texts: Can I use shortage instead of "material in short supply"

texts:
Can I use "shortage" instead of "material in short supply".
For example, "The other two shortages will be pulled in next Monday", I mean the other two items in short supply now will arrive next Monday.
Thanks in advance.


texts: What is the meaning of "comes out wrong" in this context?

texts:
This is the context:

  We definitely know that particles pop in and out of existence. it happens everywhere all the time and this is what people think might be responsible for dark energy. Only the problem is, when you do the calculation,
  it comes out wrong by 10 to the 120th power.

I don't get the bold part. can anyone explain?


texts:
What does the "be generated" mean in this sentence.

  It should be generated directly to your account.

What does that mean?, is it a passive that it's generated by someone, or it means something else?. And how does the construction that being said work?.

I understand that the modal verbs + be + adjective but the past participle has confused me.


texts: I've posted a question on a forum asking about the way I was using a technology. I asked if my way was the best way. So, someone has answered me: "It's certainly not a given.". I'm not sure about the meaning of this expression. What does it exactly stand for? Thanks.


texts:
Which of the following phrases is correct? Could you explain why?

The more often you do this, the better the results.

The more often you do this, the better the results are.


texts: Simplified text of Mark Twain: Should there be such a comma in this sentence?

texts:
The sentences below are from a simplified text of the short story "Luck" by Mark Twain.

And I've found two different versions of the simplified text on Google, with or without a comma:

  Version 1:The hundreds of eyes watching him, the worship of so many people did not seem to make any difference to him.

  Version 2:The hundreds of eyes watching him, the worship of so many people**,** did not seem to make any difference to him.

It seems, by my lights, that the second version with a comma is grammatically more understandable. The comma makes it clear that there are 2 subjects in this sentence. Anyway, since I don't have the book and I am not a native speaker, I don't know which is the original sentence or correct version.

Should there be such a comma in this sentence? Why?

Added Note: the original sentence is

  It was food and drink to me to look, and look, and look at that demigod; scanning, searching, noting: the quietness, the reserve, the noble gravity of his countenance; the simple honesty that expressed itself all over him; the sweet unconsciousness of his greatness--unconsciousness of the hundreds of admiring eyes fastened upon him, unconsciousness of the deep, loving, sincere worship welling out of the breasts of those people and flowing toward him.

Source: Twain, Mark. "Luck." Merry Tales. New York: Charles L. Webster & Co. 1892. Pages 66-67. Web.


texts: The use of the future continuous in place of the future simple

texts:
Tell me please why the presenter in this clip decided to use the future progressive instead of the future simple. It is at 1 minute and 56 seconds. Here is the exerpt:

  If you don't like my cooking, I will not be inviting you to my dinner party.

How is this sentence different in meaning than the following one?

  If you don't like my cooking, I will not invite you to my dinner party.


texts: "Turn somebody in" and Turn somebody over to somebody" . Is there a difference?

texts:
They turned him in to the police.
They turned him over to the police.
Are they exactly the same in meaning?


texts:
Go home and take ( ) rest.

I guess people usually say "take a rest", but But is it also ok to use "rest" non-countably?


texts: How to say the period of time when you are not on vacation?

texts: Let say I jogged when I was on vacation, would you say that I jogged in that time when I was on vacation? And how to say when I am not on vacation? Would I say in times apart from vacation? They sound strange so please correct as many mistakes as possible.


texts: Some dictionary said, 'If you miss that train then you'll have to get a taxi.' Is it wrong not to use a comma  between an if-clause and a main clause? I'm confused because this is from an Oxford dictionary.


texts: There is me and friends vs There are me and friends. Is the following sentence correct?

texts:
"The picture was taken in Amsterdam. There are me and a lot of
friends and I had my teacher take a picture in our hotel room."

I am not sure if the part "There are me and a lot of friends" is correct grammatically.


texts: What should I call a message sent to someone whose mobile is off? A lay off/deferred/suspended message?

texts:
What term you would use to express the situation that when you send a mobile message it's not directly delivered (for instance, because the receiver's mobile is off or any glitch due to the internet connection)?

  Lay off message
  Deferred message
  Suspended message

May I use all of them in the context of mobile text message?

Is there any difference?

Which one is the most common usage in the EU and the USA?


texts:
I am not native Engish I have a hard time to distinguish between on and in cases like "the cloud" or "the Blockchain"
For instance: that software is in the Blockchain or on the Blockchain?
Why?
Thank you!


texts: Need help with the expression "to have your work cut out for you"

texts:
When someone says something like "He will have his work cut out for him when he gets there" is it somehow implicit that the person who is saying it doesn't believe that the person he is talking about will be able to do the task, that he will fail, give up or something like that?

Also, can this expression be used figuratively, and even with a bit of sarcasm, like in the phrase:

Are you sure that he's gonna marry her? Well, he will definitely have his work cut out for him.

Finally, is it possible to use "is gonna" instead of "will have", for example: "He is gonna have his work cut off for him, no doubt about it".


texts: Do I need any preposition in front of "the second time"?

texts: I am wondering if I need any preposition in front of "the second time" when I say "do something for/in/at/on the second time"  for example,"I hope you get it ... the second time."


texts:
I don’t understand what the «Something in the way she knows» and «Something in the things she shows me» means in the song «Something» by the Beatles.

Excerpt from the song:

  Something in the way she knows
  And all I have to do is think of her
  Something in the things she shows me
  I don't want to leave her now
  You know I believe and how


texts: totaled 969 in the 2014 fiscal year, up 34 percent from 2012 -- comprehension

texts:
Source: http://news.yahoo.com/scores-russian-gays-seeking-asylum-us-060357416.html

  There are no firm statistics on the number of gay Russian asylum seekers. U.S. government agencies that handle applications do not report such details. However, the Department of Homeland Security's latest figures show that overall applications for asylum by Russians totaled 969 in the 2014 fiscal year, up 34 percent from 2012.

The subject of that last clause is obviously overall applications for asylum by Russians. totaled is the verb and 969 in the 2014 fiscal year is the object of the verb with some additional information provided. Only this much I get, but I don't understand how up 34 percent from 2012 fits into the picture. Please help.


texts:
With the advance of science, there has been a tendency to slip
into scientism, and assume that any factual claim can be authenticated if and only if the term ‘scientific’ can correctly be ascribed to it. The consequence is that
non-scientific approaches to reality ― and that can include all the arts, religion, and personal, emotional and value-laden ways of encountering the world ― may become labelled as merely
subjective, and therefore of little account in terms of describing the way the world is.

Q1. In the above passage, what does "it" indicate? Is that  "factual claim"? Am I right?
Q2. Shouldn't "that" be changed to "those"? I think the "that" is supposed to mean "non-scientific approaches to reality" and "approaches" are plural form. So the plural form of pronoun, "those" is needed here. Am I right or wrong?


texts: Past participle phrase vs past perfect tense

texts:
In because about my last question before so I'm learning Past Participles in Participle Phrases now. I'm curious about example that I read from this http://www.grammar-monster.com/glossary/past_participles.htm

The example is :

  Battered by the wind, John fell to his knees.

How about if I say :

  John had battered by the wind before he fell to his knees.

Are they interchangeable or mine is incorrect ? And when to use Past Participles in Participle Phrases?


texts: The modal verb 'might' is used to show a future possibility, but it is also the past tense of may when coupled with have. Is there a way to write a sentence in past tense using 'might' without it being 'might have' ?


texts: What's the meaning of " got roasted by someone"?


texts: Why not use "casualties" in "Small shops have been a casualty of the recession."?

texts:
From the Oxford Advanced Learner's Dictionary:

  Small shops have been a casualty of the recession.

"Shops" is plural here while "casualty" is singular. Any reason for that?

Can I have the sentence stick to one form?

  Small shop has been a casualty of the recession.

  Small shops have been casualties of the recession.

Thanks in advance.


texts: Why is "give me", and not "give to me" correct? As this is dative, and we are told that it is translated (from my language) with the preposition "to" in English.


texts:
Is the word 'slave' only presents: the one who is owned by another person and is forced to work for them... or, can this word be used for 'someone who is sincerely devoted to someone, for example an ancestor or a teacher?
'A' believes 'B' to be his master and is sincerely devoted to 'B', can 'A' say?
I am a slave of B.


texts:
Are these sentences correct?

He was my best friend back in kindergarden.

Did he be my best friend back in kindergarden?
Did he was my best friend back in kindergarden?

If #2 is correct, then why isn't the verb BE on its simple form?

He had a Gibson Guitar.

Did he have a Gibson Guitar?
Did he has a Gibson Guitar?
Did he had a Gibson Guitar?

My intuition is telling me that #1 is correct, but i think #3 is correct as well.

I hope someone can answer me, cheers!.


texts:
Which one is correct to say?

I wanted to say the my friend (do/does) one task on regular basis.

a) He do this on regular Basic.

b) He does this on regular basic.


texts: Martha loves exercising so she ____ everywhere she goes

texts:
Martha loves exercising so she will walk everywhere she goes.

Or is it...........

  Martha loves exercising so she walks everywhere she goes.

I am terrible at grammar and I searched all over the net for help. I believe the answer is "walks". I just need to be sure.


texts:
I stumble upon the term "dealersearch". It is used by German companies on their international (and therefore English) websites. It's a literal translation of the german term "Händlersuche", which translates to store locator in English - as far as I know.

In Germany, the (German) slang word "Dealer" is associated with drug dealers. I ask myself, if this is different for native english speakers? What impression do native English speakers get if a page uses dealersearch instead of store locator? Is dealersearch just a bad translation or does the term by itself suggest a search for drug dealers? Maybe I'm totally wrong and dealersearch is just a little odd, but valid translation?


texts: Does the verb 'apply' necessarily imply that you ask that something be given to you? Can it be used if there's no direct personal gain?

texts: For example, if a person or some nonprofit sends implicating information to a law enforcement agency and requests that company A should be investigated and, if found guilty, punished because they violated this and that, is the verb 'apply' applicable? If not, what verbs could be used instead? 'Petition', I suppose? Like, "An NGO applied to /petitioned the FTA to initiate a probe into..." blah, blah, blah.


texts: Why is "do" sometimes added to declarative sentences?

texts:
Many people use the word do in statements, but I don't understand the significance of doing so.  For example, consider the following sentences:

I know you.
I do know you.
I speak English.
I do speak English.

