texts:
Unfortunately for the third seed, though, she gifted the break straight back and Sharapova also took the next two games to round off victory in littleover an hour.Earlier, Halep booked her place in her first ever final of a mandatory event after outlasting Kvitova after over two-and-a-half hours on court."It was a very tough match today. I couldn't believe that. I came from behind again. She played really well and she was fighting the whole match," said Halep."I'm very excited that I can play in my biggest final tomorrow. I hope that I can control my emotions and just play.
Source

What does "gifted it straight back" mean here?


texts:
Let's say you are in a classroom. You are the red square. What to call the position of the yellow seats in relation to you?
I thought of using "next," but I think that doesn't apply to the seats in front and behind the red square.
I also thought of "encircling," but that would include the green squares on the corners.
Example sentence:

The classmate who's bullying Mark must be sitting __


texts: How can "never" and "ever" be identical in meaning?

texts:
I came across two sentences which were:

The water was higher than (n)ever before.

I was as happy as I had (n)ever been.

I am confused as to how can "ever" be substituted by "never" in these sentences?  I haven't seen "never" being used in that way.
 Here is the link to the sentences.


texts: My brother has turned writer VS. My brother has turned a writer

texts:
I encountered a quiz:

My brother has turned _____ writer. I am proud of him.

A.  a
B.  the
C. /
D. an

The answer key is C.  As I understand, zero article might be ok here because writer is an occupation.  But on the other hand, answer A is probably ok as well especially when we take it as the shorthand of My brother has turned to be a writer.
Any thoughts?
Edit per request:
What's so special about "turn"? Why do we say "He turned traitor." but "He became a traitor."? And What part of speech is "writer" in "He turned writer"? Is it an adjectival given its syntactic similarity to "red" in "The sky turned red." Any other examples of nouns functioning in a similar way? Please cite an authoritative source on this.


texts: According to my understanding or according to my understandings

texts:
How is correct to say?

  According to my understanding
  According to my understandings

For instance how is correct to say

  According to my understanding(s) the definition of derivative function (from mathematics) is as follows...


texts: Difference in meaning between "esteem ~for" and "esteem~ of"?

texts:
What is the difference in meaning between "esteem ~for" and
"esteem~ of" ?

1) I esteem him for his diligence.

2) I esteem his diligence of him.

Does "1 )I esteem him for his diligence" mean "I esteem him, because he is diligent" ?

Does "2) I esteem his diligence of him" mean " I esteem not him but his diligence" ?

(Source: naver korean-english dictionary

 and
 in a pamphlet made by someone to use as an educational resource in English.

And google translator,


texts: What is the difference between “telecast” and “TV program”?

texts: Can I use the words “telecast” and “TV program” to have the same meaning?


texts: Which of these verbs match to the following context?

texts:
I don't find a specific topic in a huge book, and I want help from my friend.

Which of the following verbs match to the situation?

  1) Please, turn me to the correct page in the book, in which this
  topic is located.

  2) Please, direct me to the correct page in the book, in which
  this topic is located.

  3) Please, divert me to the correct page in the book, in which
  this topic is located.

  4) Please, refer me to the correct page in the book, in which this
  topic is located.

  5) Please, allocate me to the correct page in the book, in which
  this topic is located.


texts:
The following is part of writing on the Navajo Code Talkers during the second world war.

*One Marine Corps signal officer summed up the situation after the war: "Were it not for the Navajo Code Talkers, the Marines would never have taken Iwo Jima and other places". *

Why does the writer use "were it not for" instead of "had it not been for"?
Is it possible grammatically?


texts: Which tense to choose: Past Simple or Past Perfect?

texts:
Which is correct:

  We didn't play football yesterday. The match was canceled/had been canceled.

I think was canceled is correct, but the second? - I'm confused. Maybe firstly the match was canceled and then we didn't play. If so, then the second is correct. I would like to know how the native speakers think which is right.


texts: What is the difference between 'in a long time' and 'for a long time'?

texts:
There are two sentences below

I have played soccer for a long time.
I have played soccer in a long time.

What is the difference between the two sentences above in meaning?
Please, tell me.


texts: Is the phrase "not that I'd been hoping" grammatical/idiomatic?

texts:
I thought it was a common phrase. But Google says the contrary.

Example sentence:

  Why was Mr. Handsome talking to me? Not that I'd been hoping for
  that. Okay, maybe one percent of me did.


texts: Tenses: future, past, and simple present

texts:
Susan is at the factory now.  She came to the factory by bus, but she will go home by car.

Do these sentences use the tenses correctly?


texts: Can I use "critic" for an inanimate entity?

texts:
I'm writing a sentence and I cannot think of a good word to fit in.

  ...However, input hypothesis, despite its popularity and great contribution that it made, did not go without criticism. Noticing hypothesis and comprehensible output hypothesis were the main [the word] of it.

My first thought was to use critic, but it seems critic is used to describe a person. Can I use it here, too? If not, what word can I use there without being awkward?!

I should say that I can't use rival here either, I really hope I could, because these two theories propose that input hypothesis is necessary but not sufficient.


texts: Confused about the usage of "have been" in the sentence

texts:
A 50-year-old former air-force captain, entrepreneur and chemistry teacher with Teach for America, Mrs Houlahan appears, crucially, to have been none of those impressive things for political effect.

The sentence is an excerpt from an article. I am confused about the meaning of the bold part which seems to lack a verb.


texts:
when introducing a list of included / not included items in a scope of work, would you say "in our scope of work are/are not included"...or "in our scope is/is not included"...
consider lists always contain more than two items
when saying "in our price is included" and "in our prices are included" the number of items in the list becomes irrelevant, IMO, but as "scope of work" is always singular it's not clear (to me) which is the correct form

thanks

joe


texts: Why is it "Google Maps", not "Google Map"?

texts:
In my native language, "map" is usually singular, unless you have a map drawn on lots of separate pieces of paper. So online services in my country that are similar to Google Maps usually contain "Map" (in singular form) in their names.

If you think about Google Maps, it just offers one huge map covering the whole planet. How come it's "maps"? Perhaps because it's an aggregate of lots of local maps of different regions?


texts:
I made up the sentence "The horse is one and a half times my height".

Does it mean that the horse's height or length is 1.5 times my height?

"I am more than two times smaller than the ostrich."

Does it mean that I am bigger than half the ostrich or I am X times (X>2) smaller than the ostrich? Following logic, I think the latter is correct.

Are these correct and do they mean the same?

A) I run twice slower than  the ostrich.
B) My speed is half that of the ostrich.
C) My speed is 0.5 times that of the ostrich.
D) I am 0.5 times the speed of the ostrich.
E) I run twice as slow as the ostrich.

Are these correct?

A) The horse runs more than 3 times faster than me.
B) The horse weighs more than 5 times my weight.
C) The horse runs more than 3 times as fast as me.
D) The horse weighs more than 5 times more than me.
E) The horse weighs more than 5 times as much as me.
F) The speed of the horse is (more or higher, please, let me know) than 3 times my speed.


texts: What are the differences between "No running" and "Don't run"?

texts:
A boy is running in a small room and some native speakers command "No running", not "don't run".
When do we say "no running, no talking" and when saying "don't run", "don't talk"?


texts:
I am writing a text and I am not sure which option to use:

  a) Here is difficult to understand the relations between the inputs
  and outputs

or

  b) Here it is difficult to understand the relations
  between the inputs and outputs


texts: Comma with "for example" in a parenthetical

texts:
Other vegetarian animals, giraffes and rhinoceroses for example, help
  as well.

Do I have to put a comma before "for example" like this:

  Other vegetarian animals, giraffes and rhinoceroses, for example, help
  as well.

or is putting comma just optional?


texts: "The program is intended to" - is this an awkward use of the term?

texts:
From a Memorandum of Understanding template:

  The purpose of this MOU is to clearly identify the roles and responsibilities of each party as they relate to the implementation of the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) Food Stamp Program (FSP). The FSP is intended to help state agencies inform low-income households about the availability, eligibility requirements, applications procedures and benefits for the program. To support this goal, Party A and Party B will conduct food stamp outreach to eligible families as described in their respective Outreach Plan.

Won't native speakers find this use of intended to awkward, since the FSP was intended primarily to provide indigent households with means to obtain food, not to just "inform" them?

Does this use of intended to create an impression of

  The sole purpose of the FSP is to help state agencies inform low-income households.

Or does it leave space for other "intentions" of the FSP's authors, such as the actual provision of help?


texts: Is "hands-off" a safe word when talking about work?

texts:
I guess the answer to my another question (Is it appropriate to use "I can be a little bit careless" when talking about work?) gives clear explanation about 2 types of management styles.

This is a similar question (NOT the same).

One of my friends is preparing to apply a position of manager in a company. He would like to describe himself as a cool guy that is high-level at times and willing to involve team members in decisions.

I am aware that "careless" is not a safe word for this kind
of scenarios as it may imply meaning of "not taking or showing enough care and attention".

How about "hands-off manager"? Would the following sentence implies he is the democratic cool guy clearly and does not survey something like "he does not care about anything that would not reflect on him"?

  I’m quite a hands-off manager.


texts: Is it polite/good manners to say 'whatever'?

texts:
If I'm being in formal speaking, do you think it's ok to use word whatever?

I think this word somehow doesn't fit a good conversation especially when talk to the olders. I feel like it gets a bit careless intonation whenever I use it .

  I will consider whatever you choose

Would it get the same meaning with

  I will consider anything you choose

Because I tend to see this word used in informal conversation (like teen stuff you know...)

  Yeah whatever you choose

In my country (culture) we could also use only a word to express the kind of word, but we tend to make it a bit longer to get it formal, something like :

  Yes you can choose anything, I will consider every single of them

not just whatever


texts:
Is it an adverb clause, a relative clause or a noun clause?
"To get to New Zealand the fastest way"

The whole sentence is... To get to New Zealand the fastest way, you will have to fly from Copenhagen.


texts: Do these two sentences mean the same or not?

texts:
He in the office put a ball out of the office.
He put a ball out of the office in the office.

