texts: Should I use " European Union's " or "European Union"?

texts:
Here are my constructions:

  As I said, I am present in territory of the European Union's ,
  therefore, please contact me only via e-mail at [email address].
  As I said, I am present in territory of the European Union,
  therefore, please contact me only via e-mail at [email address].

So my question is, should I use 'the European Union's' or 'the European Union'?


texts: Tense mismatch when stating a scientific fact

texts:
The machine generated an electric field where the N particles
have an affinity for the M particles.

Can you use have instead of had when you're stating a scientific fact? I couldn't come up with a scientific fact in this example, so that's the best I could do, but let's assume the above is a true scientific fact. Is this grammatical or not?


texts: Is my native co-worker wrong or me? (Using And AND Commas)

texts:
My co-worker who is an English native speaker often makes grammar errors like follows:

  For example,

  Jane has an apple, and a banana.

  Robots, and Dolls are for kids.

This really left me bewildered and wondering whether I am wrong or he is.
I am pretty sure there should be no comma from what I learned in the States,
but it is quite hard and awkward to point out that he is wrong since he is a
native.

In addition, there is another sentence makes me confused.

  John's red and brown colored shirt that he bought last year and the pants I bought today match perfectly.

In a sentence like that (I highlighted the above), should we need a comma/is it acceptable to use a comma? Because he really loves to use commas in these cases.

  John's red, and brown colored shirt that he bought last year and the pants I bought today match perfectly.

  or
  John's red and brown colored shirt that he bought last year, and the pants I bought today match perfectly.

And this will be my revision

  John's red-and-brown colored shirt that he bought last year and the pants I bought today match perfectly.

  or
  John's red-and-brown colored shirt, which he bought last year, and the pants I bought today match perfectly. (when I should use commas)

Is there better way to put this? I don't think I can use a semi-colon on this one.

Also this one,

  the place is famous for its surrounding mountain and wide lake and excellent restaurants and a nearby theme park.

is following revision better?

  the place is famous for its surrounding mountain, wide lake, excellent restaurants, and a nearby theme park.

this is how I would write.

I thought I was perfectly understanding basic grammar rules and now I am confused. Please help me understnad this.


texts: Question about the use of "(What/How) do you do?"

texts: Can we use "what do you do?" to mean "what activity are you engaged in at the moment?" And not asking about someone's job. My teacher once used it not to mean asking my classmate's job. Was my teacher correct? Can we also use "how do you do?" to mean "how someone is doing something?" like cooking a meal, rather than an expression used in greetings?


texts: Understanding a passage in relation with 'Clauses' and 'Phrases'

texts:
Below is the screenshot of a passage from 'Oxford Guide to English Grammar by John Eastwood'.

The passage says A clause has a subject and a verb.  Subject and Verb are the elements of a sentence or a clause. However, in the clause Our flight time will be approximately forty-five minutes there is another 'sentence element' which is complement; other than the 'Subject' and 'Verb'. However, the passage says that 'there can be other phrases, too.' What is meant by 'other phrases, too' here? Does it mean other sentence elements, like complement? Or does it mean the types of phrases other than 'noun phrase' and 'verb phrase'. My main question is: In the examples of the clauses given in the passage, the clauses contain more than a 'subject' and a'verb'. They also have 'complement parts'. The 'complement' and 'verb' part of the example clauses have been shown to be separate or distinct. My second question is: Does the author clarify further in the passage that 'complement' can be part of a clause?
Wikipedia on this issue says:

In grammar, a clause is the smallest grammatical unit that can express a complete proposition. A typical clause consists of a subject and a predicate, where the predicate is typically a verb phrase – a verb together with any objects and other modifiers.

Link: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Clause
The above definition of the clause includes objects  or complements in 'verb phrase'. However, the book describes the verb phrase as:

Verb phrase: come, had thought, was left, will be climbing.
A verb phrase has an ordinary verb (come, thought, left, climbing) and may also
have an auxiliary (had, was, will).


texts:
I would really appreciate some help with the following sentence if it's used as a headline.

  10 steps to achieve your goals
  10 steps to achieving your goals

I searched online and people are using both of them but I would like to understand the difference between them and when should I use each of them.


texts:
Too much afeard to die

Would you tell me what this archaic phrase means?


texts: What’s the semantic difference between can and could?

texts:
Macmillan says can and could show 'you are annoyed.' Then in the next two cases: what are the difference in their meaning, when we assume that both imply the narrator's annoyance?

  What can you be thinking of? What could you be thinking of?


texts: when compare one and other lectures, is it more appropriate use "higher-level"? rather than "high-level"?

texts:
I am learning this course

  So today's lecture is going to be about deep learning intuition, and
  the goal is to give you a systematic way to think about projects,
  everything related to deep learning. It includes how to collect your
  data, how to label your data, how to choose an architecture, and how
  to design a proper loss function to optimize. so all these decisions
  are decisions you are going to have to make during your projects and
  we're trying to give you here an overview of this systematic way of
  thinking for different projects. it's going to be a high-level more
  than other lectures,

The lecturer is saying

  it's going to be a high-level more than other lectures,

in this context, is it more appropriate use "higher-level"? rather than "high-level"?


texts:
I am reading the book Aloft by ChangeRae Lee and it contains the sentence:

  She could easily float my boat, top my prop,crank up the generators.

I found the meaning of 'float my boat', but not the rest.  I think these have sexual meanings but I'm not sure.

What is the meaning of:
1 top my prop
2 crank up the generators

EDIT (after helpful comments):

The sentences came from the book Aloft by ChangeRae Lee. It is very very useful to me in learning contemporary English phrases and words. It is hard to make a progress in reading the book because I have to look up or research what the phrases or words mean.

So does the 'top my prop' have no special meaning at all? Does it not have any sexual innuendos at all?

What does that 'She really puts the peas in my hot porridge,'really mean? Could you explain please. I do not get it.

As a English learner, the English is the most difficult language. It is hard to tell what is current and what is appropriate to use.


texts: Difference between "mandatory" and "indispensable"?

texts: What is the difference between 'mandatory' and 'indispensable'? Can we use them interchangeably? Are there examples which show the difference between both words?


texts: can "will" be used instead of "be going to" in these sentences?

texts:
I know the basic concept. we use "Be going to" when we have already decided about something. I wonder if it is possible to use "Will" in those cases as well?

Will Tim play basketball on Sunday?

-> Does this question imply that I want to know Tim's strong will. (?) I think "be going to " is more neutral and inquisitive. it sounds like a plan to me because of "on Sunday".

Will you stay home today? No, I will go fishing.

-> Does it also imply a strong will? I think it seems like somebody just wonder me whether I stay home today or not.


texts:
I was given a picture of people going down a sidewalk. And I was asked to answer the question of where the people are right now. Do I have to use the definite article or indefinite before the word street? For example:

  In this picture are two women in a/the street.

I don't know exactly which street they are at right now, what I know from the picture that they are walking down the sidewalk.


texts:
“The authors of the study, one of the most closely watched overviews of the global high-end retail market, predicted that such expansion would drive up growth across the global luxury market by as much as 8 percent.”

My question: what does "by as much as 8 percent" mean? Does it mean "by 8 percent" or "by up to 8 percent"?


texts: "salary range of" or "salary range for"?

texts:
Which one is correct why?

  The salary range of this position is between 100k to 200k

or

  The salary range for this position is between 100k to 200k


texts:
Let's say I am in my room, and the door bell goes off.
Are these two expressions similar and have the same meaning? Is the second construct correct?

  By the time I get to the door, my friend has already arrived at the door.

  By the time I get to the door, my friend is already there.


texts:
I said, “I will go to school today, not if it is snowing, if my cat is awake.”
The meaning is odd, but my question is regarding the grammar of the statement. Does the “if my cat is awake” place a conditional on the main clause “I will go to school today” or does it place a conditional on the conditional “not if it is snowing” or both?


texts: install some software "natively" on a computer?

texts:
Windows can be installed on a computer directly, or installed inside a virtual box under Linux.

Is it correct to say the former case to be

  Windows is installed natively on a computer?

Thanks.


texts:
"Maybe you should take a few things out of your pocket before you go," said Mr. Carr.

  Alfred replied, "What things? What are you talking about?"

  "You have a compact and a lipstick and two tubes of toothpaste, Alfred."

  "What do you mean? Are you calling me a thief?" His face got red, and he knew he looked insulted. His  boss nodded his head and Alfred became frightened.

  Source: adapted from Discovering Fiction: An Introduction, Chapter 12.

I don't get the meaning of "he knew he looked insulted" clearly. Does it mean that Alfred knew that he looked like a fool and from his appearance everyone could guess he is a thief?


texts: Having deal with Present Perfect and Past simple in the same sentence

texts:
Sentences I translated:

  Have you found the key you lost yesterday? - Yes, I have. - Where have you found it? - It has been in my pocket.

The key says:

  Have you found, lost; yes, I have; did you find; had been.

My point of view:

We are talking about current status, we don't know whether someone we are talking to has found the key, so Present Perfect (have you found) goes well here. This action was performed at a stated time - yesterday (lost), agree.
The result or may be personal experience (yes, I have).

Going further, why Past Simple? We know he has find it, past completed action, it no longer interests her/him? If so, Past Perfect is acceptable and fits well, since this experice took place before the fact of its finding.

I know there were to many topics connected with this thematics but still.


texts: Are"the name of my brother's friend's father is John' or 'My brother's friend's father's name is John' grammatical?

texts:
How can we say complex possessive patterns?

Are these sentences grammatical?

  "the name of my brother's friend's father is John' or

  'My brother's friend's father's name is John'

There are some of them in my language. We have some problems when we want to translate them into English


texts:
Jess leapt/ran/jumped out from behind a curtain and barged past the masked killer, knocking him to the floor.
Would using "leapt" sound more sudden and forceful than "ran" and "jumped"? Would they all be natural to use in the context?


texts: What should I say after allowing someone asking for going forward from behind me?

texts: I am in problem to respond a person after let her pass from behind me when he asks for a side by saying "excuse me,side please"?


texts: Which tense should I use in "Roger told me that you { have / had } a pen"?

texts:
Should I say:

  Roger told me that you have a pen.

