texts: "X is supposed to be the reason of Y" vs "X is believed to be the reason of Y"

texts:
Is there any difference in below two sentences?

  X is supposed to be the reason of Y

  X is believed to be the reason of Y

I feel that the first one (with "supposed") has a connotation of being a common belief that in fact can be wrong, i.e. in the first, one tries to imply that X is not the real reason of Y despite the widely held belief. The second one (with "believed") is just stating common belief. Is this the case? Or is there no real difference?


texts: "lead to" and "lead something/somebody to"

texts:
I am curious that the difference between lead to and lead something/somebody to.

I know the verb lead can be used both intransitive and transitive way.

What I want to know is that lead to, which is synonymous to cause, give rise to has same meaning with lead something to.

Does lead something to have the same meaning with cause and result in?


texts: Is there anything different between "oil leakage", "oil spill" and "oil leak"? And unltimately, is spill different to leak or spill significantly?


texts:
When I ask for where a thing should be placed, I’ll say, “where does this thing go?”

When I’ve lost a thing, I’ll say, “where has it gone?” or “where did it go?”

Are my expressions natural in daily English?


texts: The past perfect event happens before which sentence? The next one or the previous one?

texts:
If there is no such word as before or when, how do I know when the past perfect event takes place? I tried to figure out the context, but which is the context, the previous sentence or the next sentence?
For example:

The Emperor straightened up and reflected.
Wellington had fallen back.
It only remained to complete this repulse with a crushing charge.
Napoleon, turning abruptly, sent off a courier at full speed to Paris to announce that the battle was won.
Napoleon was one of those geniuses from who give off thunder.
He had found his thunderbolt.
He ordered Milhaud’s cuirassiers to take the plateau of Mont-Saint-Jean.

When does the event He had found his thunderbolt take place? Which event does it happen before? The next sentence He ordered Milhaud’s cuirassiers to... or the previous sentence Napoleon turning abruptly, sent off...?


texts: Can I make an unaspirated /t/ sound in the words like "best", "chest", "belt" etc. in American English?

texts: As far as I know, if there is a vowel before the final /t/ or if there is the letter /n/ before the final /t/, we can make an unaspirated /t/ sound in American English. For example: "hot", "cut", "cent", "can't", "cat", "pit", "sit", "eight" etc. Can we do the same thing if there are other consonants than /n/ before the final /t/ as well? Or do I have to aspirate the /t/ in the words like "best", "worst", "greatest", "first", "belt", "port", "part" etc.? I mean, I know that when this kind of words are in the middle of a sentence, we can make the unaspirated /t/ sound. But can I make the same unaspirated sound when those kinds of words are at the end of sentences or clauses, or when they are the only word in a sentence? For example If I say "I am the best player in the team", I know that the /t/ in "best" can be unaspirated. But can it be unaspirated also in a sentence like "I am the best.", where the /t/ is the last sound of the sentence and there is another consonant before it? If the sentence was "I am so hot", the /t/ could be unaspirated. But as I said, I am not sure about the situations where the clause or the sentence ends with /st/, /lt/, /rt/ etc. I need help on this.


texts:
1) Considering emerging evidence arguing that this virus is prevailing, Doctor  Carter ponders whether they should segregate this patient.

2) Considering emerging evidence which is arguing that this virus is prevailing, Doctor  Carter ponders whether they should segregate this patient.

Is sentence one is correct grammatically? And is sentence one' meaning is equal to sentence two's?


texts: In volleyball, we say "She slapped the ball" or "She hit the ball"

texts:
[transitive] slap somebody/something (+ adv./prep.) to hit
  somebody/something with the flat part of your hand synonym smack

  She slapped his face hard.

  She slapped him hard across the face.

  ‘Congratulations!’ he said, slapping me on the back.

Clearly, volleyball players hit the ball using the flat part of their hands.

My question is:

In volleyball, we say "She slapped the ball away from the blockers to the corner" or "She hit the ball away from the blockers to the corner"


texts:
Which one is the right choice in the sentence?

  I like it when it snows/is snowing.

If both are correct and the tense depends on the context what is the difference?


texts: 1,000-strong battalion - meaning of "strong"?

texts:
Source: http://rt.com/news/183864-ukraine-european-volunteers-fighting/

  Aleksey Mozgovoy, the commander of ‘Prizrak’ (Ghost) brigade from the Lugansk Region said in an interview to the MK.ru news outlet that in his 1,000-strong battalion there are fighters from Bulgaria, Slovakia and Germany.

What does that mean?


texts: Present Perfect form of "manage to do something"

texts:
Yesterday a friend told me she was having a problem with an assignment and I couldn't help her. Today I was curious whether she had solved it, so I wanted to ask:

Did you manage to solve the problem?

or

Have you solved the problem?

Then I thought maybe I should write:

Have you managed to solve the problem?

But the last option sounded unnatural to me - why so?
Is there some rule of not mixing "manage to" with the Perfect forms?


texts:
This village is as peaceful as it gets.

  This village is as peaceful as it can be.

  This village is as peaceful as any can be.

Why they are all different, especially first and second?


texts: "Substantival" - doesn't fit the normal stress paradigm

texts:
According to this website, the rule for stress for words that end in -al is to stress the ante-penultimate syllable.

For substantival (sub-stan-ti-val), that should render "sub-STAN-ti-val", but doesn't. I've only ever heard it as "sub-stan-TI-val".

Dictionary.com renders the pronunciation like this: "[suhb-stuh n-tahy-vuh l] "

Does anyone have a reason for this?


texts: "feeling cold" vs "being cold" in a participle phrase

texts:
Is there any difference between these sentences? Is either one preferred?

Feeling cold, she turned the heater on.

Being cold, she turned the heater on.

I somehow feel "Feeling" is more often used looking back my English experience. (I'm a teacher, not a student.)

To tell you the background, these are two possible answers for a question in my English workbook. There is not context because it's just a grammar drill. The correct answer list shows only "Feeling" as the correct answer, though it doesn't say "Being" is wrong.


texts: Difference between, I am scared vs I get scared?

texts:
I am scared of horror movies.
I get scared of horror movies.
Initial both sentences sounds me same, but I am feeling second sentences is incomplete and its not right why to end the sentence just saying I get scared of horror movies.


texts: Can I use "small"/"big" to a noun "sound"?

texts:
Suppose that I could not hear a voice from a speaker. In this case, what is the proper adjective to a noun "sound"? Can I just use "small" (and "big"  in the opposite case as well)?

Also, if it is fine, can I use it both in a predicative or attributive use?


texts:
Could you tell me which one is okay? I think covers or is covered might be right, but the answer key has covering.

The city of Montreal covers over 70 square miles.

The city of Montreal is covered over 70 square miles.

The city of Montreal covering over 70 square miles.


texts:
The man in the wheelchair crashes into a wall. People rush over to help the man, who is screaming in pain, his wheelchair knocked/flipped/lying on its side.
Hi. I would like to know if I could use "knocked" or "flipped" here instead of "lying" so that it connects better with the accident?
Bonus question: Does the way I have constructed the sentence make it sound like the man is screaming in pain because his wheelchair is on its side?


texts:
Can I use 'being' in the following ways?

“Being a responsible worker I can not let this happen.”
“You shouldn't talk to him like that being his employee.”

Do they make sense and sound natural?


texts:
The cold air of winter drew down the crops.
From my workbook.

What is this down? Is this like breathe over?


texts:
The light has gone for a while now.
The light has been gone for a while now.

I think both of these are correct but can't understand why. Could you please shed some light on it?


texts: The only use of past perfect tense is to distinguish which event happened first in the past?

texts:
http://www.ef.com/english-resources/english-grammar/past-perfect-tense/

This website only shows one use of past perfect tense. Is there any other uses of past perfect tense?

Present perfect or simple past?
In the post above, people said that past tense is the correct answer. Would past perfect tense be right?

This tree had been planted by the settlers who found our city over four hundred years ago.


texts:
What is the difference between has and did?

Should I use

  "Has the service got extended?"

or

  "Did the service got extended?"

Here, service could be a product like Whatsapp or such.


texts:
Is there an idiom that means "fight each other with the intent to hurt each other severely"? I was thinking about "be at each other’s throats", but it seems that it's not used to mean that, rather the definition states:

  if two people are at each other’s throats, they are arguing in an
  angry way

  As soon as politics comes up, they’ll be at each other’s throats.

Are there any good idioms that come to mind?


texts: What is meant by 'intellectual infrastructure'?

texts:
Source

  Lacking the intellectual infrastructure to think through policies on its own, BJP often just toes the Congress line, even when this explicitly goes against the party’s own stand in opposition and outrages its supporters.

Also, what is 'stand in opposition'.

I think the sentence is grammatically perfect but Grammarly shows up a problem with the possessive used with the party.


texts: The use of the question "how much is this" in context

texts: Let's say my friend has bought a phone. And I want to buy the same phone, not from my friend, but at a phone store. Is natural to ask my friend how much is the phone? Would it be more natural to ask him how much does the phone cost? I think that you ask the question hom much is something only when you are at a store asking the shop assistant about the price. Being a non-native English speaker it is hard to tell whether the question how much is something sounds natural when you are asking your friends.


texts: Articles usage-a vs the in this sentence

texts:
I'm always confused about what articles to use..

Here's the sentence..

  They are getting into the state of ennui in married life.

In this sentence, I don't get why 'the' is used in front of 'state of ennui' instead of 'a' or no articles.
Also, why are there no articles in front of 'married life'? I assumed it should be 'The married life' since it's a specific married life of "they" (them) in the sentence above..


texts: in what cases should I use "out of" instead of "from"?

texts:
I heard a lot of natives speakers use "out of" instead of "from"

she is out of Mexico

I want to know why do English speakers make that change


texts: Can we factor "tag" in "a single tag or a group of tags"

texts:
In sentence I made

  the user identifies the range of nodes which are affected by single or a group of tags

Is it acceptable to say "by single or a group of tags" which means "by  single tag or a group of tags"?

I mean how can I factor out the "tag" in this phrase and if "by single or group of tags" is a grammatical phrase or not?