I describe he is in the office, and the ball was in the office, then the ball is put not in the office but out of the office.


texts: what do you call someone who keeps telling you of a favor he did for you

texts: Can not think what word would describe the act of someone who did you a favor and then he keeps mentioning it many times.


texts: Difference between Adjective and Apposition

texts:
Apposition : When one noun follows another to describe it, the noun which follows is said to be in apposition to the noun which comes before it.

Adjectives : Words that are used to describe a noun.

Aren't they both ( Adjectives and Apposition ) similar ?


texts: "Data collected helps scientists" or "data that is collected helps scientists"

texts:
The real-time data collected helps scientists better understand what’s
  happening to rivers and estuaries around the world.

Should it be,

  "The real-time data that is collected..."?

What is the rule regarding this?


texts:
Whether it's a phone call for technical support, home service or delivery, you'd need to give the person on the other end your home address. (Often it's one of the first pieces of information you give following 'Hi, my name is XXX) What are some formal and idiomatic ways to do it? Ones I often use are:

I live at XXX road
My home address is XXX road
I am the resident of XXX road

The first two are pretty common and simplistic. The third has a nice ring to it, but I am not sure if it's grammatical to use the word 'resident' for a specific address as opposed to a general city/town.
What are some alternative expressions for this? Many thanks in advance.


texts: What does "set the grab on something" mean?

texts:
There's a function in the Python programming language, in particular in its tkinter module, that is called grab_set, which basically allows a Toplevel window to take complete control over the keyword and mouse events, so that these events are not sent to wrong windows. If you are interested, you can find more information in this article:

  http://effbot.org/tkinterbook/tkinter-dialog-windows.htm

Now, someone told me that the correct expression related to this method was "setting the grab on a window", but it is not completely clear what it means, even if from the context I can imagine more or less its meaning.

See this article for context:

  https://stackoverflow.com/questions/32259518/efficient-way-to-create-a-child-window-with-access-to-main-window-disabled/32259971#32259971

Is this a common expression? What exactly does it mean? In which contexts can I use it?

Examples are appreciated.


texts:
Abraham's contact number john saved in the phone.
John saved abraham's contact number in the phone.

Which one is grammatically correct? My teachers are saying that both of these are correct but it seems that second is correct.


texts: Conditional After a Conditional - in Different Type

texts:
For example I'd like to say a type 2 conditional structure (hypothetical). Is it okay to add another conditional structure but in another type?

  If this book talked, I would learn more. But I think when that day happens, I'll be scared.

Is this fine? Also, if I said if this book could talk, it'd be faulty, right?


texts: Meaning of "January of next year" in December

texts:
If it is December 2017 and someone says “January of next year” are they still referring to January 2018 or January 2019?

e.g.: On December, my boss stated: You will be receiving a raise on January of next year.


texts: Preposition phrases in passivizing active sentences

texts:
Choose the correct option:

They are building an institute next to our school.

An institute next to our school is being built by them.
An institute is being built by them next to our school.

In the active form of the sentence an institute is the object. So as per rule object+is+being+third form of verb+by+subject both the above mentioned passive form sentences seems to be correct.  But first sentence is given as correct. Why and by what rule?


texts: Past perfect continuous for continuing events in the past

texts:
My Cambridge Dictionary's grammar section contains the following explanation about the past perfect continuous tense:

Continuing events in the past

We use the past perfect continuous to talk about actions or events which started before a particular time in the past and were still in progress up to that time in the past:

Are these examples good?

I had been running when (=suddenly) I saw an exotic bird!

I had been working on my project when (=suddenly) a virus destroyed it!

In example 1, if I visualize that moment... I am running and in a moment something happens (an exotic bird flying near me which makes me observe it for a moment, until it disappears...); then I continue running.
My question is: Did I use past perfect continuous correctly in those examples?


texts: incorporating foreign words with articles?

texts:
I am helping with a Japanese tutorial and would like to omit indefinite (sometimes definite) articles when referencing a Japanese word.  Is this wise?  Can't seem to find info on this point.

Thanks


texts:
I thought it wouldn't be a bad idea to give you something you
  require.

  I thought it wouldn't be a bad idea to give you something you
  required.

Are both the above sentences grammatically correct? What's the difference between their meanings? When constructing sentences of this sort, should one try to keep the tenses in harmony using strictly the past tense only?


texts: He likes sweet apples and oranges. Is the word sweet describing only apples or both apples the oranges?

texts:
Background: When I am reading some English books, I always find this pattern confusing. So now I make up a meaningless sentences to stand for my question.

He likes sweet apples and oranges.

Is the word sweet describing only apples or both apples and the oranges?
In another word, is the word appearing in the first noun also describing the 2nd noun that follows by "and" ?

He likes sweet apples and sweet oranges.
He likes sweet apples. He also likes oranges. (Whether sweet or not is fine)

Which one is correct understanding for the sentence He likes sweet apples and oranges ?


texts:
AFAIU, there's a phrase by Abraham Lincoln (and maybe Bible before that, I'm not sure, but it doesn't matter) 'a house divided against itself cannot stand'.

I guess I somewhat understand the meaning of the phrase, but I certainly don't have a precise understanding of what 'divide against itself' means.

Does it mean just to divide (oneself) into peaces? Or is it something like conspire against itself?

And thus as a side question, can it be used with other 'object' as 'oneself'? Like 'divide against somebody (else)'.


texts: What is the (TM) of "do the Right Thing(TM)"?

texts:
Sometimes I find expressions like "do the Right Thing(TM)" in the world of computer science.
For example,

Microsoft to C99 Developers: Use ISO C++
http://www.infoq.com/news/2012/05/vs_c99_support/

  Step up to the plate and do the Right Thing(tm). If you don’t know what “Right Thing(tm)” means, then therein lies the real problem.

Managing Projects with GNU Make, Third Edition
http://oreilly.com/catalog/make3/book/ch02.pdf

  The compiler or linker will
  use the file suffix to determine the type of a particular file on the command line and
  do the Right Thing™:

What does TM stand for?


texts:
I have drafted the following sentences,

  Ground-based laser scanning is an appropriate means for modeling
  urbanobjects as it provides direct 3D information on facades and trees
  with sufficient details due to their close range data acquisition
  process. In addition, economic, flexible, and rapid data capturing
  methods with highly dense point clouds (millions of 3D points) are
  advantages of using terrestrial point clouds acquired by Mobile Laser
  Scanning (MLS) as the source data can be used for fast generation of
  detailed façade geometry and 3D tree models over large urban areas.

But, I feel second sentence has some alwak sounds. Specially due to the highlighted phrase. So, in these type of case, How can we enhance this may be by simplifying the ideas. Can anyone suggest some ways

Here, i have modified it in this way

  Additionally, economic, flexible, and rapid data capturing methods
  with highly dense point clouds (millions of 3D points) are advantages
  and can be accomplished mainly using terrestrial point clouds acquired
  by Mobile Laser Scanning (MLS) as the source data can be used for fast
  generation of detailed façade geometry and 3D tree models over large
  urban areas.

then, would this be more readable now?


texts: Wondering what the difference is between "it" and "that" in this paragraph

texts:
Voting is underway in Crimea’s controversial referendum. It is widely expected to transfer control of the Black Sea region from Ukraine to Russia, despite an outcry and threat of sanctions from the West.
Voting is underway in Crimea’s controversial referendum. That is widely expected to transfer control of the Black Sea region from Ukraine to Russia, despite an outcry and threat of sanctions from the West.

Taken from euronews.
My intuition is that: The word "it" does not nessecarily refer to "referendum" , but the word "that" directly refers to "referendum"  . I mean when we use the word "that" in second paragraph, we actually make the second sentence reliant on the first sentence, whereas in the first paragraph, the second sentence starts with "It is widely expected..." is perhaps an independent, free-standing sentence.  Am I right? Many thanks in advance.


texts:
Why do we say

  The file is in my computer.

but we say

  The file is on my phone.

or

  The file is on that iPad.


texts:
We know we can't say more taller but can we say

He would be taller more.


texts:
The guitar is not the same thing as the violin

What if I say this sentence this way:

The guitar and the violin are not the same thing.

Or should it be:

The guitar and the violin is not the same thing.


texts: Is "what+that" combination correct in the sentence "You are doing what I call sin that people don't even care about"?

texts:
I mean that
" You are doing what I call sin, and people don't even care about the thing that I call sin. ".
Does the sentence below give that meaning?

You are doing what I call sin that people don't even care about. (I want that "that" doesn't refer to "sin", but refers to "thing I call sin")


texts: "There is no word so sweet as mother" or "There is no word as sweet as mother"

texts:
Which sentence is correct?

There is no word so sweet as mother
There is no word as sweet as mother


texts: Using the word "native" in non-restrictive appositives

texts:
Which way is grammatically correct, using it as an adjective ("native") or as a noun ("a native" or "the native")?

  Alice Shimmer, native of Shiksenburg, was less forthcoming about
  the unconstitutional coup in Ukraine of February 2014.

or

  Alice Shimmer, a native of Shiksenburg, was less forthcoming about
  the unconstitutional coup in Ukraine of February 2014.

or

  Alice Shimmer, the native of Shiksenburg, was less forthcoming about
  the unconstitutional coup in Ukraine of February 2014.

?

I think I've heard all of these three so I don't know which one is correct.


texts:
Do you say in English watering vegetables? For example in a garden?Or do you say only watering the flowers?

Does the following sentence make sense in English?

  They’ll be doing exercises outside when Rebecca starts watering vegetables.


texts:
A tutorial coins a word "divvy"

"div" is an HTML tag, could simply be considered a section in a document.
I guess the morpheme used in the coining word might have some common meanings, like Pythoneer and Pythonista. For this particular example, what does "vy" mean?


texts:
What does "minute debris" mean in the context of an avalanche? I can't find it anywhere.

  The fragments of ice hit the ground around them. The ground beneath
  his feet trembled and shifted with the onslaught, and MINUTE DEBRIS
  filled the air with a haze of icy vapor that stung his face. He could
  barely see, he was running on instinct, no time to think.

Thank you!


texts: Meaning of "with too much criticism" in this article

texts:
I saw this news from tribune.com, but I am not pretty sure about the last sentence:

  Gabriel, who is Chancellor Angela Merkel’s deputy in a left-right coalition, warned against alienating Saudi Arabia, a crucial player in the bid to end the Syrian war, with too much criticism.

