Wednesday, April 21, 2021

Recent Questions - English Language & Usage Stack Exchange

Recent Questions - English Language & Usage Stack Exchange

Excruciatingly Rare - In Use in USA

Posted: 21 Apr 2021 09:42 AM PDT

Reading a CNN article today I came across a quote containing the phrase excruciatingly rare.

"This complication from the vaccine is excruciatingly rare. Certainly more people are going to be killed by handgun in the United States than by these complications," agreed Crowther.

Seeing that it was quoted I did not worry too much about. The definition doesn't support such usage but I did have to run it through N-Grams to make sure it was a one off. It's not. It seems to be creeping into American English. Searching British English, I found 0 usages. Thank you GB.

Excruciatingly Rare N-Gram

Any idea how something like this happens. Is it spell check? Is there a rogue professor tampering with the primordial forces of nature?

In the field (field name) or in field (field name)?

Posted: 21 Apr 2021 09:17 AM PDT

When we describe a field on a screen, should we use "the" before the name of that field?

  1. Enter a value in the (field name) field.
    For example: Enter your name in the Name field.
    OR
  2. Enter a value in (field name) field.
    For example: Enter your name in Name field.

Is the version with "the" before the name of the field correct?

Try and/to do something

Posted: 21 Apr 2021 08:49 AM PDT

Page 54 of A Practical English Grammar reads

We often use and... instead of to after try / be sure. This is informal. I'll try and phone you tomorrow morning.

However, in page 299, it reads

To talk about making an experiment - doing something to see what will happen - we use try + -ing.

Aren't both statements at odds?enter image description here

What is a word for not liking a certain thing/place just because you have bad memories associated with it?

Posted: 21 Apr 2021 08:33 AM PDT

Is there a specific word for disliking such situations/places?

What is a word for when you understand and comprehend something but cannot do it?

Posted: 21 Apr 2021 08:31 AM PDT

Emily Dickinson understands all the concepts of poetry but cannot write all her thoughts.

unconventional vs. nonconventional (or non-conventional?)

Posted: 21 Apr 2021 08:02 AM PDT

Tried this: https://wikidiff.com/nonconventional/unconventional

But, yeah, that doesn't help me understand any subtle differences (or is it trying to say there are no differences?)

Spell-check doesn't like the un-hyphenated version, but, errrhm, it's spell-check.

A lot of dictionaries seem to like it un-hyphenated.

  1. Does 'nonconventional' need a hyphen? Is an hyphen an appropriate use option, or disparaged?

  2. What's the difference (if any) between unconventional and nonconventional?

A wide range or a wider range [closed]

Posted: 21 Apr 2021 05:54 AM PDT

In the following sentences, which one is correct and why?

A: You have to show a wide range of vocabulary in order to score well.

B: You have to show a wider range of vocabulary in order to score well.

Thanks in Advance.

If clause punctuation and word choice

Posted: 21 Apr 2021 03:45 AM PDT

I'm writing some documentation and was wondering if this sentence makes sense.

Return brand name, if provided, or brand set in profile, if none is provided.

What I'm trying to say is, if the brand name was provided, then just return it, and if not, get and return the one set in a user profile.

The 'if' clauses sound a bit weird and I wasn't sure of the punctuation as well.

I was also wondering if it should be 'and brand set...' or 'or brand set...'

I'm trying to keep it concise since it's a docstring for a Python function.

Do I say "Chris's being annoying" or do contractions not work in this scenario?

Posted: 21 Apr 2021 03:40 AM PDT

I'm just confused on how the "is" contraction would work on words that end in 's'

Phrase suggestion: How to describe someone's conscience AND Phrase suggestion for a vast open landscape [closed]

Posted: 21 Apr 2021 03:20 AM PDT

  1. I am writing a poem and am having difficulty with one of the stanzas. I am trying to describe the boy's state of conscience. I want to say that his conscience is not correct in this situation. Please provide a suggestion for how to reword this. This is what I have written:

Unbeknownst to the boy's conscience,

The men were not here to do good.

Their cheery smiles and deceiving looks,

Were about to ruin a childhood.

