texts: What's the word that means spitting while talking? By that I mean emit saliva and have it flown out of the mouth in an involuntarily way while talking? I remember there was a word for it, but I don't remember what it was.


texts: Is this the right usage of the word "corpus"?

texts:
I read a sentence in "The Hindu" which was:

The United Progressives Alliance-2 government set up the Nirbhaya Fund with an initial corpus of Rs 1000 crore.

Reading definitions of the word "corpus" in most of the dictionaries, I don't think it has been used in its right sense. Am I right?


texts: Coordinating and subordinating conjunctions

texts:
I'm having several problems with syntax analysis.
Is it possible to have 4 subordinating and 1 coordinating conjunction together in 1 sentence? How do I analyze clauses like that?

This is the sentence with which I have problems: Is a compound-complex sentence?

  When Jill said that she would be available tomorrow, she did not know that the time had been changed and that she would not be back before the children had come home.


texts:
Is using "the" repeatedly a bad style or considered bad in writing?

  The bus loses control and falls from the bridge. The bus falls in the lake, and then the entire bus sinks into the lake.

Assume I already mentioned the bus and the lake in my writing. Now, do I need all of those "the" in my above sentence?


texts: interested in/to: what's the difference?

texts:
As title suggests..what's the difference?
I heard that the difference is that with "in" you are talking about something that will or is lasting in the time, while "to" is something you do just one time.

So, the sentence "I am interested in starting my career in your company" is correct?
Or maybe "I am interested to start my career in your company"?


texts: Why should we use the preposition "to" not "on" in "What happened to you?"

texts:
Heaven knows what had happened to her at her previous owner's.

Why should we use the preposition "to" not "on"? What are the differences between them?


texts: "where did you sit" vs. "where were you sitting"

texts:
I'm a little confused about the difference between this two sentences. Can you explain the exact meaning and all differences between this two?

  Where did you sit last section?
  Where were you sitting last section?


texts:
Social learning, informal learning and social networking have become some of the hottest buzzwords in the learning industry today. The social concept in its entirety is being touted as the next best thing, a must-have, but is it all that it’s cracked up to be? Can social networking be successfully incorporated into learning strategies? How difficult is implementation and social networking adoption across organizations? Further, will organizations be able to derive real and demonstrable value from social networking technology as competitive differentiation?

is it mean to extract something real?


texts: The use of the adjective "narrow" as an adverb

texts:
Tell me please if the following use of the adjective is correct.

  You hands are too far apart. Grab the bar narrower and chin up.

What I want to communicate is hands being closer together is better. I suspect my use of the adjective isn't correct, but I cannot come up with a more brief phrase to communicate it.


texts:
What's the difference between "to make a purchase" and "to purchase"?

Are they just two different ways to say the same thing?


texts: What article do I use before the word "order"?

texts:
Which article should be used before the word "order"?

  I ask you to send me a/the order for trimmer R2 and the DB2 connector.

Note: The existing answer was based on a previous version of this question that mistakenly used offer rather than order.


texts:
I am reading an excerpt where I can't understandd these two parts.
undergoing ordeals and often used literary productions. Could anyone give me what does these two parts mean. Here is the excerpt is given below.

  This privileging of the protagonist seems appropriate, particularly
  given that women in Africa have often used literary productions, which
  feature protagonists and other "actors" undergoing ordeals and
  otherwise taking active part in real life, to comment on marriage,
  family and gender relations.


texts: The stool is under the ladder. You want to remove the stool. Would you say "to take the stool out of/off the ladder"?

texts:
A child put a ladder on a stool to get into a play house (see the picture in the link) because the ladder is not tall enough.

The stool is not on or in but under the ladder.

You want to remove the stool.

Would you say "to take the stool out of/off the ladder"?


texts: Is there a mnemonic that helps remembering when I should use "hate," and when "ate"?

texts:
Being an Italian native speaker, I sometimes write ate when I should have written hate, and vice versa.

Is there a mnemonic I could use to remember when I should write ate, and when hate?


texts: What is this 'so old... as seeming to' construction?

texts:
so extremely old as seeming to belong to an earlier period; of or relating to the period before the biblical flood

This is from Webster. I know "so as to do...", but what is this "so~as doing~"?
is this correct?


texts:
I know that with certain expressions for example:

I know that 50 pounds isn't a lot.

we should use a singular verb with a plural noun.
But can I do that with this sentence?

All I got for Christmas was stocks and a computer.

When can I use that? Does anyone have a list of expressions that I should use a singular name with?


texts:
In all school correspondences my daughter and all other students are being addressed as "Ward", "your Ward", e.g

  A parent survey form has been sent through your Ward. Please fill.

Is the school correct in doing so? My daughter is biological and we are parents and not guardians. Is this the correct academic way?


texts:
The premier enjoyed the limelight early in his tenure for an economic reform stance heavy on empowering the private sector. He is credited with improving the job market and promoting the growth of China's internet economy, with Tencent Holdings and Alibaba Group Holding rising to become two of the world's most valuable companies.

  Nikkei Asian Review: Chinese premier fades to secondary role despite re-election

internet economy, with Tencent Holdings

Why is the preposition "with" used a second time? What is the "with" meant for?


texts: Can the word “win” be used sarcastically either as a verb or as a noun?

texts:
I searched in The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language for win’s definitions to see it’s usage but I couldn’t figure out whether it can be used sarcastically with a negative connotation or not.

Ex:

  Can I say, “I won lots of down votes”?


texts: Can one say "depends how you take it" to express "depends on your view"?

texts:
Is there a phrase to take it [somehow] which says something like to interpret it/utilize some information in one's own way?

I have found 1 mention of the phrase about which I'm not sure if it is correctly expressing what I mean.


texts: Is there something wrong with the conjunction "but" in the second sentence of this example?

texts:
Example:

  Thanks for contacting our support. I'll be happy to help you with your question.

  Currently, our product does not support comment or review feature. That is why you're only seeing the ratings on your website but don't worry, there are several comment plugins that you can use for your site.

My concern is about the usage of but don't worry in this example. Should the second sentence be rewritten like this?

  That is why you're only seeing the ratings on your website. But don't worry, there are several comment plugins that you can use for your site.

Aside from that, what would be the better ways to rewrite it?


texts: "Will be increased by" vs "will increase by"

texts:
In my Fundamentals of Corporate Finance book is the following pargraph,

  The TICO Corporation currently pays a cash dividend of $5 per share. You believe the dividend will be increased by 4 percent each year indefinitely. How big will the dividend be in eight years?

I don't understand why they used the simple future passive here instead of just the simple future, that is

  You believe the dividend will increase by 4 percent each year.

Is there a reason for using one of the two and not the other?

Also just to make sure that my understanding is correct that saying in the simple future passive sentence "by 4 percent" it is not the subject of the sentence, the subject of this sentence is omitted. Right?


texts: How do I reply to "thank you" and "sorry"?

texts:
I am a foreigner and I am wondering how to respond "thank you" and "sorry".

I think I could respond to "thank you" like this:

You’re welcome.
Don’t mention it.
Not at all.
(It’s ) my pleasure.
That’s all right./That ok.
No problem.

I think I could respond to "sorry" like this:

It doesn’t matter.
That's all right./That’s OK.
Never mind.

Am I right? Do you have something else to add? Thank you so much.


texts: "No smoking allowed" or "No smoking is allowed"?

texts: As my opinion, "no smoking is allowed" must be correct , because it's "passive voice" . Then I saw a title on 9gag.com that was "NO penguins allowed". So what grammar point is here?


texts:
What does a "career move" mean?
Does it usually mean a change of job?
Can it mean an action in the career?


texts: Which sentence is corect to use and why?

texts:
This is from a recent article:

  He was rushed to the hospital immediately and a battery of tests was
  conducted.

or

  He was rushed to the hospital immediately and a battery of tests were
  conducted.

Which is correct and why is it correct? :)


texts: Describing a picture with an expression "I can see..."

texts:
I'm reading a book about most common mistakes in English by Polish speakers (written by George Sliva, a British native speaker).
As an example of a common mistake he gave a sentence:

"In this picture I can see an old woman watching TV."

and explained:

Almost every person taking an FCE Speaking Test starts describing a
photo with this sentence. I have never heard any native speaker use
that expression, it sounds very awkward or even funny.  It's like
saying "I can see because I have eyes".
Instead, use one of the following:
"There's an old woman watching TV."
"The picture shows an old woman watching TV."
[it's my translation, the book is in Polish]

However, I have found many sources that suggest using that expression, for instance:

If you are asked to describe a photo or a picture in the exam, here is some language you can use:
In the picture I can see...
https://learnenglishteens.britishcouncil.org/exams/speaking-exams/describe-photo-or-picture

I also have found some similiar cases in Corpus of Contemporary American English:

Dan Cooke, KITV, Honolulu Prediction: Looking at the satellite picture I can see some strong tan lines
developing on the beach at Waikiki.
[source: Weather Forecast, USA Today]

He makes a right onto an indistinguishable dirt road (...) and we bump along through the woods until we come to a bosky clearing of giant
ferns (...) In my side mirror I can see the buck's hooves, crossed like a ballerina's, bouncing along.
[source: Jay Kirk, Harpers Magazine]

I'm quite confused. Does that expression sound unnatural for native speakers or is it just not very common?


texts:
Good Day,

I was playing a game with my friends and an argument arose as to whether "Age is a demographic". I think this is incorrect in the sense of both grammar and terminology use...As I said age isn't an example of a demographic BUT it is an example of a demographic attribute/property/characteristic/....(I later learned the correct term is demographic factor)..Am I wrong to say this?


texts:
In some class, I had in elementary we learned

  I ate an apple.

  I drove a car.

An only comes with apple everything other object takes A.

Later on, I found this on google.

  He is an education instructor.

We were in first grade and he was trying to make it simple.

What I meant is at some age you learn something. Later on, you learn new things.

That makes that first thing you learned a bit incorrect.

Was the teacher tricking us??


texts:
I’m a passionate English-learner from Korea, and I have a question.

Why is would used in this sentence?

  A true friend would not say such a thing.

