texts: Have I used "on behalf of" correctly and naturally?

texts:
My boss gave me a bouquet of flowers on behalf of the whole company.

Is the use of "on behalf of" correct and natural here to mean that my boss gave me flowers which were from him and the rest of the company?


texts:
There comes the teacher,_________________?

what could be the appropriate question tag for the given sentence?

  doesn't he/she?

or

  doesn't there?


texts:
I am writing some document where I write sentence(active voice) like that :
Dialog should be launch.
File should be download.

Is this sentence are correct or may I use past participle with should be?


texts:
Check the sentence below

  My hair is rather short but I usually plait it/or them?

I'm confused about whether I should use the singular or plural pronoun.


texts: "Physical, speech, and occupational therapy" VS "Physical, speech and occupational therapies"?

texts:
Instinctively I believe "therapies" makes sense because the sentence is referring to 3 'types' of therapy, but it just rolls off the tongue funny.

Anyone have a grammatical reason for which is correct?

Thanks!

P.S regarding tagging I wasn't too sure, I never properly learned grammatical rules growing up and just learned English by figuring out what sounded right/wrong.


texts:
Do I need to add please with Can you as this is the requesting form?

Can you please forward me the mail ?

or

Can you forward me the mail ?


texts: A situation where your friend or your neighbor offend you, that you wish to have no more interaction with them

texts:
I need an expression or a phrase—even if it is an idiom (to make it stylish)—commonly used by English native speakers to express a situation where your friend or your neighbor offend you so much that you are declaring to them in (a threatening way) you wish to have no more interactions with them. Or that they should know you are severing/cutting off any further relations or interactions with them.

To make it more clear, in my native language we say:

  "Ba ni ba kai!"

Whose English literal equivalence is:

  "No me no you!"

Which I wonder if say I so (the "No me no you!") could communicate such expression easily to English native speakers, could it?


texts: What is meaning of : remains theoretically intact?

texts:
In Sri Lanka, a 2001 ceasefire between the government and the Tamil Tigers, fighting for an independent homeland in the north and east of the island state, broke down in 2005 when both parties resumed their 20-year struggle.
Ironically, while the ceasefire remains theoretically intact, an estimated 7,000 people have since died in renewed fighting.
"this text is from a book"


texts: The meaning of 'due' in "A change in strategy was due."

texts:
Iwata thought that a change in strategy was due. (Englichcentral.com)

Is this 'due' used in a figurative way of the definition #1 of Collins dictionary? Or how should I think about this? Is it common to use 'due' in this way?

  Difinitions of due at Collins Dictionary:

  adj.

  owed or owing as a debt, right, etc.; payable   ⇒ "the first payment
  is due"
  suitable; fitting; proper   ⇒ "with all due respect"
  as much as is required; enough; adequate   ⇒ "due care, in due time"
  expected or scheduled to arrive or be ready; timed for a certain
  hour or date   ⇒ "the plane is due at 6:30 P.M."

OK. I've sought out and found the context to the sentence.
Here it is:

  Video Transcript

  Satoru Iwata is not an household name, but he should be.
  Most people, however, would recognize his brain children,...
  ...the Nintendo DS and the Wii.
  These two game systems completely changed the world of gaming.
  It's hard to imagine gaming without them,...
  ...but amazingly, the DS and Wii almost didn't happen!
  It is only thanks to the innovative ideas of Iwata that we have these systems today.
  Satoru Iwata was made the CEO of Nintendo in 2002.
  At that time, the video game market was suffering...
  ...and Nintendo was having trouble with its sales.
  Iwata thought that a change in strategy was due.
  Previously, the strategy in the game industry was...
  ...to keep making the same kinds of games and consoles,...
  ...but just improve their power and complexity.

[EDIT]
1. What should I do when something like this?
I would have chosen Merk's comment if that one was written as an answer. I understand the 'due' saying "it's time". Sadly no dictionary definitions exactly say so. I hear people say "I'm over due" when they worked for so long and requiring holidays, for example. Just 'required' feels lucking sense of urgency, doesn't it? I see Mark's answer says almost the same but "it's time" is more summarizing, maybe not in a good style for a dictionary definition though 2. I don't know how to say it better…


texts: What does the phrase "We can fly away over" mean?

texts:
There is this famous song from The Magical Legend of the Leprechauns, the 1999 movie.
In this song there is a line: "We can fly away over". Now, I know what it means to "fly over something" (like, to go over an obstacle), I know what it means to fly "away" from something (to escape from something).
However, I really don't get what it means to "fly away over". Maybe, it's because I have never actually watched the movie.
I have performed a Google Search -- all the entries are either completely irrelevant or point to the song's lyrics.
I have searched one translation database, and all the sentences with words "away" and "over" right after another have one word refer to one thing, and the other word to another, e.g. "So you want to throw it all away over one drunk mistake.". It's not the case with the song.
So, what does this weird word combination mean?


texts: An abbreviated word for 'documentary' would be doc. However, it could be also  reffered as doctor as well. Should I use 'docs' instead? Is there any chances people might misunderstand or confuse it with doctors? or maybe even documents?


texts: Can I use "so" in place of "so that" without losing the meaning of the sentence?

texts:
I'm thinking if I "so" can be sometimes used instead of "so that" without losing the meaning of the sentence.

For example:

  Can you register me for it SO THAT I could access the blackboard

  Can you register me for it SO I could access the blackboard

To my ear both forms sound pretty good, but as English is not my native tongue, I could be wrong.


texts: Once the Working Cell Bank has been approved for use, the End-Of-Production Cell Bank is .. discarded?

texts:
From a biotechnological document I'm translating from Russian:

  Once the Working Cell Bank has been approved for use, the End-Of-Production Cell Bank is discarded.

Is discarded a proper word, or is there some better expression?

Disposed of?

The Russian original uses the word "utilized" (podlezhit utilizatsii - подлежит утилизации) which has the approximate meaning of "disposed of (using the proper procedures)" in Russian.


texts:
You shouldn’t expect others to do your work for you.

Does "others" function as pronoun in the above sentence and replaced the noun (e.g. people)? or Is it determiner and the noun/pronoun (e.g. people) has been omitted?

  determiner: You shouldn’t expect others other people to do your work for you.
  pronoun: You shouldn’t expect people to do your work for you.


texts: Can I use "with no" with numbers? An example down below

texts:
Example: - "We have left with no two students"
Is it possible to replace "without" with "with no" in such a sentence? I know these phrases are used interchangeably when there're no significant determiners, but what about numerals?


texts:
Let's say you are storytelling your BBQ purchase which you had wasted so much time waiting in line. And you say:

  1) Sometimes the line would move fast, like when a bunch of meat was cooked, but other times, it just seemed to take forever.

In comparison with:

  2) Sometimes the line would move fast, like when a bunch of meat was cooked, but other times, it just seemed it would take forever.

Is the second sentence grammatical? And synonymous with #1?


texts: what's the meaning of "end on a note of" in this context?

texts:
what does "on a note of" mean in this sentence:

  Syria talks end on a note of uncertainty, U.S. frustration with Russia


texts: What does the phrase "other criteria" mean?

texts:
By Definition:

  Criteria is a principle or standard by which something may be judged or decided.

Example on a resume:

  . . . Organizing deadlines, schedules, and other criteria.

Therefore, "other criteria" means "other standards." Is this the example above an acceptable usage?

EDIT

•   Organizing electronics team schedule, meetings, deadlines and other criteria

•   Designing electronics system layout in AutoCAD for reference and wiring harness construction

There is only bullet points listing my experience, not a paragraph.


texts: Difference between 'will it' and 'would it'?

texts:
Which is the correct sentence?

  Will it be solved?
  Would it be solved?

What are the differences between these two?


texts: What is the grammartical function of the prepositional phrase in the sentence?

texts:
It is likely that the person who led you through the zoo helped you to
  learn a lot.

I wonder what is the grammatical function of the prepositional phrase in the above sentence?

In my opinion, the phrase modifies the verb "led", so it works as an adverb. But someone told me that I could add a verb "to be" between the pronoun, you, and the phrase and it makes sense, so the phrase is the complement of the object "you".

I'm a little confused about that.


texts:
I sent an email to someone and got an auto-reply saying:

  I am out of the office until 09/15/2014.

Does this mean he will be available on the morning of the 15th?


texts: What's the difference between "This is a case study on a course of general medicine." and "This is a case study in a course of general medicine". I see both usages, but I am thinking they mean completely different things. When we say "a case study on a course of general medicine", I think it means we're using the course of general medicine as a subject of the case study. Is that correct?


texts: Why is it grammatically correct to use present tense in this sentence?

texts:
Sentence that needs to be corrected-

  "After discussing plans for seaside vacation, Victoria realized that
  she likes the ocean more than Doug did."

Why does the sentence need the following correction-

  "After discussing plans for seaside vacation, Victoria realized that
  she likes the ocean more than Doug does"?

Why is the present tense used rather than past tense?


texts: What is the meaning of "many walks of life"?

texts:
I know that the meaning of walks of life is

  a person's occupation or position within society.

But in some cases, I don't get it. for example, someone has been saying something about how should we live and when he was finished, another guy said: "this is a good theme in many walks of life." I searched this term on the web and found nothing but examples that didn't make any sense either; like:

  My life has been forged by the many walks of life due to the fact that I have done many things but have committed to only a few. I call this venture of adventure the “many walks of life” because that is exactly what it is. Diversity Vs. Racism: A Challenge to Mankind
  By Johnny Ishmel Henry

or:

  Mental Walks of Life. So many steps I have proceeded to take. Never really looking back, unless an error I make. There are so many roads I could follow with pride. There is no apparent reason, for my failures to hide. "Mental Walks of Life"
  By Julio Toro

Can anyone help me?


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

texts:
Teams qualified from the ECPC qualification round on 19 October will need to pay an extra 200 LE each (to be collected onsite after the qualification)

Does this mean each member of the team has to pay 200 LE or the whole team has to pay 200 LE?


texts: an average of - what is it - a noun or a preposition?

texts:
please help me to understand using "an average of" in this sentence:

>

  Husbands help in the house more than they did in the past, but in the UK for example, men do an average of just six hours a week compared to their wives, who do over eighteen hours.