Update: it is suggested to use "a" before single and say "a single tag or a group of tags".
But how do you justify the big number of results (more than 3 million results) for the phrase "by single or group of " in Google?


texts: Why is "Tell me about....!" not rude, but "Give me the pen!" is; whereas both are imprerative clause?

texts:
It is quite often on TV channels that when TV presenters ask their guests to talk about somehing funny or important things they often use this structure: "Tell me about XXXX".

We are taught at school that imperative clauses are not polite, so when we ask someone to do something, we should use structures such as "could you please..., would you please..., can you please....., to avoid being rude, just like when you say "give me the pen" or "turn down the TV".

But then, why do TV presenters often use "Tell me about..." and are not regarded as rude? Is it not rude to directly say to someone "Tell me about...?"

Regards,


texts:
Can Someone knows his/her business be interpreted as Somone knows his/her stuff?
I want to say that someone is very knowledgeable or skilled in some area.
I can't find such a phrase in a dictionary other than quotes, can you say this? "Someone knows his/her business".


texts: "A world-spanning empire" What does it mean?

texts:
These self-satisfied cotton manufacturers and merchants had reason to be smug: They stood at the center of a world-spanning empire—the empire of cotton.

This is a sentence from the book Empire of Cotton. I looked up world-spanning, but it apparently doesn't exist in dictionaries. A post on WordReference suggests it possibly means worldwide. What does this word mean exactly? And how common is it?


texts: Need Help Understanding the Meaning of Certain Topics in a Writing Contest

texts:
I wish to write an entry for a writing contest. The contest requires a piece of 2,000 words, and gives the following four themes or topics that I may choose to write on. But because English is not my mother tongue, I am having difficulty understanding the topics. The topics are:

  The Meaning of Me
  Paved or Unpaved Ways
  Because This is What Matters, and
  The Bravest Place on Earth.

I am particularly mystified by the second one, "Paved and Unpaved Ways." Please help me by explaining what you think these topic titles mean, and what you think they are asking for.


texts:
Are both of the following sentences grammatically correct and, if so, is there any siginificant difference between simple and progressive aspect here?

  I give up (on sth. / sb.)

  I'm giving up (on sth. / sb.)


texts: "glad to find you" or "glad to found you"

texts:
At the end of an email to a stranger:

  Glad to find you!

or

  Glad to found you!

Which one is grammatically correct? Find or found?


texts: Is the answer "positive" to the question "How are you" - considered acceptable?

texts:
Is the answer "positive" to the question "How are you" - considered acceptable in meaning of "I am OK"? I have tried to get an answer in a dictionary, but I couldn't find it there, therefore as the last resort I have chosen to use the wisdom of the crowd.

  Questioner: How are you?

  The person who answers: positive.

N.B. If you answer I'd like to know whether your answer represents British or American English.


texts: Thinking how long this illness would last/would be over(phrase/modal usage)

texts:
Let's say you were storytelling your childhood illness. And you say:

  It's not not my cup of tea to fret, but the constant sneezing, chilling due to fever, and body weakness I was experiencing was unbelievable. I was thinking how long this illness would last/would end.

Which is correct? Both don't sound right to me, because I was thinking if I should use the 'first conditional' modal verb over the 'second conditional' or should I just need a set phrase here(as I've said the bold letter are not good to my ear.


texts:
Does the next sentence have sense and is it correct?

  We will have decided to have arrived by 9 pm?

We can say:

  I will have come by Monday.

It's Future Pefect - an action before some moment in the future. But what if we have not 1 action (to come) but 2 (will want to come, will have enough time to come, will ask to come etc.". What then? Which one should be in Perfect?


texts:
It gives you opportunity you would not have otherwise had.

It is a conditional sentence, but without "if". The meaning of the last part is fathomable to me. And now my questions are:

  1- Why was not "if" used?
  2- What is the role of "otherwise" from grammatical standpoint?


texts:
Never Let Me Go

  So I remember a lot of the time, outside the summer months, being
  chilly. You went around with two, even three jumpers on, and your
  jeans felt cold and stiff.

I wonder, why is the outdoor chilly in the summer?


texts:
May be we are not such fools as we look. But though we be, we are well content, so long as we may be two fools together.\

Does this mean

"It may be that we are not as foolish as we look. But even if we are, we are OK as long as we are both foolish"???


texts: Is "his" ambiguious in this sentence about Russell Wallace and Darwin?

texts:
When Russell Wallace and Darwin independently proposed similar theories, Darwin had already accumulated extensive evidence with which to support his ideas.

I found that on 'Majortest.com'. Here it is said that using his is wrong as it is an ambiguous pronoun. By using "his" it is unclear if the evidence supports Darwin, Wallace, or both?
To correct this should I use his own or something else?


texts: Why does the book say there is an error in 'Conventionally speaking'?

texts:
I found this sentence in an English book which has some exercises to spot errors.

The sentence is this:

  Conventionally speaking (1)

  men are supposed to earn while (2)

  women are supposed to sit at home, (3)

  do housework and discipline the children. (4)

  No error (5)

The book says that there is error in the line number (1). There is no explanation or anything as to what is wrong or why.


texts:
I have a question regarding the correct use of semicolon. I know that we use semicolon to separate two independent clauses with no conjunctions. However, I have a problem with separating the following run-on sentence:

She found the house once she didn't think she could find it again.

I can think of two ways to correct the sentence:

She found the house. Once she didn't think she could find it again.
She found the house once. She didn't think she could find it again.

I think that the first sounds more natural because I couldn't find any reason to put a period after once. However, my English professor said that the answer is the second one. Right now I am confused as to which one is correct.
I would be glad if you guys could tell me which one is better.


texts: The meaning of 'shade' in a poem by Jean Toomer

texts:
I'm uncertain about the meaning of shade in the last line of Jean Toomer's "Reapers"

Black reapers with the sound of steel on stones
Are sharpening scythes. I see them place the hones
In their hip-pockets as a thing that’s done,
And start their silent swinging, one by one.
Black horses drive a mower through the weeds,
And there, a field rat, startled, squealing bleeds.
His belly close to ground. I see the blade,
Blood-stained, continue cutting weeds and shade.

Is it a noun (the blade is cutting shade) or a verb (the blade shades away at the author watches)?


texts: What does it mean to say "f*** this n***a" here, and when to use it

texts:
I was reading some jokes on Facebook when I saw this.
What does it mean and when will you use it?


texts: Do you bring to mind the specific time and place when you use the Past Verb?

texts: I've been thinking about it for a while but couldn't come up with how I should ask this. They always say like the Present Perfect is for the unspecific, unknown times or several actions in the past. I mean, at least they say when you use Present Perfect, you don't need to bring up the specific precise time. Then, on the contrary, when you use the Past Tense, do you ALWAYS bring to mind any specific point in your mind?


texts: The simple past tense vs. the simple present tense

texts:
Historians have long been puzzled by dots, lines and symbols which have been engraved on walls, bones, and the ivory tusks of mammoths. The nomads who made these markings lived by hunting and fishing during the last Ice Age which began about 35,000 B.C. and ended about 10,000 B.C. By correlating markings made in various parts of the world, historians have been able to read this difficult code. They have found that it is connected with the passage of days and the phases of the moon. It is, in fact, a primitive type of calendar. It has long been known that the hunting scenes depicted on walls were not simply a form of artistic expression. They had a definite meaning, for they were as near as early man could get to writing. It is possible that there is a definite relation between these paintings and the markings that sometimes accompany them. It seems that man was making a real effort to understand the seasons 20,000 years earlier than has been supposed.

Why does the author use the simple present or present perfect in "have been engraved", "is connected" and "is a primitive type of calendar" as highlighted above, to describe the findings about the markings, while using the simple past tense in "were not simply", "had a definite meaning" and "were as near", to describe the findings about the hunting scenes?

Can we use them the other way around?


texts: 'Committed', 'made' and 'did' a blunder/mistake?

texts:
Though all convey the same message, I'd like to know the subtlety, if any.

  I committed a blunder/mistake   I made a blunder/mistake   I did a blunder/mistake

Note: I'm clear about what is a blunder and what is a mistake. So basically, in the context of blunder/mistake, which verb (do, make, commit) means what? Is there any specific occasion we should use 'commit' and not 'make' or 'do' and not 'make' or the like.


texts: I thought it was a custom in English to write "it is raining" instead of "rain is falling". Still I don't know why the second construction is wrong. Yet I found a song called Rain is Falling, so I'm confused. Is this construction entirely wrong?


texts:
I wrote this sentence "I have been aware, that my job is good" but my friend told me is not correct an answer. He said "I'm aware that my job is good"

Why I can't use present perfect?


texts: Do the two given sentences mean the same?

texts:
"I have a few poems, and i'd like to know what people make of them."

Now, if i were to convey what's conveyed in the sentence above, could i say "I have a few poems i'd like to know what people make of."?
Would it be grammatically correct, and convey the same meaning as the sentence used above?


texts: Why should a phrase be called as "think tank" and not as as "thinking tank"?

texts:
Source

I wonder why should we form the phrase using combination of two nouns-think and tank. Should it not be grammatical to use a noun and a verb for forming a noun phrase like thinking tank. What's the idea?


texts: What does "to be kinetic" mean in context (applied to a person)?

texts:
This is about using the adjective kinetic (related to, exhibiting, motion, kinesis/AHDotEL; dynamic/energetic, a kinetic performer/MW) to describe someone in a composition with a contrasting element:

  He was kinetic and yet totally in control.

  Life in Motion: An Unlikely Ballerina, Copeland, Jones

Seemingly not so common when used as an adjective with he/she and the verb to be (ngram). Kinetic is most definitely of Greek origin. Yet it feels (to me) it's more often used with inanimate objects, with science (kinetic energy etc.). Upon reading the quote it reminded me of someone being ecstatic, something going ballistic, or a magnetic/kinetic type of personality and such, because it rhymes I guess and I'm not clear as to what this means beyond the idea of motion. But someone per se being kinetic, is that emotion or motion? Is that moving or dancing?

Is that a typical, idiomatic and expressive use of kinetic in
context?
What is the meaning of kinetic here, what does the expression mean, and what are the connotations the composition carries?

