texts: "Go to school" or go to the school" in context

texts:
Let's say I am in school, and my parents want to visit my school to find out how I am doing there. Which one of the following is the most natural way to communicate the idea?

  My parent are going to school.

  My parents are going to the school.

I think the second one is the way to go as my parents don't study in school, so the use of the definite article is necessary.


texts:
before few weeks my friend said: "my job is boring"

I need to report his speech to third person, What should I say? and why?

  He said that his job is boring.
  He said that his job was boring.


texts:
Do we say "drink to your success"

BEFORE the success (We wish somebody success); or
AFTER the success (We congratulate somebody on their success)?


texts: Question about the word "matter" as a verb or noun

texts:
So the subject matter today is how do we pick up our driver's handbook or driver's manual? The driver's manual or handbook is something that usually looks like this. They make it in most states in different languages, so you can get one also in Spanish. They also make it on different subject matters . So if you're looking to learn to ride a motorcycle, you can pick it up for your motorcycle as well. As well as CDL and truck manuals, there are handbooks on many different subject matters. The best way to pick one up is to make a trip to your local DMV. All the driver's manuals or handbooks are there for you. You can just pick one up free of charge. If the DMV is a little bit tough to get to, you may want to try to call a driving school. Most driving schools carry copies of all the different manuals and handbooks and they usually will be happy to give them to you. Or you can go online. Most DMV websites will carry different types of handbooks on there and you can get a lot of this information from going online. Those would be the three popular ways of obtaining your driver's handbook, either at the DMV itself, from your local driving school or actually going to the DMV website and reading all about the different subject matter online.

When he says the subject matter today" , does it mean **the important thing that we are going to learn about ? What part of speech is the word matter here? Is it a verb!
When he says on different subject matters , what does the word matter mean here? And what part of speech is it this time? Is it a noun? As far as I percieve, the word matter here might be a noun meaning subject. If so, why is he saying on different subject matters meaning on different subjects subjects !! ?


texts: Is "Don't be" correct as a response to "I am sorry"?

texts: I heard someone saying "Don't be" in response to "I am sorry". I wonder whether it is correct. Some native speakers said it was a mistake, however, some said it was correct. Is saying "Don't be" correct?


texts: Should "Roosevelt was re-elected the President" have "the" and "as"?

texts:
"Roosevelt was re-elected the President of the United States for the fourth time."

I wonder why "the United States" should get rid of "the?"

And is it necessary to add "as" behind "re-elected"？


texts: I'd like to know the difference between "a memory" and "a keepsake"

texts: When I go travelling, I always buy something small to remember those places such as a keyholder, pottery or little something.  When I want to refer to them, which word is appropriate?   Can I say, "I bought this as my memory." or "I bought this as a keepsake."? What is the common expression for this?


texts:
I know the idiomatic usage of "somebody's kind of place/person/thing" to mean the types of place, person or thing that someone usually likes. But what about using it in the context below?

  I don't have his kind of mental strength.

Is this considered proper usage of the phrase?

For the purpose of clarification, I intended for the above sentence to have the same meaning as:

  I don't have the kind of mental strength he does.

Is it awkward to have a possessive pronoun before 'kind of XXX' instead of a normal pronoun after it to denote that XXX is of the type belonging/relating to the pronoun?

Many thanks in advance.


texts: When should we use prepositions at the end of the sentence?

texts:
In general, I am a bit confused when to use the prepositions at the end of a phrase.

What version should be correct?

The reference to the class GenericClass does not specify what type the saved object has to be of.
The reference to the class GenericClass does not specify what type of the saved object has to be.

Is there a rule when to use the prepositions at the end?

(Please, make me notice any other errors ;)


texts: would rather have v3 than v3 or would rather have v3 than vinf

texts:
What would be the correct structure for "would rather...than..." in past aspect?

1.) would rather have v3 than v3
    ex. He would rather have gone out than stayed.

2.) would rather have v3 than vinf
    ex. He would rather have gone out than stay.

I have tried to find some references but none exactly match the case.
For example, from the Cambridge website:

  When we want to refer to the past we use would rather + have + -ed form (perfect infinitive without to):

  She would rather have spent the money on a holiday. (The money wasn’t spent on a holiday.)

  I’d rather have seen it at the cinema than on DVD. (I saw the film on DVD.)


texts:
Night markets are hardly new. Asia is stuffed with them. From Singapor's hawker centers to the jostling markets of Bangkok , excellent cheap food is available late into the night.
   (Source)

Now jostle has different meanings:

1: verb (used with object), jos·tled,jos·tling.
to bump, push, shove, brush against, or elbow roughly or rudely.

2: to exist in close contact or proximity with: The three families jostle each other in the small house.

In this context, does jostling markets mean a place where it is very crowded or a place where there are a lot of markets next to each other?


texts: Is the phrase "there are no remainings of X" grammatical?

texts:
Example sentence:

  There are no remainings of the chicken in the pot.

Remainings is underlined with red in most textareas and software. It there something ungrammatical? If so, what's the correct version?


texts:
In this sentence "He intends to take a sledgehammer to it" I used the progressive but according to my book it is the wrong choice. Sometimes both the simple present and the progressive are possible. Do you think I can use "is intending" in my sentence? Exercise 4. Sentence #7
I uploaded the screenshot for more context.


texts:
What do you call the "technique" of putting the right amount of syllables in a verse? I put techniques around quotes, because I am not sure if it's a technique, but anyway there should be a word for that, but I don't remember what it is.

For example, some poems need to have 8 syllables in each verse (or line in poetry), and I want to know the name of the "technique". If you don't know any word for it, you could come up with the word for the rule, or some related term, it could be helpful.


texts:
We have ten foreign students in our school. One is from America, ______ is from Australia and all the other students are from England.

What should I fill in the blank? "one" or "another"? Our teacher said it should be "another", can anybody tell me why?


texts:
-Eddie stopped, made a quick look round the hall. “I am not walking away from you, you know. I just felt tired and wanted to go to my bed. You get what I mean?” he said softly.
-“Oh gush, it's too early to go to bed, man. You should not run away from the fun at this early hour.” Obusah told him.

What does "Oh, gush" mean? Does it mean"Oh my god" or something else?


texts: Is this sentence correct? or should I change it?


texts: What is the interpretation of this liner?

texts:
Source:http://blogs.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/mrsfunnybones/kohinoor-and-other-british-gems/

  But there is a silver lining to my eggplant-hued cloud. Now if trolls on Twitter badger me with the occasional ‘Go to Pakistan!’ I have a great comeback, ‘Oops sorry! Burnt my bridges there as well.’

What is meaning of this to an English reader?

  We eat a few more raspberry scones and switch over to discussing the great poet Rumi and Shams of Tabriz and when I say that back home, we often refer to him as Shams Tabrizi, she retorts, ‘You Indians are obsessed with the British, want to rhyme everything with Angrezi — affected lot!’

Only Bold part un-understood.Also whom they say 'affected lot'?


texts: Are "conduct", "lead" and "teach" near-synonymous?

texts:
I am not sure if it's not idiomatic, but I rarely hear people say "conduct a course". I do often hear "lead a course", but it sounds a bit too general, and so I was wondering how correct and idiomatic the use of "lead" and "conduct" were.

For example:

  The teacher conducted a course in public administration.

  The teacher led a course in public administration.

  The teacher taught a course in public administration.


texts: I wish *you* every day filled with/ I wish *your* every day

texts:
Any idea which one is correct:

  I wish you every day to be filled with lots of love.
  I wish your every day to be filled with lots of love.


texts:
This question is my future research work

  How does modernization in the transport road network sector affect on economic development of Kazakhstan?

Does the question sound correct?

It seems to me. There is redundancy in usage of these words

  the transport road network sector


texts: Preposition with "turn" in a game: on his turn?

texts:
If some people play a strategic board game for example, and I wonder what a certain player is going to do and what his strategy is, may I say:

  What is he going to do on his turn / on the next turn?

Another example:

  Somebody is playing a game solo with many turns (?) on the computer and the programme is always showing him what turn he is on.


texts:
It is not generally acceptable but sometimes reading a book difficult to understand is good to improve intellectual thinking.
  It is not generally acceptable but sometimes reading a book that is difficult to understand is good to improve intellectual
  thinking.

Which of the two sentences is correct ? (I wrote the sentences myself.)

Can I omit 'that is' in the sentence?

If not, could you please explain it clear why it does not make sense?

And I have heard about the rule that a subject-relative-pronoun cannot be reduced with the verb of its relative pronoun, could you tell me that for what reason the rule is made?

I assume that it be the reason to avoid misunderstanding meaning of a sentence, but I am not quite sure whether my assuming is correct or not.


texts:
Two friends are talking about movies.

A: "LEFT BEHIND is a really bad movie. I never watched in its entirety."

B: "I don't even know of that movie!"

or should B say this way

B: "I haven't even known of that movie!"

Which one is correct for this particular situation?


texts: Why sister [nouns] and not brother [nouns]?

texts:
I have noticed this quite often that other (closely) related common nouns are called sister [common noun]. For example:

This question is off-topic here, but is on-topic on our sister site.
This issue can't be resolved here. You will have to visit our sister branch.
Monopoly Casino Sister Sites are listed in here.
ABC is the sister company of DEF.
...and many more.

Why does this kind of phrases/sentences make use of the feminine gender, but never the masculine gender, like brother sites? Did this somehow remotely got influenced by feminism movements? Because looking at this Ngram I can see that such phrases were not present in the old times of 1900 A.D and before.
Any insight on this topic will be warmly welcomed.
P.S: I mean no ill-intention when asking this question or mentioning about feminism movement. This just piqued my interest.


texts:
Is the sentence correct? Does it sound natural?

The view from the room's window was to the garages.

Thank you in advance!


texts: What is used in English to express that someone is sitting with his weight on this feet?  I looked it up but couldn't find anything.  I don't mean kneel or squat.  It is actually sitting with your knees bent and your weight is on your feet.


texts: What is the meaning of "include but not limited to"?

texts:
I have been following this trend for a while now , it seems to me it s very helpful to English learners like me . So far, I appreciate your contributions to questions. Below is my question for today:

  Responsibilities include but are not limited to: Effective operation of FLT equipment and palletisers.


texts: The bike of Tom or the bike of Tom's - questions about possessives

texts:
I wonder which expression is correct in my examples. I know the better way to say them is "Tom's bike" and "Tom's home", but I am still curious about the form in the examples as it is quite common in cases where the name are just too long to use apostrophe.