I don't understand why is it used the preposition of. why not: an average without preposition of.
What part of speech is "an average of" in this sentence? Is it a noun with the preposition of, or it's an adverb like "a lot of"

There is another example with an average with preposition of.
 I agree. All in this correct:

  The average of 3, 4 and 8 is 5.'


texts: How to understand Benjamin Franklin's "Time was my spouse"?

texts:
Included in Benjamin Franklin's Poor Richard's Quotations is the following poem:

  Time was my spouse and I could not agree,
  Striving about superiority:
  The text which saith that man and wife are one,
  Was the chief argument we stood upon:
  She held, they both one woman should become;
  I held they should be man, and both but one.
  Thus we contended daily, but the strife
  Could not be ended, till both were one Wife.

Here is my understanding which I am not quite sure.  It seems to me Franklin was analogizing the relationship between one and time to that between a husband and a wife, trying to say that one should not strive for superiority but coherence.

Actually I did not quite get "I could not agree, striving about superiority".  I understand it by substituting "help" for "agree".  Is that correct?

In addtion, I do not get the end "but the strife could not be ended, till both were one Wife".  So the wife wins?


texts: Sentence meaning and whether the word "derived" is used right here

texts:
He derived from the letter that his lover had killed herself.

Can we use derive this way?
Is the sentence grammatically correct and conveys the meaning that the speaker, after reading a letter, arrived at the conclusion that his lover had killed herself?


texts: Why use interrogative form in this sentence?

texts:
When Fidelio was first performed, it was said that never before had anything so incoherent, coarse, wild, and ear splitting been heard!

Why is it not put in assertive form as

  When Fidelio was first performed, it was said that never before anything so incoherent, coarse, wild, and ear splitting had been heard.

I hope replacing the exclamation mark in the original sentence by a full stop in the rewritten sentence does not make any difference, is it?


texts: Is there a difference between these sentences when "today" is added?

texts:
I have read in a grammar book that there is a difference between these two sentences and it is as follows:

"I have been swimming today" is said shortly after the swimming has stopped, hair is still wet or someone is just leaving the pool, for example.

"I have swum today" is said when the swimming happened earlier in the day. Maybe a few hours earlier.

Is this true? Because I thought that adding "today" makes a difference. I know that "I have been swimming" ( without "today")is said shortly after the swimming has stopped and there are results in the present = wet hair, for example.

Can anyone enlighten me?


texts: Past perfect for two simultaneous events "Her business had proved that it was possible to be sustainable and profitable at the same time."

texts:
Could anyone please explain me why we use past perfect instead of past simple before “that” in the sentence below? As I understand, we use past perfect in a sequence of events to show that the action expressed with that tense was before the other one, expressed with past simple. In this example, I do not understand how the fact that something was proved could precede the thing it proves. Should not it be expressed with the same tenses?

Her business had proved that it was possible to be sustainable and profitable at the same time.


texts: The sun is a large object, WHILE having a diameter of nearly a million miles

texts:
The Sun is a large object, having a diameter of nearly a million miles. [correct]
The Sun is a large object, while having a diameter of nearly a million miles. [incorrect]

I am wondering the reason for being considered correct or incorrect.
Would you possibly explain why we cannot use while?
I really do appreciate what you taught me.
Nevertheless, I think the second one is just semantically incorrect, while grammatically correct, isn't it?
Meanwhile, as we know one of the usage of while is to be at the same time, so what about the following? if these are correct, so why don't we use while?

The Sun is a large object, while having a diameter of nearly a million miles.
The sun is a large object and it is having a diameter of nearly a million miles.
The sun is a large object and it has a diameter of nearly a million miles.

The sun is a large object which is having a diameter of nearly a million miles.


texts: Meaning of "Disease progression was not judged only from changes in the serum CA-125 level"

texts:
Quote from a clinical trial report:

  The tumor response and disease progression were evaluated by computed tomography (CT) or magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) according to the new Response Evaluation Criteria in Solid Tumours (revised RECIST guideline, version 1.1) [10] by each investigator. Disease progression was not judged only from changes in the serum CA-125 level.

Do they mean "We did not use serum CA-125 levels at all in our estimation of disease progression"?

The sentence looks ambiguous to me. Maybe they mean that "our estimation was not solely based on CA-125 levels" - but I see no other mention of CA-125 in the paper..


texts: The meaning of "offing" in "an agreement in the offing"

texts:
I am now reading this article, and I met a paragraph saying,

  Even backbench Conservative MPs looking for a crumb of comfort, or at least a ladder to climb down, were disappointed. “Having met the prime minister earlier today, I was unconvinced that he had a plan to reach a deal on Brexit,” David Gauke tweeted on Tuesday before voting in favor of legislation stopping a no-deal Brexit. If an agreement really was in the offing, Johnson’s own brother Jo, who resigned Thursday citing the tension between family loyalty and national interest, might well have stuck around.

Merriam Unabridged definitions,

  transitive verb
  1
  :  to take off :  doff
  2
  slang :  kill, murder

  intransitive verb
  1
  of a ship :  to move away from shore :  start out to sea
  2
  a :  to go away :  depart — used chiefly as an imperative

  b :  to get or be off — used chiefly as an imperative

And the free-version definition of Merriam,

  Definition of off (Entry 4 of 6)

  intransitive verb

  : to go away : DEPART —used chiefly as an imperative
  Off, or I'll shoot!

So it seems to me none seems appropriate.

Thank you for your support.


texts:
I cannot see a pattern or rule that enables me to decide whether I should use possession structure or adjectival noun.

election results: No one writes election's results and election is a modifier for results. Check Ngram.

children's upbringing: No one writes children upbringing. Check Ngram.

I cannot see any pattern here, first I assumed that possession structure is related to ownership but obviously children do not own their upbringing. Then, I assume that it is related to "belonging", I mean upbringing is related to children and belongs to them, but this contradicts with "election results" as we cannot use possession here although results belongs to election!


texts: Can you clear my this doubt of conditional sentences?

texts:
We are the best team that Konoha village has to offer.

In this, though I know it did not, I get a feeling like Konoha village has to offer them and they don't have a choice.It could say Konoha village can offer.I mean, does the sentence seem like the team is to be offered by the village on a condition?

Eg-

  This is the money which I have to offer.
  I have to do it.
  He put the conditions to which she has to agree.

In these sentences, the has/have to brings a bit feeling of enforcement.She has to agree, she has no choice.She can agree, she has a choice.


texts: Which one is correct ? ''You are on the point '' or " You are at the point "

texts:
What Sentence or use of preposition is correct what should I say

  You are on the point of a good start

Or

  You are at the right point of a good start


texts: Usage of "to" between "to be" and the following verb

texts:
Here are several examples:

Luis lost his job and was short of money, so what he did was (to) sell his flat and move in with his brother.
The reason hundreds of students marched through the city centre was to protest against the new laws.
What I want to do is (-) persuade them to come with us.
What Jane did was (-) invest well.
Our original motivation for developing TF-Replicator was to provide a simple API for DeepMind researchers to use TPUs.

I have difficulties in understanding when to between to be and the following verb:

is compulsory & required, as (I suppose) in the 2nd and 5th sentences above
is optional, as (I suppose) in the 1st sentence
is forbidden.


texts: "We're on our way" in a particular context

texts: In some video lecture I heard that the lecture talked about the sequence of actions like do something, then do something another and then do something strange... and we're on our way. What does we're on our way mean here? I'm sure it has nothing to do with walking using our legs.


texts: How does "would" work in a sentence: The best choice would be...?

texts:
In the sentence "the best choice would be...", what does "would" mean in the following sentence?

  Questioner: Is this sentence correct?
  'Finished eating, we went to the zoo'.

  Answer: I'm afraid that is not correct. The phrase 'Finished eating' is a participle phrase with a passive meaning and you need an active meaning here. The best choice would be 'Having finished eating...'.


texts: Stairs vs staircase - in what context should they be used?

texts:
What should I say - we are climbing down the staircase or we are climbing down the stairs?

In which context should those words be used?


texts:
'I reckon every man born of woman has his log to shift in the
  world--if so be you're hintin' at any o' Frankie's doings. He never
  hit beyond reason or without reason,' said Simon.

  'I never said a word against Frankie,' Puck retorted, with a wink at
  the children. 'An' if I did, do it lie in your mouth to contest my
  say-so, seeing how you--'

  'Why don't it lie in my mouth, seeing I was the first which knowed
  Frankie for all he was?' The burly sack-clad man puffed down at cool
  little Puck.

This is from “Simple Simon”　from “Rewards and Fairies” by Kipling.
http://www.telelib.com/authors/K/KiplingRudyard/prose/RewardsFaries/simplesimon.html

I do not understand  what  “do it lie in your mouth” mean.
I am glad if somebody teach me.


texts:
Why there is the use of would mean instead of  It means in the following sentences?

Context 1.

  My son died saving his little brother-It would mean the world to us to have his bravery acknowledged

source: https://www.change.org/p/my-son-died-saving-his-little-brother-it-would-mean-the-world-to-us-to-have-his-bravery-acknowledged

what is the meaning of this sentence?

context 2.

  A. What is the meaning of 'To Lie' ?

  B. It would mean to say false things.

Is it the conditional or hypothetical use of 'would' ? please make it clear to me, what kind of use of would it is ?


texts: I wonder which case the gerund or infinitive is (more) appropriate here: "I did my best to do something" or "I did my best doing something"?


texts:
I wrote:

  Each pattern can be designated either for data extraction purpose or for restricting the occurrence of other patterns.

Here, other could mean the remaining patterns (the rest), or maybe the other different patterns. Anyway, I feel I have a problem when I should use "the" before "other".


texts: Is this definition of 'World War No.2' correct?

texts:
I read this at Mental floss:

  That's right—in February 1919, just a few months after World War 1 ended, a story appeared in the UK's Manchester Guardian called “World War No. 2.” The Oxford English Dictionary describes it as a "reference to an imagined future war arising out of the social upheaval consequent upon the First World War.” The actual second world war wouldn’t start until 1939.