OR

  Roger told me that you had a pen.

Assume I talked to Roger a few hours ago.


texts: How can "I don't know if you can tell or not, but..." be used in spoken English?

texts:
I've just come across that phrase

  I don't know if you can tell or not, but...

Would you tell me what it means and how I can use it?

Thanks for your help


texts:
Which of the following phrases are grammatically correct, meaning "a name for a boy"?

  A boy's name.
  A boys' name.
  A boy name.
  A boys name.

Any response would be appreciated.


texts: How to construct quality long sentences?

texts: I want to construct long sentences, for fiction. I do use subordinate conjunctions and coordinate conjunctions, and I also understand different kind of phrases, and grammatical rules. But I still struggle to string the phrases and clauses together in an effective way. Are there any tips to construct long sentences? And really make it beautiful (By arranging different grammatical elements in different ways). (I don't like semicolons, and i don't want to use it). Give me examples too. I will understand better.


texts: Does "to swim across" mean I reached the other side?

texts:
If you swim across a lake or a river does it mean you reach the other side, or is it possible to swim across without reaching the other side, as in: "I was swimming across the lake, when I got a cramp and had to stop." (I didn't reach the other side.)

Can I use "across" or do I have to use "in"?


texts:
Which example is correct?

  The gaps between platform and train are dangerous.

or

  The gaps between the platform and train are dangerous.


texts:
I'm currently working with a book in which there're some examples of phrases. Here's one of them:

  food high in fats and carbohydrates ( body has increased energy needs
  in cold weather)

I emphasized what's not clear. I was confused by the structure. body is a subject here (it recieves energy from food), and an object as well (body needs energy in cold weather). How is it possible?


texts:
I have a question about the usage of the preposition "for" here:

  Stanford students stand out for their academic excellence.

How is the above sentence different if "for" is replaced with "because of":

  Stanford students stand out because of their academic excellence.

?

Also, could I write:

  They arrived late for the heavy traffic.

to mean:

  They arrived late because of the heavy traffic.

?


texts:
Around a third of the planet’s inhabitants are now stuck at home. That is bad enough—for morale, for businesses and for countries’ economies. For those people to lose in addition what is, for many of them, their only connection to the wider world just makes it worse.

like : for those people to lose whatever it is ,
I am asking because I can't understand the sentence, especially when I was told that it can be parsed as "to lose what is their only connection to the wider world just makes it worse", how can it be parsed in that way?

link : https://www.economist.com/science-and-technology/2020/04/03/can-mobile-networks-handle-becoming-stay-at-home-networks


texts:
I usually say

I confided my doubt to Mr X.
You can confide in me.

But I have seen a sentence

You should not confide *to*  stranger.

Is the above sentence right or should we replace confide to with confide in
Can anyone enlighten me where to use in and to with confide.


texts: The very first few weeks (that / when) I spent~~,

texts:
Here are two sentences.

The very first few weeks that I spent at the new company, I made a lot of mistake.

The very first few weeks when I was new to the new company, I made a lot of mistake.

Here, can I use both? the point is that incomplete clause(without object of spent) follows that, whereas complete clause follows where. Whether it's 'that' or 'where', can I use both to make this phrase an adverbial clase?
Another point I'd like to make sure is if "The very first few weeks when I was new to the company" can be a time adverbial phrase or not. the reason I ask this question is I know I can use " The last time I went to the book store, what I wanted to purchase was sold out. "
Finally, as the very fist few weeks represents duration , Do I need to use 'for' right before the very first few weeks?


texts:
Shares of energy firms in the index declined 1.6% as oil prices slumped (source)

I somehow feel like there should be a preposition after "declined" marking the degree of the decline. Shouldn't it be "declined by 1.6%"? For example, I would write:

  Stocks declined by 20%.

Google seems to suggest that both are common. However, it also seems that some of the search results are headlines or false positives, which makes it hard to tell which one is correct/idiomatic. Is the preposition "by" needed/optional? Is there a difference in meaning?

What about

  Stocks fell 20%
  Stocks fell by 20%


texts:
Friend: John, can you come to the party tonight?

John: Sorry, no. I'd like to come, but my mum's very ill and I have to look after her.

John: Sorry, no. I want to come, but my mum's very ill and I have to look after her.

Do they both sound correct?


texts: "wanted me say" or "was wanting me say" in such case?

texts:
Which of the following sentences is grammatically correct?

I was thinking you wanted me say "Hello."
I was thinking you was wanting me say "Hello."
I was thinking you want me say "Hello."


texts: Is it correct to write "someone wants to focus on their study"?

texts:
Here is the situation.

My colleague, T1000 recently quit his job as a shop assistant.
He is cool but nice. He was doing a part-time degree in a university.
He told us that his school assignment had become harder and heavier, so he wanted to quit the job.

Now, in my diary, I am writing this:

  T1000 has quit the job so that he can focus on his school work and thesis.

I am not sure whether it is correct to write "someone wants to focus on their something"?

If it is not correct, can you suggest some other way of saying it?


texts: There has/have been a lot of advertisements – singular or plural with "a lot of"

texts:
There has been a lot of advertisements.
  There have been a lot of advertisements.


texts: Can we use "at the cost of" to express equality of the prices?

texts:
I want to say you can buy, for example, three e-books buy exactly the same amount of money which you have to pay to buy a single paper book; Is it correct to say it like this?

  You can buy, for example, three e-books at the cost of a single paper book?

If yes, is it idiomatic or there are better ways to express it?


texts:
I have a question about missing someone's call throughout the day. Since you have missed multiple calls, is it OK to say

  "I'm sorry I have missed your calls. I'm giving you a call back."

Or should I still go with

  I'm sorry I missed you/your call. (And stress that multiple calls were missed like this:) I must have been away each time you called."


texts:
I would like to compare through and to. What is their difference in meaning? Which one is (more) correct (or are both correct)? The context can be found in the two sentences below.

Julie went to school from September through June.
Julie went to school from September to June.


texts: American Accent Am I saying "were" as "where" in this recording?

texts:
I am trying to learn American Accent, and I am having a problem when saying were and where, I made this recording to you. I won't write the test that I have said in order to let you feel if my accent is correct or not.

again, I need the were in American accent.

This is the recording, i upload it on many websites.

http://www.filedropper.com/record0003

http://www.megafileupload.com/2zRN/Record_0003.wav

http://s000.tinyupload.com/index.php?file_id=20034351737334244042


texts:
Until now, Blair had refused to link the two, insisting instead in the lead-up to the war that sending western troops would deny jihadis an arena and prevent Saddam Hussein from using them as proxies in his standoff with the west.

Source: https://www.theguardian.com/world/2015/oct/25/tony-blair-is-right-without-the-iraq-war-there-would-be-no-isis

I am a little bit puzzled by the usage of past perfect ("Blair had refused…"). Given the fact that the time is localized by "until now", I would await the present perfect ("Blair has refused…").


texts:
I am good about getting things done.
  I am good at getting things done.

So says my grammar book...
But why "about"?
Isn't it "at"?
Is it the same?


texts: What if the Pearls/Beads are not in a String or Rope?

texts:
The collective noun for Pearls or Beads is Rope or String. But what if that's not the case?

Are pearls always seen in strings? No. What if they are collectively in something (like a bowl) freely without any rope or string?


texts: I wrote the sentence "I am wishing the best to you and your family", and I would like to know, if it is correct, especially regarding the tense.


texts: Perfect tense + 'for' vs. Perfect tense + 'over/during'

texts:
Page 423 of Collins Usage Guide reads,

If you want to say how long something has been the case, you use for:
We've been married for seven years.
If you want to mention how long
something has been happening, you use during or over: A considerable
amount of rain has fallen during the past two years. Things have
become noticeably worse over the past two or three months

What's this difference due to? Maybe different type of verbs?


texts: What does ‘don't even’ mean in the dialogue?

texts:
I saw a picture on a bag, and there is a conversation between two cartoon figures. One said,"It wasn't me", and the other one said, "Don't even".

So what is the meaning of Don't even here in this dialogue?


texts:
I cannot make out what the speaker said in this video. It is at the 9 minute 44 second point. It sounds like he said chores up, but that doesn't make any sense. Here is the context:

  It is difficult to accrue muscle mass, unless you are very overweight and undertrained, but that chores up in a few weeks.

From the context it is clear that if someone is overweight and indertrained it is possible to gain muscle and shed fat, but that halts with time.


texts:
Is it fine to use "is at fault" as follows?

  Very soon I realized that he is at fault.


texts: Is it possible to change he/she (he or she) in a sentence into one word? For instance: When a student comes in, ask him or her to...


texts: How to use this phrase - contribution to solving a problem

texts:
I am wondering whether this sentence is correct:

  He earned award X for his contribution to solving problem Y.

Can someone please advise whether "contribution to solving problem Y" in the above sentence is correct? Normally, to is followed by verb, right?


texts:
In my native languages (Ukrainian and Polish), there are three grades of affection with something or someone.

подобатись [pɔ-'dɔ-bɑ-tɪsʲ] /po-do-ba-tys/ is merely similar to German gefallen or English like, used in "I like this song" or "I liked today's game";
любити [lʲu-'bɪ-tɪ] /lju-by-ty/ is a stronger affection to something more abstract: "I love rock music" (compare to "this song" above) or "I love ice hockey" (compare to "game");
кохати [kɔ-'ɦɑ-tɪ] /ko-ha-ty/ is exceptionally used to express a sympathy to a person, like in "I love you";

It is even more complicated about affection with people. I may [verb1] some random friends, I may [verb2] my close friends (not necessarily to be lovers), and for my mate I use only [verb3].

I'm trying to be clear when I'm expressing in English of these three levels, especially the second one.
For instance, I feel embarrassed to say, "I love you", to someone who is not my mate, but "I like you" sounds not sufficient to me.
OTOH, "I love chocolate" sounds odd to me as well.

What is the rule of thumb for using like and love in the context above?


texts: "There is a pair of kidneys" vs "There are pair of kidneys"

texts:
What is the correct sentence among the two followings?

  1) There are pair of kidneys in human body.

  2) There is a pair of kidneys in human body.

