texts: What would be the best phrase for meeting on-site (in contrast to remote / web meetings)?

texts:
As far as I see there are several phrases possible:
"We want to ..."

"meet in person"
"meet on site" / "meet on-site"
"meet locally"
"meet physically"
"meet face-to-face"

Is there a difference in the meaning? When should I use which phrase?


texts: Is It right conditional sentences OR I should use mixed structures?

texts:
second conditional

  1) If I were more attentive I would get a better mark now (first part- yesterday; second- current time)

third conditional

  2) If I had been more attentive I would have had a better mark yesterday (first part- yesterday; second- yesterday)

mixed e.g.

  3) If I had been more attentive I would get a better mark now (first part- yesterday; second- current time)

Thank you


texts:
I defy any person to travel to this great country at any time and not to be inspired by its promise and its example. - from Theresa May’s speech to Republicans in Philadelphia

What is the grammar and part of speech that use here "not to be inspired"?


texts: uptodate used adjectively or as a preposition

texts:
In the following sentence

  With a view to an amicable settlement, we offer you without prejudice Rs 10000 in full settlement of your claims uptodate

I looked up the meaning of the word uptodate and everywhere I found it to be an adjective but I think in the above sentence it is used as a preposition.

But if it is a preposition it must be written as up to date

Am I right?


texts:
I was watching a cooking show and the guy in the show said "get yourself decent containers" Why not just to say get decent containers?

What does yourself mean with a verb get?


texts:
Suppose I want to say

  Follow this book not me

Would it be the right if the sentence was

  Follow this book rather me


texts: What is the correct form to address my "teacher"

texts: How can I call a person who teaches me English, because I always called him teacher, and yesterday my sister said me that it is incorrect, that I have to called him Mr. + last name. Is that true? Can you explain me, please? I am a English student from Argentina and normally we called them "teacher".


texts:
I googled it but couldn't find any results.
Today, chips are in everything from PlayStation 5s and toothbrushes to washing machines and alarm clocks. But there’s not enough to go around — it’s a multifaceted issue that shows no signs of abating, leading some to call the current crisis “chipageddon.”
Source: https://www.cnbc.com/2021/05/12/the-global-chip-shortage-could-last-until-2023-.html


texts: which is the better option to express continuation?

texts:
I have been playing a lot today.
I have played a lot today.
Can either be used if the day isn't over and I might continue playing? Or does the present perfect mean I have stopped playing for the day?


texts:
From time to time I see this word in print, though I have never heard it spoken. My guess it's a rarely used word which is not really used in speech that much. And the wiktionary does not show any pronunciation for this word.

I "feel" the stress should be on the second syllable, but how is the <ch> actually pronounced? As /k/? As /tʃ/? Some other way?


texts: Genitive Saxon: Do you append apostrophe s ('s) after plurals and words ending with s?

texts:
Should the apostrophe and the s of genitive Saxon be used after plural forms or words ending with the letter s? For example:

  airplanes wings must be defrosted before taking off

or

  airplanes's wings must be defrosted before taking off


texts:
John is my best friend. No one likes me more than he does.
  John is my best friend. No one else likes me more than he does.

1) Which is correct? What is the difference between these two sentences?

2)What is the basic difference between “no one” and “no one else” ?


texts: How to make questions with "what" in the middle of sentence?

texts:
I wrote:

  Iran is supporting Palestinians, Lebanese, Syrians,… but what makes these countries terrorists?

Should it be:

  Iran is supporting Palestinians, Lebanese, Syrians,… but what does make these countries terrorists?

Or

  Iran is supporting Palestinians, Lebanese, Syrians,… but what does it make these countries terrorists?

Sometimes I get confused when and with which "wh-words"  to use auxiliary verbs to make questions. I thought if I don't use auxiliary verbs, it would be a regular sentence. For example in:

  I don't know where he went.

The sentence after where is not in a question mode. So, in my examples above, I was afraid that the first sentence is not a question.


texts: Is there any difference in meaning between "still" and "so far" when used in negative present perfect sentences?

texts:
Could you please tell me if there is any difference in meaning between still and so far when used in negative present perfect sentences? For example:

So far I haven't found a job.
I still haven't found a job.


texts: Meaning of - To his particular charge would fall

texts:
When it came time to go ashore the next day, Rajkumar would be red-eyed and Saya John fresh, heartily breakfasted and eager to get his cargo unloaded, to be on his way to the camp where he was headed. The first part of the journey was usually by ox-cart. They would breast rivers of mud as they went creaking towards the distant mountains. When everything went as planned, these journeys would end at some tiny inland hamlet, with a team of elephants waiting to relieve them of their cargo, leaving them free to turn back. But all too often they would arrive at their roadhead only to learn that the camp ahead could spare no elephants; that they would have to find their own porters to carry their cargo into the mountains. Then Rajkumar too had to yoke a basket to his back, a wickerwork pah with a deep cover and a forehead-strap. To his particular charge would fall the small bespoke luxuries that were specially ordered by the forest Assistants who ran the timber camps—cigars, bottles of whisky, tins of canned meat and sardines, once even a crystal decanter sent up by Rowe & Co., the big Rangoon department store.

I haven't understood the bold part of the sentence - To his particular charge would fall ...

What is the meaning of this?

My Guess -

His task was to deliver those goods.

Am I right? If not please tell me the meaning of that part.


texts:
Which one is correct?
How many children does  Jack have?
               or
How many children does  Jack has?

If have is the correct answer, then rule of the grammar says if subject is a 3rd person then it will be has.So Jack is 3rd in the sentence.
 In either of the sentence which one is the subject , Jack or children.


texts: Word request for the main urban cleaning organization

texts:
I was wondering what do you call the organization that deals with cleaning and beautifying a city / town organizing street sweepers, big garbage cans in each urban district etc. in the United States?
I used to think that it was called "municipality", but so accidentally I was looking that up in a dictionary when I found out that it is absolutely a different meaning comparing the concept I used to think it means.


texts: The auxiliary verb "will" for the pronoun "we" and "I" isn't correct?

texts:
I was told in the past by my teacher that the auxiliary verb "will" for the pronoun "we" and "I" isn't correct and it dhould be "shall" in the cases (i.g. "we shall be there" rather than "we will be there". But since normally I don't notice that people use "shall" I thought it is anarchonistic and it reflects the past. But yesterday I found this article (What’s the difference between ‘will’ and ‘shall’?) of Oxford dictionary which still claims that the correct one is shall.

Maybe some native speakers from different English speaking countries can tell us the reality about this issue.


texts:
There are lots of examples where the definite article is used with the pronoun 'someone', for example:

  I never knew you were the someone waiting for me. (Source.)
  How about a little something special for the someone who truly deserves it?
  For all creative people we suggest to place the someone works (poems, stories, songs, figures, an art photo, etc.) on this site.

I wonder what does 'the' mean in contexts like these and are there any other cases when we can use the definite article before a pronoun? Are these examples grammatically correct?


texts:
In the sentence What keeps us healthy and happy, what does "s" in "keeps" stand for? it's not a singular verb! I don't understand the usage of "s." Can you explain that?
Thanks


texts: How does including the word 'just' change the meaning of a sentence?

texts:
The answers were there in my head, but I just couldn’t articulate them.

The answers were there in my head, but I couldn’t articulate them.

I omitted just in the second sentence. What are the differences in meaning between these two sentences? Is just used for emphasis? How can I add emphasis to the sentence "I couldn't articulate them"?


texts: "Which one to read first (a) or (b)?" or "Which one should I read first(a) or (b)?

texts: I'm confused between these two sentences. Which one's correct ?


texts: How to detect and understand an idiomatic expression?

texts: I am unable to find the difference between the normal sentences and idiomatic expressions.How to understand the idiomatic expressions.


texts: "Manager" or "supervisor" when complaining about service?

texts:
If you're in a store or restaurant and dissatisfied with the work of an employee and want to complain, how will you say:

  Call your supervisor!

or

  Call your manager!

or some other way?


texts:
1. I love an intellectual player of cricket who has two brothers.
2. I love an intellectual player of cricket that requires 22 players.

are the two sentences grammatically correct? I know the relative pronoun indicates/represents the noun/pronoun just before it. But my question is about, in the first sentence, relative pronoun who indicates a player but not cricket,doesn't it? I'm confused about the rule I know.  If the relative pronoun who represents the noun before it, it should represent cricket but it's imposible as cricket cann't have brother.


texts: what does "slaughter that thing without even trying" mean?

texts:
Like any copywriter would, I looked at that and went, “Come on! We can slaughter that thing without even trying.” But we did try. We developed these new headline-subhead combos to test against the above Control:

I know the meaning of slaughter.


texts: Meaning of "babies were made that carried"?

texts:
What is the meaning of "babies were made that carried" in the following sentence,
**

To treat maternal infertility, babies were made that carried genetic
information from 3 humans.

**
(Source: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jAhjPd4uNFY )
?
Does "babies were made that carried genetic information" mean "babies were made and babies were carried genetic information" ?
Does "that" in the sentence mean "and babies were" ?
Is "that" a relative pronoun with babies as an antecedent? If so, why is the antecedent(babies) not placed right before the relative pronoun?


texts: In a construct "X is one path to Y", e.g. "Saving money is one path to wealth" does "one path" always implies that it is the only path? Or does it mean it is one of several ways to achieve Y?


texts:
Since quite some time I get the impression, that especially in US-American, spoken english the pronunciation of 'e' (as in 'best' — /ɛ/) seems to shift towards 'a' (as in 'flat' — /æ/). Some recent examples:

'election' tends to be pronounced 'elaction' or even 'alaction'
'best friends' tends to be pronounced 'bast frands'

Is it just my impression or is this a trend? Or is it simply me being more often exposed to mostly US-American accents that have been pronouncing it that way ever since?


texts:
I want to express to another person how much he is willing to pay for a task and he can openly tell me. Upfront seems a good word for this.
Which of the two sentences is correct:

You can let me know the price upfront
you can let me know the price upfrontly


texts:
Please tell me what would differ if I change transferring to transferred in the sentence below.