Does this mean Gabriel criticised Saudi Arabia too much and should be less caustic based on this article only?


texts: Are the words "burden" and "weight" interchangeable?

texts:
Can I use the word "weight" instead of "burden" in the phrases bellow? Do they have the same meaning when used in this context?
Must be such a heavy burden / weight for them to carry so much hate around all the time!
Two older sisters can be such a heavy burden / weight for a small boy to bear.
In tears, she cried: “I never meant to be such a heavy burden /weight for you.


texts: Is there any difference between "who is to do something" and "who is going to do something" in rhetirical questions?

texts:
Could you tell me if there is any difference in meaning between who is to do something and who is going to do something  in rhetirical questions? For example:

Who is to look after my plants when Nadia is gone?
Who is going to look after my plants when Nadia is gone?

By both sentence I mean that when Nadia goes to live somewhere else, nobody is going to look after my plants? Do both have exactly the same meaning?


texts:
The sentence is:

  I don't enjoy watching horror movies.

Why not use:

  I don't enjoy watching a horror movie.

instead, since I will be talking about every single horror movie. And I think that:

movie is countable noun and
horror functions as an adjectival or attributive noun here.


texts:
I would appreciate it if somebody could explain the usage of so in the following sentences.

  So that you can be admitted quickly, please have your tickets ready.

I think, it can be rewritten as Please have your tickets ready, so that you can be admitted quickly, though I'm not sure.

  So that is what you really think of me.

This sentence expresses that speaker is wonder of what the listener thinks about the speaker. Am I right? (I think, there is better way to rewrite speaker is wonder of what the listener thinks about the speaker).

  So that is where I lost my book!

It expresses the wonder of speaker that he lost his book in such a damn place. Am I right?

  So, just to be clear, that is not the correct way to talk to your employer.

I cannot understand the use of so in this sentence at all.


texts:
I was reading this sentence,

  During high school I was very talented student especially in math.

Automatically, I mentally corrected it as,

  During high school, I was a talented student, particularly in mathematics.

Then I paused, thinking why I replaced that especially with particularly. Was it because the original writing mentioned "M.Sc. program" and "PhD"? It seemed like I was trying to make the text sound a little more formal. But do I really have any ground here? I looked up some online dictionaries and found that not only they are synonyms, their definitions are also almost identical.

For example, according to Google,
particularly is defined as "to a higher degree than is usual or average," while especially is defined as "to a great extent; very much."

Or, in another definition, particularly is defined as "used to single out a subject to which a statement is especially applicable," while especially as "used to single out one person, thing, or situation over all others."

Does particularly really convey more formality than especially as I thought?


texts: Do you want to go (to the) father? (preposition + article addition)

texts:
In case that a mother asks her son if he wants to go to his father.  What would be the natural way to ask him about that?

  "Do you want to go to the father?"

Or

  "Do you want to go father?"  (Without preposition and article,  the same like "Do you want to go home?"

To my ears the first choice sounds weird a little bit even I'm pretty sure it's grammatically correct.


texts: Using But when linking two related expressions

texts:
I don’t think he is able to foresee the future but to see past events.

Is this grammatically correct? All I want to say is my opinion is that he is not able to foresee the future but he is able to see the past events  (The context here is it is about a fiction character from a movie)

Thanks


texts:
Can I say these? Which is to be preferred? or have you got any other suggestion?

Hereinafter client refers to a smartphone using Android.
Henceforward client refers to a smartphone using Android.

My intended meaning is that when I say "client" I mean an Android smartphone.
Earlier in the text I describe different kinds of possible clients, but since my report only focuses on android phones I want to be able to write "client" and have the reader understand the meaning of 'client' as 'Android phone'.


texts: Is (in) the correct preposition in "... the real poverty is in manners..."?

texts:
I want to say the following sentence as a way of comforting a poor person.

The sentence:

  There is no shame in it since the real poverty is in manners rather
  than in money.

it refers to the fact that s/he is poor.

  There is no shame in being poor since the real poverty is in manners rather
  than in money.

I'm not sure of the preposition in in the sentence, I intend the first one as it is a part of a dialogue where the person mentioned their state before.


texts:
Quoting a footnote of SICP, the book I'm reading: (emphasis mine)

  9. Since nested applications of car and cdr are cumbersome to
  write, Lisp dialects provide abbreviations for them -- for instance,

(cadr (arg)) = (car (cdr (arg)))

  The names of all such procedures start with c and end with r. Each
  a between them stands for a car operation and each d for a cdr
  operation, to be applied in the same order in which they appear in the
  name. The names car and cdr persist because simple combinations
  like cadr are pronounceable.

Background information: car and cdr are primitive procedures in a programming language called "Lisp". In Lisp dialects (i.e. variants), cadr is a shorthand for successive applications of them.

Actually I have two question here:

How to pronounce simple combinations like cadr?
Why do the names car and cdr persist? I cannot see the relationship between the pronounceability of cadr and the reservation of car and cdr.


texts:
A: I have a surprise for you, Do you want to know what my surprise is?

  B: Yes

  A: Your favorite team won the game

Is the usage of my correct? or we must say:

  Do you want to know what the surprise is?


texts: I'd like to mix these two sentences using 'more than' and 'as .. as ~' sentence patter

texts:
I'm comfortable saying like this:

My ex was a vegetarian and that's why I got a lot of chance to eat vegetables.

If my ex hadn't been a vegetarian I wouldn't have gotten a lot of chance to eat vegetables.

And I'd like to mix these two.

My ex was a vegetarian and that's why I got more chance to eat vegetables than I would have if my ex hadn't been a vegetarian.

If my ex hadn't been a vegetarian I wouldn't have gotten as much chance to eat vegetables as I actually got .

Can I say like #3 and #4 using more than and as ~ as.. sentence pattern?


texts: Is this the correct way to use the word 'persuade' and 'predefined'?

texts:
"You can use the word 'that's at the end of the sentence only if its persuaded by predefined context"
Is it right how I used the word 'persuade' and 'predefined' in this sentence. If no please ascertain the correct words.


texts:
In the following sentence:

I was carrying a new leather bag; have you seen it?

Shouldn't the author have said:

I was carrying a new leather bag; did you see it?

In the sense that she is looking for it.
If the present perfect is correct, kindly; explain why?


texts: - Who doesn't like me? - Everyone! / No one!

texts:
Consider this exchange between two people that I saw on TV: A has told B that none of B's colleagues like B. B comes back with a question and gets an answer:

  B: Who doesn't like me?
  A: Everyone!

Why did A say everyone? Should A not have said no one instead? Is it not the same as the choice between these sentences? :

  Everyone doesn't like you.
  No one likes you.

Interestingly enough, I found 48 hits for "everyone doesn't" in COCA, for instance:

Everyone does n't care.
(If it were me, I would've said Not everyone cares or No one cares, depending on what I'd meant to say.)
Everyone doesn't have that luxury of another room.
(...)
Tell me again why everyone doesn't just network into this meeting?
(...)

Now, what's the story here? Are both options possible?


texts:
Which should be used in the following sentence either of or for

  The commission set-up to submit a report about the reasons for/ of the fall in educational standards could not complete its work even after two years.


texts:
Anyone has xxx's mobile number?
  Anyone have xxx's mobile number?

Which one is correct?  Is anyone singular or plural?


texts: "the world over" vs "all over the world"

texts:
I have seen many writers use "the world over" to mean something is happening all over the world.

Is not it more appropriate to use "all over the world" instead? "the world over" sounds like a twisted grammar to my ear.


texts: Is this statement right? Ferrari just released a

texts:
I was reading this news over internet and i am wondering if this statement can be written differently or not.

Ferrari just released a few photos of its upcoming limited-edition track-focused 812

Can "Ferrari just released a few photos" be also written as "Ferrari has released a few photos"?
if yes what difference it would make and how?


texts:
Is it necessary to make a reference to a particular past time interval when we use past progressive? For instance:

  What were you doing at eight o'clock yesterday evening?

In the sentence we have a reference to past time (eight o'clock yesterday evening). As I've understood questions:

  What were you doing yesterday?
  What were you doing last year?

are also valid.

But what about the following:

  What were you doing when you were a child?

I think, this question ask about actions which ask-er was doing all time when he/she was a child.

What is the difference between?

  What did you do when you was a child?


texts:
I have no idea what it means.

I googled and found it seems to be a kind of dance, featured by two dancer bumping their hips?

How to interpret “Boomps-a-daisy” word by word？


texts:
I looked up the word “as” in my dictionary and got three categories of it: prep. conj. and adv.  However, in the following sentence, I think the word “as” possesses the attribute of “noun” or “pronoun”, because it serves as the subject of the relative clause. So how to explain the category of the “as” here?

  Facebook reflects our hunger for social communication, as can always be seen in a phone user who comes to a sudden halt on his way staring at his phone.


texts: Present perfect simple tense in conditionals

texts:
The present perfect tense is used in the sentence below but  here and here, they do not use the present perfect. Can we use present perfect simple tense in conditional sentences like the sentence below? If so, what is difference between has finished and finishes?

  Unless a probationary employee has successfully finished the training, he cannot be considered a full employee and be assigned to one of the teams.


texts: Is it grammatically correct: no one raised their hand?

texts:
I was reading an article to improve my English and I noticed that the writer wrote "no one raised their hand," so could you tell me if the sentence below is correct or not and why?
"I looked around the room, and there was an awkward silence. No one raised their hand."


texts: Past Habits = Simple Past (vs. 'used to' and 'would')

texts:
I have some sentences. Do they mean repetitive actions in the past?

  a) When I go to your home everyday and see your door was locked.
  　　(Meaning I had gone to my friends home 3 times but it always locked)

  b) In his container he carried chemical to destroy it in water.
  　　(Meaning every time he use his container to carry chemical to destroy it in water.)

  c) When there were no races, the animals were rented out for weddings and other functions.
  　　(Meaning whenever there is race the horses are being given on rent)

Please correct me if I am wrong about the meanings.
What if I use used to/would/being in above sentences instead?

Also, I've come across some web pages where they mention that: Simple Past = Used to
(For example, http://www.englishpage.com/verbpage/simplepast.html)


texts:
It wasn’t the slump-shouldered, tentative shuffle that had been
  Hedra’s when she’d first moved into the apartment.

