texts:
A survey in which many boys revealed their girlfriend's behavior towards them after some time of their relationship.

  A survey in which many boys revealed their girlfriends' behavior towards them after some time of their relationship.

How do the two sentences differ? Are both of them grammatical?


texts: Are "out, from, for, etc" adverbs or preps? Eg, "The noise came from under the sink", "The shoes are for in the house", "jump out of the plane"?

texts:
out 1 /aʊt/ ●●● S1 W1 adverb     1 FROM INSIDE from inside an object,
  container, building, or place OPP in

  She opened her suitcase and took out a pair of shoes.

  Lock the door on your way out.

  Charlotte went to the window and looked out.

  Out you go (=used to order someone to leave a room)!

  out of

  The keys must have fallen out of my pocket.

  Get out of here!

  Someone had torn several pages out of her diary.

  I don’t think I’d have the courage to jump out of a plane.

  All the roads out of the city were snowbound.

  out came/jumped etc

  The egg cracked open and out came a baby chick.

According to my research,

"I jumped out of the plane", "out" in this case is an adverb, and adverb can stand alone so we can say "I jumped out" and "of the plane" is implied.

But some people say "out of" in the above sentence are double prepositions (source). I don't get it.

"from" is always a preposition, not an adverb because it can never stand alone. So, in the sentence "The noise came from under the sink", we see 2 prepositions "from" & "under". If we omit "from", the sentence "The noise came under the sink" sounds strange.

The third example, instead of saying "The slippers are for being worn in the house, not outside", if we say "The slippers are for the house" then it is a bit strange, some suggest "The slippers are for in the house", which I think it is just a kind of sentence contraction not 2 prepositions before a noun. Am I right?

Could anyone explain this for me, this is so confusing?

Are they adverbs or prepositions?


texts: What does "beamed in the head" mean in this sentence?

texts:
What does "beamed" mean in the following sentence? (my guess is "hit"?) Whether or not, is the usage of beam in this way common??

  Groot grunted a rude answer that stunned Rocket. But there were
  weapons of torment and destruction to be seen and they needed to begin
  their journey, so Rocket ushered Groot to the back. He had to dodge
  being beamed in the head by Thor’s backpack.

  THE AVENGERS 3

The context is:

Rocket is a genetically modified raccoon; Thor, the thunder god; together with Groot, a tree-person, the three are about to be on trip to another planet.


texts: When you say "The evidence is in" or "The news are in", does it mean it has arrived? or does it mean it is here? Which one would be better for translation?


texts: Meaning of "by which time" when referring to a range of times

texts:
Can anyone give me some explanation about this sentence:

  A more dramatic rise is predicted between 2030 and 2040 in Japan, by
  which time it is thought that the proportion of elderly people will be
  similar in the three countries.

What time does "by which time" refer to? 2030, 2040, or the whole period?


texts: Why was the verb put in simple past tense in this sentence?

texts:
While reading Oxford Practice Grammar Advanced, I came across this sentence in one of the book's exercises:

If she got up early enough and came downstairs, we had breakfast together.

I wonder why they used the simple past in the later clause instead of would have. Please correct me if I'm wrong, but it seems to be a wrong construction of the so called ‘third conditional’ (if + past → would + infinitive).


texts:
Let's say your discussing about the reason you have chosen a particular hobby. what is the correct preposition here:

  1)...math is superb, and it turns me on to the fact that I am lucky that I have a burning passion for this.

Or

  2)...math is superb, and it turns me to the fact that I am lucky that I have a burning passion for this.

P.s:I have just heard the #1 several minutes ago, she was kinda fluent but I am doubtful if this number 1 is grammatical. The #2 example came from mine(I am also in doubt hehe)


texts:
Is my following sentence correct? If not please correct it. I am not sure what preposition should be used with stairs in this sentence.

I am going up on the stairs to 10th floor of the building.


texts: Does "make little sense" have the same meaning as "not reasonable"?

texts:
In the following description:

It makes little sense to estimate separate mean and variance for each pixel.
(used in data pre-processing)

In my knowledge, "little" is a negative word. So, can I substitute "make little sense" with "is not reasonable" while retaining the meaning of the expression?


texts:
There was a question
"Is 'Raising a pet can avoid feeling lonely' wrong?"
I thought it was wrong.
Coz the sentence doesn't have me, us or whatever.

So I said
'Raising a pet can help you avoid feeling lonely' is one of the right sentence you can use.

But then a man said
"'avoid' has a meaning 'To prevent something from happening' so it'll be ok"

So I wondered if happen can mean feel.

Give me your thoughts thanks :)


texts: What does the expression "go to the vet's" mean?

texts: I possess the Cobuild Advanced Learner's Dictionary and I came across this weird expression for a non-native speaker which is "To take the dog to the vet's". I do infer  they are talking about the veterinarian's office and that the letter s is showing the possession of a building by the vet. But the question is... How often do English speakers use this type of abbreviations? and is my inference correct?


texts: This is the first time vs. This is the last time

texts:
Why do we use the present perfect with This is the first time, but the present simple/continuous with This is the last time, i.e.

  This is the first time I have done it.

vs.

  This is the last time I do/am doing it.

In both sentences, I see a connection from past to present and using the present perfect makes sense.


texts: Why is milk called dairy milk on this milk carton?


texts:
I am trying to say sentences like:

Then by doing this thing, this happens
Now after selecting this option, this happens
By doing this, now we can do this

Should they get comma after "then" and "now":

Then, by doing this thing, this happens
Now, after selecting this option, this happens
By doing this, now, we can do this


texts: subjunctive - "there were" or "there was"?

texts:
Is it:

Naturally, she assumed that once there was a new film everybody would be eager to go and see it.

Or:

Naturally, she assumed that once there were a new film everybody would be eager to go and see it.

Since it is a hypothetical situation, "were" should be used to signify subjunctive mood, so the second one is correct.
Is my thinking right?


texts: When talking to people on the phone for the first time, is it correct to use "This is" and "I am" together

texts:
A scretary told me to leave a voice message to her boss, because he was busy at the moment when I dialed his office number.
So, I left him a message like:

  Good morning, Mr.XYZ. This is Kitty Lastname. Kitty Lastname is my real name. I am not a machine. I am from the ABC cake shop, which is located a few miles away from your company. I tried to keep in touch with you but your secretary told me that you were very busy. Sir, you had left your XXX under the chair you were sitting...

My teachers used to tell us never use "I am" on any phone call conversations, so I am very not sure whether I was wrong to say "this is" and then "I am" together in the above voice message.
Please help me.


texts: "It will be very interesting" or "It would be very interesting"?

texts:
In this dictionary, the modal verb "would" has 14 meanings.

Ok, let see this very short conversation:

  A: I'm going to the cinema tonight. Do you want to come along?

  B: Yes, I do.

  A: That would be very interesting / That will be very interesting.

Ok, let see the sentence "That would be very interesting". According to the above dictionary, that sentence should belong to a conditional sentence type 2 "That would be very interesting if you came along". The conditional sentence type 2 expresses something that is not possible to happen at the present time or in the future.

So, if A say "That would be very interesting", it could be that he thinks that it is impossible for him to come along.

Ok, let see the sentence "That will be very interesting". According to the above dictionary, that sentence should belong to a conditional sentence type 1 "That will be very interesting if you come along". The conditional sentence type i expresses something that is possible to happen at the present time or in the future.

So, if A say "That will be very interesting", it could be that he thinks that it is possible for him to come along.

So, which one to choose "I will be very interesting" or "It would be very interesting"?

I think "It would be very interesting" is more polite, but I don't know why?.

So, conditional sentence type 2 is more polite than conditional sentence type 1?


texts: "I look forward" or "I'm looking forward"?

texts:
Which should I say:

  I'm looking forward to our meeting.

or

  I look forward to our meeting.


texts:
Hi. I'm doing a test and I have to fill in the gap with the correct form of the word.
What is the correct form in this case? Just censor or censorship I've been surfing the internet hoping to find the difference between censor and censorship but nothing, it seems to be the same. I'm currently tending more towards censorship am I right?


texts: what is the difference between run and lead a campaign?

texts: There are a few words which collocate with the word "campaign". Could you please explain the difference between them? Is it possible to change "lead" to "run" in this context: "The politicians who led the Leave campaign did not seem to expect to win".


texts: "widely consumed" or "widely consuming" when describing bananas

texts:
I was wondering which word is correct in the below sentence:

  Banana is one of the most widely consumed fruits.
  Banana is one of the most widely consuming fruits.

I would be grateful if elaborate on the reason.


texts:
Is a preposition + an adverb a possible pattern in the English language?
An example sentence

  I know you from somewhere.


texts: ...was a pleasure speaking to you or to speak to you?

texts: Is both correct? It was a pleasure meeting you and to meet you? Or: It was a pleasure to speak to you/ speaking to you?


texts: "we write expressions in infix form" - why not "we write expressions in the infix form"?

texts:
From Real World Haskell:

  We can immediately start entering expressions, to see what ghci will do with them. Basic arithmetic works similarly to languages like C and Python: we write expressions in infix form, where an operator appears between its operands.

Why is there no the before "infix"? This is quite a definite form of writing expressions. Is it because it is given a definition after a comma (" where an operator appears between its operands")?

Or is it because form with the will change its meaning to "a printed or typed document with blank spaces for insertion of required or requested information"?

P.S. A related question: 'in gas state' vs. 'in the gas state'.

(P.P.S. stashing a memorable usage example for myself: "Alf in pog form")


texts: Is it idiomatic to say "Son, tuck your top under your chin while peeing"?

texts:
When our children learn to pee themselves, we need to tell them to hold the edge of their tops up high to their chins so that they don't pee on their tops.
These are the list of says that I think of:

Hold the edge of your top up high to your chin while peeing.

Hold your top up high to your chin while peeing.

Hold the edge of your top up high with your chin while peeing.

Tuck your top under your chin while peeing.

Which of the above sayings are idiomatic?


texts: Are "for" and "in exchange of" interchangeable?

texts:
I am wondering if "for" can mean the same thing as "in exchange of". The reason I am thinking "for" may be wrong is that "for" is a much more general term and can be used in many ways and for some reason it sounds odd to me in some sentences.