I think that the writer is mistaken because he says "Oxford English Dictionary describes". I think there should've been "described" instead here. Because the term is not merely a reference. The war has taken place. Additionally the dictionary doesn't include this definition either but it is plausible it might've been there between 1919 and 1939. Am I right?


texts: What does the word "dynamic" imply here?

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

  Apart from the fact that we all, rich or poor, sick or well, have the same amount of time, exactly 24 hours everyday (that is looking at time from a static point of view), it is also true that we can always find time for the things we enjoy doing, almost never for the things we find unpleasant (and that is looking at time from the dynamic point of view).

The word "dynamic" means "constantly changing". I know "static" and "dynamic" are opposite so it makes sense to use them in opposite way. But I want to ask what is "constantly changing" in the fact that "we can always find time for the things we enjoy doing almost never for the things we find unpleasant".


texts: Should there be a comma before too (at the end of the sentence) if the sentence already has commas?

texts:
According to many sources, like Grammarly's blog, you can omit the comma before too.

This got me thinking, how about sentences like these?

  Come to think of it, Tom was angry, and Mark was mad too.

This makes it looks like too is only related to Mark was mad. But if you write:

  Come to think of it, Tom was angry, and Mark was mad, too.

Then too seems to belong to the whole sentence.

Am I right? Is this a known rule? (I have the same doubt with after all, either, etc.)


texts: meanings of "deflated" and "on furlough"

texts:
I'm reading The Versions of Us by Laura Barnett and one of the characters is described as follows:

  "The headmaster, Alan Dunn – a tall, spare man, with a neat moustache,
  and the deflated air of an army colonel on furlough – tells Jim,
  rather unconvincingly, that the exhibition is a triumph."

I'm having trouble picturing this Alan Dunn. The dictionary says "deflated" means "feeling less confident and happy" and "on furlough" means "a period of time that a soldier is allowed to be absent, especially to return temporarily to their own town or country". But I don't understand why an army colonel allowed to be back home should feel unhappy. What kind of an image this description is trying to project? Can anybody explain the idea for me?


texts:
In math a number can be 'rounded' (sounds strange) up or down. For example if I want to round up to the next whole number (the 2.4 gets 3).

How do I express in English that I always want to round down or up.

"Always round down"
"Always round up"

Or is rounding named/expressed different in English?


texts: What is the adjective that describes the position of the bike locked to the bike rack?

texts:
I can only come up with one for this one: perpendicular. But I don't think it is the right adjective.

Initially, I ask what is the sinuous wave in the picture appearing in the 404 page of Academia SE: What does the image in the “404 error” page mean?

The answer is the bike rack. But as the illustration shows, the bike is in the parallel position of the rack, not perpendicular as in the photo.


texts: Is it simple present tense or imperative mood?

texts:
Evernote is an easy-to-use, free app that helps you remember everything across all of the devices you use. Stay organized, save your ideas and improve productivity. Evernote lets you take notes, capture photos, create to-do lists, record voice reminders--and makes these notes completely searchable, whether you are at home, at work, or on the go.

Key Features:

Sync all of your notes across the computers and devices you use
Create and edit text notes, to-dos and task lists
Save, sync and share files
Search for text inside images
Organize notes by notebooks and tags
Email notes and save tweets to your Evernote account
Connect Evernote to other apps and products you use
Share notes with friends and colleagues via Facebook and Twitter

My question is, should I understand these key features in simple present tense? Like this:

  Key Features:

  Evernote syncs all of your notes across the computers and devices you use
  Evernote creates and edits text notes, to-dos and task lists
  Evernote saves, syncs and shares files
  Evernote searches for text inside images
  Evernote organizes notes by notebooks and tags
  Evernote emails notes and saves tweets to your Evernote account
  Evernote connects Evernote to other apps and products you use
  Evernote shares notes with friends and colleagues via Facebook and Twitter

Or imperative mood? Like this:

  Key Features:

  Sync all of your notes across the computers and devices you use ( you do it)
  Create and edit text notes, to-dos and task lists (you do it)
  Save, sync and share files (you do it)
  Search for text inside images (you do it)
  Organize notes by notebooks and tags (you do it)
  Email notes and save tweets to your Evernote account(you do it)
  Connect Evernote to other apps and products you use(you do it)
  Share notes with friends and colleagues via Facebook and Twitter (you do it )

And my second question is:

  sync all of your notes across the computers and devices you use.

What does across mean in this sentence? Does it means between the computers and devices you use? I couldn't understand.

I hope I could explain.


texts: Can the words "also" and "too" be used in the same sentence?

texts:
also and too -- can these two words be used in the same sentence? For example:

  I have also done this too.

The above sentence does not make sense to me though. But Grammarly Premium (an online-based grammar-checking service) did not catch any issue in the sentence. That is why I am confused about whether the sentence is actually correct or not.


texts:
Her face broke out in a grin as she nodded, her ponytail swinging. (source)

  Lee broke out in a grin and went on. (source)

  Wondering what the jocularity was about, Matsuzaka finally noticed the bubble as it fell off his hat and he broke out in a grin. (source)

I have seen "break out in a grin" in several places. The closest entry in dictionaries is

  (of a person or a part of their body) be suddenly affected by an unpleasant sensation or condition.
  "something had caused him to break out in a rash"

My understanding is "He broke out in a grin" means something like "His face broke into a grin". Is that correct? Besides "grin", what are some other words that can be used in this expression?


texts:
I wrote:

  The extraction command was described in the previous section. For example, according to this command, the content of exData may be enclosed in an Xml node whose label is specified in the extraction command. or / Also / Moreover / As another example / in another command / In addition, a regular expression may be applied to exData in order to extract and store only specific parts of it.

I want to mention another case where the extraction command is employed. Maybe "or" is the simplest choice but it makes the sentence too long. Then, I don't know which alternative word to use here.


texts: What's the difference between "hunt" and "hunt down"?

texts:
The Google definitions are almost the same:

  hunt

  search determinedly for someone or something.

  hunt down

  to try to find a particular thing or person.

Example sentence:

  Pool parties were the perfect place for her: she could show off her
  body, liquor up, and hunt (down) men.


texts: When something is temporary and you try to benefit from it as much as you can (In a positive way)

texts:
When something is temporary, but it is beneficial for you, you try to get the most for it and profit from it as much as you can. For instance:

Scenario 1 - We all are well aware that time flies and one would age too faster than what they can believe. So a father asks his son, do his best in his studies, in his job in other to make a better life while he is young.

Which one of the following self-made sentences is the most natural to you?
(Actually, I've found only these expressions related to what I'm going to convey, but I would be thankful if you let me know better and more natural choices here.)

  Try to get the most bang for your age.
  Try to get the most for your age.

Scenario 2 - Suppose there is a very knowledgeable university professor who is approaching the end of his life. Another professor of that university asks privately the students to learn from him as much as they can because everybody considers him (that knowledgeable professor) a phenomenon of that scientific field and there is only one professor with that grade of the knowledge.

  Try to get the most bang for him.
  Try to get the most for him.


texts: May I say "*A read* of the book leads me to enjoy..."?

texts:
I wish to convey something like 'when I read the book I was lead to enjoy the beauty of nature.....'

  Is it correct to say "a read of the book '...(book name)' leads me to enjoy the beauty of nature..."?


texts:
Seems both of these sentences are very similar:

  We should go fishing every day.

  We would go fishing every day.


texts: What is the difference between the phrases "data transferred" and "transferred data"?

texts:
What's the difference in meaning between the phrases "data transfered" and "transfered data"?

The role of the "verb + -ed" combination in a sentence always confuses me.


texts: Fill in the blank question about meaning of estimate

texts:
Fill in the blank with proper answer
  We cannot ......... that our flights will never be delayed.

  spend
  estimate
  follow
  create

I think the answer is "estimate" but in the book in which I found this question, the answer is "spend". It said that in this question, it means guarantee (or assure). I think it doesn't make any sense. So, what is the right answer? Why?


texts:
I tried to guess what the full form of this sentence is, but I couldn't. Can anybody explain it for me, please? UBS will never be...too big to fail or...what?

"While UBS is one of Switzerland's two main lenders, Deutsche is Germany's only global bank. Although its misadventures in investment banking may have left it gasping for equity, the German lender is too big to fail in a way that UBS will never be. Deutsche Bank hasn't needed a bailout, but it's easy to see that with its deep ties at home, it could always get one."

Source: https://www.bloomberg.com/gadfly/articles/2017-05-16/hna-can-avoid-singapore-s-ubs-sour-grapes


texts: What is the meaning of the expression "Being into the blue"?

texts: Can that be used to describe somebody running out of money other than feeling down/depressed?


texts: Can "quickly" be used in "I get tired quickly"?

texts: On the English language quiz I wrote the sentence "I get tired quickly." And then I was corrected and said that "quickly" doesn't suit here. Instead of it I am to use the word "easily". Can I really use "quickly" in this sentence if I mean that it doesn't take me much time to get tired?


texts: can we "discover that the house will have been haunted"?

texts:
Are the following sentences grammatical?

  They will discover that the house will have been haunted.

  They discover that the house will have been haunted.

  They discovered that the house will have been haunted.


texts: What is a meaning of this William Shakespeare's quote?

texts:
My problem is understanding of following quote:

  "There were no age between ten and three-and-twenty, or that youth
  would sleep out the rest; for there is nothing in the between but
  getting wenches with child, wronging the ancientry, stealing,
  fighting."

I will highly appreciate if someone could paraphrase this quote to be more easy than it is now.

A little more context

  Through the ages, most answers have cited dark forces that uniquely
  affect the teen. Aristotle concluded more than 2,300 years ago that
  "the young are heated by Nature as drunken men by wine." A shepherd in
  William Shakespeare's The Winter's Tale wishes "there were no age
  between ten and three-and-twenty, or that youth would sleep out the
  rest; for there is nothing in the between but getting wenches with
  child, wronging the ancientry, stealing, fighting."


texts:
While writing an essay on "My Book" We write " I bought it from the market" Why don't we write " I have bought it from the market" or " I had bought it from the market"?
Asked 1m ago


texts: How would you say it if you can pay something in separate parts?

texts: Let's say you have to pay an amount, and you can pay it in separate parts, what's the word to describe that? I'm sure there's a right word for this but I just can't put my fingers on it.


texts: Why is the discount rate called the discount rate? It doesn't discount anything. On the contrary, it's about how much the central bank charges other banks to use its financial resources. Why isn't it called, for example, 'the basic interest rate' or 'the primary interest rate'? I can think of many better names.


texts: Is this dependent or independent sentence?

texts:
"Making trial of everything, with trust in new joy, and stirring the human kindness in all eyes that looked on her."