I tend to think that second form is the correct because the word "pair" is a singular noun and the auxiliary verb refers to it apparently, but I'm not sure about that.


texts:
Does "a home" here mean "house" or "homeland"?

This ability to enjoy life is a rich and vital gift. It enables a
person to bear stress well. It saves us from turning into robots, into
slaves to either work or worry. It helps us to move from situation to
situation, from one side of the country to the other and find a home
there with strangers who enjoy what we enjoy


texts: Can you use the adjective "hard" in slang speak as an adverb?

texts:
I am wondering if the slang speak "hard" as in "I hard countered her champion in the last game", can be used in other sentences to mean a similar thing, and how widespread the usage is. Notice the placement also, which is derived from its slang use in the gaming community.

I hard rejected her when she asked me out.


texts: WHY did he go slightly "pink" ?? Does it mean angry, embarrassed, healthy or other meaning in this sentence?

texts:
WHY did he go slightly "pink" ?? WHY did he go pink "with the effort"? What effort? Does "pink" mean angry, embarrassed,  healthy or other meaning in this sentence? I am so so not sure what "pink" means this sentence, since some of the following definitions in the dictionary and my own understanding all make sense, but surely there should be ONLY one correct :

In the Collins dictionary it says: If you are in the pink, you are fit, healthy, and happy.  In the Collins dictionary it also says: If you go pink, your face turns a slightly redder colour than usual because you are embarrassed or angry, or because you are doing something energetic.

Which is it in this sentence?  as far as I understand as the following , all seems right, because:

1 healthy: he is getting out more often rather than stays indoors and with the effort he now looks slightly pink.

2 embarrassed: he is embarrassed because he doesn't enjoy watching morris dancing. (if so, then it leads to why?? is there some culture gap here??

3 angry: he kept a straight face while watching the morris dancing, and a previous fact in the novel suggests he is not a big fan of it, and his face became pink before red.

4 may be he is tired: he kept a straight face and by doing so (with the effort) he became a little tired and the color of his face became pink, showing easily-get-tired. (he is a  quadriplegic and any effort cost him more energy than normal person)

5 other explanations

here is the sentence:

  We, in the meantime, had gradually been increasing Will’s outings—and
  the distance that he was prepared to travel. We had been to the
  theatre, down the road to see the morris dancers (Will kept a straight
  face at their bells and hankies, but he had gone slightly pink with
  the effort), driven one evening to an open-air concert at a nearby
  stately home (more his thing than mine), and once to the multiplex
  where, due to inadequate research on my part, we ended up watching a
  film about a girl with a terminal illness.

  Me Before You by Jojo Moyes

The context is that Will is a quadriplegic and in wheelchair and he rarely goes out. "We" means Louisa, his carer and his family. Could anyone help with this silly question?


texts:
Mr Seale is in defendant position of the court:

Kunstler: I'm trying to be clear that I can't muddy Mr. Seale's
grounds for appeal by appearing to speak as his lawyer.
Judge: I don't ask you to compromise Mr. Seale's position, sir.

What does "compromise" mean in court context?
Source: The Trial of the Chicago 7 (2020)


texts: Should we use articles with "temporal resolution"

texts:
Which one is grammatically correct of these two expressions and why:

EEG has an excellent temporal resolution.
EEG has excellent temporal resolution.


texts: position of adverbial phrase in sentence

texts:
Using of placement of adverb, manner, place, and time in sentence. I am a bit confused speaking to place them in sentence.

While speaking with my boss:

  I went to Ram's home, I connected my laptop to Ram's laptop [ with data cable ] [ at his home yesterday ] to send monthly report from my laptop (because my laptop was down).
  I went to Ram's home, I connected my laptop to Ram's laptop [ at his home yesterday ] [ with data cable ] to send monthly report from my laptop (because my laptop was down).

here my concerned is to use 'with+noun' which is the best position in above sentence to use in english speaking.

Which of the two sentences is better with respect to the placement of the adverbial phrases in bold?


texts:
Is there anything wrong with the punctuation in the following sentence:

He  used to walk along the alleys running in the shade of the
old park's poplar trees.

What I mean is whether there should be a comma put after "alleys" to make clear that "running" has nothing to do with the walker. Anyway, what rule regulates that?


texts:
I read a line in a newspaper. The context is about Russian ambassador getting killed in Turkey and Berlin Christmas Market being attacked which is connected to Pakistani national.

I don't understand the following line:

  Both incidents are symptomatic of a larger process being driven by a new form of nationalism that rides roughshod over multilateral institutions


texts: ""......to sway the court of public opinion"."

texts:
I am confused about what the following line in this article means:

  His accusers from a separate civil case asked a judge to block the
  release of the material over confidentiality concerns. They allege
  Weinstein’s lawyers told them he “intended to unleash these emails in
  the media to sway the court of public opinion”.

What does the last sentence mean, particularly to sway the court of public opinion? Does court of public opinion mean civil court?

Does the last sentence mean that Weinstein's lawyers told the accusers that Weinstein will release the emails in the media so that the civil court makes a favorable decision about him?


texts: "He helped write the program." Infinitive topic

texts: I'm studying about Infinitive topic. The website tells me that some element in this sentence is dropped. I think the full sentence is "He helped me write the Program" but I don't understand the rule that is used to drop some element in the sentence.


texts:
What is the thing in the picture - a scaffold or a scaffolding? Could I use both about it without problems?

I have read this: https://english.stackexchange.com/questions/208149/is-there-a-difference-between-scaffold-and-scaffolding - but I'm still not sure.


texts: What is the meaning of "self-seocissive"?

texts:
I'm not certain this is the right place to ask this, so if not please let me know.
I'm grading research papers for an international competition, many of which are written by students for whom English is not their first language, although all submissions must be written in English.  I've come across the following sentence:
"The impact of the U.S. interruption of food exports is small for countries where food is highly self-seocissive."
I can't tell if "self-seocissive" is a typo or mistranslation or actually means something I can't find, and I would be interested to know if anyone has an idea what it means.  Google returns at most two results, neither of which is particularly helpful.


texts:
I wanna know if this sentence below makes any sense.

"I love for you to be on my team."

If the sentence above makes sense, please, tell me the meaning of the sentence.


texts: Comparative Deletion or Participle Phrase?

texts:
I have this sentence:

  We repeated the same process for the next car, but using the product B, and recorded the data accordingly.

I am not sure if the italicized part is grammatically correct. But if so, I think it is due to coordinate deletion (but [we repeated the same process] using the product B) or being a participle phrase. Which one is it?


texts:
The following is what Sophia, AI, said in an event last year. Sadly, I am not quite sure what the phrase in boldface means. I have been looking up 'invite in' in a number of dictionaries, which was in vain.

  Sophia : I’m always happy when surrounded by smart people who also
  happens to be rich and powerful. I was told the people here at the
  Future Investment Initiative are interested in inviting in future
  initiatives, which means AI, which means me, so I’m more than happy.
  I’m excited.


texts:
1.There is no  bird park in Southeast Asia as large as Jurong Bird Park.

  2.There is no other bird park in Southeast Asia as large as Jurong Bird Park.

In my opinion, sentence 1 means Jurong Bird Park may be or may not be in Southeast Asia.
Sentence 2 means Jurong Bird Park is in Southeast Asia for the usage of ''other''.

I want to know your opinions.


texts:
I often hear teenagers saying things like "I am so fly".

This term is confusing to me.

Does it mean funny? Or dumb? I do'nt know.


texts:
He just fired his assistant.

He's (he has) just fired his assistant.

(Don't know if it's relevant, but he fired his assistant minutes before this is being said.)

Which is technically correct?

If both, what's the difference between them?

Which is (more) natural?


texts:
https://www.lingq.com/lesson/lesson-19-taking-risks-431414/

  Hey, you know I didn't get to be where I am today without taking some
  risks.

What does "get to be" mean in the above context? I guess it means "reach", but I am not sure. and I need some simple examples in plain English of using "get to be".


texts: "straightforward language" vs. "easy language"

texts:
I'd like to leave a comment on Italki website. The idea is to tell that every lesson helps me understand American culture. I also want to express that American English isn't as easy as everybody says. Some people think that English is the easy language. I would say that English is an apparently easy language. I wanted to concise everything in one sentence. Grammarly (an app that corrects mistakes) suggest replacing "easy" by "straightforward."

Can I write this sentence: "Every lesson helps me understand American culture and its seemingly easy language." Does it sound natural?


texts:
Harry swallowed and looked around him. He realized he must be in the
  hospital wing. He was lying in a bed with white linen sheets, and next
  to him was a table piled high with what looked like half the candy
  shop.    “Tokens from your friends and admirers,” said
  Dumbledore, beaming. “What happened down in the dungeons between you
  and Professor Quirrell is a complete secret, so, naturally, the whole
  school knows. I believe your friends Misters Fred and George Weasley
  were responsible for trying to send you a toilet seat. No doubt they
  thought it would amuse you. Madam Pomfrey, however, felt it might not
  be very hygienic, and confiscated it.”    “How long have I been
  in here?”    “Three days. Mr. Ronald Weasley and Miss Granger
  will be most relieved you have come round, they have been extremely
  worried.”    “But sir, the Stone —”    “I see you are not
  to be distracted. Very well, the Stone. Professor Quirrell did not
  manage to take it from you. I arrived in time to prevent that,
  although you were doing very well on your own, I must say.”
  (Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone)

If the sentence were ‘I see you are not distracted anymore’, I would think Dumbledore thought Harry could think properly, after having come round. Then what does the original mean?


texts: Is the word in this sentence, Russian, capitalized or lowercase?

texts:
I want to write:

In Russian/russian, this is a common technique....

Which letter I should use?


texts: 2 'The's with 2 consecutive nouns joined with a conjunction: "X and Y", "the X and Y", or "the X and the Y"?

texts:
"Please write the transliteration and translation for the following words."

Is the sentence above grammatically correct?  Do I need to put the other 'the' before 'translation' as well, or is it possible to not use 'the' at all in this sentence?  Please accept my gratitude in advance for your kind assistance.


texts: Rewrite "I can’t understand what professor means" by changing verb (means) to noun

texts:
I can’t understand what the professor means.

If I rewrite that as:

I can’t understand the professor’s meaning.