I think both statements mean the same thing, but why does one include do? Is there any purpose?


texts:
"That month, federal officials disclosed that Smith admitted to parking $200 million in offshore accounts and criminally evaded paying taxes on it for 15 years—from 2000 through 2015. Smith entered into a non-prosecution agreement with the Department of Justice and agreed to pay $139 million in penalties to the IRS—the largest tax fine ever. He also agreed to help the IRS reel in Texas-based billionaire Robert Brockman, Smith’s former client at Goldman Sachs and reportedly the initial investor in his Vista Equity private equity firm. Brockman was charged in October with hiding $2 billion from tax officials in offshore accounts, perhaps the largest tax evasion scheme in history."

What does 'reel in' mean here? Does it mean 'to investigate', or 'to arrest'?
Source: https://www.forbes.com/sites/lisettevoytko/2021/12/27/here-are-the-biggest-billionaire-scandals-of-2020/?sh=284a4b117a19


texts: Differences between "Who there is with him" and "Who is with him"

texts:
1. (a) Statement       - There is a man with him.
   (b) Question        - Who is there with him?  (a man)
   (c) Noun clause     - who there is with him

2. (a) Statement       - The man is with him.
   (b) question        - Who is with him?  (The man)
   (c) Noun clause     - who is with him

My questions:

Are there any significant differences between 1.(b)/(c) and 2.(b)/(c) ?
Are the questions and noun clauses here correct?


texts: "I feel I carry everyone in prayer" vs "I feel I ought to carry everyone in prayer"

texts:
I feel I [ought to] carry everyone in prayer, in a present that is God’s, where I recall every meeting, every voyage, every pastoral visit.
(The Huffinghton Post)

Why does the journalist have added "ought to" to the above Vatican Radio translation. Does the piece take a different meaning without "ought to"? If so, how are the two versions (with & without "ought to") different in meaning?


texts:
Can the term 'possessive pronouns' be used as a general term for both possessive pronouns and possessive adjectives?

At the university I was taught that there are two kinds of possessive pronouns: possessive pronouns adjectives and possessive pronouns nouns. In most today's textbooks they are called possessive adjectives (e.g. my, his, their) and possessive pronouns (e.g. mine, his, theirs) respectively.  (I was also taught that a possessive pronoun is an 'absolute' form of a possessive adjective.)

Update: ("Possessive determiner" – Wikipedia)

  The words my, your, etc. are sometimes classified, along with mine,
  yours etc., as possessive pronouns or genitive pronouns, since they
  are the possessive (or genitive) forms of the ordinary personal
  pronouns I, you etc. However, unlike most other pronouns, they do
  not behave grammatically as stand-alone nouns, but instead qualify
  another noun – as in my book (contrasted with that's mine, for
  example, where mine substitutes for a complete noun phrase such as my
  book). For this reason, other authors restrict the term "possessive
  pronoun" to the group of words mine, yours etc. that substitute
  directly for a noun or noun phrase.

  Some authors who classify both sets of words as "possessive pronouns"
  or "genitive pronouns" apply the terms dependent/independent or
  weak/strong to refer, respectively, to my, your, etc. and mine,
  yours, etc. For example, under this scheme, my is termed a
  dependent possessive pronoun and mine an independent possessive
  pronoun.


texts: an English proverb meaning "the good suffer with the bad"

texts:
In my native language, when we want to describe a situation in which a group of people suffer a special consequence regardless of how they performed or whether they deserve that or not, we say "(When fire comes,) wet and dry will burn together" meaning it doesn't matter whether there are dead branches or green branches, in case of a big fire all will burn. What we mean is 'the good suffer with the bad.'

For example,

A couple of students were shouting when the head teacher stepped in. He looked at us angrily and snarled,"next time I hear a sound, I'll send you all home, remember '(when fire comes,) wet and dry will burn together'"

Another example,

The priest told us that it is not enough to be just a good man and we should warn others against their bad deeds because in case of God's wrath, 'wet and dry will burn together'.


texts: Difference of meaning between two same structures

texts:
1) Water of washing dishes (washing dishes water)

  2) Process of producing a car

When considering these two sentence fragments, it seems both have the same structure, but the first one doesn’t make sense. I don't understand why. Can you please explain?


texts: Single word for "Number of times which sonething. be used"

texts:
I am looking for a noun to describe "Number of times which something be used".

Eg: A machine have been used for 10 times, it needs to be cleaned up.

In this situation

____ is 10 times, What is the word to represent the 10 times.


texts: 'student at the university' and article 'a'

texts:
I think it's okay to say "I study [subject] at the  University of [City] ". However,  should I say

  I'm a physics student at ...

or without 'a',

  I'm physics student at ...

I'm suddenly terribly unsure which one is correct, so maybe you lot can help.


texts: Difference between 'real' and 'really' when being adverb

texts:
As dictionaries indicated, both real and really can be the adverb. For example:

  He is finding prison life 'real tough'.

Can we instead say 'really tough' in this case?

Question: what's the difference between real and really, when they serve as an adverb?


texts:
Which is correct and which is colloquial or incorrect of the three choices?

Does your son express interest in music?
Does your son express interest toward music?
Does your son express interest to music?

I would certainly use "in", but what about the other options?


texts:
When do we use "no women" instead of "no woman"? I thought we used "no woman" instead of "no women" by default, but it seems that some people do use "no women". Is there a situation where one is preferred over the other, or are both phrases synonymous and can be used at any time?

For example:

  This list identified sixty-seven men and no women.


texts:
Either due to a dent in the continuum, or as a result of my continued efforts to develop a fully functional temporal flux capacitor, yesterday a question was asked which quoted almost exactly a sentence I had spoken to my own son just a day earlier:

  I won't do that no matter what are the circumstances.

I had a conversation with my son which went like this:

  Son: So I put it on the card. I don't have any cash under those circumstances.
  Father: I wouldn't do that, no matter what are the circumstances!

In commentary on the cited question (not in my answer) I maintained that this construction was grammatically correct, if unusual, while another commenter averred that it was simply wrong.

Since the commentary includes references to things "sounding right/wrong," and given my own exhortation that the questioner not disregard that criterion out of hand, I would like an answer to the following question and, if that answer is negative, to its corollary:

Is the sentence I won't do that no matter what are the circumstances justifiable from a grammatical perspective?
Why does it "sound right" (although certainly more than a little twee) to me?


texts: Choose the correct answer between "shouldn't" and "mustn't"

texts:
Here is the question:

  He ... want the job, or he would be here.

  a)doesn't have to

  b)mustn't

  c)shouldn't

  d)must

I'm in doubt between b and c. It seems both of them are correct. If we consider that sentence as an implication, maybe "mustn't" is the right answer.


texts:
He has come a minute ago,
I have had my breakfast a few moments ago,
The train has left the station not long ago.

Do we use time markers like "a minute ago", "a few minutes ago", "not long ago" with present perfect? And what is the difference between "a few MOMENTS ago" and "a few MINUTES ago" and are these definite time markers? If so why can we use these with present perfect tense? And could we use "He has left just a few moments ago or a few minutes ago."?


texts:
Are there any "tricks" to know when to use "on", "in" and "into" ? How do I know which of them I should use? I tend to use "on" when it is supposed to be "in" and vice versa.

1 On Monday, NASA's Grail spacecraft crashed into the Moon's shadows.
2 On Monday, NASA's Grail spacecraft crashed on the Moon's surface.
3 On Monday, NASA's Grail spacecraft crashed in the Moon's desert.

Can anybody explain me the use of these prepositions in reference to the examples above?


texts:
What's the meaning of 'take' in "to take a wide variety of forms"?
Does it simply mean 'to have', or maybe 'to include'?


texts: A rich and family which is living in comfort and luxury

texts:
I Wonder what do you call a family which is most of the time rich and all its members are living a good life and have whatever they need? The idiom/expression/set phrase or even the adjective in my question not only should encapsulate the concept of being wealthy, but also should indicate that the person is living in comfort and luxury and has all the needed facilities at hand. I wonder what would you use to fill in the black below:

  — He has grown up in a ................. family?

I used to think that a "prosperous family" is my needed concept, but reading the meaning of this word I decided to ask a new question about it, while it doesn't convey anything about "comfort".


texts: What do you call the frozen air that comes out of your mouth?

texts: What do you call this water vapour coming out of your mouth during winter times?


texts: Indirect speech? "She will tell us that he  to ..."

texts:
Situation: It's June now. She is coming to see us in August. He will go to Italy in July.

Which of these sentences below is correct, and why?

  She will tell us that he goes to Italy.
  She will tell us that he went to Italy.

I think the latter is definitely correct, but I'm not sure about the former.


texts: What is the name of the elevator in the attached image?

texts: I don't know what this elevator is called in English. I´m looking for images like this elevator in the real world


texts:
Having a hard time telling the difference between these, and which ones are wrong.

1) 0.5 seconds later and he would been dead.

2) 0.5 seconds later and he would have been dead.

3) 0.5 seconds later and he would be dead.

Anyone kind enough to explain how to use these 3 forms?
Thanks!


texts: "Have you worked" vs. "Did you work" in a complex question in which both past, present and future events are involved

texts:
Shoe: Kitty, how many hours a day did you work last week  and when do you think you'll be exhausted? (1)
Shoe: Kitty, how many hours a day have you worked last week  and when do you think you'll be exhausted? (2)
Kitty: Really, Shoe, I've already exhausted myself, especially physically, and that's exactly why I want to suspend my work.

In Shoe's questions past, present and future events are mixed.
Which is the correct time frame,

(1) "did you work", or (2) "have you worked"?


texts: Few questions about how we can use "it" to refer to things

texts:
From my understanding of the use of "it", it has to be used after someone has used "this" or "that" to introduce the topic.
My questions:
(a) If the topic is already clear to everyone, can we use "it" directly?
(b) Are the examples I have provided below correct?
(c) Is my analysis for each example correct?

Example (0)

A: John cheated on his girlfriend. This is a common problem among relationship.

B: Yeah, it is not something we should do.

My analysis:
The "this" and "it" here refer to the cheating action in general. And the "it" is used after the idea has been introduced with the use of "this".