Is that a classical ballet term? Is there an ellipsis of some noun i.e. what is really kinetic here? I'm not clear on the context (the impression from the person walking up the stage or the performance or a state of being of the performer per se)
Had one said he was ballistic but on target, or
bouncing off the walls yet always in control, or just that he had amazing movement coordination, how would that be different?


texts: Is it superfluous to use 'that' with Verb 'BET'?

texts:
For example
1.She bet that her father will call her today.
2.She bet her father will call her today.


texts: Is "The readers are not limited to musicians" correct?

texts:
What I would like to express is that the readers of something I wrote are not necessarily a certain group of people, such as musicians. And then I wrote "The readers are not limited to musicians" but now feel unsure of.

Would you please tell me if this sentence conveys exactly what I intend to say?


texts:
Source: http://www.vox.com/2014/12/1/7313443/vladimir-putin-merkel

  Putin first took power in 2000, but the nature of his rule changed in 2012, when he won reelection amid public protests and accusations of fraud. Those protests, along with the collapse of Russia's economy from growth-powerhouse to the edge of recession, have left Putin feeling obviously and correctly insecure about his hold on power. At the same time, in the wake of the cold war Russian leaders and regular citizens have felt increasingly insecure in the America-dominated world. They have a sense that Russia is under siege from without and has been robbed of its rightful status as a world power.

What does this word mean? And why is there no article in front of it?


texts: Which use of possessive is correct "I'm grateful for my mother's love" or "I'm grateful for the love of my mother"?

texts:
Which use of possessive is correct

"I'm grateful for my mother's love"

or

"I'm grateful for the love of my mother" ?

Or are they both correct, but carry different meaning? I would say "my mother's love" but I can't find a logical explanation for that. Can anyone help me? Possessive case always confuses me, because I don't understand the logic behind choosing 's or of.


texts: Sentence improvement : He summarily dismissed in a fit of rage what his son told him

texts:
He summarily dismissed in a fit of rage what his son told him.

Or

  In a fit of rage he summarily dismissed  what his son told him.

Which of the two sentence is better than the other and why ?
This is actually a sentence improvement question asked in my exam, the actual given sentence was He summarily dismissed what his son told him in a fit of rage. I had four options, I managed to rule out two of them but not able to decide between the above given options.


texts: Russian or Russians? (Substantivized adjectives)

texts:
It's a very simple question, but I feel puzzled for some reason.

  I am Russian. They are... Russian or Russians? (Some people from Russia
  are meant here.)

  He is Greek. They are... Greek or Greeks?

I would say "They are Russian/Greek/English/Portuguese". Should I use the adjective (Russian) or substantivized adjective (Russians) in sentences like these?

Please correct me if I am wrong.


texts: Meaning of 'I'm not saying that' in this paragraph

texts:
This is a quote from 'The Catcher in the Rye' of J. D. Salinger.

They're quite touchy about anything like that, especially my father.
They're nice and all--I'm not saying that--but they're also touchy as
hell. Besides, I'm not going to tell you my whole goddam autobiography
or anything.

I think what Salinger wanted to say is his parents are touchy.
But he doesn't want to criticize his parents. So he first negates the fact

I'm not saying that they're also touchy as hell.

and then going on to tell the truth that they are touchy.

but they're also touchy as hell

But I am not sure if my understanding is right.


texts: "Past perfect progressive" vs "past progressive"- Can we use the adverbial phrases of time with past progressive?

texts:
I know one of the main differences between past perfect progressive and past progressive is the fact that the latter can be used when the duration of an event or its exact timing is not important to us. In fact, to me, it's like a huge help, making the sentence construction more simple.

Now Consider these:

  The computer was working flawlessly for two hours before you inserted that disk.
  The computer had been working flawlessly for two hours before you inserted that disk.

My question:

If we can use an adverb of time as in #1?
Do they mean the same thing?


texts: What is the meaning of "imbibe the imbibements"?

texts:
Though no statistics are available, it is probably safe to asssume that few of them regularly drop their butts and boogie to rock music, and that even fewer imbibe the imbibements which were easing the inhibitions of Lee Atwater`s audience.

Can anybody explain what "imbibe the imbibements" precisely means in the sentence above, quoted from the Chicago Tribune? Does there "imbibement" consist of a non material substance?


texts: What would I call a person who is good in words only?

texts: I want a word for a person who doesn't know much but is extremely good with words. The words he uses are pompous but he doesn't write anything concrete. If you are wondering, it's not fiction. I am talking about the people who publish their articles in newspapers but do not say anything substantial. I need a colloquial word, and it should be derogatory, not a compliment about the person's vocabulary prowess.


texts: what is the intention and real purpose of writer in this context?

texts:
what is the intention of writer in this context?
"does it say that assertions of that woman and mental position of those who heard them can destroy a serious and crucial investigation?"

  It is a curious psychological study, and equally curious is the mental
  attitude of the people who could imagine that the assertions of an
  unbalanced woman, acting not only from motives of hatred but also
  from—as she herself stated—the hope of pecuniary reward, could upset
  the critical investigation of a generation of observers.

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


texts: Difference - "never learn" and "never learned"

texts:
If someone ask me to teach something but I want to tell them I never do it before

What's I should say and what's the difference between these sentences

  I never learn it

  I have/had never learn it

  I never learned it

  I have/had never leaned it

Thanks in advance!


texts: idiomatic way to describe an approximate time during a stated month

texts:
What is the best idiomatic way to point out an approximate time that happened during a month?
For example:

During the first semester he was basically passive and just observing
things. During the second semester, however, there was a small change
in him somewhere in April when he began participating in small
discussions in class and became more active in team competitions.

"sometime in April" ?

"somewhere during April"?

"somewhere in April"?

"sometime during April"?

something else?


texts: Would you replace "like" with some other word in writing "I like the fact that something can be helpful"?

texts:
Would you replace "like" with some other word in formally writing "I like the fact that something can be helpful"?

For example, does "like" sound informal in the following formal writing:

  I hope to study mathematics, because I like the fact that mathematics can help in virtually every professional field.

Thanks!


texts: Is it natural to say that somebody is ‘a newbie in English/Chinese’, or any other language?


texts:
The employee is struggling to deliver against the goals.

Does "deliver against the goals" mean different from "deliver the goals"? It seems the meaning is the same, but I am not sure. What does "deliver against" mean? I couldn't find the meaning from dictionaries.


texts: What can be called parents excessively worried about their children's safety?

texts:
There's a type of parents who worry too much about what bad may happen to their children. Thinking that they are preventing some possible evil, they may be constantly spying on their children,  or secretly searching their things and interfering in their lives without the kids' knowing it. As for their other adult worries in comparison with ordinary people, they can't be called worrywarts.

So I'm in search for a single word—in case there is one in English— to describe those parents,  both regarding their gender and disregarding it. In my native language, there are not the one-word equivalents I can think of to use a dictionary.

Maybe there is also a saying or a slang expression for such parents and for what they are doing to "guard" their children in that way?


texts: The room felt cold because we (didn't close/hadn't closed) the windows. Which option is correct?

texts:
Both sentences sound correct to me, but one is more grammatically correct. Which one and why?

The room felt cold because we didn't close the windows.

The room felt cold because we hadn't closed the windows.


texts:
What's this structure and is it common to speak like that?

I got into trouble yesterday, again.
How like you.


texts:
Actually Jim came to Sister Ana for know about Johnny who grew up near her, So She showed him photos of Johnny.

  Jim: This is Johnny. He looks so happy.

  Sister Ana: He should. That's sister Julie(in photo). His Physics teacher.

  Jim: I always liked Physics.

  Sister Ana: So did Johnny. He disgraced sister Julie who had to leave
  the order.

What does order means here?


texts:
The figures will likely strengthen concern among economists already
  worried about how Japan's domestic-driven recovery will fare once the
  nation's sales tax is raised to 8% from 5% in April.

I parse the sentence like this:

  The figures / will likely strengthen / concern / among economists/ (who/ are)
  already / worried/ about (how /Japan's domestic-driven recovery /will
  fare / once / the nation's sales tax / is raised / to 8% from 5% / in
  April). Economists / expect / at least a temporary chill / in demand
  (when / the new rate / goes into effect.)

I wonder whether the way I parse the sentence is right.


texts: to have something done in future continious

texts:
I wonder what is the correct form of using 'to have something done' in future continuous.

As example let's take a hypothetical situation that a new island has just been discovered and the explorer says that he thinks that new islands will keep to be discovered in the future.

Is it correct to say: "I think that new islands will keep be having/getting discovered in the next 5 years"?


texts:
I am not sure about my use of the word crosscheck.

I have a sentence similar to:

  To ensure the program correctness, we manually crosscheck the
  program's xyz function, and the product expiration and validation
  results, with results provided by the zzz program and the yyy tool, on
  a random sample of a few hundred products.

To clarify: I have a program which performs some functions. I compared the results of this program's functions against those provided by another program and tool. I want to say this is the way I used to test its correctness.

Is my sentence readable, correct, and conveys the meaning?


texts: Can we use "retrospectively" for an event in the future?

texts:
For the following scenarios, can we use "retrospectively" or do we have to use "afterwards" and its synonyms.

Example

  Let's agree to the plan for now and figure out the details    retrospectively.
  Let's check "yes, I have completed the training" for    now and do    the actual training retrospectively.

Based on the definition, retrospectively is defined as

definition

  in a way that relates to or involves thinking about something that    happened in the past
  with effect from a date in the past before a    law, decision, etc.    was approved:

However, I seem to have heard that people (not knowing if they are native speakers) at times use it in a situation similar to the above examples. Or would it be a considered a misuse/incorrect use of the word retrospective(ly).


texts: Can I say cheerfuler ? Or is it better to say cheerfully. Like 'more good' -'better' ?


texts: What does the pronoun "they" refer to in this sentence "in how many ways can they select the host for these championships"

texts:
I am reading a textbook on statistics.

There is confusion about a paragraph in an exercise.

  If the NCAA has applications from six universities for hosting its intercollegiate tennis championships in 1998 and 1999, in how many ways can they select the host for these championships

  (a)
  if they are not both to be held at the same university;

  (b)
  if they may both be held at the same university?

The pronoun "they" appears three times.

The second and third "they" refer to "these two championships".

But I am not sure what subject the first "they" refers to.