If it is an independent clause, could you please tell which is the subject and which is the verb.


texts: relative clause including prepositional phrase

texts:
You don't want to throw out all that equity you have with your current audience.

I think a relative pronoun which or that is understood to be between "equity" and "you" , but was omitted to make it concise, but I'm not sure if I am correct.

So the sentence originally is :

  You don't want to throw out all that equity which/that you have with your current audience.

The relative pronoun "which/that" will be the object of the verb have,
and the relative pronoun "which/that" is equivalent to equity.

and the PP phrase with your currect audience can possibly be attached to the main clause or the relative clause, but in this case , it should be attached to the relative clause, as it makes more sense.

Are my knowledge above correct?


texts: Did he really have dreams or just hoping?

texts:
When he had been younger, Harry had dreamed and dreamed of some
  unknown relation coming to take him away, but it had never happened.

Is that his wish when he was awake, or something in his dream? And what's the different between "dream about" and "dream of"? Can I just say "I dream something"? What that suppose mean?


texts: What does "roundaboutness" in economic mean?

texts: Today I face a term "roundaboutness" from some papers.I still cannot understand the meaning of such a word, could you please help me to clarify it. It is awesome if there is any example for this word.


texts:
Look at my headphones, I can  fold / unfold them (see the picture). Sometimes I squeeze my finger accidentally at the interface when I unfold them. The 2 edges press a bit of my finger's skin a little hard and that hurts a little but causes a sudden hurt.

What best describes "you hurt your finger because you accidentally squeeze your finger when you unfold your headphones"?


texts: Is "find oneself into" = "share" a particular approach?

texts:
I am trying to translate the french idioms: "se retrouver dans cette approche" which I would literally translate to "To find oneself into this approach" but I am not sure if it's the correct way to saying it.

The idea I am trying to convey is not that I fully agree with a particular approach but that my way of thinking is pretty similar to that approach.

There is something in the French idiom that takes into account life experiences that had pushed you to get a pretty similar way of looking at things.

context:

the approach is a psychological current
I have to use it in a text for a personal description so this isn't a dialogue (I can't use any sentence with "you/your")

Thanks for your help


texts: How do natives understand a word with multiple meanings?

texts:
When I was reading, I noticed that some adjectives can be understood in different possible ways.

For example, the word “stark” in the sentence though he appeared the image of stark and uncompromising severity.

If looked up in a dictionary, “stark” can be explained as “complete and total”, or “unpleasant;real, and impossible to avoid”. Both meanings seem to fit in the sentence.

So I am wondering, how to tell the exact meaning of a word in a sentence? How can I know I’m not misunderstanding the text?


texts: Present simple even if it is not a general statement

texts:
I came across this sentence:

When I go home tonight, I lay down in my bed and turn on the TV and it makes me so glad.

I think future shall be used  (will  or going to) for lay down, turn on and make.
Present shall not be used for these verbs because it is not a general statement (tonight)
What do you think of it?


texts:
I hesitate between which and that after because:

  I prefer orange cars because blue cars would be thought of as the police(,) which/that is always aggressive.

Is it a restrictive/non-restrictive issue here?


texts: "Considered Fool To" vs. "Considered Fool By"

texts:
I am confused between these two options:

Even an intelligent man is considered fool to a clever man.
Even an intelligent man is considered fool by a clever man.

Which one is right, "to" or "by"?  Why?


texts: "By the time Tony had read the book, he knew what the answer was". Reading book and knowing the answer: which action happened first?

texts:
My teacher gave me an exercise which is adapted from the book "Macmillan Advanced Language Practice with key"

  Complete the second sentence so that it has a similar meaning to the first sentence, using the word given. Do not change the word given.

  (a-1) Tony knew what the answer was after reading the book. (read)
  (a-2) By the time Tony ____________.

  (Adapted) Source: https://studfiles.net/preview/1462020/page:19/

I understand the sentence a-1 as: First, Tony read the book. Then, he knew the answer.

So, my rewrite in sentence a-2 is:

  By the time Tony knew what the answer was, he had read the book.

However, when I checked the book's answer key, it said:

  By the time Tony had read the book, he knew what the answer was.

  Source: https://studfiles.net/preview/1462020/page:33/

I seem not to agree with the book's solution, because I understand that "by the time" means "earlier than or equal to the time"; as a result, for me, the meaning of the book's solution is that first, Tony knew the answer, then he read the book. And it isn't similar in meaning to the original sentence.

Could you kindly tell me whether I correctly understand the meaning of the book's solution?


texts:
"I was so worried about today's exam that I stayed up all night studying."

This is a sentence from the exam in my school. Can the sentence be changed to "I was so worried about today's exam that I stayed up all night to study."? Will they mean the same?

Thank you.


texts:
There is a small stone on a flat surface like a table and Tom puts his mug on it as shown in the picture.
Is it correct to say "The mug's wobbly if you do like that"?


texts:
In a debate with my friend. I stated "I bought some bitcoin" and "I have some bitcoin".

My friend argues this is a completely incorrect usage of "some" before a non-plural noun. In fact, my friend says that the use of "some" is completely misleading since I don't actually own multiple bitcoins or even a singular whole bitcoin. I'm arguing that it's a perfectly reasonable usage just like I might, "have some pie", I have some bitcoin.

I think at worst it's simply an informal usage case, but one I hear daily with the current popularity of crypto-currency.

Thanks in advance for some outside perspective!


texts: understand the grammar rule in a sentence

texts:
Although the new, improved bicycle had appealed immediately to a few privileged women, its impact would have been modest had it not attracted a greater cross section of the female population.

I am confusing the part in bold. How to break it down into one or two subject + verb?


texts:
I have noticed a pattern of using the definite article „the” that occurs in definitions, and I don’t know how to explain that. The pattern is as follows: "A/An + term + basic description. The + term + further details". Let’s take a few examples in which the pattern is present.

  An operating system exploits the hardware resources of one or more
  processors to provide a set of services to system users. The OS also
  manages secondary memory and I/O (input/output) devices on behalf of
  its users.

Source: Operating Systems: Internals and Design Principles by William Stallings

  A computer program is usually written by a computer programmer in a
  programming language. From the program in its human-readable form of
  source code, a compiler or assembler can derive machine code—a form
  consisting of instructions that the computer can directly execute.
  Alternatively, a computer program may be executed with the aid of an
  interpreter.

Source: Wikipedia's definition of a computer program

  A Web application is a collection of servlets, HTML pages, classes,
  and other resources that make up a complete application on a Web
  server. The Web application can be bundled and run on multiple
  containers from multiple vendors.

Source: Java™ Servlet Specification Version 2.4

My questions are:

What is the purpose of using the definite article "the" with the noun phrase in the second sentence in each example?
If the purpose is to refer to the object that has been introduced in the first sentence, why don't we use "it" instead of repeating the whole noun phrase.
Why don't we just use an idefinite article, if the sentence in each case is true for all instances of the term? (for example, "A Web application can be bundled and run on multiple containers from multiple vendors" - any Web application can be bundled and run on multiple containers from multipme vendors).

Edit. How does it differ from the following definition of a telephone:

  A telephone (derived from the Greek: τῆλε, tēle, "far" and φωνή,
  phōnē, "voice", together meaning "distant voice"), or phone, is a
  telecommunications device that permits two or more users to conduct a
  conversation when they are too far apart to be heard directly. A
  telephone converts sound, typically and most efficiently the human
  voice, into electronic signals that are transmitted via cables and
  other communication channels to another telephone which reproduces the
  sound to the receiving user.

Source: Wikipedia's definition of a telephone

Here we have "a telephone" in the beginning of the first and second sentences.


texts:
I have this sentence

People nowadays are so extremely sensitive that they can bear no reproof whatsoever.

My query is, is the author being redundant here by adding extremely? Should we omit it because it is included in the meaning of so sensitive?


texts:
For example:

  I wonder how my plant might be doing/might be bearing up, since I've neglected it for a week.

Meaning, I wonder what state my plant might be in when I come back home (dried out, grown in size, etc.).

Are both examples correct? Do they sound normal? Are there better ways to express that?


texts: What is this "it"? Is it like "it's sunny?"

texts:
"It's off to work we go"

Is this "it" like "it's sunny."?


texts: Is it proper to use 'with' after 'initiating' in writing?

texts:
I'd like to know if 'with' can be used after 'initiating'.
For example:

There are many steps involved, initiating with A.


texts: Why are both “when” and “once” used in “... when it was once broken”?

texts:
Transporting the stone when it was once broken was comparatively simple.

This sentence is by the English author George Orwell from the world-famous book Animal Farm. I am wondering the reason why the adverb once has been used as well as the word when there? It doesn't seem to make sense to me.

I do know the adverb once at this context means after.

Here is the paragraph that the sentence comes from:

  The windmill presented unexpected difficulties. There was a good quarry of limestone on the farm, and plenty of sand and cement had been found in one of the outhouses, so that all the materials for building were at hand. But the problem the animals could not at first solve was how to break up the stone into pieces of suitable size. There seemed no way of doing this except with picks and crowbars, which no animal could use, because no animal could stand on his hind legs. Only after weeks of vain effort did the right idea occur to somebody–namely, to utilise the force of gravity. Huge boulders, far too big to be used as they were, were lying all over the bed of the quarry. The animals lashed ropes round these, and then all together, cows, horses, sheep, any animal that could lay hold of the rope–even the pigs sometimes joined in at critical moments–they dragged them with desperate slowness up the slope to the top of the quarry, where they were toppled over the edge, to shatter to pieces below. Transporting the stone when it was once broken was comparatively simple. The horses carried it off in cart-loads, the sheep dragged single blocks, even Muriel and Benjamin yoked themselves into an old governess-cart and did their share. By late summer a sufficient store of stone had accumulated, and then the building began, under the superintendence of the pigs.