I can think that the speaker is probably not saying that a true
friend in general “doesn’t” say such a thing. So, I think maybe the
sentence means this sentence:

  If you were a true friend of mine, you wouldn’t say such a thing.

My point is that I think the “a true friend” doesn’t actually indicate
a true friend in general. I think the “a true friend” indicates the
listener. And so I think that’s why would is used to refer a
simple, imaginary situation. Is this why would is used instead
of does here?

I would really appreciate your help.


texts: What's the difference between until and until after?

texts:
As in "The sun doesn't rise until after dawn." Would the meaning of the sentence be changed if we used until?
I found on a website that 'After' is just an intensifier or clarifier.


texts:
"BETA" is Latin for still doesn't work

what does the above line actually mean?


texts: I'm always curious about why we have to use "is" or "does" when we mention "more than one thing" though this phrase means few people, not one person. Please let me know if you don't mind, and sorry for gramatically incorrect sentences cuz I'm not a native.


texts: I recently went on a trip to Peru, and met some pre-inca people. They braid their long hair into two ponytails, and weave balls of cotton to the end of the ponytail. What are those called? Bon-bons or something like that?


texts: Would somebody describe the exact position of this man in this sentence?

texts:
"When they arrived, the body was lying on the sand with its head resting on the seawall, and with its feet crossed and pointing directly to the sea".

If his head was resting on the seawall then how come his feet were crossed and pointing directly to the sea?


texts: Why "the Australian Capital Territory" but not "the New South Wales"?

texts: Why is "the" used in "the Australian Capital Territory", but not before "New South Wales"? Is it as if you started off with "the territory", made "territory" start with a capital letter, and added in "Australian Capital"?


texts: "My boss was furious with me and I have been fired" vs. "My boss was furious with me and I was fired"

texts:
I have a question and I hope you can help me. I've been learning English for many years but I'm still struggling with the difference between simple past and present perfect.

For example this sentence here:

"By the time I got to the office, the meeting (begin, already) had already begun without me. My boss (be) was furious with me and I (be) was fired."

Can I also say "My boss was furious with me and I have been fired."?

I lately read an article in the business insider with the topic "What to do right after you've been fired?". Could I say "What to do right after you got fired?" too?

My native language is German and for me both sounds perfectly fine when I just don't seem to get the difference. Are both sentences right and if so what exactly is the difference?

Help would be very much appreciated.

Thank you!


texts: What is the word for a time period between two interactions

texts:
I am looking for a word that describes the period or artificial interval  between two interactions.

Let's say: I need to check my emails often, but they don't change every second and I don't want to sit in front of the computer all day. So I create myself an artificial interval, say 1 hour, and check the mail 24 times a day.

"I check my emails 24 times a day, because my ... is 1 hour."


texts:
Mind you means in a dictionary: "Used to make a sentese less strong or general"

For example - I'm lazy - I go to gym on Saturdays, mind you.

But, does "mind you" mean the same thing in these phrases?

1- Don't be concerned about me, I'm good! Mind you

2- Tom can be here, mind


texts:
This is a passage from a novel:

  He smiled as he made up her plate. Stir-fry. Salmon. Kale. Other green things. He crushed a handful of cashews in his fist and sprinkled them on top, then set the plate in front of her.

her is the wife.

What does "made up" mean in the passage?

Edit:

I looked up make up on OALD, and my guess is that number 2 of the definitions fits most appropriately to the context?

  to put something together from several different things


texts: should use singular or plural with numbers ? 5 years experienced or 5 year experienced?

texts:
Being a student of English language I'm confuse should I use singular or plural with number greater then 1?

For example, please consider and guide if I'm wrong in my use:

  I'm a 5 years experienced accountant

or it should be:

  I'm a 5 year experienced accountant


texts: Is the news necessarily bad or upsetting when someone breaks the news? Can this expression just mean that someone tells somebody something new?


texts: Does "for" mean "as" in the sentence "Look what your mum had for a sister!"?

texts:
What is the meaning of "for" in the bold sentence? Is it an idiomatic use?

  He told Hagrid about the pale
  boy in Madam Malkin's.
  "--and he said people from Muggle families shouldn't even be allowed
  in."
  "Yer not from a Muggle family. If he'd known who yeh were -- he's grown
  up knowin' yer name if his parents are wizardin' folk. You saw what
  everyone in the Leaky Cauldron was like when they saw yeh. Anyway, what
  does he know about it, some o' the best I ever saw were the only ones
  with magic in 'em in a long line o' Muggles -- look at yer mum! Look
  what she had fer a sister!"


texts: Let's say I have just returned from a week's holiday. Can I say "I have been away for a week" or do I have to say "I was away for a week"? Or are both possible?


texts: Sentence constructon question \ Incorporate

texts:
I looked up the definition for "incorporate" and stumbled across this sentence from the ODO, which is not how I would have used it.

  incorporate
  verb
  [with object]
  1 Take in or contain (something) as part of a whole; include.
  ‘he has incorporated in his proposals a number of measures’

It is from the ODO and so it must be correct but can someone confirm if my usage would be correct or not? If it is not correct I want to understand what I am missing grammar-wise.

  "he has incorporated a number of measures in his proposals"


texts:
What are you doing here! I've never thought I would see you here.

What are you doing here! I never thought I would see you here.

Are they both correct?


texts: a more formal synonym of "a drop in the bucket"

texts:
I'm writing a classroom research paper and this is the sentence I'm struggling with:

  "...From this point of view, although just a drop in the bucket, the present research helps form a solid conviction on the best way to approach SLA vocabulary instruction."

I think a drop in the bucket is not appropriate in this context. Is there a formal way to say this? Preferably keep the idiomatic aspect in mind.

Thank you.


texts: What does "all"mean in "All we know about other people's minds we know from what they do."?

texts:
Does "all" mean "all of us":

  All of us know about other people's minds we know from what they do.

or "all the things that"?

  We know all the things that we know about other people's minds from what they do.


texts: We say 'in the morning' but 'on weekdays' - why?

texts:
"I get up late in the morning"  --- In this sentence we have used 'in' before morning
  "I get up early on weekdays" --- In this sentence we have used 'on' before weekdays.

Please let me know why we use 'on' for 2nd sentence and why we used 'in' for 1st sentence.


texts: What does "hold benefits, vigils, and fundraisers" mean in this sentence? Is "benefits" different from "fundraisers"?

texts:
Amnesty members continue to tirelessly write letters and hold benefits, vigils, and fundraisers for prisoners of conscience around the world.

What is the deference between "hold benefits" and "hold fundraisers"? Does both mean to hold events for collecting money in favour of prisoners?


texts: Is it correct to say "only animals sweat, humans perspire"?

texts:
I see no difference between the two as far as the meanings from various dictionaries are concerned.

From Cambridge dictionary:

  Sweat::

  the clear, salty liquid that you pass through your skin:

  The dancers were dripping with/pouring with sweat after a morning's rehearsal.

  By the time we'd climbed to the top of the hill, we were covered in sweat.

  She wiped the beads (= drops) of sweat from her forehead.

  Perspire::

  polite word for sweat (= to pass liquid through the skin):

  He was perspiring in his thick woollen suit.

  The journalists and camera crews began to perspire in the heat as they stood waiting for the president to appear.

But recently I heard from someone that only animals sweat but humans don't, humans perspire. So I googled for it found this. I quote an interesting answer from the link

  He must be quite an old-fashioned English person. I remember this view
  being expressed by my grandmother, who was born in about 1885. I
  haven't heard it recently.

Is it justified to say animals sweat, humans perspire? The only difference that I see between the two words is that the latter is more formal version of the former. Is the last quote that says such difference existed in the olden days correct?


texts: What does the quote 'Those things that hurt, instruct' mean?

texts:
"Those things that hurt, instruct" is a famous Benjamin Franklin quote.

I googled its meaning and many forums say that it means that challenges make you stronger. But I cannot find how the words in the sentence suggest this meaning.

Can you break down the sentence and explain the meaning?


texts: Personal Pronouns and complement of verb be

texts:
Which personal pronouns are complement of verb be?

First example:

  A: It was him  who broke the window pane.

or

  B: It was he who broke the window pane.

Second example:

  C: It’s me. Can you open the door? I haven’t got my key

or

  D: It’s I. Can you open the door? I haven’t got my key


texts: Adverbial Adjunct vs Object of Preposition

texts:
I am analyzing this sentence:

  "Carlos wrote a letter to his uncle."

So far I have:

"Carlos" = Subject
"wrote" = Predicator
"a letter" = Direct Object

But I wasn't sure about "to his uncle"

Is it an adverbial adjunct or object of preposition?


texts:
I read an article talking about operagoers in the 18th and 19th centuries, and it says:

“Society goes to the opera to see and be seen,” an American proclaimed. “It goes to exchange gossip, to chatter about the things of the day, to criticise a fashion, or a book, or a new preacher.” Rarely, however, did the operagoers pay much attention to the action on the stage.

Does "preacher" here refer to a person whose occupation is to preach the gospel, such as a pastor or minister? 'Cause I can see why people would criticise a fashion or a book in their conversations, but why whould they especially criticise a preacher?


texts: comparative sentences - different / same

texts:
I think when we are stating the differences between two things, we need to be clear about what is being compared to what, so there is no misunderstanding. So, when I use the word "different" or "same", I'd like to make sure what is compared to what. And I'm more comfortable when I can recognize them, because they take the same form. And here is what I've made:
Q. What do you usually do to keep yourself healthy?

1.The things that I do to keep myself healthy is not different from the things that others do.
2.What I usually do to keep myself healthy is pretty much the same as what others do.
3.I keep myself healthy in pretty much the same way as others do.
4.The way that I keep myself healthy is pretty much the same as the way that others do
5.The ways of me keeping myself healthy and others keeping themselves healthy are pretty much the same.

I just go jogging or doing some weight traing as others do.
Even though I know this phrases could cause others to be confused because it's kind of wordy, I happen to stick to phrasing like this. Are these sentences not good?


texts: Are abstract nouns also considered as adjectives? (parts of speech)

texts:
Courage (abstract noun) is a great virtue.
Though I am quite sure it cannot be considered as an adjective also, but just want to clear the doubt once and for all.Can a part of sentence be labelled under more than one part of speech?


texts:
The original sentence:

  Every abbey and great man’s house had its fish pond, and across the
  rivers great and small stretched the fish weirs, usually made of
  stakes and nets or basket-work.