Why is it Hedra’s but Hedra? And what is the grammar for this word order?


texts:
I am wondering whether the conjunction though makes sense in the following.

  It is regarded as a symbol of respect and prestige to have a handcrafted coffin in this country though only the heads of households who have achieved some level of success may have one.

The context is a discussion of handcrafted coffins in a country.


texts: What is the meaning of "Only hers were probably the real deal"?

texts:
On Julie's Birthday, Julie got pearl chain gift from her husband, Eric.
Julie loves Julia cooking books.

  Julie: Just like Julia's.

  Eric: Only hers were probably the real deal.


texts: Using 'is' or 'was' when something is still true

texts:
Mark was/is the founder of Facebook?

If Mark is going to an Invester (when Facebook was just made by him), then how would he introduce himself?

  Sir, I am Mark. I am/was the founder of Facebook.

I am confused about the usage of was/is for something that is still true. Here is another example:

  My father was/is the architect of this house.

Which one should I use?


texts: how to figure out when to use have verb + ed & just a verb

texts:
What should be the right answer for the blanks. and please explain why its correct.
Most decisions ______  several alternatives. For example,if you spend an hour studying for an economics exam, you have one fewer hour to pursue other activities.
Answers:
1.involve
2.have involved
3.were involving
4.include


texts: Omitting the existential "there" and the dummy "it" in sentences

texts:
Steve Glassman in the book "On the Trail of the Maya Explorer" writes:

  On the walls were pictures, some drawn by artists of Guatemala and
  others that had been brought from Spain.

Is [it] consistent with the grammar rules omitting the existential "there" there—e.g., "On the walls there were pictures, [...]"? If not, why not?

Instead, if so, can I omit the dummy "it" in "Is it consistent with [...]"?

Or are the two cases different and, so, they should be treated differently?


texts: Embarrassing or Embarrassed which is more suitable? is + verb (ing) or is + verb (ed)

texts:
This applies equally to the 14 year old who fails to attend school because a parent is terminally ill, the overweight 11 year old who fails to attend because he is ________ about changing for PE in front of peers and to the seven year old who is teased in the playground because she does not wear the latest designer-label clothes.

ANS OPTIONS for the blank : Embarrassing or Embarrassed
Correct answer stated as 'Embarrassed', but i have learned that :  is + verb (ing)
and in passive voice :  is + verb + ed. but in this is not in passive voice. Can someone give a resolution for this question


texts: Where can I read a rule about "to be that of" construction?

texts:
I found this sentence in a book:

  The fundamental problem of communication is that of reproducing at one point either exactly or approximately a message selected at another point.

But, what does it mean to use "is that of"?
Why don't we just use "is" ?


texts: Is "The life is beautiful" incorrect or just very non-idiomatic?

texts:
We had a discussion earlier on another SE site and I'm not able to find a definitive answer online. If I say, speaking generally:

  The life is beautiful

I know this is not the common way of saying it and any people with a reasonably good English level will find that strange and prefer "Life is beautiful". But is this grammatically correct?

All online resources I checked about the "The" article give many examples and mention "It's not required", "not needed", "we usually don't use it" in such situation; but I failed to find a resource telling it's forbidden or a mistake.


texts:
I need help to explain as to why the phrase "in our end" is incorrect (or is it?) as I feel like it should be "on our end". Why is "in our end" incorrect? For example:

  We are unable to locate your order in our end.


texts: What is the meaning of "against one's disposition"?

texts:
What does this mean?

  Against my disposition, I chuckled in front of the president.


texts:
The first sentence is passive and second is simple past but how can we tell that surprised is participle in first sentence and adjective in second one?.

1.I was surprised by how well the students did in the test.

2.The lady was surprised at what happened to her pet.


texts: What is the difference in meaning between "I might work more this week" and "I might be working more this week"?

texts:
What is the difference in the meaning between following sentences:

I might be working more this week.
I might work more this week.

(note : this week refers to 'coming week' or future)
I'm confused here as to why there is the use of 'continuous tense' in the 1st sentence? Do both sentences imply the same meanings ? If they imply same meaning why they look different ?
Suppose: I work in a office. I already know that I have extra more work in the office today. How can I say this:

I will work more today.
I Will be working more today.

Which one is correct ?
Please provide helpfull and understandable answer.
Thank you very much in advance


texts:
Was never one for being jinxed

I can't understand the structure of this sentence and it's meaning.


texts:
My friends and I, who are Upper Intermediate English Learners, had a discussion about the type of a local TV series which is comedy and each episode lasts for almost an hour. IMDB suggests comedy as the genre although it's too general and it's not what I'm looking for.

I suggested sitcom since it's comedy and the show features same characters. However, as my friend said sitcoms are mostly half an hour long or less with laugh tracks included and they don't follow the same story all along, so he proposed a satire TV series since it criticizes doctors' bedside manner and the problems that patients have to deal with about unnecessary paperwork. I said in response sitcoms can include satire too and there are alot of scenes in the local series that is just included to make audience laugh without any satirical purpose like a slapstick scene.

Dramedy is another option that we came up with since some episodes not all there are some short scenes that the character are sad and the show tries to make a point about life although I argued Friends is also comedy and includes these scenes but it's still a sitcom.

I read all the links included here and some more but I couldn't get a definite answer to that. I wonder what's the right English word to describe this TV show which 1) is an hour long; 2) includes satire; 3) follows a story; 4) features same characters; 5) doesn't use laugh tracks.


texts: The meaning of the sentence "We don't all have to go down the line here"

texts:
“We don't all have to go down the line here! I'm not playing around!“

The context of a cartoon situation is: a guy waving a fake gun (but everyone thinks tis real) yells at his hostage the following sentence, hoping they’re gonna believe the threat.
What’s bothering me is the Russian translation, in which he says literally: everybody’s gonna get a bullet in a head.

I don’t really see the threat in English original version, like he says probably, “not everyone gotta hurt”, while in Russian there’s “everybody’s getting a bullet” :-D
I tried to find the meaning of a possible idiom here – “go down the line”, but only one dictionary gives it: “To move from person to person or thing to thing, which are arranged in a line.” WHICH isn’t a help here at all.

Please, could anybody help me with this sentence? What exactly did he mean. It’s bugging me for a few days. Thank you in advance!


texts: What does "get passes" mean in this context?

texts:
Clinton gets passes for everything.

Source: Trump voters stay loyal: 'I am not voting for him to be pope' on CNN Money US


texts: He "left" a comment on website this morning vs "had left"

texts:
I'm confusing the past simple and the past perfect, particularly in following case; I don't know which one do I have to use.

  Ms. Koo, one of our regular customers, (left / had left) a question regarding the usage of the new vacuum cleaner on our website this morning.

Could you guys explain which one is correct and why is that?


texts:
Being special is being better, greater, or otherwise different from what is usual.
'Special' is 'better, greater, or otherwise different from what is usual.'

Are quotations marks used correctly at  sentence 2?


texts:
Brenda, as well as her brothers, watched/watches television until it is time for dinner.

What is the correct answer?I’m confused.


texts: How can I understand when "will" is used to express willingness?

texts:
The OALD says that will can be used to:

Talking about or predicting the future
Showing that somebody is willing to do something

Is there a way to distinguish the first use from the second?

For example, is there a way to understand if the following sentence is used to express willingness?

  I will come to live in Italy.

Does the fact there isn't a time reference suggest the speaker is only willing to move to live in Italy? Would the meaning change, if the person used the following sentence?

  By the end of 2018, I will live in Italy.


texts:
I am just wondering that sentence mean present tense.

  I am afraid I have got no money.

If it is a present tense, why that writer use "have got"?


texts: Term for "county and municipality", administrative units dividing a country

texts:
Instead of brother or sister, we can say sibling. Instead of password and username, we can say credentials.

A compressed form with a stricter style provides a formal sensation. I'd like to achieve that for the governmental units of division for my country. Our kingdom is divided into 30 counties and each of those is divided in a total of 300 municipalities.

How can I say county and/or municipality using a single word (or at least a collective term not mentioning those explicitly)? Is there a formal term for govermentally statued administrative units of geographical division but a bit shorter?


texts: "boats were made of wood and men were made of steel" meaning

texts:
I saw this phrase in this webcomic.
From the context I guess it means "long time ago".
I couldn't find anything about this on the web except a book with the same name. Is this a reference to the book, or an English saying? What does it mean exactly?
Thanks in advance.


texts:
There have been times in my life when I have had to sleep empty stomach because I had no money to buy myself a meal.

Vs

There have been times in my life when I  had to sleep empty stomach because I had no money to buy myself a meal.

Which one is right ? The first one - have had to ( talking of life experiences) or the second one - (talking about past activity)


texts:
A layer of gold with thickness of 200 nm which is produced by big mine company was coated onto table.

Gold layer has thickness of 200 nm and also it is Produced by very big mine company. I couldn't decided if word order is correct or not . Can this sentence be understood easily if the relative clauses is used after '' thickness of 200 nm.

  Doors of cabinet that are painted white will be repaired.

I think relative clauses modifes “doors” in this sentence . But it is away from the “doors”.

  A frame in the shape of circle hanged on the wall suddenly broke.

And I think what is hanged on the wall is frame not circle. Please correct me if I am wrong.


texts: Be sure to [Verb] Vs Make sure to [Verb]

texts:
Which one is more widely used in native english environment ? Is there any different meaning between these two sentences ?

Be sure to turn off the lamp before you sleep.

Make sure to turn off the lamp before you sleep.


texts: What's the meaning of this line: Chicken, egg

texts:
Here is a quote from the TV drama American Gods

The first character(A) was an ancient god from Egypt, now living in Cairo, Illinois.

What's the meaning of his last line Chicken. Egg. ?

  A: My colleagues and I never thought of ourselves as African.

  A: We were the people of the Nile.

  B: And then you settle in a town called Cairo?

  B: Seems appropriate.

  A: Mm. Chicken. Egg.


texts:
This is the end of the story. I can not imagine what is happening from the beginning. As I understand the car is climbing by flood? But I am not shure! Then I can not imagine this "where a slight curve to the right banks the road toward the passenger side,"
These are my questions:
 1. Why 'banks' me confuse its plural? It's about gramma.
 2. I don’t understand, is this all happening on the road or on the flood       water?

