When someone says something in a foolish, excited, or incomprehensible way for a brief moment

Is there a word that describes when someone blurts out something quickly and excitedly and in a sort of foolish way? For example, the word babble describes the act of "talking rapidly and continuously in a foolish, excited, or incomprehensible way." The word I'm looking for is similar, but doing it hastily and only for a short bit. For example, the context I'm using it in is a soldier saying a quick, incomprehensible prayer before the eve of battle that no one around him really catches the meaning of. I could say that he "babbles a prayer," but if he only does it for a short moment, it doesn't really fit the context.


Is there a short word or slang for "matchmaker"?

I'm trying to find an appropriate name for kind of a dating website. The purpose of the website is to match between people, hence the description - matchmaker. However this word isn't catchy enough. Any suggestions for some catchy, appealing and "cute" word?


What does "a monkey boy" mean in classrooms?

An American teacher keeps calling one of his Japanese students "monkey boy" , which makes the student's mother very uncomfotable because it sounds derogatory to her. What kind of students do teachers usually call "monkey boy?"


Permittee and Permitter?

According to Wiktionary, _permittee_ is the one who receives a permit. May I call the one who permit something as _permitter_?


What's the difference between a murder and an assassination?

I am unsure what the technical difference is between a murder and an assassination. Instinctively I feel it's to do with the victim - perhaps their fame? Royalty? What is the distinction between the two?


What is the difference between a Cathedral and a Minster?

In the UK we have a lot of Cathedrals. We also have York Minster but I'm unsure what is special about York that makes it a Minster rather than another Cathedral. The only other case I can think of is Westminster Abbey although I believe this is named after the City of Westminster. What does a religious building require to be classed as a Minster rather than a Cathedral?


How to emphasize "I would rather"

I would like to emphasize the expression "I would rather... than ...". My native language is French, and in French we would say something like "I would rather 1000 times.... than", so I'm looking for an equivalent in English. Thank you


What is this kind of spelling mistake called?

Consider the following sentence from this web page (a review of an episode from the TV show "How I Met Your Mother"). "The focus on Robin really aloud her character to get the kind of attention she has been missing for many a season." Clearly, "aloud" should be "allowed". So, the writer has substituted one word with another that sounds the same when spoken, but is spelled differently and has a different meaning. What kind of spelling mistake do this call this in English?


What is the opposite of compulsion?

If I am acting based on a compulsion, then I am acting because I am forced to do so. I have given up my power to chose. What is the opposite of this? If I decide to act after careful analysis and decision, what is this called?


Would you call a person who has a personality similar to Lincoln a Lincoln or a Lincolner? Also, does Lincolner have any political connotations, like someone supporting the Republican party?


Is "As beginning Android programmer" incorrect?

In the book **_Android Programming_** , I found this sentence: > As beginning Android programmer, you face a steep learning curve. I think the sentence is incorrect, and that it should read thus: > As **_a_** beginning Android programmer, you face a steep learning curve. Am I right?


One of the few vs one of few

When do you use _"one of the few"_ and _"one of few"_? Take for example: > He went to a boarding school, one of few in the country. and > He went to a boarding school, one of the few in the country. Is there a difference?


"Far side of the Moon" in fewer words?

I'm looking for a shorter way of saying "The far side of the Moon" (meaning that either literally, or by association). Preferably in one word. "Synthetic" English, Latin and other non-English (i.e. foreign language, not customarily used in English texts) words will do too (sadly, no linguistics.stackexchange.com out there).


What is this piece of children's playground apparatus called?

I want to call this a "roundabout". But, in Britain anyway, a "roundabout" is much larger with bars on it to sit on (as demonstrated by a Google images search for "playground roundabout"). They're a fairly new addition to playgrounds, I think. They certainly didn't exist when I was a kid. But what are they actually called? ![enter image description here](http://i.stack.imgur.com/5VhgO.jpg)


I often use "is being" and "are being" in my sentences. Is it correct grammatically?

For example "lasers are being used to treat different skin conditions". It is a passive form without a subject. Please guide.


Do Americans use the term "garburator" or is there a better equivalent?

Is it obsolete to use the term _garburator_ to refer to a garbage disposal unit in a kitchen? If it is, do we have a better term to replace it with? Also, what is the etymology of this word?


Does "until" convey certainty?

Consider this sentence, > Until this is proven wrong, we will believe it to be true. Does it mean either;   * This _will be_ proven wrong, and we will continue to believe it is true in the meantime   * If this is proven to be wrong, we will believe it's wrong, and we will believe it is true otherwise. So, when someone use _until_ like this, does it mean the mentioned thing **will happen** or **might happen** ?


"Whale fail" - What does this mean?

Google uses the phrase "Whale fail" on this picture (from their error page): ![Google Books "whale fail" image, Captain Ahab dejected at finding a green whale](http://i.stack.imgur.com/OOf2n.jpg) What does it mean?


'shared' as a synonym for 'said'

I'm seeing more and more of the word 'shared' in reporting speech, especially in meeting minutes and even publications. Is this correct? For example: Mr X shared that training programmes will be conducted. Or: "We focus on helping people understand mental health issues," she shared.


What do you call that person who needs other people to be dependent upon?

There are always these people who are weak and insecure and always looking for people to be dependent on for their security. They never have say in their group and meekly agree to what other is doing even if they don't like it.


When does "part" mean "quarter"?

> 'Behind us in the caves of the Deep are three parts of the folk of Westfold, > old and young, children and women,' said Gamling. 'But great store of food, > and many beasts and their fodder, have also been gathered there.' JRR Tolkien, _The Lord of the Rings_ , Volume 2: "The Two Towers", Book Three, Chapter VII, "Helm's Deep" By _three parts_ , Gamling means "three parts of four", or "three quarters". Or, at least, so I assume. Why do I assume that? It's an assumption built in so deeply that I have _no idea_ where it comes from. Is it a correct assumption? How long has the assumption that everything has four parts (or, rather, that a _part_ means a quarter) been around? And is it still safe to use language that way today?


Should I say "at a low price" or "at a low cost"?

I want to place an ad to sell my services. Should I say I have good service at a low _price_ or low _cost_?


Is caret a widely understood word?

A caret is the point that text is in inserted in a text box. Is this known widely? Will the average user (non technical) understand this word? What other phrase or word should be used to describe the point at which text is inserted?


Meaning of "fearless to a fault"

I found this phrase in the following excerpt from a novel (emphasis added): > New York cabbies were a unique breed. **Fearless to a fault** , they sped > and swerved through crowded streets with unnatural calm. I googled it between quotation marks and found almost 100.000 results. This somehow leads me to think that it is some sort of idiom or set phrase. Is it the case? Again, I can't understand its proper meaning: is it "so fearless that they may be faulted for that"?


Capitalisation of seasons

I'm not sure how many people share this experience, but I've personally grown up being taught to spell the seasons with a capital heading. ex. Spring, Summer, Autumn, Winter. Yet, when I type the seasons with a capital in Microsoft Word, I'm given the blue squiggly line under them, telling me to use `spring` (or summer, autumn, winter). Have I been taught incorrectly, or is this a MS Word error?


Foreign words reborrowed back into English

Wikipedia mentions several English words that have been reborrowed from Japanese:   * _Anime_ comes from _animation_ and has been reborrowed into English to mean Japanese-style animation.   * _Puroresu_ comes from _professional wrestling_ and is a term for Japanese-style professional wrestling.   * _Kosupure_ comes from _cosplay_ (an abbreviation of _costume play_ ) and refers to the practice of dressing in costumes of anime and video game characters.  Do you know other examples of word reborrowings from Japanese or other languages back into English, or vice versa?


"Keep me motivated" or "keep myself motivated"?

Which statement is more correct? > I am doing this to keep me motivated. OR > I am doing this to keep myself motivated.


Can one "affect" change?

In an article today in the Christian Science Monitor, they give a Fox transcript of Palin's recent speech as follows: “Somebody like me – is a title and is a campaign too shackling?” said Palin. “Does that prohibit me from being out there, out of a box, not allowing handlers to shape me and to force my message to be what donors or what contributors or what political pundits want it to be? Does a title take away my freedom to call it like I see it and to **affect** positive change that we need in this country? That’s the biggest contemplation piece in my process.” Question: Is it possible that "affect" was intended there? Or was the more natural "effect" intended, and the above is a typo?


I can't get it: It will vary amongst database systems who has what function

> It will vary amongst database systems **who has what function** , or even > whether they use the same function name. Asked a native English speaker "does this sentence make sense to you?". His answers was "yes". Well, it sure doesn't make any sense to me, neither grammatically nor semantically. Help me figure what's going on here.


Meaning: one Benghazi revelation away from impeachment

> Spoiler alert: he's siding with his friend Vladimir Putin and not with > President Obama, whom the action star believes is **one Benghazi > revelation** away from impeachment. I can't get the meaning of **one Benghazi revelation**. How do I have to understand it? Please, break it down for me. I asked a friend of mine who is a native English speaker from North Carolina and his answer was this: _Benghazi was a scandal for Obama. it means that he thinks Obama is in a tenuous position_. Well, that doesn't cut as an answer for me. I need to really understand the inner workings of the phrase. Much appreciated.


What's the most common way to say "male chauvinist?"

Unless "male chauvinist" is the most common way. For example, in Spanish we just say "machista." I'm looking for something short and common, like that. I checked on Google but the only thing I found was that: male chauvinist. The other alternative is sexist. But that's a little different. The word should mean: _the belief that men are superior or more important than women._ Any other suggestions? (e.g., For instance, to be used in a sentence like: "Your ideology sounds a bit **male chauvinist** to me).


Meaning of "black on black" in Nickelback's "Animals"

The song "Animals" by Nickelback starts with the following lines: > I, I'm driving **black on black** > > Just got my license back > > I got this feeling in my veins > > This train is coming off the track I am confused about what "black on black" means in relation to driving. Several translations of the lyrics that I've seen (which are probably just copies of one single translation) interpret it as "very slowly", which seems to not fit the spirit of the song and its portrayal of the driver. Urban Dictionary, however, defines "black on black" as: >   1. The epitome of style. Referring to any and all things that can be > categorized by having black as the background color and, again, black as the > accent color. > >   2. Any black vehicle on black rims. > > The second definition does sorta fit the song's style and _driving_ black on black, but still doesn't feel right. So, what does it actually mean?