Does it seem different? Should I rewrite it?


texts:
Lecar and Franklin (1973) investigate hundreds of collisions occurring
  in a period of only a few thousand years in the early history of the
  asteroid belt, to understand the present configuration of this region
  of the solar system. In another paper, entitled “Cometary Collisions
  and Geological Periods,” Harold Urey (1973) investigates a range of
  consequences, including the production of earthquakes and the heating
  of the oceans, which might attend the collision with the Earth of
  a comet of average mass of about 1018 grams. The Tunguska event of
  1908, in which a Siberian forest was leveled, is often attributed to
  the collision with the Earth of a small comet.

  Broca's Brain: Reflections on the Romance of Science By Carl Sagan

I looked up the dictionary, but can't figure out the meaning of 'attend' here.


texts: sense of purpose in life vs purpose in life

texts:
What is the difference between "sense of purpose in life" vs "purpose in life".

A person with few responsibilities might lose his sense of purpose in life.

I was told that omitting "sense of" is wrong. However, when I translated it to my native language, I was not able to see any difference.


texts: For example,there are two kinds of human in the world, one is man, another is woman. Could I say that human is composed of men and women? Is it right to use compose of here? Or should I use include? Like this, Human include men and women. Thank you very much for any helps.


texts:
I wrote:

  However, the program needs a feature training file, (feat.trn), which I don't know what it is, and how I can provide it.

I know in relative clauses wh-words are used as the absent pronoun like:

  He gave me the book which I like.

  ** He gave me the book which I like  it .

But in my sentence I used "it" in the relative clause, is my sentence yet correct?


texts: Is it grammatically correct? Past Participle in to-infinitive

texts:
“Betrayal. That’s the first thing I feel, which is ludicrous. For there to be betrayal, there would have had to been trust first.”, The Hunger Games

I'm confused about "... would have had to been trust first." What kind of structure is this? Why is there a third form of a verb in a to-infinitive?


texts:
When we say:

When darkness comes, so does the cold.

Do we need to add "too" at the end?

P. S. Is it the same with other similar constructions?

Where goes the duck, there go the ducklings.


texts: words that goes with phrase "your presence"

texts:
I am trying to describe someone's presence as being important, enjoyable, and favorable in a work/professional setting. When I wrote the sentence the phrase "make a big different" to me does not convey what I am trying to say! Also, "makes a great accompany" is a phrase that I have never heard it before, so I am little bit confused.

You are very intellectual person, light-hearted, and your presence always makes a big different/ a great accompany.

Please, let me know if this sentence make sense for native speaker


texts: I've seen both being used, but I am not sure if either one of them is the natural way of putting this silly idea that everyone does. Also, how do you decide between on and in, because both of them can be used in a lot of cases.


texts:
I have been doing an online test to check my English skills and found this:

  I was looking forward ____ at the new restaurant, but it was closed.

  Incorrect (your answer):
  to eat

  Correct:
  to eating

I had understood that after 'to' comes the infinitive form. Could anyone please explain why I am wrong in this case?


texts: "one of several" or "one of the several"

texts:
Google Ngram shows that "one of several" is used more.

I think we commonly use "the" after "one of". Then why is "the" avoided by the majority of the authors?


texts:
I will appreciate it if you can help me.

Someone says "it" is the dummy object, with the if-clause being the real one. I doubt it , because if that is the case, "if" can be replaced with "whether", which actually doesn't work.

So how do you parse this construction?


texts: Are the words 'other' and 'further' interchangeable?

texts: I'm writing an article in English (not mother tongue), and I named a chapter: Other classes of ciphers. Is it ok if in this case I use the expression Further classes of ciphers?


texts: Past perfect (could've been) meaning in context

texts:
In these sentences

  Once the objectives of the project were determined, the initiation stage was completed. Therefore the work could have been directed to planning the execution.

does the phrase "could have been..." indicate that the aforementioned enabled the work to be taken to planning the execution (which may or may not have followed) or it was possible but didn't take place?


texts:
Please advise how to change the following sentence so that it would refer to the 3rd person of unknown sex (as an additional constraint, we need to start the sentence with "The other person"):

  I am active and I like to keep myself busy; I often feel bursting with energy

It's straightforward but a bit long using "he" or "she":

  The other person is active and he or she likes to keep him- or herself busy; he or she often feels bursting with energy

What about using "they" as they sometimes do:

  The other person is active and they like to keep themselves busy; they often feel bursting with energy

... or:

  The other person is active and likes to keep themselves busy; they often feel bursting with energy

Does any of the sentences sound OK to a native speaker? Would you understand that the question refers to a single person, not a group of persons? Which version ("he or she" vs "they") is easier to read?


texts: People usually say this as Wazzup? But I think it is not proper. Would it be better to replace it with What's up? Why or why not?


texts:
How to call a decision by parties in negotiation to do something just to allow talks to move forwards and see the whole negotiation develop,e.g., you draft an agreement or make promise with the intention that you may change your mind.

Literally, such decision might be called a proposal but is there any other way to express it by drawing analogy to strategic game like chess or checker. Kind of wordings that make the decision sound like 'a strategic move'.


texts:
His art collection appreciated greatly over a period of thirty years.

I am wondering the reason why the verb appreciate has not been used as following:

It would be appreciated...

Thanks in advance


texts: Is the phrase "in manner hereinafter mentioned" okay to be used?

texts:
I have a question regarding to formal phrase "in manner hereinafter mentioned".

I need to make a remark in the end of the sentence that the detailed information regarding that question is elsewhere in the document. Though I cannot point the precise clause of the document because it has no determination.

So I want to use a phrase that say to a document reader that there is the detailed information herein but the reader need to look for it by themselves.

Is the phrase "in manner hereinafter mentioned" good for the official document context?

For example here is the sentence:

  When your work with the system is done, make sure to disconnect the
  cables and turn off the system (in manner hereinafter mentioned).

I will be grateful for any assistance!


texts: What is a common term for interpolation and extrapolation

texts:
When working with empirical measurements, one often needs to render additional data based on the approximation from the provided by the observation. In the professional terms it is referred to as interpolation and extrapolation. The former meaning that we actually fill in the gaps whereas the latter implies extending the edges.

It's been increasingly painful to write both (and in most cases we do both), so I wonder if there's a smooth way to express both in one shot. I can think of rephrasing or describing the action but I'm looking for a correct term meaning interpolation and/or extrapolation (of data).


texts:
Why does "numbers of people" take "has" not "have"?

  Expenditure on direct payments has risen as numbers of people
  using them has increased and now equates to £1.1 billion or
  6% of overall gross expenditure for adults.

Source: An overview of the UK domiciliary care sector February 2013 PDF file

  Our freedoms are being forfeited as our numbers grow. Quality of life
  is reduced as numbers of humans increase.

Source: San Francisco Chronicle, EDITORIAL; Pg. 6; Letters to the editor; via COCA

Edit:

Grammar Glitch Central's take on  “Numbers of participants has…?

Edit: more examples

  Two Medway Grammar Schools, Chatham Boys and Chatham girls have over a
  hundred spaces between them, as numbers of children in Medway drops
  sharply.

Source: Grammar & Non-selective oversubscription and vacancies, in Kent & Medway secondary schools

  In both cases, divergence from the 7:3 ratio will be deemed to be
  drift, in retrospect at least, if the divergence declines as numbers
  of tosses or generations increases.

Source: Darwinian Reductionism: Or, How to Stop Worrying and Love Molecular Biology, Alexander Rosenberg, 2008 via Google Books


texts: What should I say after asking about the price of an article but I don't want to buy?

texts: In many cases, I ask a seller about the price of an article, but finally I don't want to buy. I don't know how to reply him or her politely in English? What English-speaker usually say thin these cases?


texts:
If a private institution (that doesn't confer degrees) is offering recreational cooking classes, can these be collectively referred to as a program?

I'd appreciate your help.


texts: Is the expression "Police Scotland" grammaticaly correct?

texts:
I just ran across this expression Police Scotland, that normally it could be Scotland Police or Police of Scotland, but since it was pronounced formally on their website, it got a question for me:

link to “Welcome to Police Scotland"


texts: Is it Simple past, Past Subjunctive, or what?

texts:
In this past sentence:

  I wanted to have a little time to myself before everybody else woke up at 7:00 am

Is "woke up" being used as simple past, past subjunctive, conditional or what? If it's in simple past, how could it be simple past if it hasn't happened yet? It might never happen, it's hypothetical.


texts:
Please help me to understand the exact meaning of "last" in the text below.

  "On Friday morning last there occurred in the sawmill operation of
  Douds Factory a particularly ghastly and tragic accident."

  "Casting away" by Alice munro


texts: What is the plural of "school subject"? Is "school subject" also common in American English?


texts:
After ______ MA Economics he joined the London School of Economics.

I am confused about using "passing" or "having passed"?

*Edit - I did some research and from what I gathered, the answer is "passing" because using "having passed" with "after" will bring a sense of redundancy. The "having passed" form of the verb has the "after" inherent in it.


texts: How to ask someone you know for their time for setting up a phone call or meeting, to talk about something important in a productive and focused way. Like you are asking your manager in a formal way?


texts: "Visit the exotic Sri Lanka first and the breathtaking Georgia in the next trip"

texts: IS the 'the' right before an adjective 'exotic' and 'breathtaking' ?


texts:
I want to ask the bus driver what the closest place to library the bus gets to is.

Do I ask:

  What's the closest place to the library do you get to?

  Or

  Where's the closest place to the library do you get to?


texts: How to answer "Do you have nothing to do?" correctly

texts:
If I have nothing to do, should I say "yes" or "no"?
I'm confused because both "Yes, I do have nothing to do" and "No, I don't have anything to do" have the same meaning.


texts: How to present the past event in a best way in the context of having vomiting all day?

texts:
I am in a scenario where i have to inform my colleague that i was ill and i was suffering from vomiting , this is a past scenario as i am talking to him the next day. So how i can i present this to him.

1) I was suffering from vomiting all the day
2) I had vomiting the whole day
3) I did vomit all day

Was, had and did all are presenting past in this scenario, so how to understand that which is best suit for which scenario. As i am not a native speaker of english so i am not confirm about the correction of choices i write above.


texts:
In an increasingly mobile society, people only stay in one place for a relatively short period of time. As a result, they often save the effort in/to/into building meaningful relationship with neighbours.