  Despicable me 2 : It looks like agent Wilde will be transferring to our Australian
  branch.


texts: Is it a right format to write on the website: A message from the creators of the (website name)

texts: Can you please tell me is it a right format to name a section or video on the website: "A message from the creators of the (website name)." For example: A message from the creators of the Google. And there will be information where creators will briefly explain that Google its a search system to find any information in the internet.


texts: Should I add "rather" in the following sentence?

texts:
Example:

  I wouldn't call what I feel happiness, but (rather) an ongoing acceptance of
  unhappiness.

Should I include the word rather? (Or replace but with it?)


texts: Difference between "Should" vs "ought to"

texts:
It's essential that the documents (should)/(ought to) be destroyed immediately.

Which one is more suitable one as I know "ought to" and "should" are synonyms.


texts:
Can I replace the word "where" (conjunction) with "by which" phrase?

For example:

  "Ell-SE is the site by which I come to ask on my doubts in English
  language issues".

another example:

  This is the building by which the prime-minister lives.


texts: What does mean the phrase "fall through" in slang?

texts:
It's from GTA 5, just look at 12:07 on Youtube.

As two characters leave a car dealership, one homie is offering to another to get in a car, he says:

  How 'bout we fall through, homie?

What does it mean at this context?


texts:
what is the meaning and purpose of  "fermenting wine"?

  Then, as now, the minds of the average men of the world were so
  crammed with the things that do not matter that they had no space for
  the things that do matter. But Fate is never in a hurry, and the
  movement went on. Many accepted the findings of the successive
  committees as being final, and indeed, it is difficult to see how the
  alleged facts could have been more severely tested. At the same time,
  this strong, new,fermenting wine began to burst some of the old
  bottles into which it was poured to the excusable disgust of the
  public.

from http://gutenberg.net.au/ebooks03/0301051h.html


texts: What does "contra the cost" mean in this context?

texts:
This statement was sent to me.

  please get a quote to clean, we may replace the rug and contra the
  cost.

Does this mean I will have to pay to get the rug cleaned?


texts:
Let's suppose you are asked about confirming or denying an occurrence or a story or something like that and you don't want / cannot accept or deny it; what is the fixed term / sentence for this meaning in US?
I literally translate what I would say in my mother language; please let me know if it works in AE in these ways:

  I neither accept nor refuse this statement.
  I neither accept nor reject this statement.
  I neither accept nor deny this statement.

I would be really thankful if you clarify whether there is a preference between these three sentences or they are identical.


texts: Correct sentence construction Using need and needs

texts:
Which Sentence construction is correct?

a) This Excel Column needs to be at the end of the Report..

Or

b) This Excel Column need to be at the end of the Report.

Is it like meaning of both the sentences is same?


texts: Why does this sentence adopt different tenses?

texts:
It was really lucky that Harry now had Hermlone as a friend. He didn't
  know how he'd have gotten through all his homework without her, what
  with all the last-minute Quidditch practice Wood was making them do.
  She had also lent him Quidditch Through the Ages, which turned out to
  be a very interesting read.   Harry learned that there were seven
  hundred ways of committing a Quidditch foul and that all of them had
  happened during a World Cup match in 1473; that Seekers were usually
  the smallest and fastest players, and that most serious Quidditch
  accidents seemed to happen to them; that although people rarely
  died playing Quidditch, referees had been known to vanish and turn up months later in the Sahara Desert.   (Harry Potter and
  the Sorcerer's Stone)

In a sentence, the first clause has past tense, and the second past perfect. What semantic difference comes from the different tenses?


texts:
What does "in it" mean in football (soccer) context?
GOAL! Everton 1-2 Burnley (Calvert-Lewin 32)
He’ll be chewing a little less maniacally now! Davies, partly to blame for the opening goal, whips a cross in from the right. It’s an absolute beauty, right on the head of Calvert-Lewin, who powers past Pope from close range. Everton are back in it


texts: if someone asks me or if there is a question in exams like "who is the author of Xxx book?" Should I answer in the past or present tense,like "Yyy is/was the author of Xxx book". I know the author is not alive.


texts:
I am a native English speaker and currently work at an English speaking company and interact with English speaking clients. Expressions like this come up extremely often:

  Looking at such-and-such, the information is not entirely clear.

As far as I understand it, this sentence is ungrammatical because "Looking at such-and-such" is a participial phrase which is a type of adjectival phrase and therefore requires a noun to modify. The noun that that expression modifies (the person doing the looking) is not stated. Consequently, the above contains a "misplaced modifier" and is not grammatical.

Am I correct or is this a different kind of phrase that I am unfamiliar with?


texts: Will vs shall in interrogative sentences?

texts:
As a non-native English speaker I face difficulty in understanding about shall vs will in interrogative sentences. can you please suggest which one is correct?
1. will i do?
2. shall i do?
Why we use only shall not will in the above sentence?


texts:
Those achievements are all the more astonishing given the fact that the group barely held together through the estimated 800 hours it took to record Déjà Vu and scarcely functioned as a group for most of that time.

https://www.allmusic.com/album/d%C3%A9j%C3%A0-vu-mw0000193436

I am not able to catch the precise meaning of the bolded passage. Does it mean that the recording of the mentioned album lasted 800 hours?


texts: How should I politely say "I hope I can receive recognition"?

texts:
That is used to apply to a university program and I want to politely say that I hope I can enter your program.

Should that be

  I hope I could receive your recognition.

or

  I hope I would/might/may receive recognition.

or

  I wish I could receive recognition.

Is there any other way to say it?


texts: "How dare I" is natural, correct and polite?

texts:
I've seen and heard "How dare you".
I am wandering "How dare I" is usally said from native speakers.
If so, is it polite?

If someone is better than me, but I just wanted to let them know.
How dare I suggest that~
If I hurts my girlfriend to not meant
How dare I hurts you, it was an accident.(physical)
or
How dare I hurts you, I didn't meant to say that. I just suddenly upset(mental)
If some native speakers was letting me know something that I had asked and I have to choose one. but I think all seem good. but I choose winner for best like here.
How dare I can't judge you, I just follow ___


texts: What is the term for a text box where users can type anything they want

texts:
What is the term for a text box on a webpage/form/etc. like a comment box where a user can type anything they want?  The term I'm thinking of doesn't sound right.

I want to call this a free form text box but that doesn't sound correct.

Thanks for any terms you suggest.


texts:
Consider you are at a cafe and you tell the waiter that you would like to order drink.What would you say?

I would like to have an orange juice please.
I would like to have some orange juice please.

(I know the word juice uncountable noun and we don't normally use "a/an" before uncountable nouns as long as they are packed and there was not " a glass of " phrase before the orange juice either.So this is original question.)


texts: Does 'appear' have an object here? - 1932 US?

texts:
Source: Powell v Alabama (1932)

  It thus will be seen that, until the very morning of the trial, no
  lawyer had been named or definitely designated to represent
  the defendants. Prior to that time, the trial judge had
  "appointed all the members of the bar" for the limited
  "purpose of arraigning the defendants." Whether they would
  represent the defendants thereafter if no counsel appeared in
  their behalf was a matter of speculation only, or, as the judge
  indicated, of mere anticipation on the part of the court. Such a
  designation, even if made for all purposes, would, in our
  opinion, have fallen far short of meeting, in any proper sense,
  a requirement for the appointment of counsel. How many
  lawyers were members of the bar does not appear, but, in the
  very nature of things, whether many or few, they would not, thus collectively named, have been given that clear
  appreciation of responsibility or impressed with that individual
  sense of duty which should and naturally would accompany
  the appointment of a selected member of the bar, specifically
  named and assigned.

Is appear transitive or intransitive here? In what does the 'lawyers ... members of the bar' appear?


texts:
I would like to know which one of these two questions is correct, grammar-wise?

  What should I have done?
  or
  What should have I done?

I would appreciate an explanation, too.


texts: What is the difference between gloomy and grim?

texts:
What is the difference between gloomy and grim,  I have read some examples which confused me

gloomy place

grim place

I have read that grim is very serious or gloomy but still I am not aware about the difference between them,  so please could anyone help me and explain the difference.


texts: What does "There's a strong case for doing at least a little selling" mean?

texts:
I ran across this sentence in a book about business but I don't understand it. Does it mean "we have to do a lot of things just to sell something small"?

"There's a strong case for doing at least a little selling."


texts: What does "I don’t see that there’s much to go on" mean?

texts:
I don’t see that there’s much to go on.

Does it mean:

  There is no reason to go on the discussion?

Or it means something else?

The fuller text is here:

  It’s Ian who starts it, bluntly asking the attorney why he seems to be
  suggesting that Dana’s death might not have been an accident.
   [...]

  “Very well,” David says, looking around at the rest of them,
  as if considering what to say. He takes a deep breath and exhales. “I
  don’t think that Dana’s death was an accident.” He pauses and adds,
  “In fact, I think she was pushed. And then I think her head was
  deliberately and forcefully smashed against the bottom stair.”  [...]

  “I
  think it’s a distinct possibility,” the attorney says crisply. Riley
  grips the arms of her chair tightly. She feels the tension build in
  the silent room; it’s palpable. Then Riley blurts out what they’re all
  thinking: “Did Matthew do it?” [...]

  David turns to her and says, “I have
  no idea.” [...]

  It seems to me,” Henry says, in his
  slightly pompous way, “that if this is a murder, it would be almost
  impossible to solve. It seems to have happened in the middle of the
  night. We were all asleep in our beds. There are no witnesses. Unless
  someone wants to confess, or share some helpful information about
  seeing someone creeping about in the night, I don’t see that there’s
  much to go on.”

An Unwanted Guest by  Shari Lapena


texts: Is 'one in five (people/Americans)' etc. singular or plural?

texts:
Suppose, we have a sentence

  Only one in five Americans under 30 approve(s) of Donald Trump.

Is 'one in five' and similar expressions grammatically plural or singular?


texts: I break (verb) the glass; the glass is break-able, but then I sell (not sale-noun) the house; how is it 'sale-able'?

texts:
I understand the '-ble' suffix. It's added to a verb to make it adjective. That's fine and I'm convinced with msot of the examples we find of such modification.

  I can 'break' a mirror. So, the mirror is breakable. Break is a verb and thus, as Cambridge defines, suffixing '-able' would make it 'breakable'.