Is it like this:

  Every abbey and great man’s house had its fish pond, and the great and
  small fish weirs, usually made of stakes and nets or basket-work,
  stretched across the rivers.


texts:
My question is a short one. Do I always have to use past perfect after the word after? (when talking in past tense)

Take this sentence as an example: After I had finished working, I did some shopping.

Could I say this: After I finished working, I did some shopping. Without any difference in meaning?


texts: How to say if I want to add money to my account?

texts:
I need to say something like this:

  I must add an amount (of money) sufficient for my needs to my account.

Usually, when I select a word to put in a sentence, I enter the phrase with this word in google searching for an exact phrase and check the number of matches to be sure that I use this word in the correct meaning, but in the current case this method seems to fail.

So, how to say it in a proper or legal manner?

  I must (credit || replenish || supplement || fill in || fill out || fill up || refill || top up ||  recharge || restock) my account (with || for || on) an amount sufficient for my needs.

Update

Oxfordlearnersdictionaries.com says:

  credit - to add an amount of money to somebody’s bank account
  credit A (with B) Your account has been credited with $50 000.
  credit B (to A) $50 000 has been credited to your account.

Seems to be correct?


texts:
Which is the better way to phrase this sentence?

  I would like to know if you will stock this record.

Or

  I would like to know if you stock this record.

Is future tense correct or is present better?
I think first one sounds better but don't know why.


texts: Do "twice as high xxxxx as" , "twice as high" and "twice higher" mean the same thing?

texts:
What do the following sentences actually mean?
Are they the same in meaning?

  The cost of living is twice as high in New York as it is in Tokyo.
  The cost of living in New York is twice as high in Tokyo.
  The cost of living in New York is twice higher than in Tokyo.
  The cost of living in New York is two times higher than in Tokyo.

If they have the same meaning, then can I actually use them as a basis for composing other sentences having the same meanings? Such as:

  1a. Your child is a hundred times as adorable as your pet dog.
  1b. Your child is a hundred times adorable than your pet dog.

  2a. Her room is twice as large as mine.
  2b. Her room is twice larger than mine.


texts:
The angry driver pulled alongside the cyclist, hands sweating at the wheel.

The angry driver pulled alongside the cyclist with his hands sweating at the wheel.

Can the first example stand as complete sentence without the joining 'with his'.

Do dependent clauses always require a subordinate conjunction or coordinating conjunction ? Can they just connect with a comma. Like I've done in the first example.


texts:
You said that the mind is like the wind, but perhaps it is we who are like the wind. Knowing nothing, simply blowing through. ― Haruki Murakami

In this, may Knowing nothing (participle phrase[?], adjective phrase[?]) modify we? And, may simply blowing through (adverbial[?]) modify we, too, as in how they seem like wind?

And in You said that the mind is like the wind, but perhaps it is we who are like the wind. Knowing nothing, simply blowing through., does this seem grammatical?

Do you write it like this?

  You said that the mind is like the wind, but perhaps it is we who are like the wind ― knowing nothing, simply blowing through.


texts: What's the form of the modal "must" in the past or future?

texts:
I know that modals normally don't have past form, but sometimes they have an other way or equivalent verb to cope and to express them in past tense or future tense. For example:

  can becomes could in past tense and for the future we use "will be able to...".

My question now is about the modal "must", how can I apply with equivalents for the past and future?

For example:

  You must listen to this recording.


texts:
ㆍ Christ learned respelling of

  ＜ ME, OE Crist

  ＜ L. Christ(us)

  ＜ GK. Christos, the Anointed, trans. of Heb. mashiah
  (https://www.korean.go.kr/nkview/nklife/2010_1/2010_0106.pdf)

What do 'Me, OE', 'L.', 'GK', 'trans.' mean?


texts: "row count" or "rows count" to mean "number of rows"

texts:
I am a software developer. In software manuals and source code comments, I see repetitively the phrases "row count" and "rows count" to mean "number of rows".

Are both phrases correct?


texts: How is "doze off" different from just "doze"?

texts:
How is doze off different from just doze?

I think they mean the same thing— sleeping lightly. What's the difference between them?


texts:
Here is the context:

  More fine-grained analyses compared the type of intellectual ability and the impact of age and social status, as measured by income and that all-important automobile.

Namely I cannot understand what "as" means there. Could anyone rephrase it for me please?


texts:
A grammar book says that in the following sentences we must not use "could" instead of "was/were able to".

The fire spread through the building very quickly, but everyone was able to escape.

They didn't want to come with us at first, but finally we were able to persuade them

However, when I searched the English language corpus COCA by "finally could", I found some counter-examples. Here are two examples from COCA.

I told her to get in line. Did it make you feel better? It did.
I finally could say something.

Then, when it ended and I finally could get my family back,
it came at a price, like suddenly being blind.

Are these examples grammatically incorrect?
Edit(Jun. 5, 2014)
I posted the same question here.


texts: That's nobody's business but the Turks (or Greeks, British …) - what exactly does it mean?

texts:
From the song Istanbul (Not Constantinople):

  So take me back to Constantinople

  No, you can't go back to Constantinople

  Been a long time gone, Constantinople

  Why did Constantinople get the works?

  That's nobody's business but the Turks

What do they exactly mean by "That's nobody's business but …"?

The former line has already been explained very well, but to be sure to understand all the lyrics, I wood like someone explaining me also the last phrase:

"That's nobody's business but the Turks"

Might mean:

That only matters the Turks (or whoever), nobody else has the competence to name this city, or:
This can only be answered by the Turks (that remains the mystery of
the Turks), because there is no reason to name it Istanbul.

Which of these two interpretations is right? Or something other?


texts: Should I use "the" every time, when it's needed?

texts:
Consider the sentence:

  Determine the type of the field

Should I every time put the (or a/an) in constructions like this?


texts:
Sentence that may or may not need correction:

  Referred to by some as the "fifth Beatle," Iain Softley wrote and directed a movie about Stuart Sutcliffe-the original bassist of the group-Backbeat in 1994.

I'm not sure for this question. Can I please get an explanation for why every choice but the correct one is wrong? Can I have an explanation for the "dash" usage also?

A. Iain Softley wrote and directed a movie about Stuart Sutcliffe-the original bassist of the group-Backbeat in 1994

B. in 1994 Iain Softley wrote and directed the movie Backbeat about Stuart Sutcliffe-the original bassist of the group

C. Stuart Sutcliffe-the original bassist of the group-was the subject of the 1994 movie, Backbeat written and directed by Iain Softley

D. Iain softley, who wrote and directed the movie Backbeat about Stuart Sutcliffe the original bassist of the group in 1994

I chose A but the correct answer is C.


texts:
I am writing a fiction story in first person with the narrative in past tense but I find I want to use many words that indicate present time such as now, this, tonight, tomorrow, etc.  I've seen this in some fiction novels, but I've heard from some people that this is mixing tenses. Here are some examples:

"Now, I didn't know what to think."
"I knew this time, once school resumed..."
"He was supposed to start school today."
"They were now happy to remain on the easy runs."
"She was now practically running."
"This would give me a full day... "

I would like the novel to have a present feel rather than feel it is being told about a distant past... but I want to be grammatically correct.


texts:
I have a problem with identifying whether this type of sentences is simple or complex:

  Besides stealing jewels, he also murdered her.
  In spite of my advice, she gave up her studies.

The prepositions "besides" and "in spite of" confuse me.

Could you please help me to identify this type of sentences?


texts:
I am not a native English speaker and I have a question.

Why is the sound of the letter i different in the words dinner and diamond? What is the criteria for the change?


texts: Is "and" grammatically correct in this context?

texts:
I wrote this sentence:

  I choosed XXX University not just because it is a well-known university in the scientific community and its highly valued education, but...

I don't know if and is grammatically correct.


texts: Omitting and including the definite and indefinite articles

texts:
Use A(AN) when you are talking about a thing in general, NOT a specific thing. When talking about a thing which is new, unknown, or introduced to a listener for the first time. Also use A(AN) when you are asking about the existence of something.
Use THE when talking about something which is already known to the listener or which has been previously mentioned, introduced, or discussed.

I kind of understand the difference between the definite and indefinite articles. However, I don't quite understand when you should use the articles and when you should omit articles.

For example, when your classmate, John, asked you for photos of lecture notes and you send them via email. Do you write please see attachments because attachments is plural and he is seeing these attachments for the first time or please see the attachments because you're tell him to see these specific attachments and he knows what the attachments are(photos of lecture notes)?

Another example, you were driving, saw a abandoned car in the middle of the road, and sent a Snapchat of the abandoned car to your friends saying "someone left their car in the middle of the road!" Do you include the definite article because the road is introduced with the picture or if they know that road. Do you use the indefinite article a road if they don't know that road


texts: what is the right form of the verb "lay" or "lies"

texts:
What is the right form of the verb in the following sentence?

  The essence of the brilliant outcome {lay / lies} in the excellence of the team.

I think lies is right (third person singular adds an s), but I read "lay" in the writing source.


texts:
In most cases, the way I see it, these words mean the same thing in context:

Whereas/although/while this car is old it is still very popular and pricey.

How do I choose one or another or is there no difference between them?

I mean, should it bother me to care to choose one and not any other in certain contexts?


texts: What's the difference between Start time and Starting time?

texts:
what is the difference between start time and starting time?

If I am talking about work start time at a job site, can I say starting time is 7 in the morning?

Thanks a lot.


texts: A book that I'm reading says I've lived is correct instead of I've been living in this sentence

texts:
A) I've lived here since I was two years old.
B) I've been living here since I was two years old.

Someone please explain to me how is the second sentence incorrect here.


texts: I am a Spanish speaker, and I used this sentence in a conversation:

texts:
“We always use that one”
Because 8 times out of 10 we have.

My meaning is that most of the times we use that, so I went with the word “always”.

The person that I was speaking with told me it was not correct, because it was not always because always means all the time. I was not using the exact meaning of always, but this person couldn’t understand my explanation.