One of the answers here thinks that this sentence is ungrammatical - but the poster isn't sure why. I wonder if it is because it comes from such a famous book. Can anyone give a definitive answer?

You could see the resource in the following site:

Animal Farm (1945) by George Orwell.


texts:
Instead of in the future, can I say down the road in the following sentence?

  It can be achieved in the future.


texts: My mother tongue, Korean, makes a syllable with vowels. So it’s very hard to pronounce or hear the sounds combined consonants in a row. Would you explain how to make the ‘fts’ sound in tufts, minutely? [audio]


texts: do we use definite article before color or not?

texts:
Do we use definite article before colors?

  This command gives me all the clickable content in the red color.


texts: turn around the book VS turn over the book

texts:
Turn around the book! You are reading it upside down.
  Turn over the book so that you can see the price.

Are "turn around" and "turn over" used correctly in these contexts?


texts: Difference between "work for" and "work so that"

texts:
So I was arguing with a friend of mine about the following sentence:

  An engineer is someone who works for his equations to fit reality.

But my friend claimed that instead, it should be:

  An engineer is someone who works so that his equations fit reality.

My question is the following: do these sentences have the same meaning? If so, is there any reason why I should use one instead of the other?


texts: What are these words 'plante', 'moste' and 'braine' in this context?

texts:
These plantes are moste efficacious in the inflaming of the braine, and are therefore much used in Confusing and Befuddlement Draughts, where the wizard is desirous of producing hotheadedness and recklessness ...

  Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix

I guess these three words ('plante', 'moste' and 'braine') might be the old version of 'plant', 'most' and 'brain'. But I haven't found any evidence. Have I gotten it right? Are these old-fashioned words?

Update: The quote above was excerpted from one of his Potions books that Harry was reading.


texts:
There are 2 types of balloons. One can not fly and the other can.
For the one that can not fly, I think we can say "hang the balloon on the door handle by its string"
However, "hang" is often used for things that are pulled down by gravity such as a bunch of keys, a jacket etc.
But, I am not sure if "hang" can be used for things that fly up like a flyable balloon because the balloon is not pulled down by gravity.
Is it correct to say "hang the balloon on the door handle by its string" when that balloon can fly up?


texts:
Example:

  Actually, there's someone who can help you."

  Actually, there's someone who can help you out."

What's the difference between the two? Or they mean the same thing?


texts: Should we put question marks at the end of the following sentences?

texts:
The three sentences are:

Wouldn't it be good if we invited them over?
Wouldn't it be nice to have those kitchen utensils?
Wouldn't it be nice if we could have those kitchen utensils?

P.S. Another question. Which one of 2 and 3 is more grammatically correct?


texts: discerning between "so high" and "such that "

texts:
Would you please elaborate the difference  between them?

1.The himalayas are such high mountains that no pilot wants to fly over them.

2.The himalayas are so high mountains that no pilot wants to fly over them.

Thanks


texts: Save something to vs Save something on/onto

texts:
I would like to know the difference in meaning between "to save something to" and "to save something on/onto" in the context of technology.

Here are a couple of example sentences:

  Save the file to the hard disk.
  You can save the data on/onto your hard disk.

What does it imply "to save something to"?
What does it imply "to save something on/onto"?
Also, I wonder if "to save something ONTO" is idiomatic.

If I say

  "Save the photo/document/audio TO/ON the
  computer/phone/camera/ipad" (do they both mean the same?)

  "Save the photo/document/audio TO/ON 'C:\Windows\' " (do
  they both mean the same?)


texts:
Can i use a sentence after “as” or “in the way” as is the case with sentences below.

1) This sentence can be translated as “they will never come again” .

2) This sentence can be translated in the way that “they will never come”.


texts: Synonymes for "to ridicule" and their semantic nuances

texts:
I have found so many synonymes for the verb "ridicule". If I translated them to my mother tongue (german), I would translate all of them with the same words (verspotten / verhöhnen). I want to understand the nuances in their meaning though, because I don't think they all mean exactly the same. When I look them up in a dictionary, the definitions there are often cyclic, referring to each other. E.g.:

  "to deride - Express contempt for; ridicule."

Therefore, the dictionary is of no big help (unless the words really mean exactly the same and there is no small semantic difference).

Can someone explain to me these nuances?

Here are the synonymes:

to ridicule
to deride
to jibe
to jeer
to mock
to taunt
to scoff
to sneer


texts:
I've read in http://www.bbc.co.uk/worldservice/learningenglish/grammar/learnit/learnitv196.shtml that we use was able to and managed to when we are talking about a particular situation or specific achievement.

My question: Are both was able/able to and managed/manage to interchangeable? Are both  used in the same ways? Both are same in their meanings?


texts: What is the meaning of "not on my account"?

texts:
Peter just met Regina

  Regina: Mine's Regina Lampert.

  Peter: Is there a Mr. Lampert?

  Regina: Yes.

  Peter: Good for you.

  Regina: No, it isn't. I'm getting a divorce.

  Peter: Please, not on my account.

  Regina: No. I don't really love him.


texts:
There is no island in the world as big as Greenland.

In the sentence, what kind of phrase is 'as big as Greenland'? Does it modify the word 'island'?


texts: Should there be a preposition before a day (e.g. Monday)?

texts:
When I'm talking about habit or custom, can I say:

  "The king comes on Sunday and goes Monday."

without using the preposition "on" before "Monday"?


texts: Difference between "marked bags" and "labeled bags"

texts:
I have a Russian sentence in which lab tubes with different biomaterial should be placed into bags, and these bags should be промаркированы (promarkirovany), that is, there should be some writing on the bags to indicate the contents.
I wonder which would be better:

Place the tubes with different biomaterials into marked blue bags.

Place the tubes with different biomaterials into labeled blue bags.

Are these two completely similar? In my imagination, "marked" is closer to "somebody left some marks on the bag with a marker" and "labeled" is closer to "somebody attached a (sticky) paper label on the bag". Is that so?
The Russian sentence does not indicate the exact way of "marking" the bags, it just says that some indication must appear on them so that the handling persons know what they contain.


texts:
Go home now!

home
go
you

While 'you' isn't in the sentence, it was picked as the subject. Is 'you' the correct answer?


texts: Verbs "may" and "let" used to wish somebody something

texts:
May all your dreams come true!

  Let all your dreams come true!

Both seem to have the same meaning. Is there any difference? Are they interchangeable? Thank you.


texts: Wondering if you could simplify the conversation below

texts:
This is this scenario I read in a book teaching English:

  A) Actually I've been working around the clock in my new business.
  B) Oh your after the big bucks, how? I never thought you'd be so dedicated to money.

But it really seems difficult to me.

My second concern I would be grateful if you further clarify why the writer wrote "you would be" instead of simply saying "you are" .


texts: The keys to the luggage got missed or went missing

texts:
The morning we were going to the holiday, we had a bitter conversation. After that, the keys to the luggage ........... . Eventually, He found them in his jacket pocket.

1) got missed

2) went missing

3) went missed

4) got missing

The answer in the book is "went missing". I don't understand why "got missed" cannot be the correct answer. I tried with google search:

Question:

Is there any grammarian point behind the correct option, "went missing", or it can be viewed as a collocation and verbal issue. I mean we should learn that things "go missing" not "get missing", "go missed", and "get missed".


texts: Differences in meaning: "earlier in July" and "in early July"

texts:
My Question:

(1) Andy quit his job earlier in July.

(2) Andy quit his job in early July.

What are the differences between (1) and (2)?

My guess:
(1) implies that the speaker can be at any time point (like in August, in December, or even in the next year) after Andy's quitting the job.
(2) implies that the speaker is still in the same month when Andy quit his job.


texts: Why do I use preposition at notice verb?

texts:
I have some question with following sentence.

1.Don't take too much notice of it.
2.Don't take too much notice it.

Q1. I want to know as to what difference between them?

Q2. At native English speaker, If the speaker heard like #2 sentence from someone.
How much the speaker understood(with structure)? Also How does the speaker recognized sentence like 2?

Q3. As beginner, I often used sentence like #2.
Also Should I have to remember what verb need to preposition at all? How can I learn this?


texts: On the top of / over / on... in this context

texts:
1. I need to paint the wall on the top of the existing paint.

2. I need to paint the wall over the existing paint.

3. I need to paint the wall on the existing paint.

As a learner I'm not able to choose the correct one.

Please explain.

Thank you.


texts: Oppose against, react against or disagree against

texts:
He ...... strongly against my suggestion. He refused to discuss it.

opposed
reacted
disagreed

Can someone please tell me the right answer? I don't think it's disagreed, because you don't see the verb "disagree" before "against", so I think it's either opposed or reacted.
Cheers.


texts:
While proofreading I came across a sentence like this:

Assiduous research is what characterises a true professional.

Instinctively I thought that this sentence would sound better if expressed in this way:

Assiduous research is the mark/the sign of a true professional.

Does it read any better, or am I being overcorrect again ?


texts:
A guy just came out of a party and within two minutes went into a ditch with his car, and made it wrecked. But he seemed not to realize the situation quite well yet, drunken, and said like this, what’s the meaning?

  “Wonder‘ff tell me where there’s gas’line station?” (F. Scott
  Fitzgerald, The Great Gatsby)


texts: Using adjective before the word "something/someone"

texts:
We normally use these kinds of sentences:

  I need something strong or I have to hire someone intelligent.

Here, the words "strong" and "intelligent" modify the nouns something and someone.So,we can call them adjective.My question is can we use those adjectives before something/someone like below:

  I need strong something  or I have to hire intelligent someone.

if i unable to do that what are the grammatical rules behind these.Please clarify it.


texts: How to understand "the human capacity for sin"?

texts:
There is this example under the entry "sin" in the New Oxford Dictionary:

  the human capacity for sin(Source)

I don't know how to understand capacity here. According to the definition of capacity in dictionary, I think it may convey one of two possible meanings:

The maximum amount of sin that human beings can tolerate.
The ability of human beings to commit sins.

