Thursday, September 23, 2021

Recent Questions - English Language & Usage Stack Exchange

Recent Questions - English Language & Usage Stack Exchange

Would "is" be considered a linking or transitive verb in this situation?

Posted: 23 Sep 2021 09:34 AM PDT

Suppose I had the following sentence:

The apple is on the tree.

"On the tree" is a prepositional phrase. Therefore, the verb is cannot be linking anything back to the subject (apple). Would the verb is still be a linking verb or would it be considered an intransitive verb?

My guess is it would be intransitive, but I am not entirely sure.

A term for the german word "Aufbruch" with some deeper meaning

Posted: 23 Sep 2021 09:10 AM PDT

I'm trying to translate appropriately the short bullet/header line "Der Aufbruch des Pilgers Ya-Nun" ("Ya-Nun" is a fictive person in a story of mine.)

Here I describe the moment, where a monk, who lived a long time in a conventional eremitage, one night got a completely new understanding, and felt, he has now "understood deeply", picks up all his things and started immediately as a wanderer, beginning a completely new course-of-life.

So I mean "Aufbruch" of course in the sense of begin of a travel, which by LEO.org might be translated by something like "break up", "departure", "decampment" or so, but all proposals from LEO do not sound with the right association/meaning-field as ending and old life and beginning a new one.

How could this be expressed with my intended "semantic color"?

As an alternative I could think of something like when a flower starts blossoming, opens it blossom, or if a butterfly has finished his embryonal evolution opens its wings (airfoils???) and starts to fly.

Gerund or participle causative

Posted: 23 Sep 2021 09:05 AM PDT

why is it : I need this explaining to me and not I need this explained to me. thank you

Within seven days

Posted: 23 Sep 2021 08:54 AM PDT

Do these 2 mean the same thing or do they contradict each other "within seven days of any scheduled on site shift" and " within the last seven (7) days of their next scheduled on site shift"? For example I'm not scheduled to work until nights of the 24th and scheduled for testing morning of the 25th. Which one does that apply to, the first, 2nd phrase, both, or neither?

Which one is more correct? "a plaintiff pro se" or "a pro se plaintiff"?

Posted: 23 Sep 2021 08:51 AM PDT

"Pro se" is Latin for "for self", or "for himself".

Therefore it makes more sense to me to use it in English as in "a plaintiff pro se".

However I have seen many cases in which "pro se" is used in English as an adjective, as in "a pro se plaintiff".

Which one is considered correct or more correct?

Meaning of "attended" [closed]

Posted: 23 Sep 2021 08:42 AM PDT

I found this sentence

Children are attended here, and they grow up knowing that there is an AFS here, so when they become adolescents they go to that office… it's like a chain.

May I ask that what does the phrase " Children are attended " mean? Does that mean the children are cared for or the children come to somewhere?

This is where I found the sentence

Determining the main verb in perfect tense

Posted: 23 Sep 2021 08:25 AM PDT

The boy has decided to run away from the terrifying dog.

Which is the main verb (run away - has - terrifying - decided)?

Is a copy vs are copies

Posted: 23 Sep 2021 08:02 AM PDT

I am attaching one copy of three different documents to an email. Do I say "Attached is a copy of the last 3 documents" or "Attached are copies of the last 3 documents?"

Is there a type of verb that is willed, apart from actions and states?

Posted: 23 Sep 2021 07:37 AM PDT

All verbs relate to movement, and action verbs describe the movement, while stative verbs often describe the experience of them, but is there type of verb that describes willed movement. For example, feeling is defined as touching as an action verb, and a sensation as a stative verb, but what is the conscious choice to feel something? If I were to say, "I feel you," does it mean I 'chose' to experience what you are experiencing or that I 'am' experiencing what you are experiencing. One is passive, the other is active...one is caused, the other one causes. I can add plenty of examples if you ask, but hopefully you understand my question and the significance thereof.

Strict separation of choice and structure

Posted: 23 Sep 2021 06:34 AM PDT

I am having difficulty in comprehending the below passage

Some social scientists, particularly those who are committed to individualism, like the strict separation of choice and structure found in game theory because it gives an active edge to choice. Individuals qua individuals are plainly doing something on this account, although how much will depend on what can be said about what is likely to happen in such interactions. Game theory promises to tell a great deal on this. By comparison other traditions of political philosophy work with models of human agents who seem more passive and whose contribution merges seamlessly with that of other social factors. Nevertheless the strict separation raises a difficulty regarding the origin of structures.