So which one is correct?

“We always use that”
“Most of the time we use that”


texts: Why Does "Step BY Step" Have No Indefinite Article?

texts: We use by to mean something each or separate (e.g., one by one, step by step, electoral votes by state, wine consumption by country, etc.), and these bys suppress the following nouns' indefinite articles. For example, we say "electoral votes by state" rather than "electoral votes by a state" or "electoral votes by each state," nevertheless the state is even countable. Why must we omit these indefinite articles in front of the nouns right next to these bys?


texts: participle clause - subjects of the participle and the main verb

texts:
It would usually be a mistake to assume that the way to build a strong relationship would be to reveal the most private details about yourself when first making contact with another person.

I saw the above sentence in a exam passage.

I learned we can use participle clauses when the participle and the verb in the main clause have the same subject.

But the above sentence does not look like that. Is it a correct sentence? If so, what is the subjects of the participle and the main verb?


texts: each of which or all of which + respectively

texts:
I want to combine the following sentences into one sentence.

  Nokia was followed by Motorola and Ericsson.
  Motorola was on the second rank and Ericsson was on the third rank.

How should I construct the sentence? Mentioned below are the possible choices that I thought.

a. Nokia was followed by Motorola and Ericsson, all of which were on the second and the third rank, respectively.

b. Nokia was followed by Motorola and Ericsson, all of which was on the second and the third rank, respectively.

c. Nokia was followed by Motorola and Ericsson, each of which were on the second and the third rank, respectively.

d. Nokia was followed by Motorola and Ericsson, each of which was on the second and the third rank, respectively.

I have searched in Google but I have not found any answer yet. I just guess the answer is A.

Any suggestion regarding this issue?

Thank you


texts:
What is the correct use of "same as" in the following sentences?

Additionally, records have shown that increasing the data size to 1MB and keeping the access latency the same as a small data set, reduces the throughput
Additionally, records have shown that increasing the data size to 1MB and keeping the access latency, same as a small data set reduces the throughput


texts: Is the sentence "It is hoped that the corona virus would disappear soon" correct formal speech?

texts:
Today I had my English finals, 12th grade high-school. I live in a third-world country, and so the quality of the questions/answers is not always guaranteed. One of the questions was:

Which of the following is formal speech?
A. [something which was obviously wrong]
B. [Another obviously wrong option]
C. It is said he has a map
D. It is hoped that the corona virus would disappear soon

I chose "C". However, just now our Ministry of Education has published the correct answer key on their social media account, and there, option "D" is said to be the correct one. Now, I think this option is wrong because "would" shouldn't be used here; it should be "will", which would make option "D" look exactly like this: "It is hoped that the corona virus will disappear soon"
Please help me. If option D is incorrect, then what I need to do is to get some evidence and backing that it is the case after all, and I plan on contacting both the Ministry as well as the Minister himself (these technical mistakes happen a lot, and in many cases they will just give everyone the 2 marks that the correct option is supposed to provide).


texts:
Why does the Extinction occur?

Can I place "does" in that position?
What is the correct position of does?


texts: Auxiliary verb position in questions with "why"

texts:
Of these two options which one is correct?

  Why doesn't the website get loaded?

or

  Why the website doesn't get loaded?

Maybe the more natural one is:

  Why isn't the website loaded?

but I'm wondering if either of the first two is correct.


texts: Can I use 'contributed' with 'were', and do I need 'the' before 'Islamic Era'?

texts:
Which sentence is grammatically correct?

  There were many factors contributed to the decline of Islamic Era.
  There were many factors contributing to the decline of the Islamic Era.

Can I use 'contributed' as a verb with 'were'? The second question is do I need to use 'the' before 'Islamic Era'? Which online tool is best for sentence checking?

Regards;


texts: "not one of them" vs "none of them" in this context

texts:
They did indeed burn sage and mallowsweet there on the classroom floor, and Firenze told them to look for certain shapes and symbols in the pungent fumes, but he seemed perfectly unconcerned that not one of them could see any of the signs he described, telling them that humans were hardly ever good at this, that it took centaurs years and years to become competent, and finished by telling them that it was foolish to put too much faith in such things, anyway, because even centaurs sometimes read them wrongly.

  Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix

In my opinion, it should use the phrase "none of them", but I might be wrong. I'd like to ask if there's any difference between "not one of them" and "none of them". Any thoughts?


texts:
I've been taught that "just" is placed before the element it modifies. As in:

  Can I use your computer just for a few minutes?

In this case the emphasis is that it will take no longer than a few minutes.

So far, so good.

But then I've come across this sentence:

  Can I just use your computer for a few minutes?

I can't make sense of "just" before "use", because nobody would think that you might want to sell, steal or smash my computer, and that you are pointing out that you just want to use it.

Is it the case that "just" still modifies "for a few minutes" though it is "displaced"? Is there any other explanation for the position of "just" in the sentence?

Thank you!


texts:
In old-fashioned English, the term "kith and kin" encompass all the people you've been connected with, including the nuclear and extended family members.
What is its modern substitute if exists?

First scenario:

Imagine you're talking to a gypsy and want to ask him informally whether they have any relatives or friends close to him geographically.

  Do you have any kith and kin in this city?

Second scenario:

Let's suppose a police officer who after a bad cat accident comes to an injured person on the street who is unable to talk about their relatives or friends that can come along with him/her. What would the officer ask his/her subordinates?

  Try to find his/her kith and kin.


texts:
What I know

like:
like + noun

like an apple.., treat like a doctor (he ISN"T a doctor)

as:
as + verb

and

such as.., use as..., work as.., treat as a doctor (he IS a doctor), They waved as the cars passed by

What I'm dubious about:

1) He will fly as a dog
2) The table has the same height as the chair

I want to know all the rules about using 'use' vs 'like'. Because sometimes I feel that I should use 'as' with a noun but at the same time I can't elaborate (explain) this using.

Thank you in advance


texts:
I was given a fill in-blanks exercises and couldn't decide between the following options:

The ground/soil below the streets of New York city is hard/stiff enough to support the weight of the skyscrapers without sinking.

I can't see a great deal of difference between the two but I guess it's about the nuances of meaning of the four words.
What do you think?


texts: What is the accepted or acknowledge way to turn to professor or teacher?

texts:
What is the accepted or acknowledge way to turn to professor or teacher at the college or at the university?

For example if I have a question to ask him, Should I say to him "professor" or "teacher" or there is another way to do it? I have African friends who say to the teacher (female) "mom", while Indian friends say to the teacher (male) "Sir". so I am confused in this topic and I'd like to know one time what is the way to turn to teachers in USA, England, Australia, South Africa and Canada.


texts: Can I use "human intervention" in this context? Are there better alternatives?

texts:
Applying self-organized Multiagent systems in the industry can lower the necessity of human intervention, which can imply a signicant reduction in costs.

Please note that I want to emphasize that the "intervention" is an unregular event, only needed under exceptional circumstances (e.g. fault).


texts: What is the grammar rule for "to be" in this sentence?

texts:
Can someone explain to me what the grammar rule for "to be" is in this sentence:

  "Landlords and tenants often disagree over paying for things to be mended".

Is it a passive construct?
Here's where I found the sentence. https://ibb.co/cF931Mp


texts:
How to know that 'to' is infinitive particle or preposition? Which one is correct?

Don't try to be smart.
Don't try to being smart.(is to a preposition?)
Stop trying(is trying a gerund here?) to be smart.
Stop trying to being smart.(is to a preposition?)

Please give reasons also.


texts: Past or present perfect with past action "in March 2010"

texts:
Please, tell me what is the  difference between

  In March 2010 I wrote my first book.
  and
  In March 2010 I have written my first book.

Which is the right way to say it if I did something at that time in the past?


texts: Why is "could" used in “I am glad that you could make it?”

texts:
Grammar books say don’t use could for past performance. For example, if I ran after a bus and caught it, I can’t say “I ran after a bus and could catch it.”

Nevertheless, people say “I am glad that you could make it” to their guests.


texts: "They gave the Prime Minister a cool reception." You know 'cool' has both 'postive and negative meaning' What's cool here?

texts:
"They gave the Prime Minister a cool reception."

You know 'cool' has both 'postive and negative meaning'
The dictinary says the meaning of the sentence is negative, which means they gave the prime Minister a cold shoulder, which means the reception was not warm.
I came across a cognitive disorder when I read(past tense) the sentence because 'cool' is very frequently used in a cool way — I hope 'in a cool way' is idiomatic.
Is the sentence vague(positive or negative) or definitely negative?


texts: Can I say "a short summary" or just "summary"?

texts: Can I use this expression? I use Grammarly app on a regular basis, and the phrase was marked as a tautology...


texts: What is the difference between “I got stuck” , “I was stuck”, “I'm stuck"?

texts:
What is the difference caused by using “I got stuck”, “I get stuck”, “I was stuck”, “I'm stuck"?

Could anyone please advise which is more natural and when should one use over the other with sentences?


texts:
Thank you for your time. Please take look at the following:
"The passage is primarily with summarizing the reasons for the rejection of an establish theory by the scientific community."
Regarding "by the scientific community", I conjectured up two interpretation but prefer the first one:

It modifies "the rejection". So the sentence means: the article is mainly about the community's reasons to reject a theory.

It modifies "an established theory". And, the sentence means the articles summarized the reasons to reject one of the community's established theory.

I can't figure out which is the more appropriate. I would appreciate any help!


texts: Which sentence is “however” contrasting in this context?

texts:
Now research shows the night is getting even brighter. From 2012 to 2016 the earth's artificially lit area expanded by an estimated 2.2 percent a year (map), according to a study published last November in Science Advances. Even that increase may understate the problem, however. The measurement excludes light from most of the energy-efficient LED lamps that have been replacing sodium-vapor technology in cities all over the world, says lead study author Christopher Kyba, a postdoctoral researcher at the German Research Center for Geosciences in Potsdam.

I can’t find any sentence that is in contrast with the sentence attached with however?


texts:
I came across a question in an ACT English test:

Their later clocks reflects the Bilys' keen interest in U.S.history, the most notable example____ the American Pioneer History Clock.