Example 1:

  (1) I am going to ride the bike of Tom.

  (2) I am going to ride the bike of Tom's.

Example 2:

  (3) I am going to the home of Tom.

  (4) I am going to the home of Tom's.


texts:
[i] Well, as we reported earlier the chief executive of the Dutch airport where the flight departed says 27 Australians were on board. (ABC news)
  [ii] There was where Vadinho used to sit on the wall, at his feet the sea dotted with fishing skiffs. (Dona Flor and Her Two Husbands, translated by Alfred A.Knoptf)

Someone says where of [i] is (relative) adverb, another one says preposition (CGEL,p.1050), and another one says adjunctizer (by Bas Aarts). Okay aside from whatever names they call it, there is antecedent in [i], and there isn’t any in [ii] - In the latter case, antecedent is freed or fused; ‘where’ of [i] means ‘from which’, ‘where’ of [ii] means ‘the place in which’. This is the difference between the two, isn’t it?


texts: Usage of the verb "to bridge" in the IT context

texts:
I faced with the using the verb "to bridge" in IT context (as an example below), and I am not sure whether it is right to use it in a sense of connecting smth to smth.
For example,

  For using the microphone, pick "bridge" device up in your laptop sound settings.

Or,

  The speakers have to bridge automatically, if not follow aforementioned directions.

As far as I know the verb "to bridge" is used only in the context of building physical bridges and I couldn't find any other example of usage.

Also are there some words which could define the different meaning of connecting the device to another device physically and electronically (like through the PC program)?

There is a device called "bridge" in IT field, as Tetsujin have mentioned, so using it in different sense could be confusing.


texts:
He took his shoes off.

  "Why are you taking off your shoes? Not comfortable?"

  "Why did you take off your shoes? Not comfortable?"

Those shoes have been took off.
According to context above, we are using "are" or "did"?


texts: Could it be that the word ‘dude’ is insulting?

texts: Although the word 'dude' is not disrespectful, why do some people use it only when they're angry? Could it be that the word is insulting?


texts: Opposite of "against someone's will" in this context

texts:
He sold their house against his father's will.

I'm quite confused as to as what is the opposite of against someone's will in this context.

Is it with someone's consent?

Please tell me the most natural way to express this.

Thanks in advance.


texts: How much time does it take to be an English master I mean how to speak English like your native language and how much time does it take???


texts: "Relating" Vs "Related" in the following sentence?

texts:
While studying an online article, I came to a sentence:

  The media firm had uploaded some videos on the internet relating to
  these banks as well as Prudential Life Insurance and Life
  Insurance.

As per my understanding related should come in place of relating. Please clear my doubt.


texts: Is the following question correct? "Does copying the book's figure for my dissertation fits the copyright?"

texts:
I asked a question on Academia.SE,

  "Does copying the book's figure for my dissertation fits the copyright?"

I changed it several times, but I think there is still something strange. How does it sound when I say "copying the book's figure for my dissertation"? Is that correct? Should I rephrase it to "copying the book's figure to my dissertation"? I feel the latter sounds like I'm copying and pasting the image directly into my dissertation, while the former seems that I'm copying the image for the purpose of my dissertation, not telling what I'm exactly doing with the image. Hence, the question, are both acceptable? Am I correct about the differences between them?

Finally, I've wrote "Does copying the book's figure [...]". Well, using the here seems that I'm talking about a specific figure of my book. As in StackExchange we want questions that helps everybody, if I used an indefinite article it would sound more generic for everybody?


texts: Explain expression "keep her credits clean"

texts:
I can't understand this sentence:

  Nature ain't a fruit machine; she's gotta keep her credits clean.

I don't quite understand what "keep somebody's credits clean" means.

The sentence is taken from a song named "Froot" by singer Marina and the Diamonds.


texts: How to say watching a movie changes your feelings?

texts: I want to say if you watch this movie "It makes you happy" or "It makes you be happy". Which one is better ? I don't want to use this part "if you watch this movie".


texts: Is this mix of the essential and the non-essential phrases correct?

texts:
We left some flowers on the table.

The bold part is the non-essential.

  We left the flowers which were red, onto the table.

The bold part is the essential.Is comma necessary?


texts: Is this sentence grammatical? And is it a case of apposition?

texts:
Cranston loved this place, a veritable den of iniquity but one which sold good ales, fine wine and delicious food.

It's from a book. I am wondering about its grammaticality. Is "a veritable den of iniquity" an appositive of "this place"?


texts:
Our college is a tall building and sometimes friends tell me that they are waiting for me somewhere there. Not always I'm not sure about the floor that he or she is on. So I would like to know how to ask them about it, using the correct question word (what or which):

  Choice 1: On what floor are you?

  Choice 2: On which floor are you?


texts: What's the meaning of "default-proof" in a financial context?

texts:
For decades, general obligation bonds have been marketed as virtually
  default-proof, and a major restructuring of them now by Puerto Rico would raise unwelcome questions about the credibility of the
   time-honored “full faith and credit” pledge that stands behind such
  bonds. Puerto Rico is not proposing to walk away from its bonds
   completely, but to pay its investors less.

The above paragraph which has been excerpted from nytimes. What's the meaning of default-proof in the context?


texts: Is the definite article missing before "head position"?

texts:
Problems in the inner ear — where head position is perceived — are the most common cause of nystagmus, usually accompanied by vertigo. (source)

According to Macmillan Dictionary (marked as countable) and Cambridge Dictionary (most definitions say [countable] or [C usually singular] and but [C/U] also appears. All examples are countable usages), "position" is a count noun. Why is there no definite article before "head position" in this sentence? It seems the context calls for specificity. I thought the sentence should read:

  Problems in the inner ear — where the head position is perceived — are the most common cause of nystagmus, usually accompanied by vertigo.


texts: I have used this racket (tennis racket) for 10 years./I have used this phrase for months and

texts:
I have been studying all day.

This is the normal (and most common) way to say that I have been studying all day and now I am tired etc.

However I often meet with sentences like:

  I have studied all day.

The two sentences above are perfectly normal however the thing I am struggling with is that sometimes present perfect simple "version" is not acceptable and I don´t know why. For example "I have written letters all day" is the sentence which I was told was not correct - don´t really understand what makes that huge  difference compare to the sentence "I have studied all day".

I´ll give you another examples I did with my teacher:

  I have used this racket (tennis racket) for 10 years.

( Now I will start using a new type) - in her opinion this sounds ok and could be used

  I have used this phrase for months and nobody has ever told me it
  wasn't correct English.

Here,for some reason, my teacher definitely wouldn't use present perfect simple and would prefer to use present perfect continuous - again - I don´t see much difference between this sentence and the one above.

Would it be possible to explaing me, please, why sometimes one sentence is possible and another is not even though they are very similar to each other. I´d really like to learn to use this "strange" use of  present perfect simnple.

Thank you very much!


texts: I can’t wait for you (until / up to) (8 p.m. / one week)

texts:
In the following sentences as both 'up to' and 'until' refer to a period of time, why they don't make sense (according to the this link:
Do these sentences in each set mean the same or not? )

  I can’t wait for you until one week.
  I can’t wait for you up to one week.
  I can’t wait for you up to 8 p.m.

While the following sentence works properly:

  I can’t wait for you until 8 p.m.” is idiomatic?


texts: Why in this context use...( i are )not (i am ) and what does that mean

texts:
"A perfect misanthropist’s heaven:
and Mr. Heathcliff and I are such a suitable pair to divide
the desolation between us"(from Wuthering hights )


texts: Can a general verb ‘have’ be in front of a question?

texts:
In the following sentence, isn’t the verb ‘have’ a general verb? Isn’t it correct to change like “Do you have any commissions for Egypt?”

  “Have
  you any commissions for Egypt?”


texts: The tough journey toward/towards your aspiration

texts:
Let's say you are achieving your goal, figuring out if it's an interest or an intention, and you say:

  Identifying if it’s an interest or an intention, then treating it as such.

I have googled it, still the word definition from different online dictionaries do not match my example's context, they are just another robot-like definition of an english word. Furthermore, What does this phrase mean?


texts:
When I was a mere child, my mother supported my father who easily got sick and had to be admitted to the hospital and went through all the hardships.

Someone taught me that when you put a comma after 'father', then you get "father went through all the hardships", while putting commas after 'father' and 'hospital', you get "mother went through all the hardships".

Now I understand how it differs when you put the comma after 'hospital' or not. But do I really need a comma after 'father' in both cases?


texts:
The interior of the Earth is made up of vast cabins and air pockets,
joined by natural avenues.

What does "natural avenues" mean?
Source: Godzilla vs. Kong (2021)


texts: difference between "bell ringing" & "ringing bell" and " car parked" & "parked car"

texts:
what's the difference between "ringing bell" & "bell ringing " here:

1- I was awaken by a bell ringing.

2- I was awaken by a ringing bell.

and "car parked" & "parked car" here:

1-there was a car parked outside

2-there was a parked car outside


texts: What is the verb in "I go to school at 8:30."?

texts:
Subject + Verb + Complement.

  I go to school at 8:30.

What is the verb? - "go to school" or "go"?


texts:
I know how it's pronounced

But yesterday I came across a website for learning English .. and it was good

But in this page
"
http://www.learn-english-kids.net/page/6/
"

there is a word which is "instruments" and it is pronounced like there is a "sh" sound .. but I have not ever heard this word prounounced like this way !

is it about dialects or accents? or something else ?


texts: Jacob said to Jane, "I was absolutely furious." What will be the answer in indirect speech?

texts:
Jacob said to Jane, “I was absolutely furious.”

What will be the answer in indirect speech?
Rule says ‘was’ (simple past) will be converted to past perfect.
According to this rule the answer will be

Jacob told Jane that he had absolutely furious.

But it looks strange while speaking. According to me the answer will be

Jacob told Jane that he was absolutely furious.