Regions and reasons for the usage of "sleep" as "go to sleep"

This question is very closely linked to this english.SE question, which discusses the usage of "sleep" as a verb meaning "go to sleep" and inspired by this ell.SE question, in which the accepted answer clearly does not recognize the existence of this interpretation. The usage of the word "sleep" as a verb signifying "go to sleep" is clearly not commonplace (and is not noted in the online M-W nor the American Heritage dictionaries), but _is_ prevalent in certain regions, I pose the following two questions:   1. If this _is_ a familiar usage of "sleep", in what region do you find this usage of "sleep" common?, and   2. For those familiar with this manner of grammatical construct, or other similarly amorphous words, what do you imagine might have been its origin? (The linked english.SE question notes that this is a construct used in the Northeast U.S. and Australia; being from the Northeast myself, I can also confirm that it is used there). As noted in the linked english.SE question, the usage of "sleep" as "go to sleep" in a phrase such as > I usually sleep around midnight. instead of the more technically accurate > I usually _go to_ sleep around midnight. seems to be rather regional and the possible result of "contamination from another language". I know of at least one construction in a foreign language that resembles this, namely from Spanish: > Dormí a las ocho. translates to > I went to sleep at eight. But the answers in that question, as well as the ell.SE question that I linked, are not particularly illustrative of what I'm asking. I'm very curious as to how common a usage this is and how it might have arisen.


Can we use “eat / bite” metaphorically in place of “accuse / slam”?

Time magazine (May 27) reported that Mrs. Obama accused House Republicans of their weakening school nutritional standards at White House meeting with school leaders and experts. I was drawn to the difference of headlines of the same article in Time homepage, where it reads: “Michelle Obama **eats** health critics for lunch,” and the text page where it reads: “Michelle Obama **bites back** at critics of her healthy school lunch standards,” followed by the lead copy; > "In one of the most political speeches she’s given, Michelle Obama > **accused** House Republicans of “playing politics” with “our children’s > future”, then goes on; > The First Lady **slammed** Republicans on Tuesday for trying to weaken > school nutritional standards, one of her key policy achievements. She called > it "unacceptable to me not just as First Lady but also as a mother" > http://time.com/120611/michelle-obama-school-lunches/ I was also intrigued to know that “eat” and “bite back” are used to mean “slam,” “accuse,” or “counterattack,” then questions arose:   1. Is it normal to use “eat” and “bite” as a metaphoric alternative to “slam / accuse/ criticize”? Is it a cute figure of speech?   2. Why did Time change the wording of the headline from “Michelle Obama eats health critics” in its home page to “Michelle Obama bites back at critics” in the text page? – though this could be answered only by the article writer. Could you provide me an answer? Addendum: By posting this question, I was alert to the usage of “eat / bite” and found the following examples this week.   * “What **eats at** me the most is the 80 dead people I had in my command over my three tours, that **eats at** me a hell of a lot. –Daniel Bolger, ex-Army lieutenant general.” - Time magazine. - May 22, 2014   * “Capitalism **Eating** Its Children”－NYT Op-ed columnist, Roger Cohen. NYT May 29 2014. Though these may sound quite commonplace to native English speakers as indicated by low view on this question, it's amusing for me to find a variety of the usage of ‘eat / bite.”


Use of 'which' to combine clauses

Is there anything wrong, in terms of either grammar and/or usage, with the following sentence: "The information age has ushered children into a global society, which is the cause of educators lamenting a lack of texts that explain the diversity of cultures."


Grammatically incorrect or just awkward?

Is this grammatically incorrect or just clunky? > If you put time into it you will be rewarded as you master all the different > techniques. * * * **EDIT** (copied from a reply below): I’ll add a bit of context. What I’m trying to say is that as one puts time into any given activity, they’ll be emotionally rewarded as they master different aspects of it.


Can you say "within 90 days after"?

I understand that you can say, "within 30 days of receiving your application", but I am seeing more and more "within 30 days after your application is received". Is the latter grammatical?


US Route 101 — "The 101"

In my part of the world, we refer to highways without any article. So we drive on "Highway 64", or "Interstate 64", or "I-64". But when I go to California, they say "The 101". Is there any explanation for this difference?


To slay the helpless angle

From Guy Wetmore Carryl's "The Precipitate Cock and the Unappreciated Pearl": > He turned again to where his clan > > In one astounding tangle > > With eager haste together ran > > To slay the helpless **angle** The author uses "angle" to refer to a worm, a key hero of the narrative. Does the meaning of _angle_ here stems from the geometrical figure, or from the archaic sense of _hook_ listed in the Oxford Dictionary?


Precedence: and > or?

The question _Precedence of “and” and “or”_ asks if there is any notion of precedence ordering in the English and it would seem not, based on the answers. Regardless of that, if you saw the following piece of text, how would interpret it and why? > The prerequisite(s) of module **AB1234** : > > GN3001 **and** GN3002 **or** BC3006 **and** BC3007.


Which preposition to use with "diagnose"

I had an English exam today. One of the questions was fill in the gaps. It was like: > Doctors diagnosed him **with/ for** hyperactivity. So should the gap be _with_ or _for_? I checked Google and there are a lot of examples of each.


What is the difference between “area”, “zone”, and “site”?

Is there any difference between _area_ , _zone_ , and _site_? If there is some difference between them? When do I have to use (nor not use) each of these constructions?


How to write negative currency in text?

Which version is grammatically correct (given that I hopefully provided at least one correct alternative)? > [...] the company yielded a result to the amount of **− €6.680** billion in > 2008. or > [...] the company yielded a result to the amount of **€ −6.680** billion in > 2008. Since I'm not a native speaker, I'd appreciate any other tips/corrections as well.


To either revive or kill something

I'm wondering if there's a word out there for me. I think that a clever use of a prefix would do as well. So, to **revive** means to make alive, and to **kill** means to make dead. Is there a word that means to toggle someone or something's life/death status? Alternatively, and I know that this is a long shot, but I could use a word or phrase that means changing one's mind (or pronunciation) regarding the **life/death status** of inanimate objects (or living things). Related: is there a medical term for disagreement about a patient's **life/death status**? Is there a natural prefix that means ' **toggle** ' or ' **switch** '? Is there a word that means **life/death status** , similar to how 'beatitude' might describe blessed/unblessed status? EDIT: I'm going with 'transanimate'. Thanks for the help!


I'm looking for a word to describe artificially inflating a price to keep it consistent

As the title says - I'm struggling to find a word to describe the value that is added to the price charged for something to avoid passing on manufacturing savings to the customer. For example if building a ship costs my company $1000 and we charge $2000 to the customer. We then change suppliers and the ship now costs $800 to build. However we want to still charge $2000 for the ship, so is there a name for that $200 we add to into the price to keep it the same? Note that it doesn't have to be an actual technical financial term - just an English word that has this kind of inflation meaning


Ungrammatical or Grammatically Incorrect

Which of "ungrammatical" or "grammatically incorrect" is prefered and why?


Friendlier way to express you paid for a person's drink/dinner and expect it to be paid back

In Dutch we have the word _voorschieten_. In English it translates — according to Google Translate — to "advance, lend, disburse". The Dutch word _voorschieten_ is used in an informal setting between friends where you pay for that friend's dinner or drinks and expect to be paid back later. Do you say in English "Mary loaned John money for the drinks"? or "Mary advanced money for the dinner"? or do you use another expression? _Loaning_ sounds a bit heavy to me. It's like "A loan for a car". A friend from New Zealand came up with "Mary spotted John money for the lunch", but I wonder if it's understood in the US.


Is the verb "are" missing in this sentence?

I have a question about a possible grammatical error in this sentence: "We hope you find our toilets in good condition". I came across it lately on one of the mall's notice boards. In my opinion this sentence is lacking the verb _are_. I mean: "We hope (that) you find (that) our toilets ARE in good condition". Could somebody be so kind as to explain why _are_ is missing? Regards.


Do I need to use 'the' in this case?: the implications of study findings

I hope to clarify that I used 'the' in a right place in the following sentence. 'The findings of this study' 'The implicatinos of study findings' Since 'findings' and 'implications' are limited by 'of the study' and 'of study findings', I think that I need to use 'the'. Am I correct? Could you review the following sentence?: Since the PSED data sampled only nascent entrepreneurs in the U.S., the findings of this study would not be applicable to other countries. Therefore, the implications of study findings are limited to the U.S. context.


Is there a word or phrase for borders being respected

Is there a word or phrase that means a "condition in which the borders of each nation are respected by all other nations"?


What is the term for when you become more aware of something?

For example, when you buy a car, you start becoming more aware of cars with a similar make and model. The number of that type of car hasn't increased, but your awareness of it has. Similarly, when you learn a new word, you start hearing the same word used in different places. You probably just filtered the word out previously, but now you've become aware of it. How do you describe the phenomenon when you become more aware of something after an initial or significant exposure or experience with that thing? What term or word can you use?


Can I say that a scientific field has been "polymorphic" if it has changed dramatically over time?

> The field of artificial intelligence, abbreviated as AI, has been quite > turbulent and **polymorphic** since its creation. If not, what other word or construct could I use? By _polymorphic_ I meant that it had changed its subject and scope over time.


Word for having four sides or parts

I need a word to describe the arrangement of mammalian teeth, which is strictly speaking bilateral, but can also be thought of as having four quasi- homologous quadrants. "Quadrilateral" doesn't seem to be used this way by dentists according to a quick Google search, although they do use the word "quadrant." > Thanks to the **___ _** nature of dentition, we can have up to four > experimental groups per animal.


Difference between "humble" and "modest"

What is the difference between _humble_ and _modest_? I saw one difference here. Is that true? Any other difference?


Verb form of "inception"

Just out of curiosity, what is the verb form of _inception_? My (uneducated) guesses are _incept_ and _inceive_.