Example (1)

A: John cheated on his girlfriend.

B: That is not something we should do.

A: Yes, you're right. It is very evil.

My analysis:
The "that" and "it" here refer to the cheating action in general, and the "it" is used after the idea has been introduced with the use of "that".

Example (2) (when the topic is clear)
(A and B witness John cheating.)

A: Hey, look. John is going out with another woman. We are not telling anyone about it.

B: Yeah, sure. And by the way, it is not something we dare to do to our girlfriends. If we did it, we would be killed by them.

My analysis:
The first "it" said by A means this specific event of John's cheating
The second and third "it" both mean the action of cheating in general.

Example (3) (when the topic is clear)
(A and B witness John cheating.)

A: Hey, look. John is going out with another woman.

B: Yes, he is. And in my case, I don't do it even though it is not illegal.

My analysis:
The first and second "it" mean the action of cheating in general.

Example (4) (when the topic is clear)

(A and B try to make a fire by rubbing sticks.)

A: Oh, God, it is so exhausting. Why is it not working?

B: It is not something we can do without training.

My analysis:
The first and second "it" both mean the ongoing action of rubbing sticks to make a fire.
The third "it" means the action of rubbing sticks to make a fire in general.


texts: What is the difference among dealt/get dealt/got dealt?

texts:
What is the difference in the meaning among these following sentences?

  A. Priority cases get dealt with first.

  B. Priority cases are dealt with first.

  C. Priority cases are got dealt with first.


texts:
I encountered a sentence which went like :

  "whatever was left was ransacked of."

And it confused me with the closing "of"


texts: I am bit confused with the following sentence

texts:
What the different between "So exciting to be part of it" and "So excited to be part of it"

which one is correct?


texts: Mary likes the dog eating bones - What does that mean?

texts:
Does the sentence mean Mary likes the dog which is eating bones
or it mean Mary finds the idea of the dog eating bones attractive
and she likes it?
Does the sentence deliberately ambiguous or it completely clear and
it's just my matter of not figuring out?
If the sentence ambiguous, how can the sentence adjusted to avoid
ambiguity?


texts:
"Shouldn't the objects have disappeared instead of the writings on them having been changed?"

Is this sentence grammatically correct? If not then how can you make it grammatically correct? Can I use the perfect participle in a question? And can I use it after "instead of"? I've heard that the verbs that follow "instead of" should be verbs that end with "-ing". But what if the event after "instead of" happened in the past? What should you use?


texts:
When one has received/receives driving license, he should be driving accompanied by an experienced driver for a year.

I feel it should be present simple. I am hesitating, as it is not supposed to be a general statement/rule, but an opinion/suggestion and "has received" somehow doesn't look "bad" to my eyes.


texts: "the probability of" vs "a/an +adjective +probability"

texts:
when should we use "a/an" before the word and when should we use "the" because for example, we use:

1 there's a high probability
not there is the high probability

but we do say

2 there's the probability of 95% that tomorrow it will rain.


texts: 'He may need not to ...' or 'He may not need to ...'

texts:
I am wondering if it is correct to say:

He may need not to ...

or should we say

He may not need to ...


texts: the risks to plot travel (comprehension)

texts:
Source: Escaped from Eritrea, refugee route leads to Europe (news article)

Example:

  New arrivals in the camp dismiss the risks of ruthless people smugglers and treacherous waters to plot travel onwards north to Sudan, and then on to Europe.

So, what this in essence says is that the arrivals dismiss the risks of blah, blah, blah to plot travel to Europe that can be quite dangerous due to a lot of bad things that may happen en route. The thing that I don't understand, however, is how the mere act of plotting your travel route can be dangerous or risky per se? The travel, however, can be. Do you think this is a semantic error or something of that nature?


texts:
1) In the context where you are getting a technician, tradesperson or a repairman to come to your house, which phrase is more appropriate/common among native speakers? Is it a matter of difference in degrees of formality? Below are some example sentences I thought of.

  I have a problem with my xxxx. Could you please come out and have a look.

  xxxx has not been working for some time, so can you come over to check it out for me.

  I think there is something wrong with my xxxx. I was wondering if you can send someone to have a look/ check it out.

2) What are some idiomatic and more concise alternatives to the two above?
I have heard of the expression 'do a house call' and would like to know some others.

Many thanks in advance.


texts: When listing a number of things in a sentence, I know the word form of the items must be consistent like verb1, verb2, verb3 and so on. My question is, can gerund phrases and nouns can be in a list? Is a gerund phrase considered a noun? For example, "This surgical device is used for cutting parts, incision, insertion, and fixing components." It sounds wrong to me. Thank you.


texts: Which preposition should I use with "purpose"?

texts:
The primordial purpose __________ schooling is ultimately to learn how to learn.

A. In

B. For

C. Of

D. At


texts: "Carrie has arrived at the airport for two hours." - Is this sentence grammatically correct?

texts:
I'm helping my friend with his English exercise related to the simple past & present perfect tenses:

  Rewrite each of the following sentences in another way so that it
  means almost the same as the sentence printed before it.

  Carrie arrived at the airport two hours ago.

  => Carrie has ______________________

At first, my friend wrote:

  Carrie has arrived at the airport for two hours.

I looked at it and just felt something wrong. It seems to me that the action 'arrive' happens only once, it is not a continuing action. So, I advised my friend to change it to:

  Carrie has stayed at the airport for two hours.

Is my sentence correct and does it meet the requirement of the exercise?


texts: Expression 'this is what we have come to'

texts:
I came across this expression 'this is what we have come to', the person was trying to express something like 'this is the point we have reached' and I don't know if it's correct or not.

Thank you in advance.


texts:
In the movie You've Got Mail, George shows Joe a first edition of Swiss Family Robinson in Kathleen's bookstore and says "The illustrations are hand-tipped, which is why --", and Joe says "It costs so much."
Does it mean "hand-crafted"?


texts: How can a “stocking suspender” sharpen a razor?

texts:
In Mark Twain's short story "About Barbers" it says

He finished lathering, and then began to rub in the suds with his hand.
He now began to sharpen his razor on an old suspender, and was delayed a good deal on account of a controversy…

But Cambridge Dictionary says "a long piece of elastic that hangs down from a suspender belt and holds a stocking up" for suspender.
I could not understand how to sharpen a razor on it. Is there an idiom for it?


texts:
I'd like to say: "The development of H2 infrastructure is most ... in Germany."

mature
advanced
common
prominent
widespread
...

Which is the best adjective and which of the list cannot be used in this structure?

The meaning is the following:

"Germany is the prospective lead market of H2 infrastructure due to continuous support by industrial stakeholders and the government."


texts: a STACK (or bunch) of food in British english. Make sense?

texts:
People say "I eat a bunch of food" in North American English, it sounds natural. But what if I say...

  ..."I eat a STACK of food"

in British English? Does it make sense?


texts: "Stop To" vs "Stop On"; Which will be correct in below sentence?

texts:
Context:

1: Will this step of government put stop to all those criminal activities?

2: Will this step of government put stop on all those criminal activities?

The second sounds right according to me but on internet in many contexts, "to" seems to be correct.


texts:
a) Regeneration charity, The Auckland Project, in Bishop Auckland, said it is planning a significant restructure following the events.
Is regeneration charity considered a precise identifier here or would the comma usage be peripheral/optional?
Or should 'The or A' be used at the beginning so it reads as a complete sentence leaving 'The Auckland Project' as a non-essential subject?
It says on some resources if the sentence begins with a determiner such as the or a then the subject is non-essential and can take commas. In this instance, it appears wrong, but perhaps correct with: The regeneration charity, The Auckland Project, ect.
But this contradicts intepreting the precise name of the subject as essential/non essential, asking instead to just be able to read it as complete sentence.
For context: The Auckland Project is simply a charity aimed at revitalising an English town: Bishop Auckland. They are called regeneration charities as they aim to encourage money and spending in towns that aren't doing well and struggling.


texts: Which one should I use? -- "you { would have been / would have / were } paid double salary by me"

texts:
Which one is correct to say?

  Hence i have made this adjestment, otherwise you would have been paid double Salary by me.

Or

  Hence i have made this adjestment, otherwise you would have paid double salary by me.

or

  Hence i have made this adjestment, otherwise you were paid double salary by me.


texts: What is the correct adjective to describe when something is fried for too long or at a high heat?  To fry "strong"? To fry "hard"? Can't pick the word that would sound authentic.


texts:
What does the sentence

  The symbol is a weak symbol that has not been specifically tagged as a weak object symbol.

mean? What is the purpose of "specifically" here?

This is from nm's documentation.

For each symbol, nm shows:

The symbol type.

"w" The symbol is a weak symbol that has not been specifically tagged as a weak object symbol.  When a weak defined symbol is linked with a normal defined symbol, the normal defined symbol is used with no error.


texts:
engender - be the source or cause of something (learnersdictionary.com)

cause a particular situation, atmosphere or feeling to occur (Collin Cobuild Dictionary)

(ex) The issue has engendered a considerable amount of debate. (learnersdictionary)

(ex) That sudden creativity has engendered its own literature. (idoceonline dictionary)

(ex) The changes in society were engendered by the war. (idoceonline)

(ex) Every cloud engenders not a storm. (freedictionary)

I have no problem with the dictionary examples. I have made up the example below using the verb.

(1a) Scientists have been trying to figure out what engendered the extinction of dinosaurs. Recent findings might answer their question.

Am I using the verb correctly?


texts:
I stumbled across the sentence below

‘The last thing I'll do is run’

and I wonder why the verb run isn't used in an ‘- ing’ form. As far as I know after the verb ‘is’, a noun should be following.  Also there is one more sentence that I found, it's in a similar form I guess.

‘My plan is study hard’

Thanks!


texts:
I am reading The great Gatsby and there is one part that says:

  I had a woman up here last week to look at my feet, and when she gave
  me the bill you'd of thought she had my appendicitis out.

I would like to know what does you'd of thought mean and also if the of is omitted the sentence would have the same meaning?


texts:
Profits continue to grow, with strong performances in South America and the Far East.

Comma after ''grow''

  He was clothed in his photo, with a friendly smile.

Comma after '' photo''

What does comma mean in these sentences ? Does meanings changes if I delete the comma in these sentences?