What is meant by structures here? What does game theory promise to tell us?

Seeming incorrect use of underestimate / over estimate in recent times [closed]

Posted: 23 Sep 2021 07:16 AM PDT

Over the last few months, I've noticed people speaking in (usually) news items (here in Australia) saying "can't underestimate" when I'm pretty sure they meant "can't overestimate" and vice versa. Is anyone else observing this? Is it a local (to Australia) phenomenon or more widespread?

I just Googled "can't underestimate meaning" and got: "Can't be underestimated meaning? What the reporter meant to say was 'can't be overestimated'. An easy way to get this right is to remember that the reason things can't be overestimated is because they are big/important, and the reason they can't be underestimated is because they are small/insignificant."

Which seems to bear out my observation. Thoughts?

What's the meaning of "He'll stay their wicked hand"

Posted: 23 Sep 2021 05:41 AM PDT

The song of The Last Rose of Cintra from the Netflix Witcher has the lines:

So seek ye now the White Wolf
He'll stay their wicked hand

What does it mean in the context of the song? I'm reading the meaning of the idiom but still not sure.
Do they mean that the witcher (White Wolf) will not be affected by madness of the "time of axe and sword"?

What's the meaning of "scrambled up"?

Posted: 23 Sep 2021 05:49 AM PDT

I read a letter in which one professor wrote that he was scrambled up a very steep learning curve to understand nature of his new work. If the professor was qualified for the new job why he scrambled up and was "scrambled up" right word to use above sentence?

I understand "scrambled up" as a attempt to reach quickly to something with panic or urgency.

Saying, proverb, phrase for the idea of Absurdity of concentrating on pointless, over-the-top pleasantries than subject that matters the most [duplicate]

Posted: 23 Sep 2021 05:20 AM PDT

We have newly appointed 75+ power-hog manager (old school but in pejorative sense), affected by second childhood and treated like a lame duck (too good to do anything productive).

He is infatuated by Emails (like an email junkie and usage of MS excel too) in the office for any thing and everything. Whenever any one send email to anyone with him in CC regarding any important decision and action to be taken, he erupts out of nowhere and instead of discussing the email content for its technicality, starts to appreciate the sender like the below example (1). This is with cc'ing Clients, Other departments and Vendors too who have no connection with your internal appreciation emails (who have even commented us and other staff members whenever they happen to meet us off-the-record about his quirkiness) to the point that it is become cringe worthy.

1.) Bizarre Email pleasantries are important than the subject matter (even if sending response may be the most important comeback required which should be the priority 1) that too with all other in CC (as much as outlook can allow). Worth mentioning is that this is not the first time this email are formulated. Staff members have been working on such task for past 12-15 years.

Eg: Write up in email as below

Email # 0 Staff member -to- Vendor XYZ: Looking to receive you assessment reports after conduction inspection on 23 Sept 2021 for LMN equipment. Email # 1 Manager -to- Staff member: Good job Email # 2 Staff member -to- Manager: Thank you sir Email # 3 Manager-to- Staff member: Welcome Email # 4 Manager: Keep it always your work style. Email # 5 Staff member: My pleasure sir Email # 6 Manager: (Sometime even) smiley emoji And it does not stop there...I have instance where it has more 6 to 10 such exchanges...

Why is this important is because it encourages a new bad culture in the office and around thus in the company,that as long as you keep exchanging emails with pleasantries or irrelevant stuffed emails, this kind of culture will be valued. Because he is treated a lame duck no one above bothers to reprimand him for what he does and this affects all the department equally.