Use of "either/or" in a negative phrase

I'm not sure if a sentence I wrote is correct: > "The last one didn't get neither my changes nor thiago's". I'm trying to say that the last activity I ran in a system didn't get the changes I sent and also it didn't get thiago's changes. Since I'm using the "didn't', I'm not sure if I should use 'neither/nor' instead of 'either/or'. Is there a rule for this situation?


A word meaning "To bring out of retirement" / "To bring back into use"

* (Re)instate? -- Seems too specific.   * (Re-)employ? -- Seems to apply to both machines and people, which is useful. But re-employ seems too general.   * Activate? -- Seems most appropriate perhaps, although for soldiers (people in general, even), you would say "return (them) to active duty" rather than "activate (them)". In fact, the term that I'm looking for would be appropriate to machines and people coming out of, shall we say, a torpour of sorts. Any ideas? The original phrase is a bit clunky, and I suspect there may be an alternative.


Old English instead of Latin in early Britain

For almost 400 years, Britain was a Roman province. During that period, naturally, Latin was an important language in the region. When the Germanic tribes invaded the British Isles (around the 5th century), they brought with them several Germanic dialects that ended up becoming the predominant language, known today as Old English. At the same time, other Roman provinces, such as what we now call France, Spain and Portugal, were also being invaded by other Germanic tribes. But, instead of imposing their own languages, the Barbarians themselves became "Romanized" and began speaking the local Latin dialects. If that process had also happened in Britain, they would probably be speaking a Romance language today. So, why did it not happen? How could the Anglo-Saxons manage to displace the original language spoken by their conquered people?


Is 'to gain an advantage' a pleonasm?

The definition of "advantage" is roughly "something positive". Definitions for "to gain" are rather varied, but usually mean "to win something" with a positive connotation. With this in mind, is "to gain an advantage" a pleonasm or not? Does "gaining" imply "advantage"? Examples of definitions of "to gain": 1 and 2.


What is the difference, if any, between 'art', 'the arts', and 'Art'?

In answer to this question, there was some discussion about whether these two sentences are equivalent: > Art nurtures the soul.   >  The arts nurture the soul. Are they equivalent? 'The arts' is a common but woolly term and 'art' is notoriously difficult to pin down. Oxforddictionaries.com gives the following definitions: >   1. **art** [mass noun] the expression or application of human creative > skill and imagination, typically in a visual form such as painting or > sculpture, producing works to be appreciated primarily for their beauty or > emotional power >   2. ( **the arts** ) the various branches of creative activity, such as > painting, music, literature, and dance > What practical differences in usage are there (if any)? Also, does _Art_ (capital A) have a special meaning distinct from _art_ (lower case a)?


Why does pine feather period signify the period in a woman's life when she blossoms?

In a book titled _From Flappers to Rappers_ it lists youth slang from the 1920s and one of the terms it lists is pine feather period. Pine feather period is defined as a period in a woman's life when she blossoms. I can't comprehend how "pine feather period" and a woman blossoming are relevant. I've researched the matter and still I haven't the least notion. Can anyone please help me understand better how "pine feather period" could be used to describe a young lady blossoming?


What does "the reactor core inventory" mean?

I found the following expression in New York Times: > On the International Nuclear Event Scale, a Level 7 nuclear accident > involves "widespread health and environmental effects" and the "external > release of a significant fraction of the reactor core inventory." In this sentence, I couldn't understand what "a significant fraction of the reactor core inventory" means. I think this refers to radioactive materials. Is that right? But if so, I don't know why such an expression is used. According to Longman dictionary, "inventory" means "a list of all the things in a place". And "fraction" means "a very small amount of something". Then, it follows that the phrase in question means "a small significant amount of a list of all the things in the reactor core". Is it correct to interpret this means "radioactive materials". If not, could you tell me "a significant fraction of the reactor core inventory"? Also, significant modifies not "its amount" but "its quality". Is that right?


Is there an adjective form of "recipe"?

Is it possible to use "recipe" as an adjective as in the following sentence: > These are some **reciptial** suggestions for you.   >  (These set of suggestions are like a recipe to your problems.) What other word can I use if the example above is erroneous?


Is 'this this' correct?

The ability to echo words and still make a meaningful statement has always bugged me. Take this example sentence: "Thank you for bringing this issue to my attention. We will take care of this this afternoon." Is this sentence grammatically correct? Also, is there a technical term for the echoed 'this'?


Common phrases for something that appears good but is actually bad

What are common phrases that describe something that appears good but is actually bad? Edit: Because people say _bad_ is vague I will try to sum up the phrase meaning a little better.   * something that looks like it will be helpful or advantageous but after use it is hindering   * a tool that seems useful but is not the correct tool for the job   * something that seems like a good idea but after execution turns out to be problematic


Can an acronym be pronounced as a construction of letters and words?

I've found this question Pronouncing acronyms in which people discuss how to pronounce acronyms, and they can be pronounced either as single letters or as a single word. However I would like to know if they can be pronounced as a combination. For example in computer science SPOF stands for Single Point Of Failure, can it be pronounced as S.POF? Or it must be pronounced either as 'spof' or S.P.O.F.?


How to split a multiple word phrase and another word/phrase

I work in a global company that with many Japanese people has a general rule to add "san" to the names of people. With so many names from different countries and different order rules it is hard to know which is the surname. Is there a good way of representing "firstname middlename surname san" without making it look like "san" is part of the name. For example this seems logical but not something I've ever seen: "(firstname middlename surname)-san"


Plurals of quotations: “Chorus of ‘Hello’s”; “Ooh”s & “Ah”s

Is there a way to pluralize a quotation? _E.g._ , > He was greeted with a chorus of “Hello”s. or > Her daring earned “Ooh”s & “Ahh”s from around the room. With actual dictionary words (“Hello” in the first example), simple plurals might do, without quotes: “He was greeted with a chorus of hellos.” With _ad hoc_ onomatopoeic words like “ooh” & “ahh”, though, can I pluralize them without confusing the reader? Is italicizing part of the word acceptable: “Her daring earned _ooh_ s & _ahh_ s from around the room”?


Is there a term for the principle governing the efficient spatial arrangement of items within a container?

This question was prompted this morning (and yes, it's silly) when I opened the refrigerator to see (yet again) that _someone_ had placed several short items on the top (tall) shelf, usurping space from items that can't be stored on any other shelf. Maybe it's as simple as **_spatially efficient_**. (Yes, I realize I should maybe be posting this in _OCD dot stackexchange dot com_.)


What's the difference between "that will be $200" and "that would be $200"?

When you are negotiating prices with your customer, you might say "that's $200," "that'll be $200," or "that would be $200." Are there any differences among them?


Is there a single adjective to describe an attachment target?

I can attach a picture file to an email. The picture file is `"attachable"`, is there a single word adjective that describes quality of the email that it can be attached to?


Active to Passive

Active: > Don't ask me the question. Passive: > Don't let myself be asked the question by you. Is it correct? If not, please provide the correct answer.


active-passive voice related question

Please tell me the passive form (if there is) of the following sentence:               Leave at once.      ???


Book Publication Data Page

In an English-language book, we conventionally have, among the first few pages, a page displaying essential data concerning the book: Library of Congress Cataloguing Data, various credits, publication date/location, copyright and other legal information, etc. What is this page called? Do we have a specific term for it? EDIT: in my research, I found this described as _metadata_. Would it be appropriate to call it the _metadata page_?


reminescent hankering of a past event

Is there a single word or idiom for a reminescent hankering for a past event - such as a concert, a party, a vacation, etc. attended with friends or whoever company?


"Sick" or "ill"?

If I'm not healthy, am I _sick_ or am I _ill_? Are these interchangeable, or do they merely overlap?


"I'd chase him down" vs. "I had to chase him down"

I was reading an article and I encountered this sentence: > Sometimes the warchief target would run off and **I'd chase him down** a > field for longer than I care to admit. To me, if I remove the contraction I also have to add the word "to" (I had to chase him down) so the sentence makes sense. Is this correct or the meaning changes completely?


What day is it? or What day is it on?

Are "what day is it?" and "what day is it on?" both correct? Or is one more correct than the other? Or is one correct/formal and the other informal? What would you use in these examples and why: Example 1   * Hi, Daniel. Is Peter's concert tonight?    * No, it's at the weekend.    * What day is it?/What day is it on?   * It's on Saturday. Example 2   * What day is Christmas this year?/What day is Christmas on this year?   * It's on a Saturday.


Hypernyms for directions

I am searching for hypernyms to summarise and differentiate between two groups words describing possible movement directions in a 2D space.   1. `up, down, left, right`   2. `up-left, up-right, down-left, down-right` The criteria for the hypernyms are - in order of importance: 1) Discriminative, 2) Descriptive and 3) Concise/brief The hierarchy I came up with so far looks like:                              Direction                   /         \      Simple direction     Composite direction          (group 1)              (group 2)      While simple/composite work reasonably well to differentiate between the two groups they aren't very descriptive of the group they represent. This made me wonder about better terms.


When did "consumption" become "tuberculosis"?

Tuberculosis was commonly called "consumption" for many years. When did "tuberculosis" or "TB" overtake "consumption" as the common term, in English, for the disease? This Ngram isn't much use; it compares the use of the terms "consumption" and "tuberculosis" in American English from 1800 to 2000. Of course the problem is that "consumption" means many other things. The Ngram does show "tuberculosis" peaking between 1900 and 1920, but what I am interested in is roughly when a typical English speaker might have shifted from referring to the disease as "consumption," to "tuberculosis." The dictionaries to which I have access simply state that "consumption" is an archaic term for the disease.


Can someone be instilled with medication?

I am looking specifically for how to use the first definition given here: > to cause to enter drop by drop (instill medication into the infected eye) but I imagine usage rules would apply equally to the the sense of instilling a sense of something in someone. I can't work out if "patients were instilled with medication" would be incorrect, or if it is just an alternative construction of "medication was instilled into patients". My Google search results are dominated by usage pertaining to instilling a sense of something in someone or variants of "All patients instilled a tear substitute in 1 eye", which doesn't in itself suggest anything about whether the form in question is incorrect. So can someone be instilled with medication, or is medication always instilled by or into someone?