  Bring the phone on the table .

  Bring the phone , on the table here.

  Bring the phone on the table here.

In first sentence I want someone to put the phone onto the table

In second sentence I want someone to bring the phone that is on the table. Or should I put comma before ''here''?

Are my opinions about comma correct ?


texts:
In Italian, if I say Indossano certe scarpe. (which Google Translate translates as "They wear certain shoes."), I would be expressing a negative opinion about the shoes, for example that the shoes are inappropriate for the place, or they make appear ridiculous who is wearing them. That doesn't happen with Certe volte sono triste. ("I sometimes am sad."), though.

Can "certain" imply a negative opinion about something/somebody?


texts:
Sentences conveying confident intentions produced by Chinese speakers are
  unlikely ________ the attitudes of friendly or hostile.

1.show 2. to show 3. showing


texts:
The police questioned the men over and over again.

‘over and over’ is meaning ‘repeatedly’, and ‘again’ is meaning ‘repeatedly’ too. So ‘over and over again’ is a little weird, I feel.


texts: Why is it 'a ticket _to_ the cinema' but 'a ticket _for_ a/the concert'?

texts:
I wonder if there is any difference in meaning between prepositions 'to' and 'for' in the examples above, if that is the case, what is it? Are they interchangeable?

I have checked the site for similar questions - still not satisfied with the explanation that preposition 'to' indicates direction while 'for' is used to talk about admission into a certain place.


texts: Can I say "working in Google will create great learning opportunities with highly skilled and motivated scientist colleagues surrounded"?

texts:
Can I say

  working in Google will create great learning opportunities with highly skilled and motivated scientist colleagues surrounded ?

I have one other choice which is:

  Working in Google which full of highly skilled and motivated scientist colleagues will create great learning opportunities.

Is there any problem with these sentences? Which one is better?


texts:
When a class is canceled you need to make it up. What is the name of that session?

  Our class on Monday was canceled due to heavy snow, so the teacher set a date for the [......]

'Makeup session' maybe?! I googled it and it shows some ladies putting on eyeliner.


texts: Does this sentence "How long does it take you to watch TV" make any sense?

texts:
We often say "How long does it take you to travel from Melbourne to Sydney by train?", we know the beginning & the end.

But what if we say "How long does it take you to watch TV?". It doesn't have the beginning & the end.

Also, can we say:

How long does it take you to wash dishes?

How long does it take you to play chess?...

I knew 1 textbook say "How long does it take you to cook dinner?"

So, do you native often say "How long does it take you to watch TV?"

Note:

I have not problem with dummy "it". That was the typo error. My problem is that can we use that structure for phrases like "wash dishes", "play chess", "watch TV", etc which don't have a clear beginning & the end as "go from 1 place to another"


texts: What is "this" refering to in "The abnormal mind is quick to detect and attach itself to this quality when it appears in a normal person,...."

texts:
In consequence I’m inclined to reserve all judgments, a habit that has
  opened up many curious natures to me and also made me the victim of
  not a few veteran bores.  The abnormal mind is quick to detect and
  attach itself to this quality when it appears in a normal person,
  and so it came about that in college I was unjustly accused of being a
  politician, because I was privy to the secret griefs of wild, unknown
  men.

Fitzgerald, F. Scott. The Great Gatsby (p. 1). Kindle Edition.


texts: (Expression) Bag of bones / Sack of bones / Bones sack

texts:
Are all of these expressions correct ? For rhyming purposes I was planning to use the third one, but I'm not sure it is correct because I've never seen that formulation :

  1 - Bag of bones

  2 - Sack of bones

  3 - Bones sack


texts:
The collapse of the deal could aggravate tensions between Washington and Beijing amid a whipsawing trade standoff that has chilled relations between the world's top two economies.

According to merriam-webster:

  ... figuratively to describe situations in which someone or something is doubly "cut" or hurt....

But I am unsure where "the doubly cut or hurt" sits in this context.

Here is the full source.


texts:
I didn’t doubt what he said. I didn’t expect him to be mistaken.

Why not use ‘have mistaken’ instead of ‘be mistaken’?


texts: Does "off" mean "beginning with" in this sentence?

texts:
I am wondering what does "off" mean in following sentence:

  "This year, production is off to a slow start; only five vehicles are manufactured each hour."

Does it mean that the production is beginning with a slow start? Or does it mean something else?

Thank you in advance, and have a great day.


texts: Which is correct: "A that involves neither X, Y nor Z" or "A that does neither involve X, Y nor Z" or both?

texts:
I wonder which is correct in the standard varities of English:
"A problem that involves neither you, (nor) me, nor him" or "A problem that does neither involve you, (nor) me, nor him"
I have also considered the possibility that both might be correct.


texts:
I have seen the following sentences in standard English study materials

  1. Native English speakers acquire the language non-consciously.

  2. Native English speakers acquire the language un-consciously

I have asked a professor which one was right He replied that both were correct.Some otherprofessor replied that we acquire our native language non-consciously but not un-consciously because we can not do anything when we are unconscious

I would like to know which one of the above sentences is/are correct semantically and grammatically.


texts: I need a proverb for one's absence in a function or place

texts: I need  a proveb for situation " when one person is absent in a function or city or institute. So we say it doesn't make any problem, if he is absent, still the function goes on. So which proverb is to be used for this situation.


texts: How to interpret "to + verb + and + verb"?

texts:
If you fail to park properly and scan the barcode at the parking zone,
  you will be charged a $XX.

In the example above, does it mean "if you fail to park properly and if you fail to scan the barcode" or "if you fail to park properly, and then if you scan the barcode"?


texts:
I was watching Eastenders and as you know the Cockney dialect is slightly different from standard English, one of the actors said
"Our anniversary was one of them, weren't it?"
It sounds slightly off to me, as I'd say "Wasn't it"


texts: What is the difference between "for me" and "to me"?

texts:
I would like someone to explain me how the sense of a sentence changes with using "for me" or "to me":

Some examples:

  1a.  She is a good friend to me.
  1b.  She is a good friend for me.

  2a.  How special you are to me.
  2b.  How special you are for me.

  3a.  It's an interesting topic to me.
  3b.  It's an interesting topic for me.


texts:
Which one is correct-
Try it yourself or
Try it for yourself.

If both are correct then please tell the scenario in which each should be used.

I am actually testing a website which contains one of those lines to Get Started with the site.


texts: Are these 2 sentences the same? "We can use our equity to finance our project" & "we can finance our project by using our equity"

texts:
Are these 2 sentences the same?

  We can use our equity to finance our project.

  We can finance our project by using our equity.

So is this formula always right in all situations?:

to do thing 1 in order to do thing 2 = to do thing 2 by doing thing 1


texts: Is it possible to use “yet” with past simple?

texts:
Is it common to use “yet” with Past Simple before Past Perfect Progressive? Or is it better to use Present Perfect?
Someone asked me :

Why you hadn’t written earlier?

I think a specific time is implied in my answer ( and that’s the reason I should use Simple Past) but at all I don’t know which one is flawless.

I haven’t written the letter yet because I had been caring for my sick
mother all day.

Or

I didn’t write the letter yet because I had been caring for my sick
mother all day.

Source: English Grammar Digest by Trudy Aronson.
Dear administrators, I’m really sorry if there’s any grammatical mistakes in my topic, I've just started to learn English.


texts:
txt is widely know file format. Should I use the article the or not when referring to it?

I am familiar with the notion of txt format, but it could be wrong. As I just asked a question about using articles with brands, like Safari browser and the answer said I should use article because there are many browsers and Safari is specific type.

It seems to me if I apply this rule here in file format, I should use the, but as I said, it does not sound familiar, may be people do not use the as a a shortcut.

So, is it:

  The files are stored in txt format

Or,

  The files are stored in the txt format


texts: What does, "Made it fashionable to be young" mean?

texts:
Major social changes in the 1960s made it fashionable to be young.

Would you please show me what does the bold part could mean?

Meanwhile, what does it refer to?

Thanks in advance


texts:
In the movie The Matrix 1999, the Oracle said to Neo:

  What's really going to bake your noodle later on is, would you still have broken it if I hadn't said anything.

I don't quite understand the meaning of the entire sentence. Just consider what's really going to bake your noodle, which doesn't seem to mean anything.


texts: Use of the definite article with names of regions

texts:
Should I use a definite article with names of regions? E.g. (the) Zemplin region, (the) Košice region (administrative unit).
Zemplin and Košice are Slovak proper nouns.


texts:
Which one sounds more natural?

  She'll be pleased to hear that she can leave hospital tomorrow.

  She'll be pleased to hear that she is leaving hospital tomorrow.


texts:
I want to ask the difference between "need to do" and "need to be doing." Here is an example"

We need to do this as soon as possible.

and:

We need to be doing this as soon as possible.


texts: "Thanks for interesting to" vs. "Thanks for your interest to": which one is correct?

texts:
I got an email from a professor which started with:

  Thanks for interesting to work with me...

I was wondering if this is grammatically correct. I thought the correct usage should be:

  Thanks for your interest to work with me...

but I am not sure.


texts:
In this example (not sure about the punctuation because I heard it):

  When you get a new box, the question is do I keep the box or do I throw the box out - me personally I keep it.

How come the object form of I is used in the bolded phrase?


texts: Can we use adverbs with comparative adjectives as in:

texts:
He is much taller than me.

Vs

He is incredibly taller than me.

I know the first sentence is correct, but I was wondering if we could use Incredibly with a comparative adjective (taller).


texts: What does the word "bow" mean in this specific context?

texts:
I read a sentence in a book, The Word Power Made Easy, which was

  You are boastful to the point of being obnoxious - you have only one string to your conversational bow, namely,  yourself; and on it you play a number of monotonous variations.