Does the first "they" refer to "six universities"or "applicarions"?


texts: I missed the train because I was mistaken about the time of my train. In this case, should I say, "I got mixed up with the times." or "I got the times mixed up.  Another example is that I mistook X from Y. They are two people.  In this case, which sentence is correct, "I got mixed up about X and Y." or "I got X mixed up with Y."?


texts: The definite articles before names of people and their professions

texts:
I have observed that sometimes there are professions before names of people then "the" is omitted or used. For example:

  The teacher Mark Henry will tell us more.

  Psychologist David Cook will see tomorrow.

So,  is it correct to use "the" before such structures, or both are correct?


texts:
Anger is an acid that can do more harm to the vessel in which it is stored than to anything on which it is poured.

I'm not sure what "anything on which it is poured" actually means.
I looked up the dictionary searching for "pour" and "pour on" and tried to construct the sentence but I got more confused. If you poured the acid on "anything", isn't it the same thing as storing the acid in since the "acid" would still remain? Or is it just the matter of degree?


texts:
I've been mixing grain and grapa.

There is not enough information about this idiom on the internet. The idiom means that one is mixing (drinking) different kinds of alcohol which should lead to a hangover. I've seen also these wordings: "a grain and a grapa," "the grain and the grapa," "grain and grappa." And I have not find a single usage on Ngram. (Interestingly the word grappa is becoming more and more popular since 1920).

What is the standard usage and would people understand it today? (Can you give an account so when someone googles it they find this page.)


texts: Shouldn't there be "bogie" instead of "bogey" in this sentence?

texts:
I read a sentence in a chapter in my book which was:

  A bogey of a train that was returning from Ayodhya and was full of Karsevaks was set on fire.

I didn't find any dictionary describing the word "bogey" in the sense it has been used in here. So I want to know whether it is acceptable to use the word "bogey" as a variant of "bogie"?


texts:
When I saw her fight him, I was surprised at how strong she was.

  When I saw her fight him, I was surprised by how strong she was.

Do both the sentences mean the same thing regardless of which preposition we use in them?


texts: What is the tricky point of saying "float one's boat"?

texts:
What was going on in this discussion about the phrase “I don’t bite"?

The translation:

The comments:

If you happen to be on a mobile device, the conversation runs like this:

  Translation: I don't bite.
  Response 1: Unless that's what floats your boat.
  Response 2: But Luis Suarez does
  Response 3: This could go in the flirting lesson

Face palm. It seems that it relates to Luis Suarez according to the discussion and sexual attraction according to this Twitter.

  Brendan Rodgers "Luis Suarez is one of the most beautiful men you can
  come across" Whatever floats your boat lad... #SkySports #Celtic

Could anyone please explain that a little bit?


texts: 'I know him before I know you' or 'I've known him before I've known you'

texts:
Which one is the correct sentence?

  I know him before I know you

or

  I've known him before I've known you


texts: Which is the right preposition when referring to OS? "In" or "on"?

texts:
I can see two expressions about Operating System: "on Linux" and "in Linux". E.g.:

  The application can run on Linux.

  The application can run in Linux.

Which one is right? Or both are right?


texts:
This is, I believe, crucial, because one might misunderstood the slight difference of prepositions; and these are:

  There is a wound in the back of my body.(any part,but still the backside)

  There is a wound at the back of my body.(anal part)

Could you please confirm this if I'm correct?


texts: what does "still" imply in a question sentence?

texts:
In grammar books it is written that we use "still" in affirmative sentences.

So, what about the following? I am confused.

  Is it still raining?


texts: Which one is most general way to refer to a generic item?

texts:
When I want to say, generally speaking, alligators are dangerous, which one is best?

a. Alligators are dangerous animals.

b. Alligators are an dangerous animal.

c. An alligator is an dangerous animal.

d. The alligator is an dangerous animal.


texts:
Here is the sentence:

For a more detailed  investigation of the porosity a small sample with ground surfaces was prepared out of the lager plate.

This is taken from a technical text about development of polyvinylsilazane-derived ceramic matrix composites.


texts:
Which of the following sentences is correct?

Original text from resource:

  These Kinetoscope arcades were modeled on phonograph parlors, which
  had proven successful for Edison several years earlier.

Text that I think should be:

  These Kinetoscope arcades were modeled on phonograph parlors, which
  had proven success for Edison several years earlier.


texts:
Does digital money-printing mean money-printing using digital techniques/machines here?
A major reason was the $2.2 trillion stimulus bill the government passed in May, along with Federal Reserve digital money-printing that saw the central bank balance sheet swell by more than $3 trillion.
Source: https://www.cnbc.com/2021/01/05/cash-in-circulation-is-soaring-and-that-usually-means-good-things-for-the-economy.html


texts: What is the meaning of "I made up my mind as a young kid "

texts:
I met my father for the first time when I was 28 years old.
  And I made up my mind as a young kid...
  ...that when I had children...
  ...my children were gonna know who their father was.
  (Source.)


texts:
If we consider the following sentences:

  If we go right or if we climb to the roof, the alarm goes off.

  If we go right or we climb to the roof, the alarm goes off.

Which one is correct?


texts: Meaning of "grades" in "most grades of diplomat"?

texts:
In an article of The Economist:

  On March 27th the government shocked embassies in Beijing by declaring a halt to the issuing of new identity cards for most grades of diplomat.

What does "grade" mean here? I see no applicable meaning of it in any common dictionaries.


texts: What is the difference between using 'as president' and 'as a president'?

texts:
Someone asked why we can't use as the president/as a president in this sentence.

When teachers were upset about the stringent accountability measures
Barack Obama imposed on them as president.

And can we apply this grammar rules with other professions like teachers/principals/managers/etc? Thank you!


texts:
What does "what can it buy us" mean? When is it used?

For example:

  We should try to understand, what for are these theories created, as Americans say, what can it buy us.


texts: How many consonant and vowel combination types are there in English?

texts:
I'm an ESL learner and I'm not so good at English yet.
I want to find official documents, links, guides, etc. which contain rules about consonants and vowels blending together.
Which rules decide which letters can go together and which cannot?
For example:

q must go with u:
qu-

Are there any good references you can provide me with?


texts: Are you ready to lose your 5 teeth but achieve your goal? Is "ready" a well-chosen adjective? What about the but clause?

texts:
I want to make a sentence which asks how far a person is willing to go to achieve a goal. I wrote:

Anytime you want to make sure that you are serious enough about your dream, ask yourself:

  Are you ready to lose your 5 teeth but achieve your goal.

I have two problems with this self made sentence.

Is "ready" a good adjective, because I think "ready" is usually used in different type of sentences like "Are you ready for the trip?"
I am not sure about the "but achieve to your goal" part. Is it even grammatical at the first place, put aside being idiomatic!


texts: how do pronounce assignment = in math or programming?

texts:
I know you pronounce equality == in if(x == 5) this way

  If x equals to 5 . . .

But how do you utter it in a coding context (assignment); i.e. = in x=5 ?

maybe something like:

  x be assigned to 5

What would you say?


texts: Can anybody explain the structure "to be for somebody to do something" in this context, please?

texts:
Does it mean "The next test for the economy is whether businesses will offer significant pay hikes, and households will keep spending as consumer prices rise."?

"The next test for the economy is for businesses to offer significant pay hikes, and for households to keep spending as consumer prices rise."

https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2017-08-14/japan-beats-its-g-7-peers-as-domestic-demand-fuels-surge-in-GDP


texts:
From Self Hypnosis for Beginners:

  In particular attention is a drawn to the way in which activity in one part or subsystem of the brain can lead quite naturally, but usually in a little time, to activity in another part.

What does drawn mean in the above text? I guess there is a mistake and a drawn should be changed to drawn, but I am not sure.


texts:
Bicycles are parked where the sidewalk is wide.

The sidewalk is wide here.

If I want to say bicycles are parked on the wide part of the sidewalk or this part of the sidewalk is wide, are they correct?


texts: "The task of science,as we know , is to discover facts..."

texts:
"The task of science,as we know , is to discover facts; but a haphazard collection of facts cannot ______________________ a science "

According to my test book, the answer for the blank is that " be said to constitute "   but there was another option on the answers of the question which is " be said that it constitutes "

So I would like to ask why can't we say that

"The task of science,as we know , is to discover facts; but a haphazard collection of facts cannot be said that it constitutes a science "  Does it make a sense in this way?

Thanks


texts:
Dubbing animations and movies is much harder than dubbing documentaries.

Is it necessary to repeat dubbing here?


texts: Does it make sense by saying 'upon facing......'

texts:
The sentence I wish to write is

  Upon facing difficulties, I will work hard.

Does this sentence make sense? Am I using 'upon' correctly?


texts: correct usage of "not only...but also" in the following sentences

texts:
I'm trying to write 2 sentences with "not only...but also", but I don't really no if they are correct or not!

1.I don’t like to go to college because not only it costs a lot but they also might waste my time by teaching unnecessary topics.
2.as a junior or senior web developer, not only you can work for companies but you also can work as a self-employed.


texts: Is ‘i will arrive at 1:45’ a correct sentence? Can we use arrive with ‘i’ and ‘time’?

texts: I m confused..!! Can someone please help me? I coudn’ find the answer even on the net.


texts: Which one is correct- '1980's Wimbledon' or 'Wimbledon of 1980'?

texts:
I stuck to one point while writing a blog. Basically, I wrote ...

  'This technology is used in tennis since 1980's Wimbledon.

But then...

  This technology is used in tennis since Wimbledon of 1980.'

...also looks fine to me.

My questions are: Which one of this is correct? If both are correct then which style is more preferable?

I also welcome suggestions to improve the given sentence.


texts: Which adjective would you use in this case?

texts:
I am writing to a friend of mine and I can't find a proper word to describe two language-learning courses in Duolingo.

  As for the Duolingo German and Spanish courses, I find them to be ...

The message I want to convey is that I think that they took care of every detail while they were making them.

Would you simply say well-made? Is there a more proper term to use to talk about the act of caring about the details?


texts: Word for a person who sews at an industrial level

texts:
Some other questions.

Is it ok to say that someone is a "sewer"? Is that the noun for that verb?

So, I'm basically looking for the word "sewer" but at an industrial level. Mainly because in my native language (Spanish) we do have a word, and I would like to use it in a project I'm currently working on.


texts: Put the batteries,take out,out it back in

texts:
If a remote control has no batteries in it,is it natural to say:

  I have to put the batteries in the remote control. (Or should it be : I have to insert the batteries in)

And if we remove the batteries,

  I took the batteries out of the remote control.