  1. I am struggling to think of a phrase to describe an open area. I initially thought of the phrase 'as far as one's eyes could see' or 'vast swathe of land', but it didn't really work in my ABCB rhyming scheme. Please provide a suggestion for how I could phrase this. This is what I have written:

All it took was a few short weeks,

Before the forest was all but debris.

From corner to corner, edge to edge,

There was not a plant you could see.

THANK YOU!!

Which is right past simple or past perfect for this sentence? [closed]

Posted: 21 Apr 2021 03:09 AM PDT

Which one is grammatically correct?

I was sick all week.

or

I had been sick for a week.

please explain?

can you give me other similar examples?

Meaning of "discriminatory disinterest" in this sentence

Posted: 21 Apr 2021 08:36 AM PDT

Whether motivated by outright prejudice or simple discriminatory disinterest, ...

This sentence-piece is taken from a text written on the illegalization of cannabis, stating that Mexican immigration was the reason cannabis was illegalized in the United States.

Given how discriminatory disinterest is being contrasted to outright prejudice, it would seem that discriminatory disinterest is a kind of discrimination not driven by emotional imperatives (like xenophobia, ideology, racism, etc.), but rather other motivations that simply happen to involve racial discrimination (if e.g. discriminating against Mexicans would somehow be economically favorable).

However, I don't quite see how discriminatory disinterest means that. Does the disinterest perhaps refer to the lack of actual interest in the actual race/ethnicity at hand?

Here's a link to the text it was taken from. You can find the sentence in the first paragraph of chapter 1: Rationale in the West: Class Legislation

Kindly identify the literary device in this line from the poem 'A Photograph'

Posted: 21 Apr 2021 02:57 AM PDT

Washed their terribly transient feet

In the above line we have alliteration that is clear.
Do we have a transferred epithet or synecdoche or both?

What is the opposite of Halo effect?

Posted: 21 Apr 2021 06:02 AM PDT

I'm looking for a word or idiom that is the opposite of Halo effect?

Halo effect (sometimes called the halo error) is the tendency for positive impressions of a person, company, brand or product in one area to positively influence one's opinion or feelings in other areas.Halo effect is "the name given to the phenomenon whereby evaluators tend to be influenced by their previous judgments of performance or personality. [Wikipedia]

So what word or expression would describe the tendency to overlook a person's pluses just because of their shortcomings in a certain area?

Looking for word that means speaking your mind freely

Posted: 21 Apr 2021 03:09 AM PDT

I heard this word used by Barack Obama to describe Joe Biden in his book A promised land. But I can't for the life of me remember it. It's a Latin-sounding word similar to, sesquipedalian.

Waves - against the ship - verb?

Posted: 21 Apr 2021 09:45 AM PDT

Not waves crash against the ship, as the waves are gently; but I can´t find the verb for it. Any ideas?

What do you call someone who is not materialistic?

Posted: 21 Apr 2021 08:41 AM PDT

By not materialistic I mean someone who just doesn't have interest in material things for the sake of the value it would give them from their possession, but rather acquires them for their functionality or simply because they like it for them. An example of getting something for for the type of materialistic reasons I'm talking about would be... A Fancy car not solely for the purpose as means to get from point A to B, or comfort or practicality, but rather to show off). Similar to getting a nice house or a phone or watch or anything material.

It's not "spiritual" because such person can NOT be spiritual. Nor is it "ascetic" because it's effortless and comes naturally. No desire of things beyond their practical usage.

There is no "discipline" involved. No if you let yourself go, and became lax, you'd fall back to materialism. The word I'm looking for would describe a person to be not materialistic by nature. Whether they let themselves go or not, it would be unnatural for them to be materialistic. No disciple required. Just no desire to attain material things as a tool to increase their self worth by way of using those goods to gain recognition.

As an anology, if they were offered a Rolls Royce or a 1989 Chevy Caprice (but they can't sell the car they choose or give it away), they'd choose the Chevy Caprice simply because they like it more.

What is the origin of the phrases "stairway to heaven" and "highway to hell"?