Here's an example:

  You convinced your friend to do something crazy for monetary
  compensation.

"For" sounds weird in this sentence, whereas "in exchange of" sounds ok.


texts:
Are both these statements correct?

How many onions do you want?
How much onion do you want?

I feel as if the latter is wrong but I know not why.


texts:
I know that instead "where it is necessary" one could say "where necessary". Does it also work for past tense? For example

  I added a description in description field where it was empty

Can it be written as

  I added a description in description field where empty


texts: Do I need to use he twice in this sentence?

texts:
Can I say:

He turned around and was greeted with a smile from his frend.

Or do I have to use he twice?

He turned around and he was greeted with a smile from his friend.


texts: How is "Haigh's" pronounced in "Haigh's Chocolates"?

texts:
How is Haigh's pronounced here?

I looked up Haigh in the Longman Pronunciation Dictionary, and I found two entries:

  Haigh (placename) /heɪ/
  Haigh (family name) /heɪg/

So based on this, it seems like Haigh's could be either /heɪz/ or /heɪgz/, but I'm not sure.  It seems to be an Australian brand, and I've never heard anyone say it before.

Could anyone tell me how Haigh's is pronounced in this context?


texts: what's the meaning of "the first century" and "or so"?

texts:
For the first century or so of the industrial revolution, increased productivity led to decreases in working hours.

I know 'first century' means AC 1 ~ 100. But I think it doesn't make sense.

Plus, what is the "or so of"? I'm struggling to understand meaning.

The original article is here. (The first sentence) : http://www.ielts-mentor.com/reading-sample/academic-reading/29-ielts-academic-reading-sample-4-a-workaholic-economy


texts: "He was hungry because he hadn't eaten anything all day"

texts:
He was hungry because he hadn't eaten anything all day (Past Perfect)
Her hand was hurting because she had been playing the piano all day (Past Perfect Continuous)

If both sentences mention "all day" showing continuity and the duration of an activity in the past, why is the first sentence in the Past Perfect?


texts: What meaning has "the" article in "the more" usage?

texts:
Some examples with "the more":

But some of those kids can hardly read or write! All the more reason
why they should get the best education on offer.
The more is the better. (But that example is comparative correlative
construction. It's somehow understandable case).

What's the meaning of this article? What's the difference between "the more" and just "more" ?
And why is the article used without a noun?


texts: Since when are you here ? Is it correct?

texts:
Is it correct to ask , since when are you here ?
I came three hours ago
I'm here for 3 house
Or I'm here since 10 o'clock .

Can I ask this question for someone who is just at that place for 3 house , or since the morning  How long have you been here ?


texts: Changing Direct Speech to Indirect Speech

texts:
The bus conductor explained,"This seat is set aside for monks".
If I change it into Indirect Speech,will I need to change the demonstrative adjective "this" to "the"? For example:"The bus conductor explained that the seat was set aside for monks." Thanks a lot.


texts: "in tandem": at the same time, or one after another

texts:
Merriam-Webster defines "in tandem" as

  1 : in partnership or conjunction

  2 : in a tandem arrangement

https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/tandem

Based on the definition of tandem,

  (a) a bicycle for usually two people sitting one behind the other

  (b) 2-seated carriage drawn by horses harnessed one before the other

"in a tandem arrangement" would give me an image of two things aligned one after the other, not aligned in parallel. Therefore, for "events happen in tandem", I would imagine that events do not happen at the same time but one happens after another.

However, Cambridge dictionary defines "in tandem" as

  at the same time

https://dictionary.cambridge.org/us/dictionary/english/in-tandem

Thus, the statement of "events happen in tandem" would indicate two events happen concurrently, not one happening after the other.

Is the term "in tandem" an ambiguous term ? Is "in sequence" or "in order" a preferred term to describe events happening not at the same time ?


texts:
As far as i know, Transitive verb can only become passive

Well,

Look at this example

  The mangers talked about the problem.
  The problem was talked about.

As far as i am concerned, when a preposition isn’t part of the verb (phrasal verb), the verb cannot become passive because it loses the feature of transitivity.

The preposition About in the sentence doesn’t form a phrasal verb with talk; however, it can come in a passive form.

How can talk about come in a passive form?


texts: I know 'I'm left red-faced' means my face gets red. But I'd like to know more expressions to express the same things.


texts: Why can't I use "Neither" and "Nor" in this sentence...?

texts:
A month ago, I gave a comic introduction about me in my English class. During my flow of words, I told, "...I have neither a brother nor a sister". Everyone laughed at me all of a sudden. The professor corrected me, "You shouldn't use this construct in this sentence and started teasing me, etc..."

He asked another fellow student to correct me. That guy said, "I have no siblings" which was declared as the right way. None of 'em said why can't I use "Neither... nor" and why should I use a new word..?

It's bugging me for a while. Can someone explain me?


texts:
What is the different between greatest and highest to describe number?

Example

  I used below code to find greatest and smallest number

OR

  I used below code to find highest and smallest number


texts:
"Saying nothing" and "not saying anything" mean the same (thing).

  "Small" and "tiny" are the same (thing).

  "Me not calling you" means the same (thing) as "I failed my mission."

Should I put "thing" after "the same"? Please explain and give more/different instances if there are exceptions.


texts: "that's all this analysis will tell us is"

texts:
"I don't really have an opinion of whether Steven Avery is innocent or guilty," Spalding says in the piece. "I have more of an opinion of whether I think there's been planted evidence or not and ultimately that's all this analysis will tell us is whether or not this evidence is planted."

Source: http://www.postcrescent.com/story/news/local/steven-avery/2016/10/21/could-swedish-scientist-break-open-avery-case/92459398/

I am a little bit stuck in the bold part of the above sentence. Especialy the part "that's all the analysis will tell us is". Could you please tell me to which part is "is" before "whether" connected? I would understand if this part would be as follows: …all what this analysis will tell us is… But I am not able to parse the original version.


texts:
Does using a semicolon to join two clauses form a coordinate construction with two clauses coordinated and is it the same as with "and" and are such sentences interchangeable ? And can we omit words(ellipsis/gapping) as we did with coordinate structure ?

  In 2000 there were seven cases; in 1999, five.
  In 2000 there were seven cases and in 1999, five.


texts: Meaning of "make it that" in the sentence

texts:
While I was looking at the data from the Corpus of Contemporary American English. I could hardly understand those bold ones. Could you tell me the paraphrased ones or alternative sentences for those?

(Article 1)

BUCHANAN  OK, Jennifer, go ahead GIROUX Yes. All I can say, Rabbi, is, youve got to concede the fact -- and its difficult because we all at times in life have to say, Im sorry, I was wrong -- we can not go back and make it that the Hawaiians killed Christ. Mel Gibson and all Christians...

(Article 2)

You know, one thing about new year's resolutions is that they are so vague, most people's resolutions are so vague and therefore so hard to keep. Have you got a quick comment on that, Denise? AUSTIN  Well, first of all, you've got to make a plan. You've got to stick to it. And make it that you have a blueprint. You can't just say oh, I'm going to lose weight.


texts:
An English class just started, classmates say something like this

How are you? I'm good. How about you?

The sentences are called greetings.
Suppose the class is closed/finished in a few minutes, classmates say something like these

"Bye, see ya tomorrow."

"We had fun today. See you next week!"

I guess the sentences above are neither farewell nor greetings, which word/phrase could be used to refer to them?


texts:
IEEE 754-1985 section 7.4(Underflow) says

After rounding - when a nonzero result computed as though the exponent range were unbounded would lie strictly between K(which is some value).

The following is my interpretation.when a nonzero result computed as thought the exponent range unbounded is adverb clause.would lie is verb phrase.strictly between K is prepositional phrase.So, when removing adverb clause and prepositional phrase, only verb remains there is no subject. Therefore my thought is wrong. What structure is used and what does it mean?


texts:
How do you say "one of those" or "one of them" fast or naturally?
Is it "one uh those" or "one uh them " where 'uh' is the schwa and the 'v' sound is just skipped?
When I try to say it myself I think that's what it is, but I couldn't find any sources to confirm, so, can anyone confirm this?


texts:
When you describe you are someone with experience in or just simply experience?

  Looking for someone with experience in testing lab animals.

Or just simply

  Looking for someone with experience testing lab animals.

I've seen both and I prefer the one with "in",  but I'm not sure if one is better than the other.


texts: "My hobby is to play basketball" or "My hobby is playing basketball"?

texts:
Which one is more correct:

  My hobby is to play basketball.

or

  My hobby is playing basketball?


texts: plural or single objects following 'the requirements of...”?

texts:
I want to know more about the end of this sentence:

  Whether it’s a cow or a goat that’s producing the milk, we can provide a suitable solution that meets the requirements of the customer, the farmer and the animal.
  Whether it’s a cow or a goat that’s producing the milk, we can provide a suitable solution that meets the requirements of customers, farmers and animals.

Sentence (1) sound weird to me, because there are different customers, farmers and animals, and I would prefer (2). However, I am not sure that much.

Which one should I choose?

Also, why is 'the' is used, because the sentence does not refer to a specific customer, farmer, and animal?


texts:
The phrase originates from car windows which used to have manual handles, which need to be turned to lower the window, hence to 'wind' a window down.

I heard the phrase the other day, but the car in question had electric windows. Is it OK to say we 'wind down' electric windows, or is there a newer phrase?


texts: "let alone" after an affirmative sentence

texts:
I'd like to know if the following sentences are natural to native ears.

It takes too much time, let alone money.
In Scotland we can have a range of weather conditions in one hour, let alone one day.

I'd appreciate your help.


texts: Should one use the words "judges" or "justices" when referring to multiple members of constitutional or supreme courts of countries without English as their native language ?


texts: "you can" vs "you cannot" How to understanding? What is difference?

texts:
When I try accept my answer, I seen a prompt:

  You can accept your own answer in 2 days

This sentence make sense to me as miswritten for:

  You cannot accept your own answer in 2 days

I post this question on meta.stackexchange.com but I get lot votes down, all people say that sentence (prompt) is correct and proper.

So You cannot accept your own answer in 2 days vs You can accept your own answer in 2 days, what is difference? how to understanding such difference?