  The car has been climbing a hill, and near the top, where a slight
  curve to the right banks the road toward the passenger side, there
  comes into view an amazing sight that has cut Jeremy into silence: an
  old wooden two-story house on an enormous platform truck, squarely in
  the middle of the road, blocking them. The house on the truck is
  moving at five or ten miles an hour. Who knows what its speed is, this
  white clapboard monument, this parade, a smaller truck in front, and
  one in back, with flashing lights, and a WIDE LOAD sign? No one would
  think of measuring its speed. Conor looks up and sees what he knows is
  a bedroom window. He imagines himself in that bedroom. He is dripping
  water all over his son’s car, and he is beginning now to shiver, as
  the truck, carrying the burden it was made to carry, struggles up the
  next hill.

Flood Show
by Charles Baxter


texts: What does "would yet" means in this context?

texts:
However, Holo, who would yet live for hundreds of years...

As the title suggests, what does would yet mean in the sentence above? I take the whole sentence as "Holo who lived for hundreds of years," but I fail to see what is the function of would yet in the sentence nor what it means.

For the context, Holo is a wise wolf who is hundreds of years old.


texts: Can I use the idiom 'talk big' this way?

texts:
I just learnt an idiom ' talk big' which means to brag and boast.

what I want to know is when we say someone talks big, does it mean they brag something they already did or something they didn't do.

For example, my friend told me he went bungee jumping yesterday, but actually he didn't. And I know that he is afraid of heights, so can I say he talks big?


texts: "I'm done" or "I've done", which is correct?

texts: I want to know if "I'm almost done" is correct, or whether it should be "I've almost done" as a present perfect tense. I often read this on Facebook news feed. Is it correct?


texts: What is the meaning of "Put a bullet in something"?

texts:
I have seen this sentence in a chat between people and I guess when they said "put a bullet" they have used it idiomatically. I am not sure about the meaning though.

A : The process is over timing
B: Putting a bullet in it. Restarting

Any help would be much appreciated.


texts: Is this an abbreviated or a participial construction?

texts:
   "Some say he died. Codswallop, in my opinion. Dunno if
  he had enough human left in him to die. Some say he's still out there,
  bidin' his time, like, but I don' believe it. People who was on his
  side came back ter ours. Some of 'em came outta kinda trances. Don’
  reckon they could've done if he was comin' back.
  "Most of us reckon he's still out there somewhere but lost his
  powers. Too weak to carry on. 'Cause somethin' about you finished
  him, Harry. There was somethin' goin' on that night he hadn't counted
  on –– I dunno what it was, no one does –– but somethin' about you
  stumped him, all right."  (Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone)

Is lost a past participle sharing he’s, or is the phrase a participial construction?


texts:
For making comparative forms of adjectives, we add “more” before adjectives with more than one syllable and other than those two-syllable adjectives ending in “y”. So for example:

“This watch is more expensive than yours.”

And for other adjectives we add “-er” to the end of the adjective. So:

“He is healthier than his wife.”

In both above examples, the comparatives help to convey that the subject is at the higher level about the mentioned adjective: “The price of this watch is higher than yours.”
How we can convey the meaning that the subject is at the lower level than another thing? For example:

“Regarding his health, he is worse than his wife’s condition.”

If I want to rearrange the above sentence, is the following sentence grammatically correct?

“He is less healthy than his wife.”

And if the above sentence is grammatically correct, should we use “less” for all kinds of adjectives? I mean one syllable or more than one syllable? For example is the following sentence grammatically correct?

“It is less cheap than that one.”


texts: "the tea salon to the rooftop's hat factory"; meaning of "to"?

texts:
During Prohibition, the Colony Arcade Building was part hat factory, part tea salon. Today, as the Refinery Hotel, it’s just as charmingly weird, and home to two bars. The Refinery Rooftop—accessible by elevator, with rigmarole—has a stunningly gorgeous view of the Empire State Building. There’s a retractable glass ceiling, a fireplace, high tables and low couches, tiered plates of food, and a menu of Bites, Dips, Flats, Crispies, and Balls. One evening, hotel guests posed for pictures holding flutes of champagne, and noisy young professionals drank sauvignon blanc. “It feels like a wedding venue in Chicago,” a woman said. Downstairs, hidden behind velvet curtains, is Winnie’s Lobby Bar, the tea salon to the rooftop’s hat factory.

What does to mean in the bolded section?


texts: I have learned that "bush" and "rush" are pronounced differently. Is there any rule to decide between these two pronunciations for similar words?


texts:
I found this big list of uncountable words in English, and I don't understand why they're considered uncountable while I saw many of them countable.

For example:

Juice- List of juices in Wikipedia

Fruit- fruits in Oxford dictionary

Sugar- list of sugars

and there are a lot more examples against other words in this list.

I'm not sure if this list is wring or maybe I don't understand here something.


texts:
Which of these is grammatically correct?

  1. a) He has been working under my direct supervision since the last two years

  1. b) He has been working under my direct supervision for the last two years

  2. a) He has not met her since a very long time

  2. b) He has not met her in a very long time

Which of the above are correct?
Are all of them correct? My friend says 1.b and 2.b are correct, but I am not sure. Or is this an American English and British English thing? (He mostly goes by American English)


texts: ~ is on sale ‘at $10’ or ‘for $10’. I hear people say something like ‘I bought it for $5’ so thought I’d be sale ‘for’ $10, but should it be ‘at’?


texts: Should "b" be capitalized in Dick's burger/burgers?

texts: As Dick's Drive-In is a fast food restaurant company and if someone refers to a particular fast food item say "burger". Do we capitalize "b" when someone says Dick's burger? In short when someone refers to particular fast food items of a branded name, should we capitalize that particular food item?


texts:
consider:

  Changes need only be small to make the proposal acceptable.

Q1 : Does it mean it only requires the changes to be small (It is suffice to make the proposal acceptable) or It asserts changes must be small otherwise, the proposal will be rejected?

Q2: Does the modal "need" have the same meaning as "must" ? If they have differences, I will be happy to know them.

Thanks.


texts: Use the verb "to mothball" in official texts

texts:
I saw a Wikipedia article (and not only this one) using the verb "to mothball" to denote rather obsolete, abandoned, put-on-hold methods or phenomena, e.g.:

  So by 2003, the original ECMAScript 4 work was mothballed.

Is the usage of a phrase like "to mothball something" or "X is mothballed since Y" is appropriate in formal context, e.g. in technical documentation, legal papers or in a scientific manuscript?

Also, is this verb is used for people or animals?


texts: I'm not sure if I used "for which" in my sentence correctly

texts:
Is it correct to use "for which" in this sentence:

  I gave some money to a beggar for which he was casting around.


texts:
Jesse Longo with Den of Geek rated it 2.5 out of 5 stars, commenting that "The episode was less of a trip and more of a mellow high.

Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hummels_%26_Heroin

Can you tell what is meant by the critical evaluation in bold. I think that it could mean that the episode was not a stunner but average but it stems from the stars that were given.


texts: Should I say "Using support" or "Using supported" Android version?

texts:
Should I say "Using support Android version: You can do something" or "Using supported Android version: You can do something" ?

I want to mean if you have the current version, you can do this thing.


texts: Is the paper provided by a physician indicating a patient should do an MRI without referring any business referred to as a prescription or a referral?

texts:
Is the paper provided by a physician indicating a patient should do an MRI without mentioning any medical imaging business referred to as a prescription or a referral? Or perhaps it is named differently (maybe "lab order")?

According to Wiktionary:

https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/prescription:  A written order, as by a physician or nurse practitioner, for the administration of a medicine or other intervention.
https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/referral: referral = the act or process of transferring someone or something to another, of sending by reference, or referring.

None of these two definitions apply to the paper as an MRI isn't a "medicine or other intervention" and the paper doesn't refer to anyone.

Example of such paper on which the physician ordered some MRI to a patient (source):


texts: What do you call the "collars" of a bathrobe?

texts:
In other words, what do you call these?

(Each individual side?)


texts:
I have a question can someone explain me why in this sentence

  The fact I haven't been in school for more than a month amazes me

why in the word 'amaze' we add 's' is it because more than is plurality so we can add 's' to adjective word?

Can adjective be plural?

Thank you for answer my question, fyi I'm not an English native speaker.


texts: What does "offset" mean in this context?

texts:
Judge Judy reading from a police report:

  I then observe a small drop of blood on the shirt of Ohr... Thompson was standing behind Ohr and slightly offset. (source)

"Offset" strikes me as strange in this context. It seems to describe a person as being off-balance and under the influence. But according to major dictionaries, "offset" is not an adjective and doesn't mean what it is used to mean in these lines.


texts:
Today, while I was watching a video on YouTube, I came across the following sentence:

  Contrary to my personality, my sister is very outgoing and tends to make friends easily.

From a meticulous academic writing view, I feel there is something off about the comparison that is established in the sentence: the two elements that are being compared to each other are my personality and my sister which doesn't make any sense. Thus, if I were to write this sentence, I would reconstruct it by adjusting either of the two elements:

  Contrary to my personality, that of my sister is very outgoing and she always tends to make friends easily. (I am not totally satisfied with this one. Just trying)
  Contrary to myself, my sister is very outgoing and tends to make friends easily

Can anyone clarify it a little bit and distinguish right from wrong?


texts:
Data scientists are professionals in data science, and I was once hired as a senior data scientist in a company, but I thought the title of that job might be misnamed.
What is the etymology of "data scientist"?


texts: Use of stative verbs in the progressive tense to express relatively long-lasting situations

texts:
I've heard native speakers saying things like:

I've been liking her/loving her/wanting to be with her for a long time now.

They are having a bath.

I'm wanting to go on vacation, but I don't have free time.

I've been liking these south swells lately!

I'm hoping to pass the exam next year.

Is it grammatically correct to use stative verbs in the progressive tense when talking about relatively long-lasting or enduring situations, as in the aforementioned examples?

Can we use these progressive forms in formal documents?

Can we say that it has become "correct" to use stative verbs in the progressive tense, at least colloquially?


texts:
The following is the SAT Question of the day (August 25):

  The gong, believed to have originated in Western Asia, reached China in the sixth century, where it continues to be used for a wide range of purposes, (__________) a military signal, a rhythmic accompaniment for vocal performance, and a ritual instrument.