But it contradicts the above rule.


texts: Is there any difference among the words "incensed", "irate", "infuriated"?

texts: I've seen those words "incensed", "irate", "infuriated" in texts. Is there any difference among them? Or are they just interchangeable words?


texts:
The entire motivation for networking was so people could sit at their
dumb terminals and, instead of accessing only their local mainframes,
access totally different mainframes.

My understanding:

The entire motivation for networking was so (like this), people could sit at their....
The entire motivation for networking was so people could sit at their.... (a noun clause started by so)
The entire motivation for networking was so (that) people could sit at their....

Which one is right or none is? I'm totally confused.
EDIT:
Just in case if anyone else has the same question, please refer to this answer and thanks to @rjpond for helping me find the exact question itself.


texts: Need help in translating "cuciture armate" (armed seams?)

texts:
I need your help with  translating the Italian builder's term  "cucitura armata" in English, preferably the term should be technical.

They are steel or iron rods inserted in structures which are at risk of collapsing.

I've checked using Google but it yielded only 21 results for ‘"cucitura armata" in English’, and as far as I could see, the English equivalent is nowhere to be seen. I checked with Word Reference but it only translated the term cucitura as "seam", "stitching" and "stapling". The private student whose work I am correcting, had written armed seam, but  until she explained, I had no idea what it meant.  I am not very convinced that armed seams describes the procedure or the name of this structural intervention.

Please, see Google images for armed seam, only images of cricketers and American footballers are displayed.

Here are a few images of "cuciture armate" to help clarify

Source of images: Consolidamento e restauro

Please help!


texts: What is the difference between 'voluntary work' and 'volunteer work'?

texts: Could you please tell me in which context should I use 'voluntary work' and 'volunteer work' with clear examples?


texts:
After working as a patent agent for more than four years, I aspire to
  become a patent attorney. Without an educational background in law, I
  am not qualified to take the bar exam in China. My family and I have
  soberly weighed the sacrifices that would be required if I studied in
  the United States. I am willing to do whatever it takes to pursue your
  JD program; my dream of a better career ___.

I am looking for an expression meaning "depending on you" to fill in the blank.

It is a bit tricky because it is a law school admission essay. I don’t want to sound too emotional like I am begging for your admission. On the other hand, I don’t want to sound too cool-headed. Indeed my dream depends on you.  Your program is the only way to realize my dream. Your program means a lot to me.  I want to strike a balance.


texts: She certainly has gone up or she has certainly gone up

texts:
She (certainly has or has certainly) gone up in my estimation since she told the manager what she thought of him.

Should 'certainly' be used before or after 'has'?


texts: Which word would you use for something 'internal' or 'in-house'?

texts:
There is a word 'kitchen' in my language, like:

It is their internal kitchen - in this case, 'kitchen' means something we don't care or we should not be aware of, since it is their business and we are good with it

Does it have the same meaning or usage in English?
For example:

politics kitchen

management kitchen

What about them? No worries, they know their business, it's their kitchen


texts: What does "rewind" mean for buzzfeed.com/rewind?

texts:
I sometimes read BuzzFeed for fun.
I noticed a channel called https://www.buzzfeed.com/rewind
May I know what is the meaning of the "rewind" here?
I thought it should be a category or channel name like "Sports", "Shopping", "Education"....


texts:
I just joined StackExchange and here's my first grammar question:

Is my use of full throttle in the following sentence correct?

  She has a paper due tomorrow and is working "full throttle" on it.


texts: Usage of relative pronouns with the word from

texts:
It is correct to use "from that" in relative clauses as in the following example sentence I wrote?

  Student who finished a middle school, from that is a school you have
  to obtain diploma to apply for a high school, either go to technical
  schools...

Or should it be

  Student who finished a middle school, that is a school you have
  to obtain diploma from to apply for a high school, either go to technical
  schools...


texts:
"We strongly condemn this and North Korea's other recent missile tests, which violate UN Security Council resolutions explicitly prohibiting North Korea's launches using ballistic missile technology," Pentagon spokesman Commander Gary Ross said.

Was there a that between the words resolutions and explicitly?
Is the use of prohibiting instead of prohibit because he wants to emphasize that these resolutions have been made for a while now and yet North Korea keeps violating them?


texts: Do we release all consonant sounds that appear at the end of the word which ends the sentence in AmE?

texts:
Do we release all the consonant sounds that appear at the end of the word ending a sentence?

Examples:

I am at work.
There was a Big Bang.
I have a new hope.
He has a big heart.


texts: How to write a comparison result correctly in simple sentence

texts:
I have two methods. The first method needs 30 steps to be done. The second method needs only 10-15 steps. I would like to compare the steps that each method needed to be done.

Here is my sentence:

1- The number of iterations is reduced to (almost) the half of the
iterations that the EM-method needed to converge when not using the second method.

or

The number of iteration of the second method was (almost) the half of the iteration that was required for the first method.

Which one is correct?

Another sentence:

All models show poor fit, where the first model is the poorest one.

Is this a correct comparison in English?

Any help, please?


texts:
I have a picture with a couple sitting on a bench in the sidewalk. Can I say they're sitting on the street?

I know we can use this phrase to describe the locations of buildings relative to a steet. I googled the related pictures and pictures came up showing people sitting in an alley, people literally in the steet (maybe having suicidal thoughts) also people sitting on curbs. Is it an idiomatic expression that includes all these that is something like near or on/in any types of roads or path? If yes does it always go with the or a is also possible?

I also came across this sense which made me alittle perplexed to jump into any kind of conclusion!


texts:
I have come across in the TV show Friends. Here is the context:

  Ross: Look, this is just a little too familiar, okay? For like, for
  like six months before Carol and I spilt up, all I heard was: "My
  friend Susan is so smart. My friend Susan is so funny. My friend Susan
  is so great."

  Chandler: You actually think that something can happen between Emily
  and Susan?

  Ross: Hey, they’re going to the gym together! Two women! Stretching!
  Y’know they-they take a steam together! Things get a little
  playful—didn’t you see Personal Best?


texts: Is using "could" in an "if" clause, like "If you could..." grammatical?

texts:
Today, I was watching this YouTube video, I found that at 1:18, she used the 'could' in the if-clause.
I just want to know, is it right grammatically, or is it a new grammar rule that I don't know?
This is the transcript:

If you could have anything right now, what would you want to have?

Final Question
Do people really use grammatical rules of conditional in real life?


texts:
1) Joan joins Tim at the table with a cup of coffee.

2) Joan joins Tim at the table, with a cup of coffee.

3) Joan, carrying a cup of coffee, joins Tim at the table.

4) Joan joins Tim at the table, carrying a cup of coffee.

5) Carrying a cup of coffee, Joan joins Tim at the table.

How can I write this as simple and natural as possible and so that it's clear that it's Joan's cup of coffee?


texts:
I am currently involved in open source project. Somebody wrote:

  This commit breaks it.

What does this mean? I think that it means either:

This commit created the issue, or
This commit fixed the issue.

Source: https://github.com/dreamstalker/rehlds/issues/332


texts:
A fight. Mark has knocked down a man. Then...
Mark grabs him, lifts him (up)/picks him up, and throws him into a wall.

Question: Can I use both "lifts" and "picks" here or is one more natural to use when lifting/picking up something as heavy as a man?


texts:
Context:

  But as young boy in Sicily at the early age of nine he had often gone
  hunting with his father, had often fired the heavy shotgun called
  lupara.
  It was his skill with the lupara even as a small boy that had
  brought the sentence of death upon him by his father's murders

urders

I don't understand the last sentence. Did the small boy had brought the sentence? What's that got to do with the shortgun? Couldn't you explain the point?


texts: Suppose I met someone to discuss some business topics, so the conversation is going to be quite formal. My companion started it with saying "How are you?". Is that acceptable to say "I'm great, hope you too." in a formal conversation?


texts: "I've got so much work" - does this phrase need to be finished by "to do"?

texts: I'm always writing down that phrase without that infinitive part "to do". In that case, I mean that I have to do all the work, but it's only mine interpretation and it seems to be a likely misconception because whenever I was searching for that phrase it ended with that infinitive part ("to do").


texts: earnings potential. (potential is adjective or noun here?)

texts:
For each job on your list, you should do some careful research in order to learn about the occupation's educational requirements, outlook, and earnings potential.
'potential' is used both for an adjective and a noun.
It looks like noun. What is the part of speech of 'potential' in this sentence above?


texts: Is this sentence correct? Present Perfect in the future

texts:
I was going to close my claim after I have worked for this new company for at least one month

Is this sentence grammatically correct, I'm not sure about the "have worked" part?


texts:
What does filled in for someone mean exactly?

An example of a sentence with the idiom:

  While you were off, I filled in for you.

Does it mean the author of that sentence took over my duties entirely while I was off or he was helping out (not much) with some of my duties?


texts: What is the equivalent expression for this Italian phrase?

texts:
In Italian, when somebody speaks using words that are too erudite, too formal, or too complicated for the context, we say "parla come mangi" (literally, "speak as you eat").

What phrase should I use in English which is understood to have a similar meaning?

Imagine you ask somebody how to do something, and that person gives an answer that uses too technical words when the answer could simply be "click the red button." Which expression could a third person use to who answered to say "use a simpler vocabulary"?

If there are any difference between American English, and British English, I am interested in hearing them.


texts: The difference between disqualify and unqualify

texts:
In Oxford dictionary, it defines unqualify

  with object To make unqualified; to disqualify.

disqualify

  Declare (someone) ineligible for an office, activity, or competition because of an offence or infringement.

Is it the same to say 'an unqualified product' and 'a disqualified product'?


texts: Is my interpretation of a meaning of the phrase 'with my mind' supported by an original text?

texts:
I am reading Moore's Proof of an External World. It is an established truth that you have to read philosophical papers especially carefully and try, as much as it is possible, to recover just that meaning from the readings that an author has implied there.  This is especially a difficult task for a non-native English speaker, when reading the literature in English, in the original language of a text.