And if some removes the batteries that are working, is it natural to say:

  Hey,put them back in.

(And similarly  if someone inserts dead batteries back into the remote,is it natural to say: Take them back out!)

Are my sentences natural?


texts: Timepass or Passtime - I'm confused between InE and IntE

texts:
Two definitions straight from the Oxfordcitionaries

pastime (n) - An activity that someone does regularly for enjoyment rather than work; a hobby.
timepass (n) - The action or fact of passing the time, typically in an aimless or unproductive way.

The latter word is Indian English. Though the dictionary has not mentioned this word as a verb, here, it's common to say (though in an informal way) "Don't timepass, the work has to be finished in an hour."
What if I want to refer pastime as timepass and timepass as pastime. In other words, what if I want to ask a native speaker that how does s/he passes her time (timepass) and an Indian about how does s/he does pastime?
An example for the native speakers on timepass:

"Narendra, why are you throwing stones in the river?" ~ "Ah, I'm waiting for my friend. She hasn't come yet."
"And throwing stones?" ~ "Just simply... timepass."

Here, by no means timepass is done for enjoyment. Nor is it a hobby.
Note: To most of Indians, pastime is actually timepass. Because if you ask about pastime, you are very likely to get an answer about timepass.


texts: Is this sentence “Horses are a useful animal.” correct?

texts:
I know a lot of people would say the correct sentence is “Horses are useful animals.”

But I think we can say “Computers are an important research tool.”, so I think we can say  “Horses are a useful animal.”

Am I wrong? Please explain.


texts: Correct usage of auxiliary verbs in a complex sentences with multiple tenses

texts:
Please correct me if it is wrong...,

"Do you know when our next class is starting  ?"

                        or

"Do you know when our next class starts?"

Thanks in Advance.


texts:
Ran into this:
I do hope that all the workers of our society will one day have to their lawful and rightful rights.

Is the use of have to correct?

I normally would say "I do hope that all the workers of our society will one day reach/get their lawful and rightful rights."


texts:
If I want to describe a development process of some company called "The Company", should I use "'s" at the end of the company name(The Company)?

What are the cases when I shouldn't use " 's " at the end?

The Company's Development Process

Is this the correct form of saying this?

Thanks!


texts: How to call the separating road from a main road? A turn? A side road?

texts:
This is question on transportation terminology: How to call a road, typically a minor road, branching off the main road, to lead somewhere else. That is the road leading off the T junction .

I can use "turn". But in my experience, the turn usually means and action of turning, turning the steer wheel; or a shape of a road, like hairpin bend, because one has to do a lot of turning; I m not sure if it can be applied to the road.

Examples where "turn" or "turning" can be used (I think):
"Sorry guys, we are late because we missed the turning you recommended."
"Don't miss the turn, it's just behind petrol station but it's badly marked."
"After the petrol station, take the second turn; there are no sing posts, you have to count them."

In this case using "turn" can be misleading:
"I nearly missed the turn leading to the French Sector where we hired our car".
Wouldn't listeners though that I nearly missed a road bend, that is I nearly drove off the road?

Example where "turn" cannot be used (I think):
"The turn is just a gravel country road, don't miss it." Here specifically the off-leading-road is referenced as being a gravel one.

I some situation I can use T junction, but sometimes I want to reference just the road leading off, not the intersection bit. See in this example:
"The T junction is just a gravel country road, don't miss it."
The junction here, the actual intersection, indeed is not made of gravel; it's a proper tarmac road, only that "new", inferior road, leading away from that intersection is made of gravel.

There is a snappy Czech term I'm looking to translate: "odbočka"; roughly translated as the away-road.

UPDATE
Fixed turn -> turning as pointed out in the comments.


texts:
I am interested in the article usage in this specific expression. I see that sometimes 'a' and sometimes the zero article is used. The zero article seems to prevail, though.
Is the article simply optional or are there some kind of restrictions on when you can use it?
The Merriam-Webster's Learner's Dictionary:

The driver was taken to the hospital where he was reported to be in
(a) good/stable/critical condition.

The Oxford Advanced Learner's Dictionary:

a used car in perfect condition
The house is in a generally poor condition.


texts: Is the phrase "wide swath" used here idiomatically, or is it just referring to a not thin line of people?

texts: NEW YORK — Perry Ellis is not a brand that makes men nervous or causes them to titter. Even if a work-a-day guy doesn’t wear Perry Ellis clothes, he probably recognizes the name from those times he has wandered through a department store looking to stock up on dress shirts. Perry Ellis is not niche; it is mass. And its creative director, Michael Maccari designed a spring 2016 collection that was welcoming to a wide swath of men. Board shorts, crewneck sweaters, lean — but not tight — suits. Rich colors but nothing too psychedelic.


texts: English equivalent for French “se garer comme un chacal"?

texts: I heard the French expression “se garer comme un chacal" in the TV show Les Guignols de l'info a few years ago, meaning parking carelessly. Is there equivalent  English expression?


texts:
Here's from a TV show "3rd Rock from the Sun"

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CKeXnzoc0pI

6:04

  For future reference, I have a red Volvo.
  Please, Dr. Albright! We barely know each other.
  (laugh)

I wonder why it's funny.
Well, I got a wild guess, but I'm not sure if it's right.


texts: Present perfect/past simple with "over the past months/years etc"

texts:
I have been following a diet over the past months but I haven't lost
   any weight. I have tried everything but nothing has worked. A couple
   of times I thought about giving up and I was about to quit but I never
   gave in to that tempation

Is what I have written well-written from the grammatical point of view?
Should I say "I have never given in to temptation" instead?

Sometimes I have trouble understanding when to stop using present perfect and use past simple when using expressions such as "Over the past months" and similar.


texts: Will this change the meaning of the sentence?

texts:
In this sentence:

  You can send e-mails to targeted photo buyers and include a link to your website.

If I change the word 'targeted' to 'target', will this make any changes to the meaning of the sentence? Or, will it be grammatically incorrect?


texts: In my region is it usual that we say 'white' for hair which is not black or brown anymore as the age passes. But I've recently come to know that the word 'grey' can also be used instead of 'white'. Which word do you native use? The colour that I mean to ask about can be seen in the image.


texts: Why was "depart from the country" incorrect on this test question?

texts:
In question number 5, if we see surrounding sentences. There is a pattern that two sentence joined by a single comma and the latter is a verb. I applied that idea and marked D. Got the question wrong.

  I had never left the state, let alone 5. departing from the country.

The options are:

  A - No Change
  B - the country.
  C - from the country.
  D - depart from the country.

The correct answer is B. However, I think B makes the sentence unclear. Please help me with this question: Why B, Not D?


texts: What's the meaning of "be married to a cliché"?

texts:
She’s married to a cliché.

I've come across with the phrase above in a novel.

Could you tell me please what the meaning of "be married to a cliché" is?

The fuller text is:

  She sits down on the bed in the gloomy room and pulls her husband’s
  cell out of her pocket and looks at it.   [...] Then she looks at the
  texts. She starts from the top of the list, ignoring names of people
  she knows, but then she sees a woman’s name she doesn’t recognize. She
  clicks on it and opens the text [...]

  Idk. I have to go away this weekend with the nag.

  When will I see you again?

  [...] She fights tears and continues reading.

  I miss you terribly!

  Do you miss me?

  Attached to the text is a picture of her, topless, with a shameless
  grin. Beverly stares at the photo, shocked to her core. She’s young,
  and gorgeous. A home-wrecker. She knows nothing about life at all. She
  can’t imagine what this girl sees in her husband. If she’s after money
  she’s going to be disappointed. He’s not going to have any left when
  she’s done with him, Beverly thinks furiously. She’s not going to
  divorce him. Surely this is just a temporary infatuation, a midlife
  fling. He’s made a mistake. A mistake that they can recover from. She
  doesn’t want to lose him. She needs him. She tabs up quickly through
  the rest of the texts to the beginning of the thread, anxious to see
  how long this has been going on. Only about a month. He met her at a
  bar. She’s married to a cliché. Well, now she knows. Her finger itches
  to send a text of her own to this bitch.


texts: represent in "front of, before or in dealing with"

texts:
Which one may more officially works?
To represent company "in front of" community, "before" community, or "dealing with" community.


texts:
Michael refuses Dry Eye's offer to buy his weed business:

  Dry Eye: You're out of touch. You're forgetting the laws of the
  jungle, looking down on me. Now, when the silverback's got more silver
  than back... he best move on...before he gets moved on.

What's the meaning of quote on silverback?

I find these line in The Gentlemen 2019


texts: A verb or an idiom for "half believe, half doubt"

texts:
Is there any word or some idiomatic expression that would mean "half believe, half doubt"?

For example,

  Having listened to that weird story, children half believed it, half doubted.

Meaning that none of the children fully believed the story.


texts: May all that is beautiful, meaningful, and brings you joy be yours this Holiday Season. --- parallelism?

texts:
I found on a Christmas card sold in the U.S., and I know it's natural:

  May all that is beautiful, meaningful, and brings you joy be yours this Holiday Season.

But this re-configured version may be more appropriate in terms of parallelism:

  May all that is beautiful and meaningful, and brings you joy be yours this Holiday Season.

What do you think? I see the sentence parsed like this:

  May all that [is [beautiful and meaningful], and brings you joy] be yours this Holiday Season.


texts:
I always say sentences like "Reply him that you will deliver the report later". A friend of mine who is rather particular about English grammar says it should be "Reply to him that [...]". Is this variation correct? Is my usage wrong, or just as acceptable?

I feel that it's unnecessary to have that 'to' there and only serves to break the natural flow of speaking without adding anything extra, if you know what I mean. Besides, you do not say "Tell to him" but you say "Tell him". But interestingly you say "Speak to him" or "Talk to him".

Similarly:

Reply her or Reply to her
Reply his email or Reply to his email

PS: I can't find any answer to this by searching on Google or this site.


texts:
Then,  as  his  final  gift  to  his  students,  the  professor  gave  them  a  piece  of  advice. "Remember,"  he  said  to them,  "the  four  of  you  may  be  proficient,  each in  your  own  subject,  but  if  you don't  have  the  sense  to  act  suitably  to  the  time  and  circumstance  of  a  situation,  you  may  have  to  go hungry."