A. including as
B. which include
C. which includes
D. including
E. they include as

A is indicated as the correct answer.

I understand that a preposition usually comes before a noun phrase.
But, in this sentence "including" comes before an adverbial phrase. Is there any other example of this kind?

Or, is "including" a present participle? Then, can "include" take an adverbial phrase as an object?

NOTE: I added the source of the question, and simplified my question.

It seems that SAT Question of the day has a 3 year cycle. When I searched on the internet, I found questions and answers about this problem dated in 2012 and 2009. With regard to my question why an adverbial phrase can come after "including", there seems to be two explanations.

"including" is a preposition. The preposition can take a prepositional phrase as complement.
A word such as "its use" is omitted from between "including" and "as".

As for 1, I found an example in [1]

  That means he took one lamb burger out of there, from under the grill.

2 seems to be fitting no matter we take "including" as a preposition or as a present participle.

[1]The Oxford English Grammar, Sidney Greenbaum, Oxford University Press (1996).


texts: Is there some special rule regarding articles  for words starting with two consonants? I was taught to use a when a word starts with consonant (or an otherwise). I just wrote "a mPOS device" but MS Word proposes to use "an". I can hear "emPOs". Is this a special rule or the Word spell checker bug? Thanks


texts:
What is the meaning of "Call it a day/night".
I have heard people saying "I am calling it a day". I tried to find out the meaning in dictionaries, but could not. Please let me know your answers.


texts: present continuous vs present perfect continuous

texts:
Do you think these sentences have the same meaning?

  "We have increasingly been being exposed to a number of new hazardous chemical and biological agents and therefore...."

  "We are increasingly being  exposed to a number of new hazardous chemical and biological agents and therefore...."


texts:
The Tedeschi Trucks Band is like a large-format guitar-centric orchestra of jammy, bluesy Southern rock and soul. (source)

The word "jammy" in the sentence doesn't make a lot of sense to me. The noun "jam" in the context of music refers to a song or a musical piece. By extension "jammy" possibly means "musical"? I can't imagine what a musical band would be. Any band non-musical? All the dictionaries I have checked give "jammy" as "lucky" or "covered in jam", neither of which fit in the context.

Artistic license? Misuse of word?


texts:
Rorys approach was different, taking a leaf out of one of his favourite games. The game’s most memorable lesson for Rory was blackmail.

Is the apostrophe in this case correct?


texts:
we mostly see "ago" comes with time periods like two weeks ago, two nights ago,

what about using ago with things other than time periods like page, post, bus, girlfriend, etc.

for example

  1) Please check three pages ago to find the answers

  2) Please go to three lines/paragraphs ago

  3) Refer to two posts ago for more information(instagram)

  4)- Did he leave with the last bus? - No, he left with two buses ago.

sometimes, Lines and posts aren't numbered so I can't say "go to line/post 14".

what is the right way to say these sentences?


texts: How to use "a part of", "part of" and "parts of"?

texts:
Let's say I have five reasons for something.

If I would like to say one of five reasons, should I use

  A part of the reasons

or

  Part of the reasons

If I would like to say more than one reason, can I say

  Parts of the reasons

It sounds a bit of weird.

Any better ways to say this?


texts:
Halsey: So, McClusky, you are now in charge of the air group. I don't
  have a lick of confidence in those damn torpedoes.

I find this line in movie Midway 2019.

What does it mean, "lick of confidence"?


texts: In the sentence "Within these pages {is/are} the who's who..." should I use "is" or "are" ?

texts:
Within these pages is/are the who’s who in our community.

My question is which verb is correct- "is" or "are" and why.


texts: Writing about website component in active voice

texts:
I can't seem to figure out how the below sentence would be written in a passive voice, even though my spelling software is complaining about it. Is there a way to rewrite it that I'm not seeing?
"The full-text search field is used a few times per day."
It's specifically highlighting "is used" as the error which seems essential in any sentence structure to me...


texts: What does "... make the best friends." mean?

texts:
I was practicing TOEFL speaking test and one of the practice tasks was:

Do you agree or disagree with the following statement?

Co-workers make the best friends.

My questions:

Does this sentence mean the same as "Co-workers are the best friends."?
If not, what does it mean?
Why is "make" used here?


texts:
Inside, Buckley found Bud Dawson utterly ignoring a bullet wound in
  his shoulder, while he feelingly wept at having to explain why he
  failed to drop the "blamed masquerooter," who shot him. At the
  entrance of the ranger Bud turned appealingly to him for confirmation
  of the devastation he might have dealt. "You know, Buck, I'd 'a'
  plum got him, first rattle, if I'd thought a minute.

This is from "Afternoon Miracle" by O. Henry.
http://www.online-literature.com/o_henry/997/

I can't understand the meaning of this.


texts:
Would it be correct to say/write:

  These are the essential skills for those managing development teams.

meaning:

  These are the essential skills for those who are managing development teams.

And would it be also correct to say/write:

  These are the essential skills for those manage development teams.

meaning:

  These are the essential skills for those who manage development teams.


texts: Confused with the word "bottom". Do we say "he is wearing a pair of pajama bottoms" or "he is wearing a pajama bottom"?

texts:
In the dictionary

Bottom 5 [count] : a piece of clothing that is worn on the lower part
of the body
a bikini bottom
— often plural
pajama bottoms

So, "a bikini bottom" should look like "a pair of panties" but they use it as a singular noun.
And pajama bottoms should look like "a pair of pants" and they use it as a plural noun.
Which of the followings are correct?
-She is wearing a bikini bottom
-She is wearing a pair of bikini bottoms
-She is wearing a pajama bottom
-She is wearing a pair of pajama bottoms
Note:
Also, Do we say "put on your bottoms" or "put on your bottom" when we mean he can put any thing on to cover his lower body?
For example, I want my child to wear either a pair of pants or a pair of shorts or a pair of panties. As long as he wears one of the there, it is fine.
It is tired to think about whether I have to say "pants, shorts or panties". And they are very similar sometimes and confusing. In that case, is it correct to say "put on your bottoms" or "put on your bottom"


texts: What's the meaning of " angry Ukrainian super"?

texts:
It's the line from "The Marvelous Maisel" Season 2 episode 2. It's a drama happened in 1958.

Here are the character's lines who's on a comedic gig:

  I don't want my own apartment.

  I-I don't feel ready, mentally, to have my own keys, my own plumbing, my own angry Ukrainian super.

  I don't feel prepared to take on that kind of responsibility alone.

So what's the meaning of "angry Ukrainian super" here?


texts:
Please help me to construct following sentence

I want to tell my friend that I got admitted in the hospital by myself i.e. without anybodys help

If I say

1) I was admitted in the hospital yesterday

2) I got admitted in the hospital yesterday

As per my knowledge both the sentences are in passive voice. Sentences give idea about some one help me to get admitted in the hospital.

I.e. I was admitted in the hospital yesterday by neighbor.

I got admitted in the hospital. with the help of neighbor.


texts: Is you or she followed by is or are in a sentence?

texts:
I do not know whether you or Arpitha is on duty tomorrow.

Is it "is" or "are" after Arpitha? ( Context. There are two technicians- Annie and Arpitha. I am asking Annie. Only one person can be on duty at a time.)
Shouldn't it be- I do not know whether you or Arpitha are/is on duty tomorrow?


texts: Which one of the following sentences is correct?

texts:
1) He did not came yet.
    OR
2) He did not come yet.

Are both sentences correct or only one of them and why?


texts: How to say the first time doing something, ten years ago

texts:
I know this might be simple, I just can’t solve it with google.

1. The first time I went to America is ten years ago.

2. I went to America for the first time ten years ago.

The use of for the first time is what I found on google, but I don’t know, that sounds a little weird to me.


texts: Factors of identification vs factors of being identified vs factors to be identified

texts:
Factors of identification
   vs
Factors of being identified
   vs
Factors to be identified

Meanings of these three phrases, and uses of those with eaxample


texts:
I am getting confused after a few discussions with fellow colleagues, regarding the structure of the following sentence.

  A new review was added on Sam's Bowling alley.

My confusion is whether it should be on, to, or in. A review is added to/or/in a place (coffee place, library, museum, etc)

I'm finding it a little hard to find sentences with similar structure on the web.

PS: First question here, so unsure of tags.


texts: Should not there be "issue" instead of "entertain" in this sentence?

texts:
I read a sentence in my "Politics" book which was:

  Several High Courts gave judgements that even after the declaration of emergency, the courts could entertain a writ of Habeas Corpus filed by a person challenging his/her  detention.

Now the verb "entertain", in legal context, means "to receive and take into consideration" and the noun "writ" means "a written statement directing somebody to do something". So I think there should be "issue a writ" instead of "entertain a writ(which would imply that court is reviewing a petitioner's order)". Am I right?


texts:
Which one is correct?
1. I cannot do not eat for 5 days straight
2. I cannot not eat for 5 days straight
3. I cannot not to eat for 5 days straight


texts: Questions about nouns that are always plural

texts:
Is it correct to ask about nouns that are always plural and denote things that physically consist of two parts (scissors, trousers, binoculars) like this:

  What are these?

I'd say that such a question is acceptable if the speaker wants to emphasize the fact of comprising two parts, not one.


texts: The use of the preposition "with" in context

texts:
Tell me please if I need to include the preposition with in the following sentence?

  I need something to write (with). Could anyone give me a pen?


texts: A third person singular of phrase with fire

texts:
Sentence:
You see a car in the street fire two shots at the person, who was standing on the sidewalk.
Source: enter link description here
It seems like a car is a third person singular of phrase, but fire isn't fires. Is it correct? Why is it happen?


texts: How to parse 'this under which it means'?

texts:
● Source: p 55, A Student's Introduction to English Grammar (2005), by Huddleston and Pullum

Please do NOT rephrase or rewrite the disputed sentences.

  Epistemic and deontic meanings are not in general associated with different
  expressions. Many examples are ambiguous, allowing either kind of interpretation
  for the modal:

    [53] You must be very tactful.            [epistemic or deontic]

  There is an epistemic interpretation of this [= sentence [53] above]
  UNDER which it means I have evidence
  that ... you're very tactful.