The context: https://meta.stackexchange.com/questions/322278/seem-miswritten-prompt-when-i-accept-my-answer-within-2-days


texts: Native speaker's saying for "move up and down" in this context

texts:
To operate a hand pump of water one has to move the handle (lever) up and down.

As a basic learner I would say:

  Jack, move the handle up and down to get water.

Do native speakers use any short version for move the handle up and down?

Is it okay to say either: handle or lever?
Thank you.


texts: What does the "-O-" in the middle of brands mean?

texts:
There are lots of brands or product names with an "O" joining two words with dashes. They seem to match the pattern verb-o-noun (or verb-o-adj), like:

Break-o-day
Clean-o-point
Click-o-tron
Cook-o-matic
Drink-o-pop
Drink-o-rama
Dry-o-air
Dry-o-lite
Eat-o-keto
Run-o-saur
Walk-o-motion
Wash-o-mat

What does this "O" mean? Can it be used with three (or more) words too?


texts:
Consider two sentences:

  1) What we see here is an apple not an orange.

  2) What we see here is an apple, not an orange.

Context to clarify: there's an apple, but someone says it's an orange.

I tend to see the former more often online, but that seems somehow wrong to me. But since I'm not a native English speaker, I thought it's better to ask.

So which sentence is more correct — the one with comma or without? Or are both equally correct?


texts: Negative forms "don't have" vs. "have not"

texts:
If you want to mention that "william does not possess a book" or ask a question about it which negative form do you prefer to use:

william does not have a book
william has not a book

For questions:

does william have a book ?
has william a book ?

In both cases I myself prefer the first one. Tell me what you think  .


texts: Looking for an idiom for saying, when a powerful person/entity moves, the effects will be noticed even far away

texts:
When talking about the actions of a powerful entity, I need an idiom to convey that the effects will be profound.

The only one that is close to this that I can think of is "When a big tree falls, the earth shakes". However, this is not useful for all situations, as this idiom is for when something negative ("falls") happens to that entity.


texts: Any tips for pronouncing "th" sound right after the "s" sound?

texts:
So I find pronouncing "th" sound right after an "s" sound particularly difficult.

Example: This is the pen.

I tend to pronounce "d" instead of "th" sometimes.

Any helps please?


texts: after the word project we use *on* or *in*?

texts:
+5 years of experience in project management on environmental field

Question: is it correct to use on after project management in the example above?


texts:
Thank you always

Is this correct to say at the end of an inquiry to a customer service of my bank?
What I want to say is I am thankful for not only this time but also for when ever I needed a help in the past including this time.


texts:
Is How come a phrase? What does it mean? Is it formal or informal? British or American?
Can I use it in anywhere?


texts: Diference between that+present and gerund

texts:
Is there any difference between these examples?

  Example 1
  (a) An example of function that satisfies the required condition is given by...
  (b) A wave equation is an equation that describes the behaviour...

  Example 2
  (a) An example of function satisfying the required condition is given by...
  (b) A wave equation is an equation describing the the behaviour...

I need to write sentences like these in a scientific paper, but I don't know if one of them is wrong or is more appropriate than the other.

Here is a similar question, but I'd like an explanation about my specific examples.


texts:
According to OxfordDictionaries.com, the word 'wheat' can be only a noun. However, in a scene from the television cartoon Rick and Morty, it was used as a verb in the phrase "nice to wheat you".

What is the meaning of the expression 'nice to wheat you'? (my guess is 'to ground you to the powder')
Is it an idiom?


texts:
I was wondering if an adjective 'terrible' is either gradable or non-gradable. Is it correct to say:

  It's really terrible.

Thank you in advance for an answer.


texts: What is the meaning of "Although we may seem worlds away, I hope you know I am right there with you."?

texts:
What is the meaning of this sentence? Can anyone explain it to me please:

  Although we may seem worlds away, I hope you know I am right there with you.

I tried to google it and I understood that even if we are very far from each other you should know that I am with you by supporting you and caring about you.


texts: adjectives before and after nouns: "My white computer" vs. "My computer is white"

texts:
what is the difference between these 2 sentences in meaning and when adjective comes after the noun like in these sentences?

  My white computer
  My computer is white

PS: I am not an advanced student so please try to explain using simple words
I am looking forward to the answer and I appreciate your effort


texts:
I want to ask about a particular usage of the "most" word.

When I say (talking about YouTube videos for e.g.):

  Videos with most views

does it convey the meaning that those videos have views more than others? More specifically, does it mean the same as:

  Videos with largest numbers of views. If we create a list of all videos, these videos will come at the top of the list.

?

If not, how to use most to convey that meaning? or what are "most" alternatives?

How would a native express the meaning of the second quote above?


texts: "don’t finish work until" vs. "won’t finish work until"

texts:
from a tutorial

We might be a bit late, because I don’t finish work until seven.

Does the speaker make an indication that he always work until seven?
If the speaker try to refer to an one-time occurrence, should they use this one?

... because I won’t finish work until nine today. (I work late today)


texts: Is it correct and natural to say "establish policy according to which"?

texts:
Could you tell me if the following sentence sounds correct and natural?

We should establish a policy according to which people would be fined for throwing garbage in the street.

If it's not natural what would a native English speaker say?


texts: When to properly use Present Progressive statements?

texts: Can present progressive statements be use at present or for the future? or both?


texts:
Can these two words (secretly and secretively) be used interchangeably?

E.g.:

He fed the dog secretly.
He fed the dog secretively.

Which of the two sentences above sounds more appropriate?


texts: What does “but I think, what is it to any independent, intelligent, and respectable man what decision thay may come to?” mean by Thoreau?

texts:
I hear of a convention to be held at Baltimore, or elsewhere, for
  the selection of a candidate for the Presidency, made up chiefly of
  editors, and men who are politicians by profession; but I think, what is it to any independent, intelligent, and respectable man what
  decision they may come to?

I'm quite confused about the second "what" by "what decision they may come to", what role does it play in the sentence? Does it refer to the previous "it"? If "I think" is followed by a declarative sentence, why can we use a rhetorical question?


texts: "Anyone who stops learning is old"- Is the sentence correct? Can the word 'stops ' be used instead of 'stop'?


texts:
In the dictionary, they say

A vehicle + carry + people

For example, "the bus can carry 100 passengers."
My question is,
can we say?:

A driver + carry + people + in + a vehicle

For example,
Is it correct to say "The bus driver carried me to school in his bus"?
But, it seems native speakers say "The bus driver took/brought me to school in his bus" but I am not so sure.


texts: Why has "pence" been used in this sentence, not "pences"?

texts:
You can then open the chest, and take from it as many pence as you please, they are only copper pence, but if you would rather have silver money, you must go into the second chamber.

  Source: The Tinder Box by Hans Christian Anderson

Is that boldface correct grammatically?

Why is that "pence", not "pences"?


texts: What is the correct verb to describe a file included with an email conversation?

texts:
Is it correct to use "attached" when a file is included in a corporate Email?.

One of our customers has repeatedly requested us to send them some records and we would always respond in the Email stating "Kindly find the attached documents/records", but is this a valid use?

If not, what other verbs should I use to describe a file included with an email? What would native speakers say?


texts: The class starts at noon. vs Class starts at noon

texts:
I am going to write down two similar sentences below.

(1) The class starts at noon.

(2) Class starts at noon.

This is my interpretation. You say (1) when you are talking about when a specific course starts. In contrast, you say (2) when you are talking about when all courses generally start. Is my interpretation correct?


texts: I am off to the bar vs I am heading to the bar

texts:
What's the difference between the following sentences:

1 I am off to the bar.

2 I am heading to the bar.


texts:
I've always thought "may" shows a greater possibility than "might." At least that is how I was taught at school. But I hear the opposite view as well. Isn't there  a clear distinction between the two?

For example, if someone simply asks you "Will you be there?" and you think you are not likely to make it but there is a slight chance that you will, which word would you choose?


texts:
Although there you can find the below example on the website of Cambridge, I had a feedback from an English teacher telling me that the two contractions in bold in the second sentence are wrong. What do you think?

  Cambridge: My sister’s got married. See this link

  I'd appreciate it if you could stay with us at our place for a week or
  something, and my wife'd be over the moon about this. We could have a
  lot of fun together, and my children'd also love to spend time with
  your boys.


texts: How should this sentence be improved? "When an already-understanding person explains to a not-already-understanding one"?

texts:
Would there be a less clumsy word to describe a person who already understand a subject/topic/problem and a person who haven't yet? The full sentence would be:

  When an already-understanding person explains to a not--already-understanding one, they tend to go define it right ahead (like Wikipedia), or compare it with another thing ("family, the vital cell of the society").


texts: Should one use an article before a description, as in You should stick to _ rule "think quality". or Look at _ sign "Elderly people"! ? I guess the same rule used as in "Room 4" or "Table 2", i.e. no article used, but who knows... Either way, actually I think this structure sounds a little bit awkward.


texts: Is it possible to use "been being" like this?

texts:
In a text I wrote as an exercise on Coursera, I've used the past perfect progressive form of the verb "to be late":

  ...so, we had taken an appointment and exactly in one month we were on a plane to Istanbul. Our flight was delayed, which is why by the time we landed at Ataturk Airport we had already been being late for almost half an hour. We took a taxi...

However, a couple of reviewers told me that this wording sounded strange to them. Is it grammatical? Does it sound natural? If not, how is it better to rephrase this sentence?


texts: When should I use "difference" or "differences"?

texts: Dictionaries (http://www.macmillandictionary.com/dictionary/british/difference  http://www.ldoceonline.com/dictionary/difference) say "difference" can be used both as a countable noun and an uncountable noun. I am confused with it. I am wondering when I should use "difference" or "differences".


texts: The respective functions of two occurrences of "as" in a sentence

texts:
In the sentence

  Travelers must explore as much of the world as they can before it completely changes,

I am confused by the two occurrences of "as". What are their respective functions in the sentence?


texts:
When must we use the preposition in when we used the word interested.

Normal Usage:

  I am interested in 18th century paintings.

How about these examples:

  If you're interested don't hesitate to send me message.

or

a dialogue I saw in the Simpsons

  Ned Flanders: Well looks like someone's having a pre-rapture party.