Posted: 21 Apr 2021 04:14 AM PDT

Where did these two phrases come from? Why stairway and highway?

My own research didn't turn up results on Google that traced the origins of the phrases. I can only speculate (as stated in the comments) that the "stairway to heaven" phrase may derive from Jacob's ladder in Genesis 28 of the Bible, and that "highway to hell" may have just meant "the main road to hell" more than a century ago. Wikipedia says that highway once may have meant "the main road", as modern highway systems, that differ from ancient roads, are 20th century constructions; and I can find the phrase "highway to hell" as far back as the 1600s.

What's a simile/noun used to describe something shaking violently?

Posted: 21 Apr 2021 05:13 AM PDT

I'm looking for a simile or noun that can be used to describe something shaking violently. For example, The room shook as hard as --insert thing that shakes violently--..

How do I use: "On the one hand - Sentence 1 -. On the other hand - Sentence 2 - . the consequence of the two paragraphs"?

Posted: 21 Apr 2021 06:12 AM PDT

I have three paragraphs A and B and C. The sentence C is the consequence of A, and B : How can I use "On the one hand" and "On the other hand" with that sentence !

Olden version of "psychopath"

Posted: 21 Apr 2021 03:06 AM PDT

Apparently, the term "psychopath" was coined in 1888, and at that point, it might not have even been used by the laypeople. So, I*m wondering about a word used for people that display psychopathic characteristics that was used in the 1850s. In the book im writing, the main character is from Birmingham, UK, so the word will have to have been common around those parts. The word can be of posh language or street language, either is fine because the main character is familiar with both sociolects.

If x....could happen

Posted: 21 Apr 2021 04:02 AM PDT

I have a question regarding "if" conditionals with could.

"If they see us, they could kill is."

"If they see us, we could start something between us."

They "could" mean "might", as in, the person is only stating is as a possibility, and not a guarantee if the condition becomes true?

How about: "I might go to the party if my mom lets me."

"I could go to the party if my mom lets me."

Do these convey a possibility, and not a guarantee (if the conditional becomes true).

Switching from have been to current tense in a sentence

Posted: 21 Apr 2021 08:08 AM PDT

While working on a project with a friend, we stumbled upon a grammatical problem.

These use cases have been modeled and help convey the game's primary gameplay.

I'm uncertain whether or not it's acceptable to switch between past tense "have been" to current tense "help."

I'm wondering if the following, would be better suited:

These use-cases have been modeled and have helped convey the game's primary gameplay.

My friend argues that the alternative I proposed doesn't clarify that the use-cases still convey the game's primary gameplay to this date.

Are both correct, or is one preferred over the other?

Why is the word "bread" pronounced "bred"?

Posted: 21 Apr 2021 08:12 AM PDT

Why does it have an A in the word if you don't pronounce it? It's pronounced with a short e (/ε/) and I want to know why. Why?

The Use of the Present Perfect. What is natural?

Posted: 21 Apr 2021 09:11 AM PDT

Sometimes, I got really confused by the use of the Present Perfect tense. Given the fact, that we don't have this structure in Russian, all we can is to base our knowledge on grammar rules.

The rules are quite simple:

  1. Experience: I have been to London twice.

  2. Unfinished actions: I have lived in Moscow since I was born.

  3. Close connection to the present situation: I have just cooked dinner.

However, when it comes to simple questions, all that grammar rules are not so obvious. For example, if I am not sure and want to re-ask, could I say something like

Have you meant? or Did you mean?

Another case:

I've sent you the letter and I sent you the letter.

Does the first mean that I have just done it and the second that it was some time ago? How do you use it?

A word or phrase that defines "Preconceived opinions based on experience or reason?"

Posted: 21 Apr 2021 08:14 AM PDT

If Prejudice is defined as Preconceived opinion not based on reason or experience. then what, if any, is the word that defines "Preconceived opinions that are based on experience or reason?"

Is there a single word to describe the loss of a sibling?

Posted: 21 Apr 2021 07:54 AM PDT

Is there a single word to describe the loss of a sibling?

Without a proper name it is hard for the grief to be acknowledged.
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