I wonder why the only correct one filling the blank must be "being”， not "to be, " since both of them can act as non-predicative.


texts: Does all "going to" s here mean the same?

texts:
When you back up the car you're going to back it up until your body is even with the middle portion of the trunk on the other car. Then at that point you're going to turn your wheel all the way to the right, and you're going to create an angle. What you're going to do is your car is going to be in a position like this when you turn the wheel to the right, OK.

I have a greatvdeal of time figuring out what all these going to s really mean . Does all of them mean the same here? I know what it means. It is talking about something that would hapoen in the future. But all these in this short speech is confusing .


texts: "straight out" means the same thing as "in a straight line"?

texts:
The bristles protruded straight out of the head of the cleaner.
The bristles protruded in a straight line out of the head of the
cleaner.

I want to know if they both means the same thing or not and what would be the difference and if both are grammatical.


texts:
I would like to use a verb  or an adjective similar to " to go wrong" as in the following example but I could not find.

  A myriad of scientists endeavored and even some of them sacrificed their lives due
  to/through  accidents that happened during ? experiments that had gone wrong.


texts: I don't understand how to use 'infinitive' here.

texts:
Here's a sentence I get mixed up.

  I was told that there will be a session to actually perform the skills we learn at the work shop.

I understand this sentence like this.

  I was told that there will be a session that makes us actually perform the skills we learn at the work shop.

Then, how exactly is the infinitive 'to actually perform' working here?


texts: What is the meaning of "Feet come in twos in socks and shoes"?

texts:
What is the meaning of "Feet come in twos in socks and shoes" in the following sentence (source: Feet are Neat!),

  Feet come in twos in socks and shoes, two boots with zippers, two
  bunny slippers, two swimming fins. Feet are twins.

?


texts:
In drama movie Bombshell (2019), Star anchor, Megyn Kelly has informed lawyers that Fox News CEO, Roger Ailes, sexually harassed her

Roger: Comb through Megyn's press. Find every single positive thing
she's said about me and get it out, now.
FOX Female anchor: Roger, I can't discredit an anchor I'm paid to
promote.
Roger: Glad I'm not in a foxhole with you.

What does "foxhole" mean in this context?


texts:
Is it a wrong or right English to say
I took a piss
Indicating that she went to urinate.
But I was thinking the right way to put it should be
I took a pee
Can I have a better way to put this other than I went to urinate.


texts:
This is a highlighter pen

  highlighter pen: a special pen used for marking words in a text in bright colours

Now, there is a pen that looks similar to a highlighter but is used to clear the writing errors. To clear the writing errors, you press the pen on the errors & it releases some white sticky liquid, you smear the liquid over the errors, you wait for a few minutes to let the liquid dry. Now you don't see the errors & you can write something on it.

What is the pen that looks similar to a highlighter but is used to clear the writing errors?


texts:
I'm trying to translate the french "À leur tour" into English.
I believe Literal translation would give something like this : "It was now their turn to"
The sentence is the following : "They introduced me, "à leur tour", to their friends."
For example, someone introduced me to his friends, and these friends then introduced me to their friends.
I can't seem to find something decent in the Dictionary.


texts: In US English, what is the meaning of the phrase "linger on the stoop"?

texts:
I came across this phrase in a sentence that goes like this:

  He handed me the books and the pizza and we talked for a while. He lingered on the stoop for a moment.

Can anyone please explain what is the meaning of this expression? I couldn't find a proper explanation anywhere.


texts: Question-tag structure for "should not have scolded"?

texts:
What should be an appropriate question-tag to use for the following sentence:

  You should not have scolded the child.

I want to go with "should you have?" but the Teachers' Textbook I refer to says "should you?" I know that that is wrong, but is it really?


texts:
Good morning!

Is there any plural form for titles? For instance, may I say?

(a) I was supervised by professors Dr. John Robinson and Dr. Peter Simpson

(b) I need to talk to misters Peter Coley and Leonardo More


texts: "How long is he working?" vs. "Since when is he working?"

texts:
Today I asked someone about a 3rd person
"How long is he working ?"

He said, this is wrong question, it was suppose to be "Since when is he working ?"

Kindly tell me  is it wrong that i asked ?


texts: "It's time that someone looked you in the eyes and told it to you straight."

texts:
Could anyone tell me why the verbs "look and tell" are in the past tense in the following sentence:

It's time that someone looked you in the eyes and told it to you straight.


texts:
I am writing about a book. So what should I use "till/to"?

  This book is so gripping, that it keeps you ensnared till the last word.

  This book is so gripping, that it keeps you ensnared to the last word.

I think that "till" should be used with a period of time and thus it doesn't sound natural here. What do you think? Does it sound natural? If yes, then why? And could you explain it to me with a few examples as well?


texts:
I find some hair in the sink.
Can I ask "Have you been washing your hair in the sink?" without being angry or disapproving?
I am just asking about the activity that leads to the hair in the sink.


texts: "So as to" at the beginning of a sentence

texts:
Usually, in scientific literature I have found:

  In order to achieve something, we did something

Is it possible to use the same construct with "so as to" ?

  So as to achieve something, we did something


texts:
"She'd like to think that I'm cruel but she knows that's a lie for I would be no more than a tool if I allowed her to cry all over me"

After that for is there any omitted term?

For example, could I rewrite that sentence this way:

  "She'd like to think that I'm cruel but she knows that's a lie for (herself)"


texts:
Should I use the preposition to?
Are both correct?

The document I sent you
The document I sent to you


texts:
In the following sentence:

Simply put, the impacts of global warming are going to be more evident in not-too-distant future.

Can I use In layman's terms instead of simply put?

In layman's terms, the impacts of global warming are going to be more evident in not-too-distant future.

Which one is more formal and academic and which one is more likely to be used in speaking?


texts: Would "The reader is referred to ..." sound commanding to a native ear?

texts:
I am wondering if "the reader is referred to ..." sounds rude to a native ear.

If this sentence is kind of rude, then what else can I use as an alternative to it?


texts:
Could one ever use
a) I don't like all of your friends.
instead of
b) I dislike all of your friends. (I don't like any of them)
?
Could one use
c) She can't stand all of the shows I like.
instead of
d) She can't stand any of the shows I like.
?
I think in written English (a) and (c) would never be used instead of (b) and (d). They have different meanings. But I'm not sure that in spoken informal English, with the right emphasis, such substitution would be impossible. Not sure at all about anything here actually. I would never use (a) and (c) instead of (b) and (d), but I am not sure that some native speakers wouldn't.
Many thanks.


texts: Is the auxiliary verb “do” required in WH-questions: "Which security flaws these protocols have?"

texts:
In the following question

  Which security flaws does these protocols have?

Is the auxiliary verb "does" necessary? Would the sentence still be grammatically correct if I omitted it, in which case the sentence would read

  Which security flaws these protocols have?


texts: You have a bad choice/You have a good choice

texts:
If we are talking about someone's "choice" as general,  like what kind of clothes that person likes:

  You have a bad choice. (I don't like your choice)

  You have a good choice.(I like your choice)

Do these sound natural?


texts:
It has appeared that, if we take any common object of the sort that is
  supposed to be known by the senses, what the senses immediately tell
  us is not the truth about the object as it is apart from us, but
  only the truth about certain sense-data which, so far as we can see,
  depend upon the relations between us and the object.

  (Problems of Philosophy , Bertrand Russell, Chapter I)

What is the meaning of the word "as" in this context? Does it mean "because"?


texts:
I rarely come upon adjectives being used strangely in comparative constructions.

Take the adjective "silent", sometimes I hear "more silent" and "most silent" although it isn't logical in any sense. Silent means without any sound. Furthermore, this Wikipedia page says that there exist "silenter" and "silentest" which I've never met or heard.

Now, if we take the adjective "impossible" that means not able to occur, exist, or be done. The comparative forms are "more impossible" and "most impossible" which again doesn't make any sense.

Now, my question is, how are these forms used in modern English and why is it sometimes preferred to use the comparative form instead of a comparative form of an antonym?

It is less noisy in here instead of It is more silent in here.
It is less possible to get in through the backdoor instead of It is more impossible to get in through the backdoor.

Then again for some adjectives there are synonyms:

Less expensive = cheaper.
More educated = smarter.


texts:
getting all children off on the right foot is an often-stated goal of pre-K, but in many ways, creating equity is as big a challenge as building quality

would it be incorrect if I say:

creating equity is as a big challenge as building quality

does the phrase put between as... as have a different word order when it has complements to the adjective or adverb in it?


texts:
Searching for the definition of wherein, i found the word whereinsoever.

I have however not found any clear definition and example of its use, could someome explain it to me ?


texts: "It seems to be good" OR "It seems good"

texts:
The car seems to be quite old.
The car seems quite old.

Are the both fine? Explain.

Thank you.


texts: Is the structure of "a/an X kind of Y" correct?

texts:
Is this structure correct or not?

  An orange kind of morning is desired.

Can I replace X with a noun like Europe,Japan,India etc. or not? For example:

  An India kind of morning is desired after experiencing a black winter for 6 months.


texts: What word should I use instead of 'having a word'?

texts:
Let's say my shirt has been ruined by a dry-cleaner and I am very furious about it, so I am going back there. My friend asks me where am I going.

I can say

  I am going back to the dry cleaner's to have a word with him about my t-shirt.

What I want to say is that I am going there to criticize or to yell at him for ruining my shirt, To say 'to have a word with him' seems very polite and using confront seems very violent, but I might be wrong.

What is the correct/more appropriate word here for  to have a word?


texts: Present simple with the duration of an action. How can it be?

texts:
If you go to church every Sunday for twenty years, you have evidence
that you are religious. If you study biology for one hour every night,
you have evidence that you are studious. Atomic Habits: the life-changing million-copy #1 bestseller

It's a real example from a book.
Why is it not "If you've been going to church every Sunday for twenty years, you have evidence that you are religious"?


texts:
In the end, Captain Gault said
– and was embarrassed and felt awkward saying it – that Daniel O’Connell
in his day had stayed at Lahardane. The name was legendary, the man the
beloved champion of the oppressed; but time, in this small dwelling at
least, had robbed the past of magic. Those three lads had been out snaring
rabbits and had lost their way. They shouldn’t have been trespassing; no
doubt about that, it was admitted. Captain Gault didn’t mention the petrol
tins. He returned to Lahardane, to another night-time vigil.