This sentence is from a folk -tale.I want to know whether we can use the meaning "go hungry" for referring to "a situation that causes problems",besides its original meaning "not having enough food to eat".


texts: If someone asks "don't you want __?" and I say yes, what does that mean?

texts: One example I've come across for this question is if someone asks "don't you want ice cream?" If I say yes, people typically interpret it as "I want ice cream", but grammatically it would mean that I didn't. If I say no, technically that's saying that I do want ice cream, but people interpret it as that I don't want ice cream. What do native English speakers do: be grammatically correct or be more easily understood?


texts:
In the following sentence, I am to fill in the blank with the correct preposition

  A cashier is liable to render account _________ the money received by him.

According to the answer provided in the book correct preposition is for but I think it should be of.
Which one is correct?


texts: How can I formulate this sentences correctly?

texts:
How can I formulate this sentences correct?

Singular

  We do have an employee which is call John Doe.
  We do have an employee which is called John Doe.

Plural

  We do have employees, which are call John Doe, Tony Doe, Jane Doe.
  We do have employees, which are called John Doe, Tony Doe, Jane Doe.

**What do I want to say is, **

  Singular:  ... that we do have a employee which has the name John Doe.
  Plural: ... that we do have employees, which has the name John Doe, Tony Doe, Jane Doe.


texts:
When she heard farmers talking of thousands of cattle dying of thirts or reservoirs drying up, anonymous doctors giving tips on how to avoid sun-stroke, and of beauty consultants advising a tan without withering away, Mother naturally concluded that we were in for a heat-wave that would make the West Indies seem like an extension of Alaska.

I have a question regarding the bold part of the above sentence. The part should mean that Mother expected the hot weather to the extent that Alaska would be like the West Indies. But I would express it quite contrarily: …make Alaska seem like an extension of the West Indies. The original version suggests in my opinion that in the West Indies will be the cold weather and the West Indies will seem like Alaska which does not fit in the context. Where does my logic fail in understanding this passage?


texts:
Whilst it's too common in my (and other languages?) to speak (and at times even to write) my currency with construction number + currency name; now, is it, by any means, possible to write/speak that way for the US Dollar?

Check this piece of content

  I think the government was paying him and other victims living on their own about 200 rupees ($3) a month at the time. My sister and I weren't awarded any compensation other than money paid to SOS Children's Villages for our support.

This surprised me a bit:

  Market volumes gained 131.217 million shares to 351.338 million shares, capitalization swelled by 132.929 billion rupees (1.329 billion U.S. dollars) to 7.004 trillion rupees (70.044 billion U.S. dollars), whereas trading value improved by 6.591 billion rupees (65.914 million U.S. dollars) to 15.726 billion rupees (157.265 million U.S. dollars).

Also, we speak [amount] [USD] but write USD [amount]! Even surprising is, as Jacob says, in written U.S. English, the ¢ (cents) sign goes AFTER the amount!

Shouldn't it be -- USD [amount] over [amount] USD?


texts:
Is there any difference between using pretty, and quite, in the following sentences?

  I am pretty good at playing soccer.

  I am quite good at playing soccer.

  How are you?
  I am quite well.

  How are you?
  I am pretty well.

The reason I am asking is that, in Italian, the translation of pretty, and quite, are respectively piuttosto, and abbastanza, which have very similar meanings.


texts:
Can I divide skills in my CV by "passive" and "active"?

Is there such a notion in English?
By "active" skills, I mean things I am good at right now. "Passive" is about skills I had in the past. I am not good at them right now, but I can quickly remember them if necessary.

Are there better words? Because the word "passive" seems not positive and I hesitate including it in the CV.


texts: Which is correct 'suits your needs the best' or 'best suits your needs'?

texts:
Which one is correct:

  'Something suits your needs the best' or

  'Something best suits your needs'?


texts:
"If the press were not profit-making, who would support it? The only alternative is subsidy and, with it, outside control."

Q1. I understand the sentence until "subsidy and", but not the following part. What does that bold part mean?

Q2. Is that bold part grammatically correct?


texts: Which kind of grammar is this? Only after the goals are set [can we] then

texts:
Which kind of English grammar is this? Normally we would write 'we can then...' I think this is to make the expression stronger:

  Ambition set goals for us, and only after goals are set can we then map out a path and move forward accordingly.

Source: http://www.beaconenglish.com/task-2-ambition-319-words/

Thank you!


texts: How should I write "(the) number of unique items { is / are } few"?

texts:
Which sentence is correct and why?

If the number of unique items is few
If number of unique items are few

Note:

Should I use the?

Should I use number or numbers?

should I use is or are?


texts: Using "The" when starting sentence with a noun

texts:
My sentence starts with a noun:

Shall I add "The":

  The HyperText Transfer Protocol (HTTP) is becoming ..

or leave it without an article:

  HyperText Transfer Protocol (HTTP) is becoming ..


texts:
Are “while” and ”whereas” completely interchangeable in concessive clauses?
For example, are the following two sentences equally grammatical?

a) The concert was supposed to last for at least an hour, while it lasted only forty minutes.

b) The concert was supposed to last for at least an hour, whereas it lasted only forty minutes.


texts: Why do I hear "to" in quick speaking english sound like "the"?

texts:
I'm looking to track down a suspect

This man (Barry Allen) said "I'm looking to ..." But I can just hear "I'm looking the ..."

Sound track is in the above link.


texts: Meaning of ‘in’ in: They had a very fast car to get away in?

texts:
What is the meaning of ‘in’ in the sentence:

  They had a very fast car to get away in.

I think if there was not ‘in’, the sentence is right too:

  They had a very fast car to get away.

So, why ‘in’ be added at the end of the sentence?


texts: Using "I would like to thank" vs "I want to thank" in the acknowledgment page of a thesis

texts:
As stated in the title, I am in doubt between using "I want to thank" and "I would like to thank" to expresse acknowledgment for the supervisors and the committee members in a thesis.
I have used "I would like" at first, but when I checked it using Grammarly, It proposed to be changed to "I want to as": The phrase I would like may sound unconfident. Consider removing it or changing it to more direct language.

What is the more appropriate expression to use in this context?


texts: What does the phrase “as a reflection of the importance” mean?

texts:
As a reflection of the importance the Graduate School places on the ability of its students to communicate effectively, the Graduate School requires all new students whose native language is not English to have their English evaluated.

I do understand each of the word in the phrase "as a reflection of the importance", but when they are combined together, I don't. By reading its following context, I suppose it means "the Graduate school think it is important to place on the ability of its students to ..." in the paragraph.

Googling this phrase doesn't give its meaning but can give us some more examples.

  In responding to its change the Committee has focus on the basic research in chemistry that, in the long range, is likely to contribute significantly to the solution of energy problems. A great deal of such of research is already supported to some degree by OBES, industry, or other federal agencies. Because of the complexity of assessing this support, we have made no attempt to indicate where and to what extent it occurs. Our listing of research areas is not to be taken as an indication of appreciation of current research support by OBES but only as an reflection of the importance the Committee attaches to such research.

In this example, however, "as a reflection of the importance" seems to mean "to be an account or a description of the importance of..." and its meaning is different from the one in the above paragraph. How should I interpret the phrase "as an reflection of the importance"?


texts: Use of "shall" with third person pronoun in British English

texts:
Is this still common in British English to use the modal 'shall' with a third person pronoun? If so, what is the difference between the following?

He shall repent.

He should repent.


texts:
I saw my friends yesterday and they told me they were going to divorce, it was weird because I had seen them before and I  had always thought they were a happy couple. I was shocked.

Is the second had necessary? I think it is because  at the end of my last visit I did not think anymore  that they were a happy couple. And if I don't use past perfect the reader could understand I was shocked because I still thought  they were a happy couple .

Am I right?


texts: What does “never” modify in “I am never late”?

texts:
I need help with the sentence:

I am never late.

What does the adverb “never” modify in that sentence? Does it modify the verb to be or does it modify the adjective?


texts: "one does not parade the fact that one is All-Knowing" meaning?

texts:
But one does not parade the fact that one is All-Knowing. I frequently act as though I am not possessed of the Inner Eye, so as not to make others nervous.

I'm not sure if I have gotten the meaning right. As I understand, it means: one does not show off the fact: he knows all the things. Is my understanding correct?

Another thing I'm not sure is if the first 'one' and the second 'one' refer to the same person. If so, shouldn't we use 'he' to refer back to the first 'one'? But one does not parade the fact that he is All-Knowing.

What does the sentence convey exactly?


texts: "subject pronoun", "object pronoun" or "possessive pronoun"

texts:
This is a photograph of him and his brother.

  This is a photograph of he and his brother.

  This is a photograph of his and his brother.

Which pronoun is suitable, "subject pronoun","possessive pronoun" or "object pronoun" in this sentence?


texts:
In a book in the section of related vocabulary (describing weather section) they provided some useful phrases and here's one of them:

  pace of journeys slow and tiring

Here's how I understand what it might mean. We could say

  I'm going to take a nap as soon as we get back home. The pace of our
  today's journey was really slow and tiring.

First of all, does it sound correct? If so, am I right in thinking that slow and tiring here means with low speed and boring so we get tired. I'm actually confused by the fact that there two completely unrelated adjectives. Slow is about speed and tiring is about your feeling.

And here in the phrase (pace of journeys slow and tiring) pace already means speed. It's difficul to imagine how pace might be tiring, really...


texts: the destination address vs recipient's address

texts:
It is late in night and I am so tired.
I don't think I can get up early tomorrow morning, so I am writing a short message on a paper. Although the message is to be read by my little sister, I want to make use of this opportunity to learn and improve my English.
Here is what I am writing:

"MewMew,
I have written down the destination address on the envelope on your desk,
but I can't find any postage stamps. Can you buy some for me?
Please put a new Christmas card and our letters into the envelope."

Are there any grammatical mistakes in the message?

Thank you.

Kitty


texts: Ben {planned / was planning} to go, but now . . . simple past or past progressive?

texts:
There was a question in my text book like this:

  Ben ____ to go to his high school class reunion tomorrow, but now he
  is not sure if he can.