I tend to prefer the latter version, but am not very sure.

P.S. I think the word human is quite worthy of attention. Does it imply something inside individual humanity?


texts: Can "How soon" be used with the past tense? If not what would be an alternative for it?

texts: How soon will you get back home? I am sure this question is correct. Can we ask if how soon you took to get back home or How soon did you take to get back home?


texts:
“I'll never forget hearing this piece of music for the first time.” (OALD)
  난 이 곡을 처음 듣던 때를 결코 잊지 못할 거야. (OALD’s Korean version)

I read the original sentence as “I’ll never forget the fact that I heard this piece of music for the first time.” Yet the Korean version is “I’ll never forget the time I heard this piece of music.” What does the sentence mean?


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

texts:
It was written on a T-shirt: "Do not disturb. Just don't."
What does "just" mean here? Does it mean that all I want is that you don't disturb?
There is a difference of opinion between the respondents. What is the opinion of someone whose mother tongue is English?


texts: How do you call the grandchildren of a step-grandparent?

texts:
My grandfather recently got remarried to a woman who herself has children and grandchildren.

My question is: what is the correct term to describe my relatedness to these people?

"Step-aunt" or "step-uncle" seemed odd to me, as it's usual to have "normal" prefix-less aunts and uncles related through marriage (rather than by blood). I've heard "step-cousin" used when uncles or aunts remarry, but I'm not sure if the term still applies in this case.


texts: There has been a school. What does this sentence mean?

texts:
There has been a school.

Someone says there is still a school.
Someone says there is not a school anymore.


texts: The connotation of the expression "Jack of all trades, master of none"

texts:
A recent thread in the Portuguese Language SE are intending to find a Portuguese version for the expression "Jack of all trades, master of none".

The question is:

The original expression could have a positive connotation like:

  "He who is good at many things, but not an expert at any"

Or Can we use it in a negative way like:

  "Who is skilled at many things, is not skilled at any"

Which one is the right?


texts: Difference in "was having dinner" & "had been having dinner"

texts:
1.He said that he was having dinner when they knocked on the door.

  2.He said that he had been having dinner when they knocked on the door.

What is the difference in using past continuous & past perfect continuous tense in this sentence? Which tense is apt to use?


texts:
Tell me please it is correct to use a comma in the following sentence.

  Because he was tall, he was able to reach the ball.


texts: thanks for help or thanks for the help or thanks for your help

texts:
Which ones are casually acceptable as follows?

  Thanks for help.

  Thanks for the help.

  Thanks for your help.


texts: Articles for different types of 'analysis'

texts:
All examples, except the last one, are from Longman dictionary

  A factor analysis identified ten significant factors affecting women’s rights.
  A structural analysis showed that the roof was sound.
  A detailed economic analysis of the plant’s conversion to gas power
  A sensitivity analysis will improve the quality of the final decision
  Competitive analysis is a powerful tool in formulating a strategy
  Phonological analysis also interacts with syntactic and semantic analysis
  Ratio analysis can provide a useful snapshot of a company’s finances.
  The results were subjected to econometric analysis.

I have also checked the Ngram statistics using econometric analysis as an example and found no-article is adopted much more frequently. But in my understanding, the first time introducing new information, articles should be used. Can you explain to me the differences and retionals behind the choices?


texts:
Could you explain what is the difference between 'stretched off' and 'stretched out'?

stretched off

  Outside the train endless fields stretched off, broken by an
  occasional farm building.

  Outside the train the brown fields stretched
  off endlessly.

stretched out

  Above the fields a long mass of translucent smoke lay stretched out.

  A double row of stores stretched out ahead of him.

The Commuter
by Philip K. Dick


texts:
Are "year" and "city" optional in the following?

  John returned to London in 2010, in which (year) he married Joanne.
  John returned to London, in which (city) he married Joanne.

I'd appreciate your help.


texts: I looked up these two words in many dictionaries; the only difference I could find was that revealing can be used to describe clothing that overly discloses human body, like a revealing blouse, but in terms of information, secrets or insights..., how could they be differentiated?


texts: what is the Difference between being married and being into registered civil partnership?

texts: I found this wierd expression in Collins reading book for IELTS preparation


texts: Is this sentence a mixed conditional or not?

texts:
Sarah had always dreamed of becoming a newscaster, but her parents urged her to study accounting instead. If only she had been true to her vision, she __________ on TV by now.

a. should be
b. will possibly have been
c. could possibly have been
d. has possibly been

First, this is one of the English test in Korea. the answer is 'c'. But some say the answer is wrong, because this sentence is a mixed conditional, so right anwer is 'a'.
We are not native English speaker, so I want to know what native English speaker think of it. Which is correct between 'a' and 'c'?

And, can I use 'she would be on TV by now' or 'she might be on TV by now' or any suggestion? (sometimes modal verb is very tricky for non-native speaker)


texts: make a question sentence with adjective '' long ''

texts:
As far as i know it is correct to say:

  A two-meter-long fossilized turtle discovered .

When we make this sentence structure into question sentence , can i say :

  How- many -meter -long fossilized turtle  was discovered ?


texts:
Where do I need to put the stress in the word "transferring"? Should it be "tRANsferring" or "transFERring"?

CONFUSION:
Many dictionaries say that the noun is "tRANsfer" while the verb is "transFER". Since in the -ing form "transferring" the last letter is doubled ("rr") in all dictionaries, the stress in the verb then must be as "transFERring". However, the GoogleTranslate reads it as "tRANsferring".

As for what part of speech I mean by "transferring" here, I think it is not important as the stress usually stays on the same syllable of "-ing" forms regardless of their function in the sentence.


texts: How long have you played/how long have you been playing

texts:
Let's say I am playing a computer game (overwatch, for example) and I've just met some friendly people. In overwatch, there are rounds. One round usually lasts no more than 20 minutes, but it is possible to play round for more than an hour.
I want to ask them about their overall time spent in overwatch.
Normally, I would use present perfect tense ( How long have you played this game?) but I'm not really sure.
And, when I want to ask them about the amount of time they spent during this one round, I will use perfect continous (How long have you been playing this game?)
Is it right?


texts:
I dropped into a dark shadow, took a lungful of air and let it out in a howl—the snarling howl of a gray timber wolf, lonely and hungry and far from home, and mean enough for seven kinds of trouble.

For above sentence, the writer uses 'seven kinds of trouble' instead of many kinds of trouble. (I think it is the meaning.)

Is there any reason in English they seem to prefer the number '7' to other numbers? Like seven deadly sins.


texts:
"TED is where brilliant people go to hear other brilliant people share their ideas."

The above is an excerpt from the book Talk Like TED. Is the modifier 'share their ideas' correctly connected to the word 'people'? Should a relative pronoun have been used before the modifier, or should a verbal have been used instead of 'share', or is it fine the way it is?


texts: "If he was doing" vs. "If he were doing"

texts:
Could you tell me if both following sentences are perfectly natural and correct?

If he was doing his homework, he would have more time to hang out with his friends.
If he were doing his homework, he would have more time to hang out with his friends.

I'm aware that when the main verb in the if-clause is be then both was and were grammatically correct. Were is even more so, though. But, what about if it's part of the past pregressive in a condional sentence as in the example above?


texts:
Is "stuffed" correct and natural here?

The shed was so stuffed with things that you could barely enter it.


texts: I have never heard anybody using it, I only came across the word in the title of the movie Honor Thy Mother


texts:
a cupboard in the wall.

What does this "In" mean here?
What image comes to mind?


texts: Differences between will, going to and doing+V to describe future time in everyday English

texts: I know there are some subtle academic differences between them but do native speakers really consider it before choosing the correct tense to use or they are interchangeable in everyday English?


texts: correct word choice: garner or acquire fame, popularity and praise

texts:
(1) The actor garnered/acquired fame early in his career.
(2) His novelty garnered/acquired popularity shortly after it was released.
(3) The writer garnered/acquired praise for his book on the latest developments of physics.
Which word choice works in my examples?


texts: Understand 'callback' in computer programming

texts:
I cannot interpret the jargon 'callback' in computer programming intuitively.

The definition of 'callback' in Dictionary:

In collins dictionary, Callback definition and meaning | Collins English Dictionary

  A callback is an occasion when you are asked to return for a second interview for a job, or a second audition for a part in a show.

In telecommunications Callback (telecommunications) - Wikipedia

  In telecommunications, a callback or call-back occurs when the originator of a call is immediately called back in a second call as a response.

In conlusion, the keyword of 'callback' is 'second'.

As to its usage in computer_programming,it's difficult to figure out what the 'second' references to.

Quote from wikipediaIn computer programming, a callback is any executable code that is passed as an argument to other code, which is expected to call back (execute) the argument at a given time.

Amongst the sentence, 'call back (execute) the argument at a given time.' So the keyword 'second' refers to the 'argument'.
Nevertheless,when executed, it's the first time of the argument being called.

A trivial python code exmaple from Callback (computer programming) - Wikipedia

>>> def my_square(val):
...     """ the callback """
...     return val ** 2
...
>>> def caller(val, func):
...     return func(val)

>>> caller(2, my_square)
>>> 2

Reference to arguement '2',it is called for one single time during the process instead of second return.
How to understand the 'callback' then?


texts: Is it called a threshold or sill or door frame?

texts:
Look at the picture

What to call the bar at the bottom of the door as shoed in the picture?

  threshold (n): the floor or ground at the bottom of a doorway, considered as the entrance to a building or room

  He stepped across the threshold.

  on the threshold She stood hesitating on the threshold.

  sill /sɪl/ noun [countable]

  1 the narrow shelf at the base of a window frame

  2 the part of a car frame at the bottom of the doors

Some people call it a Threshold as in this picture

Some call it a sill as in this picture

For example, when my little daughter touches it, what do I say "don't touch the threshold / sill / door frame"?

or is there any common way to express it?


texts:
"It is not only colours and sounds and so on that are absent from the
  scientific world of matter, but also space as we get it through sight
  or touch. It is essential to science that its matter should be in a
  space, but the space in which it is cannot be exactly the space we see
  or feel. To begin with, space as we see it is not the same as space as
  we get it by the sense of touch; it is only by experience in infancy
  that we learn how to touch things we see, or how to get a sight of
  things which we feel touching us. But the space of science is
  neutral as between touch and sight; thus it cannot be either the space
  of touch or the space of sight."