Does "past of magic" mean: something that they had believed in the past and they thought it gave them power? and the part in bold mean: as time passed no longer they believed them?
Source: The Story of Lucy Gault by William trevor.


texts:
Question: Can I come to your office day after tomorrow?
Answer1: You can come at anytime.
Answer2: You can come at anyday.

Which one of the above answer is correct?


texts: Using so/the/therefore at the end of sentences

texts:
How to use "so/then/therefore at the end of a sentence please?
For example, "If you go to the gym, so/then/therefore I also go there".

How to use e.g., so at the end of that sentence?


texts: What is the correct choice for this sentence?

texts:
The next Olympic Games (will be - is) in London.

I chose "is" as it is something scheduled, but my teacher told me the correct answer is will be.


texts: What do you call the guy who parks cars?

texts:
What is the official name of the guy in the restaurant who takes the car from the customers and then returns the cars back to them when they finish visiting the restaurant?

"parking guy"?


texts:
Doctors express concern yesterday that people are ignorant of the risks
  during the current heatwave, with scores of holiday makers being
  treated for burns and blisters in hospital casualty units round the
  country.

Why the in front of current heatwave? For me it is a globalisation: all current heatwave can lead to skin cancer


texts:
1, The number of the young people in Place A who can't read is incredible about one in four.

I think there is a mistake in the bolded part, because incredible is an adjective, which should be changed into anadverb in order to modify a number.

  2,The number of the young people in Place A who can't read is incredibly about one in four.

or

  3,The number of the young people in Place A who can't read is an incredible about one in four.

Which of the sentences do you think is correct?


texts:
Apostrophe or apostrophe + s is used to show possession; e.g. StackExchange's English Language Learners or Webmasters' favorite, just to name a few examples. But what if a proper noun ends in apostrophe or apostrophe + s (in the case of a trademark), e.g. Simpsons', Wendy's?

How should I refer to, say, a product manager working for Wendy's in my sentence?

Wendy's' product manager insisted [..]
Product manager of Wendy's insisted [..]

Thank you in advance.


texts: all days/all days of the week/all days a week

texts:
A)I read books all days a week.

  B)I read books all days of the week.

  C)I read books all days.

I was wondering if all these three sentences are correct.I know that I can use every single day of the week or  every day to express the same message ,but I want to know the correct way of using all+days here.


texts: How would one describe physically pressable keyboard keys in a single word?

texts:
I was thinking about movable/moving keys, but it's possible to confuse that with keys that can be removed from the keyboard and placed on a different one, or in a different position, I'm afraid.

"Physically pressable" doesn't cut it, as the keys already have to be described as simply "pressable" - in the sense that they are interactive.


texts:
I have been practicing dark L.
I saw this video from Youtube about pronouncing dark L. Could you please watch it at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BygKFtLVBbQ?
However, I wonder American English speakers pronounce Dark L like this video or not.


texts: "His jacket was tied about his waist schoolboy style..."

texts:
A tall boy with reddish hair in jeans and a T-shirt.  His jacket was tied about his waist schoolboy style and flapped wildly around his knees.

I don't know what schoolboy style is doing grammatically.  Is it an adverbial phrase? How should we understand it?


texts: What’s the active form of “ My jacket was made in Thailand.”?

texts: When we normally change the sentence into active  voice, we get “ They made my jacket in Thailand or so.” But I think “made” is a general word. It doesn’t actually qualify for what it was made. So to be particular can I use other verbs instead of “ made” in the active voice. Or what are other appropriate ways of transforming this sentence into active voice? Would you please give me similar equivalent form of active voice or other different ways of changing into active voice ?


texts:
Why do we say "it's too hard a task" and not "it's a too hard task"?
Is there a rule for that?


texts: "not as strong" vs. "less strong" --- interchangeable?

texts:
David is much
  smaller than Andrew
  and (is) less strong.

  David is much
  smaller than Andrew
  and (is) not as strong.


texts: "Where does he go?" vs. "Where does he go to?"

texts:
What's the difference between "Where does he go?" and "Where does he go to?"
Are there any hidden connotations in adding "to"?

If I needed to come up with a question for "Max goes to the library twice a week", which one of the two options I would have to use?

  Where does Max go to twice a week?

or

  Where does Max go twice a week?

?


texts: Why using quotation marks in this sentence and what does it means?

texts:
In the article from The Seattle Times, there is a sentence like this:

  But she also said it’s “incumbent” for the fashion labels to keep their sales channel “clean,” making sure in-season items don’t end up at discount sellers.

Why it use quotation marks on incumbent and clean ? And what does this sentence mean exactly in this article?


texts:
I have seen an advertisement for a restaurant which starts to accept prepaid company access cards. The text is written in native language and in English.

English variant: "No need of cash?"

My translation of czech variant: "Don't you have a cash?"

I think that their translation is wrong. I would rather express it as: "No cash?"

Can somebody elaborate on this topic? Thanks


texts:
I want to say I come from a city in the northern part of the country. Would the following be correct?

  I come from X, which is a city in the north of the country.

It sounds unnatural.


texts:
One species, the giant armadillo, has as many as one hundred teeth, one of the largest numbers in a mammal. Source: The Amazing Armadillo: Geography of a Folk Critter

One species, the giant armadillo, has one hundred teeth, one of the largest numbers in a mammal.

I am wondering what the difference is between #1 and #2. I think you use “as many as” for emphasis, don't you?


texts:
'Not until three years ago _________ to work outside.'

[(a) he began (b) he begins (c) began he (d) did he begin ]

Hi guys, I know the answer to this question is 'd', but I've had someone ask me the dreaded question: 'why?'

Can anyone help me to explain this? The student wants to know - why not answer 'a'?

Thank you so much.


texts: "is in the basic form" vs. "is the basic form"

texts:
From a tutorial (Transcript)

Generally, the words which carry the main meaning are stressed, while ‘grammar’
words like prepositions, pronouns and so on are not stressed.
Words which are not stressed can be weak forms.

Usually, when talking about pronunciation and verb forms, people use "is in the X form" rather than "is the X form". For example,

Which we use depends on which letters the verb ends with in the basic form. src

The verb which follows "do" or "don't" is always in the basic form ... src

Therefore, the quotation should have said

... Words which are not stressed can be in weak forms.


texts: What is the difference between "have been doing to" and "have been doing with"?

texts:
Let's say someone has been looking after my dog for the day and at the end of the day the dog is really tired. I want to know why. What is the right way to ask:

"what have you been doing to my dog"?

or

"what have you been doing with my dog?"

If I ask "what have you been doing to my dog?", it sounds to me like I suspect something bad has been done to my dog. It has a slightly accusatory or suspicious feel to it. Is it also possible to use this in a jokingly manner?

Would "what have you been doing with my dog?" be a more neutral question, as in "what activities have you been undertaking?" without expressing any suspicion at all?


texts: "Staining in isolated peripheral blood lymphocytes" - is it ambiguous?

texts:
Slight specific staining with the antibody was observed in isolated peripheral blood lymphocytes.

Would this isolated always evoke the meaning "happening or existing only once, separate", as in

  There were only a few isolated cases of violent behaviour.

or might it half-imply that "someone has isolated these lymphocytes from tissue", and thus the term is better avoided in this sentence for clarity's sake?

What would be good alternatives? I can think of "individual" and "single".


texts:
Please imagine you are at the airport and waiting for your plane to get ready so that the airport's announcer would call your flight number and you could board the plane.
Your flight is on 6:00 p.m. It is 5:45 and they have not  announced your flight number yet. You go to the information desk and notice that due to some technical issues you have to wait for about an hour and your flight would be at 7:05 p.m.
Finally, you fly and when you arrive, you are talking to your friend who has come to the airport to give you a ride to a hotel. Now you are in his car and talking to him about the pick-up process at the source airport.

How would you normally describe that situation and how would you casually (not in an impolite way) imply that you waited there?

  I was __________ at the X airport for almost one hour.

I know three verbs that can encapsulate this meaning, but I have no idea what verb would a native speaker use in an informal situation like this. Also, I need to know if my provided options work properly here. (I need the most common term in everyday conversation.)

  1- I was kept waiting at the X airport. (This choice, although, can make my point across, but it has a connotation of "something forced", though dictionary definition, approves my feelings too. I don't know how to explain that, but I think there should be a better option too.)

  2- I was left hanging at the X airport. (I don't know why, but I have an intuition that this is not a correct option here.)

  3- I was detained at the X airport. (to me "detain" sounds a bit stilted.)

However, despite all my opinions, I wonder if you could let me know about your own choice either in my options or of there is any other and better choice.

Also, if they all are correct, then please let me know what is the nuance between these three verbs.


texts:
I guess it's an unanswerable question:

Why "vomit" + "ing" = "vomiTing"

BUT

"vomit" - "v" + "ing" = "omiTTing"


texts: What is the subject in this adjective clause?

texts:
1)The table with a broken leg is Sam's2) The table which has a broken leg is Sam's.

I understood that table is the subject in the first sentence. But, what is the subject in the adjective clause in the second sentence?
The book reads:

  The second group of words, which has a broken leg, also describes the table, and so does the work of an adjective. But since it has a subject and predicate of its own, it is an Adjective Clause.

So, is which the subject in the adjective clause?

PS - Please don't get bothered with my questions on subejcts. I am not a native speaker, and my English is very weak.


texts:
I am having a problem with understanding the sentence below:

  "we will love each and every created being completely to our maximum capacity for love"

What does the word completely from the above sentence emphasize?

Is the above sentence

  "(we will love each and every created being completely) to our maximum capacity for love"

OR

  "we will love each and every created being (completely to our maximum capacity for love)"

Which grouping is the correct grouping?

Thank you,


texts:
In the following sentence, I can't correctly understand the meaning of "This undertaking led in 1875 to a commission from the railway". By the way, what is the word "commission" here mean? Could you help me clarify this?