Which one is correct?


texts: I've heard it in a documentary. So, a guy "works" for a drug cartel and he doesn't have a good position yet. He's a border rat. What does it mean? That he's a courier who transports drugs across the border? Or that he explores the border to find "weaker" areas? Thanks!


texts: "do something around 9 o'clock" or "do something at around 9 o'clock"?

texts:
Tell me please of the preposition "at" is optional in the following sentence.

  Yesterday I went to sleep (at) around 9 o'clock.

I have heard a native speaker say it without at. Did he make a grammar mistake or is it accaptable to omit the preposition?


texts: past continuous or past simple in this case

texts:
What were you wearing at the party? (wear)

I found this sentence in an exercise (past continuous or past simple) I would like to know why it is not past simple, does it mean that the person wore something special for the party, something he doesn't wear very often

other sentence from the same exercise

They were not doing much business after lunch  (be)
Why not past simple ? I don't have a clue


texts: "During years 2017-2019" vs. "During the years 2017-2019"

texts:
"During years 2017-2019, he appeared four times on the podcast."

  or

  "During the years 2017-2019, he appeared four times on the podcast"

Are both of them correct? If not, which of them and why?
I was not able to find anything on the Web/SE that would provide me with the answer.


texts: How many forms can "I avoid telling him" be in the passive voice?

texts:
I need to find out how many forms the emphasized sentence can be in the passive voice.

  I avoid telling him

Is it correct to say, "Telling him is avoided" in terms of signifying the process of (telling) informing him?


texts: "what was going on" VS "what has been going on"

texts:
Sentences:

  What was going on in my absence.
  What has been going on in my absence.

This is a task on translating. There is no other context. I want to kno what is the difference.

The first one means that there was some period of time between the moment of spmeone's arriving and asking for information (came back yesterday; two days left; wanted to know about the last changes happened), doesn't it?

The second means that the someone asking this question has just came back and want to know about things happened. The the process of "going on" is connected with the present time, current moment (for example, a company of your friends is sitting in your home and laughing about something).


texts: Use of more and as many as in different place

texts:
I wrote four sentence with “more” and “as much as” used in different places in sentences. Is there a difference among sentences in meaning ? It really confuses me.

There are ten times more bacterial cells than human cells in human body.

There are bacterial cells ten times more than human cells in human body.

There are ten times as many bacterial cells as human cells in human body.

There are bacterial cells ten times as many as human cells in human body.


texts: 'Didn't happen' or 'haven't happened' before

texts:
Should I use 'haven't happened' or 'didn't happen' in the context?

Yesterday a tragic incident happened near Delhi. At least 50 people died in the rail accident. The government and railway officials took the responsibility of the accident. It is not that incidents like that didn't happen/haven't happened before but the number of deaths never rose to that point.


texts: Most dictionaries that I have checked give a definition for the adjectives given in the title when they describe eyes, however it is always something like "When eyes X, they shine in a way that expresses a particular emotion". Therefore, I am wondering if these adjectives have different connotations when they describe eyes, as perceived by a native or some who's studied English.


texts: Are they ok to say "You put the blue Lego brick on the yellow one halfway. Please put it all the way on!" and "Please screw the cap all the way on"?

texts:
Your child doesn't put Lego bricks on each other completely and screw the cap on the bottle completely. There are always gaps between them as showed in the following picture.

Are these correct expressions?
-You put the blue brick on the yellow one halfway. Please put the blue one all the way on.
-You screwed the cap back on the bottle halfway. Please screw the cap all the way on.


texts:
Second-largest school district in the US closes over threat New York officials concluded was a hoax that ‘mirrors recent episodes’ of TV show Homeland.

I am lost in the syntactic structure of the above sentence. I roughly understand the meaning: the decision to close the school in the US district made by NY officials was based on false information… But I am not able to parse the original sentence. Every time I try to do it it ends that the hoax was Second-largest school district… Is the word "closes" a verb in the sentence?


texts: In cartography, what do you call the line that separates land from water?

texts:
I am discussing cartographic conventions. For instance, "rivers should be blue" and "country borders should be black".

In such a discussion, how should I refer to a line that separates land from a large body of water?
I am looking for a single term that works for ocean, sea, lake (rivers not needed).

My attempts:

coast
shore
seaside line
seaside
bank

Is there a more appropriate term?


texts: Addressing a group of women as "you guys"

texts:
The word "guy", in its singular form, is used to refer to a man, so it's gender specific. However, in colloquial language, you can also use the expression "you guys" to refer to a group of people.

When used in the plural form, is "guys" gender agnostic? Can you use "you guys" to refer to a group of women?


texts: "The boss of a company" or "the boss in the company"?

texts:
Tell me please which one of the following sentences is correct?

  Kate is the boss of a company.

  Kate is the boss in a company.


texts: Is "last two years ago, I was in a classical concert " a correct sentence?

texts: In my English class my Teacher said I cannot use "Last two years ago...", so what should I use correctly?


texts: "are specified" or "have been specified" would be grammatically correct?

texts:
Which one is correct?

  The conditions of deformation and calculation of the soil – pipeline system are specified?

Or:

  The conditions of deformation and calculation of the soil – pipeline system have been specified?


texts: "Choke" meaning "to tie a knot" or "to hang from"?

texts:
A line from the movie Mud (2012) goes:

  (Matthew McConaughey's character): All right, Ellis. Can you climb that trunk, choke this off that limb? Tie it in a bowline knot, you know it?

The meaning is clear: Ellis is asked to climb up the tree and hang a rope from a branch with one end tied to it. I guess this usage is related to the sense of "to strangle", but it still seems a different usage that I don't recognize and can't find a dictionary entry to back up.

The movie is set in the Texas-Arkansas border. Is this usage regional/dialectal?


texts: On the meaning of 'to not commit to a meeting' in this context

texts:
The following passage was taken from this NYT article (7th, 8th, and 9th paragraph counting from the last paragraph).

  One of the most dramatic moments she described came in the July 10 meeting in Mr. Bolton’s office that included Mr. Sondland; Kurt D. Volker, then the special envoy for Ukraine; Rick Perry, the energy secretary; and two Ukrainian officials.

  The purpose of the meeting was to talk about technical assistance to Ukraine’s national security council. The Ukrainians were eager to set up a meeting between Mr. Trump and Mr. Zelensky, who was elected on a promise to clean up corruption and resolve the country’s five-year war with Russian-armed separatists.

  Mr. Bolton was trying to not commit to a meeting, according to Ms. Hill’s testimony. Mr. Sondland got agitated, Ms. Hill testified, and let out that there was an agreement with Mr. Mulvaney that there would be a meeting if Ukraine opened up the investigations the White House was seeking.

Does the sentence in bold mean Bolton was trying to avoid (not appear at) the meeting the Ukrainians wanted, or that he was trying to prevent the meeting from happening?


texts:
I wrote:

  In most treebanks, sentences are annotated either (by or with ?) dependency structure or phrase structure depending on the syntax properties of the language.

The dependency structure is not the doer of the annotation, can I still use "by"? Should I only use "by" for the actor of the action?


texts:
Here are my constructions:

  I should like to know whether it is possible to purchase this
  workshop manual.
  I should like to know whether it is possible to buy this workshop
  manual.

So my question is, should I use 'purchase' or 'buy'?

Also, am I missing any articles in this letter?

Full context:

  Dear Sir or Madam, I have a question concerning workshop
  manuals for Pontiac. Manual for this car model was
  previously only available on the website at: [...]. On the website was
  information that manual provides overview of [engine model] engine.

  I should like to know whether it is possible to purchase this workshop
  manual.

  Thank you for your time and I am looking forward to your answer.


texts: What is the difference between 'take a look' at and 'look at'?

texts:
There are two sentences below:

The policeman looked at the boy.
He took a look at me.

What is the difference between 'take a look' at and 'look at'in meaning?


texts:
From the University of Alabama "Application for Admission", as of February 2016:

  At the time of your entry to UA, will you have been separated from the U.S. Armed Forces,
  National Guard or Reserves with a dishonorable or bad conduct discharge or been dismissed by
  sentence of a general court-martial or sentenced to confinement adjudged by a court-martial or in a
  federal or state penitentiary or correctional institution?

The meaning of the above sentence is that, I will not  be  disrespectful  or not  to the US army or any national Guard services. Is it right?


texts: Prepositions at the beginning on a sentence

texts:
I want to ask a question about it. Why do we do it? Why do we use the prepositions at the beginning of a sentence? For example:

  Up came Gandalf on a very splendid white horse.

Why is "up" separated and why is it at the beginning?
Is it different from its normal version?:

  Gandalf came up on very splendid a white horse.

.


texts:
I was doing an exercise where I had to cross out the incorrect forms:

  Being / To be / Be good is easy; what is difficult is being / to be / be just.
  (Victor Hugo)

In both cases I chose To be, which turned out to be wrong.

But later I discovered this quote by Oscar Wilde

  To be good is to be in harmony with one’s self

So, my question is, apart from the fact that it was a quotation, is it correct to say To be good is easy; what is difficult is to be just.?


texts: 'I wish to speak WITH a British accent' or 'I wish to speak IN a British accent' - is there a difference?

texts:
I wish to speak with a British accent?

What is the impact of using in instead of with in the above sentence?


texts:
Administrative court complaints are however barred against decisions
[administrative acts] whose subject- matter is that of internal or external security of
the State … as well as other matters of foreign affairs. The decision of the [Federal
Ministry to refuse Nada’s request for the removal of his name from the administrative
act freezing assets] refers to measures for the implementation of international
sanctions and belongs thus to those decisions dealing with matters of foreign
affairs for which the Federal Council [the Executive] has in principle [exclusive]
competence.


texts: Is it grammatically correct to say or to write "some brain"?

texts:
In oral speech or writing, it is grammatically correct to say "let's eat some brain"? Could you please give me some example of a more correct form of this kind of expression?