1. What's the antecedent of it ?    2. What's the antecedent of which ?

3. How can  an interpretation be UNDER a sentence? I (not the book) capitalised.

4. What would differ, if I rewrote [53] without UNDER and it? (Heed the strikethroughs.)

  5. There is an epistemic interpretation of this UNDER which  it   means ...
  = There is an epistemic interpretation of this      which    means ...


texts: What does the sign mean: this sidewalk to be closed on or about

texts: I saw a road sign that said: this sidewalk to be closed on or about. I am not sure what this means.


texts:
I have a question about "come under" and "fall under". These:

  He came under suspicion for fraud.
  He fell under suspicion for fraud.

are standard English.  Could I then write these:

  He came under investigation for fraud.
  He fell under investigation for fraud.

as standard English?


texts: what did the author refer to with "in this way" in the following passage?

texts:
River pollution

A team from Cemagref in Lyon (FR) has identified a pertinent indicator of the level of pollution in rivers: the biofilm. A complex combination of bacteria, algae and fungi, the biofilm forms a viscous layer on immersed supports, such as the stones on a river bed. The biofilms are able to break down the pesticides that contaminate aquatic environments and modify their structure, diversity and functioning. Toxic substances, for example, can change the photosynthetic, respiratory or enzymatic activity of aquatic ecosystems, either definitively or temporarily. It is in this way that biofilms can serve as an early warning signal of pollution. It remains to characterize and distinguish the responses of biofilms to pollutants from those induced by environmental factors (current speed, physico-chemical composition, etc.). It is research of this kind that should help respond to the need set out in the Water Framework Directive to improve the ecological quality of European rivers.

They said that biofilm indicate river pollution in some way.I didn't get  How does the biofilm indicate the level of pollution?
One more question:What do they refer to with "their" in the 5th line?


texts: Difference between "This was happened to me" and "This happened to me"

texts:
Which one is correct? If I am talking about the past..
How should I use "was" or "were" if there is an V2 in place:

e.g. "They spoke" or "They were spoke"

and another thing about adverbs..
How I can know I have to put adverb before or after a verb..

e.g. "includes entirely" or "entirely includes"

Sorry if something I asked seems kind of stupid.
I'm ESL student.


texts:
I know the meaning of the word quite and how to use it in most of the cases. Yet, when it comes to negatives I am in a state of uncertainty. For example:

  I’m not quite right.

And

  I’m completely wrong.

Are they equivalent? Do they mean exactly the same thing? I don’t think so. I’d say that 1. implies that I’m wrong but not completely while 2. leaves no room for any rightness, but I’m not sure if I’m getting it right.

The dictionaries don’t explain about its usage with negatives, they simply say in definition #2 and #4:
(not used with a negative)

However, I have tried to use with a negative: Ngram viewer and it returned a lot of hits which I don’t know to interpret.

Would you enlighten me please?


texts:
Which one is correct to state?

  At the end of the year I will be graduating from college.

  At the end of the year I would have graduated from college.


texts: Could someone help me about this hearing : sanctions resolution has/have

texts:
Could someone help me about this hearing?

From 0:24～，she ( the U.S ambassador to the United Nations, Samantha Power ) is
saying

“This resolution, if it passes, is nearly unprecedented in many respects as it’s the toughest, sanctions and resolutions that have been put forward in, in more than 2 decades.”

Should my hearing be correct, I would think the latter part of the sentence would not make sense to me, personally, I guess.

Or since from the ery first, am I wrong?

Or Sould I be correct about hearing this, what this part, sanctions and resolutions that have been put forward in, in more than 2 decades. might mean???? She said this because she wanted to "emphasize" that there had been
sanctions and resolutions over the 2 decades but they were actually not effectie at all?

Kindly let me thank you so much in advance.

Sincerely


texts:
I'm always confused with this type of clause - I wake up feeling tired, I went home trying to sleep etc.

I am always confused when and how to use this type of clause (please correct me and let me know the terminology of this). For example I am now trying to write something: The work of this project takes under the form of "release", which can be further broken down into "sprints" lasting for 3 week each.

What I am trying to say is the progress of work is counted using terminology called "release", which is further broken down into "sprints" and each "sprint" last for 3 weeks.


texts: When does one use 'illness' or 'disease'?

texts:
I can think of a few examples where I (not a native English speaker) would use illness or disease. For example:

  He has a chronic illness.

One would not say 'chronic disease', right? Why?

And why would one say

  He has Crohn's disease.

And not Crohn's illness? Can you use both? Which is used more often?


texts: Are the broken patches on the road called holes? If not, then what do we call them? What exactly a hole is? One that is from one surface to another?


texts: in the greater cosmic > scheme of the universal experience?

texts:
The Stoics acknowledged the existence of emotions as much as they
  acknowledge any other aspect of human existence; they merely argue
  that emotions should not be allowed to take center stage, so to speak,
  at the expense of rationality and logic, in the greater cosmic
  scheme of the universal experience.

  [Stoicism: A Beginner's Guide to the History & Philosophy of Stoicism]

I don't understand the bold words. Could you explain it to me!?

I think it means "when the universal experience is considered"

Thanks


texts: Active vs Passive (Which construction is correct in which context )

texts:
I read the below sentence in Learn American English website.

You were given some money to see a movie.

Is this passive construction correct?  Or do we need to construct it as follows:

I got some money to see a movie.

Which construction is correct in which context ?

I really appreciate any help you can provide


texts:
My baby moves violently in womb.
My baby moves vigorously in womb.

Do "Violently" and "Vigorously" have the same meaning?
Which one means move strongly?


texts:
But the thing I didn't care a damn about, didn't even grasp to be happening, was the passing-away of the old life I'd know. (Coming up for air)

What is the object of the verb grasp ?  Is it the thing or relativizer which ?
I think the relativizer which is understood to be between the thing and I but was omitted.
And I wonder if having either the thing or which as an object will result in a difference in meaning.

And what is the implied subject of to be happening , is it the thing or which?
Do they mean the same?
I wonder if having either the thing or which as an implied subject will result in a difference in meaning in this case.


texts:
[5]
  i  If she beats him he’ll claim she cheated.    [non-deictic past]
  ii If you eat any more you’ll say you don’t want any tea.[non-deictic present]

  The preterite and present tense inflections on cheat and do indicate that Tr is respectively anterior to and simultaneous with To, but here  To is clearly not Td. The time of the (possible) cheating is not anterior to the time of my uttering [5i], but to the time of his (possibly) making a claim of cheating.
                     — The Cambridge Grammar of the English Language, p126

I can understand To (time of orientation = utterance time), yet don’t get what the ‘deictic time (Td)’ is. Would you let me know the Td?


texts: How can I ensure that my pronunciation of [ɛ] and [e] is correct in spoken English?

texts:
As an intermediate English learner, when I talk to my American friends, sometimes they will misunderstand my [ɛ] and [e] sounds. For example, measure mistaken for major, pepper for paper, and for end ... etc.

What can I do to ensure that [ɛ] and [e] are easily differentiable?


texts:
Does the phrase "throw their lot in with them" sound natural to you?  We usually use the sequence of "throw in their lot with them" that is typically idiomatic use of the idiom "throw in (one's) lot with (someone or something)". "In with" - putting the two prepositional words doesn't sound very smooth to me.
Of Dogs And Men
Chester was my window on the mysterious bond between canines and humans
By Charles Krauthammer Monday, June 16, 2003
The way I see it, dogs had this big meeting, oh, maybe 20,000 years ago. A huge meeting--an international convention with delegates from everywhere. And that's when they decided that humans were the up-and-coming species and dogs were going to throw their lot in with them. The decision was obviously not unanimous. The wolves and dingoes walked out in protest.
Source:   http://content.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,1005023,00.html


texts:
He turned the page of his book. ‘“Each wheel is divided into eight thick and thin spokes, dividing the day into eight equal pans. The rims are carved with designs of birds and animals, whereas the medallions in the spokes are carved with women in luxurious poses, largely erotic in nature

I am wondering what the bold part could mean?

What is more, would you please throw some examples or vivid example to make it clear?

Many thanks.


texts:
I have a question about the usage of the phrase "back up".  According to this dictionary, definition 2a for "back up" reads:

  2a: to become blocked so that movement or flow is slowed or stopped

, with the following example usages:

  Traffic backed up for miles because of the accident.
  The drain backed up and had to be unclogged by a plumber.

A careful reading of the two example sentences revealed some inconsistency.  The current definition of "back up" involves a facility and a user.  In sentence 1, the road is the facility and the traffic (the cars) is the user.  So the usage in sentence 1 suggests that it is the user (traffic) that backs up, not the facility (road).  But in sentence 2, the drain is the facility, and the waste water is the user. So the usage in sentence 2 suggests that it is the facility (drain) that backs up, not the user (waste water) .

Does that mean either sentence 1 or sentence 2 is wrong?  If we take the view of facility-backs-up  , would changing sentence 1 to:

  1a. The road backed up for miles because of the accident.

Or, if we take the view of user-backs-up, would changing sentence 2 to:

  2a.  The waste water backed up and the drain had to be unclogged by a plumber.

be better?


texts: a confusion in a sentence between the superlative and comparative form

texts:
I have a confusion;

Do we say "one of the largest players"  or  "one of the larger players"?


texts:
Disguises can be too perfect. This means they can be (  ). Which is the best answer?

(a) perfect

(b) quite perfect

(c) more perfect than is convenient

(d) almost perfect

I saw the right answer is (c), but I do not know why other are wrong. Can you tell me the reason? Thanks.


texts:
Fletcher says to Ray about what Dave did to Michael for not accepting his hand at a party :

  Fletcher: Turns out Dave had gone after one of Mickey's lords, did a
  proper tabloid job on him. It would appear that His Lordship had had a
  quick spin on one of his attractive young footmen. After the splash,
  shares crashed, job went, wife followed, and even his kids disowned
  him. Well, that Dave can't half be a cunt.

What does it mean, "had a quick spin on someone"?


texts:
Someone wrote:

  Finally this university semester finished. Every university semester with different students and classes, always bring me many new experiences.

I feel while "this semester" sounds fluent, "this university semester" or "Every university semester" doesn't sound fluent! I don't know why! Maybe it is too long and complete to be used after "this". Anyway, I want to know is there any nuances about using "this" that can be applied here?