This undertaking led in 1875 to a commission from the railway to record the principal structures along the almost-completed line connecting Montreal to Halifax.


texts:
In this sentence

Anthony Scaramucci said he was invited to President Trump's farewell ceremony at Joint Base Andrews Wednesday, in what he says is a sign the White House is desperate for guests.

what does "in what" mean in this sentence? I know "in" is the preposition. in is referring "what he says"? Can someone explain to me?
Thanks in advance


texts:
Is this in past simple or not? I am confused that even though it is in past, it express thought about the present.

  I had no idea you loved me.


texts: Is it valid to change the order of the words in the following case?

texts:
Ray fitted on Tom the hat he occasionally wore on dates.

  Ray fitted the hat on Tom, the one he occasionally wore on dates.

Is the order grammatical in both cases? Is it normal or common to change the order of words like this?


texts: Does "appear wrong" in this passage show meaning properly and is it correct?

texts:
I would like to know whether the sentence below is alright, particularly the part in italic font.

  Why does my name appear wrong when the program is launched? My name is Tom, not Paul. I request to fix it.


texts:
What does had on or head-on in mean here? Could you give me the link in dictionary for its meaning.

  It is difficult I think to address these issues had on an (or head on in ) American fiction.

This is a part of audio record from speech of an American writer.
This is the link to audio, the phrase starts on 52 sec:
https://soundcloud.com/pleasure-philosophy/american-writer-2-1mp3/s-AOcLl


texts:
I saw the following sentence:

  She's a very youthful 65.

It seems "65" is a countable noun, but can we say "She's a 65"?

I'd appreciate your help.


texts: How would I refer to a person who says nothing in many words?

texts:
What would be an appropriate term for a person who says a lot of things but conveys no useful information in saying them? I thought that this is a demagogy, but Wikipedia says that demagogy is proposing popular ideas rather than saying nothing with many words.

Summarizing the answers: The discussion here had decided that the answer is windbag. However, the difference between windbag and demagogue says that demagogue can be more appropriate if zero windbag "argument" successfully attracts the public opinion.


texts: What does the word “two blocks” mean in direction?

texts:
I’m not sure how to use this expression. Does it count the current block (inclusively)? Does it count the block it is in?
I have two sentences:

  it’s two blocks down the street.

  it’s two blocks away.

Where is that place compared to current block?


texts:
We may use the verb 'contain' in a passive sentence? Question is, how? To me, the verb 'contain' is kind of INTRANSITIVE since it presents a state, not an action i.e. there is no working force (agent) in the sentence made with 'contain'.

Look:

The room has a few chairs. (can't be changed into passive)

The room contains a few chairs. What will be passive?

A few chairs are contained by the room.

OR

A few chairs are contained in the room.

OR

A few chairs are contained within the room.


texts: The monster truck hit the red car? Is this correct?

texts:
I am playing toy vehicles with my kid but sometimes I am not sure if my English is correct. I would like to know which one is correct. Let's say I am intentionally making a monster truck bump another car, what would be the correct phrase?

Oh no, the monster truck hit the red car.
Oh no, the monster truck bumped the red car.
Oh no, the monster truck bumped into the red car.
Oh no, the monster truck crashed into the red car.


texts:
Is it correct to say:

  You can save images to a different folder than videos, meaning images should be stored in one folder and videos in a different folder.

Or should I say:

  You can save images to a different folder other than where you save videos.

What is the correct way to say it simply and shortly?


texts:
I am not sure when to is a preposition, in these two sentences below to works on the same way for me, however, avoid is not in gerund.

  Use good judgment to avoid..

  It was critical to achieving good returns.

Why in the first sentence to is not a preposition?


texts: “What if + (past simple), but (present perfect)?”

texts:
Does it make sense to ask a question like this: “What if you wanted to open the door, but I have taken your keys?”
It’s just an example but is it possible to use this structure? Would it be correct to ask: “What if you (Verb in past simple), but I (Verb in present perfect)?”


texts:
We did not have holiday last year

(source ......)

What is the meaning of this sentence i think it can be-(1) we did not receive holiday last year or (2)we did not spend a holiday last year


texts: Does non-restrictive relative clause modify only obeject

texts:
https://ell.stackexchange.com/a/164712/35099 ,@djna taught me about  non-restrictive relative clause. Now I meet a more complex one:
Spark acquires executors on nodes in the cluster, which are processes that run computations and store data for your application. How can I justify which part the clause modify? executors,nodes or cluster?I can tell from my knowledge it's "excutors". But any syntax rule can I use to judge?


texts:
He did not wait till we had finished our meal.

Why this construction is grammatically correct?
I mean (and feel) He did not wait is first event, finished is second.


texts:
I would like someone to explain the way the "so much too" construction works in sentences. What prepositions work after this construction? I made up these sentence and would like to know if they work:

He was so much too angry to even look at him.
I was so much too happy about it that I couldn't avoid announcing it.
This story is so much too good to be true.
The man was so much too stupid as to leave her along.

Edit: Since we can use "too" to mean 'to a higher degree than is desirable' can we add "so much" to it to intensify it even more and use it as a comparative? I was actually comparing it to "so much (so) that":

I was so much happy about it (so) that I couldn't avoid announcing it.


texts: Interrupt or interrupting in the following context?

texts:
Which of the following forms of verb is correct in the following context?

  "When you slept yesterday, I tiptoed to the kitchen in order to not
  interrupt / interrupting you."

It'll be very helpful if you suggest a rule of thumb to solve by myself such dilemmas in future.


texts:
Can we use Having as possession

1) i am having a car

2) i am having 2 brother


texts:
Split infinitives are considered  no-no's

  to boldly go where no man has gone before

being one of the more famous examples.

In the sentences

  He also has been a poet.
  He has also been a poet.

both are understandable with similar meaning, but would the second, "has also been", be considered the equivalent (whatever that would be) of a split infinitive  in this situation?


texts: meaning of "move": "I moved from ... while I was ..."

texts:
Here is the sentences which I can't understand completely:

  I moved from a careless indigence while I was a student to an intermittent prosperity.

And here is more context:

  To talk about money is always to talk about oneself. I was spared the injury of poverty; after a difficult youth my parents achieved a degree of affluence before sinking into debt. They began to count their pennies, and endured the bitterness of losing their social status. Death came to them when they were in a state of near destitution. So far as I was concerned, I moved from a careless indigence while I was a student to an intermittent prosperity.

What does the writer mean?
Is he implying that he was first "a careless indigent" and then become a "student to an intermittent prosperity"?


texts: out of his depth "against" same-handed pitching

texts:
"He’s old and not really all that good on the whole, but he can nail lefties without being out of his depth against same-handed pitching."

I almost certainly believe it means that he's good at dealing with lefties as opposed to his ability to deal with righties because of the word AGAINST. (In other words, I thought the writer was trying to say he's much better dealing with lefties than righties.)

My question is, however, someone strongly advised me that the meaning of sentence has no underlying implication of comparison. and, I should read it like "he's not bad playing against righties but also good at playing against lefties".

In summary, I was originally thinking that the player was good against lefties, but bad against righties. He's thinking that the player was good against lefties, and okay (or, at least, not bad) against righties.

Can someone clarify this? Which opinion is more acceptable in this case?


texts: What does present participle "occurring throughout most of North America" modify?

texts:
Raccoons have a vast transcontinental distribution, occurring throughout most of North America and Central America. (From TOEFL)

Is the logic subject of "occuring" transcontinental distribution, or Raccoons?
How to I distinguish them?


texts: What's the grammar rule for "article before appositive noun"?

texts:
In the following sentence, can we leave out articles? If we can, what's the grammar rule?

  John Lennon, (an) English singer, (a) musician, was born in Liverpool.

I read a sentence in Advanced Grammar in Use by Martin Hewings:

  Mr. Bob Timms, leader of the Democratic Party, MP for Threeoaks, has announced his resignation.

There are no articles before the words, 'leader' and 'MP', so I wonder what the difference is.


texts: The correct omission of the definite and indefinite articles

texts:
Given the following headline at Bloomberg.com:

  Verizon Explores Lower Price or Even Exit From Yahoo Deal

My questions are:

Why in this case the definite article is omitted before Yahoo Deal? E.g., From Yahoo Deal vs From the Yahoo Deal.
Why there is no article before Lower Price in this title? E.g., Explores Lower Price vs Explores a Lower Price.


texts:
Is the construction "to be fine/okay with doing something" grammatical and common usage?
Example : "I am fine/okay with waiting."
I always thought it was and I have heard it a few times but couldnt find it in any dictionary. The only thing that came close was the expression "That is fine with me." (which there already is a question about but I dont think its quite the same as this one right here)


texts: I have a word order problem in the following sentence

texts:
Source:

  Perhaps the most immediate threat will be to delicate peace talks this week in the Belarusian capital Minsk that Poroshenko announced on Monday.

I asked a native English speaker and he said that the sentence sounded fine to him. But I have a problem with the word order in this sentence. Why are the words to delicate peace talks this week shifted way past where it would normally be (or at least that's where I'd put them), like in the following rewritten example?

  Perhaps the most immediate threat to delicate peace talks this week will be in the Belarusian capital Minsk that Poroshenko announced on Monday.


texts:
Is there such thing as a double reported speech?

  I told her that you told me that you won't come to class tomorrow.

Here, I want to report to a friend that I reported her words to someone else, but I'm not sure if this "double reporting" is possible and how I would phrase the sentence above.


texts:
What is the adjective for someone who pretends? Pretender is noun. Is it pretentious? But the meaning of it is:

pretentious /pri-ˈten(t)-shəs/

adjective

1:  characterized by pretension: such as

making usually unjustified or excessive claims (as of value or
standing)

  the pretentious fraud who assumes a love of culture that is alien to
  him — Richard Watts

expressive of affected, unwarranted, or exaggerated importance, worth, or stature

  pretentious language pretentious houses

2
:  making demands on one's skill, ability, or means :  ambitious

  the pretentious daring of the Green Mountain Boys in crossing the lake — Amer. Guide Series: Vt.

pretentiously adverb

pretentiousness noun

Source: https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/pretentious


texts: Is "not" a conjunction in "I want Joe, not him"?

texts:
I have been studying the word not lately and noticed it is not a conjunction just by itself and it is actually an adverb. Now, when we use following types of sentences, what is not's grammatical function:

If I was the boss, I would buy good quality stuff, not the shit one.
I wanna live like a G, not like a coward.
I want real money mate, not fake.