Difference between "Folder version" and "Folder revision"

I need to know the difference between a "file version" and a "file revision", assuming that they don't have the same meaning, I assume also that a version means that we've modified an existing folder, so we have a new version ...


Apostrophe vs. Single Quote

What is the **semantic** difference between **apostrophe** and **single quote**? I see people use both of them interchangeably, but people never create two words to denote one concept. There should be a difference.


Why is "margarine" pronounced with a soft "g"?

As far as I know, _margarine_ is the only word in which a 'g' is pronounced as 'j' though it is _not_ followed by 'e', 'i', or 'y'. What causes the unorthodox pronunciation?


What does "plenty of bite to them" mean in this context?

I guess "bite" could mean criticism, but if you read the rest of the paragraph it doesn't feel that way. > Of course, these tongue-in-cheek projects still have plenty of bite to them. > Gmail’s Twitter account announced that 100,000 interventions were sent in > the site’s first 24 hours, and that ‘Gmail Man’ video could help salespeople > rekindle Gmail privacy fears that have largely died down over the last > several years. http://www.washingtonpost.com/business/technology/battle-of-the-goofy-email- campaigns/2011/07/28/gIQABRG4fI_story.html


'Take after' usage with abstract concepts

Can I use phrasal verb _take after_ with things and abstract concepts when I want to emphasise similarity and inheritance? For example, is it correct to say either of these: >   1. Idea A takes after idea B more than any other. > >   2. Idea A takes after idea B. > >


Is the expression, “As Casey faced her the jury, America was able to sound off in tweets, texts, Facebook postings” right?

I found an article beginning with the phrase, “ _As Casey faced her the jury_ ” in today’s Time Magazine (July 7) reporting the conclusion of Casey Anthony case under the title, “Casey Anthony sentencing: Release date set for July 13.” To a non-native English speaker like me, the composition “ _Casey faced her the jury_ ” felt somewhat confusing. Do we need ‘the’ between 'her' and 'jury'? Shouldn’t it be “As Casey faced her jury,” or “As Casey faced the verdict of the jury,” or even “As Casey faced the sentencing by the judge”? Am I nitpicking too much? The article in question reads: > “ _As Casey faced her the jury_ , America was able to sound off in tweets, > texts, Facebook postings and story comments. The majority of those that > followed the verdict, according to my own informal survey, exclaimed some > sort of appalled wonder that she would get off. In their heart of hearts, > most Americans knew that there wasn't enough evidence to convict Casey > Anthony, but they were pretty sure she wasn't totally innocent, either.”


Does the end of this sentence convey what I want it to mean?

**My sentence:** > "It is quite a remarkable piece of prose because intuitive, humanities > related metaphors are often used to explain difficult mathematical ideas (à > la Blueman), not the other way around." **My intended meaning:** > Not the other way around meaning mathematical metaphors are not used to > explain intuitive humanities related ideas p.s. how is my use of prose and a la?


What does ‘as little as the next guy’ in “I want to watch a piglet get tortured about as little as the next guy,” mean?

I came across the line, “I want to watch a piglet get tortured about _as little as the next guy,”_ in the article titled “China’s bizarre Food ‘Safety’ scene, and our own” in today’s New York Times’ (July 7). The article deals with prevailing deceptions of food stuff, lack of control of food safety, and ubiquitous torturing of livestock not only in China but also observed in the United States. I’m not clear with what ‘ _as the next guy_ ” means. Does it mean “as a (mere) onlooker,” or “as the next-door neighbor,” or “as a guy expected to get tortured in the same way as the foregoer in the next turn,” or otherwise? Please teach me. The sentence containing the phrase in question reads as follows: “Reports like these are unpleasant at best, and downright nauseating at worst. I want to watch a piglet get tortured about _as little as the next guy_ , but if we’re never (or seldom) allowed to see how screwed up our food “system” is, how will we ever know to make a fuss to fix it? Same goes for China, but let’s clean house here first."


Which can be true? The importance of + Ving or the importance of + ADJ + Noun

I am confused about the sentence below. Which structure is used: importance of + Ving or the importance of + ADJ + Noun ? > In recently years, there has been growing awareness of **the importance of > preserving** the world's biological diversity.


Is it acceptable to mix Latin with English?

Is it acceptable to mix small amounts of Latin with English? > Right now, **___ __ ___ __ ___ _** is _persona non grata._ Is this proper English?


How to use "due date"?

Am I using "due date" correctly if I write "Task A due date" in a calendar if you mean that Task A should be competed on this day. Or should it be "due today" or something else?


What do these verses mean?

Quotation from The Pastyme of Plasure Especially，I don't know "sprynge, ryall, chefe and orygynal". > "O Mayster Lydgate! the most dulcet sprynge   >  Of famous rethoryke, with balade ryall   >  The chefe orygynal."   >  _—"The Pastyme of Plasure," by Stephen Hawes, 1509._ ![enter image description here](http://i.stack.imgur.com/Sny0O.png)


Does using an adverb three times almost always imply the opposite?

> Dana is very, very, very nice. > > _A real housewife of Beverly Hills_ It seems that almost exclusively, the reiteration of a such a clarifier - very in this case - ends up actually meaning the exact opposite. Is there ever a reason to make the third, or even second repetition - if the purpose is not to throw doubt upon the meaning of the speaker's statement? > I'm sure you all think this question is really, really, really great. > > _Me_ I guess this is really dependent on _tone_ , but are there any grammatical rules that apply to the madness of sarcasm?


“avocation” vs “hobby”

When do I use _avocation_ and when do I use _hobby_? Or can I use them interchangeably? I need to choose between these two words or a url. Would www.kunalthehobbyist.com sound better or www.avocationistvyas.com?(My name is Kunal Vyas). I am planning it to be a blog like site for penning down opinions/tutorials/anecdotes on categorised topics, all of which are my hobbies/avocations. Feel free to recommend me any better alternatives.


"In the presence" or "in presence"

I am confused about how to use _in the presence_. Here I have written a sentence in which I think _the_ before _presence_ should be omitted. > This situation might be more critical **in the presence** of long edges, > although we restrict the irregular shape boundary to minimize the > complexity.


Meaning of "he answered zip"

Someone who is _not_ a native English speaker wrote this in an email to me. I didn't get it clearly in the beginning, so I just asked for the meaning and he replied back he meant "he answered immediately". Later I searched a little bit on the online dictionaries, and I got the feeling that "he answered zip" is more closer to "he answered nothing". So my first question is what's the actual meaning of "he answered zip"? Despite the fact it was my first time I saw such a combination, is that a common phrase or not? Is that even correct? And if it is correct, does that carrying a positive message or negative?


Resources that discuss "Jewish" English (English influenced by Yiddish grammar)

I'm looking for some resources that discuss English spoken with the influence of Yiddish/Hebraic grammatical structures. For instance, things like: > You want I should... "Do you want me to..." > I should be so lucky "Like I have that kind of luck" Anything to point me into the right direction would be greatly appreciated.


What are the treads on the side of the highway called?

On the sides of most highways (in the U.S. at least), there are rough treads just outside the travel lanes to snap a driver to attention if the vehicle is drifting off the road. Is there a name for these things? **EDIT** (post-answer for clarification, needed the answer to find the picture)   From the U.S. Department of Transportation's webpage: ![rumble strips](http://i.stack.imgur.com/EzZPb.jpg)


What is correct: "I am an account manager" or "I am the account manager"?

While introducing oneself, which should one say, "I am an account manager, or "I am the account manager"?


"Talking to someone is nice." or "It is nice to talk to someone." but "It was nice, talking to you." Why?

General statement: a. Talking to someone is nice. (verb as subject in front position = gerund) or b. It is nice to talk to someone. (verb as subject after dummy subject 'it' = full infinitive) Specific situation: It was nice, talking to you? ( **Why?** Is it a mix of a. and b.?)


How to mock the French?

I have recently started playing a board game (A Few Acres of Snow) that pits the British against the French in 18th century New England. I know how to mock others in general, but in order that trash-talk would be appropriate for the setting, I'd like to know: What are insults/taunts specifically targeting the French, ideally ones that were in use in the 18th century? Note that I'm looking for English words to mock the French. French expressions to mock the English can be found on french.stackexchange.com.


Does a "wedding reception" imply a meal?

Maybe it's because I haven't been living in an English-speaking country for so long... or maybe because I'm a man, and just don't know these things... But does a wedding reception imply a meal? Or would a meal be described more explicitly on a wedding invitation? My feeling is that "Reception to follow" would generally be interpreted as cake, punch, and snacks. But if the bride and groom were going to serve a full meal, they would say so with more explicit language. Is this accurate?


"Virtual work and fun environments"

I am trying to write a sentence in English, even though it is not my native language. So I would like to know if it is possible to write > Those are virtual work and fun environments. in order to comunicate both the following ideas _at the same time_ : > The first is a virtual work environment, the other is a virtual fun > environment. Do the proposed sentences have meaning in English? Is the first sentence correct?


"Iterate" and "iteration" as nouns

What are the differences between _iterate_ and _iteration_ as nouns? I don't quite understand the definition of _iterate_ as noun: > A quantity arrived at by iteration For example, in computer programming, there are language features for iterations, such as for loop, while loop. Which one is correct: each _iterate_ or each _iteration_? I saw a lot of scientific literature use _each iterate_ , such as this one: > Since **each iterate** is contained within an interval ...


how can I phrase the future possible applications of a technology?

I'm writing an overview for a paper, and want to let the reader know part of the outline: > ...in the last paragraph I want to mention the possible future applications > one can reach/accomplish with super conductivity. Would it be better to phrase this as follows? > ...I will mention the possible future applications of super conductivity.


"In God We Trust" vs. "We Trust in God"

A colleague of mine asked me what is the importance of word order in phrase "In God We Trust" And I could not answer. Is it a shame? **Update:** Would it be correct English to write: > In God - we trust


What is the meaning of the sentence?

In about good habit & bad, I run into the sentence like > Doing something over and over again until you don't have to think about **it > is how actions become habitual in the first place** Could you explain more easier expression?


The meaning of "that" in this case?

> "He was given no direction or no influence, other than that of fair chance." Here, what meaning does _that_ have?