Now,

  I  sale sell the house

But then...

  The house is saleable!

I don't 'sale' something, I 'sell' it. Especially, in the matter of house, I certainly 'sell' it.

Am I missing something? Is it the only irregular noun that takes -able to convert into adjective? Wait... but we are talking about the verb. I'm confused!


texts: What is the meaning of ‘take him in’ in the following paragraph?

texts:
“What about Mama? Will you call her Mom? Billy nodded slowly. “We can
  tell her together when she comes home from school.? They fell silent.
  Billy chose another cookie and bit into it. He looked at Papa,
  taking him in. It was strange—Billy wanted to call him Dad, but he
  still thought of him as Papa.

The above paragraph is from The Year of Billy Miller on page 96. I am not very sure the meaning of 'take him in' in the bold sentence. There are two explanations on Thefreedictionary.com, to cheat or deceive someone and to give shelter to someone. But I don't think these two explanations are good enough to explain the meaning of the sentence.

Personally, I think 'take him in' here is to emphasize the way that the boy, Billy, looked at his father, which means he looked his father and brought his father's image into his mind.

Am I right?


texts: to wait on somebody or to wait for somebody

texts:
In a question I had to select the correct sentence from among the 4 options. Though I could eliminate two options but got stuck in two other options. They were as follows

It is the duty of a housewife to wait on the guest.

It is the duty of a housewife to wait for the guest.

because I think both of them are correct.
But I have to choose only one, an I am unable to


texts:
I think

we can use 'critical' when say about something which is very low.(negative)

  critical battery => very low battery

we can also use when to say about something which is significant and huge(positive)

  critical attack => significant and very strong attack

Then how to use critical properly?

e.g: critical progress => does it mean good or bad?


texts:
We use "the" when there is only one of something. There's only one space. Therefore we have to say:

  There are millions of stars in the space.

But I've seen that "space" is used without article. What is correct?


texts: "after receiving confirmation" vs "after receiving THE confirmation"

texts: I have a pretty easy question, but it really bothers me. Today I saw a piece of code containing the following comment line - "failed after receiving the confirmation". I'm not a native speaker, but the article  here seems to be unnecessary. I suppose the phrase would sound "smoother" without it. However, in terms of grammar I think we should use the article. What do you think?


texts:
Muscle fever is the official name for a very common (practically inevitable) ailment occurring for the few days following after intense physical labor/exercise for anyone not used to regular physical effort. After a good work-out, without regular training, you are guaranteed to have your muscles ache a lot on the next day and possibly some days following that.

My editor/proofreader wrote:

  I had never heard of this until I looked it up. I think I can guarantee that your readers won't recognize it, either. Maybe you could explain this more?

I just don't believe there's no more common name for this. It's far too common a thing; everyone not on a daily training regimen will experience this after any intense work-out. What is its called commonly?


texts: Is it correct and natural to say "I do BMX" meaning I engage in BMX cycling?

texts:
Could you tell me if it is correct and natural to say I do BMX meaning I engage in BMX cycling? For example:

Person A: What sports do you do?
Person B: Oh, I do BMX.


texts:
As you all will know, election day is next week.
Can we replace the "will" with "would" or "must"?


texts: Is it common to use "dash into something" as in this sentence? "I'll dash into this book"

texts:
My intention is to say that I will get involved with this book and read it very fast.

Is it correct to use this expression or even common to say so?

EDIT: I'm adding other uses that I'm wondering if are they common or not:

"I'll dash into my homework"
"He dashed into his tasklist"
"She is dashing into her schedule"


texts: "part/page 1 of 2" vs "part/page 1 out of 2"

texts: What's the difference between "part 1 of 2" vs "part 1 out of 2"? Are they both correct and synonymous, the latter form being less often used? I am wondering the same when part is replaced by page.


texts: Specific financial term for a type of amount

texts:
Let's say I take someone to court and I require him to pay me 20k in damages.
But the court/judge/insurance company decides that the real value was 14k and that's they'll pay me.

What are the proper formal terms for these amounts? The kind of terms I would see on paperwork. Eg.:
20k = Requested amount
14k = ???

I'm thinking something along terms

Agreed amount, Settled amount, credited amount

EDIT: This doesn't have to be just for damages, but if I inherit a part of inheritance and my sister another. The amount I'm about to receive will be refered to as…?


texts:
I've checked the word spending in many dictionaries and they all say it's uncountable. For example:

Oxford Advanced Learner's Dictionary
Collins English Dictionary

However, I've seen many examples of spendings in corpora such as COCA. For example:

  I think if you cut some government spendings and government itself, I
  think this will trickle on down to people that really need help.

How can it be explained?


texts:
Can anyone explain the difference between "mean +ing" and "mean +infinitive with to"?
As far as I know one uses "mean +infinitive with to" to show one`s intentions and "mean +ing" to express what will be the result of some actions. Am I right?

For example what should we put into blanks over here :

  I meant to tell/telling you there`s a job vacancy at the chemist's.

  Well, I won't apply if it means to work/working at the weekend.


texts: independent clause, subject + past participle+...?

texts:
Massive boulders, shipped from as far away as the Northwest Territories, echo the curvaceous form of the museum building, its rough-hewn limestone surface meant to recall a cliff face sculptured by the wind. (From ACT TEST)

Why is "meant" used here? I don't think here it is a past tense because there will be two independent clauses not connected by conjunctions; so the only possible option left is past participle, but why not use present participle "meaning"?


texts: can we say the relation between two countries is sour

texts:
I've wrote:

The relation between Iran and Emirate is sour

to mean the relation isn't good, or is negative. It's not hostile but yet not well.
Did I use the right word?
Could you explain more about this phrase?


texts: "Two couple ducks" vs. "Two pairs of ducks"?

texts:
What is more acceptable in English, if any?

  a) "In the background are two pairs of ducks"

  b) "In the background are two couple ducks"


texts: What's the verb to describe the onset of a disease?

texts:
I know that "onset" is a noun. I'm trying to find a verb to convey the onset of a disease. For instance, I need to make a list of things that are not covered by a medical insurance product, and one of the items is something like this:

Congenital disease that <verb> or is confirmed by the insured before the age of 8

What verb would I put there to mean "onset"? Or how could I reword the phrase while keeping "congenital disease" as the focus of the phrase?
I've seen somebody write "Congenital disease that is infested or confirmed by the insured before the age of 8" and I find it a little weird. I can't find any supporting reference that says the verb "to infest" can be used this way.
I have had other people suggest "to contract", but that's definitely wrong because contraction is not the same as onset, and would not make sense for congenital diseases anyway.


texts: what article (a/an) to use when there when there's a parenthesis following it?

texts:
I just wrote down a sentence like this

  This is __ (infinite) subset.

Should I use a or an here? Do I consider what's in the parenthesis when choosing the article?


texts: The awards testify to the quality / The awards are testimony to the quality -- is there any difference?

texts:
Is there a difference between give testimony (or just "are testimony) and testify in the marketing promotional text context?

The awards that the company won at the 100 Best Goods of Russia competition are testimony to the quality of our products.

The awards that the company won at the 100 Best Goods of Russia competition testify to the high quality of our products.

Are they interchangeable, or is one more preferred than the other stylistically?


texts: Is there an idiom for saying that X is worrying you? I am looking for an idiom that means that an idea is worrying you, but if there's no such idiom I would like to have a phrase with a phrasal verb.


texts:
In computer science, there are two structures which are arrays and lists.
New elements can be expanded, which means that we can add new elements to the lists. However, the arrays are fixed-size containers. We cannot perform insertion on the arrays.

I want to explain this in one sentence:

We can insert new elements into the lists, but this is not applicable to arrays.

Is this valid sentence ?

Can I construct alternative sentence by using as if or as thoughphrases ?


texts:
Sentence:

  "She is richer than I."

Task:

  "Change sentence into negative without change of sense of the sentence

My attempt:

  "She is not poorer than I."

  "I am not richer than her."

My query:

Which of my attempts is grammatically correct and why? Is there another sentence also which satisfies the requirements as an answer? Please explain.

Thank you.


texts: Imperfective and perfective aspects of verb "glow"

texts:
The following six examples are taken from Google Books:

  Now that they were up close, it was clear that one section of the wall
  was glowing a much deeper green than the rest. Jack moved next to her and placed his hand against the marble. He ran his fingers up and
  down, but didn't feel a seam.

  The wall was glowing like I remembered, but, there was something
  different about it. There was a large pair of eyes staring at me. They
  were glowing with the wall imprinted into it like it was camouflaged.
  I backed away from the eyes.

  More bosses were coming, blowing their horns, trampling the damned who
  had gathered to see what all the fuss was about. Sam turned back to
  the wall. At last he saw it. The door, set into a recess in the wall,
  was glowing with red light.

  I watched as the wall glowed first with a bright green for a
  couple of seconds. Then the green vanished shortly afterwards and it
  changed to a bright yellow glow that remained constant. Suddenly,
  without warning, the eye activated again.

  When his hand made contact, that part of the wall glowed around
  the exact outline of his hand. He pushed against the wall. It was hard
  and resisted the force he put upon its surface.

  Wall lights flickered and came to life. At the bottom of the stairs,
  he stopped before a metal door with oversized rivets and bolts around
  the edges. A small, red light behind a glass bubble protruding from
  the wall glowed like an evil eye.

I think all these glows share a lexical aspect of activity.

But in these examples, I'm not sure how the imperfective and perfective aspects  bear on the semantics. To me, both would basically mean the same in the given context.

I couldn't find any reason one aspect would be preferred over the other. Does the perfectivity matter that much in the semantics of these six examples?

In the fifth example, the difference would be obvious. With the perfective aspect, glow occurs after made contact. With the imperfective aspect, it would make no sense because the sentence is intended to mean the wall can glow after the contact.


texts: What is the meaning of "confer order on its listeners"?

texts:
Here, Mr Carslake’s comparison of the painting to an ‘old English
  song’ celebrates music’s expressivity and capacity to confer order on
  its listeners, but also evokes the extensive contemporary nationalist
  writing about English folk song, landscape and early music by the
  composers and teachers of the English Musical Renaissance.
  (...)
  Yet Mr Carslake’s belief that music confers ‘proportion’ on the listener echoes the catchphrase used by the unfeeling doctors treating shell-shocked war veterans in her contemporary novel Mrs Dalloway, using music to suggest a more troubling aspect to his fantasies about communication...