In the last phrase I prefer "new experiences" than "many new experiences". I feel "many" is extra, but again don't know why!


texts: Why is past continuous used instead of simple present in this general statement?

texts:
This is exactly the kind of question ELL is hoping to avoid. We don’t want to become a proofreading service, where we are bombarded with sentences or paragraphs from resumés, school essays, technical papers, and love letters, all asking: Is this grammatically correct?

Why past continuous as this is a general statement, would present simple fit too in this case is why put a duration?


texts: Is certificate holder correct? If not, which word is correct?

texts: Is it correct to say that someone is a holder of a university certificate or degree, if they have earned it? If not, what is the correct word?


texts:
Is it appropriate to say

  'Sorry for making this hard for you'?

Some context: We tried to set up a time to meet but we have conflicting schedules so we decided to meet later at night.


texts: how to say something is done quicker than the other?

texts:
As the following  combination to clear this marble is not proper, in fact, we can use the combination to clear the table such that removing dirt from the table by another combination is impossible quicker than the former combination.

I know the bold part has some problems. Could you please help me to correct it? I am wondering how to say it. Would you please give me other idioms or structures to give the sentence a better form? more polished or vivid? I need other forms or idioms instead of especially the bold part. I don't like it and I think it is poor English.


texts:
I'm looking for an English verb that describes an entity which gives a score/rating to something (a quality measure, for example). Would that be "evaluator", "valuator", "rater", or even something else? What are the exact semantic differences between these words?

Edit:

To clarify the context:

My problem is software development related: I'm looking for a name for a class that has the responsibility to give certain objects of another class a rating. The objects describe schedules for employees, and these schedules should get a score with regards to certain objectives ("how well does the schedule respect the desired working hours", "how well does it cover the workload", ...) .


texts:
I would like to know the difference between the sentences as follow:

  I have been to Germany twice.

  I have been in Germany twice.


texts: Why one uses personal pronoun in place of a definite subject and then the subject?

texts:
In the famous animation TV series Inuyasha, a character named Sango said:

  So they went to find the antidote, didn't they? Inuyasha and the others.

I wonder if she said something like:

  So Inuyasha and the others went to find the antidote, didn't they?

Is there any difference between the two? Also, is there any reason for sticking with the first (sentence) rather than the second (sentence).


texts:
Which is grammatically correct?

  a. Sue enjoyed the lunch at Jamey's restaurant : eating two portions of rice and cheese.

  b. Sue enjoyed the lunch at Jamey's restaurant ; eating two portions of rice and cheese.

  c. Sue enjoyed the lunch at Jamey's restaurant , eating two portions of rice and cheese.

Note, the sentence is the exact same, except for the punctuation, do I need to punt a colon or semicolon  or a comma ?


texts:
I would like explain to my opponent what he has ability and knowledge, but he haven't a extreme spirit.
Russian language has word "drive", but I don't sure what it word has in English.
This word has relationship with extreme.
Example meta-phase:

You good rider, but you don't have enough a drive
You have the best show because you have a drive


texts: What is the correct order for several adverbs of time in a sentence?

texts:
In which order should I put the adverbs of time? Should I put the more specific adverb before the less specific one or the other way around?
What's the rule for ordering adverbs of time in a sentence?

  I'm meeting her tomorrow in the evening. / I'm meeting her in the
  evening tomorrow?

  I'm coming to see them tomorrow at 5. / I'm coming to see them at 5
  tomorrow.


texts:
What are the cultural references in "go back to Jersey you bum" in the Planes 2013 Movie?
I read that Jersey is called the Garden State. So does that mean it's known for agriculture and that plane is from a farming area? Or there's more to it than what I understood?

In another scene another hostile plane despises the this "hero" plane by calling him farm boy in "That farm boy forgot who he is and where he came from" and "I can still smell the farm on you".

The Youtube Clip, Planes Trailer (HD) (English & French Subtitles)


texts:
everyone.
 Here's an example:

1)"I haven't been sleeping because I was reading."

2)"I haven't been sleeping because I have been reading."

So my question is which one is correct or more natural to say.


texts: clarification on using pronoun his/him against context

texts:
In this android application, in pronoun test, they have a question

  If anyone calls,tell ___________ that I'll be back in half an hour

  option 1 : his/her
     option 2 : him/her
     option 3 : them
     option 4 : None of these

At first instance, the sentence that I can read fast is

  If anyone call tell them that I'll be back in half an hour.

But as everyone refers singular, I thought it'd be him/her
so the answer should be

  If anyone call tell him that I'll be back in half an hour.

But the application shows right answer as option 1: his/her

Even reading as

  If anyone call tell his that I'll be back in half an hour.

doesn't sound pretty well.

So what answer is right, anyone just clarifies me that how to use his/him depending on the context and semantics of the sentence.


texts: cannot perform same activity more than twice

texts:
Which is the correct statement?

  Once the installation finished, click on start.
  Once the installation has finished, click on start.
  Once the installation has been finished, click on start.


texts: Gerund for repetitive, intermittent, from time-to-time actions?

texts:
Sentence:

1) She is crying at night (every night) - present simple

2) He is flying on Fridays (every Friday) - present simple

3) They are fishing every weekend - present simple

As far as I know, for some kind of repetitive, intermittent, from time-to-time actions, I shouldn't use a gerund. It feels right for me to use gerund but I have to confirm this usage by exact rule

Question:

  Is there exact rule for usage of a gerund in present simple cases?


texts:
He runs just like his brother.
  He runs just like his brother does.
  He runs just like his brother runs.

Which sentence is grammatically correct. Also, what about these three?:

  He runs better than his brother.
  He runs better than his brother does.
  He runs better than his brother runs.

I'm really having trouble with sentences like these. Although it seems like all options would be accepted in everyday conversation, which is grammatically correct? Is the second verb even needed?


texts: Is it ok & common to say "I feel exhausted because of my exhausting daughter"?

texts:
Ok,

  to exhaust: to make somebody feel very tired Source

the word "exhausted" is quite popular. For example, "I feel exhausted".

However, I rarely see ""exhausting"".

Can I say like this "I feel exhausted because of my exhausting daughter"?


texts: Unifying in a common bond versus rectifying inequalities

texts:
Passage:

  I conceive the education of our youth in this country to be peculiarly necessary in Pennsylvania, while our citizens are composed of the natives of so many different kingdoms in Europe. Our schools of learning, by producing one general, and uniform system of education, will render the mass of the people more homogeneous, and thereby fit them more easily for uniform and peaceable government.

While this is not the whole of passage 2, the question in this case:

  The central idea in passage 2 is that the education in the US should:

is based on its last paragraph only. My problem is arising due to ambiguities in option 1 and 2 - which are:

rectify inequalities among the states
unify the citizens in a common bond

It should be pretty obvious that when we remove inequalities among the different states, they become unified by a common bond, and vice-versa. In fact, the machine marks 1 as correct and 2 as wrong! The explanantion given for 1 being correct is that a "unified system of learning will create a more unified populace" - doesn't it strongly correspond to what option 2 is trying to say?

My question - given how closely related 1 and 2 are - is

  Shouldn't both of them be the correct answers? If not, then which one is correct and why?

question image for reference - courtesy KhanAcademy


texts:
We just wanna party
  Party just for you
  We just want the money
  Money just for you

This is one line in the lyrics of "This is America"
So I don't understand why "the" is used before "money".
Why is "the money" used, not just "money"?


texts: "One and half week" or "One and half weekS"?

texts:
What's more correct when talking about 1.5 things?

Should we consider them as singular or plural?

For example:

  singular form:  One and half week

  plural form: One and half weeks


texts: What is the grammar of "the blur the protect the identity"

texts:
When I make an unnecessary blur to hide the identity of the users in the Meta, one user makes fun of it:

  I like the blur the protect the identity of users we can easily find ourselves...

I have no idea what grammar does this sentence base on. Do you have any idea?


texts: What does "can only heal so much" mean in this sentence?

texts:
I found the following sentence in an American novel (this one: here you can read the whole paragraph). A woman broke her wrist and just had her cast removed. She thinks she can start playing piano again, but her wrist still hurts too much.
I'm not sure I understand the meaning of the final sentence:

But a body can only heal so much, so fast.

Can someone help me, please?


texts: American English phrase for "overwhelm/harm with mistaken/excessive benevolence"

texts:
I am looking for a proverb / expression in American English where someone is overly kind to someone else tending to help them make an easier situation for them in the manner that they feel better, but in fact, what they are doing is not what they are expecting. They are acting like an ill-nature person e.g. enemy, who does not like you learn / grow etc.

  Example 1

  A kind aunt does her brother child's homework thinking that it would make
  the child feel better because as a result they would have less tasks and
  subsequently they can rest, but actually, what the aunt is doing is avoiding
  the child from growing and learning more.

  Example 2

  A mother who constantly gives her child chocolates and cake and other
  goodies, even though she's been told her child should be on a diet;
  otherwise she would hurt her child.

P.S. I am sure that "killing with kindness" does not work in AmE.


texts: What preposition is needed between the verb "to show up" and a specified period of time?

texts:
"He showed up only on the very last lesson of this semester"

or

"He showed up only in the very last lesson of this semester"?

What's the correct preposition here?


texts:
I'm confused by the meaning of or in this sentence:

Encryption poses a problem for intelligence agencies by scrambling data with a secret code so that even if they, or any other third-party, manages to capture it, they cannot read it—unless they possess the key to decrypt it or have the ability to crack the encryption scheme.
Source

If we look at these example usages of or:

A. I don't like apples or oranges.
B. I ignored it not simply because I was sick or I didn't care about it.

In both these sentences, the or implies that neither of the options are right. In the case of A, I like neither apples nor oranges. In the case of B, neither because I was sick nor because I didn't care about it. (They are both wrong.)
However, in the excerpt above, it doesn't sound like this is true. If I apply the interpretation above to the part containing "or" here, it would mean that they would have to have both the key to decrypt it and have the ability to crack the encryption. Because "unless they possess the key or have the ability" means "if they don't possess the key or have the ability," which means that this or the rule applied above transferred to this as well, would mean the aforementioned.
What's going on here?