'solid' used as an adverb

The Chicago Manual of Style, 14th Edition contains the following (on the hyphenation or otherwise of compounds): > 6.38: The trend in spelling compound words has been away from the use of > hyphens; there seems to be a tendency to spell compounds solid . . . One could argue that the word 'solid' is being used as a predicative adjective here (as in _the lake froze solid_ ) - but the semantic analysis is indeterminate, in my view, between adjectival and adverbial usage of 'solid' in the CMoS usage. AHD lists the adverb polyseme: > **solid** adv. 1\. As a whole; unanimously: _The committee voted solid for > the challenger._ > > 2.. Without a break or opening; completely or continuously: _The theater was > booked solid for a month._ To my surprise, Collins doesn't list it, though 'booked solid' is very common in the UK. What word-class would people plump for in the CMoS usage - and, more importantly, what verbs (other than obvious link-verbs) may 'solid', when not obviously accompanying a noun, follow?


Punctuating and constructing a confusing list

I need to write a list that I cannot find a great parallel construction for because certain items in the list use "of" and one uses "to". The sentence as originally written: > Ratification, acceptance and approval of a treaty or accession to it shall > be conducted when it is required by the treaty. I've been contemplating the following re-write: > Ratification of, acceptance of, approval of, or accession to a treaty shall > be conducted when required by the treaty. Or: > A treaty shall be ratified, accepted, approved, or acceded to by the State > when the treaty so requires. Any other ideas on how to construct this sentence in a readable and grammatically correct way? EDIT: I noticed the question on passive voice recently posted as well. The third example would be a case where passive voice is arguably preferable as the emphasis of this sentence should be the treaty and not the State.


Comma and "too"

Why is there a comma in the following comic? ![alt text](http://i.stack.imgur.com/Flu5C.gif)


"Forbidden to" vs "Forbidden from"?

Which sounds better (and where do you live?) I am American, and I think "forbidden from" sounds better, although both "forbidden to" and "forbidden from" are considered standard usage. "The banks were forbidden from making any more subprime loans." vs. "The banks were forbidden to make any more subprime loans."


Words for a person who imposes

I need a few words that describe a person who is imposing, in a context of overstaying his welcome. Someone that is present unwelcomed and you can't do your usual routines until the person is gone. A person who is not part of the household and is in the way. And excess person → _freeloader, parasite, scrounger/unwelcome guest_. Something more specific.


Polite way of calling someone for help

At work, how can I say "whenever you are ready I am ready." I would like to say "I am ready so please help me when you are available." Here is my full email: > Hello #### > > Whenever you are available I am available. > > Thanks, > > XXXX Because the recipient is my senior, and I don't want to be rude.


Hyphen omission: a matter of habit or plain error?

I'm not a native English speaker so I'm struggling to get this right. I understand (and this question confirms) that compound adjectives such as `well-organized`, `high-level`, `Spanish-speaking`, etc, **must** have a hyphen. In particular, for us non-native speakers, it really helps to instantly, on-the-march disambiguate some sentences, to tell if, e.g., we are referring to a Spanish person that is speaking right now, or about any person who can speak Spanish. However, I'm finding more and more cases were the hyphen is omitted in compound adjectives, such as this in Wikipedia. > The Cannone da 90/53 was an Italian designed cannon I know that Wikipedia is hardly a writing style reference, but this is far from a rare case. My question: is this a plain error or is the hyphen considered optional nowadays?


Predicate adjective acceptable with "to do"

"I did good on the test." vs. "I did well on the test." The first example sounds fine to me, and the second a bit pedantic. Is the first example standard American English and, secondly, is "good" a predicate/descriptive adjective in the example given?


Is 'Homologous to ash' correct in a literature context?

All men are equal, they are all made of the same materials. lets say that material is ash. is it correct if you say 'homologous to ash' ? I am looking for a Persian to English translation of this phrase. in Persian it is 'hamjens khakestar' which literally means "homologous to ash'. if of course homologous means made of the same material.


Why is "can" such an odd verb?

The English verb _can_ is very strange for several reasons:   * It drops the _to_ on any infinitive verb forms that follow it. That is, unlike in the verb _want_ in the sentence _I want **to** eat_, you would not include the infinitive _to_ marker in the sentence _I can eat_.   * _Can_ itself has no infinitive form. A construction like _I like to can understand foreign languages_ is not grammatical; you have to use the phrase _to be able_ , as in, _I like to be able to understand foreign languages_.   * _Can_ does not conjugate. Most verbs add an _s_ or _es_ when they have a third person singular subject, but _can_ does not.    * You cannot add tense modifiers to _can_. _I will can_ , _I canned_ , _I had canned_ and so on are all ungrammatical (unless you are talking about putting things in can). You have to use constructions like "I will be able to", "I could", "I had been able to", etc. All of the other languages I know anything about do not share any of these characteristics in their corresponding verbs. What are the historical reasons for why the verb _can_ behaves so oddly in English?


Can itself be used for a group of people?

Reading the following in Harry Potter 1 made me think if it was okay to use itself for more than one person. > One morning in mid-December, Hogwarts woke to find _itself_ covered in > several feet of snow. _Hogwarts_ refer to people associated with a place of the same name.


Term to describe “revenge through sexual intercourse”?

What term can be used to describe someone who, to take revenge on or extract payback for (perceived) past wrongs done them by their (unfaithful) romantic partner, goes off and has casual sex with someone other than their customary partner?


Why "he is known to me" instead of "he is known by me"

Why do we say _he is known to me_ instead of _he is known by me_? We know that the passive is formed by _by_. Then why is it not _he is known by me_? Actually I want to know the structure.


Antonyms of "meliorism"

What are the near antonyms of _meliorism_? I think the antonym will oppose the belief that the world can be made better by human effort. It can be a disbelief in efforts or humanity, despondency of some sort and likewise. Is there a word suitable as an antonym to _meliorism_?


"with submission"

> Hamilton quickly focused on the last part of his opponent’s argument as > support for his attempt to introduce evidence of the truthfulness of his > client’s publications. Hamilton offered the following brilliantly ironic > response: > >> Well, suppose it were so, and let us agree for once that truth is a greater sin than falsehood: Yet as the offenses are not equal, and as the punishment is arbitrary, that is, according as the judges in their discretion shall direct to be inflicted; is it not absolutely necessary that they should know whether the libel is true or false, that they may by that means be able to proportion the punishment? For would it not be a sad case if the judges, for want of a due information, should chance to give as severe a judgment against a man for writing or publishing a lie as for writing or publishing a truth? And yet this ( **with submission** ), as monstrous and ridiculous as it may seem to be, is the natural consequence of Mr. Attorney’s doctrine that truth makes a worse libel than falsehood, and must follow from his not proving our papers to be false, or not suffering us to prove them to be true. Woudl someone please explain and elucidate **with submission**? I guess its meaning to be the following, yet I still don't apprehend it: 2.2. [count noun] [ _Law_ ] A proposition or argument presented by counsel to a judge or jury. Source: P38, _America on Trial_ by Alan Dershowitz


"a due information"

> Hamilton quickly focused on the last part of his opponent’s argument as > support for his attempt to introduce evidence of the truthfulness of his > client’s publications. Hamilton offered the following brilliantly ironic > response: > >> Well, suppose it were so, and let us agree for once that truth is a greater sin than falsehood: Yet as the offenses are not equal, and as the punishment is arbitrary, that is, according as the judges in their discretion shall direct to be inflicted; is it not absolutely necessary that they should know whether the libel is true or false, that they may by that means be able to proportion the punishment? For would it not be a sad case if the judges, for want of **a due information** , should chance to give as severe a judgment against a man for writing or publishing a lie as for writing or publishing a truth? And yet this (with submission), as monstrous and ridiculous as it may seem to be, is the natural consequence of Mr. Attorney’s doctrine that truth makes a worse libel than falsehood, and must follow from his not proving our papers to be false, or not suffering us to prove them to be true. Woudl someone please explain and elucidate **a due information**? The indefinite article "a" confuses me. Without it, I'd hazard the meaning of **due** to be: 2\. adjective: [attributive] Of the proper quality or extent. Source: P38, _America on Trial_ by Alan Dershowitz


Distinctive vs Distinguishing

Is there a difference between the two words when used for saying “that which distinguishes (something) from others”? For example _… the distinctive patterns on the skin …_ or _… the distinguishing patterns on the skin …_ I somehow find distinctive more fitting here, or that might be because of my own bias as I have mostly read distinguishing with “achievements” and such words.


"My aunt is coming to dinner tomorrow" (grammar of 'to dinner')

> My aunt is coming to dinner tomorrow. The meaning is clear. However, if you think about it, what this seems to literally say is that the aunt is going directly to some dinner (and not even an article is used there). How would you explain such grammar? * * * I posted this question before on ELL StackExchange. However, I did not receive an answer that would prove the grammar aspects of this. The user Laure there told me that what is happening here is that some phrases, words, articles are simply omitted. However, I did not receive a proof of this and I would like to have you confirm this (if this is true, of course). Just to make sure. The user seemed to be the only one claiming this. If I see more people agreeing with it, I'll be more confident this is true. * * * **Edit:** After some discussions, I've now decided that the explicit question I should ask here is: > Why is there no article,' _the_ ' nor possessive pronoun/noun before the > singular noun ' _dinner_ '? Isn't there a grammar rule that tells us that singular nouns always have at least one of those? A popular example of such usage would be the phrase ' _Go to bed._ '


Comma or no comma before "too"?

Consider the following examples:   * "And it is a bottle, too."   * "And it is a bottle too." Is there a semantic difference between these two sentences? Or do they mean the same thing, with or without the comma before "too"? If not, what is the correct usage of the comma in context of "too"?


Proper Acronym Usage With Multiple Plurals

> Given that MOTU -> Master of the Universe - One master of one universe .   >  Would the following be correct? And if not, what _would_ be correct, and > how would I answer the plural-plural problem at the bottom? Again, I'm > looking for the multiple plural situation               MOTUs -> Masters of the Universe - Two masters of one universe        MOTUs -> Master of the Universes - One master of many universes        ????? -> Masters of the Universes - Two masters of many universes      The usage would be something like-               The MOTU has spoken- the master of the universe has spoken       The MOTUs have spoken- the masters of the universe have spoken       The MOTUs has spoken- the master of the universes has spoken       The ????? have spoken- the masters of the universes have spoken


Is it 'Close to the chest' or 'Close to the vest'?