Source: https://publicdomainreview.org/2013/01/09/simple-songs-virginia-woolf-and-music/

This article is about Virginia Woolf and her interest in music. Does "confer order on its listeners" means that music is guiding people to a more orderly life or it's just suggesting that music have a harmony?


texts:
We can say:

I didn't do it

Some other guy can say:

  Neither did I

And we get such a scheme of such negation:

"Neither" + "auxiliary verb" + noun

But what if to complex it a little:

  We talked with neither her nor him

How to say that they (she and him) didn't talk with us, either?

Is my variant correct?:

  "Neither" + did(auxiliary verb) + "neither she nor he"(noun)

Or it would be so:

  "Neither" + did(auxiliary verb) + "either she or he"(noun)


texts: Is the start of the phrase, 'As far as I'm understanding' correct to show politeness, or should it be 'As far as I understand'?


texts:
On Twitter, CBS summarizes one of their articles (bolding mine):

In a tense exchange, bystander Donald Williams pushed back when the [sic] Derek Chauvin's attorney asked whether he grew more and more angry with Chauvin during the fatal arrest of George Floyd.
"I stayed in my body. You can't paint me out to be angry."

What does "I stayed in my body" mean here? From context it seems it might mean something like "I stayed calm", but I'm not sure if that catches all the nuances?
Googling, I don't get many hits on the phrase, besides the news item - is this an uncommon phrase?


texts: Which option contains the error? "(Will) you (help) me (to find) for my English notebook? (I'm tired)."

texts:
This is an error identification questions, one of the option contains an error.

Will you help me to find for my English notebook? I'm tired.
(a) will
(b) help
(c) to find
(d) I'm tired

I found nothing wrong with the sentence, can someone shed some light on this?


texts:
I have found the sentence bellow. But I don`t understand very well what it means

  Challenge things I believe to be wrong and be open to challenge from
  others.

The top sentence is from:

  Respect
   ...

  Integrity

  We act fairly, ethically and openly in all we do.
   - Show the courage to do and say right thing
   - Act in private as I do in public, and honour my commitments
   - Challenge things I believe to be wrong and be open to challenge from others
   - Be accountable for failure as well as success, and allocate blame.

   Service
   ...

  Exelence
   ...

  Stewardhip
   ...

Source https://www.home.barclays/about-barclays/barclays-values.html#integrity


texts: Present perfect or Past tense? Which sentence is correct?

texts:
I'm confused. Which sentence is correct?

  "You have said you would buy a car if you got driver's licence"

or

  "You said you would buy a car if you got driver's license"

or

  "You have said you will buy a car if you get driver's license"?


texts: The meaning of “Yards divided by minutes,”

texts:
So far I have not told the story of the things of Llantrisant, but
  rather the story of how I stumbled upon them and among them, perplexed
  and wholly astray, seeking, but yet not knowing at all what I sought;
  bewildered now and again by circumstances which seemed to me wholly
  inexplicable; devoid, not so much of the key to the enigma, but of the
  key to the nature of the enigma. You cannot begin to solve a puzzle
  till you know what the puzzle is about. “Yards divided by minutes,”
  said the mathematical master to me long ago, “will give neither pigs,
  sheep, nor oxen.” He was right; though his manner on this and on all
  other occasions was highly offensive. This is enough of the personal
  process, as I may call it; and here follows the story of what happened
  at Llantrisant last summer, the story as I pieced it together at last.

This is from “The Great Return” by Atthur Macken,
https://ebooks.adelaide.edu.au/m/machen/arthur/great-return/chapter4.html

I don’t understand th meaning of this sentence.
“Yards divided by minutes will give neither pigs, sheep, nor oxen.”

I am glad if someone would kindly teach me.


texts: "many people have been out of work this week" is it means on leave?

texts:
I have come across the following sentence,

  "many people have been out of work this week"

Does it mean that many people were on leave? Or does it mean that people worked outside the office?


texts: Why use past continuous where there is no obvious interruption

texts:
I am studying past simple and past continuous and then encountered an exercise(filling the blank with the words in parentheses in correct tense) as below:

  Last night, while I was doing my homework, Angela (call) called. She said she (call) was calling me on her cell phone from her biology classroom at UCLA...

The bold texts are correct answers. I have no problem of the first one, it indicates a longer action was interrupted (by a shorter one). But the second answer uses the past continuous and I couldn't understand it. I could not figure out which usage of past continuous it belongs to. Could anyone help explaining? I learned the 5 usages of past continuous from English Page(http://www.englishpage.com/verbpage/pastcontinuous.html). Thanks for your time and effort!


texts:
Complete the passage with the correct form of the verbs in brackets.

Goldilocks is probably the most famous and most charming “squatter” of all times.While the Bear family was looking(look)for breakfast, Goldilocks broke into(break into)their house and made (make)herself at home. The first thing she saw (see)when she had entered (enter)the house was food on the table.

I know past perfect is here to emphasize the completion of the action of entering but would past simple fit as well


texts:
Which of the following makes sense to use :

1- I feel fatigue.
2- I feel fatigued.
3- I perceive fatigue in your voice.
4- I sense fatigue in your voice.


texts: A synonym for this idiomatic expression 'on the way'?

texts:
On their way Home / on the way home, they raped her.

Is there a synonym for 'on the way." I don't want to use an idiomatic expression, I have looked for possible synonyms but in vain.


texts: Would you help me with another specific conjunctions?

texts:
Whether out of avarice or out of need, he asked for a much higher price for property than it was worth.

At my Grammar book, there has written sometimes you can use the followings instead of each other:

Either...or

Whether...or

I would like to know when it is possible? and when not?

And, would you help me with meaning of the sentence above, so that I can understand what it means?

Thanks in advanced.


texts:
I can use computers.
I know how to use a computer.

Why?

And what about the followings.
Which of these is the natural sentence to say?

He can teach how to use a computer.
He can teach how to use computers.


texts: Several species of birds which or in which...?

texts:
There are several species of birds { which / in which} the parents will ignore their own offspring if they are put outside their nest.

Which one of the two in the bracket is correct? Or, I think, the third possibility is that There are......birds whose parents will ignore ....   Could you help me clarify it?  Thanks.


texts:
Before 9:10 in the following talk, the speaker says  "Did I miss a meeting?". I couldn't grasp the meaning of that sentence. Did he mean to say that he does have a body?

https://www.ted.com/talks/ken_robinson_says_schools_kill_creativity/transcript?language=en

  I think math is very important, but so is dance. Children dance all the time if they're allowed to, we all do. We all have bodies, don't we? Did I miss a meeting?


texts: As in "I had that happen before." Why is this correct? Does this mean that something has happened to someone or that you made/let something happen?


texts:
Video: Tension Escalates for Desperate Refugees Trying to Enter Hungary (at the 1-minute mark)

Transcript:

  Now, to a real flash point overseas tonight. We have been reporting on the refugees. The worst refugee crisis in Europe since World War II. And tonight families blocked at the border, riot police launching tear gas, water canons and this little boy hit, dropping to his knees after the tear gas. Countless children caught in the chaos.

I assume the way he's speaking is something akin to the headlinese writing style so often employed by newspapers where they get rid of unimportant words to make their headlines sound more dramatic. Is that correct? So, then that line should be understood as and this little boy has been hit by the tear gas. Correct? I'm just trying to figure out if I'm getting everything right here.


texts:
Could you let me know the difference in term of meaning

Ebola is spreading very fast.
Ebola has spread.

Does it mean that in the first sentence it is a ongoing action In the second sentence the action is completed?


texts: adjective word or any expression used to describe a child's behaviour

texts: Please could you help me with an adjective word or any expression used by English Native Speakers to describe a child who habitually likes to always lean or rub his or her body against the body of another person especially their parents or other adults like cats do against the body of their carers or owners. I used to describe them as clingy child, sticky child or adherent child but I felt like none sounded or communicate well to me.


texts: what is the difference between 'come off' and 'take place'?

texts:
I read an example of come off in the free dictionary.com. It was:

  What time does the party come off?

So I figued this phrasal verb could be used with other events like marriage, meetings, competetitions, trips etc.

But 'take place' is often used with all these events meaning 'to happen', e.g.:

  The concert takes place next Thursday. (Cambridge)

Come off also has one meaning which is 'to happen':

Please see the following examples -

  Is the meeting going to come off today?
  Is the meeting going to take place today?

Do you think the phrasal verbs come off and take place are interchangeable in the above examples?

Or would it make any difference if we did that?


texts: Can the present perfect and the past perfect be interchangeable in certain contexts?

texts:
Could you tell me if the present perfect and the past perfect can be interchangeable in certain contexts? For example in the context below Pam from The Office used the past perfect where the present perfect is seemingly can be used.

Ryan: Um, also, little tip, never shake the baby.
Jim: Sorry, just to be clear, you’re saying do NOT shake the baby.
Ryan: Don’t shake the baby. Um, a lot of times, parents get frustrated
’cause the baby’s crying and they shake the baby. And you got to, um,
you can’t do that.
Pam: Don’t shake our baby?
Ryan: Yeah.
Pam: Okay. I’d never heard that before. So, thank you.

Could Pan say I have never heard that before in the context without any change in meaning?


texts:
source

  Not that I’m saying you’re necessarily an enemy. I mean, I don’t think
  you would really have shot me.

I looked up "would have".

  We use would have as the past tense form of will have:
  We use would have in past conditionals to talk about something that
  did not happen:

I don't understand why it used "would have". If I make the sentence, I would just say

  I don't think you would really shot me.


texts: Which other word can I use instead of "bet"

texts:
I'm developing an application about gambling and I need an other word than "bet".
The users can create their own bets then every other players can place a bet on a proposition. For example :

Would I get my degree ? Yes/No

Players can then place a bet on Yes or No.
Here is the sentence I'm trying to translate from French :

Placer une mise sur un pari

Basically, "pari" and "mise" can be translated by "bet". For example :
Pari :

Je te fais le pari que je peux aller là-haut = I bet you I can get up there

Mise :

Je mise sur ce cheval-ci = I place a bet on this horse

On the application, there is a list of "bets" displayed. They can then place a bet on them. But because I'm already using the word "bet" to say "placer une mise (place a bet)" I need another word to say "pari".
I was wondering about the word "gamble" but I'm not sure this can be a good translation in this context. Basically, the players would place a bet on a gamble. Is it a correct sentence?


texts: Is it correct to say "There are 5 hepatitis B viruses in his liver"?

texts:
Ok, in this dictionary, virus is a countable noun.