A difficulty I have stumbled upon concerns Moore's use of the following two phrases in a passage of the paper: in my mind and with my mind. Here is the passage itself from the paper:

  It should, I think, be noted, first of all, that the use of the word 'mind', which is being adopted when it is said that any bodily pains which I feel are 'in my mind', is one which is not quite in accordance with any usage common in ordinary speech, although we are very familiar with it in philosophy. Nobody, I think, would say that bodily pains which I feel are 'in my mind', unless he was also prepared to say that it is with my mind that I feel bodily pains; and to say this latter is, I think, not quite in accordance with common non-philosophic usage. It is natural enough to say that it is with my mind that I remember, and think, and imagine, and feel mental pains - e.g., disappointment, but not, I think, quite so natural to say that it is with my mind that I feel bodily pains, e.g., a severe headache; and perhaps even less natural to say that it is with my mind that I see and hear and smell and taste.

Then, Moore continues with presenting the philosophical usage within which these different sorts of experience do not differ anymore with respect to the use of (something is) with my mind --namely, of any of them it could be now properly said that they are 'equally' with my mind-- but I think this citation provides you with sufficient context for distinguishing between the meanings in my mind and with my mind as it is used by Moore.

More specifically, the difficulty I have been experiencing comes from the usage of with my mind, for I do not understand its meaning as clearly as that of in my mind.

My opinion, I have gained from my reading(s), is that (1) Moore uses the phrases almost interchangeably, and that (2) there, with my mind supports the meaning according to which, what is with my mind presents my mind's features as long as the what is still being with my mind; or in other words, with my mind in this context supports the meaning my mind has certain features, it is furnished or determined by certain features, in the sense that these (certain) features are with my mind.

Is this interpretation of with my mind (2) and the one of its relation to in my mind (1) correct and supported by the citation?


texts: What does "read above a fourth-grade level" mean?

texts:
In the English horror movie "Freddy Vs Jason", Lori asks Linderman about his clothes:

  Lori: What happened to your clothes?

  Linderman: Oh, this. I was playing a drinking game with some of the
  lower primates and I guess I'm penalized for my ability to read
  above a fourth-grade level.

Situation: Linderman forced to drink beer at a party, and some of the beer got on his clothes.


texts: Meaning of 'on' in "We feasted that evening as 'on' nectar and ambrosia"

texts:
“I meant to give each of you some of this to take with you,” said she,
  “but as there is so little toast, you must have it now,” and she
  proceeded to cut slices with a generous hand. We feasted that evening
  as on nectar and ambrosia; and not the least delight of the
  entertainment was the smile of gratification with which our hostess
  regarded us, as we satisfied our famished appetites on the delicate
  fare she liberally supplied. (Jane Eyre)

What’s the meaning of ‘on’?


texts: Is it natural to use the verb "give" when asking someone for something to use for some time?

texts:
Let's say I need a pen. Is appropriet to use give when asking someone for it to use for some time? For example:

  Can you give me your pen?


texts:
When I type one English word on Google Search Engine, It's show me small translate form on their result. When I search for "Attractive", it's give me result like this

What I'am confused is the text on red box, What it's meaning? Is there an English alternate words? or something like that?


texts: different combinations of "$200" and "customs duty"

texts:
I have made up the similar sentences below.
(1) I'm sad that I have to pay a $200 customs duty on my online order.
(2) I'm sad that I have to pay an customs duty of $200 on my online order.
(3) I'm sad that I have to pay $200 of customs duty on my online order.
(4) I'm sad that I have to pay $200 in customs duty on my online order.
I'm not sure about the correct way of saying "$200" and "customs duty" when they are put together. Please help me. Thanks very much.


texts: "fall in love with one of the twins" or "fall in love with one of twins"?

texts:
I am talking about the idea in general, so any twin, or a person at random.

Still, I think "the twins" is correct, but I am wondering if the alternative is also correct. I am not 100% sure. It looks to me that both can be correct.


texts: What is a single noun describing a "rate limit"?

texts:
I am looking for a suitable term for API rate limit.

  API Rate limit is a time gap between consecutive API calls.

Currently using apiRateLimit="1000 miliseconds";

Looking for something like apiBar.
Is bar fit for the term?

apiThresholdLimit -- a level, rate, or amount at which something comes into effect. << Still have two word.


texts: Is "there will always be some people out there hate you" correct?

texts:
There will always be some people out there HATE YOU.
There will always be some people out there TO HATE YOU.
There will always be some people out there WHO HATE YOU.
There will always be some people out there WHO HATES YOU.

Which one is grammatically acceptable?


texts:
Is the following sentence natural?

  The qualities of robots are being predictable and precise.

In this sentence, can I use

  "are + being + <adjective>"?


texts:
Scenario 1:

  I just met my friend and he asked me to play soccer at night and I just told him, "I haven't played soccer in a long time."

Scenario 2:

  We just started to play and I couldn't pass the ball right, so my friend told me, "You are bad at this," and I just answered, "I haven't played soccer in a long time."

In Scenario 1, I know that I have to use present perfect, because I'm talking about the past up until the present.

But I'm not sure if I should use the present perfect in Scenario 2, because actually I was playing and doing the action, so should I use the past simple or just stick to the present perfect?


texts:
How one should say a particular type of pain lie the labor pain is one of the most severe ones that a person / woman can experience in their lives?

I was wondering if my following sentences work in this situation:

  Labor pains are some of the worst kinds of the pains.
  Labor pains are one of the worst kinds of the pains.

If not, then what shall I say?


texts: Do I need the conjunction "and" in this sentence

texts:
Consider:

  The MD simulations were performed at three different temperatures (298, 323, and 348 K) and at the atmospheric pressure.

Is it better to remove the and

  The MD simulations were performed at three different temperatures (298, 323, and 348 K), at the atmospheric pressure.

or

  The MD simulations were performed at three different temperatures (298, 323, and 348 K), all at the atmospheric pressure.


texts:
I'm finally learning English grammar, and I'm having an issue with understanding the difference between:

  Now I have much more fun learning English than I had before the course.

and

  Now I am having much more fun learning English than I had before the course.

Is there one? Supposedly the correct answer is the former one, but I think that the latter is also correct.

If it helps, I'm solving the Grammar Test from this website:

https://www.ego4u.com/en/cram-up/tests/language-course


texts:
I feel that fun-loving nature is what I was bornt with. When I look
  back when I was a child, I like to have fun with other kids.

Is it correct to say

  I was bornt with

other possibilities could be 'I have been bornt with'

  When I look back when I was a child, I like to have fun with other
  kids.

Is this sentence grammatically correct, would it be more correct if I say 'I liked to have fun with other kids'


texts: Why is an auxiliary required in "who does Michelle see" but not in "who takes out the garbage"?

texts:
In the sentences:

  (1) Who takes out the garbage twice a week?

  (2) Who does Michelle see once a month?

Why do we need the auxiliary verb "does" in No. (2) grammatically, instead of saying

  Who Michelle sees once a month?

And what is the difference between the two sentences that makes the auxiliary "does" necessary in No. (2)?


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

"Let's talk about this another time!" meaning "not now".

"Let's talk about this at another time" also meaning "not now".

Do you need a preposition, and, if you do, does it change the meaning of the sentence?


texts: What's the meaning of "With all the subtlety of a bulldozer"?

texts:
With all the subtlety of a bulldozer...

Subtlety means:

The quality that something has when it has been done in a clever or skilful way, with careful attention to small details.1 (subtle:  not easy to notice or understand unless you pay careful attention)

And bulldozer is a rough, big thing. Is there any irony? Does the writer mean she did that with no degree of subtlety(and with slamming)? Could you please explain it to me?

The full text is:

  I BECAME OBSESSED WITH bipolar disorder. We were required to write a
  research paper for Psychology and I chose it as my subject, then used the
  paper as an excuse to interrogate every neuroscientist and cognitive
  specialist at the university. I described Dad’s symptoms, attributing them
  not to my father but to a fictive uncle. Some of the symptoms fit perfectly;
  others did not. The professors told me that every case is different.
  “What you’re describing sounds more like schizophrenia,” one said. “Did
  your uncle ever get treatment?”
  “No,” I said. “He thinks doctors are part of a Government conspiracy.”
  “That does complicate things,” he said.
  With all the subtlety of a bulldozer I wrote my paper on the effect bipolarparents have on their children. It was accusative, brutal. I wrote that
  children of bipolar parents are hit with double risk factors: first, because
  they are genetically predisposed to mood disorders, and second, because of
  the stressful environment and poor parenting of parents with such
  disorders.

Educated by Tara Westover


texts:
It is not important who he is. = Who he is is not important.
Is that right??
That structure 'is' is said twice seem strange to me.


texts:
The following extract is from Frankenstein by Mary Shelley. I'd like to know what the "it" and "such views" refer to. Does the "it" refer to modern natural philosophy, or the circumstances in general? Does "such views" refer to the view that modern natural philosophy was not contemptible when scientists were seeking immortality?

Besides, I had a contempt for the uses of modern natural philosophy. It was very different, when the masters of the science sought immortality and power; such views, although futile, were grand: but now the scene was changed. The ambition of the enquirer seemed to limit itself to the annihilation of those visions on which my interest in science was chiefly founded. I was required to exchange chimeras of boundless grandeur for realities of little worth.


texts:
   "Good afternoon," said a soft voice. Harry jumped. Hagrid must have jumped, too, because there was a loud crunching noise and he got quickly off the spindly chair.
        An old man was standing before them, his wide, pale eyes shining like moons through the gloom of the shop.
        "Hello," said Harry awkwardly.
       "Ah yes," said the man. "Yes, yes. I thought I'd be seeing you soon. Harry Potter." It wasn't a question. "You have your mother's eyes. It seems only yesterday she was in here herself, buying her first wand. Ten and a quarter inches long, swishy, made of willow. Nice wand for charm work."
        Mr. Ollivander moved closer to Harry. Harry wished he would blink. Those silvery eyes were a bit creepy.
  (Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone)

I’d see you is way more common than I’d be seeing you on this Ngram. What is the latter meant to say? (Does it imply the near actualization of their meeting rather than hope?)


texts: familiar when hearing but don't remember to use when talking

texts:
A kind of situation happens a lot to me where I've seen and heard a word lots of times, such as "identify", but I don't remember to use it when I talk; instead, the word comes to my mind is "find".
I'm aware it's because I haven't mastered the word. Is there a term/phrase to refer to this kind of situations, like the level of mastery of a word?
For example, for the word "find", I've achieved listening, talking, reading and writing but for "identify" I just achieved listening and writing.


texts: Can I use it this way? I see no reason why I can not

texts:
Friend of friend: She's Happy

Me: Is it because of her meeting me/having met me?