Apologies if this is a duplicate, I am just curious. Are they both valid? Which originated first?


What are the most common tense mistakes made in English?

I'm an ESL teacher looking for display board ideas. A lot of my students say things that just can't be said in English. So far I have noticed the following sometimes written or said:               did gone      is do      What other verb forms are semantically incorrect? I'm not looking for repeats of the same mistake, though, just some common ones using common verbs.


Past tense of “to cast” in the programming sense

In programming, _to cast_ (also: _to typecast_ ) means to convert an object from one type to another (see Wikipedia). I'd like to know the correct past tense of _to cast_ in this sense. Is it _cast_ or _casted_? I'm aware that there is already a similar question: Can “casted” be the past tense of “cast”? However, that question has only one answer mentioning this particular usage of the word, and it doesn't quote any sources.


Idiomatic AmE term for "B&B"/"bed & breakfast"/"chambre d'hôte" and "table d'hôte"

Is there an idiomatic term or expression in modern day AmE for what in the UK is designated by the shared "B&B"/"bed & breakfast", and seemingly by the originally FrF expression "chambre d'hote" [an accommodation offered by an inn, hotel, or especially a private home, consisting of a room for the night, and breakfast for the next morning at an inclusive price, but also the hostelry itself]? Also, what do you Americans call what in FrF is referred to as "table d'hôte"?


Is "north to south" a more common set phrase than "south to north"?

Would you describe Japan as a long country "from south to north", or "from north to south"? I suspect that "from north to south" is more common, and Google ngram agrees, but is this is the case?


What do you call someone who's involved in a project (non-leading role)

We currently have two roles for our project, namely:   * project manager   * `someone who is involved', ie. regular worker/employee but I'm not really satisfied with worker. What do you usually call someone who works on a project within a team?


The meaning of "blue canoe" in the lyrics of "Where to Now, St. Peter" sung by Elton John

In his song _Where to Now, St. Peter_ , Sir Elton John sings: > I took myself a blue canoe,   >  And I floated like a leaf   >  Dazzling, dancing half enchanted   >  In my Merlin sleep. > > Crazy was the feeling   >  Restless were my eyes   >  Insane they took the paddles   >  My arms they paralysed. (Lyric written by Bernie Taupin. Available on the album _Tubleweed Connection_. See the whole lyric.) I found myself translating Elton's songs into Czech and I am curious about the meaning of "blue canoe". Here is what I have: According to my friend, "blue canoe" had been used by the soldiers of Confederation during the civil war in the USA meaning a "bullet". Now this would make some sense: > I took myself a blue canoe [I shot myself to death],   >  And I floated like a leaf [towards the afterlife]   >  Dazzling, dancing half enchanted [I shot myself badly / the wrong way, > dying hours in horrible pain]   >  In my Merlin sleep [in a sleep there is no waking from]. > > Crazy was the feeling   >  Restles were my eyes [this follows the scheme above]   >  Insane they took the paddles [my hands took the "paddles of the canoe" = > gun],   >  My arms they paralysed ["my paralysed hands", my hands fell down after the > gunshot]. I am a little skeptic about this interpretation. First of all, I find it improbable that Taupin would describe "dying hours in horrible pain" this way; it is neither touching nor fun. There are hands falling down after the gunshot, as well as "dancing in pain". The music Elton John composed to this lyric is far beyond psychedelic, further deepening my doubts. And, one more thing that does not match at all: > It took a sweet young foreign gun   >  This lazy life is short   >  Something for nothing always ending   >  With a bad report. Why would a gun be "sweet" or "young"? Now this could be allegorical expression of a "young soldier", but at the very beginning of the song, he claims himself to be the executor of whatever causes him to die. I have come with a different idea: "blue canoe" could be some elusive drug / poisonous substance, contained (for example) in the seeds or blossoms of a (tropical) flower that is blue in color. This would make sense to me: > I took myself a blue canoe [I have eaten a poisonous flower blue in color],   >  And I floated like a leaf [I have been disoriented]   >  Dazzling, dancing half enchanted [I could not control my body]   >  In my Merlin sleep [in a sleep there is no waking from] > > Crazy was the feeling   >  Restless were my eyes [kaleidoscopic vision or other vision distortion]   >  Insane they took the paddles [my insane hands took the drug]   >  My arms they paralysed [my hands, now paralysed]. This goes with the verse "It took a sweet young foreign gun" meaning fruits, seeds or blossoms of a flower that are blue in color and sweet in taste, that come from a foreign land he finds himself (fighting) and that are "young" meaning unripe, thus poisonous as it is typical for some flowers. Also, it goes well together with the Merlin; the association between Merlin and shooting myself to death is in my opinion much weaker than the association between Merlin and a poisonous substance, a "spell" that causes "my Merlin sleep". I have been looking "blue canoe" up in the Merriam-Webster On-line Dictionary without success, I failed to find it in my books, too. If anyone knows the meaning of "blue canoe", please do let me know. If you see any imperfection in the way I come to understand this, please do the same. I will be grateful for everyone's opinion on these two interpretations of the song.


"How to succeed at"

I just watched a news story that used the phrase "How to succeed _at_ university". I was under the impression that _at_ in this specific phrase has to be follow a verb. Is "How to succeed _at_ university" grammatically correct? If it is, then what is the difference between _at_ /*in* in this case? If there is none, which one is more desirable?


what's the meaning of "However touching may be an interest so tender" in this passage Authorities . . . will tell us: ‘What is at the bottom the goal of your efforts, the motive of your work, the object of your hopes? Is it not happiness? Well, this happiness, let us act, and we will give it to you.’ No, Gentlemen, we will not let you do it. **However touching may be an interest so tender** , we ask authority to remain within its bounds. That authority limits itself to being just; we will occupy ourselves about being happy


Word to express a building's potential to be guarded against a forced exit

I am looking for a word that expresses the idea of a prison being difficult to escape because of its physical construction, in a similar way that 'fortified' means a structure is difficult to attack from outside because of its physical construction. The context of this is something like, "The school building is more heavily guarded/fortified/etc. than the prison," but without the sense that there are actually people there guarding it or that existing architectural measures (like barricades, fence gates, security balcony with bulletproof shields at intervals, etc) are in active use. Rather, it is just constructed in a way that would make it easy to guard, or has such features.


Parallel structures when dealing with two items

Is there a need to make the sentence below parallel? > Whether you are looking for a place to leave items or want to manage your > inventory . . . I find that if it's converted to the more parallel structure below, the contrast between the two choices is lost. > Whether you're looking for a place to leave items or manage your inventory . > . . [Managing the inventory will happen at the place, so the sense of the sentence above is correct. This isn't the actual sentence I'm working with so it might not sound completely logical.]


"His words reached her nicely"

Someone told me I can't say, _someone's words reached someone else nicely_. For example: > "His/your words reached me nicely" Is that true?


What are the syllabification rules for English?

I am trying to break a word down into syllables and am not quite sure how to do it for English. Some problems I face:   1. The letter-to-sound rules are not one-to-one. As an example, notice that z"ea"l and "ee"l are different in orthography but map to the same sounds.    2. English has a large number of foreign words incorporated into it, which makes "sticking" to a certain set of rules all the more difficult.  So my question is:   1\. Are there any definite rules for breaking a word in English down into its constituent syllables (CV, CVV, CCV etc.?).   2\. What is the "gold-standard" (something used by a majority of the community) on this?


What tests are used in order to determine the number of syllables in a word?

> **Possible Duplicate:**   >  What are the syllabification rules for English? I would like to know what tests are used for determining how many syllables are in a word. Well, there are no tests, then how would people work out the number of syllables in a word?


Pluralizing a thing expressed by a quoted or hyphenated phrase, e.g. better-than-nothing or "better than nothing"

I found myself writing > And so, they went on amassing better-than-nothing's. because I wanted _better-than-nothing_ to be a kind of catchphrase, referred to in this form consistently throughout my writing. I imagined alternatives such as > And so, they went on amassing better-than-nothings. > > And so, they went on amassing _better-than-nothing_ s. > > And so, they went on amassing "better-than-nothings." > > And so, they went on amassing "better-than-nothing"s. I know the last example is clearly wrong, but, is the one that makes the most _sense_ to me: grouping the phrase and pluralizing that group. Is there a clearly _right_ way to do this? (I imagine not.) I'm interested in what's most natural to read ("idiomatic," I think is the word), and also interested in knowing what others have seen in similar instances. I'm afraid what's natural to _me_ may not be what's natural to most others. * * * I'm also curious how one would treat a similar but more awkward phrase, _better-than-expected_. > The vacation was full of better-than-expected's. (A bad example, off the top of my head.)


Is a snake's venom poisonous?

This is a question more concerning the word 'poisonous' and 'venomous' than poison vs. venom. I'm wondering about the following, specifically the last sentence:   * Don't eat the plant, it is poisonous.   * The plant has dripped poison onto you. Be careful, the liquid is poisonous.   * The snake is venomous.   * The snake has been milked to help us create an antidote. Be careful, the contents of the jar are poisonous (or should it be venomous?). Can you use poisonous and venomous to describe both the creature/plant AND the substance it produces?


Why does "to wire" mean to trick?

_A Collection of College Words & Customs_ written by Benjamin Homer Hall in 1856 defines a "wire" as a trick and I'm curious to know if it is of any relation to a magician using invisible wire to trick his audience? Any thoughts?


Why are there multiple prefixes for the same root word?

The root word I'm thinking of is comfort; two types of prefixes are applied to it, in the words _discomfort_ and _uncomfortable_. Why is this?


What is the subjunctive mood?

I had always understood the subjunctive mood to mean a hypothetical present tense. However, I think it might also imply that the hypothetical event is outside the realm of possibility. Is that necessarily the case?


Is "elder brother" implicit in "brother"?