Oxford dictionary says, not is used with auxiliary verb. In the above mentioned examples, I don't think not modifies AV, it more likely looks like a comparison operator, like rather. It appears like not is a conjunction like rather. Please explain where am I getting it wrong.


texts:
The owners of a pub and sandwich bar in the village both said they knew nothing about their refuse being deposited at the illegal dump.

  Look for instance at plants: vandalized trees send out new shoots, grass grows on rubbish dumps, flowers spring up in scrap yards.

(from here)

  Other groups dumped waste at the site, which legally could only accept trees and other natural materials. Groups put illicit materials in the dump, such as household appliances.

(from here)

I feel stupid because I struggle to see any system behind all this. Which preposition should I use in one case or another?


texts: "Did she turn" Vs. "she turned her face"

texts:
Source Anna Karenina

  ... and only when he had come close to her did she turn her face toward him.

-initially, I thought that is a question, but I didn't find a question mark. So what "did" has to do with the text.

Furthermore, the writer, I think, could have written the sentence in this way: ...to her she turned... "without inserting (did)"

What is the explanation for this case?


texts: difference between prepare and preparing

texts:
Which sentence is correct and why?

It will help me to prepare for the exam.

It will help me preparing for the exam.


texts: What is the alternative of "primarily....secondarily,.... and thirdly,.... "?

texts:
I am writing a scientific manuscript in which I have to describe an experimental protocol. The used sentence should show the priority of picking up biological samples depending on their origins.

The used sentence structure might look like the following:

  ...was primarily selected according to sources from the Mus Musculus
  species sera, cells or tissues, then secondarily, from Rattus norvegicus
  species, and thirdly, from human sera.

Since this sentence structure was used previously in other manuscripts to describe the same protocol, it was detected as "high plagiarism" by authentic software tools.

My question is how to describe the same priority without using this common structure "primarily....secondarily,.... and thirdly,.... " ?


texts: Which is grammatically correct between these two?

texts:
CONTEXT:

I love the way you "see" the life.
         Or
I love the way you "look" at life.

Can I replace see with look as in definitions, look means to see with effort and here the person is seeing with effort.
I don't know if I am correct but I need justification for this.

Here is a link: http://www.azquotes.com/quote/1197543
In these types of sentences which indicated to see with effort or makes a sense of seeing with effort, can I use look.


texts: "Had I gone to Paris" - Is this right or wrong?

texts:
"Had I gone-?"
 Is this a correct sentence? If not, what's the right way to express this question?

Is it possibly : Had I been to, instead?
Or is this arrangement just incorrect?

The question is this setting: A person sees a picture without themselves in it,and asks the person next to them why they're not in the picture.


texts:
The \ no article Irish weather is normally cool and wet in October.

I thought it should be the Irish weather because there is only one Irish weather. However, I have found the following examples from Cambridge dictionary which confuse me.

The weather is expected to remain clear for the next few days.

The rescue operation has been complicated by (zero article) bad weather.

(zero article) Fair weather was forecast for the following day.

The weather was good at the start of the week.


texts: Is a verb in questions in English always in front of subject? For example, can I say 'You are fine?', or should I always say 'Are you fine?'.


texts:
May be it's a trivial question but I am not sure if it is right to say:

  I am an ardent listener to your podcast

or

  I am an ardent listener of your podcast.

The verb listen has the preposition to. But does this rule function in the case of the noun?


texts: Is there a verb that means "to accept doing something unwillingly just to make the other person stop nagging"?

texts:
Let's say a friend of mine repeatedly asked me to go to a concert with them but the music was not to my taste and my friend knew that but kept insisting anyway until I eventually gave in and went to the concert with them.
My question is whether there is a verb/phrase in English that expresses the action of reluctantly accepting doing something just to make the other person stop bringing up the same subject again.
In my language, there is a verb that we use to express this idea, this verb can be roughly translated as "to walk with" in the figurative sense that "I walked with him regarding what he wants".
When I tried to think of a synonym in English, the first verb that came to my mind was "to please" but I don't think this verb can be used here since it doesn't deliver the intended meaning.
For example:

He couldn't seem to stop asking me to go with him until I did what he wanted just to _________ him.

What can we use to fill the blank in this sentence?


texts: It is very difficult to point out the number of (the) creatures living on earth

texts:
It is very difficult to point out the number of the creatures living on earth.

I am at sea and unable to decide if the the used before creatures here correct or incorrect. I, myself, have two possible reasons/explanations but don't know which one is correct:

the is incorrect because we aren't referring to any specific creatures, just in general like Man is mortal;
however, since we are talking about specific creatures which are living on earth not on any other planet, the is correct here.


texts:
I understand that prepositional phrases can be placed before the subject, for example "In God we trust." I also understand that phrasal verb should not be separated, for example "up I give" does not make sense because "give up" is phrasal verb.

The question is, can I move an adverbial preposition (as opposed to a prepositional phrase), which usually follows the verb immediately but isn't a part of a phrasal verb, to before the subject and form sentences like "in he came", "up he climbed"?


texts: Use of possessive apostrophe with "every"

texts:
In the following sentence, can anyone tell me where the apostrophe should be placed please?

Every coders' worst nightmare
Every coder's worst nightmare

I have a feeling that the second sentence is correct - i.e. "every" should be followed by a singular noun, but I would welcome any confirmation.
thanks


texts: The meaning of "would have been a while ago" in context

texts:
It was in 6 minutes from BBC Learning English. It is at 27 seconds. Here it goes:

  Neil: Now Rob, Can you complete this saying: “Love and marriage go together like ….”
  Rob: Love and marriage go together like… a horse and carriage!
  Neil: That’s right, and when was the last time you saw a horse and carriage?
  Rob: Well that would have been a while ago – they are quite rare now. Not an everyday sight.

Why did not the speaker say It was quite a while ago? By using the third conditional does he mean that he did not see a horse and carriage at all, but if he had seen it in the past, then it would have been quite a while ago?


texts:
Since I'm not a native speaker, I've encountered the two examples that makes me confused..

Here are the examples:

"I still dream of THEM wolves, THOSE endless prairies."
"First of THEM true loves singing on the shoulders."

Please, could anyone explain me why THEM/THOSE were put at all, is it because of the emphasizing?

In the first sample the both nouns are in the plural form, then why in the first one is THEM and in the second THOSE?
And in the second sample why is there THEM, if the sentence might have been worked without it?


texts: "a too strong signal" Or "too strong of a signal"

texts:
The object is emitting too strong of a signal that it's unreasonable to consider it to be a mere chunk of scrap metal.

  The object is emitting a too strong signal that it's unreasonable to consider it to be a mere chunk of scrap metal.

Actually the first one is the original sentence, but that kind of structure is rather unfamiliar to me. Could you let me know what's the difference or what's the correct usage here?


texts:
I want to tell the employees in my company that I don't want them to chat about some subjects at our work website. And also that I dont want them to go other platforms either to talk about this (like email or chat apps on the phone). In a somewhat formal way.
Can I say "by taking the conversation to other websites or chat apps"? Is it correct to say "by taking the conversation".
Or is it better to say something like "by going to other platforms to talk about this". Or something else?


texts:
I wonder what's the difference between the synonymous words:

required, needed and requisite
To me they all mean so similar that I have always used then interchangeably, but I needed to know how you think about them.

For instance, I wonder if any of these three choices "doesn't" work in my scenario (to me they all work without any considerable change in meaning):

  After lots of efforts he couldn't achieve that position in their company. He studied for its enterance exam for more than 3 months. Though he passed the test, but unfortunately he was rejected in the interview. Perhaps, he lacked the .................. practical skills for the job.

a. needed (to me it sounds casual and normal)
b. required (it sounds like a formal word to me)
c. requisite (more formal than "required")


texts:
I have no idea if grammatically there is any rule which makes a distinction between using "far from" and "a long way" in positive and negative sentences! Please have a look on my examples below and let me know if all the sentences sound correct. If not, then please let me know how should I "far from" and "a long way from" correctly:

  1.1- The bus station is far from here.
  1.2- The bus station is a long way from here.
  2.1- The bus station is "not" far from here.
  2.2- The bus station is "not" a long way from here.

To me, they all sound correct.


texts:
Wong said one charge - that of providing false information - brought against one of the organizers was for giving police the incorrect number for a street address, though the correct street name was provided.
— Reuters

Is it just another way of saying which is? And does those of act in the same way with plural?


texts:
Scene 1 from the movie Little Miss Sunshine

Richard: And how Dwayne's utilizing seven of them in his personal quest to self-fulfillment.
Sheryl: Richard, please.
Richard: Well, I'm just saying I've come around. I think he could use our support.
Olive: How did it happen?
Frank: How did what happen?
Olive: Your accident.

Scene 2 from The Matrix

Morpheus: I imagine that right now, you're feeling a bit like Alice. Hmm? Tumbling down the rabbit hole?
Neo: You could say that.
Morpheus: I see it in your eyes. You have the look of a man who accepts what he sees because he is expecting to wake up. Ironically, that's not far from the truth. Do you believe in fate, Neo?
Neo: No.

Scene 3 from The Matrix Reloaded

Morpheus: Neo, if you're out there I could use some help.

My best guess is that the first could signals a suggestion or offer, the second giving permission and the third expressing strong feelings (conditional).
Please help to explain the different usages of could here.


texts: "None of that yielded any result" vs "None of that yielded any results"

texts:
What's the correct/commonly used form?

Example sentence:

  When none of my begging yielded any result, I relied on threats.

  When none of my begging yielded any results, I relied on threats.

Or maybe there's no difference?


texts: Difference among 'make jokes on' and 'play jokes on' and 'prank on'

texts:
What is the difference among 'make jokes on' and 'play jokes on' and 'prank on' someone?

If they are all the same, which one is most common in colloquial English?