Can I say it that way
rather than
is this because she has met me?


texts: "Come out of the closet" in a non-standard way?

texts:
These anonymous posters should come out of the closet and reveal their
public identities.

I am wondering if it's acceptable to use the expression without making any sexual implications, or if that was a non-standard way of using that phrase.


texts:
I can't imagine she would have arrived yet. [speculation]

I can't imagine she will have arrived yet. [speculation]

Are they both correct and do they mean the same?


texts:
I'd like describe my father :

  First at all, when I decide to do some work, I don't worry because I know my father is behind me

I use 3 times of "I" how can I change sentence for decrease "I"?


texts:
I looked up on Google for the meaning of this expression but I didn't succeed. Could anyone tell me the meaning of the expression "It's like furnishing a nursery with egg-shell china"? And also, if it is used nowadays? Here's the context.

  The serious people who took him seriously never felt quite sure of his deportment: they were somehow aware that trusting their reputations for judgment with him was like furnishing a nursery with egg-shell china.

I saw this expression in the book The Time Machine by H.G. Wells.


texts: Does "Don't stick your foot/shoe in the wall" fit this context?

texts:
Let's say there is a guy who is standing next to a wall with his leg half bent backwards and pressed against the  wall. I want to tell him to stop doing it as I am worried about the appearance of the wall

Can I say

  Stop sticking your foot in the wall, it is spoiling it.

I am not sure about the verb 'stick' as it is seemingly used for pointed or similar objects. Is this expression correct?


texts:
Please, tell me the meaning of the "just". I looked up in dictionary, there are many definitions and I can't choose the proper meaning. The text is:

  To start the last section of this chapter, I want you to gaze upon the following mathematical expression and honestly ask yourself if you think it's possible for someone to have just made it up.


texts: What can be said about something that one has to get used to in order to start using it at its best?

texts:
Here's a question (a part of a made-up conversation):

  "What unusually shaped guitar you were playing on at the concert! Did
  it take you long to get used to it?"

My question:

Would it be idiomatic to use "guitar" as the subject, answering:

  A new guitar always takes some time getting used to.

Or

  A new guitar always takes some time to be gotten used to.

Or

In the phrase "to get used to something", should that something always be the object?

  It always takes (one) some time to get used to playing
  (on) a new guitar.

What another alternative is there for me, if there is one, regarding the idea I'd wish to express using the above idiom?


texts: i've a bit of confusion in using "has/have been"

texts:
have been is basically used to express the action that was started in past and is still happening up to present.
Now sometimes we use have been in the following contexts as well:-

your device has been repaired. (the device was already repaired in past, then why am I using it to show the present context using "has been repaired")

can't I say your device is repaired.


texts: If the "to" in "Please sign in to https://facebook.com to view my photos." is wrong, what's the reason?

texts:
I have this sentence: Please sign in to https://facebook.com to view my photos..

Since https://facebook.com is a URL, it seems that it is a location. Replacing to with at sounds more appropriate if it's indeed a location. However, in case to is wrong, is it because https://facebook.com is a location? If to is also correct, what is the reason?

Thanks!


texts: What do you say when someone one points at you and says there it is and you never met them before and it wasn't you

texts: What do say when someone one just walks up to you and points and says there it is and you never met them before and it wasn't you?


texts:
Is "bleed in a red" idiomatic?

His body bled in a bright red before losing consciousness due to blood
loss.

I almost find no instance of such a usage. Is this unidiomatic? I am pretty sure I've heard it a plenty of times, but I can't find any similar example on Google.


texts: Can I use past perfect twice in the same sentence in the context of a text written in past tense completely?

texts:
I'm having some trouble with the following sentence:

  Since he had arrived, he had seen the rule broken more than once.

For some context, the text itself is a short story and I'm writing it in past tense. Does this mean that the presence of a past simple verb is "implicit", in a way, to the text itself? Does using the word "since" change anything (I know that it is usually supposed to be followed by a past simple verb, but I'm not sure of any exceptions to this)?


texts: What sentence should I use talking of people I see while taking a walk?

texts:
The following sentences seem grammatically correct to me.

  These are the vegetables we ate yesterday.

  This is the man I saw after the explosion and who came out from that room.

Suppose there are people for which "I don't want they talk to my cousin." or "I don't want they find out where my sister lives." is true, I see them when I taking a walk with a friend of mine. What should I say to my friend when I show him who those people are?

  Those are the people […].

I thought of "Those are the people I don't want they talk to my cousin." but the sentence doesn't seem correct or acceptable.

Which sentence should I instead use?


texts: The proper punctuation of (Thanks + independent sentence)

texts:
When a thank you phrase is followed by an independent sentence that is related to the thanking part, what is the correct and most proper punctuation to use?

There are many possible ones to apply; thus I have chosen the most three in which I think can state correct punctuation:

  1- Thank you, it was very helpful!

  2- Thank you! It was very helpful.

  3- Thank you; it was very helpful.

It doesn't, of course, have to be "Thank you", it may also be:

Thanks - Thank you for what you did - Thanks a lot - Thank you very much - ...etc

I have searched about this matter, but the results I got were all about whether to add a comma after "Thanks" in emails or not. One of the searches

I also think it may be only a matter of style, so if that is the case, then what would a grammarian use?

Note: I would further like to know the formal and informal way of stating the
   punctuation.


texts: How to tell if suffix *er* means a person, a tool or an action?

texts:
Many verbs can be suffixed by er, which makes them nouns. However, some nouns made this way refer to persons, while others refer to tools or actions. For example:

pay: payer (the person who pays)
cook: cooker (the tool used for cooking)
pray: prayer (the action of praying)

I haven't seen people calling a payment tool (such as Square Reader) payer. Similarly, I haven't seen people calling someone who cooks cooker. But people do call someone who teaches teacher.

So how can language learners tell, for an unknown verb, which concept it means when suffixed by er? Furthermore, by the pigeonhole principle, you can't precisely fit three concepts into one form. Are there any rules or heuristics governing er suffix?


texts:
I found this sentence in a grammar book:

  A number of people have tried to find the treasure, but they have all failed.

Can Simple Past be used in the second clause?

  A number of people have tried to find the treasure, but they all failed.

If it's possible, then what's the difference between these two sentences?

I'm asking because I the verb "fail" is confusing. If you fail, then you fail and that's it! I see it as a complete action. The first sentence gives me a feeling that many people will keep finding this treasure and will continue to fail.


texts: I would like...or I wish - talking about possible improvement in the future

texts:
I have somehow got confused with the usage of 'I would like' and 'I wish' when talking about the things which could be possible to improve in the future. I read several posts here and on the Internet, also checked the dictionary, but I am still confused.

For example, the context could be the following: I stay at the accommodation, and the bathroom doesn't have any shelves to put my toiletries on.
Could I write any of these sentences as feedback for the place? Could you explain what do you understand with the sentences I have written below?

I would like to have shelves in the bathroom.
I would like shelves in the bathroom.
I wish there were shelves in the bathroom.
I wish there would be shelves in the bathroom.

I am confused because I was taught that 'I wish there was/were' is usually used about something that is not possible/is very unlikely to happen.
The phrase 'I would like' would be something I would like to have or do at the certain moment. Could it be used as some sort of advice and not mean that I want the shelves in my bathroom?

Thank you in advance!


texts:
What does the word "spongework" means? I have found it here: http://www.morningstarchapel.org/articles/Sight-2.htm

*The eye sends, as we saw, into the cell-and-fibre forest of the brain throughout the waking day continual rhythmic streams of tiny, individually evanescent, electrical potentials. This throbbing streaming crowd of electrified shifting points in the spongework of the brain bears no obvious semblance in space pattern, and even in temporal relation resembles but a little remotely the tiny two-dimensional upside-down picture of the outside world which the eyeball paints on the beginnings of its nerve fibers to the brain. But that little picture sets up an electrical storm. And that electrical storm so set up is one which effects a whole population of brain cells. Electrical charges having in themselves not the faintest elements of the visual - having, for instance, nothing of "distance," "right-side-upness," nor "vertical," nor "horizontal," nor "colour," nor "brightness," nor "shadow," nor "roundness," nor "squareness," nor "contour," nor "transparency," nor "opacity," nor "near," nor "far," nor visual anything - yet conjure up all these.*

Thank you!


texts: Does it mean "keep a pledge/promise". Or it means "stand beside the pledge"? If so ,it might be something like a metaphor..


texts: dropping things - intentionally and unintentionally

texts:
Lets look at the first definition of the verb 'drop' by Macmillan

1.  to deliberately let something fall
1a. to let sth fall without intending to

So according to the above definitions I dropped my mobile can either mean I dropped it deliberately or I dropped it unintentionally.

My question is how do I differentiate between dropping things deliberately and unintentionally.

If I say to someone that

She dropped the cup and broke it.

So what does it mean ? Did she do it deliberately or it happened unintentionally ?


texts: Is it okay to say, "I am increasingly older." when I mean to say "I am growing more and more older."


texts:
I read an article where the author mentions a sentence from a third person. For instance, Nancy K. has an article where she writes:

  "something" (David F)

I want to reproduce the sentence and also give credit to the person that let me discover it. How to do that? is this correct? :

  "something" (David F., through Nancy K.)


texts: Help to understand the grammar "the better to hear" in this sentence

texts:
Frank turned his right ear towards the door, the better to hear.

I don't understand the grammar of "the better to hear". Is it elliptical? How should we understand the phrase in this sentence?


texts: what do the questions begining with " In what sense has/are/do........." mean?

texts:
From time to time, I encounter some questions starting with .. "In what sense"

For example :

In what sense does the public need to understand global climate change?