  Homer Simpson: No, Flanders. It's a meeting of gay witches for
  abortion, you wouldn't be interested.

If I added in in the examples, what would they imply ?

  If you're interested in don't hesitate to send me message.

  Its a meeting of gay witches for abortion, you wouldn't be interested
  in.


texts: "Not only from [...] but also from [...]"

texts:
Students can acquire knowledge not only from educational institutions, but also from many other ways.

In the above sentence, is from following "but also" needed, or can it be removed as in the following sentence?

  Students can acquire knowledge from not only educational institutions, but also many other ways.


texts:
Not knowing the root cause and doing something else without solving the actual problem.

Do we have an idiom/single word for the above sentence?


texts: "Make you some coffee" or "Make some coffee for you"

texts:
I was wondering which structure is the correct one:

1- Do you want me to make you some coffee? Source
2- Do you want me to make some coffee for you?

I think the first one means: "Do you want that I turn you into coffee!" Therefore, the correct version would be #2 to me.


texts:
Is the sentence below grammatically correct? Is it correct to say “below which was a faint scar” or is it too vague we are talking about chin. Does “which” always refer to the word just before it?

  "He was a sturdy man in his sixties with a white beard grown from his sideburns to his chin below which was a faint scar."


texts: Language for a warning sign in a place like a library

texts:
Which sign would be more appropriate in a place like library:

  Please don't make noise.

  Do not make noise.

  Keep quiet.

I mean when should we prefer to use " Do not do that" and when should we prefer to use " please do/don't do it"


texts: What does 'unreserved' signify for a legal judgment?

texts:
O'Sullivan & Hilliard's The Law of Contract (2018 8 ed). p. 115.

  6.72. High Trees is in many ways a weak precedent. The case is so influential and well known
  that students often forget that it was a first instance decision, which was '(remarkably)'
  delivered unreserved, and that all the discussion about the binding nature of the promise
  to reduce the rent during the war years was strictly obiter (described by Arden LJ
  in Collier v P&MJ Wright (Holdings) Ltd (2007) as Denning J’s ‘brilliant obiter dictum’)

Ewan McKendrick. Contract Law: Text, Cases, and Materials (2018 8 ed). p 217.

  Commentary

  Professor Treitel has stated (Some Landmarks of Twentieth Century Contract Law (Oxford
  University Press, 2002), p. 29) that ‘the High Trees case is surely one of the most prominent of
  the landmarks in twentieth century contract law’. He notes that its exalted status is, in many

p 218.

  ways, remarkable given that it was apparently argued and decided in one day. The judgment
  of Denning J was therefore, in all probability, an unreserved judgment. As Professor Treitel
  has remarked, ‘if there was any time for reflection, it could at most have been the luncheon
  recess’. The facts of the case are rather unusual in that the litigation was conducted between
  members of the same corporate group and it is not altogether clear why the claim was
  brought in the first place. The claim may not in fact have been a ‘friendly’ one but a keenly
  fought contest between the defendant and the creditors of the plaintiff company.

(remarkably) implies that the author of the above quote was startled. So which definition fits? I quote ODO's definitions of 'unreserved'.

  Without reservations; complete
  Frank and open
  Not set apart for a particular purpose or booked in advance


texts: "asked" as past tense and "asked" as past participle

texts:
Residents asked for comments on Lydney Area Action Plan Baseline Report.
Last summer the Treasury Department asked for comments on fixes to—or outright elimination of–the use-it-or-lose-it rule in light of the new $2,500 cap.

In the above examples from news reports, how can one say if "asked" means "who were asked" or not? Is there a rule of thumb to figure out this problem? What is the grammar under such a construction?


texts:
In The Favourite (2018), Anne is up to her neck in a large pool of bubbling mud which leach out her toxins. Abigail sits next to her. Sarah enters and says to Abigail:

  Sarah: After you left, I thought, "What a grand idea to take to the
  mud." To get whatever poisons one carries with one out.

What is the meaning of "one carries with one out"?


texts:
Examples of "realise a goal/plan/something", it means "to make it happen" or "to achieve things you hope for or plan for"

  Cambridge: They finally realized their goal of buying a summer home.

  The Independent: I intended to deliver them as soon as I returned to the UK, but more than two years passed before I had the time and funds necessary to realise my plan.

I think the following usage is wrong because "realise my plan / goal" means to make it happen. But, in the following context, it means "finishing a project plan", and I guess this is wrong.  I need to comprehend this because I prepare for an English test, and they like these things for some reason. What do you think?

I wasn't able to write to you earlier because I had a lot of work. I had to realise a plan of a project and I was on a tight schedule.


texts:
This is an exercise extracted from More! 2 published by Cambridge

But I can’t find any words ending with /i:/. There are 2 words which are ferry and taxi ending with /i/. I wonder if there are any cases that we say the two words with the sound /i:/. The book is written in British English.
 This is the transcription in the wordlist of the book

This is the whole page. I don’t think there is a context.


texts: I wonder if there are some typos in this sentence: Ashely had pushed her past her patience pique

texts:
While reading a book I encountered the sentence I don't understand. Please give me some advice.
Situation: During a class, a student, Ashley Bonny is caught being lackadaisical when she should pay attention. Her teacher, Mrs. Warner stands right  next to her.
(The sentence in question is taken from the following passage of the book "The Bonny Pirates" by V B  Leghorn)
"Hopefully you were thinking about Shakespeare's prose."  Mrs. Warner was being frank and her wrath was quite evident. She had her arms crossed and she was tapping her toe.
"Yes, ma'm. It is undeniable. I was absolutely, most definitely thinking about Shakespeare."
The classroom erupted in laughter and the boy next to her gave her a jeer. Ashely looked around, blushing that she had blurred out something that made the entire room laugh. A crooked smile crossed her face and she laughed too. Unfortunately, Mrs.Warner wasn't laughing and Ashley could see that she was irate. Ashely had pushed her past her patience pique.


texts: Difference (if any) between 'ponder' and 'contemplate'?

texts:
Is there any difference in connotation between 'ponder' and 'contemplate'?

Put another way, do these two sentences give you exactly the same impression?

  Every day I ponder how I should live my life.
  Every day I contemplate how I should live my life.


texts: Use of "continental" before "a continent"?

texts:
I read a sentence which was:

The forest movements of the South, in Mexico, Chile, Malaysia, Indonesia, continental Africa and India are faced with....

Why has "continental" been used before Africa? I mean we  know that it is a continent.
Has it been used to mark it distinct from South Africa or is it something else?


texts: In Haruki Murakami's "Barn Burning", I don't understand a quote involving the phrase "a priori" which I also only barely understand

texts:
Here's the quote:

  “I was married, but that didn’t matter, either. She seemed to consider
  things like age and income and family to be of the same a priori order
  as shoe size and vocal pitch and the shape of one’s fingernails.”

So, I do understand that this quote is an example of parallelism, but is she comparing (in a one-to-one sense) the importance/unimportance of age to shoe size, and income to vocal pitch, and family to 'the shape of one's fingernails'? Is that what 'a priori order' means, in this context?

Or does the quote imply that everything listed has the same significance? For eg: age is as significant as family, which is as significant as vocal pitch and shoe size, which is as significant as fingernail shape and income; that they (family, vocal pitch, income, shoe size, age, fingernail shape) are all as significant as each other.


texts:
Are there dictionaries which classify words by UK and USA usage?

This question supposes that there are words which are mainly used in the UK while others are used in the USA. Based on that, there are editions for Americans and editions for British.

Here are a few examples for differences:


texts: Do you call salt, soy sauce, etc. "seasoning"?

texts: Could you tell me what you call salt, sugar, soy sauce, ketchup, miso, pepper and so on as a whole? Do you call them "seasoning"?


texts:
Which of these sentences is right:

The cops usually arrive 20 minutes after the robbers have left.

OR

The cops usually arrive 20 minutes after the robbers left.

Which is correct, have left or left? Or do I need a present tense?
And is 'arrive' being used properly here or do I need to change it to 'arrived'?


texts:
I am reading an article, The state in the time of covid-19, in The Economist. I don't completely understand a particular phrase and want to know if I have the right idea.

Last two paragraphs from the article for context:

  The most worrying is the dissemination of intrusive surveillance. Invasive data collection and processing will spread because it offers a real edge in managing the disease. But they also require the state to have routine access to citizens’ medical and electronic records. The temptation will be to use surveillance after the pandemic, much as anti-terror legislation was extended after 9/11. This might start with tracing tb cases or drug dealers. Nobody knows where it would end, especially if, having dealt with covid-19, surveillance-mad China is seen as a model.

  Surveillance may well be needed to cope with covid-19. Rules with sunset clauses and scrutiny built in can help stop it at that. But the main defence against the overmighty state, in tech and the economy, will be citizens themselves. They must remember that a pandemic government is not fit for everyday life.

What does "pandemic government" mean?

The definition of "pandemic" in most authoritative sources include the word "disease". After reading the article, the only reasonable meaning of "pandemic government" that I can think of is that "the government is going to be everywhere." The author is essentially saying that the government will be a disease (and nobody wants a disease?). Is this interpretation correct? Is the author indirectly saying that a certain country's government is a disease? This seems a bit extreme, and I doubt the author wants to say this.

Definitions from dictionaries (of the adjective form):

  Cambridge: (of a disease) existing in almost all of an area or in almost all of a group of people, animals, or plants

  Collins: (of a disease) affecting persons over a wide geographical area; extensively epidemic

  Merriam-Webster: occurring over a wide geographic area and affecting an exceptionally high proportion of the population

  Macmillan (derived word): an occurrence of a disease that affects many people across a whole country or the whole world


texts: "It has been revised 6 times" vs "It was revised 6 times"

texts:
Below is a quote from an article Scrum software development:

Since 2009, a public document called The Scrum Guide[18] has been published and updated by Schwaber and Sutherland. It has been revised 6 times, with the current version being November 2020.

Why is the present perfect used in "It has been revised 6 times"? Why not the simple past tense? Could the simple past tense be used here? What would be the difference?


texts:
I have come across it in the 18th episode of the 6th season of Friends. Here is the context:

  Chandler: (To Joey) So, you busy Thursday?