  [The Problems of Philosophy, Bertrand Russell, Chapter III]

How should I understand the bold text?


texts: What's the difference between words "tongue" and "lingua"?

texts:
Dictionary.com definitions:

  tongue - the usually movable organ in the floor of the mouth in humans and most vertebrates, functioning in eating, in tasting, and, in humans, in speaking.

  lingua - the tongue or a part like a tongue

Both words have the same meaning.

Why is the word "lingua" almost not used in spoken language? And in what cases can the word lingua be used?


texts: Some shepherds came up, bringing with them a man

texts:
While the dispute was going on, some shepherds came up, bringing with
  them a man whose hands were bound behind his back.

Source: New York State Testing Program: ELA Common Core Sample Questions

Is bringing an adjectival participle phrase that modifies shepherds? If not, what does it modify, or what is it anyway?

Edit:
Related: Parts of Speech of: come+ verbing


texts: "I have a dream that" vs "I have a dream to"

texts:
I have a dream to go to Las Vegas and I want to tell this to my friend but I am a little confused what is the right way to tell her about that.

Should I say that

  I have a dream to go to Las Vegas

or should I say

  I have a dream that one day I will go to Las Vegas.

Which one sounds more idiomatic? Is there any other way of saying the same thing but in a more native way?


texts:
I am learning "English grammar in use", and have one question. There is an explanation about the situation about the key:

  He has lost his key = He lost it recently, and he still doesn't have it.

Now, take another example:

  It has rained = It is not raining now.

I am a little bit confused, why in the first situation the fact, that some man has lost the key is true, and in the second situation, the fact, that it has rained are not true.


texts: What do you call rubbery objects with long rubbery blades?

texts: I think I've seen something similar to those monkey rings, but in cleaning products, but I don't remember what products they were exactly. What do you call those?


texts: Correctness of "My attitudes have greatly shaped after this study"

texts:
What is the difference between these examples?

  My attitudes have greatly shaped after the study.

and

  My attitudes have been greatly shaped after the study.

I was searching for some essay conclusion examples on the Internet and found this one:

  My attitudes have greatly shaped after this study. I have realized the ways meat impact our life and health. Meatless meals might improve the health conditions of patients suffering from various disorders, and the observed study proves it.

Source: https://pro-essay-writer.com/blog/essay-conclusion-examples

I wanted to use the first phrase in my own essay. I wonder if it is correct or not. Personally, it seems weird to me.

I don't want to use exactly the words that are in the sentence. I want to write something like 'My attitude(s) towards [something] have been greatly shaped over this period of time/since I was a child/during my life. Would it be correct?


texts:
According to dictionary.com:

  run for it, to hurry away or flee, especially to evade something:
  You had better run for it before anyone else arrives.

Does this idiom have some reasonable origin? Why is it “for it”? What exactly is “it”?


texts: Cultural references related to names Lesley and Lindsay

texts:
Ted: You know, I'm proud of you--Lesley.

  Tim: Back at you, Lindsay.

Source: The Boss Baby 2017

When the name Lesley is mentioned one character laughs and the other gets embarrassed. Clearly there are cultural references related to Lindsay and Lesley in the movie, but I do not what they are.

Edit:

Is it because they sound girly and yet given to boys?

Edit 2:

Ted:

  So that's how you wanna play it, huh. Let's see [snatches a folder tagged TEMPLETON, TIM].

  Templeton, Timothy. Middle name [chuckles and laughs].

  I'm sorry, Lesley.


texts:
A sugar study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association, finds sugar does more than just pack on the pounds.

From the dictionary, I know that pack on the pounds means to gain weight, but pack here, I guess, is used as a verb. So should it more appropriate to substitute packing for pack? Just as follows:

  A sugar study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association, finds sugar does more than just packing on the pounds.


texts: Difference between fornication and adultery

texts:
Is there any difference between the terms 'fornication' and adultery' if we see the two terms? Is there marital status involved differentiating the two terms?

From Wiktionary

  Fornication
  Sexual intercourse, especially on the part of an unmarried person.

  (law) The act of such illicit sexual intercourse between a man and a woman which does not by law amount to adultery.

  Adultery Sexual intercourse by a married person with someone other than their spouse.

  [and several other older meanings]


texts:
Look at the picture

Do we say "to hold the stick of the ice cream"?


texts: Positioning of adverb "only" in "Tara has [only] been married for two days [only]"

texts:
Which is correct?

  Tara has only been married for two days.

or

  Tara has been married for two days only.

If both are correct then what is the difference between them?


texts:
I've come across this sentence:

  We will not admit late submissions unless the student produces a doctor's certificate within two days of the deadline.

Imagine the deadline is March 30. What does "within two days of the deadline" mean?Does this mean that  you have to present your certificate on either the 29th or the 30th of March or you have to present it before the 29th of March?


texts: Which of these sentences is better to say a dog had it's leg removed?

texts:
My friend's little dog was hit by a vehicle some time last week, and the dog's right leg was badly injured and had to be removed (by a veterinary).

When I want to tell other people this news, which of these sentences is better?

XXX's little dog had its right leg removed.
xxx's little dog's right leg was removed.

Thank you.


texts: Best way to request/ask for fast resolution of an email

texts:
Their are few scenerio where i am seaching some best way to express the intention -

I heard a guy saying to his boss something like this -

  Sir, I dropped an email to IT team to format the machine and you are also in CC. Please TOP on this email to  get the faster resolution

in this sentence maybe I missed something near to TOP word, but I am sure he used TOP here.

Could somebody provide me the correct sentence in this scenerio.

Good explanation of scenerio and other best sentence are most welcomed and appriciated.

Thanks.


texts: Simple future or "be going to" in: "Help! I will/am going to fall"

texts:
Do I use the simple future tense or the "be going to" tense in a situation that has not yet happened?

  Help! I will fall.
  Help! I am going to fall

My approach:

I think the action will happen in the future. Hence we will fall if no one helps. Therefore, I think the simple future tense will is correct.

Am I right In my approach?


texts: What is the name of the frontal part of the neck?

texts: Neck is the part which connect the head to the body. I would like to know what is the name of the frontal part of the neck - in English?


texts:
We can felicitously say:

  I am upset with your performance.

And a related idea like this:

  I am upset with you.

Similarly, we can say:

  I am disappointed with your performance.

And again, similarly:

  I am disappointed with you.

My question is that while I know we can say:

  I am not convinced of your ability.

I think we can't say:

  I am not convinced of you.

Why are the above items all ok, but this one is not? And if it is not, how can we state that we are convinced of someone's ability in a similar form?


texts: what tense should be used past simple or past continuous?

texts:
Heeeey, i need your help, again.
In class, We were discussing Past Continuous. I gave them a group of exercises, one of which was to choose the correct tense either Past Simple or Past Continuous. The exercise was:

  A: which hotel __________ (you/stay) in when you lost your passport?
  B: I don't remember. I __________ (visited) many places during my European tour and I ___________ (stay) in many different places.

we had a large debate on what should be Past Simple and what should be Past continuous.
Can you tell me the right answer and why.
I am already grateful.


texts: What is the difference between "The traffic is running smoothly for past 2 hours" and "The traffic is running smoothly for last 2 hours"


texts: Is it "say different" or "say differently"?

texts:
I see examples of both on the web.

  Think You Don't Need Houseplants? Science Says Different (Forbes)

  You say he's just a friend, but your voice says differently (ScienceDaily)

  Life is pain, Highness. Anyone who says differently is selling something. (The Princess Bride (1987))

By the same token, should I say show different or show differently to mean show otherwise?

  That research shows different.

  That research shows differently.


texts:
At about 53s of this video, I listened a phrase "way before". Did I hear it in a wrong way or it has some meaning?

Searched and got this result. But it seems the page is explaining since '86.


texts:
Should I use the article 'the' before 'family' in this sentence:

  Working from home results in more time to spend with family.
  Working from home results in more time to spend with the family.

And please could you give me an explanation.


texts: Term for a group of doctors, nurses who go to help the victims after natural disasters?

texts:
Is there a word for a group of doctors, nurses who go to help the victims after a natural disaster?

Something like first-aid kit that we use to help an injured person on the spot.

I'm thinking of emergency first-aid group but I don't think that's the right phrase.


texts: I am having issues with capitalization of numbered nouns. For example, if I want to say, "Please finish this assignment by week 8." should I capitalize Week or use lower case? For page and line, that's straightforward, and we should use lower case. But I've seen discussion about chapter, and some scholars say we should capitalize Chapter when numbers are attached after, for example, in Chapter 5,.... Any thoughts?


texts:
If I want to advertise a technical product's manual:

  <Product> v1.2 Documentation

  Official manual for <product> - the fastest, greatest <thing>

is for the right preposition?

to seems simply wrong, but could be used in a claim like:

  The easy way to <product>

(long version: "The easy way to learn how to use <product>")

of feels like it's okay, but expresses that the manual is part of <product> (as in possession).

Are there other ways to say this?

for seems like a good choice, because the second half of my sentence refers to <product>, not its handbook, and for doesn't diminish the understandability of this.


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

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

  "No one else can weave as well as I can," Arachne boasted. "Not even
  the goddess Minerva could make anything so lovely and fine." Now
  Minerva wove the cloth for all the gods. She was proud of her weaving,
  too, and thought that no human could ever match her work.

?

Does "Now" mean "As a result that Arachne boasted" ?


texts: Are there words with the letter C in which its pronounced like Z?

texts:
Are there words in English with the letter C in which it's really pronounced as Z?
By googling I found an old book which counts these words as in which letter C sounds like Z: suffice, discern, sacrifice. But checking it in Cambridge dictionary raises that it is not true or not updated and those words pronounce as C rather than Z.
Another old book (The Oxford Spelling Book) says:

"C sounds like Z in squinancy which is pronounced like quinzy"


texts: Transformation of the object clause into "ing form"

texts:
1. I believe that John will be acquitted in the end.