I just watched a film called _Diary of a Wimpy Kid: Rodrick Rules_. I wonder how one knows whether he is an elder brother or a younger brother when he only says that he has a brother and does not specify? Does brother usually mean elder? I saw in the film; when the boy says he has a brother, the girl immediately knows the brother is older than him.


Looking for a technical term that goes hand in hand with the strategy used in the joke

Here's the joke:               Tom's Dad:(in Bill Gates's office) My son Tom wants to marry your daughter. Are you interested?          Bill: No, my daughter is still too young.          Tom's Dad: What if my son is a VP at Google?          Bill: Wow, that should be out of any question!          Tom's Dad:(in Larry Page's office) My son Tom is a talented young man. He wants to work for you as a VP at Google.          Larry: Too much talent here already.          Tom's Dad: What if he is Bill Gates's son-in-law?          Larry: Wow, we welcome him on board!      I was just looking for one joke to share in classroom, and this one caught my eye. Obviously, some business strategy is involved in this great piece. I'd like to expand a bit on the strategy in the classroom, but I can't come up with a technical term or some universally recognized term to introduce the strategy. I'm no business student, nor did I see the joke in a business context or textbook. It's really hard for me to think of one. Help! EDIT: It's NOT joke construction help. I just use this joke to describe the strategy (due to lack of a better one). I really like the "play X off against each other" answer, which however is not EXACTLY what I want. I am looking for an English expression (if any) which conveys the idea that I have nothing myself (am a nobody) and I employ other people's reputation or strength to achieve my own goal.


What is the origin and meaning of "coyote ugly"?

I overheard two scoundrels discussing one of their dates as being "coyote ugly".


Is it appropriate to omit "to" after "ought"?

Is it appropriate to omit _to_ after _ought_? > I ought to be disciplined for my insolence. Vs. > I ought be disciplined for my insolence. Is it okay to omit the _to_?


Word or term for an argument that is inherently true

What do you call an argument/position that is impossible to counter because it depends on undefined adjectives/adverbs? Examples: > Good websites are the ones that are effectively designed. > > Well managed businesses rarely go out of business. It's similar to _tautology_ , but I'm not sure that's correct.


grammatical use of "that"

I'm making a slogan for a website and I really would like to use the word "that" in it. example slogans               stuff that you would say cool          stuff that you would say amazing      are these slogans grammatically correct?


A is more near to B than C (is or does)?

Which of the following sentences is correct? > The approximate data values are much closer to the real data values than the > original ones **are**.   >  The approximate data values are much closer to the real data values than > the original ones **do**. Thanks!


Word for someone that pays more for the same thing?

Consider the following scenario: In a given store, there are two shirts available for sale, shirt (A) and shirt (B). Both are exactly the same, except shirt (B) is twice as the price. Is there a word for someone who is willing to pay the premium for (B) even though it's exactly the same as (A). I initially thought of the word over-priced, but that has more to do with the object itself. Can anyone suggest a word that describes a person who willingly pays more for the same quality, or the ACT of paying more for the same quality?


"in/as accompaniment to/of"

I would like to write the correct form of the following sentence: > He played the guitar in/as accompaniment to/of the choir's chant. Which is the most correct, and why?


"Postpone", "delay" and "defer"

I'm Russian and in the Russian language we use one word if we want to say that something will happen later than it has been planned. So usually I have difficulty in choosing a proper word among _postpone_ , _delay_ and _defer_. I understand they bear slightly different tinges of meaning but hitherto I have failed to catch this difference.


Is "project in hand" correct?

I am writing my MSc project report in English and I want to use the phrase > "the project in hand" as a title to a chapter where I will be introducing the project that was undertaken. Is such an expression correct in English, will it make sense to the examiner reading this or will it sound bad or even not make any sense at all?


How to avoid ambiguity when referring to a 24-hour period?

Suppose I want to refer to a 24-hour period (from midnight till midnight). The word "day" can in fact mean "24 hours" (as in here), however it's somewhat ambiguous. I believe that if I say something like "just wait a day", most people will understand it in a common meaning. I could also say "just wait 24 hours", but that sounds a little weird to me, about as much as saying "I want 127.5 grams of cheese, please" in a store. So how would a native speaker refer to the 24-hour period to avoid ambiguity (and being concise in the same time)? Maybe there is a fancy scientific word for it?


Regionalism or just bad English?

I've encountered a particular type of writing occasionally and it being, derp, in writing, it's hard to tell whether there's an accent behind it. The English used seems to me to be simply incorrect, but I can't help but feel that the following features are part of a dialect or a regional style of English. One of the most glaring (and grating) features is the substitution of "saw" with "seen". > He **seen** him at the shop the other day. > > I **seen** that you were looking for... > > etc. The use of "away (to)" is also peculiar, if not incorrect. > He was **away to** open the door when... > > He was **away to** get what he had asked for. > > etc. I haven't come across these forms very often, and even then it was accompanied by otherwise mostly correct English, which is what makes me wonder what the hell. This is more intellectual curiosity than anything else.


Savings and Costs Verb Treatment

So this has been bothering me for a while in the technical reports that I have been working on. I frequently come across these two sentences: The energy savings, ES, are estimated to be $100. and The total cost savings, TCS, are estimated to be $100. In both situations, "is" seems like it should be the verb and not "are". Furthermore, in the context of the the two example sentences above, the savings is a static number. Also, "is" sounds right when just using the abbreviations. When savings is used by itself I agree that the correct verb is "are" but when savings is part of a name that suggests to me that it will be have as a singular noun. Thanks.


Why are many TV personalities beginning to pronounce "daughter" as "dotter"?

I have noticed the changing of proununciations of words with _-au_ and _-aw_ by TV presenters which is spilling over into everyday speech. For example “dotter” for _daughter_ , “otto” for _auto_ , “jah” for _jaw_ , “cahfe” for _coffee_ , “don” for _dawn_ , “lahn” for _lawn_ , “wotter” for _water_. Are these pronunciations correct or are merely affectations in speech to sound more sophisticated or educated or possibly to distinguish themselves from having _New Yawk area_ accent? I was listening to a broadcast and the presenter said > Next we will hear from Don. The next segment was presented by a woman whose name was Dawn. Any insight will be appreciated.


Etymology of "here goes nothing"?

I was reading my child a manga story today and one character said, "here goes nothing." I hadn't heard that expression since I myself was a kid, and I always took it to mean "here goes my best try." Looking online, I found very little in terms of explaining the origin and meaning of this phrase. Perhaps one of you can enlighten me?


Struggling to understand headlines that use ellipsis

I have trouble understanding headlines because they abuse ellipsis. Two examples:   1. "Mitt Romney, Paul Ryan To Awkwardly Hug, High Five For Next Three Months"    2. "Scores Dead as Fire Sweeps Through Nightclub in Brazil" In both cases, I don't understand what is happening. What are Romney and Ryan doing for the next three months? What does high five have to do with it? Are they going to hug each other? Did they hug already? I thought The Onion, being a satirical newspaper, was trying to make the most unreadable headline possible to mock the way other papers usually write. But then I came across the example from NY Times and noticed journalists really write that way. Who or what is scoring dead? What does is it mean to "score dead"? I get the feeling the phrase is wrong and that it should be something like "Fire scores dead as it sweeps through nightclub". I try to read newspapers everyday and I've even checked the answers for a similar question before asking, but I still can't get used to the style of headlines. So, what do those two headlines mean? And what can I do to improve my reading ability in this specific area?


Are there words meaning “helping somebody to think different/freely/more widely”?

This is what my uncle does to me. I want write him a letter in English.


Which is correct: "of course" or "ofcourse"?

I have been using the term _ofcourse_ ever since kindergarten. However, I recently stumbled upon a site that claims _of course_ is how the term is correctly used and not _ofcourse_. I would like to seek the community's opinion about which is the correct usage of that term.


what does 'you may be subject to termination' mean

I am interpreting the meaning of a statement. > You may be subject to termination. _May be_ are the words that change it from a yes-or-no answer to one with variables. Am I correct?


What do you call words that are typed the same way on a phone keypad?

Words that are pronounced the same are _homophones_.   Words that are spelled the same are _homonyms_.   What do you call words that are typed the same way on a telephone keypad? (you have to watch out for them when typing text messages!) Example: _good_ and _home_ are both typed as 4663 using Predictive Text.


Meaning of 'That old rocking chair's going to get me'

In the Joni Mitchell song Stormy Weather, there's this line: > That old rocking chair's going to get me What does that mean? I suppose _that old rocking chair_ is a symbol of something, but what? Death? Something else?


When is "place" used as "home"?

Today, while chatting, I just made a sentence: > I want you at his place at 9. But I am not sure when to use _place_ with the meaning, _home_ , or _work place_? Is it correct usage? What will be the correct sentence instead?


"Favored" vs. "favorited"

We're making a website in which users can mark some objects as objects they like. Since we're not native English speakers here, a dispute evolved around what's the correct way to call this user-object relationship in the past tense: _favored_ or _favorited_. For example, should it be _Jack favored Jill's video_ or _Jack favorited Jill's video_? From googling, I suspect both forms are correct or at least commonly acceptable, but I'm wondering if one of them is more correct, if there's a slight semantic difference I'm missing or if you'd think one is more proper where the other is more colloquial.


Word for when people hallucinate because of emotions

Is there a word for when people(usually insane) hallucinate things based on their emotions. Kind of like Synaesthesia but emotion to sense rather than sense to sense. for example in "The Tell-Tale Heart" by Edgar Allan Poe the main character hands him self over to the police after he is driven mad by the sound of a man he killed's heart beating. And in "One Flew Over The Cuckoo's Nest" the narrator sees the size/strength of people based on how confident they are, so a timid person would be tiny and weak while a person who stands up to others would be huge. I've tried googling for the answer and can't find one so any answer would be great even if there is no such word thanks :)


Is it normal to use “do” as an intransitive verb for ‘change”?

