "You neither" as response instead of "neither did you" or "you didn't wake up early either” in a context like the one above.