Edit

Thank you for your answers. Anyway, I apologize for being mysterious about the context of my question.
My friends and I have a web radio show; this week we are going to talk about zombies and the title of the episode is "Let's eat some brain!", so I was wondering if a native english speaker would approve this sentence.


texts: "A formidable figure she was too, in her belted smock and green breeches" Is this sentence a relative clause?

texts:
A formidable figure she was too, in her belted smock and green breeches

Is this sentence a relative clause ?
like  'A formidable figure (which) she was too'


texts: Revolved vs. Revolves (reported speech)?

texts:
If a sentence is past simple (record speech), and implies a constant fact. Would the fact be in present simple or past?
Such as the following two sentences:

  she told her students the Earth revolves./revolved around the Sun once a year.
  She opined that San Francisco had/has the most beautiful views of any city in the United States.


texts:
I really want to know about the relation between dummy "it" and the the verb "make".

These example sentences are from TOEFL, and I collected all of them which includes dummy "it" after the verb "make".

A well-kept room making it possible for people to concentrate effectively on their work.
Orderly environment makes it easier to process the information, which ensures that tasks are completed more efficiently.
The rise in demand for domestic goods causes local companies to increase production, which makes it necessary to hire more workers.
It is the lack or gravity on the moon that makes it possible to leap 30feet or more.
More and more people are making changes to their lifestyle that are beneficial to the environment.

When I googled about the dummy it after the verb make, it said that it has to be the subject of an infinitive phrase.

However, according to the Cambridge Dictionary, https://dictionary.cambridge.org/grammar/british-grammar/infinitives-and-imperatives/infinitives-with-and-without-to,

it is written that we can use the to infinitive in a clause with a verb that has no subject.

Moreover, example number 5, the sentence is grammatical even if verb make is used without dummy it.

now I am in panic...

Several days I have looked up dictionary and google, but I do not get the right answer..

please help me to understand the syntactic structure regarding make and dummy it with infinitive clause.


texts:
I read that it is not correct to use will twice in a sentence, that's why I have been using would to replace the second 'will', like in the example below:

I am going to buy a bicycle this month. Not only will it allow me to be more independent but would also help me with my body fat accumulations.

Is it okay to do that?
Thanks


texts:
I heard the phrase in a couple of songs, e.g.
Miley Cyrus's Midnight Sky:

I was born to run, I don't belong to anyone.

Imagine Dragons' Whatever It Takes:

I was born to run, I was born for this

What does the phrase mean?


texts:
Like numerous other kinds of adjunct, predicatives may be integrated into the structure as modifies, or detached, as supplements:
i They left empty-handed.                               [modifier]
ii Angry at this deception, Kim stormed out of the room.   [supplement]
The supplements are positionally mobile and are set apart prosodically. The modifiers are of course like the complements, especially in cases where they occur very frequently with a particular verb, as with leave in [i], die in He died young, bear in the passive He was born rich, and so on.
–– The Cambridge Grammar of the English Language, p.263

Why is the predicative, empty-handed, in [i] classified into modifires? Is it mean though the predicative is oriented towards they [= predicand], empty-handed modifies left?
Or is it a modifier modifying the subject, they?


texts:
The past tense of the verb hit, as in the sentence Yesterday you hit the ball,
    and the plural of the noun sheep as in The sheep are in the meadow, show that
    some morphemes have no phonological shape at all. We know that hit in the
    above sentence is hit + past because of the time adverb yesterday, and we
    know that sheep is the phonetic form of sheep + plural because of the plural
    verb form are.

What does the bolded part mean? It seems to me that the author implies there are more than two pronunciation for the word "sheep", one is for the plural form of "sheep".


texts:
This country and this other country are two very impoverished
countries.

I am wondering if you can use this in such manner. You usually hear this and that, with that used for the closer object, but I am wondering if this can be used regardless of the distance of the object and be used twice to point to different things.


texts: What does the phrase "baize to secure early lead" mean here?

texts:
I cannot figure out the meaning of the phrase "battle of the baize" in the following heading of a news item:

  Varsity 2017: Warwick win battle of the baize to secure early lead

I am not sure if the phrase above simply means "a game of billiard".


texts: Can 'at the moment' be so long as to read a novel?

texts:
I am reading ‘Middlemarch’ at the moment.

Some situations are not strictly continuous but allow for gaps, and
the concept of ‘in progress at Tr’ is perfectly consistent with Tr
actually coinciding with such a gap, as in the example. . . . Thus in
the example it is the situation with gaps included that is presented
as ongoing, so that I needn’t be engaged in actual reading at Td.
(The Cambridge Grammar of the English Language, p.163)

The grammar seems to say my reading is a progressive activity with gaps. But can ‘at the moment’ subsume that long time enough to read an 880-pages novel?


texts: What is the meaning of the following sentence?

texts:
"I don't have a car, so I either cycle or walk most places."

Does it mean that I cycle (or walk) through or to most places?


texts: Gerund, Infinitive or That Clause in this case

texts:
If someone expect us to run 40km and we want to say it is ridiculous. Which of the following sentences (or all) can be used ?.

  It is ridiculous for you to expect me to run 40km. (it sounds wrong to me)
  It is ridiculous your expecting me to run 40km.
  It is ridiculous that you expect me to run 40km.

my example can be senseless. I just made up to get more understandable answers for me.


texts: Is there a grammatical error in 'is known to the prominent figures'?

texts:
What is grammatical error in below given sentence?

  Our beloved Prime Minister is known to the prominent figures all over the world.

My book says there is no error in this sentence, but I think there should be 'for' in the place of 'to', because anybody is known 'for something' not 'to something'.


texts: Is the sentence correct on the way the word "respectively" is used?

texts:
I wrote a sentence like this:

  "After processing the data record, if a user finds that the third (resp. second) column value of the First Table (resp. Second Table) is not Null, that means the previous value of that object (resp. group) is already inserted..."

Actually, it is composed of two sentences as written below:

  1) "after processing the data record, if a user finds that the third column value of the First Table is not Null, that means the previous value of that object is already inserted..."

  2) "after processing the data record, if a user finds that the second column value of the Second Table is not Null, that means the previous value of that group is already inserted..."

I merged them using 'respectively' (resp.) as shown in the first sentence. Is that sentence correct? If not, what should be the correct one?


texts: Describe a man standing right side of me

texts:
Assume that I am the person who is wearing white with blue shoes. I want to describe the man standing next to me.
i.e:

  standing right to me

or

  standing in front of me..

like that.


texts:
He is to solve these questions.

  He is about to solve these questions.

What are the differences between these two sentences in terms of meaning?
Would any of you mind directing me to a question ,if there is one, related to the structure of "noun+be+to+verb+"?


texts:
What is the difference between over and overly? what these words called like one adverb or another noun etc. My English is not all good.

If I am saying over confident and overly confident, what is the difference?


texts: What do you call pieces of cardboard with political slogans on them?


texts:
He brought in the handful of books from his house.
He brought in a handful of books from his house.

What is the difference?


texts: What does "joint" mean in "International joint conference"?

texts:
I noticed there are a few conferences that use the word joint in their name:

International joint conference on artificial intelligence (IJCAI)
Joint Conference on Digital Libraries (JCDL)
International Joint Conference on Computational Intelligence (IJCCI)
many others

I thought joint means that there are at least two parties involved, like in the example:

  this is a joint venture between Company A and Company B.

But I cannot identify which are the multiple parties in these conferences. So what does joint mean in their title?


texts: tolerance: "practicing" it, "living" it?

texts:
I'm trying to find a way to express a french sentence in English "Suffit-il de prêcher la tolérance pour la vivre ?" Which literally means "is it enough to preach tolerance to live it?"

Is it correct in English to "live tolerance" -(or any quality)?

I was tempted to use "to practice tolerance" but it sound not enough. "Practicing" could mean "being sometime tolerant" (and sometime not), in the french expression it means something strong like "doing it always" or "to incarnate it". Any idea of an English equivalent of it?


texts:
Where was the historic six point programme declared?
Where the historic six point programme was declared?

I know the first one is 100% correct.
Is no 2 correct?
Is any special rule with no 2?


texts: The meaning of an expression "he wasn't born, he was knitted"

texts:
In S04E04 of Irish crime series Single-Handed two shady characters talk about gullible police officer they managed to take advantage of, not once but twice

  A: Finbar's a fairly handy local resources, isn't he.

  B: He wasn't born, he was knitted. Hum the right tune and he'll sing it.

  A: I found his tune alright.

I am interested in the meaning and origin of an expression "He wasn't born, he was knitted."


texts: Should I use "will" or "would" for the future tense if there is a condition?

texts:
Once you send me your final SOP, I will place it in the main document.

Or should it be "would place" in the main document since it is conditional?

Thank you


texts: Is it natural to use the verb "want" in the continuous form to express a strong desire for something or to do something?

texts:
I am aware that the verb want is a stative verb and many grammar books and teachers say it is correct to use it in the continuous form. But as is the case with lot of stative cases, there some instances in which they can be used to the continuous form to communicate a different flavor of meaning. So that has gottem me thinking about if it is possible to use want in the continuous form to express a stronger desire for something or to do something. For example:

  I am wanting that phone really bad.

If it is possible, then how commonly is it is used in the progressive form by English native speakers?


texts:
Should I use same before noun always ? I mean can I use it after noun ? Like ;

  I have the same computer as yours

Or

  I have the computer same as yours.


texts:
I was doing a composition and I had to use the relative pronoun in the pair of sentences.

  This is the path.
  He came by this path.

And its answer was This is the path by which he came.

But is this grammatically correct to say?

  This is the path that he came by.


texts: When to use "picked up" and when to use "picked out?"

texts:
In the following sentence:

  Mary liked the place she had picked (?). It was an open-air bar with tables and stool surrounding its four sides.

Should I use picked up or picked out? And why not just picked?

I think in English is common to add "out" and "up" after a word if there's nothing after it.

For example:

  All the props were set up.

Is that right?


texts: What does this one sentence mean considering the context?

texts:
Mycroft Holmes: I have access to the top level of the MI5 archive.
Mary Morstan: [already looking at that archive via her phone] Yep, that's where I'm looking.
Mycroft Holmes: What do you think of MI5 security?
Mary Morstan: I think it would be a good idea.