According to most of the sources online relating to the the idiom,  the word bow means the archer's bow in this idiom but then why has the author of the sentence  used  "playing a number of monotonous variations" after the idiom (you don't play something through a bow). I am wondering if there is any sense of the word "bow" that relates to an instrument because it is through an instrument's string that something is played.


texts: Difference between "is like nothing else" and "is not like anything else"

texts:
"Anyone who has visited Paris knows that this city is not like anything else"
"Anyone who has visited Paris knows that this city is like nothing else"
Is there any difference between these two sentences, and which one is the most appropriate variant?


texts: "... can already been seen ..." grammatically correct?

texts: In a recent issue of Bloomberg Businessweek, there is a sentence "The shift can already been seen." Is this grammatically correct? Or does it omit something, or actually a typo (can -> have)? I searched the web and found numerous similar uses (https://www.google.com/search?client=firefox-b-1-d&q=%22can+already+been+seen%22), but I do not quite understand how to grammatically justify such use.


texts: What's the difference between "This book I have not read" and "This book has not been read by me"?

texts:
This book I have not read

This book has not been read by me

Can someone explain the difference between those sentence? Are they have the same meaning with different form? And for the "this book I haven't read," what is this form called?


texts:
''isn't it the only way to love?
I don't regret for giving more of myself to Pratheeksha.
Probably she needed it the most but not anymore'' he replied.
'she loved me with her words but she has got me twisted with her actions,' Abhinay added again

She has got me twisted , by Prabhu pothula.

what is the meaning of this structure?
She became me twisted?


texts: "someone would give anything for something" vs "be dying"

texts:
Are there any differences in the meaning of or when we use the idioms 'would give anything' and 'be dying'? The definitions in Cambridge Online Dictionary:

someone would give anything for something
(also someone would give anything to do something): to want something very much
be dying: To be dying to do something, or for something, is to be eager to do or to have it


texts: Emotion or Expression words meaning Dictionary

texts:
When I watch TV with my closed captioned on, and sometimes there are words that I want to know what it means.  My question is Are there some good sites that will help me what the Emotion or Expression words means ?
By emotion or expression words I mean words like Grr, Arrgh, scream, snore etc.
What are the term for that?
I am hearing impaired and sometimes there are a few words that I don't understand.
Like for example, when someone is mad we know what it is but there are some words that I have not heard before .
My first language is American Sign Language but I can write English ok.


texts: Is it okay to say "make the house clean"?

texts:
I leanred the passive in my grammar class.
Teacher said the sentence

  'George said that he made his house clean before the party.'

...is wrong because 'clean' should be changed into 'cleaned'.

I can understand it should be changed if 'clean' is used as a verb, but what if 'clean' is an adjective?

I asked her and she said it's wrong to use 'clean' since the change of state(being dirty to clean) is important, and 'clean' as an adjective only presents the result, but I still can't understand.

Is it wrong to use 'clean'?


texts:
In France, more than 12 million are covered by a scheme called Chimage Partial which has cost €26bn so far. It offers 70% of salary on up to €6,927 gross per month. Employees on minimum wage (SMIC) receive 100% . As with the German scheme, firms can claim just part of a worker’s salary and many do, limiting the cost to the finance ministry.

I have trouble in understanding "limit the cost to the finance ministry", it seems different to phrase "limit sth to sth" - to restrict something to a limited set, a certain amount, or a specific number of something.

eg.. Please limit your comments to five minutes.
eg.. Can you limit your remarks to the subject at hand?

Should it be "limit the cost FOR the finance ministry"?

article link :　https://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/may/12/furlough-qa-all-you-need-to-know-about-the-coronavirus-job-retention-scheme


texts: What is the meaning of "All Police men are not honest"?

texts:
Recently, I encountered a question regarding syllogisms, where I was given one of the conclusions like

All Police men are not honest.

Or

All Police men can never be honest.

But for me it seems that above sentences are ambiguous. Aren't they?

I thought former sentence implies that Some Police men are honest.

But I was wondering, if it could mean No Police men is honest.

Same confusion with latter sentence also. I couldn't find any explanations regarding this sentence.

If I'm wrong please explain to me the actual meaning.


texts: Is using redundant words (e.g. "7am in the morning") grammatically correct?

texts:
Is the use of redundant words grammatically correct? For example:

  I wake up at 7am in the morning.

  I came here as because you are ill.


texts: Wordchoice: to barbecue something or to have a barbecue

texts:
I've been wondering whether there is a distinction between

to barbecue sth.

and

to have a barbecue

I suppose to barbecue something is the act of barbecuing (grilling) food.
and having a barbecue means more the situation of barbecuing, eating, talking. Like not just the act, but a longer period.

Example:

  I would invite my friends and say "Hey guys, want to
  come over to my house? Let's have a barbecue."

  I would never say "Hey guys, want to come over to my house to barbecue
  steaks."

Or would you say both expressions mean the same?

Thank you :)
Greetings from Germany


texts: Does my "wouldn't' version make sense in my sentences?

texts: Let's imagine a situation, suppose you are going to make a plan; stealing money from a house of a neighbour, in this plan you want me to involve in too. Now, you have just told me about this plan. But I Wouldn't want to steal money from a neighbour and so I wouldn't agree with you. I Wouldn't want to be a thief. Please don't make such a plan because I wouldn't agree with you and with this plan. I wouldn't want us to be arrested by police. Rather than stealing money, I would work hard and earn money. Does the "wouldn't" version make sense in my sentences?


texts:
Which of the following is grammatically correct?

  He needs to call off his dogs on her.

  He needs to call his dogs off of her.

  He needs to call his dogs off her.


texts:
Question: Is sentence 2 correct? or

Can I remove 2nd and 3rd he in sentence 1?

Sentence 1: When Jack saw me, he came over to me, he shook hands,...

Sentence 2: When Jack saw me, came over to me, shook hands,...


texts: What are all possible usages of "Should have done" & "Should have been doing" & "Should be doing"?

texts:
You should have done it.

  You should have been doing.

  You should be doing it.

It is almost confusing.

When we say You should have done it , does it always mean that you were supposed to do it but you did not do?
Can it also mean as an equivalent to "you would have done" or "you will have done" ? Could you list all possible useages of the "You should have done" , please?
What are all possible usages of "should have been doing"  , rather than possibility in the future?


texts: simple past + (modal verbs) have been VS. 3rd conditional clause

texts:
In English grammar, we have "3rd conditional clause" with the format of:

  (modal verbs) have been+ IF past participle

Ex.If I had known you earlier, I could have hired you.

HOWEVER, there are some instances that English language users, mostly the advanced ones, mixed this up.

  (modal verbs) have been+ Simple past

Ex. I am mad now, because my account was the one that was charged for the processing fee when it should have been my buyer.

This is appropriate I think, but is this beyond the grammar rule? And only applies to spoken English?


texts: "I hope you enjoyed..." vs "I hope you have enjoyed..."

texts: Are both of these correct? What is the difference? (the word "enjoyed" is not specific, any verb could be used) My thoughts are that both of these wording are correct and mean the same thing, "have" is just unnecessary. I need your help, please respond.


texts: Can the use of the Past (Simple, Continuous) be ever considered correct with "in/for the past few+time"

texts:
I know that it's a norm to use Present Perfect (Continuous) with "in/for the past few + time"

I have been staying with my parents for the last few days.
I have learnt a lot of new words in the last few days.

But what if I want to emphasize that these activities (staying, learning) are not in progress anymore, though they have just stopped. Let's see a situation

A student is coming back to University from his parents' house. And he happens to have a small talk with one of the passengers on the same bus he has taken to get to the University.

  A: I am on my way to University.
  B: And where have you been?
  A: I am coming back from my parents. In fact, I have been staying with my parents for the last few days.

I have doubts about the usage of Present Perfect Continuous here.

a) Technically, he is not staying there any more, so it's not OK to use PPC here.

b) So, it would be better to use Past Simple (or Past Continuous).

c) But it's also not OK to use Past Simple (or Past Continuous) with "for the few past days". He could have said "I was staying (or I spent) a few days at my parents'". But in this case it doesn't emphasize clearly enough that his staying is recent because "for the few past days" should be eliminated.

That is why I am pondering over this construction

3) I was staying with my parents for the last few days. On one hand, it shows that his staying is recent, on the other hand it shows that it's over now. If this is wrong, how would you convey the same idea differently?


texts:
Will you tell me what "on the ground" means in the sentences below?

Sentence: The only answer is to take immediate action -- quite ambitious action on the ground - and for that we need cooperation among Governments, civil society, and business communities and all partners.


texts: How do you pronounce "new" in British English?

texts:
I'm playing the pronunciation over and over again but I cannot say it myself: Is the word new in British English and similar ones pronounced as [nyu], like the word meow, or is it pronounced like [ñu:] with the spanish ñ or Czech and Turmen ň?

In other words, is the n pronounced with the mouth positioned like in the pronunciation of normal n (like in nail) or is it positioned like in the pronunciation of y?


texts: the usage of 'so' in ' it does so very slowly''

texts:
The moon rotates itself but it does so very slowly.

In this sentence, I wanted to know the usage of so.
So means 'very' or 'rotates itself'?


texts: What is it called in everyday general English: a panel with prayers on it?

texts:
Look at the picture

This is a typical holy table in some Asian countries, there is a panel (which is normally made of wood) with prayers on it which is put between the Earth God & the Fortune God.

What is a general term for it?


texts:
Before the transformation from the old polity to the new polity which is the republican and secular regimes, women had to cover their hair and faces with a hijab in accordance with the law.

My english teacher who is orginally American told me that in that sentence I need to use the word of policy instead of polity. But when I look up the definition of the word of polity, it implies that "a form or process of civil government or constitution". So, in the sentence which is top, I'd like to imply that it is the form of civil government that is changing. What is the wrong with polity to use in that context. If it is wrong usage in that context , can you give me some usage of the word of polity. Thank you in advance.


texts:
Sentence in question:

A perfume, whose creator says was inspired by Russian President Vladimir Putin, has gone on sale in Moscow.

Source: https://www.reuters.com/article/us-russia-putin-inspired-perfume-idINKBN0UI26520160104
Has the word "it" been omitted before "was inspired by Russian President Vladimir Putin"? If so, why can it be omitted?


texts: An adjective for a person who won't readily accept things?

texts:
I'm looking for a word in English that describes a person who wont easily accept what you tell him/her. For example, if you tell her you're beautiful she would say, "No I'm not." If you tell her she has changed she will say, "No, I haven't." If you tell her things will get better she will say, "No, they won't."