  All the tomato plants are infected with a virus.

But why rice is an uncountable noun while virus is a countable noun though it is so much harder to count "virus" than "rice".

When a virus goes into our body, it can multiply & create a lot of its copies.

I would guess that, in term of language, a virus refers to the whole disease rather than 1 copy of that virus.

If that is the case then language does not reflect clearly reality. It is not as clear as 5 apples or 10 oranges. I mean "a virus is not the same as an apple" because we can say "There are 5 apples (of the same type)" but not "There are 5 virus A (of the same type)".

We can say there are many viruses such as Hepatitis, Tuberculosis, HIV, etc. But I am not sure I can say "There are 5 hepatitis B viruses in his liver".

Can we say "He got infected by a Hepatitis B virus" or "He got infected by 1 million Hepatitis B viruses"


texts: "Outside the cell" or "outside of the cell"?

texts:
What is more acceptable?

  There are more sodium ions outside the cell

or

  There are more sodium ions outside of the cell


texts: Active construction of 'Our team is so blessed...'?

texts:
Would anybody specify the active form of the following passive sentence.

  Our team is so blessed to have each other

Also please let me know the significance of "have" in the above sentence.

I really appreciate any help you can provide


texts:
There is an issue with the eligibility of the current UK Labour leader, Jeremy Corbyn, in a upcoming vote which will decide if he will continue to lead Labour into the next election.

Corbin was voted head of the Labour party in the past general election by a wide margin of the popular vote.  However, recent events has caused him to lose support amoung his parliamentary supporters.

At issue is whether, given his popular support amoungst the wider electorate it will be necessary to get 51 supporters since only 40 voted for him during a no-confidence vote.

The BBC reported

  It is thought Mr Corbyn would struggle to amass 51 signatures because his support is concentrated in the party's wider membership.

Usually, to concentrate, is to decrease or narrow a range or increase an intensity of something, and to widen is to broaden or disperse something.

Is describing Corbyn's support as

  concentrated in the wider membership

correct?

Would it not be more correct to say his support is

  dispersed in the wider membership

since it is amoung the electorate (many people) more so than the members of parliament (not so many people)?


texts: When an addict can't get access to the drugs he needs, he feels/is ....?

texts:
When a habitual drunkard or an opium addict consumes his alcohol or let's say opium, he becomes drunk or stoned. If not, he starts acting moody or strange, smashing things, feeling pain in his body, or simply being too lethargic.

In other words, if the least amount of a narcotic in a person's blood, based on the habit that he himself developed, is 3 mg, using 4 miligram makes him stoned/drunk and dropping the level of narcotic to 2 mg makes him [the word].

Both formal and informal ways to describe this state are welcome.

Note (for Persian speakers): The word I'm looking for is خمار.

Edit: Based on the answers given so far I get the impression that there is probably not a single specific word with this description. So I include a continuum here that may be helpful.

[ word ] ------> sober -------> intoxicated

Definition: the state of being a drug user who didn't get his drugs on time, esp. when it refers to being lethargic.


texts: What does "cue the Democratic finger-pointing" mean in the sentence?

texts:
The following sentence is quoted from a transcript of NBC NEWS. The host said:

In spite of Joe Biden's win, Democrats are asking themselves some hard questions after an otherwise disappointing election night down the ballot. So far in the Senate, the Senate Democrats have netted only one seat, with Senate control to be decided by two January runoff elections in Georgia. I have to tell you, folks, the amount of money and effort that's going to be thrown into that is something else. Republicans actually gained seats in the House, by the way. So cue the Democratic finger-pointing. We've already heard and seen some. Progressives and moderates blaming each other for the results. So joining me now is ...

What does "cue the Democratic finger-pointing" mean here?


texts: Using "away" and the way it affects the meaning of a sentence

texts:
Please imagine my friend and I are at the same place and are talking about another place which is located half a mile farther from where we are at.

In this regard, please let me know how these two sentences semantically differ and which one is (in)correct and why:

  1- I live half a mile from here.
  2- I live half a mile away from here.

I think using "away" is obligatory, but I saw the first version in a grammar book.


texts: to be+infinitive and present progressive usage

texts:
Consider the following two sentences:

  Council is to visit this place in the next year.

vs

  Council is visiting this place in the next year.

Any of them denotes an action, which is planned. What is point of difference between them?


texts:
"he was believed to have killed the king but was later acquitted of those charges" -
is the perfect infinitive "to have killed" used correctly in this sentence ?


texts:
The question is: What days are the first and the second of July?
What is correct:
- It is a Monday and a Tuesday.
or
- They are a Monday and a Tuesday.

Thank you for help.


texts: (noun to) + (verbal noun) vs (noun to) + (verb) when there's normally a noun after (noun + to)

texts:
I'll give you an example:

"I want to get an access to _____"

Should I fill it with "doing" or "do"?

Because normally after the "access to" collocation we use a noun, e.g "access to games", "access to a horizontal bar".

So, should I use "doing" as a verbal noun because there's only nouns used after that collocation, or should I use "do", because somewhy I feel, like it's an option too?

Would it be a huge horrible mistake if I say "give me an access to playing"?


texts:
Jonny was about to sit down when his father came into the house.

What does this "about" mean?

What usage is this?


texts: Which preposition should we use in this sentence?

texts: We arrived (at/in) our village (on/in/at) a lovely night in October.


texts:
It is tiring of you to ask me again and again about what you have already solved!

I wrote the sentence myself.

What I want to convey is that the trait of you to ask me again and again about what you have already solved tires me.

I want to know whether Tiring of you is acceptable or not, and if not natural, would you please suggest a more natural sentence, and explain which point makes the sentence unnatural?


texts: In a computer simulation, what do you call the level that abstracts away the simulated world for computation? The simulation must be computed, so there's a level where the computation is done in a computer simulation, what do you call this level? Is there a word for it?


texts:
What do we call "a person who blames others for things they didn't do"?

I searched on the web, and found the word "blamer". I know what it means, and I don't find it fits the definition I wrote.

Update: It can mean "false accusation" and/or "When somebody says that another did something (wrong) when they haven't".


texts: Should the verb try be followed by gerund or infinitive in this sentence?

texts:
So I know that the verb Try can be followed by both gerund and infinitive though the meaning slightly changes.

But which one should be used in the sentence below?

  Why don’t you let your children try to make/making their own decisions? They are old enough to choose their own future and how they are going to live.

Is it like only one of them is correct and the other one is incorrect?or can we say that both of them are correct but one of them fits this sentence better?


texts: What is the word for someone who doesnt feel "tiredness" ,and barely sleeps

texts: I have -rapid-adhd but I know it's not the reason.  I never feel tired I always have a constant bursting energy which last basically 24-7 . The only way I can sleep is with a high dosage of melatonin and clonidine.


texts:
Please correct me, but does as function as a conjunction here? I already tried i, ii, and iii.

  Page 3: In any event it might be said that Hart ‘won’ the debate in the sense that it was his
  infl uence that led to the passing of the 1960s legislation liberalising the law on abortion, prostitution, homosexuality, and abolishing capital punishment. However such issues can still arise – as was seen in the Brown case, considered later, and the ongoing issue of the ‘rights’ relating to assisted suicide...

2. Why no subject here? Isn't the subject such issues, which implies
"such issues can still arise – as they were seen in the Brown case..."?

  Page 43: ...the new coalition Justice Minister is the
  extremely experienced MP Kenneth Clarke QC, although his experience may not save
  the legal system from the consequences of the comprehensive spending review, as was
  made only too evident in the announcement in November 2010 that the whole of the
  civil legal aid system was to be fundamentally restructured, not to say cut (see further at
  chapter 14 below)

(Question 3 has been posted separately) 4. Why no subject here? What'd be the subject?

5. Are there any terms that describe the ideas or issues in this entire post?

Source: The English Legal System 2012-2013, Gary Slapper. I myself bolded and italicised.


texts:
Source

  The head of embassy security attempts to go outside and reason with
  the militants, but he's immediately captured and taken hostage.

it says he's immediately captured and taken hostage, so he means who?


texts:
We aren't able to neither preview it nor upload it.

Can I use this above sentence? Is this sentence formation correct?


texts: "is normally not meant to ..." or "in not normally meant to ..."?

texts:
Where to put the adverb normally in the following sentence.

  That is not normally meant to be offensive.

or

  That is normally not meant to be offensive.


texts:
"you already knew" vs. "you've already known" says

  That would be completely natural, and could probably be argued to be more correct - but in practice it's unnecessary here.

What's the meaning of "argued to be"?

I googled it but got nothing explanation.

I also went through American Heritage Dictionary

v.tr.
1. To put forth reasons for or against; debate: "It is time to stop arguing tax-rate reductions and to enact them" (Paul Craig Roberts).
2. To attempt to prove by reasoning; maintain or contend: The speaker argued that more immigrants should be admitted to the country.
3. To give evidence of; indicate: "Similarities cannot always be used to argue descent" (Isaac Asimov).
4. To persuade or influence (another), as by presenting reasons: argued the clerk into lowering the price.
v.intr.
1. To put forth reasons for or against something: argued for dismissal of the case; argued against an immediate counterattack.
2. To engage in a quarrel; dispute: We need to stop arguing and engage in constructive dialogue.

None of them uses "argue" that way. Could someone help with it?


texts:
Example with a context:

  That, I think, is the most likely circumstance for Putin's departure. It's not that he'll lose an election—it's that a bunch of men in gray suits are going to file into his office and say, "Vladimir Vladimirovich, it's time for you to do your last service to the state, and that's to retire."
  Or he may be off at his dacha and see on the television that he's just stepped down for reasons of ill health. And he'll pick up his red phone, and find that the people answering it will no longer take orders from him.