I've also seen this expression in many other examples. I don't understand the expression.
Can anyone rephrase this question?


texts: What is the difference between 'Bad English' and 'Poor English'?

texts: Is there any difference between 'Bad English' and 'Poor English'? If yes, when I should use them?


texts:
I would like others to explain this to me.
Which is correct?

goosebumps
goose bumps

Thank you!


texts: What do we say when we want to tell someone to stand with his back touching the wall?

texts: Which sentence is correct to use: Stand against the wall or Stand with the wall?


texts: "forbidden for me" vs "forbidden to me"?

texts:
I have a doubt how to use the word "forbidden" with which preposition. For example:

"Fats are forbidden for / to me because I am athlete"

"Is it forbidden for / to you as a religious?"


texts: Does passive voice work in 'he is the best man to be chosen'？

texts: I know it is common to say 'he is the best man to choose', but can I turn it into 'he is the best man to be chosen'. If it is appropriate, do they carry the same meaning and sense?


texts: They wouldn't release him, not before they  floated a trial balloon

texts:
A criminal has been kept in the hands of a militia, and rumor has it that he has just been released.

Assuming the incident is unlikely, which one is correct if I want to comment on the news:

  1- "They wouldn't release him, not before they have floated a trial
  balloon"

  2- "They wouldn't release him, not before they had floated a trial
  balloon"


texts:
The Australian cricket team scored 200 runs with the/a loss of 8 wickets in 20 overs.

I am confused if I should use an indefinite article or the definite article in the above sentence . According to me, if we say “the loss” we mean a particular loss, and if we say “a loss”, we mean “any one loss”. But I am not able to figure out if what is suitable in this sentence because both the articles seem correct to me, “the loss” means a specific loss of 8 wickets, and we generally use “a loss” most of the time. So I am not sure what the correct article in this sentence is.


texts: "Spread" in "I'm not into parlays and things of that nature, and when I think of the spread I think of the layout of food at any given game."

texts:
I've found the sentence

  I'm not into parlays and things of that nature, and when I think of
  the spread I think of the layout of food at any given game.

in the Oxford Dictionary under the second definition for parlay:

  A cumulative series of bets in which winnings accruing from each
  transaction are used as a stake for a further bet.

My understanding of the sentence is that spread means here the amount of stake the narrator would have to spend, and that he/she sees food in front of his/her mind's eye he'd/she'd rather like to spend this amount on. Am I correct with this interpretation?


texts: What is the word for describing a thing right at the edge?

texts:
Let's say I have something like a laptop or a mobile phone which has got comparable positive features and negative features and it is very difficult for me to decide whether it is overall good or bad.

Is there any word describing this thing?


texts: Article before adjective+noun: Why is the indefinite article used in "a staggering 2.5 million"?

texts:
Is this correct -

  The car costs a staggering 2.5 million.

I'm confused about the use of the indefinite article.


texts:
Using doping in the following context sounds peculiar to me:

  Researchers have said that 30 cases of Meldonium use were opened in
  2018, while only 10 cases were opened in 2019. She has added that it
  is neglectful, stupid and irresponsible to use Meldonium nowadays.
  Sports lawyers believe that using Meldonium is not the same as using
  doping, however, they are wrong, according to Pakhnotskaya.

Is using doping correct here?


texts:
Sometimes, I want to quantify an adjective to make a statement more precise.

E.g.:

  This dataset is large, over 1 GB.

Is that a correct use of a comma? I know I could use parentheses: This dataset is large (over 1 GB). But I prefer to avoid parentheses in some situations.


texts:
Here's an example of what's puzzling me (I'll use a brother/sister arguing example):

  SISTER: I couldn't find my homework, so I got an F on the assignment.
  BROTHER: You couldn't find your homework because I hid it from you.
  SISTER: So that is/was why I couldn't find my homework!

"Couldn't" is past tense, correct?  If so, "that was" would seem to be the correct choice to me just because I was told you normally aren't supposed to mix tenses.  However, "that is" just sounds correct to me even though it's present tense.  So which is correct in this situation (or any other situation that might be similar to this example)?


texts:
This is a sentence of The Guardian newspaper, but I can not get it to me there is a missing of preposition.

Getting a much skinnier stimulus package past Mitch McConnell, the veteran Republican Senate leader, will be a struggle.

In this sentence why they did not use the  preposition 'in' in the last part like:

"will be in a struggle"

Can you please give me any logic behind this?


texts: When I want to use the adverb for chemistry then I say "chemically", but when I want to use verb for "physics" and I write "physically" it means something else according to my dictionary, while I'm looking for the adverb for physics (science).


texts: Using "her" to refer to the word "child"

texts:
I have confusions about a single sentence

   The pedagogical view is that the pre-school phase is crucial to stimulate a child’s curiosity and help her prepare for schooling at age six.

Can her be used for a child?

Usually I find at the age of 6 but in the above sentence at age six is used I have never heard or read it. Is this used correctly above?


texts: How to use "times" word on object search?

texts:
For example:

Task 1 needs object a.

Task 2 needs object b.

Task 3 needs object c.

If the robot could know the position of object a and c by method 1.

That means the robot use method 1 to prevent running object search module twice.

Therefore, I use times for object search module.

Which usage is correct, or totally not correct:

The robot saves two times of object search by using method 1.
The robot saves two object search times by using method 1.

Thank you~


texts: What should I use 'abbreviate', 'concise' or 'initialize'?

texts:
I am looking at some Korean words and realized some of them tend to use making short word such as BLT( A sandwich filled with Bacon, Lettuce and Tomato).

e.g., Ocbesh meaning Octopus + beef intestine + shrimp

In this case, which sentence is correct?

They're using abbreviated word.
They're using concise word.
They're using initialize word.


texts: “Does the university have” or “Does the university has”?

texts:
I do self-study for some English exam and this is a sentence from some online resource, which I suppose to listen and write down.

"Does the university have an ice-hockey team?"

In my opinion, since the university is singular, the word 'have' should be replaced with 'has'.

Please enlight me if I am wrong.


texts:
I am confused with the tense when I use a sentence to describe two things that have happened in the past.

  The data has not been removed after she has gone.

Is that the correct tense?

The situation is that I'm supposed to remove the data after she leaves.


texts: What does it mean by "take someone's cut" in this context?

texts:
"If only the bank would take joy as collateral."

  "They may not... but I will. I own 10% of the show. Knowing who I was working for, I had the good sense to take my cut weekly."

  "Phillip, I can't let you gamble it on me."

  The Greatest Showman

I guess in this context this sentence means he saved his money for the future, but I'm not sure if I'm right cause I couldn't find any expression like this in the dictionary.

Is it an idiomatic expression?

Or does "take" here mean "save" as a verb, and "cut"="money"?


texts:
Which one of the following choices fits better in my self-made sentence's blank:

  Get out of here.........you’ll get beat up.

  a) otherwise

  b) if not

  c) or

I need the most natural one which a native speaker would say.
For me they all work, though 'a' sounds a bit formal for such a context, while 'b' and 'c' both work properly and naturally.


texts:
"The meeting is postponed to tomorrow"

Is this grammatically correct? If not, how should it be conveyed?


texts:
If a person or thing( e.g. voicemail) keeps repeating something, or telling me the same thing for a specific time period (e.g. an argument, discussion etc.), which one of the above do I have to use?

For example:

Person A:

I'll take out the trash after dinner!

Person B:

That is what you are telling me for the last 3 days.

That is what you have been telling me for the last 3 days.

That is what you keep telling me for the last 3 days.

or

Voicemail :

We will be with you shortly.

You(what you're thinking):

That's what it keeps telling me for 20 min now.

That's what it has been telling me for 20 min now.

That's what it is telling me for 20 min now.


texts: How to express "I would be glad if someone answer my question" beautiful in English

texts:
As title says, I would like to write a sentence(peroration) to pleasure the potential answerer.
Due to I am not English Speaker, I have wrote some sentence but each make me feel strange.

I am not sure what is the proper personal pronouns use in the sentence, for example:

A. I am very glad if you can give me an answer!

Here,  personal pronouns you make me feel weird/strange (I mean, there is someone would answer my question, I don't know who, so use you here make me feel weird/strange )

B. I am very glad if someone can give me an answer!

someone make me feel bad, this word is less respectful in Chinese.

What is the proper emotional adjective? grateful, glad, happy?

Isn't grateful is too heavy for a stranger who just answer a question ? But glad seems too common ...

And is there any proper Emotional Adjective in this situation?

What sentences native often use to express such sentence?

PS: I can just says Thanks in the end of this question, it is no problem. But my purpose is to fill a question with more respectful , so I think need more words here.


texts:
I understand "with global reach" as "with impact internationally." Am I on the right track?

We’re wrapping up today’s live US politics coverage for the evening. It’s been a day of major developments with global reach here in the United States, as well as sustained infighting within the Republican party over Republicans’ allegiance to Donald Trump and his lies. Here’s an updated summary:

Source: The Guardian


texts:
As far as I know, spare means extra or more than you need.
With that being said, what would be the meaning of "spare diet" in the following sentence?

  To content myself with a spare diet

I can't understand someone contenting himself with extra food!


texts:
Everybody is using those phrases but I've never asked that question. What is really behind the words Online and Offline?

As an extension I'm also asking:

Are those phrases still valid nowadays when you'd write "I'm online on ..."? Because you aren't directly connected. (I know that it could be, by just using a direct connection using only one cable as example, but by ignoring that the connection isn't direct - right?)

My thoughts about them:

On- or Offline is an abbreviation for the usage of saying "I'm (not) connected to the ethernet!" or "You could (not) phone me now, because I'm (not) in the line!".

The second example is referring to the past, where only one was able to phone someone at the time.

Please also note that I've read the wiki information and I've also looked them up inside dictionaries, so it won't be helpful seeing them as answer/comment...


texts:
To find a moment with her.
To find a moment to be with her.
To find a moment with her help.

How can you make explicit that the first phrase is meant to have a meaning similar to the second phrase, but not the third? Also, does the first phrase have an ambiguous meaning that can be synonymous to the third and second phrase?


texts:
In the sentence "the correct form here would be..", what does 'would' mean?

  A: I've got a doubt concerning a statement to talk about the future: do we say the best student will win a prize or The best student is winning a prize?