I was interested in the expression, “Change does slow” in the following sentence of NPR’s article (January 3) titled “You can see it, but you’ll be a different person in 10 years: > “But that doesn’t mean they fully understand what’s still to come. “Their > estimates of how much they’ll change in the future are underestimates,” says > Danie Gilber (psychology researcher at Harvard Univ.). “They are going to > change more than they realize. **Change does slow** ; **it just doesn’t > slow** as much as we think it will.” Though I understand the meaning, I don’t think I’ve heard “Change does slow (fast)” very often. I thought Change occurs, happens, takes place, progresses, accelerates, goes on, but didn’t think of Change does (slow / fast). Is the use of ‘does’ in “Change does slow (fast)” a normal way of wording to mean the slowness / rapidness of the process of change?


Is ‘smart alec (aleck)’ a gender-neutral noun?

I happened to find the origin of the word, ‘smart alec (aleck / alick)’ as I was checking the spelling of the word in a dictionary. Merriam Webster English Dictionary defines ‘smart alec (aleck / alick)’ as: An obnoxiously conceited and self-assertive person with pretensions to smartness or cleverness. And its origin as; Aleck, nickname for Alexander First Known Use: 1865. Now that knowing ‘smart alec’ being a shortened form of ‘smart Alexander,’ I became a bit ill at ease, because I’ve used the word for both sex thus far without any reflection on its origin and gender. Is there a female counterpart to smart alec? Is it alright to use ‘smart alec (aleck / alick)’ as usual for both a man and a woman?


"Weeks of rain/raining"? "Weeks of fight/fighting"? Is there a rule to use the gerund in those examples?

It’s common and correct to use both _after two weeks of rain_ and _after two weeks of fighting_. But since _fight_ is also a noun, couldn’t it be used instead of _fighting_? Also, why _rain_ and not _raining_? Is there a rule of thumb to apply those or is it something you just have to “go with common sense” with?


"Went without saying"

it "went" without saying?   Does the phrase "went without saying" even exist? When is it more applicable than "goes without saying"?Even in past tense: "the show was hosted by a famous star, it went without saying that show was a hit" is less convincing than "it goes without saying". The former seems to indicate that no one at that time said anything about the show being hit but it was known to people (that it was hit). That doesn't make sense to me. Give relevant examples of "went without saying" in a sentence.


"In my career as" — is "as" correct here?

I have this fragment: > ... the experience and knowledge gained will be helpful in my career as a > neuropathologist. Is the "as" here okay? It somehow does not sound right to me. Obviously I want to say that it will be helpful to me, during my career in neuropathology.


Pronounce abreviation/acronym as word or based

If you have an abbreviation that reads like a word, should you pronounce it like the word it reads like, or the words it came from? For example, in the software development world there is a JAR (abbreviation of Java ARchive), and there is also a WAR (abbreviation of Web ARchive). In the first case people usually say jar as in a jam jar, but in the latter case some people say war (as in first world war), whereas I say war to rhyme with jar. I claim that I'm using the 'ar' from the start of 'archive'. Who is right? P.S. sorry if my terminology is all wrong.


Should capitals be used when verbing trademarks?

When using a trademark as a verb ("hoovering", "xeroxing", "photoshopping" and "googling"), should it be capitalized or uncapitalized? Strictly speaking, Google and Adobe are opposed to their trademarks being used as verbs or as generic trademarks, but that's a separate topic.


Is "learning yourself" the same as "learning by yourself"?

(Other than the first also meaning to learn about oneself...) Is _learning yourself_ the same as _learning by yourself_? How much do these two phrases differ? In India's spoken English, the former is used a lot. Is it grammatically correct at all?


Have I graduated from a master's course?

What is the correct phrasing to tell the people that I have successfully obtained a master's degree? I want to convey the idea that I have had all classes and defended my dissertation. BTW, is "defending the dissertation" a meaningful and correct phrase?


Whatever/everything/anything..how to find out?

I am desperate because I just cannot find the way how to know which one is correct. E.g.:   Do whatever/everything/anything you like.   Do your best whatever/everything/anything you do.   Stop doing whatever/everything/anything I do! I am particularly interested of explanation - I somehow feel what fits (usually)


Can I use "any" in this example?

I know "any" is used only in plural (questions or negation) or for uncountable nouns OR if it expresses "whichever"/"every. But what about this? _Is there any document describing that?_ //can I use it? I am not asking for one particular..I want to express that I need any document describing something


Expression "to arrive at a place with your hands hanging"

In Spanish language there is an expression " _llegar con las manos colgando_ ", that can be literally translated to something like: > If you are invited to a friend's party or social gathering, you need to > bring some food or drinks, you can't just show up "with your hands hanging" > (from your arms). This is to express that if you are not holding anything in your hands when your host greets you, then you are empty handed, so your hands are just hanging from your arms, which can be considered bad manners. Is there an equivalent expression in English, other than the generic being "empty-handed"?


What is the difference between the words concede, admit and accept?

In which situations is the word **concede** used, in which situations is the word **admit** used, and in which situations is the word **accept** used?


How is "apostrophe s" used here?

I heard someone on a TV show say: > What's it all mean? As far as I know, _'s_ could be the short form of _has_ and _is_. But in this case, it seems more like to be the short form of _does_. Am I correct?


How to describe the future in the past

I've always used _would_ as the past tense of _will_ : > **Present:** Tomorrow, I will go to the beach. > > **Past:** The following day, I would go to the beach. However, in response to my question on Writers.SE, Robusto pointed out that my use of _would_ creates an "an imperfect parallelism of tenses." What does this mean, and how do I correctly treat a statement about the future that is made in the past? (I think it means that _would_ could also be interpreted as a conditional, as in "I would go to the beach if the weather was nice," but isn't the intent clear from the context in which the sentence appears?) **EDIT** (in response to Robusto): Does the ambiguity introduced by _would_ disappear if I put my sentence in its context? > It took me nearly a decade to write this script, and now I would pitch it to > the top producer in Hollywood. But the following day, I got hit by a bus, > and my dreams came to an abrupt end.


What does the "work" part mean in the following English words: network, clockwork, etc?

I know several English words with "work" word as a second part: network, clockwork. Maybe someone can give more examples. They have some meanings in common - they are close to "machinery" or "system", but apart from that they seem very different. What were the historical reasons for producing such words?


What is the difference between "attribute" and "property"?

Could you please clear up the meaning of these two words for me? I don't understand this sentence: > **Attributes** introduced by RDFA have names. For example, **property** is > one such attribute.


Ascension and descent

Why is the opposite of 'ascension' still 'descent', and not 'descension'? (Reference. NB: fully aware the answer may be convention, as it is with many things in English.)


Is ‘Hit rewind’ an established idiom?

I found a phrase, ‘ _hit rewind’_ in the headline of the article of May 29 New York Times reporting that VHS cassettes that seem to be dead long ago are still surviving and widely used among immigrant communities in New York City. The article reads: “For movies, some immigrants still choosing to _hit rewind_. In this age of streaming movies online and Blu-ray Discs, immigrants' nostalgia and frugality, among other factors, combine to make sure that the bulky VHS cassette endures.” I assume ‘hit rewind’ means ‘to go back to an old thing and item (in nostalgia way),’ but am not sure of. I checked Oxford, Cambridge, and Merriam-Webster online dictionaries for confirmation. None of them registers ‘hit rewind’ as an idiom. Google Ngram shows that the phrase came up around 1980, and its usage is rapidly growing. So it seems to be a relatively new expression. What is the exact meaning of ‘hit rewind’? Is the words well-received as an idiom now in both U.S. and U.K.?


$ sign where did it originate?

This sign is a very interesting one. I do not know where it originated in. And why do we use it? How does $ sign relate to dollar? Does it mean money? Sometimes I've seen it with double lines striking through it.


How can I explain the difference between "thrifty" and "stingy"?

Both the words "thrifty" and "stingy" have obviously different meanings - for example, the fictional character Scrooge is stingy, while someone following a budget is thrifty. Both imply saving money; how could I explain to someone what the difference is between these words, say, in a single sentence?


When to use 'ourselves' vs. 'our self'

I wrote > when we place our self meaning _each one of us_ , his or her self -- and was told to use "ourselves" instead. Who is right?


"Build out" as business jargon

I have noticed an increase recently in use of the phrase "build out" when "build" would suffice. This seems to be mainly an American English phenomenon from what I can see. Here are some examples: Google... is also set to build out a network in Austin, Texas. and Technology services firm Data Stream has signed a 7,882 sq ft lease at the Chicago Board of Trade Building, where it plans to build out a data center. and This is a free series on how to build out a website using Wordpress What is the origin of this usage and why has it become so popular? Is it just meaningless jargon or is there some meaning behind it, i.e. is there a difference between building a website and building out a website?


Use of "up" in actions

I'm a brazilian native and I'm curious about the use of `up` in sentences. For instance:   * set up;   * grow up;   * get up; What's the real meaning/role of `up` in these phrases? I don't know if my perspective about the problem is different than yours - probably it is -, but it's difficult for me to understand this case of use. Can someone clarify this question/issue for me? Thanks in advance.


What's wrong with "within this week?"

If I want finish a task by the end of this week, is it correct to say "I want to finish it within this week?"


Meaning of "I kissed her for her mother"

I recently re-read E.J. Brady's Down in Honolulu, but this line has stuck out to me: > I kissed her for her mother,   >  I gev' her one, two, three;   >  I squoze her for her brother—   >  'T was all the same to me. I understand this is not standard English, but how I should read the phrases " _for her mother_ " and " _for her brother_ " in this context? It could be " _in honor of her cultural heritage_ ", but the other lines seem to contradict this; or am I missing something obvious? The author was Australian and this poem was written at the end of the 19th century, so perhaps this is a regionalism particular to his dialect.


you have confused me or you have got me confused?

You have confused me by staying quiet about it or you have got me confused by staying quiet about it? I know the latter is correct, but is the former sentence correct as well and convey the same thing?


Three times the second integer less 4

I am learning word problems for Quantitative reasoning GRE exams. English is not my first language and I wonder if the following expression is ambiguous in English: "Three times the second integer less 4" I interpreted that as 3(x-4), but the solution was 3x-4. Are there any conventions in English language? How do I know that "less 4" refers to the whole expression "three times the second integer" rather than to the expression "the second integer"? I have not had this problem in non-mathematical literature since the relations were possible to be derived from the context, but here it does not seem to be the case.