What do you think the difference would be if we got rid of the article? Why not say on television instead? What's the nuance?


texts: We all have some phrases which we repeat too much in our conversations. What do we call it when someone uses a word or a sentence again and again?


texts:
The business hoped to devote most of its fund to ______ for new television ads since it wanted more coverage.

Should the answer be "pay" or "paying"? Why and, what difference would it make (if any)?


texts: English equivalent of the Malay idiom "Loser be ashes; winner be charcoal"

texts:
I'm looking for an English idiom which is equivalent to:

  Kalah jadi abu, menang jadi arang ("The loser be ashes; the winner be charcoal")

  Actually, this is roughly translated. It's hard to translate Malay idioms into English because most of them don't even have overt subjects.

This idiom is about a stack of wood in a fire. The fire is symbolic of a fight and the wood could figuratively be understood as a group of people or a community who are fighting tooth and nails with each other. And when the fight comes to the end—or more metaphorically, when the fire ceases to burn—neither the loser nor the winner benefits from the fight. So they are both useless ashes and charcoal.

This idiom is used to refer to a group of people fighting without thinking of the consequences of their action, because after the fight, they won't get anything useful; rather, they'll end up being dead on their feet.

Context

The context is quite simple: a group of people were fighting and they end up getting nothing but weariness.

Is there any English equivalent to this idiom?


texts:
Not sure if all-out can be used in this meaning

I will give all-out of me.
Such as I will try to do the best of me?


texts: This was my first time/ This is my first time

texts: Say I want to talk about myself cooking in my video, should I use "this is my first time cooking" or "this was my first time cooking"? I heard someone say something about using present tense when you are telling a story or describing something.


texts: What verb do you use for when a professor or teacher is asking a student very difficult questions so that the student fail the exam?

texts: What verb do you use for descrihing the situation in which a professor or teacher is deliberately asking a student difficult questions so that the student can't pass it. The word for describing the situation in Russian is валить. It is a very informal word.


texts:
Her husband was deathly pale. His eyes started and bulged from
  their sockets. The car key was in one hand.

What's the meaning of eyes started in this context? Could anyone please elaborate?


texts:
What does the possesive determinant (its) refer to in the following sentence ,
The thief returned the painting back to Italy (its) rightful home .
I think (its) refers to Italy .. Any thoughts on that guys ?


texts:
I believe good brands are usually expensive; however, cheaper brands
  aren't durable so they hardly satisfy.

Is this just a belief, or is it something else?


texts: I just want to know which one is the best choice. - the verb 'end up' and 'risk'

texts:
I'm writting something.

Sometimes, I make a dirty joke even though I know I could risk the relationship being done.

Sometimes, I make a dirty joke even though I know I could risk the relationship being finished.

Sometimes, I make a dirty joke even though I know I could risk me ending up losing the person.

And I'd just want to know which one is the best choice.


texts: "A well Oxford-educated politician" OR "A well-Oxford-educated politician"?

texts:
I saw many examples like "He is an Oxford-educated politician" and I'm curious about the usage of hyphens here by adding "well" in the front.
Is it

"He is a well-Oxford-educated politician"
or
"He is a well Oxford-educated politician" ?

My intention is to tell that he is well-educated in Oxford.


texts: What is the comparative and superlative form of "super"?

texts: I need a little help about how to form comparative and superlative degree for the word "super". I found on a website as super is used for comparative and superlative degree as well. And I also learnt from some other source that an adjective with two or more syllables usually takes more and most for comparative and superlative.


texts:
I saw phrase from a X's song, where he says 'Purrp in that blunt, smoking suicide, bloody blunts'.T here's some explanation, X is literally smoking Purp in his blunt, and smoking SpaceGhostPurp in this song, nice play on words. A purp is some kind of weed, but what does it mean to smoke someone?

  and smoking SpaceGhostPurp in this song


texts:
What's the difference between:

1 Teach your son how to be accountable?

2 Teach your son to be accountable?

If I can use the second one when can I omit "how"?


texts: Difference between "will do" and "be doing"

texts:
Here is a test i did. But now i'm confused with "will do" and "be doing". So anybody plz help me with it? Any help will be appreciated!

I searched on the web and found nothing.


texts:
I want to use "by no means" in a sentence. I am not sure whether I should use it before or after the word "can". Here are examples:

Is it:

  Our method can by no means be considered as an attack

Or

  Our method by no means can be considered as an attack


texts: An expression or word for saying having said something from the viewpoint of someone else

texts:
Let's say I wrote the following in an essay.

  Hello, Anna. I love you

Now I want to write something like this: This line I've written was supposedly said by Anna's boyfriend, but Anna's boyfriend didn't actually say it himself. It's a creative work of mine pretending to be Anna's boyfriend.

Note that this question is tagged with "sentence-construction" because I also want to know how I could state this in one neat sentence.


texts: What is the meaning of 'a little too + adjective'?

texts:
What is the meaning of the phrase "a little too + adjective" ?
For example:

  This is a little too hard for me.

Does it mean same as:

  This is slightly hard for me.

?

How are the following sentences different from the above sentence ?

  This is a little hard for me .
  This is little hard for me.


texts: "If something was" vs "If something were"

texts:
Which of these sentences is correct, and why?

"What if the Moon was a Disco ball?" or
"What if the Moon were a Disco ball?"


texts:
I am teaching my 7 year old daughter to speak English, and we came across the word "penultimate" meaning next-to-last. After describing to her the meaning, she tried to use it in a sentence less than an hour later: she asked me to pick her up, and I said "last time" to which she replied "penultimate time" in English.

Only now do I realize that is the reason that she kept asking me to pick her up!

To me this doesn't sound right. Is it proper to request "Pick me up for the penultimate time"?


texts:
Koza said his organization has never had a political battle the likes of its tussle with Courtney.

In this sentence (from here), "the likes of" seems to carry the meaning of "like". Is it a common usage or something the author made up? This question is about part of speech and syntax, rather than the meaning of the phrase per se, as I am very familiar with its meaning and common usage, but not the way it is used in this sentence.


texts: Past perfect vs Simple past in the given situation

texts:
I didn't post that picture, she did.

I'd logged in to my account using her phone, and had forgotten to log out.
I'd logged in to my account using her phone, and forgot to log out.

Which of the two sentences is correct?
Or are they both right grammatically?
Do they mean the same thing?


texts:
He thanked the manager for believing him to accomplish this task with efficiency.

  He thanked the manager for believing in him to accomplish this task with efficiency.

Is is necessary that the preposition in has to be placed between believing and him?

I thought believe can take a object, so the preposition here doesn't seem necessasry,
but it was marked wrong and in was added to it.

By the way, with the preposition in,
the implied subject of the infinitive to accomplish this task with efficienct is still him, am i right?


texts: Why was the past tense used in this sentence?

texts:
In Ozark (s01e02) Jason Bateman's character instructs his children what he would love to see when he has come back:

  And I'd love to not have to turn the room upside down to find the clicker. That wasn't fun.

A Russian translator translated the second sentence as "That wouldn't be fun" (in Russian) and that gave me a thought.

It seems to me that this line should have sounded perfect in the original. Why was the past tense used?

I see two possible explanations:

  1) The situation in the second sentence is real. Bateman's character refers to the situation that happened in the past and he doesn't want the repeating of it. The translator should have translated it without using the would-clause.

And

  2) The situation in the second sentence is imaginary. We can figure it out from the context of the first sentence with "would"-phrase. It is correct (?) to refer to the imaginary situations using the past tense in this case. Both options ("That wasn't fun" and "That wouldn't be fun") are acceptable and refer to an imaginary situation.

If the second explanation is true, could someone explain that rule?


texts: Grammar , conjunction, until, don't, shouldn't be used

texts:
1) I will not carry my phone to the bathroom.
                              Or
2) I do not Cary my phone to bathroom..
Which of the above is correct? If statement one is wrong,  why it is grammatically not correct..
Please explain...


texts: How can an intransitive verb have 'objects' and 'complements'?

texts:
[Source:] The following description of predicates comes from
  The Longman Handbook for Writers and Readers (examples our own):

  With an intransitive verb, objects and complements are included in the predicate.
  (The glacier is melting.)
  With a transitive verb, objects and object complements are said to be part of the predicate.
  (The slow moving glacier wiped out an entire forest. It gave the villagers a lot of problems.)
  With a linking verb, the subject is connected to a subject complement.
  (The mayor doesn't feel good.)

By definition, intransitive verbs lack a direct object, but because indirect object => direct object, they lack an indirect object too. So what does the above mean by objects and complements ?


texts: Can I put a relative pronoun in a apposition clause?

texts:
Instead of "My son, Mike, is sleeping", can I say "My son, who is Mike, is sleeping"?

And if not, why?

Thank you in advance


texts:
While watching the Godfather movie I came across the following phrase:

  Hagen: They shot Sonny on the causeway, he's dead.

  Don: I want no inquiries made

The first though that popped into my head was that has something to do with vengeance, but actually it means something similar to investigation. What did the Don mean? He didn't want any investigation about the death of his son be performed? So, to him it didn't matter who killed Sonny, right?


texts:
I was wondering why the term tit for tat contains the word tit as in titts, and what does tat mean anyway?

Thank you.


texts: Can "packed up" be used instead of "box up" (leftover food)

texts:
Can "packed up" be used when asking for taking leftover food home instead of asking for a box?

Can you pack this up, please?

Does it sound likely?
Or is it always:

Can I have a box for this please?

Can I take this home please?

Can you box this up please?

Can I have this to-go?

Or in some contexts "wrapped up".


texts: Is there a synonym for "top-class" you can use for chefs? I thought about "Michelin-starred", but that's too specific and not every "top-class" chef is "Michelin-starred" and "top-class" is too generic and can be used for other things than chefs. I am looking for an adjective, but maybe a noun that means "top-class chef" would do the job too.


texts:
Can anyone explain to me how to use the phrase would hardly have been?

I came across this phrase in an article in The Atlantic titled "The Far Right Wants to Gut the EU, Not Kill It."

The writer wrote:

  A few years ago, the party membership's decision to include a so-called Dexit in its 2019 platform ... would hardly have been notable."