I don't know exactly what the last line of Mary Morstan means.
Also, in that sentence, what does "it" refer to?


texts:
A man such as yourself has acquired your own wealth
vs
A man such as yourself has acquired his own wealth?
Which one is correct? I think it's the second one, but I'm not sure


texts: "I just sent a mail" or "I just sent mail"

texts:
I'm wondering if it is "I have sent a mail to him" Or "I have sent mail to him"

I could not find much online. Thank you.


texts:
Bill doesn’t run or swim.
  Bill doesn’t run and doesn’t swim.

What is the difference in meaning between these two sentences?


texts:
I'm studying English vocabulary books, I find this word in each unit describing time words (days, weeks, months...).

  There are 2 weeks in a fortnight.

Almost I haven't seen this word before in social websites, emails or movies. the only place I heard this word is in historical movies.

So, is it a outdated word or native speakers still use it?

Ngram:


texts: Can we use "distinguish" to convey "to make something distinguishable"?

texts:
I know about the very common usage of the verb distinguish:

By age of 10, a human being should be able to distinguish bitter from sweet! (self made sentence)

I am wondering if I can reword

  We use two different line styles to make the demand and the production curves distinguishable.

into

  We use two different line styles to distinguish the demand curve from the production curve.

?


texts: Can you replace "anywhere" with "where"?

texts:
For example:

"I don't have anywhere to put them" becomes "I don't have where to put them".

This doesn't make sense to me but apparently, according to my girlfriend, is also correct.


texts:
Which of these sentences is correct / more common / formal?

For what did he win a Nobel Prize?
What did he win a Nobel Prize for?


texts:
Scarcely is usually combined with When but in the following line why does not it happens so?

  Scarcely had the small streamer bearing Mustafa Kamal entered the Black Sea
      than the authorities of Istanbul became suspicious of his intentions and
                   issued orders for the ship to be intercepted.


texts: cloud one's judgement vs. crowd one's judgement

texts:
They let their emotion crowd their judgment.

  Don't let your personal feelings cloud your judgement.

I've seen the both expressions. Do they mean the same?

Since Stephie asked, here is the actual sentence.

  "People are emotional, they've heard the story, they feel
  compassionate, and rather than using their logic to support or give,
  they let their emotion crowd their judgment."

(Crowdfunding and the downside of helping needy strangers, CBC news, March 7 2015)


texts:
I'm confused about two things:

1) Does crossing the boundary imply stepping INTO or stepping OUT OF the bounded area or idea?

For example:

  Never cross the boundaries of freedom of expression

and

  Never cross the boundaries of immorality

2) When should I pluralize boundary? For example, should I pluralize it in "crossing the boundary/boundaries of the system"?


texts: The use of different forms of the verb ''understand'' in sentences

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

  In his anxiety to make himself understanding, he spoke too loudly and too slowly
  In his anxiety to make himself understood, he spoke too loudly and too slowly.


texts:
What is meant by "Singular rejection"?

This combination is used by a news anchor while describing the defeat of a leader.
He used the following sentence:

  "The leader received a singular rejection, as under his leadership, his political party received electoral defeats in a number of states."

As per this usage, it appeared that by "Singular rejection" he meant "total rejection".

However, when I checked the meaning of "Singular" at Cambridge dictionary or at Oxford dictionary, I didn't find any meaning of "singular" matching this context. I also searched at Google Ngram and I found that this combination is used a lot, but I didn't find any definition of this combination.


texts:
What should I use? When you ask a person to choose only one kind of thing.

  Which one do you like? apples, candies or cookies?

or

  Which ones do you like? apples, candies or cookies?


texts: “allow to determine” or “allow determining”

texts:
I think that this is a very basic question, but I would greatly appreciate if someone explains me this:

What is the correct way for the following sentence?

  will allow to determine

or

  will allow determining


texts: "would not have been happened" vs "would have not been happened"

texts:
Can you please explain me the difference in meanings between these two sentences?

  This would not have been happened if you were not there at that time.
  This would have not been happened if you were not there at that time.


texts: "have been long since forgotten" vs long forgotten usage

texts:
The valuable stringed instruments in this display, all more than 300 years old, were carefully crafted by artisans famous in their day but long since forgotten.

Is ""have been long since forgotten" necessary in the sentence and correct?


texts: "There was too much truth in this to ignore" meaning in this context

texts:
"I don't hate her," said Hermione loftily. "I just think she's an absolutely appalling teacher and a real old fraud. But Harry's already missed History of Magic and I don't think he ought to miss anything else today!"

  There was too much truth in this to ignore, so half an hour later Harry took his seat in the hot, overperfumed atmosphere of the Divination classroom, feeling angry at everybody.

  Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix

I'm not sure what the meaning of "There was too much truth in this to ignore" is in this context. Any thoughts?


texts: It can't have been John vs. it couldn't be John

texts:
Let's say John is out of the country for a holiday. Then, Martha is claiming that she saw John this morning to Paul. Then Paul said:

  It can't have been John you saw this morning, he's out of the country for a holiday.

Vs.

  It couldn't be John you saw this morning, he's out of the country for a holiday. (My construction)

Are they both grammatical and the same in context?


texts: Plural verb with "everybody/anybody/everyone/anyone"

texts:
Where have everybody/everyone gone to?
Have anybody/anyone ever told her the truth?

Are these valid usages, idiomatic?


texts:
Do you automatically use past perfect when talking about like 10 years ago or is the simple past ok?

For example:

  I had suffered from cancer when I was 2 years old.

  I suffered from cancer when I was 2 years old.

Do you use "had suffered" only when the simple past is used for a recent event?


texts: What's the difference between wanted and wanted to?

texts:
Is there any difference between "wanted" vs "wanted to" for such situation?

A: I'm not going to eat a lot this weekend!
B: Couldn't do it even if you wanted to, I bet!

A: I'm not going to eat a lot this weekend!
B: Couldn't do it even if you wanted, I bet!

I feel the first one sounds more natural, talking as an English learner, but I don't know why.


texts:
Context:
Hey look! The Golden Gate Bridge! Isn’t that great?! It’s not made out of solid gold like we thought, which is kind of a disappointment, but still!
Does this sentences make sense ?

  It's not like we think.

  It's not like we thought.


texts:
What is the difference between the phrases as seen as and as seem as?

If I want to say, consumption of alcohol is very common in parties, should I use as seen as social activity in parties, or as seem as social activity in parties?


texts:
Why UTC is not CUT even though that stands for Coordinated Universal Time?

Is there rule for acronym that doesn't keep the order of original words?


texts:
I am trying to learn how American say sent. For example:

  I sent you two dollars

or

  The king has sent me ...

Update
Please also do you remove the t in Not?
Is there any role when you remove the t and when not?

Thanks


texts: A phrase which contains "until immediately after" confuses me

texts:
Could you, please, rephrase the following sentence?

  "please wait to submit your project A, until immediately after you
  submit the project B"

"until immediately after" confuses me and I don't understand in which order should I submit the projects.

Thank you in advance!


texts: What is the name in english of dancing like this

texts:
How can I call in english when a woman dance like using a hoola hoop?
( obviously without really using one )


texts:
In the following sentence can "continual" be replaced with "continuous"?

" Many of  sportspeople spend their retirement in a continual battle against depression, alcohol, or drugs."

Personally, I think when this word carries a "sense of annoyance", no replacement can be done. However, when it means "continuing without interruption" it can be replaced with "continuous".


texts: Is there any phrase for the German "Föhn-Wind" in English?

texts:
In the German language there is the word "Föhn" meaning a special type of warm wind where those who are sensitive to weather changes have huge problems, like migraines, etc.

Regardless where I searched though I found no English translation for this. Is there anything that could be used (word or phrase) to describe the Föhn-wind?


texts:
First of all, I would like to say that I’m a portuguese person trying to improve my english, so I apologize if I’m saying something wrong okay?
Well my doubt is about the word “screw up”, “damage”, “spoil”, “ruin”... I saw in a dictionary app that all these words have the same meaning. I would like to know whats the diferences between each one and how to use it in the sentences.
Thank you.


texts: Is a dash acceptable in the context of this sentence?

texts:
In Capitalization of first letter after a dash , it was claimed (with some citations supplied)

  Where are the rules that even say a dash is permissible in a sentence
  like "I'm in South Ossetia - yes, I managed to get a visa!"?

While I myself would say "I'm in South Ossetia. Yes, I managed to get a visa!", using a dash seems ok to me. I suspect such a conversational style would be frowned upon in formal writing, but that's a separate issue.

Is there a consensus against using the dash this way?


texts:
"i would have to do this"

I heard it from a hollywood movie.But I am confused about it.Is it past indefinite or past perfect tense?

My another question:
 Is " would have to" of this sentence is a modal or "would have" a modal?


texts: Why do we use "the" in this sentence: "There is a pencil in the pencil-box."? Why not "a pencil-box"?


texts: What's the meaning of "what a shock that must have been to her"?

texts:
If so, what a shock that must have been to her.

"What a/an X" is an exclamation.
"must" refers to a necessity.

But what's the meaning of the sentence(like sentence above) that combines them together?

The fuller text is here:

  Beverly has changed her seat so that she is no longer sitting beside
  her husband and so that she doesn’t have to see Dana’s shape beneath
  the sheet. So this is what has become of their weekend away, for which
  she’d had such hopes. Her marriage facing imminent ruin. Stuck in an
  isolated hotel in the thrall of a deadly ice storm, without power,
  sharing the lobby with the corpse of a woman who may have been pushed
  down the stairs by her wealthy fiancé. If so, what a shock that must
  have been to her.


texts: I have a problem with ''lay'' and ''lie''

texts:
I was studying english and saw this sentence and i could not decide which of them would be better to use? (I am not a native just student)

Mesopotamia was suitable for ancient merchants, but the dangerous passages that … between the towns ... the pillage of many cowboys.