And I'm not looking for the word "depressed" – lol.


texts: A type of word or idiom by which the heart breaks

texts:
Example:

"My cruel friend spoke in such a way that it broke my heart"

Another example:

"Also I know deception and___word that can break your heart"

What type of word did he speak, which broke the heart? I want that word instead of 'In such a way' or fill the blank  space


texts: Is there any difference between "they'll" and "they're going to" in this context?

texts:
Is there any difference between "they'll" and "they're going to" in the context below or are they completely interchangeable?

I made a big fool of myself at the office Christmas party, so I'm just a little nervous about how they'll/they're going to react when they see me again.


texts:
He swore blind that he hadn't taken the money.

I have already learnt that it is a set phrase, but what does 'that clause' modify in the sentence? I think the what should be the 'blind' because the bline looks like the object of the verb 'swore'.


texts: What is the term used when you debug by hand in software development?

texts: During school I was shown a "technique" that would be like a debug by hand, writing down the names of the variables, and changing it's values as we moved through the pseudo-code/algorithm. Is there a term in English for this kind of action?


texts: "Order up!", "We're going to need a bigger cup!"

texts:
I was watching an SNL clip, Meet Cute and I couldn't understand their first dialogue.

Two people ordered the same soy coffee with latte milk.

  Guy: That's crazy. Nobody ever gets my order.
  Girl: Order up!
  Guy: We're going to need a bigger cup!

"Nobody ever gets my order." Does this mean that no one orders the "Soy coffee with latte milk" like him or no one has ever grabbed the coffee mistakenly, which he ordered?
What's the meaning of "Order up!" and "We're going to need a bigger cup!"?

I'm trying to understand this scene but I don't get it.

Thanks!


texts: The sentence grammar for "I wanted to gorge myself, gorge I did."

texts:
One of my friends who is a native speaker once said the sentence:

  I wanted to gorge myself, gorge I did.

I may not remember what's the exact sentence he said, but the sentence structure should be similar.

The part I am curious most is gorge I did. The word gorge is a verb. How come the clause I did could modify a verb? What's the grammar behind? I rarely see this kind of the sentence structure, and if it's correct, under what circumstances it should be used? Thanks!


texts:
From the movie Goodfellas:

  Jimmy: Stupid bastard! I can't fucking believe you. Now you're going to dig the hole. I got no fucking lime.

No definition that I have checked fits here. What does he mean "I got no fucking lime"?


texts: Meaning of "very" in "When he walks the very ground shakes"

texts: In Kung Fu Panda animation Mantis says about the panda: "When he walks the very ground shakes". What's the meaning of "very" here?


texts: (The) Putin's ratings shot up. Is the definite article allowed here?

texts:
In a sentence where the definite article precedes someone's name, as in this example:

  The war campaign has boosted the Putin's ratings.

could the definite article be used?

Would the above example be incorrect, if one desired to preserve the order of words in the sentence and the definite article seemed necessary?


texts: How should one pronounce, "minestrone" in English?  I was at an Italian restaurant (US) and ordered "min eh stron ee soup" and my friend told me that's wrong... that the ending "e" is silent.  They said it's pronounced, "min e stron".  What is correct?


texts: Is it grammatically correct to use the verb 'have' when talking about one's/smb's birthday?

texts:
I have come across the following sentence in Activate Level A2 coursebook by Carolyn Barraclough, Elaine Boyd, Suzanne Gaynor, Megan Roderick, Mary Stephens:

  I would recommend the Art Museum - especially if you've got a birthday.

I have always been taught that we cannot use the verb 'to have (got)' while talking about age: I am 18 (years old). It is my birthday next month. or My birthday is next month. My source of reference here is 'Common mistakes at KET' by Liz Driscoll CUP.

The sentence in question wouldn't have baffled me if there was the word 'party' as in '... especially if you've got a birthday party.'

I am looking for a reliable source to read more on the topic as well as thoughts on how natural the sentence sounds and how frequent this usage is in everyday speech.


texts:
Scalar comparison of equality indicates “at least equal” In the absence of indications to the contrary, a scalar [= ‘clever’ in
  [i] below] comparison of equality is interpreted as “at least equal”,
  not “exactly equal”:

  i) Jill is as clever as Liz.  [Jill may be cleverer] ii) Jill
  isn’t as clever as Liz  [Jill must be less clever]

  Example [i] is consistent with Jill being cleverer than Liz: we can
  say Jill’s as clever as Liz, somewhat more so in fact. [n] Scalar
  equality therefore normally exclude only the relation of inferiority:
  it gives a lower bound. . . . . .

  [n] This can indeed apply also to equal itself, as in Kim is the
  equal of Pat when it comes to solving crossword puzzles (which is
  consistent with Kim being better) or We hope to equal last year’s
  profit (consistent with bettering it). (CGEL, p.1100~1101)

as ~ as:
Does the phrase “at least equal” refer to as ~ as construction or one of *as*s?
(I want to know whether the meaning comes from the structure or the lexical meaning.)
equal:
I don’t find any lexical source that equal implies being better. Is there any dictionary saying the meaning?


texts: Whether the continuous tense should be used or not

texts:
I am confused wirh the use of the present continuous tense in the following sentence. Please explain it to me whether the continuous tense should be used or not.

  Mary is bilingual. She is speaking English now.


texts:
Ron's eyes strayed to the pile of Chocolate Frogs waiting to be
  unwrapped.

  (Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone)

Is the highlighted part a participial construction? – its semantic subject is Ron’s eyes;  the subject of to-infinitive is Chocolate Frogs and omitted because we know that.
Or is it just modifying the previous noun – Chocolate Frogs? Or both?


texts: Need help with understanding the past tense

texts:
I need some help with grammar. This is going to be kinda long so I apologize for that . I would appreciate it if you could explain to me the differences between these sentences:

"I know how he felt when she was with him" and "I know how he had felt when she was with him".

"I've been to the cinema this weekend" and "I had been to the cinema this weekend".

"I have heard that this is false", "I had heard that this is false" and "I had heard that this is false".

"There has been a war" and "there had been a war." Assuming that the war is still ongoing, which one should be used? Also, if I were to say "there is a war" would that be the same as "there has been a war"? If not, what are the differences?

"I had taken the class" vs. "I took the class."
 I understand that the first example should be used if another past event occurred after taking the class but if no further events occurred and I just want to say that I took a class that I'm not doing anymore, is it still correct to say "I had taken it" or should I say "I've taken it" or "I took it"?

"They've said how we should be careful" or "they had said how we should be careful"?
I'm simply talking about what someone has said, so would "they've said" be more appropriate?

Also, if I'm talking about being somewhere, is it correct to say "I've been there"? When should I say "I had been there"? Is it applicable only if a past event was followed by another past event or can it also be used to talk about an event that happened a long time ago?

If I want to say that I haven't been somewhere, would "I haven't been there" be more appropriate then "I had not been there"?

Can someone explain the difference between present perfect and simple past and which one should be used when? I often use the past perfect instead of the simple past but I don't know if that's right or not.

From what I understood, "had" is used to talk about an action in the past that happened before another past action. However, what if I'm only talking about one single past action that happened a long time ago and has no effect now? Would I still use "I/you/she/etc had"?

Again, I'm so sorry for making this so long but I get frustrated when I make mistakes so I would really appreciate it if someone answered this. Thanks for reading!


texts: Do you know the reason why there has been used this tense?

texts:
Would anybody tell me what the tense of the following sentence is? And the reason why that tense is used?

  They'd been married for twenty years.

Thanks in advance.


texts: "You can't take us points out for no reason"

texts:
I was talking to my teaching assistant and I told him:

  You can't take us points out for no reason

with that I meant that my teaching assistant shouldn't lower us the vote of an assignment or homework without a valid reason. Is the sentence above correct? Is take out the correct verb for this context? If not or if there's a preferable one, which one is it?


texts: turn over rocks for something - what does that expression mean?

texts:
What a time for a book about computers! Machines are faster than ever, with some systems clocking in at more than three gigahertz. Yet, amazingly, they cost less than ever before, too. You can buy a new personal computer for less than $300—at least if you turn over rocks for the best prices and look for a free operating system (which is sort of like buying a car and curb-surfing for tires).Source: The Winn L. Rosch Hardware Bible

I don't understand what that means.


texts: What is the differance between "Out of Syllabus" and "Beyond Syllabus"?

texts:
Please let me know that "What is the difference between "Out of Syllabus" and "Beyond Syllabus"?"

For example; This question is out of syllabus. Whether the Question is from the course curriculum or it is not from the course curriculum?


texts: "She gave him the thumbs-up sign." and "She gave him a thumbs-up sign." What is the difference?

texts:
Could someone give me some situation examples that I can make sense out of the difference between them.
Thanks for your help.


texts: It's more than ten years since i last went, had gone or have gone to Alex

texts:
It's more than ten years since i last (went _ had gone _ have gone) to Alex
Which one is correct and why


texts: The articles "a" and "the" in generic statements

texts:
This is intended as a generic statement:

  *A madrigal is popular.

This means that being popular is a requirement for being a madrigal.

...of course this conclusion is wrong, so I've marked the example with a star.

  *A tiger is in danger of becoming extinct.

  The tiger is in danger of becoming extinct.

  Tigers are in danger of becoming extinct.

  The Indefinite Generic a tiger is ungrammatical with the predicate become extinct, because that extinction can only happen to a species, and it means that every member is dead. In contrast, we we can use the Definite Generic because the predicate is characteristic of the species. We can also use a Plural Generic because we're speaking of tigers in aggregate.

I read those examples and explanations in a grammar book (or, more likely,  online).  Would anyone please explain those in a more simple way, so that I could get it? I cannot tell what the explanations mean very well.

Or could you possibly explain that with another example that is easier to understand?


texts: Is 'Iraq expecting U.S. troop withdrawal' a complete sentece?

texts:
I have come across a news heading: As Iran prepares to bury Soleimani, Iraq expecting U.S. troop withdrawal.

From my English grammar knowledge, I think this is a complex sentence. The first clause is Iran prepares to bury Soleimani with conjunction word As. The second clause is Iraq expecting U.S. troop withdrawal. I don't think the second clause is a correct sentence, and it should be Iraq is expecting U.S. troop withdrawal. Because we need a 'is' to make it a continuous tense, and then complete the sentence.