  2. I believe in John's being acquitted in the end.

I would like to ask whether I can change the sentence 1 into the sentence 2. I am not sure if the second sentence with "ing form" is formulated properly and  if it indicates the future tense.


texts: Using did +verb instead of the past form of the verb

texts:
I have a sentence:

  No sooner did we get to our car than the thunderstorm began.

Is it okay to use did we get? It sounds very natural for me, but I am not sure whether or not such grammar construction is allowed. So is it right to write this way instead of we got?


texts: how to understand this sentence Grammatically？

texts:
Trump had fought his way up the polls to the extent that he was within striking distance of Hillary Clinton.

I'm confused with this part's grammar structure——'fought his way up ……the extent that'.

And is it necessary to put prep. between 'fought his way' and 'the polls'？


texts:
I've got confused with first and second conditional in the following sentence:

  You'd never get there unless you go by jet.

and

  You'd never get there unless you went by jet.

I'd like to know whether both are correct in structure and what's the difference in the meaning.


texts: What does the "for a long time" here mean?

texts:
Here is a conversation from a book:

  Reporter: Have you just made a new film, Miss Marsh?

  Miss Marsh: Yes, I have.

  Reporter: Are you going to make another?

  Miss Marsh: No, I'm not. I'm going to retire. I feel very tired. I don't want to make another film for a long time.

I don't quite understand the "for a long time" mean. Does it mean that "I just made film but I'm tired so I  don't want to make another for a long time in the future", the "long time" here is from now to the future.

Or does it mean "Actually I didn't want to make any film for a long time", the "long time" is in the past until now.

I found some translation for this is the later option, but I feel it a little strange, and I think it might be the first. Is it right?


texts: This is a first ... - can I use the indefinite article?

texts:
I know with words determining somehow the order of things I should use the definite article. But I would say it depends on the context. Is the following correct?

  This is a first discussion out of many that I am planning.

Could this be right when the audience did not know I was planning these discussions?

If not, why the following is fine:

  ...if you are buying a first car.


texts:
I wrote the following question (referred to Italian), and I have been told it was not correct to use basing instead of based. (The person who told me this is an American English native speaker.)

  When is the past participle declined basing on the gender?

Why should I have used based, and not basing?


texts: What does the phrase "pull off sick wheelies and flips" mean here?

texts:
Here is a made-up sentence from a racing game:

  In order to earn speed boosts, you should catch air and pull off sick
  wheelies and flips.

I am not sure about the meaning of the phrase "pull off sick wheelies and flips."

I know the meaning of the word wheelie, but cannot figure out the sense of the word sick. Also, I am not sure if the word flip conveys an act in air or on land.


texts:
In the book What Do Pictures Want?: The Lives and Loves of Images, page 48, there is a paragraph that using the word "figure" that I don't understand:

What pictures want, then, is not to be interpreted, decoded, worshipped, smashed, exposed, or demystified by their beholders, or to enthrall their beholders. They may not even want to be granted subjectivity or personhood by well-meaning commentators who think that humanness is the greatest compliment they could pay to pictures. The desires of pictures may be inhuman or nonhuman, better modeled by figures of animals, machines, or cyborgs, or by even more basic images-what Erasmus Darwin called "the loves of plants." What pictures want in the last instance, then, is simply to be asked what they want, with the understanding that the answer may well be, nothing at all.

I've looked it up but it doesn't have any meaning that I'm not aware of. What does it mean here?
Figure definition and meaning | Collins English Dictionary


texts: Can't we use present perfect in this case, rather then present perfect continues

texts:
As far as I understand the following is in the present perfect continuous form, rather than in present perfect:

  I’ve been thinking about majoring in business or economics.

In textbooks it is said that:

  We use the Present Perfect Simple mainly to express that an action is completed or to emphasize the result. We use the Present Perfect Progressive to emphasize the duration or continuous course of an action.

So seems in the above case it is more appropriate to use present perfect tense. Isn't it? And if it is, than how we can do so.

Also is it correct to use present perfect continues without mentioning time period? And if it is, then how it is differ from Present Perfect.


texts: The XYZ industrial group is a manufacturer of.. (the manufacturer of..)

texts:
Two possible ways to translate a sentence from a corporate website:

  The XYZ industrial group is the manufacturer and purveyor of a wide range of gas separators and compressors.

or:

  The XYZ industrial group is a manufacturer and purveyor of a wide range of gas separators and compressors.

Wouldn't the first sentence mean the Group is the Universe's sole manufacturer of this kind of equipment? Or maybe both sentences are acceptable?


texts:
I'd like to compare these two words in terms of meaning and usage.It seems like they mostly overlap to me but there are possible subtle differences.

I tried to give as many  example as to discern the difference. Do you think the meaning of the sentences would change if I swap the words each other in the following sentences.

To foray into means

  a short period of time being involved in an activity that is different
  from and outside the range of a usual set of activities

  She made a brief foray into acting before becoming a teacher

http://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english/foray

  After a brief foray into politics, she returned to where she is most
  comfortable - in the company of words.

http://www.oxforddictionaries.com/definition/english/foray

  Anna’s forays into cooking were never very successful.

http://www.macmillandictionary.com/dictionary/british/foray

To dabble in means

  to try something or take part in an activity in a way that is not
  serious

  He first dabbled in politics when he was at law school.

http://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english/dabble

  It's astounding that, at 24 years of age, the stand-up comic has
  already dabbled in more professions than most people attempt in a
  lifetime.

http://www.oxforddictionaries.com/definition/english/dabble

  When he was younger he dabbled in astrology.

http://www.macmillandictionary.com/dictionary/british/dabble_2


texts:
As far as I know "roundabout(s)" means an area around something or someone, a perimeter while "vicinity(ies)" means areas or blocks of areas close to somewhere or someone or something.

So do these two words have a common meaning and can they be used interchangeably?

The car was somewhere in the vicinity/roundabout.

How to correctly use roundabout instead of vicinity?


texts:
Can someone explain me what is the role and meaning of "ever" in this sentence?
"Before the present author ever became associated with ..."


texts:
My son's English teacher told him that "a lot of" can't be used in a negative sentence or a question. I don't think so, for I must have heard or read someone use "a lot of" in a negative sentence or in a question.

Can “a lot of” be used in a negative sentence or a question?


texts: This survey ________ your health as well as that of your family

texts:
This survey is concerning  your health as well as that of your family.

This is a sentence improvement question asked in my exam.

I was given four options to choose from :

(A) concerns with

(B) is concerned with

(C) concerns to

(D) no improvement

Which is the correct / appropriate answer here ?

I can rule out option C but I am confused between option A, B and D.


texts: What does the phrase "You have a mice nest in your mouth" mean

texts: I was chatting with a colleague and she just said that I have a mice nest in my mouth, what does it mean?


texts: Example usages of an "arm" as a "subsidiary"

texts:
I think an "arm" can refer to something like a "subsidiary" of a company.  Can you show me several examples, preferably in the internet?

To be clear, I'm not looking for "arms" as "weapon," or "arm's length rule," though both can be related to making a business.


texts: Why Google Search Shows Did you mean "has been suspended" when we put search for "had been suspended"? Is "had been suspended" is grammatically incorrect?


texts: Meaning of “it does not do (to do something)”

texts:
This is about the meaning of Dumbledore's quote “it does not do to dwell on dreams and forget to live”

From the Time article, "10 of the Most Magical Harry Potter Quotes to Inspire You":

  "It does not do to dwell on dreams and forget to live"

  Book: Sorcerer’s Stone

  Who said it: Albus Dumbledore

  Context: Upon finding Harry gazing longingly into the Mirror of Erised — which shows anyone who looks into it their deepest desire — Dumbledore tells Harry that he is going to move the mirror before warning him not to go searching for it again. The headmaster’s words are a reminder that dwelling on what might have been in the past or what could be in the future distracts from living in the present moment.

There is a clip on YouTube here (said around 3:47).

But what is the grammar behind those words? Is there a phrase "it doesn't do" meaning "it's not good to"?


texts: Is "without" a preposition or an adverb in "Without thinking where I was going"? Lexical word or grammatical word?

texts:
I'm doing my English homework and I have this doubt so I would appreciate your help. I need to know whether "without" is a preposition or an adverb in this specific sentence in order to classify it as a lexical word (content) or as a grammatical word (function).

Without thinking where I was going


texts: Using a single preposition with multiple conjunctions

texts:
I found this in a passage:

  Recall that the prime subfield of a field is the smallest subfield, and is isomorphic to Fp for some p or to Q.

I noticed that every time the conjunction ( in above sentence, notice or) is used, the preposition ( in above sentence, notice to ) is also used to refer to the object.

Can it be written as:

Recall that the prime subfield of a field is the smallest subfield, and is isomorphic to Fp for some p or  Q

?


texts: What is the common meaning of the word smell when used as a metaphor or in idioms?

texts:
I have come across expressions like:

I can smell a rat.

It smells fishy

They could smell his fear.

I understand what these mean.  However, I would like to know if there is a common meaning behind the use of the word/verb smell.
For example, could you say that smell represents a a feeling of being aware in each? Also, why do you think that smell is used?


texts: Adjective placement when multiple objects

texts:
In one of the last Tolstoy's Anna Karenina novel's translations there is this following line:

Marian Schwartz:

  she “clearly realized that he found offensive her hand, her gesture and the sound she was making with her lips.”'

Compared to some of the previous ones, I think this one is the best one.

For example:

Richard Pevear and Larissa Volokhonsky:

  she “clearly understood that he was disgusted by her hand, and her gesture, and the sound her lips made.”

Rosamund Bartlett:

  she “understood clearly . . . that he was repulsed by her hand, her gesture, and the sound she made with her lips.”

The thing is, I'm not a native English speaker but still think that that one from Marian Schwartz could be improved a bit more. I'm thinking:

  she “clearly realized that he found her hand, her gesture and the sound she was making with her lips offensive.”'

But as a non-Native English speaker I'm not sure if that's just because of my Spanish bias. Would all those things considered offensive be too much, too many, to have before the 'offensive' adjective?

Someone knows if there's a grammatical rule to support this? (not that I'd disagree with breaking grammar rules, but would like to know if there is one)