I am looking a saying, proverb, phrase that succinctly fit

(1) that brings out the idea of absurdity of concentrating on pointless over-the-top pleasantries, one that is redundant, unnecessary, superfluous and are simply misplaced priorities

(thinking as though everyone in the email appreciates and thinks this is a enhancement to the work culture and so should be followed. Seems as if he has never been appreciated)

A or AN before a dollar amount preceded by dollar symbol $ [duplicate]

Posted: 23 Sep 2021 03:55 AM PDT

I have found related questions but my doubt remains and is best explained with an example. Consider the following sentence in a Finance academic article, where it is common to use the dollar symbol instead of the word "dollar":

A $12 midpoint followed by a $2 price revision should have the same consequences as a $18 midpoint...

I argue that the third indefinite article should in fact be an "AN", but my coauthor wants an "A". There is agreement about the first two usages of "A".

My argument: the way in which the last part of the sentence is read is "... same consequences as an eighteen dollars midpoint..." But of course it could also be read as *"... same consequences as a dollar eighteen midpoint...", which I personally find rather awkward.

Is there any guidance as to the best practice when a dollar amount is preceded by an indefinite article and a dollar symbol?

There is a question at this link on indefinite articles in front of symbols: What article do we use before a symbol? Is it "an @" or "a @"?. While it is a useful article, it does not address my question. Differently from that case, in my case it is not clear that the name of the symbol (what it represents) is read first. That's exactly the issue: if not read first, I should pick a or an depending on the number and not the symbol.

Thanks!

You (mustn't-needn't)get off the bus before it stops? [closed]

Posted: 23 Sep 2021 03:38 AM PDT

You need to advise someone in this letter , so I think you need to say :you mustn't get off the bus ,is it correct or not ?

Could somebody tell me the difference of the two expressions in this case? [closed]

Posted: 23 Sep 2021 01:18 AM PDT

Which sentence makes more sense ? :

"...which may guide them to discover" OR

"...which may guide them into discovering"

Thanks for the enlightenment.

What is someone who often addresses bad things about someone? [duplicate]

Posted: 23 Sep 2021 03:46 AM PDT

What is a word to describe someone who focuses on the bad parts of someone else and talks about it often.

Example: He's (insert word); He likes talking about every single mistake I make.

What does it mean if someone says "I'm good on something"?

Posted: 23 Sep 2021 03:05 AM PDT

In the movie "Vacation Friends", One person tries to give another one an edible moss. But that person (receiver) says "Nah, I'm good on tree pubes."

It's obvious what the moss looks like. But how can one "be good on" it? What does "I'm good on..." mean here? None of the customary definitions seem to fit.

Adverb clause of comparison

Posted: 22 Sep 2021 11:58 PM PDT

What is the subordinate clause in this sentence? Which is the main clause?

"The higher you ascend, the colder it becomes."

Are such sentence constructions acceptable?

Posted: 23 Sep 2021 08:47 AM PDT

The structure of the following sentence struck me as odd.

So large was his mouth that he could fit his entire fist inside—an antic that drew hysterical laughter at drinking bouts during the bloody and tumultuous years he ruled the dangerous streets of the Imperial Capital.

Are such constructions grammatically correct? I have always thought that in such sentences, in the place of the em dash (or sometimes a comma), an appropriate relative pronoun should be used (in this case 'which was').

If such an usage is acceptable, could the em dash be replaced with a comma?

Must summative and resumptive modifiers always correlate with a noun or noun phrase? Or can they restate/summarise a verb?

Posted: 23 Sep 2021 08:32 AM PDT

My question is relatively simple. Should a summative and resumptive modifier always relate back to a previously mentioned noun or noun phrase? We know that appositives rename a noun or noun phrase, so is the same true for these two? The examples given on this blog seem to imply so.

For context, here is an example of a summative modifier:

He saw the building, a desolate structure made of brick and cement.

And a resumptive modifier:

He saw the house, the house at the end of the street.

My reason for asking this is that I have written sentences like these ones before:

He whispered to her, an action that received an unwanted response.

He whispered to her, whispered soothingly.

Here, the summative modifier summarises a verb, and the resumptive modifier restates the verb. This doesn't fall into the same category as standard apposition.

What is a saying for "a bookish inexperience preaching the experienced"

Posted: 23 Sep 2021 07:17 AM PDT

Like Preaching to the choir means to speak for or against something to people who already agree with one's opinions.