  Joey: Oh, very funny. I don’t know if you remember, but my audition
  was supposed to be Thursday. (Chandler doesn’t say anything until Joey
  figures it out.) You got me the audition?! Let’s hug it up! (They
  hug.)

Does it mean let's hug a lot?


texts:
What are the similarities and differences? Presented in https://english.stackexchange.com/a/11324/50720,  Corpus of Contemporary English depicts the dominance of 'seems like', but what does this imply?

Are there any formal terms describing these issues? I read that 'to seem' is a copular verb.


texts: turned in a rather unimpressive interview performance -- what does "turned in" mean in this context?

texts:
For a while, Taligent enjoyed a cachet in the industry as the place where Apple and IBM sent many of their best and brightest. If you managed to get a job at Taligent, you had "made it."
  I almost didn't make it. I had wanted to work at Taligent for some time and eventually got the chance, but turned in a rather unimpressive interview performance (coworkers kidded me about that for years afterward) and wasn't offered the job.

What does that phrasal verb mean in this context?


texts: Is "should be" talking about the past or the present or the future?

texts:
Not sure who’s working but this should be resolved.

Does that should be resolved part mean (1) that it has already been resolved in the past, or (2) that he is expecting or needing it to be resolved now in the present, or (3) that he is asking for it to be resolved at some point in the future?

Was its resolution completed in the past, or is it still happening now in the present, or will it happen the future?

Is it the done case,  the doing now, or the yet to do case?


texts:
I understand the following sentence is correct:

  Had I stayed in Canada, I would have lived a good life.

But how should I form a question based on this sentence? Would the following be considered correct?

  Had I stayed in Canada, would I have lived a good life?

Thanks!


texts:
Can somebody give me synonyms for "professional" and "make a living" in the following context:

Do most professional sportsmen make a good living?


texts: What's the meaning of "Something grows on somthing"?

texts:
Excerpt from Jane Austen's Pride and Prejudice:

Miss Bennet's pleasing manners grew on the goodwill of Mrs. Hurst and Miss Bingley;

What does "pleasing manners grew on the goodwill" mean?
According to this dictionary, it means "gradually become more pleasurable or acceptable to", but the how can a "manner" becomes more pleasurable to a "goodwill", goodwill is not a person hence can have no feelings, it doesn't seem make sense.


texts: Negative question - Why hasn't he still recovered? or Why has he not still recovered?

texts:
I am wondering Still usage in Negative questions.
I know the following.
• Do you still work for the government?

• Is the party still on for tomorrow?

• Isn't she still seeing Jack?

However, what about negative questions?

Why hasn't he still recovered?

or

Why has he still not recovered?

Which one is correct?
.
PS: Sorry, I've been just confused with "yet". Please look at my revised question, again.


texts: What is a common, correct way to ask about improving a skill?

texts:
For example, if I have difficulty listening, I might ask one of the following questions:

  How to improve that?
  How can I improve on that?
  How do I improve on that?

Which of these questions is more correct to say in this situation?

I'd also be glad to know if any are incorrect.


texts:
Propositional logic approaches the discipline of logical thought on
    the basis of statements or propositions. This distinguishes it from
    earlier schools of logic, such Aristotle’s term-based logic.

  Stoicism: A Beginner's Guide To The History and Philosophy of Stoicism

Why did the author use the "such" there. I think It should have been "such as". Is it correct?

Thank you!


texts: "Why do you not give" Vs "Why do not you give"

texts:
Are they, both sentences, grammatically and semantically acceptable?

  Why do you not give him your flesh and your bones?
  Why do not you give him your flesh and your bones?


texts:
What does 'Contour' mean in this sentence?
'Contours of the deal favour a particular private defence company'

Does 'contour' here mean features?


texts: continue into something/continue something

texts:
Is continue into some activity a correct construction?

  By placing the two confidants in critical Ministries, Mr. Modi appears to loosen the grip of his own office on the government; the effects will be felt by National Security Adviser Ajit Doval if he continues into a second term, as is widely expected.

I think continue something must be used here.

  If he continues a second term.

Am I right?


texts:
Oskar, who is afraid traveling on vehicle, need to reach destination by walk but mute old man, Who is with him, replied by writing on piece of paper.

  Old Man: "I can't walk that far." if you wanted to go with me, it
  would have to be on the bus or a train. And the train was a lot
  faster. Anyway, there's nothing to be afraid of." To which you said.

  Oskar: It's easy for you to say!

  Oskar: Which actually... it wasn't. (Oskar Thinking this words)


texts:
I saw the following two sentence:

  The oldest person I met was 90 years old.

Is it correct? Or would it be better as:

  The oldest person I've met was 90 years old.


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

texts:
I was reading this quote which a friend of mine posted on facebook, I didn't understand this particular sentence, "t's looking at an evil act square in the face and saying, ‘I forgive that evil act", the existence of the word "square" is not understandable here at all.

When I asked him, he told me that it's an expression in English but he can't explain it.

So my question is, What does the word "square" mean in this expression? What is the expression? could you provide other examples for that expression?

Here is the quote,

  Forgiveness isn't just ignoring what happened. It isn't just pretending it was okay or justifying it. It's looking at an evil act square in the face and saying, ‘I forgive that evil act.’ It's asking God to forgive, as well. It's letting go of the desire to punish, kill, and destroy. And then it's going one step further. It's blessing the person who perpetrated such horrific evil. It's praying for the one who was once an enemy and may still be an enemy. It's giving the evildoer--the murderer, the rapist, the thief--love. Forgiveness is freedom. In so many ways, it's the only true path to freedom, and it's a hard path to walk.


texts:
Is my below sentence grammatically correct?

  Today was one of those bad days.
      He was moving fast. He got the news that the jail was under attack and six prisoners had fled the castle.

In "had fled the castle", can I use "has" instead of "had".

This is a part of a story. Is it okay if I use present and past tense in the same the paragraph?


texts: What part of speech is "want to" in "I want to look at you" ?

texts:
I want to look at you.

Which "parts of speech" does "want to " belong to?


texts: Looking for the English equivalent of "to cross a hairline bridge"

texts:
In my native language, we have this idiom - "to cross a hairline bridge", meaning, one has successfully avoided getting in trouble or a dangerous situation miraculously.

Is there an idiom or expression in English that means the same thing?

He was driving at 200 mph on the road when a truck coming from the opposite direction lost control and turned over, coming towards him. At the last moment, he managed to steer the wheel, thus saving his life. he certainly crossed a hairline bridge.


texts:
I'm a bit confused with the sentences below:

  I know you're in there
  What was the point of sending us in there
  She'd been in there all afternoon

I sense they're clear for me, but I don't know whether to relate that in to the verbs or associate it with there thinking of just in there?

Thanks


texts: "Arrive in the classroom" or "arrive at the classroom"?

texts:
Tell me which preposition it is the most natural to use with arrive in the following context: in or at.

  The teacher always arrives early in the classroom.

  The teacher always arrives early at the classroom.

Not a long time ago I would have thought that the first sentence is incorrect because in is usually used with arrive when we talk about bigger places like cities, countries etc. But I have recently come across it with in in the context of getting to the classroom in an English textbook. Was it a typo or it is totally natural. For that matter, do I use in or at in the following sentence?

  I usually arrive in/at work at eight.


texts: Contextual meaning of 'I can ascertain'?

texts: Is there any contextual difference between 'as far as I know' and 'as far as I can ascertain'?


texts: Is the use of 'should' in 'How could it be that ... should ...' correct?

texts:
Example sentence: 'How could it be that all this should be lost when he leaves?"
The 'should' clause here describes an uncertain event in the future.
I feel safer with 'How could it be that all this was to be lost when he leaves?",
but the syllabe count is too large for my purpose.
Apologies for the generic 'grammar' tag, I have no idea how this kind of sentence is classified.


texts:
Source

Reality is what language, as Reality’s toothpicks-and-chewing-gum replica, will never be.

What does this sentence mean?
I am not sure how to interpret this "as" here.


texts: What is the meaning of "chill" & "low maintenance" in this text? Is it something negative?

texts:
This quotation is from a 2014 Cosmopolitan blog post.  The author of the answer is a young man; presumably the author of the question and most of the readers are women:

Q: I usually wear heels because I think they're sexier, but lately I've been going for casual drinks in flats and getting hit on. Is there something to a flat shoe that's enticing, and which ones should I be wearing?
A: It's possible that guys see your flats and think, "Hey, she seems chill and low maintenance." Or that they are less intimidated than they might be if you had the added height a pair of heels would normally give you. It's also possible that they never noticed your shoes in the first place and were responding to something you were not even aware of. There's really no way of knowing.


texts: Which part of my name (Indian) is my surname?

texts:
My name is Abhijith S. Raj.

So is my surname S. Raj or just Raj?
(Note that my father's name is Sreeraj and that is why the S. Raj.)


texts: a verb or a phrase to describe the start of existing

texts:
What word or phrase would fit in best here?

She says that trepanation began to be practiced only in Europe during the Dark Ages
because Pope once issued an edict saying that that kind of practice
would help Christians get rid of their curse, but does she know that
that medical practice existed in ancient China and in ancient Maya long before any
Pope ____________ ?

emerged

came about

existed

appeared

began to be

?


texts: Correct Use of conditional II & conditilan III

texts:
"If Alexander Graham Bell, the inventor of the telephone, had been around today he’d have been quite bemused by how we’ve dis-invented his invention."

In above sentence conditional  has been used. It's referring to a hypothetical situation in the Past.

This I read in context where present situation is discribe. I mean present usages of phone other than calling etc.
Refer below LInk.

https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/blogs/jugglebandhi/phonely-enough-a-device-meant-for-people-to-talk-to-each-other-is-used-for-anything-but-that-f0-9f-98-9c/

According to my knowledge writer should have used conditional II type. It refers to a hypothetical situation in the present or the future (subjunctive).

So the sentence should be like this

"If Alexander Graham Bell, the inventor of the telephone, were around today he would quite bemused by how we’ve disinvented his invention."


texts:
I got a mail from the principal of a school, whom I sent my job application. He replied that he had passed my CV to the HR Committee and they would contact me.