The heading can't be wrong, because it comes from Washington Post. So what is the problem?


texts: Leaving out an infinitive clause : No auxillary and auxiliary after to-infinitive clause

texts:
The definition below is from the book "Oxford Guide to English Grammar"

I can't understand why there is no auxiliary after to in the example "I haven't washed up yet, but I'm going to."

But why there is an auxiliary after to in this example "I haven't done as much work today as I'd like to have."

Is that because the first example is split by the word ", but" there?

Then what about this example "Jane was chosen for the job, although she didn't expect to be."

I want to know the grammar rule applied in the above examples.


texts: Can I use in a sentence "It could" + if + "it will be"?

texts:
The sentence I'm referring to is:

  It could benefit both banks and households if this measure will be applied wisely.

Is it correct?
I can't match it with any of the 4 conditionals form.


texts: What does it mean by "give away control sth to sth" in this context?

texts:
https://youtu.be/0w7mjwp5V40?t=3m15s

  Australia's federal government recently blocked the sale of the nation's largest electrid grid, after a chinese and Hong Kong holdings company attempted to purchase a controlling stake. The government bowed to pressure from opponents of the deal, who said they were giving away control of their power grid to another country.

There isn't any word that I don't know in this sentence, but it's hard to understand what it means.

Does "opponents" here mean "a Chinese and Hong Kong holdings company" cause they are the ones who are rejected?

And does "power grid" here mean "the nation's largest electrid grid (company)"?
Then what does it mean by "give away control of their power grid to another country"?


texts: Does 'has to' replace 'must' in the following sentence?

texts:
Surely, she must know all my faults.

According to various dictionaries, 'have(has) to' also expresses 'certainty'.

Michael Swan 'Practical English Usage' - OXFORD


texts: How convert sentence with verb "cut" to passive

texts:
How to convert this sentence

  I cut the trees

to Present indefinite Passive voice. I am doubtful about this

  the trees are cut by me

Am i right or wrong?


texts:
This might be a bit technical, but I'll try not to dive into details too much. The sentence I'm talking about is:

  Attribute name must be unique among attributes of an object.

Meaning, there are objects. Each object has attributes (name, value). And if we take one arbitrary object, all its attribute names must be unique. Is my wording okay? Is there a better way to say this?


texts:
get something to eat
  have something to eat

  get breakfast
  have breakfast

What's the difference between get and have?


texts: Structure of "that living processes leave"

texts:
What are the structure and meaning of the bolded expression?

  Detritus refers to all the dead organic debris that living processes
  leave.


texts:
If it is a message from another time, from a distant star, why has it been put there ? A possible answer comes soon afterwards, when the first light of the sun touches the object. It then sends out a powerful radio signal, aimed exactly at Saturn.

Why do we use here Present Simple instead of Future Simple?


texts: What word is better to use here (word/talk/speech)?

texts:
It's a conversation between 3 people and I have doubts what to use for the bold part in text.

  A was telling what he was interested in and giving us some information

  B was trying to stop him cause it wasn't so interesting for him.

  but C said that "don't stop him I like his talk"

I wonder if it's possible to use talk in this situation?

What is the best word "word/speech/ talk or there's a better word?


texts:
Is mummy coming home yet?

  Is mummy home?

What are the different between them?

Is it the first mean whether his or her mother is coming home and the second is he wants to know is mummy at home?


texts: Idiomatic way to say "doing something for somebody"

texts:
What is the idiomatic way to say "doing something for somebody" when they are supposed to do it, not you ?

Say for example a school mate asks you to do the assignment she's been given.

How would you say it?
"He asked me to do his assignment [don't know how to say it in place of him?]"

UPDATE:

Following some of the comments I received, I want to clarify that the context is not necessarily academic cheating.
What I'm trying to find -provided that it exists- is a translation from my language (Italian) of a subtlety in meaning when you do something for somebody who were supposed to do this thing and you decide, whatever the reason, to come forward and carry it out for her.

A couple of examples more:

a colleague is assigned a task, but can't (because she doesn't know how) or doesn't want to do it (maybe because of laziness). Then you do the task for her (either because she asked you for help or you simply decided that somebody had to do it)
a death sentence is handed down to someone and you step up begging to be taken instead

How would you rephrase the [for somebody] part in the two sentences above?
Again, maybe I'm struggling because I can see a slight difference in meaning in Italian, when perhaps in English there is no straight translation


texts: Is LESS is a Adjective or Adverb in the particular context

texts:
You are paying less attention to your studies than you used to do.

What is “less” in this sentence?

A. Noun
B. Verb
C. Adverb
D. Adjective

I was studying English mcqs at a particular website which says less indicate adjective in that context but as far as I know:

Adjective:  it is a word which is the characteristics of noun.

Adverb: it is a word or phrase that modifies the meaning of an adjective, verb, or other adverb, expressing manner, place, time or degree

So my question is, in the example above does not the word less showing less intensity towards attention? It does not indicate any behaviour or characteristic of attention. So the answer should be ADVERB, shouldn't it?


texts:
I have a question about the usage of (or lack thereof) "it" in this article:

  Peyton Manning's retirement press conference on Monday felt closer to a wake — he's not going to play football anymore, but he also is not dying. That is good news for lots of people (and Papa John).
  As tends to be the case with wakes, folks took turns sharing stories about the departed, and Broncos coach Gary Kubiak had a pretty good one.

Would adding "it" between "as" and "tends to be..." be better?  Because this structure usually goes like these:

  As it appears to be the case...
  As it seems to be the case...


texts: Help to understand "even though" in this context

texts:
Gone With Wind

  To this end, Ellen and Mammy bent their efforts, and as Scarlett grew
  older she became an apt pupil in this subject, even though she learned
  little else.

My understanding

  She did excellent in this subject, but she rarely studied others, so she had lots of time to focus on this subject, hence
  it made her success in this subject less impressive.

The Chinese version of this book

  She not only did excellent in this subject, but also she learned a
  little other things.

Which is correct?


texts:
I'm in a meeting and I want to say that I'm leaving the room for a minute (for example to go to the bathroom or for some other reason). Which sentence is better and why:

I'm going out for a minute.

I'm going outside for a minute.


texts:
He has been working on it for the better half of the decade.

What does this sentence suggest?


texts:
I recently learned from a YouTube video that "because of" is not correct. But my friend argues that "because of" is actually correct. Also, I see a lot of people writing and saying "because of". Here's a example:

  That's because of you.

So, is it actually correct to use "because of" or only new learners think it's correct or is it not correct at all?


texts: "Not that fast a car" "Not that good an idea"

texts:
This is not that fast a car
  Not that good an idea

Can someone confirm that this is correct? Or do I need an of?

Sentences like those don't make much sense in my native language. if I were to translate it from my native to English, it'd be something like not so good a car. Of course, trying to find the correlation between one's native language and English isn't always helpful, but I just have trouble understanding this construction although I use it a lot.


texts: What is to be done vs What has to be done?

texts:
What exactly is the difference between the following two sentences?

  What is to be done?

or

  What has to be done?


texts: What does "to have a connection with someone" means in the context of dating?

texts: I had an argument with someone about the meaning of that expression. We were discussing whether this means "to have an emotional attachment to someone" or if it means "to contact someone" (like texting or speaking to someone you went on a date). How should that expression be interpreted?


texts: What does "HAD" imply here? (I didn't realize you HAD + noun)

texts: When you say "I didn't realize you had the apple", does it mean the person who is spoken to still has "the apple"? Or because it's "HAD", does it imply the person doesn't have the apple anymore?


texts: What is the difference between auxiliary and modal verbs?

texts: I'm badly confused between modal and auxiliary verbs. What are the differences?


texts: "Our house floor" or "our house's floor"?

texts:
What's the correct form? Example:

  Our house floor was sparkling clean.

  Our house's floor was sparkling clean.

I always get confused about this. And when I search on Google I always get the two versions.


texts: How to ask about how to eat certain kinds of fruits?

texts:
There are a lot of fruits in tropical regions that we should know the right way to eat them. I want to ask locals about how should I eat for example Durian. Which question is the best?

"How Durian should be eaten?"
"How should I eat Durian?"
"What is the right way to eat Durian?"


texts: How can I change this sentence into passive voice ?

texts:
Question: I study with Mrs.Cara
Answer: I am studied with Mrs.Cara
Or I am made to study with Mrs.Cara

Which one is correct ? Please help me !


texts: "write using a black pen" Is the usage correct?

texts:
Hi.

I have a question regarding the following two sentences:

A: Please write using a black pen when providing further information under this section.
B: Please review the document using the latest version of the software XXX.

Are the two sentences grammatically correct?
Based on my linguistic knowledge, I would say the sentences are awkward.

I would say that the sentences should be corrected as follows:
A
1. Please write with a black pen when ...
2. Please write by using a black pen when ...

B
1. Please review the document with the ...
2. Please review the document by using the ...

In sum, what I confused about is the structure "S+V using" because someone said that there is nothing wrong with the two sentences.
I just feel like they are grammatically erroneous.
Besides, for me, the sentences do not look like sentences that are transformed into participial constructions.

Hopefully, someone could help me out with this question.
If sentences A and B are grammatically correct, please explain to me why the two sentences are correct syntactically/linguistically.

Thank you very much for your help!


texts: How to tell if a clause is restrictive or non-restrictive?

texts:
I was reading these 2 posts:

https://blog.oxforddictionaries.com/2012/09/07/that-who-which/
https://www.grammarly.com/blog/which-vs-that/

And it seems that their authors are using non-restrictive clauses incorrectly.

Examples that threw me off:

There are a lot of charities which need good advice.
The horse, which she bought last year, is six years old.
My bike, which has a broken seat, is in the garage.

In my opinion all of these should use "that" instead of "which", unless the person who has the bike has only one bike, and the person who has the horse has only one horse, which makes this information irrelevant. For "charities which need good advice", I have no idea why they used "which" at all.

So, why do these use "which"?


texts:
A news article titled "Adoption programs are doing wonders for WAHS" starts as follows:

  PetSmart Charities on Thursday recognized two adoption programs of the Western Arizona Humane Society with a check for $5,000.

  The Humane Society’s “Senior Animal Program” and “Buddy Program” received what Executive Director Patty Gillmore said was long-sought recognition.

  “This is huge for us,” Gillmore said. “We’ve wanted for a long time for these programs to be recognized." ...