Why not simply use was hardly notable?


texts:
[60% down the page] Dying is not the same as never having been born
  The debate is nothing to do with preventing disabled babies being born, or preventing people with disabilities from becoming parents

What are the similarities and differences between 'to be nothing to ...' vs 'to have nothing to ...' ?


texts: Is there a more formal way to write "get away from"?

texts:
Actually, I am writing an article about machine learning which is a domain of computer science, and I want to tell this :

If we change locations of data points, some of them get closer to the mean point, and the others get away from the mean point."

However, the phrase "get away from" seems to be not suitable for an article. It is very informal. In fact, I cannot both find a new phrase instead of it and change the structure of the sentence.
Can anyone tell me its synonym if it exists?


texts: Is the phrase "benefit from experiences" idiomatic?

texts:
We can benefit from experiences of other developers.

  We can benefit from experiences of development.

Is the selected phrase idiomatic?


texts: Not using THAT in non-defining relative clauses

texts: While I was teaching non-defining relative clauses in an intermediate book, one of my students asked why that cannot be use?! I don't remember reading any tips about it. Is there a logical explanation?


texts:
How do I correctly introduce the clause 'her mother's life' in this sentence? Should I use a colon, comma or something else?

  First, it is worth noting that her fear is about an object: her mother’s life


texts: "It's quite full up this year." vs "They are quite full up this year."

texts:
How do you choose what pronoun to use "It" or "They" if "They" is also used as a gender-free singular? Is there no any logic?

It's quite full up this year.
They are quite full up this year.

Do these sentences have absolutely the same meaning and no any difference?


texts:
Here is a sentence I've read in an article from BBC News:

  According to a new book, South Korean Popular Culture and North Korea, South Korea's government "targeted the export of popular media culture as a new economic initiative, one of the major sources of foreign revenue vital for the country's economic survival and advancement".

I don't know if the title of  my question would be the case but I would say "one of the major sources of foreign revenue which is/ being vital for..." because vital is an adjective. However, the original sentence sounds absolutely fine to me, maybe because I've come across sentences structured that way. As an English learner, I would be grateful to get clear rules or any document about this grammatical point.


texts: getting to New York for the first time was for me - complement

texts:
I found this sentence from The White Tiger by Arvind Adiga

It must be like getting to New York for the first time was for me.

Context: The speaker is justifying his driver’s tendency of missing the correct road in a new place that they came for the first time. He is saying when he himself went to New York for the first time he was also like that.
Now I want to parse the sentence. The portion of the sentence I am having difficulty is turned italics.
My attempt: the part in italics should be a complement. And it's a clause. And what that clause is called.


texts:
How to Say past usual events/activity ?
My manager has resigned now. When he was manager he_______________.

He Signed cheques everyday
or
He would/Use to sign cheques every day.
or
He was signing cheques every day.
Or
Something else


texts: Difference between different constructions of the same phrasal verb

texts:
Is there any difference between the following 2 sentences or they are same?

  I found out its secrets.

  I found its secrets out.


texts: 'of which' in 'to the utmost extent of which' (1906 UK)

texts:
Source: p 279, The Family, by Helen Bosanquet, BA in Moral Sciences (First Class; Cambridge)

  "If the husband is the head of the Family", she continued, "the wife is the centre.
  It is she who is primarily responsible for the care of the children;
  to the utmost extent of which the family means will allow,
  it is her duty to see they are well cared for, both physically and morally;
  and it is generally agreed that this duty can be properly fulfilled only by personal attention.

1. Am I right that which 's antecedent is the care of ... ?

2. I can't pinpoint why, but of which bothers me. It feels redundant.
What would differ if of which were removed? Please explain?

Footnote: I encountered the above on p 28 of 296, Understanding Housing Policy, by B Lund.


texts: This is John Doe vs I am John Doe. (In an e-mail)

texts:
Which is a better or common way to introduce myself in an e-mail to a person who I never met before?

This is John Doe, a university student at Clearwater College.
I am John Doe, a university student at Clearwater College.


texts:
I am wondering if using the progressive and become, especially with an adverb like progressively means that the statement with the progressive verb describe the condition for the complete transformation to occur.

For example

  Tapping on the stone 100 times progressively turns it into a horse.

Does it mean that each time you tap, the horse is a step closer on becoming a horse, and you only need to do it 100 times in order for it to fully become a horse, OR does it mean that you need to do it 100 times several times?

  Tapping on the stone progressively turns it into a horse

Here we don't know how many time and the statement doesn't describe the whole condition or the whole cycle. The earlier example seems to describe the whole cycle.

Is there anything wrong in what I said?


texts: Help understanding 'God loves everyone equally, 100 percent.'

texts:
I am trying to understand the article shown in the quote below:

  One is that God's love is like the sun -- he loves everyone equally and that means 100 percent. He loves bad people just as much as he loves good people. He loves Muslims, Catholics, homosexuals, politicians, millionaires, liars, dishonest people, murderers, school teachers, soldiers, Iraqis, Israelis, the mentally ill, Mother Teresa and Saddam Hussein equally, and his love is infinite. Just as the sun shines on everyone equally and the rain falls on everyone equally, so also God loves everyone equally, 100 percent.

How should I interpret the sentence "God loves everyone equally, 100 percent." (Marked as bold in the quote)? Does this mean "100 percent of God loves each and every one", or does this rather mean "God loves 100 percent of each and every person"?


texts: "..sore trial to his.." seems incorrect. Am I right?

texts:
The passage from the book:

  I suppose every family has a black sheep. Tom had been a sore trial to his for twenty years. He had begun life decently enough

I have problem at two places.

  a sore trial? It should be sore trail in this context.  trial to his? or him?

Misprint? Mistake? or I'm missing it completely? :)


texts:
My problem is: can "always" be used in all tenses? Which are BrE and American English?

Ex. I have always told you not to do this.

  I had always told you not to do this.

  I always told you not to do this

Are they possible?


texts: At the time of speaking, no relation to present

texts:
My friend asked me, "Have you ever paid the money as a penalty?"

I paid some money as a penalty, but that was long ago; it won't effect the present.

What should I say?

  I have paid.

  I had paid.

  I paid.


texts: “While she is sleeping, we...” – what verb tense comes next?

texts:
While she is sleeping, we decided to wake her up.

Trying to understand this grammar. Should we use decide or decided to?

Edit:

Okay, the reason I'm asking is because I'm trying to make some captions for a video. So the video will be

  "While she was sleeping, we decided to...."

and afterwards we have another caption follows..

  "Now she is awake..."

Using 'Now' usually uses present tense afterwards. If we use past tense earlier, it does not logically flows well with present tense later.  So I don't know if I should use present or past tense.


texts:
If two paths have the same relevant slice with output being the slicing criteria, then they have the same input-output relation.

I am not sure where we use being. Can we use being after the person or object to describe?

  Jim, being a lovely boy, is liked by all his friends.


texts: Can 'to' be omitted in the following sentence?

texts:
Can to be omitted in the following sentence? I think it can, but I can't find many examples on the Internet.

  Mark Twain said that it's easier to fool people than to convince
  them that they have been fooled.


texts: The difference in meaning between I used to hate it and I hated it

texts: What is the difference in meaning between "I used to hate it" and "I hated it"?


texts: What's a better term to describe these "stripes" in blouse (Screen shot attached)

texts: I am looking for the correct word for the stripes in the blouse below. Can someone help with any ideas ?


texts: If some one is treating any other person with discrimination based on their apparent similarity with any religious or ethnic or gender group, can we call this action an act of profiling?


texts: In Tales of Count Lucanor, what's 'that' in 'that which'?

texts:
[Source:] The titles in the following list are those given in James York's 1868 translation into English.[5]
The Prologue
1. Relates to what happened to a Moorish king of Cordova. This story is based on the life of Al-Hakam II: his battles repulsing the
last Norman attacks, and the struggle against the Zirids and the
Fatimids in northern Morocco.
2. Treats of that which happened to Lorenzo Suarez Gallinato, and Garciperez of Vargas, and another knight
...
5. Of that which happened to the Emperor Frederick[disambiguation needed] and Don Alvar Fañez, with their wives
6. Of that which happened to the Count of Provence and Saladin the Sultan of Babylon
7. Of that which happened to a King and three Impostors

In these titles, to what noun phrase does (the relative pronoun) that refer ?
I know that 'which' starts the restrictive relative clause modifying that.
(I was going to write '...relative clause THAT modifies that', but this looks confusing)
Obiter dictum: I was reading The Emperor's New Clothes  which linked to this page.


texts:
active voice:

  If you can't reach the station on time, you can’t get the tickets.

passive voice 1:

  The tickets can't be got if the station can’t be reached on time.

passive voice 2:

  The tickets can't be got if you can’t reach the station on time.

which of the above is the right structure of passive voice? and please also explain when we are forming passive voice of sentence, do we form passive of both clauses of a sentence?

this confuses me often, please sort it out.


texts:
I have seen both being used. But I don't know when to use which one.

  1- You have done a good job on this (Context: Your teacher
  saying this after he examines your homework)

  1a- You have done a good job in this

  2- He did a good job on stealing the ball. (Context: Commentor
  saying this during a basketball game.)

  2a- He did a good job in stealing the ball.

  3- I think I did a good job on it (Context: You are saying this
  after have finished writing a code.)

  3a- I think I did a good job in it


texts: What is the term for "the act of cutting a word in the middle, add a hyphen, and put the rest in the next line because it's too long"?

texts:
So it's some-

thing like this.

This probably something trivia, but I don't know the keyword to search for the term in english.


texts: intransitive verbs with preposition in passive sentences

texts:
Words like “listen” and “shout” are intransitive verbs. Why are they used in passive sentences with prepositions like “to” and “at”?

e.g.:

She was never listened to.
I don’t like to be shouted at.

When intransitive verbs are used with prepositions, are they considered as transitive verbs?


texts: "the dog has lain at his master's **foot**", why the present perfect tense is used?

texts:
This tutorial gives this example

  the dog has lain at his master's foot

I understand the present continuous tense (my version)

  the dog is lying at his master's feet

is to decribe the current state/position of the dog.

I am also aware what the present perfect tense is.