I am confused what I should write him in a reply mail. As I cannot write "I am looking forward to hearing from you" since he had already handed over my Cv to the HR committee, can I write " I am looking forward to hearing from the HR committee of your school" or "I am looking forward to a reply from the HR committee of your school ?"


texts:
The swimsuit catalog is named 'Everything But Water".
I'm a bit confused about the meaning of this phrase.
Does it mean "All you need is water"?


texts: 'Great Lakes' is or are? Which one is correct?

texts:
In this article, I read the following lines:

The Great Lakes have claimed thousands of ships since European explorers began navigating the waters in the 1600s, but few have captured the public's imagination as has the Edmund Fitzgerald, which sank on Nov. 10, 1975, in Lake Superior.

To my mind, 'The Great Lakes' has claimed is correct.
Then I searched for 'the Great Lakes' and I got the following meaning from here:

The Great Lakes (also called the Laurentian Great Lakes,1 or the Great Lakes of North America) are a series of interconnected freshwater lakes located in northeastern North America, on the Canada–United States border, which connect to the Atlantic Ocean through the Saint Lawrence River.

My questions are: The Great Lakes looks a collective noun for a series of lakes, then why 'are' is used every time with it? Shouldn't they put 'is' instead of 'are'?


texts:
I am trying to understand what "make us dream" exactly means because a friend of mine asked me what it means in our language. Actually I know what it means but I just couldn't make a good translation for him.

It is a banner of Liverpool FC and the title of a book written by a fan as well.

How would you explain or paraphrase "make us dream" in English?

Thanks.


texts: Negative with subjunctive in that clause

texts:
I was wondering, why exactly is it correct to use "not" without a helping word instead of "do not" with the subjunctive in the negative after the "that" clause, after words like "suggest" or "recommend"

I suggest she not go there.

Why not

I suggest she don't (maybe doesn't) go there.

How is this explained? I am looking for a present day explanation of why it is structured as is, not some other way.


texts: Tickets selling fast VS tickets are selling fast

texts: On the Ryanair website I've seen the message "Tickets selling fast". Should it be "Tickets ARE selling fast"?


texts: Is "closed" an adverb or adjective in "pinch your nose closed"?

texts:
It is helpful to pinch your nose closed when you have to swallow something that tastes yucky, like cough syrup.

In this sentence, how should I understand the word "closed" is it adverb or adjective? I do not think "your nose (which is) closed..


texts:
I could play with my dear friends tomorrow at the seaside. Unfortunately, my sister happened to fall ill. I'll have to break my promise and stay at home to take care of her.

I could play with my dear friends tomorrow at the seaside, but this all depends on whether my mom will allow me to.

I made up the two examples. Though it's not perfect, I just use them as tokens for my understanding. The idea around them is the key point here.

From my understanding, these two could are quite different:
Could in #1 is equivalent to "would be able to", meaning that I'm not likely to go to the seaside tomorrow. But I would be able to if my sister hadn't been ill. As PEU 124.7 indicates, could is used to express irrealis ideas.
Could in #2 is equivalent to "might", meaning that I'll probably go to the seaside if my mom allows me to. This is an example of the tentative usage of could.

PEU1 124.7 Could can be used to criticise people for not doing things.
You could ask before you borrow my car. (irrealis usage of could)
Could have + past participle is used for criticisms about the past.
You could have told me you were getting married.

Is my understanding right?
1. PEU = Michael Swan's, Practical English Usage.


texts: Do you know who / whom she is going to marry?

texts:
Do you know who / whom she is going to marry ?

The usage of who and whom has been already explained on SE, going by that to find which pronoun to use we need to replace he / him in the answer, so accordingly him fits here that means I need To use whom here, but my book says who is fine, I know colloquially it doesn't makes much difference and in modern English we can replace whom with who, but this isn't the cause with my exam for which I am preparing I need to strictly follow the conventional grammar so just want to confirm if its a printing error in my book ? Correct answer should be whom , Right ?


texts:
What to call lips which are fleshy (full) and stick out a little bit? I am not sure if 'stick out' is appropriate or not.
I mean, the lips making someone with them look sulky (but actually he or she is not).

I searched the Internet and it says that such lips are called 'fish lips' or 'prominent lips'.


texts:
I wonder when someone writes down the following sentence as a headline of a writing

  Will Trump build the wall?

Could it have two meaning as follows

"Is Trump going to build the wall?" ( just asking people if the wall is going to be built)
As a request :  "I want Trump to build the wall" or "Could you build the wall, Trump?"  or "Would you like Trump to build the wall??"

So should someone always say, "Is Trump going to build the wall?" to simply ask a question if something will happen, in order to prevent any misunderstandings in this case?


texts:
I am learning English these days. Can somebody please tell the meaning of "Do come back later!" in the below paragraph? Why Do is used in the beginning?

  Scheduled Downtime! We are enhancing the services on the site. The
  services will not be available from 15th September 12:30 AM to 15th
  September 02:30 AM. Do come back later!


texts: Is intuitivity a word and how do I use it?

texts:
The word intuitivity doesn't come up in some dictionaries such as Longman and Oxford, however in some dictionaries (i.e. via Google), the word appears as a correct word even though the actual definition is for intuitive (i.e. see "intuitively"). Is it correct to use it in the following sentence?

  Due to the simplicity and intuitivity of Road Map, everyone seems to love it.


texts: I didn't get this joke from Dr. Octopus in Spider Man 2. Is there anything subtle in the language that I'm not picking up?

texts:
Dr. Octopus:

  Ladies and gentlemen. My wife Rosie and I would like to welcome you this afternoon. But first before we start, has anybody lost a large roll of 20 dollar bills in a rubber band? Because we found the rubber band.

Are there any linguistic subtleties going on?

I'd love to hear back from you people.


texts:
We need him to accomplish this task.

Is this an ambiguous sentence?

I think the possible interpretations are:

1: We can't accomplish this task without him/We need him in order to accomplish this task.

2.Him is the understood subject of the infinitive clause, meaning that "he is the one who should accomplish the task"

Which one is correct , or two options are both possible?


texts:
I know that the two verbs "repulse" and "repel" both can be used when negative energies are approaching you in the same sense, but I need to know how each word alters the meaning of the bold sentence below? (Based in dictionary definitions, they both mean the same to me, but I was wondering how do you think of them?)

Try and find a way to attract positive people. This is a good step forward to protect yourself from those people who should not be around you. Give them all a wide berth. On top of that, you should be able to ......... negative energies from yourself.

a. repel
b. repulse
Please let me know if they are interchangeable here or there is some preferences and tips that I need to bear in mind.


texts: Which article do I use with "class" and "the name of a certain subject" when talking about a certain class in general?

texts:
Tell me please which article I have to use before class and the name of a certain subject in general, not about one specific class? For example:

  I like going to English class.

  I like going to an English class.

  I like going to the English class.

Does any of the sentences sound natural? Would the following be better?

  I like going to English classes.


texts: What's the difference between "where does he go" and "where is he going"?

texts: I want to know the difference between this two and the usage of these two like where we use these basically


texts:
You ask a person to sit on a chair: Please go sit on the chair.

And this person responds: No, I wouldn't.

What does the meaning of this response? Does he mean that he isn't quite decided and he himself is not sure what he would do?


texts: Can I say 'they have no favour of that thing'?

texts:
If group of people born to be really tall, and someone begins compliment them. How can I say that thier height is not something they worked for it and did thier best about it?
Can I say: they have no credit? Or, they have no favour?
Thanks.


texts:
As much as I know the prefix dis mostly means - no, stop, and the opposite.

In such words like: dislike - stop liking, disrespect - no respect, disconnect - the opposite for connect.

But in such words like: discover, discuss, disguise, display what does "dis" mean? Or maybe it isn't a prefix in these words?


texts: modifier placement: Extensive and entertaining . .

texts:
Is the following sentence correct and natural?

Extensive and entertaining, literary scholars have noted that many of the tales can be thought of as the seeds from which different genres of literature were borne into the modern era.


texts: What is the meaning of "clocking" in this sentence?

texts:
The federal Minimum wage in the US is $7.25 per hour. Ten states have higher minimum wages with Rhode Island clocking in 50 cents higher at $7.75.

What is the meaning of clocking? Why not use "closing"?


texts:
I am preparing for CAE exam .I am doing this exercise of Multiple choice-cloze CAE part 1. This is the text:

  "The accomodation is nearby located in the hearth  of the suburb within easy walking distance of the wide range of amenities offered by both Westgate and the fashionable Donatello Road Market.Newly decorated and carpeted, the property comprises a double bedroom, good sized reception room, large living room, fully fitted kitchen and a bathroom with quality shower. Tenants also have use of their own secure underground parking space. The flat is simply but _______ furnished and the south facing living room.

Now I have made a long research for the collocations of "furnished" but I have amazingly founded that of  the four proposed adverbs:

  sparsely
  plainly
  richly
  tastefully

all these four equally collocate with "furnished".  What is the right "one"?


texts: Usage of the expression "My name has been... John Doe"

texts:
The former radio host and current Youtuber, John "TotalBiscuit" Bain, often finishes his videos with the phrase My name has been TotalBiscuit, thanks....

I'd never heard this expression before, and it sounds odd to me, as if it implied that his name changed after the show ended.

Is this just a very specific catchphrase? A common expression among radio hosts? Or used more commonly than that?

For instance, could I say it at the end of a scientific conference, such as "My name has been John Doe, and I presented you the results..."?

(As an example, this link takes to a Youtube video just before he says it: https://youtu.be/IydX8R2xxe4?t=51m51s)


texts: "These areas of the brain allow for recognition of facial expressions." -- right or wrong?

texts:
While preparing for CAE, I've stumbled upon this Transformation task. I had to rewrite the second sentence so that it has the same meaning as the first one, keeping the word in caps unchanged and using it.

  57 These areas of the brain are used in recognising facial expressions. (ALLOW)

  These areas of the brain ______ facial expressions.

My answer was "These areas of the brain allow for recognition of facial expressions.", but my teacher told me that it's incorrect. An example of this construction can be found in the Cambridge Dictionary:

  Does your insurance allow for home nursing care?

While I believe that my teacher is not incompetent and that my answer was likely actually wrong, my teacher couldn't explain the problem. So, here I am, asking:

Was using the "allow for" construction incorrect here? If so, why? What should the correct answer be?


texts:
How to use the word likely in a sentence which conveys the same meaning as below.