  Answer: The correct form here would be "will win". You would say "is winning" when you are describing the present - i.e. when you are watching the prize-giving.


texts: What does "skip" mean when used to describe an aircraft?

texts:
Several articles/books that I have read include sentences where a "plane skips".

Examples from Google Books:

  As the U-2 settled down the forward landing gear touched the runway and the plane skipped and bounced back into the air.

  The plane skipped into the air.

  The plane skipped and skidded on its belly across a field some distance from the airstrip before coming to an abrupt stop.

From The Week:

  The bomber skipped across the water like a huge metal bird, before it stopped and sank into the Overton Arm of the lake.

The first time I skipped through these pages, I thought it was "skid", but then I realized it was "skip" and tried to picture that. The closest meanings of skip, AFAIK, would be "to move with hopping steps" or "to jump". It doesn't seem to make much sense though. How does a plane jump or hop? I have gone over MW and OED's skip pages, and found nothing beyond the definitions I mentioned related to movement.


texts:
The flight attendants led the drunk man back to his seat, but just a few minutes later he had left his seat again. After a longer argument with the man, the flight attendants escorted him firmly back to his seat where he stayed for the rest of the flight.
I would like to know if "firmly" seems natural here to mean that they escorted him back to his seat in a serious way but not necessarily being too physical and using too much force on him? Hope you understand what I mean.


texts: "to give in" (phr v) a homework meaning?

texts:
"to give in" in this sentence: "Have you given in your homework yet?" What means?
I have no ideas how to translate it into Russian.
thanks


texts: What is it called when a cockroach eats another dead cockroach?

texts: I have a question on a cockroach eating another cockroach, because I was in a toilet where I killed a cockroach after few minutes there are another cockroach appear eating the dead cockroach, I am not a cockroach researcher, but my curiosity came out from no where and wanted to know about the word that describe it. We called cannibalism for human, what about cockroach? Roachebalism?


texts: Correct usage of phrasal verb [knock sb/sth down]

texts:
I was doing a comprehension and I was to identify the adjective in a sentence.:

The piano was knocked down to the highest bidder.

I identified the adjective but could not understand the question correctly. Knock down is usually used as
the cost was knocked down to £20

So how can piano be knocked down to someone?


texts: "Go places on foot" or "go to places on foot"?

texts:
Could you tell me if I need to add to in the following sentence?

I prefer to go (to) places on foot.

What I am trying to say is that I am gettig around my city on foot.


texts: I had a bullet going through my arm x I had a bullet go through my arm

texts:
I already know the main use of have when it's is used as a command:

  I had the security kick him out.

I also know its use in sentences of cause, for example:

  His jokes were so funny that they had me laughing

But I still don't know if verbs must be in the infinitive form or in the gerund form in sentences such as:

  I had a bullet go through my arm.

  I had a fan send me a present.

  I had my lips bleed because of the medications.

(I believe I would use "bleeding" if I had said "The medications had my lips bleeding" because the verb have would be used as cause)

Just one more thing, can I replace have by got in this kind of sentence?


texts: What would you call someone who continues to be the "first one" to achieve something?

texts:
I want to write a sentence which tells someone is continuing to "be the first one to do/achieve whatever" and keeps breaking records.

For example, there's a singer in my country who became the first one to succeed in the US music industry, first to hold a concert in  another country, first to win a certain prize... and so on.

  She is continuing to earn a "first-ever" title.

  She is continuing to add a first-ever title to her career.

Do these sound natural to you or would you recommend me a better expression?


texts: Difference Between "are engaged" and "are engaging"?

texts:
While reading an article, I came across this sentence

French President Emmanuel Macron has said he is sure Syrian fighters were operating in Nagorno-Karabakh, where Armenia and Azerbaijan are engaged in heavy fighting.

My question is about the part of the sentence that reads "are engaged in heavy fighting." What I want to know is what is the difference between "are engaged" and "are engaging"? Intuitively, the second one makes more sense to me.


texts: Let me know when you are free to discuss VS Let me know your convenient time to discuss which is right and polite

texts:
When writing an email to a person to get a time to discuss some thing, what would the correct and polite way of writing among the below two. If both are wrong then what would be the right thing to say.

  Let me know when you are free in this week to discuss
  Let me know your convenient time in this week to discuss


texts: Is there any difference in meaning between the verb "agree" and "consent"?

texts:
Could you tell me if there is any difference between the verb agree and consent? For example:

The celebrity has finally agreed to give an interview.
The celebrity has finally consented to give an interview.


texts:
Is this correct to say:

  How to Remove the Comment Form from the Jetpack Carousel Screen

This is a title of a blog post. What concerns me is the second the. Jetpack and Carousel are the names of the plugin and a module within that plugin respectively.

Is it necessary to use it here or I can remove it?


texts: This is being to + infinitive (the reason)

texts:
Original sentence.

  a) The reason being that you will be free from extra shipping for the transfer.

Can we reconstruct the sentence as,

  b) This is being to make you free from extra shipping for the transfer.


texts: Why make a suggestion rather than asserting it?

texts:
A few days ago, I posted a question in a different community where I observed an interesting piece of sentence.
Here's the link. In the first comment:

  "there's a lot of restrictions on using costly instruments in private
  colleges whereas we get a lot of liberty to get hands-on lab
  experience in public ones": I'm not sure this is an inherent
  difference between private and public institutions. Couldn't it be
  that the institutions in your experience simply had different policies
  or cultures, that just happened to coincide with their public/private
  status?

The person writing seems to be older and knows a lot more than me regarding graduate school. Instead of writing directly and asserting the point, he puts it as a suggestion. Likewise, while interacting with many people, I have observed similar speaking styles in a number of occasions. My question is why do they write it like that? Is it some kind of writing style? Or is this simply a manner thing?


texts: "at a distance of leagues, being plainly of megalithic vastness"...full meaning?

texts:
Reading another story by Clark Ashton Smith, I would like to ask your help with the following sentence:

The rock of the whole mountain was strangely ruinous and black; but
the city walls, though equally worn and riven, were conspicuous
above it at a distance of leagues, being plainly of megalithic
vastness.

After some research, I found out that "a distance of leagues" means something like very far or quite far, but I just cannot figure out how the very last part (, being plainly..) is meant. What would be a more prosaic way of saying this?


texts:
Is grossingly a word? If not what's the closest alternative? Example sentence:

  The grumpy man stared at the couple, who were being grossingly sweet to each other.


texts: Why this variation occurs in the usage of definite article before plural uncountable noun 'police'

texts:
In my grammar book it is written that the definite article is used before the armed forces.  For example: the police, the army.

The book also explained it by giving examples such as:

  I think you should call the police.
  The police are investigating fraud allegations against him.

But in the newspaper, I see some lines such as:

  Police say the accused illegally exported beef.
  Police have arrested three persons.

Could you explain why these variations are seen?


texts: Could we use "I have a chat" instead of "I have got a chat"?

texts:
We can use have or have got to talk about possession, relationships,
illnesses, appointment etc.
We use have (but not have got) for things we do or experience.
For example: have  a breakfast/ a dream/ a chat/ a conversation (with somebody)

This information is from  English Grammar In Use Fifth Edition.

Could we use "I have a chat/ a conversation" instead of "I have got a chat/ a conversation"?

I think both of them talk about appointment.

Please give me some examples.


texts: Every time we (had) moved, we started from scratch

texts:
I'm not sure whether I use double past simple or past perfect + past simple in this sentence:

  Every time we had moved, we started from scratch.

vs

  Every time we moved, we started from scratch.

Thank you!


texts: “Gathering evidence” vs. “Evidence-gathering”

texts:
I want to know, if there is any,  the difference between the following sentences:

  1) He was responsible for gathering evidence. gathering evidence

And

  2) He was responsible for evidence-gathering. Evidence-gathering


texts: 'starting cleaning' vs 'starting to clean'

texts:
In an answer to this ELL question, one of our users provided this example sentence, claiming it was grammatical:

  He sighed starting cleaning the floor.

That sentence seems to clash in my native ear. I suggested that it wasn't good grammar, and that (assuming I'm understanding the gist of the sentence) it should be restructure to something like:

  He sighed, and started to clean the floor.

or

  He sighed and started cleaning the floor.

In a comment, though, the user who wrote the sentence stuck by the claim that the original example sentence doesn't violate any grammatical rules.

Rather than start a protracted debate under the comments over there, I figured I would simply ask about the matter here in a new question.

Is this sentence acceptible from a purely grammatical standpoint? Is it colloquial?

I did find some sentences online that used the "starting cleaning" word pair, but they weren't really using them as consecutive verbs. For example:

  A broom, mop, sponges, dish soap, hand soap, paper towels, and all-purpose cleaner should serve well as a starting cleaning package.

In this case, both starting and cleaning modify package adjectively, so, even though that sentence uses the two words, it's meaning and grammatical structure are quite different.

Should I retract my comment? Or keeping sticking [sic] to my guns?


texts: Tense of subordinate clause after "I confirmed that"

texts:
Which is best among the following sentences, and why?

1. I confirmed that now the page was updated.
2. I confirmed that now the page is updated.
3. I confirmed that now the page has been updated.


texts:
What is the difference between them in terms of meaning and usage in daily life.
Can we say :

I have a Intuition  / Premonition / Precognition / Instinct /  Gut
feeling / Hunch you are going to pass
driver test successfully.
I have a  Intuition  / Premonition / Precognition / Instinct /  Gut
feeling / Hunch that if I accept this job offer, it is not going to affect
my career positively.
I have a Intuition  / Premonition / Precognition / Instinct /  Gut
feeling / Hunch that my son and your son are going to get along well even they have not met yet.


texts: Using the phrase 'by the time' with the intention to show my aim

texts:
everyone. I was wondering whether the following usage of the phrase 'by the time' sounds natural.

  By the time I complete my internship, I aim to develop great products.

Thank you very much in advance


texts: How to express something suits a group better?

texts:
Once again, I'm stuck in a situation where I want to say a material is more suitable for a part of the society, a group of people, readers, and so forth; however, this time, I want to solve the problem, once and forever. I want to say this both in a formal context and in an informal one. Furthermore, I want to express this in two ways. Let's keep it simple; to be more specific, given the following sentences, how could I fill the blank?