What I cannot understand is the present perfect tense version to describe what of the dog? In other words, What does the expression (present perfect) emphasize?


texts:
For example, if someone was driving in front of you in a car breaking the rules and continues to do so, then how do you say using a construction?

Is this correct to use this one? Or maybe there is another construction?

  As he drove so he is driving all the way.

and also

  As she went to McDonald's, so she always goes there.

Any sentences without changing the situation.


texts:
A: You can't help me, so why are you still trying so hard?
B: Hasn't it occurred to you that I might be trying this hard because I actually do think I know how you feel?

Is "hasn't it occurred to you" closest in meaning to "haven't you realized" or "hasn't it crossed your mind" or somewhere in between?


texts: Why doesn’t a verb’s indirect object have a preposition (like "to") before it?

texts:
I don’t understand the grammatical rules behind this sentence:

  It is not showing us the question.

I need to represent it like this:

  It is not showing the question to us.

Lexico doesn't have anything like the first version in its examples.

How is this sentence constructed?


texts: How is "for" used in "Having such a famous man for a father..." ?

texts:
Having such a famous man for a father must have had an effect on Jason's childhood.

In this sentence I can't understand how for is used. I haven't read such a sentence before so I find it difficult to understand. I think 'as' in place of 'for' makes more sense.

Anyone please explain where I'm wrong because it's given on a English grammar check website.


texts: I know that ending sentences with prepositions should be avoided, but still. Can I ask so:"What is the aileron part of?"


texts: Trouble understanding 'which' and 'as' in this sentence "...which ignores as plebeian various superstitions..."

texts:
I don't understand this sentence from History of Western Philosophy.

1) Does the "which" here refer to "civilized aristocracy" or "the point of view"?

2) What's the function of "as" here? Does it mean "because" or something else?

  The first notable product of the Hellenic civilization was Homer.
  Everything about Homer is conjectural, but the best opinion seems to
  be that he was a series of poets rather than an individual. Probably
  the Iliad and the Odyssey between them took about two hundred years to
  complete, some say from 750 to 550 B.C., a€ while others hold that
  "Homer" was nearly complete at the end of the eighth century. a€. The
  Homeric poems, in their present form, were brought to Athens by
  Peisistratus, who reigned (with intermissions) from 560 to 527 B.C.
  From his time onward, the Athenian youth learnt Homer by heart, and
  this was the most important part of their education. In some parts of
  Greece, notably in Sparta, Homer had not the same prestige until a
  later date.

  The Homeric poems, like the courtly romances of the later Middle Ages,
  represent the point of view of a civilized aristocracy, which ignores
  as plebeian various superstitions that are still rampant among the
  populace. In much later times, many of these superstitions rose again
  to the light of day.


texts: hundreds of persons VS. hundreds persons

texts:
hundreds of persons

hundreds persons

Could you please learn me what is the difference between the two?

Thanks in advance


texts: It is the name of a 2008 movie, starring Leonardo DiCaprio, and also a 2007 novel, written by David Ignatius.


texts: Difference between "develop" and "create"

texts:
What is the difference between these two sentences:

Scientists are developing new drugs to treat arthritis
Scientists are creating new drugs to treat arthritis


texts:
In three separate studies, researchers compared children who had slept
  with night-lights in their rooms as infants to children who had not.

I can understand the sentence if there is no bold part. (In three separate studies, researchers compared children who had slept with night-lights in their rooms to children who had not). However, because of the bold part, I cannot understand the whole sentence. Could anyone explain what as infants in this sentence means?


texts:
Example:

  The learning and knowledge that we have, is, at the most, but little compared with that of which we are ignorant.
  —Plato

I'm having real trouble understanding how exactly I should parse that sentence grammatically.


texts:
Let's say I am carrying a couple of bags or something like that and some random stranger offers to carry one of them.

  Do you want me to hold one of these?

I have seen in movies that if you don't have any problem with the bags you will most likely say I have got it, rather than saying No I don't or explaining how it is not a problem for you to carry the bags which is what I tend to do.

My question is that what else can I use besides this?


texts: The event happened in the past. My interest is still there. "is" vs. "was"

texts:
When I talked with a native speaker, I said

  SpaceX Demo-2 was scheduled for launch to the International Space Station on 27 May 2020. NASA live streamed at launch. I off work early to specifically watch that. When I got home, I found that the launch was canceled, which made me a little bit upset. But the whole thing is interesting

He suggests

  ... But the whole thing was interesting

I understand that's because we need to keep the tense consistent. However, my interest to the launch is still there. I will watch that launch at 30 May, which is the rescheduled time.

In this particular situation, should I use "is" or "was"?


texts: Can these perfect tense be changed into simple past?

texts:
None of the delight frothing and fizzing inside Shirley had been apparent while Howard (1) had been in the room. They had merely exchanged the comments proper to sudden death before he (2) had taken himself off to the shower.
  (The Casual Vacancy, by J. K. Rowling)

For my mother tongue, we don’t necessarily require the tense agreements both (1) and (2), says a member of Korean national language institute (국립국어원) - we can, but we usually don’t, because we can understand by contexts. As it were, we don’t backshift the tense of subordinate clauses, and rather we recognize the non-shifts as the tense agreements - but both the expressions don't always deliver the same meaning, commented the same person.
And English seems to recognize kind of same way, I guess, from this sentence: “I should have liked to have met her.” They say on CGEL p.148 that the perfect tense in the infinitive is pleonastic. Probably they would say that the ‘have’ is an excessive word.
What about both (1) and (2)? Can you use simple past for both (1) and (2)?


texts: Using comma(,) when listing several objects

texts:
Which is correct expression using comma or not in front of last object when listing several objects?

... A, B, C and D.
... A, B, C, and D.


texts: ...hide the evidence before you know what hit/hits you

texts:
Even if you hide the marmalade in the remotest corner of the house, you can be sure that Carlotta will nose it out, devour it, and hide the evidence before you know what hit/hits you.

Probable Source: Betty S. Azar and Stacy A. Hagen, Understanding and Using English Grammar

Which word in bold should I use? And could you please explain to me why you would use that verb?

Thanks.


texts: How should I say "I will update on Next Tuesday"

texts:
Should I say:

  I will update you by next Tuesday

or

  I will update you on next Tuesday

It's a bit confusing.


texts:
I become confused when I need use who or whom with a preposition like with..

Could you tell me please which sentences below are grammatically correct or colloquial?

  People who I would like to be friend should be..

  People who I would like to be friend with should be..

  People I would like to be friend should be..

  People I would like to be friend with should be..

  People whom I would like to be friend..

  People whom I would like to be friend with...

I think when we used "whom" we do not have to use a preposition but this time another question comes up here is that when I should use who + preposition..

for example

Do I have to use a preposition with the verbs "move in" or "date" (or it is just about being familiar with this collocations)

  She is not a kind of girl (who) I can move in/date with?

  or

  She is not a kind of girl (who) I can move in/date ?

Thank you


texts: seems/seemed as if + different tense forms

texts:
a.He seems as if he hasn't slept for days. (he hasn't slept for days)

b.He seems as if he didn't sleep for days. ( ? )

c.He seems as if he hadn't slept for days. (it seems that he hasn't slept for days, but he (probably) has or we don't know whether he has or not)

d.He seemed as if he hadn't slept for days  ( is it past form of sentence a ? )

e.He seemed as if he didn't slept for days  ( can we say ? if we can what would it mean)

f.He seemed as if he hasn't slept for days  ( can we say ? if we can what would it mean)

So how can we say the past form of sentence c ?

Do sentence b and sentence c have similar meaning?

Thanks


texts:
When you use propositional phrases or conjunctive phrases, do you use a pronoun that matches your subject prior to mentioning the actual subject?

  I don't think you'll need her number, but Jennifer's number is x.

  I don't think you'll need Jennifer's number, but her number is x.

  Although she is late, I think Jennifer will be here any minute now.

  Although Jennifer is late, I think she will be here any minute now.


texts: "I would be very happy if I could have..." Is this natural sentence with manners?

texts:
I would be very happy if I could have such an opportunity to see you in person, so please let me know whenever (if?) you will have a chance to visit this area.

Is this natural sentence with manners?

Someone who referred me to a new job said she would like to visit my place to make sure the job will start smoothly. I would like to show my appreciation in reply, but I do not force her to come here because it is really far, and would like to keep it as optional.


texts: "Note that for the x systems, we .." vs "Note that for the x systems we .."

texts:
For the x systems, we usually have harder constraints, such as ...

  Note that for the x systems, we usually have harder constraints, such as ...
  Note that for the x systems we usually have harder constraints, such as ...

I suppose that the first comma is needed in the first sentence (?).
As for the second sentence, I am a bit confused. should I still use the (first) comma or not ?


texts: Which preposition? -- "I'm going to hand in my work [ at / to / with ] my tutor."

texts:
I recently bumped into the verb handing in. When I wanted to use it in a sentence I couldn't tell whether I had to use it with at/to/with or anything else.

  I'm going to hand my work in [ at / to / with ] my tutor.


texts: Is there an idiom for "simple problem made unnecessarily large"?

texts: Say I have a small problem which can be solved easily by myself. Yet I don't do it because of some unimportant thing, and this involves many people and generates many debates, making everyone fed up. Is there an idiom or common phrase for this?


texts: What to say when I want to ensure something is right?

texts:
Sometimes, when I am engaging a conversation with somebody and I want to make sure a statement is correct, I would (almost always) say

  So ...(a statement based on what the other person just said)..., right/is it correct?

Are there any other ways to phrase this sentence? I personally find that native speakers seldom use this sentence.


texts: What's the difference in the meanings of these two sentences? | "I have" vs "I"

texts:
I've finished doing my homework.

I finished doing my homework.

What's the difference in the meanings of these two sentences?


texts: Is there any difference in meaning between "look through the window" and "look out of the window" and "look from the window"?

texts:
Is there any difference in meaning between look through the window and look out of the window and look from the window? For example:

  I often look though the window when it's raining.

  I often look out of the window when it's raining.

  I often look from the window when it's raining.


texts:
Tell me please which sentence is correct.

  1) I will vote for those with the characteristics that I like.
  2) I will vote for those with characteristics that I like.

I am confused whether I need to use "the" or not. However, I favour the first one.