What is saying when an idealist, bookish inexperience, fresh-out-of-college employee/group of employees (like a department) is/are put on the helm (and given enough power) and they start to preach the experienced, practical, seasoned employee/group of employees (the other department) about te following:

1.) the ideal procedures and protocols that should be followed like obsession with standardization (even if these procedures are redundant to subject matters) 2.) Bring in ideas that are new and fresh for inexperienced but the organization (experienced Departments) have been tested and failed before. 3.) Bring in Over the top ideas that are simply laughable if exchanged in business circles but are given serious time of the day.

when they themselves lack experience of how the market, the industry or the world works.

Note: If you are thinking how could this be happening, this might occur in combination of nepotism, cronyism and/or in Laissez-faire or seagull management style

These inexperienced department who have power over the others departments but have zero experience with the other department's work flow, still just because they have been given power they preach the more wiser departments.

Take advice vs follow advice

Posted: 23 Sep 2021 08:49 AM PDT

To take advice is usually defined as:

obtain information and guidance, typically from an expert.

Lexico

By this definition, there is no implication that the advice is actually followed. But can take advice also imply that the advice is actually followed, i.e., put into practice? Are there better expressions to differentiate obtaining information from putting it into practice?

What is the meaning of "initiations" in this context?

Posted: 23 Sep 2021 09:03 AM PDT

My own fears are the blackest, and at the prospect of losing my wonderful beloved brother out of the world in which, from as far back as in dimmest childhood, I have so yearningly always counted on him, I feel nothing but the abject weakness of grief and even terror; but I forgive myself "weakness"—my emergence from the long and grim ordeal of my own peculiarly dismal and trying illness isn't yet absolutely complete enough to make me wholly firm on my feet. But my slowly recuperative process goes on despite all shakes and shocks, while dear William's, in the full climax of his intrinsic powers and intellectual ambitions, meets this tragic, cruel arrest. However, dear Grace, I won't further wail to you in my nervous soreness and sorrow—still, in spite of so much revival, more or less under the shadow as I am of the miserable, damnable year that began for me last Christmas-time and for which I had been spoiling for two years before. I will only wait to see you—with all the tenderness of our long, unbroken friendship and all the host of our common initiations.

I wonder what does the bolded initiation mean in this context. Could it be a kind of ordeal?

This is from Henry James's letter and I put the link to the whole letter here.

What are the substitute verbs for the modal auxiliary verb 'may/might' when talking about possibility?

Posted: 23 Sep 2021 07:38 AM PDT

He can play. = He is able to play.

He cannot play. = He is unable to play.

He must not play. = He is forbidden to play. He is prohibited from playing.

He must play. = He is compelled/forced/obliged to play. He has to play.

He should play. = He is advised to play. or He is likely/expected/supposed to play. It is probable that he will.

He may play. = He is allowed to play. or He is ??? to play. It is possible that he will.

Is there an ordinary verb, an adjective, or a past participle, which can replace 'may/might' in a sentence that has a personal noun or pronoun, and not the preparatory 'it' as subject?

"Within a short time" vs "within a short period of time"

Posted: 22 Sep 2021 07:12 PM PDT

I am referring to sense 5 (time means period) of https://www.oxfordlearnersdictionaries.com/definition/english/time_1?q=time.

Is "Within a short time" equivalent to "within a short period of time" and are both equally idiomatic and have the same meaning? Given that time can be used in the sense of period, aren't phrase like 'time window/time frame/time period/period of time' a bit redundant?

Example sentences: "I do this within a short time" vs "I do this within a short period of time"

"one or other": correct or incorrect?

Posted: 23 Sep 2021 03:11 AM PDT

The following two sentences are taken from A comprehensive grammar of the English language by R. Quirk et al.:

  • "He saw one or other of the men."

  • "All of the compounds to be listed in this section are formed on one or other of the patterns already described."

And there are many more sentences in which "one or other" is used. Can it be considered correct? To my ears "one or other" doesn't seem grammatical. There's "one or another" or "one or the other".... But the above-mentioned one looks a bit strange.

"Blue sky thinking" phrase

Posted: 23 Sep 2021 04:43 AM PDT

Recently I was received mail and found there the blue sky thinking phrase as an agenda for the next company team meeting.

Quick googling does not bring any appropriate results.

What does the blue sky thinking mean?
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