  In this chapter we present a brief introduction to x, which ....

I'm dubious about these terms:

is most suited for non-experts
suits the non-experts better / the best.
is aimed at non-experts.

  The ... of this chapter are non-experts.

aim group! [all right, maybe this is completely wrong, but I think there is something like that.]


texts: How to say that I want to be pretty enough in fitness?

texts:
In my question in Physical Fitness, Is there a simple program that I don't have to look up at all?, I am asked for the purpose of this plan:

  for what goal?

My goal is to have a good form of muscle that can be noticeable by eyes, but don't need to be so muscular. I want to answer this short and fluent, but I don't know how to say that. Do you have any suggestion?


texts:
What is an open and enclosed parking area?

Could anybody please break these two terms up for me? I've searched online, but still couldn't find a clear answer.


texts:
It's past 2 in the morning, who could be calling now?

It's after 2 in the morning, who could be calling now?

Is it correct to say either?


texts: What does William Shakespeare mean by "murder, though it have no tongue, will speak."?

texts:
I read a book titled 'An Isolated Incident' written by Susan R. Sloan. In chapter one of the book, she quotes

  Murder, though it have no tongue, will speak.

How can this be interpreted in simple English?


texts:
I am confused with the tense, I think

  It's a bit long since I last uploaded.

is probably OK (example here), but since there is a "since", shouldn't it be

  It's a bit long since I had last uploaded.

? Is had necessarily? But without it it seems an grammar error to me but still sounds good.


texts:
[OED:] [2.] a. {intransitive} To deal with some matter in speech or writing; to discourse. (In quot. 1517   transf. of pictorial representation.) Const. of, formerly also on, upon

What are the similarities and differences? Which definition of 'of' fits?
Is of a preposition or a particle?

I encountered this verb phrase below, but notice that the quoted clause with the bold originates from OED's entry on the suffix -logy.

  -logy:     word-forming element meaning "a speaking, discourse, treatise, doctrine, theory, science," from Greek -logia (often via French -logie or Medieval Latin -logia), from root of legein "to speak;"  thus, "the character or deportment of one who speaks or treats of (a certain subject);" see lecture (n.).


texts:
I was kind of perplexed by this expression. I came up with it while listening to the describtion of some concenpt:

  //description of something

  Of course, implied in this description is
  the fact that ...

I'm used to say that something implies from something. Is it incorrect and we say that something implies in something?


texts:
Is it "transfer onto x", "transfer to x" or "transfer on x"? I am not sure what is the correct way to say transfer something from y to z. What if the something is an image on a flat surface?

For example:

  He transferred the dot onto the left screen using his mouse.


texts:
suppose three of my friends and I have gone to a library and ask the librarian to give every one of us a book. So which of the following should I say?

1- Hi sir, Could you please give us each a book?

2- Hi sir, Could you please give us a book each ?

I want to use each because if I say "Hi sir, Could you please give us a book?", he may think we all want only one book.

And one more question, if I take my friends' names and say in the following way, will that be correct?

3- Hi sir, Could you please give John, Peter, Kate and me a book each?


texts:
I have encountered the following sentence:

It’s important to maintain beginner’s mind and openness as much as
possible.

What does "beginner's mind" represent? Mind of a beginner (without any article for mind)? or the mind of a beginner?
It would be easy to understand if the phrase was a beginner's mind, which would supposedly denote "the mind of a beginner."
More generally, regarding phrases that contain the structure "article (or no article) + noun (possessive-form) + noun"--for example, year's end, a year's end, etc.--are there rules on the use and choice of the article? Although, supposedly and logically, the article should be there for the second one, which noun exactly does the article belong to?
If "a year's end" is the same with "the end of a year, and "the year's end" with "the end of the year," then what about "year's end?" I cannot point out what it is because "end" should have an article.
Please tell us general rules on the structure "noun+noun," particularly regarding the use and choice of its article.


texts: Can "Talk about....!" be used ironically?

texts:
Can this idiom, "Talk about...!" be used ironically?

Example.
He is so boring. Talk about humour!


texts:
In many cultures, a practice is found. The pious people of the community say a prayer over some edible or a drink, blow on it, and then it is believed that this thing is now holy. This is used as a spiritual remedy. Can we say 'bless' here? As in:

The pious man blessed the water and gave it to the sick man to drink.


texts: '... has been injured for about a week now' vs. '... was injured for about a week now'

texts:
Kitty: 'Jair, my middle finger has been injured for about a week now'. (1)

  Kitty: 'Jair, my middle finger was injured for about a week now'. (2)

Could now be ungrammatical in (2)? Or, otherwise, (1) means that Kitty's finger hasn't yet healed, whereas (2) implies that that finger is no longer damaged -- e.g., it works?


texts: what should I say? why don't you come back?

texts:
I want to know the most natural expression. please help me.
Context is : If my son went out and he didn't come back home yet. He had told me he will be home by 10. Now it's 12. I've started to worry him. I want to know why he didn't come back. It may be because he forgot time. I'm gonna text him to ask 'why'.

In this situation, should I say "why don't you come back?"
I think it sound weird...


texts:
Do we need article in the following sentence:

  We always look for the ways to increase our total gain.


texts:
The conservative legal challenge to President Barack Obama's executive
  action on immigration, in line for U.S. Supreme Court review, would
  force the justices to wrestle with their own conflicting votes on when
  states have a legal right to sue the federal government.

What's the meaning of "wrestle with one's own conflicting votes on something"?
I know 'wrestle with' means struggle with or handle something, but I'm not sure what one's own conflicting votes means. Does it mean that the justices have contrasting views on the issue?

Quoted from Reuters http://www.reuters.com/article/2015/11/11/usa-court-immigration-idUSL1N1362KD20151111#pOBIabKLQveaH8sB.99


texts:
Is the use of "egg on" common in colloquial American English? Is it used? I looked up its use on Ngram, but it dosen't hint at the actual usage, so I just felt like asking.

  To urge someone to do something, often something mischievous. A noun or pronoun can be used between "egg" and "on."

    Trevor's never been in trouble before, so I'm sure his friends egged him on to start the food fight.

Source:The Free Dictionary.

Will "talk into" be more common or is it equally common (in that sense, natural and famous enough to be used in everyday English)


texts:
1) That's why I'd (I would) just let you know that I'm single.

  2) That's why I just wanted to let you know that I'm single.

Are these sentences basically the same?


texts:
I feel both of them are the same meaning, but I'd like to know if there's any difference.

  The thing that I (take into account / consider ) the most when I buy shoes is if I can wear the shoes for a long time as it is strong.


texts:
Came across this:

  The woman had appalled Mr. Martin instantly, but he hadn't shown it. He had given her his dry hand, a look of studious concentration, and a faint smile. "Well," she had said, looking at the papers on his desk, "are you lifting the oxcart out of the ditch?" As Mr. Martin recalled that moment, over his milk, he squirmed slightly.

Extracted from: The Catbird Seat by James Thurber

Does over his milk imply "while he was drinking his milk"?

In addition, Is are you lifting the oxcart out of the ditch? an offensive statement? What does it imply? I already think it implies someone pretends to do an important job while the job is not that important or When someone is trying to do something very difficult.


texts: Question inversion after comma and statement about it?

texts:
In German, in cases such as the following, questions are inverted. As such, 1 and 2 sound natural for me:

  What is the source of the data?
  It is unclear, what the source of the data is.
  It is unclear, what is the source of the data.

However, knowing that English has a different word order, I wanted to know if 1 and 2 or 1 and 3 are correct English.


texts:
He can eat a little spicy.

  He can eat some spicy.

  He can eat spicy.

  He can eat very spicy.

How to describe different spicy level that can accepted.


texts: Is it natural and correct to say "I can't feel my fingerst" meaning my fingers are numb?

texts:
Is it natural and correct to say I can't feel my fingerst meaning my fingers are numb? For example:

  I guess I had better go to the doctor. I can't feel my fingers at all.

If it doesn't sound right, what would be the most natural way to communicate the meaning?


texts: Use of “have had” in a conditional sentence

texts:
If women have had to bear the consequences of changing gender
  equations, men have been through a confusing time too.

Why does this sentence use “have had”? Can I rewrite above sentence without have?

Please somebody, describe it in simple English.


texts: What is the meaning of "wave" in "Harry tried to wave the owl out of the way"?

texts:
What does exactly "wave" mean in the above sentence? I would be grateful if you make a reference to one of the Oxford, Longman, Webster, or Cambridge dictionaries as well with regard to its sense. Here is the context:

  The owl then fluttered onto the floor and began to attack Hagrid's coat.
  "Don't do that". Harry tried to wave the owl out of the way, but it snapped its beak fiercely at him and carried on savaging the coat.


texts: Do "best in the world" and "best ever" mean the same thing? For example, "best father in the world" sounds fine to me, but "best father ever" sounds a bit odd to me. It sounds as if a person has had more than one fathers, and the current one is the best. I'm not a native speaker of English, so I might be wrong.


texts: what are the words used to describe pronunciations called?

texts:
Following are some examples of words that describe the pronunciation of other words. What are these descriptive words called? I tried using search but it didn't help.

  hipster - hip.stuh

  say - sei

  career - kuh.reeuh

  pronunciation - pruh·nuhn·see·ei·shn


texts: What is the difference between "writhe" and " squirm"?

texts:
How do you describe a person who is twisting and bending their body in reaction to great physical pain?

I have found "to writhe" and "to squirm"as verbs, and both of them mean " to make twisted movements". I have noticed that "squirm" is used for "worms" too.

  1- What is the difference between "writhe" and "squirm"?

  2- Can we use "squirm" for people too or it is considered rude?

  3- What does this sentence (heard in American movies) mean: "I want to watch you squirm"?


texts:
From an exercise book: How many mushrooms did you gather? vs How many mushrooms have you gathered? How is one to know without any context, that it should only be Present Perfect and not Past Simple?

I'm yet to hear a clear explanation on how to choose Present Perfect or Past Simple in some situations. My understanding is sometimes it's like with modal verbs, depends on the speaker, and not even a situation.