  (A) plans (B) will plan (C) has planned (D) was planning

The answer was (D), because it must be past tense, I understand that.
But I don't get why the progressive form is used. Is it also OK if I use planned?


texts:
Time until a customer comes to a store since the last customer is a waiting time. Suppose there are 10 customers in a day, we can collect 10 waiting times (e.g., 48 min, 3 min, etc.). Based on the 10 values, we can compute a variance. I don't know if when talking about variance or variation in a quantity, the quantity should be in singular or plural.

The variance in waiting time was higher for Store A than Store B.
The variance in waiting times was higher for Store A than Store B.
The variance of waiting time was higher for Store A than Store B.
The variance of waiting times was higher for Store A than Store B.


texts: When and why do/does "staff" as a collective noun get plural/singular pronoun/verb?

texts:
I know that collective nouns such as staff, team, crew, and family can get both singular and plural pronouns/verbs in different situations and contexts, but my question is only about staff when used to mean "a group of people who are personnel or employees of a same company."

When and why does staff get plural or singular pronoun/verb?


texts:
What is the difference between the two? Do they mean the same thing?
Example sentence:

If you keep standing there, people will start to look/start looking at
you.


texts:
I am confused between 'within' and 'upon':

  Within/Upon my curiosity, I asked my fellow tutor who lives in the USA.

Which one is appropriate, within or upon? Could anyone explain why?


texts: "You see, no one could believe that he would ever have done it." What does it mean?

texts:
"How did your father die?" Matilda asked.
"It is interesting you should ask that," Miss Honey said. "I myself was much too young to question it at the time, but I found out later that there was a good deal of mystery surrounding his death."
"Didn't they know how he died?" Matilda asked.
"Well, not exactly," Miss Honey said, hesitating, "You see, no one could believe that he would ever have done it. He was such a very sane and sensible man."
"Done what?" Matilda asked.
"Killed himself."
Matilda was stunned. "Did he?" she gasped.
"That's what it looked like," Miss Honey said. "But who knows?" She shrugged and turned away and stared out of the tiny window

"You see, no one could believe that he would ever have done it" I can't understand this sentence, especially  "would have p.p"  and "ever"
My grammar book says that we use "would have done" to imagine something that did not happen, and my dictionary says that "ever" means at any time.
So does it means that Miss Honey's father could kill himself at any time, but he didn't and the people around him couldn't believe that Miss Honey's father could kill himself at any time, but he didn't?


texts: Is it okay to omit "he was" in the following sentence?

texts:
The man stuttered too, perhaps when (he was) confused.

Can I omit "he was" in this sentence? Why or why not?


texts:
Is this sentence correct?

It is not surprising that her death cast a pale of gloom over all those who had come in contact with her.

Is "who had come in contact" right form?
Or can I make this the sentence like below?

It is not surprising that her death cast a pale of gloom over all those who came in contact with her.


texts:
Is it acceptable to use a dash instead of "that" in the following sentence?

Kids always say to their classmates that dishes cooked by their own mothers are the best in the world.
Kids always say to their classmates - dishes cooked by their own mothers are the best in the world.


texts: "It offers evidence, (?) of the nonexistence of free will, which you didn't believe existed"

texts:
Are either of these two variants of this sentence grammatically correct?

  It offers evidence of the nonexistence of free will, which you didn't believe existed

vs

  It offers evidence, of the nonexistence of free will, which you didn't believe existed

Meaning it was evidence of the nonexistence of free will that was not believed to exist, not free will.


texts: comparison: is "faster than I thought" correct?

texts:
In a grammar book I find this question:

Find the mistake

  The car run faster than I thought.

Does this sentence have a grammar mistake? I guess not.

Edit: I thought "run" is in the simple past tense so I could not find any mistake in the verb.


texts: Why does he use different modalities for the future events?

texts:
The Federal Government will today unveil a plan to increase public
  school spending to 50 billion dollars for the next six years. Under
  the proposed Gonski funding reforms, public schools would receive an
  extra 14-and-a-half billion dollars. Catholic schools would get an
  extra one-and-a-half billion dollars and independent schools an extra
  one billion dollars. (Aussie ABC News)

For the three future events, the first case uses ‘will,’ and the others use ‘would.’ What semantic difference does the writer want to say?


texts: "I am open to become" or "I am open to becoming"

texts:
"I am open to become more open-minded about this."
"I am open to becoming more open-minded about this."
Are they both grammatically correct? What's the difference in meaning.


texts:
Ken was one of nine children of Patrick William Jubb and wife Mary
  Alice (nee Finlayson).  (The Age)

There’s no determiner like ‘his’ in front of ‘wife.’ Did the paper miss it or is it a possible expression?


texts:
I am writing a sentence.

  All trust evaluation models need to specify their targets, which can be individual agents or agent groups.

Is it necessary to add "either"?

  All trust evaluation models need to specify their targets, which can be either individual agents or agent groups.


texts: Should conjunction "or" be used for synonyms?

texts:
The preposition or is used to signify a list of possibilities out of different things. For example-

  Which one should I use- apple or banana?

The two fruits are different and the one is required to one among them. But some people do use or for synonyms like:

  Mister Narendra Modi or the prime minister of India is very hard working.

  This kind of system is known as Q system or fixed order system or reorder system.

  This physical quantity is called as the resistor (of the circuit) or the real impedance of the circuit.

In all the three examples above, the terminologies used after or are implying the same thing. The first sentence could be put as:

  Mister Narendra Modi or more specifically the prime minister of India is very hard working.

Except this sentence why should or be used for listing the same thing while it is used for selecting from different things.


texts: "Are you the one who called?" or "Are you the one that called?"

texts:
How does one decide whether to use who or that? In the title example:

The correct pronoun is who.
The correct pronoun is that.
Either is correct. They're interchangeable.
It depends on the context.


texts:
When the babies arrived it would be difficult. She'd have to juggle her time between her family and his career. Depend on his awful parents for baby-sitting, or hire a nanny if need be.

Can you explain to me why the verbs "depend" and "hire" have the form of the imperative mood in the above sentence. I would await present participle, i.e. "depending" and "hiring".


texts:
I've noticed that in most cases around and round are omitted and that creates a strange sentence.

To turn the corner.

I understand what this means but I always want to ask "What do you want to turn the corner into?"

I've got accustomed to using "round" and "around" the corner. But it doesn't make much sense. Around is 180 degrees and round is in a shape of a circle or sphere.

I've heard people say:

To round the corner.

Does this make any sense?


texts: ambiguity?: to infinitive phrase as a purpose clause or an infinitival relative clause

texts:
I think the grammar of To-infinitive is the most difficult part of learning English because it is hard for me like ESL students to know which is which.
I mean, I'm, well, just wanting to classify the grammar of to-infinitive...

I learned that to infinitive phrase can be used to show the purpose or intention of subject, purpose clause.

  I used a knife to cut the bread.

  I submitted the recipe to win the prize money.

And I learned that to infinitive phrase can also be used as a relative clause.

  There were a lot of people here to see the movie.

  He is the man to wash the dishes.

And I'm lost. If it is used with two ways, I don't know what reading is preferential in some sentences.

Here are some sentences which I'm confused about.

  a.We asked for a man to talk to the children

  b.You need a key to unlock the door.

  c.Now you can use a key to get into Google account

Are the objects in the sentences antecedents to infinitival relatives?
Or rather, are the to-infinitival clauses just purpose clauses?

As for my interpretations, Here they are.

  a1. We asked for a man who was to talk to the children. [relative reading]

  a2. We asked for a man (for him) to talk to the children. [purpose reading]

  b1. You need a key which is to unlock the door.

  b2. You need a key in order to unlock the door.

  c1. Now You can use a key which is to get into Google account.

  c2. Now You can use a key for Google account.

Which interpretations are closest in meaning to the original sentences?

I'm hoping my words get across to you.


texts: Single word that describes a novice writer

texts: Is there any single word for a writer who is new to writing?


texts: restrictive or non-restrictive relative pronoun?

texts:
I am wondering whether the restrictive relative pronoun that or the non-restrictive relative pronoun which (plus a comma) should be used to modify the Hunting Lodge in the following:

  Casa Loma consists of three main buildings — the Casa Loma proper, which has a gothic seven-story tower, the two-story Hunting Lodge that once housed the home’s servants quarters, and a massive stable.

I'd appreciate your help.


texts: Is there any difference between "syllabify" and "syllabize"?

texts:
When I translate sillabare with Google Translate, I get three verbs:

Syllabify
Syllabize
Syllabise

The second and the third one are surely the American spelling and the British spelling.

The NOAD (from the Dictionary application I have on my Mac) just lists the first as derivatives of syllabification and describes it as verb; no other information is given.
The Oxford Advanced User's Dictionary (another application for Mac) doesn't even have an entry for those verbs.

Is there any difference (usage or meaning) between syllabify and syllabize, in American English?


texts:
This always nags me... I would prefer a logical as well as a grammatical explanation of it.

  We enjoyed each other's company.

  We enjoyed each others' company.

Which one is correct? Why is the other not?


texts: Indefinite article in "Referee! That was a penalty!"

texts:
How would you say?

Referee! That was a penalty!
Referee! That was penalty!

It is because, in this case, "penalty" is considered as an adjective?


texts:
As you are well aware, the intransitive verb "elaborate" is followed by the preposition "on". Accordingly, I would be appreciative if you do me a favor and let me know whether the preposition is required in the following sentence or not. If not, then why?

This point will be elaborated further in the next chapter. Source

Logically, the verb "elaborate" should take that preposition and I have no idea why the example has not been included by that?!
To me the correct version of the example would be:

This point will be elaborated on further in the next chapter.


texts:
Here is the sentence:

By ten o'clock he _____ the engine and he _____ to paint the garage when I paid a visit to him

There are 5 possible answers:

a) had repaired/had started

b) repaired/was starting

c) repaired/had started

d) repairs/starts

e) had repaired/would start

I picked the answer B and now it seems obvious to me that I was mistaken.The right answer is E but I still don't get how the second part of the sentence works with would start. It's like, when I came he had already finished repairing his bike and was starting to paint the garage. In this case everything seems right to me, but please clarify how I should understand the sentence with would start.Rephrasing is welcome.


texts:
Having a ‘gaydar’ means that you will easily recognize who is gay.