  It is probable that you will be the next president.

Is the above sentence correct? If yes what is the similar sentence using likely. If it is not, correct that sentence too.


texts: How to stress the word "resource" in noun and verb form

texts:
In my impression, a word with both noun and verb forms should be stressed on the first syllable when it is a noun, and on the second or subsequent syllable when it is a verb.

A search in Cambridge Dictionary finds that the word "resource" seems to be unbound by this rule of thumb.
http://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english/resource

Is it correct if I continue to pronounce "REsource" in noun form and "reSORce" in verb form?


texts: Meaning of 'sense' in 'a man of eminent good sense'

texts:
I would like to conclude the accurate meaning of sense in the following phrase.

  a man of eminent good sense

That phrase is from one of example expressions in the entry for the adjective, 'eminent' in the Oxford Advanced Learner's Dictionary.

I assume the meaning of sense in that phrase is judgment, the 4th of the definitions defined by the Oxford Advanced Learner's Dictionary as follows. Why I assumed so is merely because eminent good sense is an uncountable noun and the 4th definition is the only one which is uncountable.

But meaning-wise, if it were a man of an eminent good sense or a man of eminent good senses, other definitions can be applied, wouldn't it be?

[countable] one of the five powers (sight, hearing, smell, taste and touch) that your body uses to get information about the world around you
[countable] a feeling about something important
[singular] an understanding about something; an ability to judge something
[uncountable] good understanding and judgement; knowledge of what is sensible or practical behaviour
senses [plural] a normal state of mind; the ability to think clearly
[countable] the meaning that a word or phrase has; a way of understanding something


texts: Control, control and manage, management difference

texts:
What is difference between control and manage?

Some context below:

I can control/manage it.
I keep it under control/management.
It is a subject of control/management.

These phrases could seem not much native in examples but please could you look a bit over it. Is there any fundamental difference? I mean, is there more than just "This word is usually used in these kind of phrases, and that word is usually used in those kind of phrases but both phrases are synonymous either way you'll build it."

Especially I'm confused in control as check and control as do/manage. How do/manage and check be at the same time? Especially it driving me nuts in phrases like "it shall be controlled", "it shall be maintained in controlled conditions", "... is to control process output". What do they mean? Shall it be checked or shall it be done/managed?


texts: Is "required" a correct verb in sentence "Bicycle purist required to travel for work"?

texts:
Is "required" a correct verb in sentence

  Bicycle purist required to travel for work

For me this sentence sounds like

  We are searching for bicycle purist who can travel for work.

So I expect at least

  Bicycle purist IS required to travel for work

or

  Bicycle purist is asked/forced to travel for work.

Sentence is taken from Bicycle purist required to travel for work


texts: Meaning of "under" in the following sentence?

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

  The bear swam across the lake and stopped when the bear got to the shore and stuck
  just the top of the bear's head out of the water. The bees were still
  circling around the place where the bear had gone under.

Does "under" in the sentence mean "through under the water(the lake)" ?

Does "The bear had gone under" mean "The bear dived down the water and left in the place through under the water" ?


texts:
What do you call a legal statement that states a fact rather than stating a rule of conduct or procedure?

I can't think of a word. Is there any such word? If there's no such word, which words would you use to refer to it in the shortest and most concise way?


texts: How to distinguish following two of "rather" meanings in sentence?

texts:
How to know the word "rather" is meaning  to some degree or excessively in a sentence?

They seem make sense to understand as any one of those two meanings in some examples below.

eg:

  It's rather(meaning to some degree or excessively ?) expensive.

  I rather(meaning to some degree or excessively ?)  think he was telling the truth.

And how to use rather when I want to express exactly "to some degree" or "excessively" in a sentence?

and another dictionary:


texts: the meaning of "... let their hair down one last time..."

texts:
"Join us, Matt and Allison are tying the knot! take the plunge with them Saturday, June 22nd, at their Engagement/Beach Party, there'll be no chance to get cold feet at this sizzling hot summer party! takes place at Turtle Beach, this part is not stuffy ceremony, so join in if you want to see the couple let their hair down one last time before the walk down the aisle \ RSVP by Friday ,  June 15th, It'll be a blast"

I checked in the dictionary:
"let your hair down" means:  to enjoy yourself and start to relax, especially after working very hard

"go/walk down the aisle" means: to get married

but, I don't get the exact meaning of the sentence in bold.
in other words, I don't understand why they let their hair down one last time.
could you please explain it?


texts:
Someone asked me what if horse had two legs how would it be look like?

I replied if horse had two legs then it would have been looked like same as you.

I just want to know in that reply am I grammatically correct or not?


texts:
The probability that you can get a high score in this exam is high.
  The high probability that you can get a high score in this exam is for sure.
  The probability of you getting a high score in this exam is high.
  The high probability of you getting a high score in this exam is for sure.

All of these sentence patterns are natural to use?


texts: What's the name of the game of throwing stones to the surface of water?

texts:
There's a game in which a flat stone is thrown to the surface of a  pond, river, etc. so that it starts bouncing across the water. How do native English speakers call this game?

Are there any rules of this game? For example, in Russia, when as a kid I used to play it, it was forbidden to bend the body to the surface of the water  when throwing.


texts: Countable nouns which have the same/similar meaning with crap/garbage?

texts:
I wonder if there are countable nouns that can be used to describe the same meaning with crap/garbage. Preferably in oral English?

  This TV series is a/an _______, I don't want to watch it!


texts: Does this sentence "This was the long way, which had to be gone by us" make sense and is grammatically correct?

texts:
This was the long way, which had to be gone by us.

There seems to be a great confusion of whether this sentence is correct or not as even native speakers are divided on whether to treat "go" as intransitive or transitive regarding this usage.

I really don't prefer to think of "go" as transitive when it's taking its direct object such as "the long way" or "the long distance", but other than "go", "walk, run, and travel" seem to sound natural taking its direct object such as "the long way" or "the long distance".

So, do you think that sentence makes sense and is grammatically correct?


texts: "my mother was my powerhouse" and "father a school of thoughts"

texts:
I remember:

  In a palace of formations, my mother was my powerhouse and father a school of thoughts.

Is this style of writing correct? What can be better choice for the same sentence, grammatically?


texts:
Can I say: "Tags edit" as a whole complete phrase, or should it be "Tags editing"?

Another thing, is it: "Did some tags editing" or "Did some tags edit"?

Thank you

I know "edit" is a noun, and "editing" is a gerund which takes the form of verb and functions as a noun.


texts: What does 'standby' mean in this context?

texts:
Harry and Ron took their copies of Unfogging the Future back down to the common room, found a table, and set to work on their predictions for the coming month. An hour later, they had made very little progress, though their table was littered with bits of parchment bearing sums and symbols, and Harry's brain was as fogged as though it had been filled with the fumes from Professor Trelawney's fire.
  “I haven't got a clue what this lot's supposed to mean,” he said,
  staring down at a long list of calculations.

  “You know,” said Ron, whose hair was on end because of all the times
  he had run his fingers through it in frustration, “I think it's back
  to the old Divination standby.”

  “What - make it up?”

  “Yeah,” said Ron, ...

I don't quite understand the meaning of the whole sentence “I think it's back to the old Divination standby.”, especially the word 'standby'. The closest definition I got from dictionaries is:

  a person or thing ready to serve or be put into service on an emergency basis or as a substitute

But I'm not sure if it's correct. How should we understand it in this context?


texts:
Up to now I have been using "to go fencing" and "to do fencing". But today I read this article which says that to use "go" with "fencing" is not correct:

  There’s always an exception to the rule in English! These sports are
  not used with go:

  boxing

  fencing

  weight training

  Don’t use a verb with these sports. They don’t fit easily into any of
  the three categories. Don’t say “I do boxing” or “I go fencing.”

I have never heard of it. Does "to go fencing" have the right to exist?

Here are another opinions.


texts: Rare context in which 'one of the' is used

texts:
I understand the logic behind use of plural verb in 'one of the' sentences like

"He's one of the soldiers who have been shot" OR "this is one of the buildings that have been burnt down"

But it's extremely confusing whether to use singular or plural verb when it comes to sentences that don't start with a "S/he is one of the + who" or "this is one of the+ who/that".
Example:

"One of the soldiers who HAVE been shot"  OR "One of the soldiers who HAS been shot" which is correct?


texts: Is this sentence gramatically correct? Use of would have and had

texts:
Is this sentence correctly written?

I would never have had the chance to become who i am if would not worked as hard as i did.

Also, I'm a native Spanish speaker and i can't find the differences between the structures "Would have" and "Had" in some contexts.  I know is wrong to translate directly from one language to the another and that's what is probably confusing me. Could you tell me the main difference between each of those words?


texts: "The best outcome for Spain…" Is there any ambiguity as to the meaning of this phrase?

texts:
Consider this sentence:

  "The best outcome for Spain would be to permit the referendum, and for Catalan voters to reject independence" (Source, In the last paragraph)

Would this mean that

the best outcome for Spain would be permitting the referendum and that the Catalans voted "no",

or

the best outcome for Spain would be permitting the referendum and the best outcome for Catalans would be voting "no"?


texts:
It is from Crash Course Biology. It is at 1 minute and 37 second. Here is the context:

  Because coal is made out of carbon, so they named the epoch of geological history over how face-meltingly intense and productive these forests were.

Does it mean the same as name after? Could you please rephrase the sentence for me?


texts: Similar to them, the same as them, or something else?

texts:
Assume that I'm talking about a very special herbal species, then
which of these sentences is/are correct to use:

  You can't find their similar anywhere else.
  You can't find similar to them anywhere else.
  You can't find the same as them anywhere else.
  You can't find the same anywhere else.

(This is not a multiple choice question, it happened to have four cases purely by accident)

Possibly better suggestions rather than these sentences are also appreciated.


texts:
I'm stuck with a situation.

Scene 1:

  Mike met with a serious accident and he lost his sense for his left ear. As a result, he can listen through only right ear, the left ear is not working.

Scene 2:

  Gary cannot listen to you unless you speak loudly. Say, if you and I can hear the sound of 'x' decibels, he requires 'x+5' decibels.