Is the last sentence that the executive director was quoted as saying well-formed English?

Also, how about these variants?

  (1) For a long time, we've wanted for these programs to be recognized.

  (2) For a long time, we've wanted these programs to be recognized.

  (3) We've wanted, for a long time, these programs to be recognized.


texts: "come to this conclusion" vs. "came to this conclusion"

texts:
I sent an email yesterday to report my analysis regarding a software issue.

Based on the logging and screenshot, I come to this conclusion:

some undefined error happened on the server side, which needs server dev to track
the error code crashes the client application which needs client dev to add more error handling
...

Should I have used past tense there?

... I came to this conclusion ...

I guess present tense is more natural in this context. I'd just like a double check, as a post suggests past tense.


texts:
Sadly, small talk is the new deep.

This sentence is from the following  link.

http://imgur.com/K4o290R

What does "the new deep" means? It means "confused talk or unpleasant talk"?


texts:
I would have gone with her. But she didn't ask me .

I would have gone with her .But she hadn't asked me .

Do we have to use past perfect in this example ? Is there any difference in meanings ?


texts: What is the meaning of "down by the creek"?

texts:
I am reading a book, and one sentence which reads:

  he lived in the trailer down by the creek

But I cannot understand "down by".


texts: Use of "no too bad". Does it make sense?

texts:
Is the expression "no too bad" a valid expression in the following examples?
Let's suppose my daughter is gonna marry a guy who has some bad habits
like smoking and drinking occasionally but no really bad habits like using drugs
or gambling. Could I say:
He certainly is not the ideal husband for my daughter but at least
he's got no too bad habits.
Another example would be the phrase:
I don't know about you, but I've got no too bad memories from the time we lived
in South America.


texts:
Our teacher said that this is an example of how to write a thesis statement in your words again.
The thesis statement: Making healthy food choices are not easy.
Her example: Making healthy food choices and eating well do not have to be difficult.
l think their meanings are a bit opposite . what do you think ?


texts: Cases of using an article before the gerund

texts:
I found an example of using "the" before the gerund:

  During the crossing the passengers felt the ship toss

But according to the grammar, no article is used before the gerund.
Or in this case the crossing isn't the gerund?


texts: If I use a word redundant to what I intend to express?

texts:
A conversation like this:

A: you never know she has a bad relation with her step father.

B: Her mother didn't know. How should I know that?

The meaning by B is if her mother didn't know, less probably I should know the fact mentioned by A. If I was B, I would like to add a even in the beginning of the sentence, i.e. Even her mother didn't know. This is due to my first language habit and I feel more comfortable to use a 'even' to express the logic relation between the two sentences.

But maybe my 'even' is redundant for native speaker and in English it can be present in a more concise way like it is in the conversation.

So, my question is whether in English, we can generally use less small words like even, just, yet to avoid explicitly emphasize the logic relation between sentences. Just say it sequentially and the audience can easily understand the whole meaning?


texts:
Is there any word in English for a person who is unable to change himself for someone else regardless of he/she wants to change or not? He just can't change.

I'm writing a play and I need that word for a specific scene if there's any. The scene is, boy B and girl G are in love. Both love each other. But the problem is B can't change his bad habits like smoking and gambling etc. But sure he wants to change. But he's just too addicted and he can't. So G will get the dialog "Look I still love you, but you are too [something something]. You can't change yourself even for your love". I need something to fill in brackets. I thought of stubborn.


texts: "all of the balls" or "all the balls" in the box?

texts:
I answered a question just now

  Given a set S = {x, y, z}, then all the possible subsets of S are

  {}, {x}, {y}, {z}, {x, y}, {x, z}, {y, z}, {x, y, z}

  where, {} denotes the empty set.

I used all the possible there, and then I realized all of the possible may be better, but I am not so sure.

Similarly, following expressions

  expression_1: all the balls in the box

  expression_2: all of the balls in the box

Which one (or some other expression) is more idiomatic and clear?


texts: In which cases I can't use determiner after "part of" before a noun?

texts: If I use a "part of" partitive, when can not I use determiner after "of" before noun? I can not find an example.


texts: At what time is the pizza supposed to be/get delivered? How would a native speaker say that?

texts:
I'm wondering mostly in the informal context of a chat room. Basically:

  Person A: I just ordered a pizza!

  Me: At what time is it getting delivered?

  Me: At what time is it getting here?

  Me: When would it get here?

  Me: How soon is it getting delivered?

Mostly is that I don't want to sound like the non-native speaker who ends up writing a super long sentence for something that could have been said in a much simpler way.


texts: In a Family Guy's episode, Season 3 Episode 13, Peter starts acting politely and behaves himself in his father-in-law's party also trying to act like the rich and blend. Suprised by this, Lois's father asks her how this happened and she replied, "he's cultured himself like Julia Roberts in Pretty Woman." I've checked the meaning of culture in verb sense and found a couple of definitions that I'm not sure exactly which one fits the context esp. with a reflexive pronoun after the verb and considering that Peter doesn't really like his in-laws. If you want to paraphrase this sentence how would you go? Is this standard using of the word culture or simply an improvisation here and not a common usage?


texts: Is there any connection other than just happening at the same time between the event before 'as' and the event after 'as' in this sentence?

texts:
I have already read through many answers about "as" here on ELL.
But I am not sure about the below.

I guess "as" in the below sentence implies that there is relationship of happening at the same time between the two things. What bothers me is if there is also any subtle, hidden relationships other than that.

  Samsung snaps up AI startup Viv as Note 7 smokes out a Southwest Air flight.

To speak clearly, I wonder whether there is any connection other than the time relationship of the two happening at the same time between the event written before "as" and the event written after "as".

Thank you, very much.


texts: Why did they use past perfect rather than present perfect here?

texts:
Our enemies will soon discover that we are not as meek as they had believed.

What would be wrong if I switch that into "have believed"?


texts:
I'm writing a thesis in a technical field. One of my tasks was to implement some algorithms. I started with some simple ones, just for testing purposes, but as they were too simple and didn't work as intended, I implemented new more advanced algorithms.

Now, I would like to describe both ways.

Is it appropriate to call the section about the simple algorithms the naïve approach? Should it be naive instead?

Also, could I use actual productive approach for the "actual working" algorithms?


texts: Which one is correct 'Been' or 'have been' to use in the beginning of a sentence?

texts: Is it possible to begin a sentence with 'been'; like in the sentence " Been a subscriber since 1994" ? But I know that using 'I have been' is what Iam more used to and grammatically accurate. So is there any actual difference between the two ? Also I believe 'have' was gradually omitted/swallowed over the course of time. Cause, I have been seeing people writing essays on youtube comment section beginning with this type of sentence...!!


texts: Does the 'verb form' always have to agree with the 'subject number'?

texts:
Is the 'verb and subject number agreement' a hard-and-fast rule? Or is there some leeway?

For example, in the following sentences do I need to change the verb from 'was' to 'were' to match the subject number.

Change:

  All that mattered was his dream and the boy that would help
  realize it.

to:

  All that mattered were his dream and the boy that would help
  realize it.

And, change:

  The first thing that sprang to mind as I watched Arpan walk out of
  the arrivals gate and look around  the airport was the mad fervor
  that afflicted me about a decade ago and the boundless darkness that
  lurked in the two mountains.

to:

  The first things that sprang to mind as I watched Arpan walk out
  of the arrivals gate and look around the airport were the mad
  fervor that afflicted me about a decade ago and the boundless darkness
  that lurked in the two mountains.

or:

  What first sprang to mind as I watched him walk out of the arrivals
  gate and look around the airport were the mad fervor that
  afflicted me about a decade ago and the boundless darkness that lurked
  in the two mountains.

In the first example, I find nothing wrong with changing 'was' to 'were' but in the second example, I'm not comfortable using 'were' for some reason.


texts: Using the indefinite article before "space"

texts:
I have a problem with my exercise's sentence from Thomson & Martinet's textbook Ex. 1:

1 Articles: a/an

7) A person who suffers from claustrophobia has a dread of being confined in a small space, and would always prefer stairs to lift.

I can't understand why I should use the indefinite article before small space, because according to the dictionary "space" is a mass noun.


texts: Entrusted stuff or stuff to take care of

texts:
For the thing that is given to someone for a while to take care of and then this will be taken back, what word is used by natives? Do you use 'entrusted stuff'? The example could be some books such as. I'm going somewhere and can't take these with me. I ask my friend to keep these safe and return them to me when I'm back. Without mentioning the name of the thing my friend is taking care of, can I say:

He's got some entrusted stuff.

What do natives get by the phrase 'entrusted stuff'?


texts: The difference between "because", "as", and "since"

texts:
When can we use "as" and "since" instead of "because"? What's the difference between them? Aren't these three conjunctions interchangeable? For example:

Tom got up in the middle of the night because/as/since he couldn't
       sleep at all.

Yesterday I was late for work because/as/since my car broke down.

The children stopped playing football because/as/since it started to rain.


texts: "an idea" or "the idea" of doing something

texts:
Does "idea" have always go with "the"?

Do you like the idea of making some money on the side?

or can it be

Do you like an idea of making some money on the side?

When can we use "an idea of doing"?


texts:
I'm not familiar with English language.
I want to know,

When we say:

  I'd tell lie.

Does it mean a typical behavior or a past habit?
In other words, is it like used to or is a present typical behavior?


texts:
What do we call a being which has flowing blood? Do we call it a bloody being? I really don't like this word for some reason, such as this seems to be offensive and wierd too.
I am having to use it for animals like rats, lizard and others. I mean to say:
The animals which have flowing blood if killed or wounded. But I need to make a noun phrase using Adj+noun.
I don't think 'a bloody animal' will work; because it seems to mean:
An animal which is bleeding.
An animal involved in violence.


texts: What is the meaning of this sentence from Pynchon's Gravity's Rainbow:

texts:
From Gravity's Rainbow:

  "Osbie Feel stands in the minstrels' gallery, holding one of the biggest of Pirate's bananas so that it protrudes out the fly of his striped pajama bottoms-stroking with his other hand the great jaundiced curve in triplets against 4/4 toward the ceiling, he acknowledges dawn with the following: ..."

What is the meaning of "curve in triplets" and "against 4/4"?
How is 4/4 pronounced here - 4 by 4?