Options were like:
lying/have meant - lie/meant - laid/would mean - lay/were meant - are lying/have meant


texts: I realize this might be more of an accent question, but trying to master that American R sound, I don't quite know if I'm doing it correctly. That is, I sound very similar to the recordings I hear but my tongue is not exactly in the position the tutorial videos say it should be (lol that's a ridiculous sentence). They always say the tongue should be pointing to the aveolar ridge, and the back of the tongue should be squeezed between the back teeth while having a spoon-like shape in the middle. And while I manage to get it in this shape, in that position my r sounds more like a caveman's roar than an American accent.


texts: What is someone who answers a question called?

texts:
I wanted to use a short term to indicate the person that answers a question, for example you, who are probably going to help me with this problem; but the only thing that came to my mind is to say:

  "the person who answered to that question".

Does it exist such a term?


texts: Why is article being used in "arrested a second time"?

texts:
I've faced the following sentence in my textbook:

  He was arrested a second time.

The task was not about articles (I do not really remember what was it), but the article made me think. Why would we use the indefinite article here at all? Was not this textbook typo? (I can cite authors later on, if needed).


texts:
From here
I thought:

mathematical equation:  1 ± 1 - We can say "plus or minus one". Could I omit "or" to say "plus minus one"?
a signed mathematical number: ± 1  - We say "positive or negative one". Could I say "plus minus one" here?

Because "±1" only uses three syllables in Chinese, "positive or negative one" has 8 syllables which make it feel too long to me. "Plus minus one" is much shorter and more comfortable to me. I also know "positive/negative" stands for status, "plus/minus" stands for actions, if "positive or negative one" is the correct one, I would accept.


texts:
How many micron plastic bag is allowed to be used in your country?

  How many micron(thick)plastic bag is allowed to be used in your country?

By this I mean to ask, what is the allowed thickness of plastic bag in country. Some countries doesn’t allow plastic bags with thickness above a certain rate to be used.

In these question if I add “thick” before “plastic bag” as ist case with my second sentence.would it be more grammatical or unnatural? I couldn’t be sure if I should add it or not in sentence I saw in a article.

And Is the first sentence grammatically correct?


texts: What exactly does "private stock" mean, as in "a private stock guitar"?

texts:
I heard someone saying "a private stock guitar" this morning on TV.

Does it mean being considered valuable and collect appropriately by its buyer or its owner, or being a perfect guitar of the highest quality that the manufacturer will produce it with much care and respect?

What exactly does "private stock" mean?


texts: What does "plagiaristic and marred by obvious suppressions" mean?

texts:
"for the intimate revelations of young men, or at least the terms in which they express them, are usually plagiaristic and marred by obvious suppressions." (The Great Gatsby, Chapter 1)

Intimate revelations are secrets. How can a secret be plagiarized? When the narrator says "marred by obvious suppressions," I'm assuming he is saying that these men aren't truthfully expressing their secrets. But I'm confused on the word choice. What exactly is being suppressed?


texts: Examining some elliptical structures - Part IV

texts:
After reading the comments and answer for this post, I have realized that the best (and/or maybe the only) way to master elliptical structure is seeing and examining more examples in this subject.

I have read somewhere that in the following typical examples the infinitival to must be retained and such examples without it are grammatically incorrect:

  He wants to answer the question, and she wants to answer the question as well.

  I like to study math, and you like to study math as well.

(Please note that the elided words are indicated with subscripts.)

But, I have seen the following typical examples without the infinitival to:

  He tried to go, and she tried to go as well.

  I asked you to help, but you refused to help .

Can any one explain to me whether I should elide the infinitival to in such elliptical structures or not (in formal writing)?


texts: meaning of the phrase "feed the living"?

texts:
It was in Crash Course World History. It is at 3 minute and 7 second. Here is the context:

  And another side effect of disease was starvation, because there simply were not enough people left to grow crops to feed the living.

I have checked each word separately in online dictionaries and still have no idea how someone can feed the living. Could the speaker mean earn a living?


texts:
I heard people said "half stupid" in Ghostbusters Film 2016. I am not sure if I misheard it. But:

  half (adv): partly

  The chicken was only half cooked.

So, "he is half stupid" = "he is partly stupid"? is it right?

is "half stupid" idiomatic? or

is it common to say like that?


texts: Meaning of "to be" and a verb in the past participle form in context

texts:
It is from this video. It is right at the beginning. Here is the context.

  Today we are talking about loneliness; not to be confused with introversion or social anxiety.

What I can understand from the context is that it either means don't confuse it with or you should not confuse with, I am not sure though. And What baffles me the most is the grammar of it.


texts: Should I use "closes" or "is closing" or "is going to close"?

texts:
Let's walk quickly because the shop (closes/is closing/is going to close) in ten minutes.

These choices seem very confusing to me, because they are close in the meaning. I do not know whether to choose, in my opinion I'm going to choose is closing but I don't know why? So I need to understand what is going on in this sentence.


texts: What does mean "Six a year" in this context?

texts:
The number of historical novels published in Canada is very low. Six a
  year is the number I was given.

What does it mean "Six a year" in here?


texts: Did you forget contacting the embassy yesterday vs Did you forget contacting the embassy

texts:
My Japanese friend asked me if the following is grammatically correct.

"Did you forget contacting the embassy yesterday?"

To me, it sounds really awkward. I want to change it to "Did you forget that you had to contact the embassy yesterday?"

But my friend wants to keep the "Did you forget + ~ing" structure. How do I make this work?

What if I just make the sentence like this?

"Did you forget contacting the embassy?" (to leave out the word YESTERDAY)


texts:
1. I am not doing this and have never done that.

2. When I was working and looking outside the window.

I have made up these examples. I want to know if the first sentence is grammatical or do we need "I" before "have" in the first sentence.
And does the second sentence mean "when I was working and I was looking outside the window"? Is the second sentence idiomatic?


texts:
Both "At random" and "Randomly" have the definition: "Without method or conscious decision."

However, can we use them interchangeably?

The explosions occurred at random/randomly.
The winner was picked at random/randomly.

"randomly" is only an adverb and "at random" is a phrase. Can we place the phrase where the adverb goes and vice versa?

I cut the cake randomly/at random.


texts:
What is the cover of the head of a pen called in English?

In my native language it is simply called a cover.


texts:
I just can't understand the role of do in the following statement:

  When you do get your study permit and have made your plans to travel,
  please let us know.

Is it necessary to put it there?

I've heard about the usage of do for putting emphasis, but I think if this is the case for the above sentence, it should be used for let:

  please do let us know

and not for get.


texts:
If you have only 5 hours of sleep for three nights, you don't need to sleep an extra 9 hours on the weekend.

I can't understand why the phrase "an extra 9 hours" is plural form as using 'hours'.


texts: Differences between "no sooner had" and "no sooner than"

texts:
No sooner had we started the work than he closed the door.

Can I use No sooner than instead of No sooner had? When can it be used? If I use No sooner than instead of No sooner had, will the meaning of a sentence remain same?


texts:
There is  sentence that A tells his friend when he(A) sees him with a new car(hot rod):

'' never had you figured for a gearhead''

I think I need an explanation for ''had'' and meaning/part of speech of it here.


texts: Why do you say "Second to none" (the best) when "Next to nothing" (means worthless)

texts:
I saw this question What does "For next to nothing" mean? and it got me thinking about "The man with the golden gun" lyrics.

  An assassin that's second to none

If you think about it, none is the worst possible, because none is nothing, so second to none should be (in my opinion) almost the worst ever

What do you guys think?


texts: Can "who" be omitted in "Managers (who) formerly supervised"?

texts:
Managers formerly (      ) the software engineering groups for the development project will now be in charge of much larger teams.

  A. supervised
  B. supervising

The answer is B, and I get it, but to me A(supervised) seems correct as well.

  Managers (who) formerly supervised the software engineering groups for the development project / will now be in charge of much larger teams.

Why isn't this sentence accepted? is it because I can't omit "who" like I did in the sentence? Or does the verb has to be "(managers who) had supervised ~~"?

Can anyone explain to me why A is not allowed?


texts: "We should've" vs "We never should've" vs "We just never should've"

texts:
I came across this sentence while watching movie.

"We just never should've let you get mixed up in the damned thing."

I know that "should've" is used when I express the things i regret.
So I think it's enough to just say that "We should've let you get mixed up in the damned thing.", but the actor didn't say above sentence. He added "never" in front of "should"

Is there any difference meaning between them? and also I'd like to know
a role of "just" in that sentence.


texts: What's this IPA symbol under the t: [t̬]?

texts:
This is the IPA for "better": /ˈbet̬.ɚ/
What's the little arrow mark under the "t"?
Is it emphasis? Or something else?


texts:
I'm writing a text about wells, some of them are dug by hand. On the internet I see many times the term "hand dug well" is used, but also "hand-dug well" and even "handdug well" are quite frequently used.

"hand dug well", "hand-dug well" or "handdug well", which one is correct?

(spelling correctors seem not to like the last one, so I suppose it must be one of the first two options)


texts: "You know how" vs. "you know that" in context

texts:
Could you tell me what is the difference in meaning between the following sentences?

  Rach, y'know-y'know how Emily's coming right?

  Rach, y'know-y'know that Emily's coming right?

By the way, it's from the TV series Friends and Ross used how instead of that.  It's clear from the context that he is asking if Rachel is aware of the fact that Emily is coming not the way how she is doing it. Why then did he used how there and how would the meaning change if he used that?


texts: The proofs will all be based on the following "remark"

texts:
The proofs will all be based on the following remark

Is the “remark” used rightly?

“Remark” was translated into a Chinese word with the meaning of "fact".

It seems “remark” has the meaning of critique, converse and observation.

So which one is proper?


texts:
1)Silef is a version of the word files , written backwards.

Is this sentence grammatically correct? Or should I use different sentence ? Another thing I wonder is use of “version of the word files written backwards”. Should I use apostrophe like

  2)Silef is the word files‘s version written backwards.


texts:
can I use the word "early" referring to "old"?

for example :

the early means of travelling were hard.

what I mean here is that the means of travelling in past were hard.


texts: There are 70's, 80's and 90's, how do you describe the years from 2000 (00's)?

texts:
We sometimes describe the years between 1970-1979 as "seventies" (written as 70's), 1980-1989 as "eighties" (written as 80's) and so on.

What is the equivalence in describing 2000-2009, 2010-2019 and so on?
I came across the written terms "00's". If it is a valid written term to describe 2000-2009, how is it spoken?