I was a little bit puzzled by the word order in this sentence. I expected this form:

Having a ‘gaydar’ means that you will easily recognize** who gay is**.

But I was told by a native speaker that If I said "who Gay is" it would mean that gaydar helps you spot people whose name is "Gay" (a female name in English). So am I right with the explanation of the following sentences?

Tell me who you are. (Tell me your name.)
Tell me who are you. (Tell me what kind of personality you have, what is your character etc.)


texts: "depends on who you ask" vs "depends on whom you ask"

texts:
Use the adjective exalted to describe something (or someone) that is raised in rank, value, or power.

    Which group has the most exalted status at your high school depends on who you ask.

Is the sentence correct or should we use whom instead of who?


texts: Past perfect in a two clause sentence with the same subjects and before

texts:
I need a little piece of advise.

I am not sure about the right tense to use in a two clause sentence with the same subjects and before.

Please, look at the two sentences below and the use of tenses.

  Before they started working, they discussed about economics.

vs

  Before they started working, they had discussed about economics.

I do personally think that the second sentence is better than the first one because of the choice of the past perfect tense. -> they had discussed BEFORE they started to work.

However, my grammar book suggests that, in this kind of sentences, I should use the former.

What's your take on this?


texts:
Let's suppose someone is making you to go haywire and you're going to get furious. You are about to warn them grinding your teeth regarding your character and say that you have a long fuse and can keep your temper for a long time, but in spite of this ability of mine, I need to warn you that if I get angry, I would get in a very bad way in the manner that I can even harm you etc. I was wondering if you let me know whether the following sentence sounds natural and idiomatic to convey this message:

  I usually don't get angry, but if I get, I'd get badly.

I need to know if the usage of the adverb badly sounds natural and idiomatic to you or I have to substitute it with something like very angry etc.


texts: Why is "if" used here? Doesn't it have to be "that"?

texts:
There was a rush to buy the cook drinks and hear more details.

  "Always thought he was odd," she told the eagerly listening villagers, after her fourth sherry. "Unfriendly, like. I'm sure if I've offered him a cuppa once, I've offered it a hundred times. Never wanted to mix, he didn't."

  Harry potter and the goblet of fire

Instead of if, doesn't it have to be that or something? She's sure that she has offered him a cuppa, quite a lot of times, actually, but he never wanted to join her.

Or if here does mean if, does this sentence mean "if she offered him a cuppa (though she never did), he would have certainly refused it no matter how many times she tries"?

I don't understand this sentence.


texts: What is a lead guitar and a lick in music?

texts: •   As you master easier songs, move on to more complex pieces. "Sweet Home Alabama" by Lynyrd Skynyrd is basically a repetition of D, C, and G in that order, but it sounds much more complex on the record because of the lead guitar licks.


texts:
My father had a small Estate in Nottinghamshire; I was the Third
  of five Sons. He sent me to Emanuel-College in Cambridge,* at
  Fourteen* Years old, where I resided three Years, and applied my self
  close to my Studies: But the Charge of maintaining me (although I
  had a very scanty Allowance) being too great for a narrow Fortune; I
  was bound Apprentice to Mr James Bates, an eminent Surgeon in
  London,

Dose here "bound" is an adjective? and does the phrase mean: Because I did n't have enough money to continue my studies I had to work as an apprentice to Mr James Bates?

Source: Gulliver Travels


texts:
Hello Dear StackExchange Users;
I know here is a whole of bunch similar questions about the use of "for whom" or clauses. But I had checked them before asking and could not find anything similar to mine. So without further ado, I would like to ask my question. I came across this text in The Guardian:

Our heroes in tonight’s opener are child-abuse campaigner Sarah
Champion and Robert Rogers, the clerk of the house, for whom a leaky
roof represents a looming need for modernisation across the board.

Normally, at least as far as I know, If the verb after relative words requires a preposition then a preposition is put before the relative word. But in this example, the verb which is "represent" does not require "for". So why "whom" is used in this way and what is the general meaning of the text? Please help me understand it.
For those of you who want to see the whole text here is the link:
https://www.theguardian.com/tv-and-radio/2015/feb/02/best-tv-tour-commons-anne-kirkbride-fa-cup


texts: Are 'partly' and 'part of' synonyms in this context?

texts:
"Partly, I think it's my fault that Peter and Andy got into an argument."

"A part of me thinks it's my fault Peter and Andy got into an argument."

Do these sentences have the same meaning or rather can they be seen as synonyms or do they have a different meaning?


texts: 'declarative' questions and 'interrogative' questions (When to use which?)

texts:
Declarative questions:

  'Boss' and 'Manager' can be used interchangeably?
  She is going there tomorrow?

AND

Interrogative questions:

  Can 'Boss' and 'Manager' be used interchangeably?
  Is she going there tomorrow?

So my question is when to use the above type of questions (declarative) and when to use the latter ones (Interrogative)?

Although I used to use them both in any situation but some time ago a native speaker pointed out that you can't use both of them in any situation. But that person also said that he doesn't know the rules regarding this, and just 'know it'. So any ideas when to use which structure of question?


texts: Are the phrases "I'm just guessing" and "I'm disgusting" homophones?

texts: The way I pronounce it, they sound the same, but I wanted to know from native speakers. Don't wanna run the risk of saying the later when I mean the first if it is actually different.


texts:
Does "courtesy of sweeping legislation" mean "as a result of sweeping legislation"?

As a global pandemic brought life in many cities to a halt this year, the ground beneath Hong Kong shifted at an astonishing speed, courtesy of sweeping legislation imposed by Beijing in June that outlawed opposing China in any form, on any platform, anywhere in the world.

Source: CNN


texts: What is the difference between these two sentences.?

texts:
He flung the Midgard-Serpent into the seas where it stayed growing ever bigger, and it was only the wolf, Fenris, that he kept in Asgard – because if the truth be known, he did not dare take him on directly.

1-) because if the truth be known
2-) because if the truth is known


texts:
What does Ron's question sound like it implies? A or B?
“Wait, you were busy and were going to reply?”
A: "Wait, you were going to reply after all? I thought you for sure missed my message”
B: "I thought you might have missed my message, so you were just busy and were going to reply?"


texts: "Continued watching," vs "continued watching it"

texts:
Example:

  I turned back to the dog and continued watching.

Can I write the sentence like this or do I have to add "it" to make it grammatically correct?


texts: Is it correct to say “Why your phone can't be reached?”

texts:
I tried to call a person many times but the line was engage and I could not make call. Now if I want to ask him the reason then is is correct way to say "Why your phone can't be reached" ?

Please also mention other expressions to say this thing.


texts: "Had + object + P.P." Vs "Had + P.P. + object"

texts:
SOURCE: A game of thrones

  The breath of man and horse mingled, steaming, in the cold morning air as his lord father had the man cut down from the wall and dragged before them.

  Is it a kind of a custom and stylish writing  to move an object instead of a verb, and vice verse,  in this sentence ?


texts:
Which tense should I use with so far
in the following sentences? I know we use present tense with so far. But I don't if it should be present perfect or simple present. I have provided some example sentences below. Please tell me which tense I should use.

My bike is running/has been running quite smoothly so far.
John: Hey Subha, how is/(has) your day (been going) so far? Me- It is/has been quite good so far.


texts: Is there a difference between "to put down someone" and "to put someone down"?

texts:
The Cambridge dictionary has two separate entries for "put down someone" and "put someone down", listing different meanings:
For "put down someone":

to make someone feel foolish and unimportant:

They never put down other companies in their commercials.
Did you have to put me down in front of everybody?

For "put someone down":

to record someone in a particular way:

Put down my sister as agreeing with the Democrats.
Lauren accidentally put me down for five boxes of cookies, but I only wanted one.

I find this confusing. As far as I know, phrasal verbs can be used in both ways with the same meaning (e.g. "Turn the light off" and "Turn off the light"). If the object is a pronoun it must come first (so you say "Turn it off", but not "Turn off it"), but there should be no other differences.
Here, instead, the fact that there are two separate entries with different definitions should imply that the order of "someone" and "down" matters. On the other hand, if this is true then the example "Put down my sister as agreeing with the Democrats" is wrong: it should be "Put my sister down as agreeing with the Democrats". This, and the fact that other dictionaries (WordReference, Oxford Learner's Dictionaries) don't distinguish between the two forms makes me think it's an oversight on Cambridge Dictionary's part, and they should merge the two entries into one. But I prefer to ask.
So, is there a difference between these two expressions? Does the order of "someone" and "down" matter?


texts:
One guy commented an article Agile is Dead
 with(You can see the comment in the end of that article) :

  What insight! I guess you can go back to waterfall.

  Ken

So what does "go back to waterfall" here means?


texts: "Forgetting to take my ID to the bank.." - why THE bank and not A bank?

texts:
Here's a sentence that I don't understand. There's nothing before this example. This is the first part of this paragraph.

  Forgetting to take my ID with me to 'the' bank is something that I am definitely guilty of. One time I needed to make a bank transfer urgently for my company, but ~~.

I have no idea why 'the' is used in the first sentence. Isn't it more right way that I use 'a bank' because the bank have never mentioned before? How is it possible to use 'the' in the beginning of a sentence despite it being the first mention of the thing to the readers?


texts: Can I use "box of chocolates" and "chocolate box" interchangeably?

texts: The same with "list of cities" vs "city list", or "list of users" vs "user list", etc.


texts:
Which is the correct one?

  On average, the polyunsaturated fat content in one teaspoon of the olive oil and canola oil is the same

  On average, the polyunsaturated fat content in one teaspoon of the olive oil and canola oil are the same


texts: track 65 miles -- is "track" an adjective here?

texts:
Example with a context:

  The train carrying 51 passengers was heading from Ventura County to Los Angeles. The stretch of track 65 miles from Los Angeles where the collision occurred was straight, and that allowed the conductor to see the truck on the tracks and begin braking, fire officials said. The speed limit in the area for trains was 79 mph.

Is the word track used as an adjective to describe what kind of 65 miles the stretch was?


texts: Appropriate sentence about decision making in past

texts:
One year ago on this very day, I made a very important decision.
One year ago on this very day, I decided a very important decision.

Which one will be perfect?