In my medical practice, we call 'partial paralysis' if the condition has not involved the organ fully. Said that, if you are partially paralyzed, you can still move the affected hand but not fully as there's no strength or power.

The question:

What do we call Mike? Half deaf? And what about Gary? Partial deaf?

Is there any idiom, word for these men? I'm not looking for any medical jargon.


texts: Is "supposed to play" semantically different from "supposed to be playing"?

texts:
Is there any meaning difference between these two sentences?

  I was supposed to play.

  I was supposed to be playing.


texts: On a recent  US TV show the host (who I think is rather proper in English) said to a guest "You are smarter than I are!" Is this correct?


texts: I'm confused about the (.) punctuation mark

texts:
There are several ways to name a (.) punctuation mark. I can't understand if they anyhow differ?

Period
Full stop (also Fullstop)
Stop
Point
Full point
Dot

I only use the word "period".


texts: How can I say that a program is not "error prone" and is "error resistant"?

texts:
I'm developing a custom programming language and I want to say that it helps people write programs that are not error prone. Even better, it helps people write programs resistant to errors, so programmers could be more sure that errors will not occur than in other languages.

How can I describe the programs that can be written in this language?


texts:
Our answer is this: So long as the nation in whose name and by whose hands these atrocities have been committed has not herself solemnly cast from her the scoundrels who dragged her into such decadence, we shall consider that it would betray our martyrs for us even to rub shoulders with their executioners, and that until the day arrives--if it ever does arrive--of a striking moral repentance, to forget would be to condone.

It's the last part of "Their Crimes" <1917>, regarding German atrocities during 1914 invasion.

Particularly the last sentence looks pretty odd to me.
(The text is a public domain, and it's translated from French, but no French
text is available right now.)

The last part means "just forget or ignore the past incidents until German repents is permissible or acceptable"?

But it's not very logical, I think.

I really don't understand.
Please help me!


texts:
Manufacturing Consent: The Political Economy of the Mass Media (1988), by Edward S. Herman and Noam Chomsky, proposes that the mass communication media of the U.S. "are effective and powerful ideological institutions that carry out a system-supportive propaganda function, by reliance on market forces, internalized assumptions, and self-censorship, and without overt coercion", by means of the propaganda model of communication.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Manufacturing_Consent

I am a little bit confused by the passage in bold from the above Wikipedia excerpt. Is it possible to paraphrase it as "MM carry out a system that functions as supportive propaganda…" "System supportive propaganda function" – I am not sure wich word is the noun and which attribute.


texts:
Which is correct?

He lives as he wants

He lives how he wants


texts: Is it correct to say "greatly insufficient"

texts:
From my thesis:
"Well-functioning SDI that contain complete, precise and up-to-date spatial data  help make faster and more informed decisions based on facts and evidence. In Africa, such infrastructure is greatly insufficient."
In the second sentence, "greatly insufficient" doesn't sound natural to me. What is a better way to emphasize that the infrastructure in Africa is really insufficient?
SDI stands for Spatial Data Infrastructure(s).


texts: Triple negation: what does "This ain't no place for no hero" mean?

texts:
It's a phrase from the song "Short Change Hero", and while I think I understand it (This is not a place for people who are not heroes), I find somewhat confusing the combination of all those negations; "ain't" is "is not", so you may read it as "This is not no place for no hero", wich doesn't really seem to make a lot of sense.

Then the song continues with

  This ain't no place for no better man

Again with the negations and this "no better man", that looks strange. I've seen it in phrases like i.e. "there's no better man for the job", but what's the meaning here exactly?

Finally can those phrases be considered correct english or the songwriter took some licenses to make them fit the song?


texts:
I already know, and so  ask NOT about, the meanings or proofs of: A unless B = A, except if B
= A if not B = Either A or B.    I ask only for intuition; do NOT prove formally or use truth tables.

My problem: I want to avoid memorisation. So whenever I see unless, I always need to pause for 5 minutes to rewrite the sentence, in order to determine the meaning. This pause reveals deficiency in my knowledge, which I must resolve, because it smothers me.
So please help me dig deeper. How can this conjunction be naturalised?


texts: Which expression is correct “in purpose” or “on purpose”?

texts: I'm frequently encountering English proofreading problems. For now I am trying to figure out which one of these two is the correct form: in purpose or on purpose. I tried to Google and found both forms used in various web-pages. If both of these forms are correct, please explain when which one is better to use.


texts: An English Word for 'Jaltarang' - music played by stroking water containers

texts:
In India, it's called 'Jaltarang' where 'jal' means water and 'tarang' is melody. I wonder whether or not there's a word for the same in English. A near-to-it word will be okay, if not precisely defining the instrument.

Here is the picture. Note that the vessel could be anything...right from glass bowls to crystal glasses.

Most important: this would be different than glass harp where fingers are used. Here, a baton or small metal stick is used.


texts:
Which sounds correct:

  You cannot watch the Star Trek films without having seen the TV series.

Or:

  Having seen the TV Series, then you can watch the Star Trek films.

I do not understand why these two constructions do not mean the same thing.

.....................................

  He admitted having stolen the money.

Or:

  First he was stealing, then he admitted it.

Are my sentences right? If not, please correct my original sentences.


texts: Using tenses in writing the previous researches

texts:
What tense should be used in writing the previous researches? For the following example, which one should I revise?  Or I could always use any tense although the research has passed?

  More than 20,000 bioactive metabolites are of microbial origin (Berdy 2005).
  Starting from 2007 to 2010 there were only approximately 200 publications on endophyte diversity.  Further, these publications were mainly used morphology and molecular data as the basis of identification (2011).

Thank you.


texts: Does "unbuild" in "Unbuild your Legos before putting them back into the box" sound natural?

texts:
How could I change this sentence in order for it to sound more natural and easier to be understood by a toddler?

I've been using 'unassailable' or 'take them apart' but both sound strange.


texts:
I am writing this sentence

  Patients need to have consultation with doctors.

is it correct to say consultation with doctors or it would be better to say

  Patients need to consult an appointment with doctors


texts:
Example with a context (news article, ISIS is manufacturing weapons at an alarming rate):

  IS is manufacturing the weapons at an alarming rate, using everything from fertilizer to military grade explosives.

I can understand the term military explosives perfectly well (materials used by the army people that explode when detonated), but what is grade supposed to mean?


texts: Is it possible to use 'a handful' as a subject in a sentence?

texts:
Hello~ I'm studying English in Korea through my English textbook.

Here are original question and answer in my book.

Q. Pardon me, Is this the only Korean restaurant nearby?

A. No way, a handful are within a stone's throw of here.

By the way, I have a question about usage of 'a handful' as a subject.

Is it possible to use 'a handful' rather than 'a handful of noun'?

Should it be the subject like 'a handful of Korean restaurants'?


texts: What is the meaning of the phrases "put it" and "missing support" in the context?

texts:
While reading a part of the passage, I saw the phrases "put it" and "missing support" and looked them up on the dictionary but it's hard to find the actual meaning.

  It Happened at the World’s Fair

  The first Ferris wheel was made by and named after George Washington
  Gale Ferris, Jr. He designed it for the Chicago World’s Fair in 1893.
  It was the tallest attraction there, standing 264 feet high.

  However, visitors to the fair were impressed by the size of the ride
  as well as the mechanics of it. In 1893, anything that was not turned
  by hand was considered a sight to see. And the wheel, which was a
  machine, was truly incredible to see. Further, as one visitor put it,
  the wheel was amazing because it seemed to be missing support. That
  is, it did not look like it could stand on its own. And yet it did and
  even rotated!

Q1: Based on the prior sentence, we can understand the meaning of the sentence "Further, as one visitor put it" is one visitor agreed that this machine is incredible ? Is that correct?

Q2: Another question is: the wheel was amazing because it seemed to be missing support.
What is the meaning of the phrase "missing support"?

Please feel free to give your ideas, and share your source you find its meaning, then we can learn more.

Thank you so much.


texts: "Told somebody did something" VS "Helped someone do something"

texts:
Failing

In the same article, there are 2 different "did ... do" styles.

  I told my parents I didn’t want to come home for fall break,

  ...

  I helped my dad pick out a few dates that coincided with
  Nate’s second fall tournament.

The first is "did ... did", and the second is "did ... do." Why?


texts:
I ran into the expression 'That's final' in a piece of American English text.

a) Is it used in Britain too?

b) Has it an arrogant or authoritarian connotation?


texts: "The Earth is being held" vs "the Earth is held" - What is the difference?

texts:
Can you please explain the difference between this two sentences:

  The Earth is being held by the gravity of the Sun and orbits around it.

  The Earth is held by the gravity of the Sun and orbits around it.


texts: What's the meaning of "he fears that peace might have to wait"?

texts:
he fears that peace might have to wait.

Does it mean:

  he fears that he might have to wait for that peace?

Or it means something else?

The fuller text is:

  He knew it was better not to get involved, with any of it. Not with
  her, and not with Matthew. He’s had enough trouble. What he wants now
  is peace. But he fears that peace might have to wait.


texts:
I heard the phrase:

  Don't forget to lock up.

in a movie. I think the person who said it meant to close all doors. I know what the word "lock" means but when we add that preposition "up" it seems to change the meaning totally.


texts: "I will see you on Monday morning" vs. "I will see you Monday morning"

texts:
I will see you on Monday morning.
I will see you Monday morning.

Is the second version idiomatic and grammatically correct? Which version do native speakers prefer to use more?


texts: is "at your disposal" correct? why - why not?

texts:
My mother tongue isn't English, and recently I came across this expression:

  You have a collection of smileys at your disposal.

For me, the word disposal means "discarding some waste, throwing something away, getting rid of something".

I have been searching the web, and I found a Collins Dictionairy's (online, british version) description:

  Disposal (noun) - the power or opportunity to make use of someone or something (esp in the phrase at one's disposal)

That matches the use I have mention before, but for me, it still sounds wrong.

Is the expression "having something at your disposal" correct?


texts: What will "the weather be" or "be the weather"?

texts:
The question about the weather should be
1- What/how will the weather be?
While I found a lot of examples with the form of:
2- What/how will be the weather?
Doesn't the grammatical form of questions (Wh + aux v + sub + main v) tell us that (1) is the only correct form?